Deceit of Angels (24 page)

“What! 
You’re staying the entire night?”

“Yes.”

“But
what happens if Ben or Mrs Wilby, or perish the thought, Mother sees you
leaving my room?  Aren’t you afraid of what they’ll say?”

“No,
to hell with them!”  She closed her eyes and sighed contentedly.

He
smiled and reached over to turn off the light.

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

I
t was the last day of their holiday and
Jason had insisted that they play another game of golf before their departure
back to Bishop Sutton.  He needed to discover just once and for all if he could
match Anna’s skill, although he had a suspicion that he couldn’t.  Anna ran
upstairs after breakfast to collect her jacket as the weather had changed yet
again.  There was no rain, but the wind had started up and the trees were already
swaying with its force.

Margaret
knocked on the door.  “Could I have a word with you, Anna dear.”  She stepped
into the room and Anna smiled.  Margaret seemed contrite.  “I know I’ve already
apologised to you…”  Anna started to say that another apology wasn’t necessary,
but Margaret held up her hand to silence her.  “No, let me finish.  I know
you’ve just started divorce proceedings, but when it’s all over, I want to give
you a fantastic wedding here at the Grange?  Did Jason tell you I’ve got a
licence to hold weddings?”

Anna
felt stunned at the offer.  “Oh Margaret, I’d love to get married here.  As
long as Jason thinks it’s OK.”

“I’m
sure he will.  He and Kiera got married in a short ceremony in Vancouver.  I
thought that this time we could do it a little better.  Have more of a
celebration.  As long as your mother doesn’t mind and besides we have plenty of
bedrooms for your family and any guests you invite from Yorkshire.”

“That
sounds lovely.”

“Oh
good.  Well, I’m glad that’s decided.  I wanted to make amends for the way I
treated you and if a lovely wedding eases the hurt I caused, then all is well.”

Anna
put her arms round her.  “Please don’t upset yourself over it!  It’s all
forgotten now.  I’m just so glad that I met Jason in the first place no matter
how it came about.”

Margaret
returned her hug and smiled happily.

Outside,
Anna told Jason about her conversation with his mother and what she had
suggested.

At
the conclusion he was beaming.  “I think it’s a wonderful idea to get married
at the Grange.  I was going to put the idea forward myself,” he said.

Anna
sighed.  “I have my divorce to get through first.”

“It
will pass.  Still, I see no reason why we can’t make a few plans of our own
while we’re waiting.”

“We
can’t set a wedding date.”

“No,
we can’t.  But let’s make a promise.  As soon as your decree nisi comes through
we set a date?”

“And
that’s about six weeks before the absolute?”

“Yes. 
We could be married two months after you’re divorced.  How does that sound?”

“Lovely!”

“How
would you like to go to Mauritius for our honeymoon?” He gave her a sidelong
glance.  “Or Blackpool if you wish?  I’ve heard you northerners love
Blackpool.”  She gave him a withering look for his impudence.  He quickly
changed the subject.  “Well, are you ready to be beaten into the ground?”

“Fat
chance!”  she answered, opening the car door.

He
gave a smile.  “No, I think today is my lucky day.”

“It
might be.  But not for playing golf!”

Jason
was just about to climb into the driver’s seat when Margaret came rushing out.

“Anna! 
Phone call for you,” she panted, her face red with the exertion.

“It’ll
be the boys,” said Anna.  “I bet they’ve organised a date when they can come
down.  Won’t be long.”  She closed the car door and hurried excitedly back into
the house.  Anna picked up the receiver lying on the small table.  “Hi there.”

There
was a short pause before the reply came.  “Anna, it’s me, Dave.”

Her
heart almost stopped beating with the shock.  “Dave?  How did you get this
number?”

“Your
mother gave it to me.”

She
felt as though she had been thumped in the stomach.  “Why did she do that?”

“Because
I asked for it.”

Anna
took in a breath.  She needed to speak to him, but now wasn’t a good time.  “In
a way I’m glad you phoned.  There’s lots for us to discuss, except that I’m
just on my way out, so would you mind if…”

He
interrupted sharply.  “Anna!  I’m sorry you haven’t got time to talk to me.  I
realise you have a busy life now, but at least let us get a few things sorted
out!”

“Yes,
of course.”

“Your
mother said you wanted a divorce?”

“Yes…Yes,
I do.  I need the name of your solicitor so that we can get started.”  

“Is
that really necessary?  Can’t we talk about it first?”

“I
don’t think there’s anything for us to talk about.”

“You’ve
made up your mind, then?”

“Yes,
I have.”

There
was silence at the other end and Anna wondered if he was still there.  “The
boys said you’re very happy in your new job.”

“I am
happy, Dave.  And I want a divorce and then I intend to stay down here.”

“Look,
I know I’ve not treated you well in the past, but going away like you did made
me do some soul searching.”

“It’s
a bit late after all these years.”

“Yes,
I realise that.  Although I don’t know why you left in the first place.  What
reason did you have?”

Anger
welled up inside her.  How dare he act all innocent.  “I told you in my
letter.  Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten that incident in the pub?  That
redheaded woman you seemed to be very friendly with.”

His
voice was husky.  “Woman with red hair?”

“Oh,
for goodness sake!  You were at the bar and you grabbed hold of her hand.”

She
heard him suck in a breath.  “Are you talking about Pam?”

“I
didn’t know who she was.”

“Bloody
hell, Anna!  She works in the office and that evening she was meeting a bloke
on a blind date.  She’d been going on about it all day, nervous as hell she
was.  I had no idea she was going to the same pub and I took her hand to give
her some moral support.  It meant nothing.”

Doubts
began to creep into Anna’s mind.  “Is that the truth, Dave?”

