Cinderella Substitute (2 page)

The Cinderella Substitute

by Nell Dixon

leather strap of her wristwatch. She had never seen Nate in anything other than the smart designer suits he wore for work. Nate and that miserable café were like chalk and cheese. Her brain began to race around, and she started to panic.

His inner radar must have detected her doubts.

"It'll be all right Jen." He sounded so sure that she couldn't help betraying her surprise.

"It just doesn't seem like the kind of venue that would entice someone to give up a hard-earned Saturday afternoon off," she said apologetically.

"It also doesn't seem like the kind of place you would be safe to go to and meet a stranger on your own." Nate's tone suggested he wasn't prepared to argue the matter any further.

They pulled up in one of the newly completed car parks outside the River Park shopping centre. The gleaming new building was almost finished. Retailers had already moved in, no doubt hoping to catch some of the Christmas trade. Minor glitches had delayed the final finish. Jenni knew Nate was determined to prevent any extension on the contract, which might cost the company money in time penalties.

Nate called the site foreman on his mobile to let him know they were there as they entered through the automatic doors.

The transformation that had taken place since their last visit amazed her. Mr Doughty, the foreman, came to meet them and took them to the problem area near the lifts. A bluff man in his fifties, he always managed to irritate Jenni whenever they met by referring to her as "the little lassie."

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A short tour of inspection and a flurry of phone calls later, Mr Doughty escorted them back to the entrance.

"I dare say you'll be glad to get back to your office today.

The little lassie looks a bit peaky," he said jovially.

Jenni shivered as they headed back to the car. Nate frowned at her, his face concerned.

"I think Mr Doughty has a point. You look awful, Jen."

"Well, thank you! You sure know how to make a girl feel good. I've told you I'm fine. It's just chilly out here after being inside."

Nate raised one dark eyebrow at her uncharacteristic outburst.

She pushed her glasses back onto the bridge of her nose and looked at him, daring him to contradict her. Nate was a nice guy but there were times when a few lessons in tact wouldn't go amiss.

"Okay, I'm not going to argue with you." He unlocked the car.

"It's almost lunchtime. Do you want me to get sandwiches?" She fastened her seatbelt, ready for the trip back to the office.

"And when did you last fetch yourself a sandwich?" he accused. "Now I come to think of it, I only ever see you drinking those disgusting packet soups."

Her cheeks heated with a guilty flush. The truth was she couldn't afford to buy lunch very often. Not because Nate didn't pay her well, he did. But it was cheaper to bring food from home while she struggled to pay off the debts incurred by her adoptive mother's illness.

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She noticed they weren't heading back towards the city.

"Where are we going?"

"To get lunch," he said shortly.

She did a rapid mental calculation of how much money she had in her purse. "I haven't enough money with me to buy out today!"

He threw her a look of amazement. "I'm buying. Consider it part of the payback. I think we both could use a break."

The road they ended up on narrowed into a single lane track. Bare twigs from the hedgerow brushed against the sides of the Range Rover as they made their way towards a white building up ahead. A thin plume of smoke wisped from the chimney into an ominous grey sky.

Jenni felt unusually nervous as Nate helped her down the high step of the Range Rover. She had been out for working lunches before with him, but there had been clients or other staff with them on those occasions.

The light pressure of his fingers on her gloved hand disturbed her senses making her tingle all over.

"Are you sure you're well, Jen?" He gave her a puzzled look.

"Fine." She found the lie tripped off her tongue, well aware he hadn't shared the sensation with her.

He led the way into the pub. The landlord called to him in recognition and Jenni guessed he'd visited many times before.

As she sat down and slipped off her coat and gloves, Nate ordered her a steaming mug of hot chocolate, which appeared with remarkable speed, along with his order for coffee.

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"I thought it would warm you up," he said, when she gave him a questioning glance. "It's much colder outside now and you look so pale today."

Jenni suppressed a sigh. That would teach her to skimp on make-up.

The menu arrived and she studied it with care. A hot meal would be wonderful. She'd eaten too many economy dinners over the last few months.

"Choose what you want, Jen." Blushing, she realised he'd misinterpreted her hesitation over ordering.

"I'd like the steak and kidney pudding, please."

He smiled at her in approval and asked for the same dish for himself.

She sipped her drink while she relished the warmth from the fire. The interior of the bar fascinated her and she gazed around with curiosity. She'd never been in many pubs. Her father had always condemned them as places of iniquity filled with loose women. A little frisson of guilty pleasure nibbled at her conscience.

"I come here with Rufus after I've walked him down by the river at weekends," Nate said.

She looked at the oak beams and the tasteful decorations surrounding the bar. A large Christmas tree twinkled in the corner and the scent of pine needles mingled with the wood smoke of the fire.

"It's nice," she said and meant it. It
was
nice, nice to escape for a little while and to sit somewhere warm and cosy.

It was nice to eat a lovely filling meal which had been cooked 15

The Cinderella Substitute

by Nell Dixon

for her and to have pleasant, congenial company while she did so.

"It's been a strange day today." She spoke without thinking. His expression altered and she added, "I mean, hearing from my birth mother. I wonder what she's like."

Jenni noticed him relax again and cursed herself for forgetting about the day's significance for Nate.

"Well, I guess we'll find out tomorrow." His dark blue eyes seared into her. "Just don't get your hopes up too high, Jen.

Remember, you don't know anything about her."

The meal arrived and saved her from answering. She
did
know about her, if her adoptive father was to be believed. He had certainly voiced his low opinion of her birth mother often enough—usually when pointing out Jenni's faults and comparing them to her unknown parent.