“Absolutely. 
I’ve been good as gold since before you did your college course.”

Anna
realised he was talking about the last time she had found him out when the boys
were twelve.  “I’m not sure I believe you.”

There
was silence again and Anna knew her husband was struggling with his feelings. 
Displaying his emotions was never his strong point.

“If
you’re really happy working down in Bristol, then there’s no reason why you
should give up your job.  I can easily find something in my line of work.  In
fact, I’ve been looking and I’ve already seen some good possibilities.  I could
sell this house and buy one down there.  We could start again.”

Anna
felt stunned.  “You’d come to live down here?”

“Yes,
if that’s what you wanted and it made you happy.  The boys will be going soon
so now is the ideal time.”

“But
I don’t understand.”  She drew on her strength.  “I heard that you phoned…my
employer and gave him a hard time.”

“I’m
sorry for that.  I bitterly regret it now.  It’s just that I thought you’d left
me for another man.  But I now realise you went to Bristol to start a new job
and that guy I talked to really was your boss, but I was too jealous and stupid
to listen to him.”  He gave a nervous laugh.  “He must have thought me a rude
bastard.  I’m glad he didn’t sack you.”

“He’s
very understanding,” she whispered.

“I
know I’ve never shown you much affection, but I do love you and I don’t want to
lose you.   Please, Anna, I miss you and I need you.  I know I can make you
happy if you just give me another chance.  Please don’t leave me.”

The
phone began to slip from her hand as the enormity of what he was saying and the
fact she had misunderstood the situation that had driven her from him.  The
room spun round and she felt sick

“I
can’t talk now.  I’ll ring later.”  She didn’t wait for his answer but put the
receiver down.

She
leaned on the wall trying to stem the tears that spilled onto her cheeks.

Anna
knew that she was too quiet as they drove towards the golf club.  Jason kept up
a happy conversation for most of the journey, but eventually he fell quiet
too. 

He
parked the car, but as she turned to get out, he caught her arm.  “Sweetheart,
everything is going to be OK.”

“Is
it?” she said brightly, trying to force a smile.

“Please
don’t worry if the boys can’t come down for a visit.  We can go up and see
them.”

Anna
licked her lips nervously.  “The boys can’t visit?”

He
smiled and nodded.  “You were on the phone quite a while so I guessed that all
the arrangements had fallen through.  But it’s not a problem.”

She
didn’t answer.

To
begin with, Jason felt elated that he was actually equalling Anna in his score
and then finally he past her.  But by the time they had reached the tenth
fairway he knew that she was completely off her stroke and he became worried.

“You’re
not playing at all well today,” he said kindly.  “That phone call really upset
you, didn’t it?”

Tears
stung her eyes and she brushed them away trying to focus on the ball.  But it
kept swimming in front of her as if she was looking through a huge raindrop. 
She gripped the iron tightly and tried to concentrate.  Playing golf was the
last thing she wanted to do, as tears finally trickled down her cheeks and she
let out a harrowing sob.

Jason
hurriedly crossed the green, took the club from her and put his arms round her,
alarmed at her sudden outburst of uncontrollable distress.  He waved to the
three men waiting their turn and pointed to the clubhouse.  Gathering up the
equipment, he guided Anna off the fairway and towards the building on the far
side of the course.

The
bar was virtually empty and it was easy finding a table in the corner, where
Jason made her sit down while he fetched them both a drink.  As she sipped
hers, he watched her.  Her expression was one he recognised, the one she had
had at Bishop Sutton, when she had been trying to keep her secret from him.  He
had forgotten that look, but the last week had changed them both completely and
they had found the kind of happiness that seemed too good to be true.  His
heart began to beat rapidly.  Had it been too good to be true?  Had something
happened to snatch it all away?

“I
think you’d better tell me what’s going on,” he said softly.  “It wasn’t your
sons on the phone, was it?”

She
shook her head.  “No, it was…my husband.”

Jason
blew out a breath and leaned forward in his chair.  He took her hand and
noticed it was her left one wearing the engagement ring.    

“Now
I understand.  You asked him for a divorce and he got nasty about it.  That was
bound to happen.  There’s going to be some animosity for a while.  But you’re
not alone, we can see this through together.”

Anna
took another sip of her drink.  “He wasn’t nasty.  Oh God, I wish he had been. 
If he had, then it would have made the situation easier.”

Jason
frowned.  “Now I don’t understand.”

She
took a big breath before explaining.  “He said things to me he’s never said in
all the years I’ve known him.  That he…loved me and that he didn’t want to lose
me.  He said…that he missed me and that he could…make me happy if I gave him
another chance.  He even talked of selling up and joining me in Bristol.”

He
absorbed this information before asking softly, “And what did you say to that?”

“I
didn’t know what to say.”

He
began to feel uncomfortable.  “Did you tell him why you wanted a divorce?”

“Yes…I
think so,” she said.  Her thoughts became confused.

“What
do you mean, you think so!  Anna, does he know about us?”

“I…I…don’t…”

Jason
broke away from her and sat back in his chair, staring at her, his eyes dark
with concealed anger and disappointment.  “He doesn’t know about us, does he?”

She
licked her lips nervously.  “I hadn’t the courage to tell him.  I should have,
but what he said knocked the wind out of me.”

Jason
thought for a moment and then sighed.  He sat forward again and put his hand on
her knee.  When he spoke his voice was reassuring but firm.  “You really must
face up to him.  I imagine he’ll be upset when he discovers about us and he’ll
probably feel jealousy and rage.  God knows I felt the same way when Kiera left
me for Peter.  But you mustn’t let him make you feel guilty, because that’s
what he’s trying to do.  Sweetheart, you have to insist on a divorce and not
give in to this emotional blackmail.”