She shoved the memory away and began to eat. The pie was good, crisp light pastry with a tasty steak filling. She had forgotten how good it felt to go out. It had been such a long time since she'd had a date.
Not that this is a date,
she thought.

"I guess you were hungry after all then?" Intent on her food, she hadn't noticed how quickly she'd been eating until Nate's comment. Embarrassed, she realised her plate appeared almost empty whilst he had yet to eat over half of his food.

Flustered, she didn't know what to say. Social situations always had the effect of making her feel inadequate.

"Relax, Jen, I was teasing you." He smiled at her, obviously amused by her uncertainty.

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Hesitantly, she smiled back. "I suppose I was hungrier than I thought."

He looked so different when he smiled—younger, and the shadows under his eyes lifted a little.
What was she doing?

Nate was her boss, her friend.
When had she ever noticed
that he was good looking? With dark blue eyes framed by
long black lashes, high cheekbones and a very nicely shaped,
kissable...

Shocked by her thoughts, she called a halt right there.

Nate still loved Cerys and even if he were heart-free, she knew he wouldn't be interested in her.

Later on, feeling warmer and fuller, they emerged into the dull wintry afternoon.

"It's not worth going back to the office. We've put in enough extra hours there lately. I'll take you home."

She guessed it wasn't his real reason for not wanting to return to work. He had been late arriving this morning, and she had surmised from his strained expression that he had probably visited Cerys' grave first.

"Well, if you're sure. You're the boss!" If she were honest with herself, she didn't feel like returning to work any more than he did. She'd worked herself up with worries about meeting her mother.

"What time do you want me to pick you up tomorrow?" He took the turn towards the rundown residential area where Jenni lived.

"Um, I thought maybe one o'clock. I'd like to be there a bit early."

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He nodded a reply while negotiating the car through a narrow side street.

"Where along here do you live?" He'd never been to her area before. Whenever she worked late he always called a cab for her.

"Over there." She indicated the small parade of shop fronts with her gloved hand and he drew to a halt.

She could see him looking for her home. As she viewed the street through his eyes, the unwelcome heat of a defensive flush built in her cheeks. A bigger contrast to the beautiful regency building where Nate lived would be hard to find.

"So where is your flat?"

The shop fronts looked scruffy and neglected in the gloomy wintry light. A chip shop, an off license, a post office, a hairdresser's and the bait and tackle shop which catered for the local fishermen sat sulking before them.

"I live above the hairdresser's. There's my door, by the post box." She indicated a blue painted front door. 'I have a doorbell but I'll look out for your car," she added. It would be too embarrassing to have Nate come up to her tiny flat.

Nate gave her a curious look and she knew he had to be wondering why she lived in such a horrible place when he paid her a more than generous wage. Still, she didn't plan to stay there forever, it was just until her debts were cleared.

Then she could look for somewhere better and move on.

"Well, thanks again for lunch. It was really nice." She released the seatbelt and hoped he wasn't expecting to be asked in for a drink.

"My pleasure. I'll see you tomorrow, Jen."

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She knew he must be thinking her rude, but she simply couldn't bear to invite him into her shabby flat with its second-hand furniture. The permanent smell of old chips lingered from the takeaway despite her best efforts with potpourri and scented candles.

The cold wind hit her face as she climbed out of the car.

Nate leaned across to pull the door shut and she smelt the faint musky scent of his cologne.

"Get an early night and don't worry about tomorrow.

Everything will be fine, you'll see."

Jenni left the security of his presence behind and crossed the road. Alone once more, she could only hope he was right.

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CHAPTER TWO

Nate woke with a cry. His heart raced, and drops of sweat beaded his body. He looked at his watch. Three-thirty a.m. He groaned to himself and scrubbed his hands through his hair, hoping the action would rouse him enough to remove the remnants of his nightmare.

He slid out of the clammy cotton sheets and headed for the bathroom. Nate splashed his face with cool water to clear his head. The nightmare of the crash had been particularly vivid, even more than usual. It brought with it the now familiar feelings of guilt and loss.

He debated the idea of making himself a drink and returning to bed, but he knew he wasn't going to go back to sleep for a while. There was only one sure-fire method he had found to cope. He pulled on a dressing gown as he walked slowly downstairs to the study, switched on the computer and prepared to lose himself in his work.

* * * *

Jenni had spent a restless night. She had lain awake till the early hours of the morning as she tossed and turned on the narrow mattress of her single bed, unable to ignore the different scenarios of meeting her mother, which crept into her mind. What would her mother look like? How would she recognize her? Was she doing the right thing in allowing Nate to tag along?

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To her surprise the last question had robbed her of nearly as much sleep as any of the others.

She had always been aware of Nate attractiveness, but because of his past—and her own—she had never allowed it to impact on her. She couldn't change her mind now.

She shook her head at her fancifulness, and concentrated on the other key problem—how to recognize her mother.

Jenni knelt on the floor beside the bed and pulled out the battered grey metal box holding her most treasured possessions.

With a deep breath for courage, she pushed open the dented lid. Inside was her original birth certificate with the name her birth mother had given her—Chantelle.

Her adoptive father's voice rang in her head. "
What kind of
name was that to give a child? Of course we had to change it.

People would have got entirely the wrong impression. We
chose Jennifer, after my mother. Much more respectable."

She pushed the piece of paper carefully to one side and searched for the only photograph in her possession of the woman who had given birth to her. The indistinct blurry features smiled back at her, a woman younger than Jenni was now, dressed in the fashion of the day. Her mother, the woman who had called her Chantelle, and kept her for six months before giving her up for adoption.