Just a Fan (39 page)

As we carried our suitcases into the stone-walled little garden and through the front door, I wondered aloud how such a remote place could be kept in such good condition.

'Oh, some people from the nearby village come and keep it runing,' Connor explained. 'When I'm gone for a long time, it sometimes gets rented out as a luxury holiday home. They've always called it the Willow Cottage, but I've never seen any willows around...' I smiled at this, then looked around myself.

The inside of the house was very cosy indeed, and even though it was so different from Connor's Manhattan penthouse, it had the same sense of modern luxury. In the main room there was an old but highly polished dining table, near a contemporary kitchenette which was around the corner, and on the left side of the room were two rich leather sofas before a flat-screen TV. I goggled at all this in awe.

'Doesn't anybody ever break in and run off with this stuff?' I asked, looking at the old, authentic wooden windows, which seemed easy to force open.

Connor just chuckled. 'Nobody really expects to find modern things in such a remote, traditional little house,' he replied. 'Besides, the only people for miles around live in the village, and none of them are really the thieving type.'

I nodded idly, still looking around. Seeing my gaze turning to the flight of stairs going up the side of the far wall, Connor took me by the arm and led me upstairs.

We came onto a tiny landing, lit by small windows and smelling comfortably of old wood. Through partially open doors, I could see a bathroom, a study room, and, to the right, a bedroom.

'This is where we'll be sleeping,' Connor told me, leading me in.

'Oh...'

Through one large window placed on the sloping roof, the golden glow of the late afternoon sun lit the room up, casting light upon the wooden floor and carefully made bed, which I went and sat down on. Connor sat down beside me.

'You know, in the mornings you can see Loch Torridon from the bathroom window,' he told me. 'And if we took the car further West, we'd be on the coast and we'd be able to see the Isle of Skye.'

'Wow,' I remarked, still under the spell of this beautiful place. Connor smiled too, his unruly charm seeming to truly belong here, with the wild glens and stormy lochs. In the idyllic golden light from the window, each thread of his dark jumper was illuminated, each lock of hair highlighted, each eye glittering magnificently. I could have stared at him for ever...'How long are we going to be staying here?' I asked vaguely.

Instantly the handsome smile faltered, and an almost...
guilty
look furrowed his brow. He gave a sigh, picking at his fingernails.

'I meant to tell you this last night, but I didn't want to spoil your happiness about seeing this place,' he told me in a low voice, his clear blue eyes turned down. He sighed again, then looked back up at me. 'The thing is, we can only stay here for a week - if you remember, I've been chosen for that role in the new Kurt Francis film, The Silent Island...'

'Oh...yes...' I replied, my heart sinking. How could I have forgotten that?

'I'm afraid it looks like we're going to be apart for a while again,' he told me heavily, eyes full of regret. 'The film's going into production in a week or two, so...'

'It doesn't matter,' I said with a brave smile. 'I can't have you
all
the time, can I?'

'You don't mind?' he asked.

I gave him a warm look. 'Of course I don't,' I replied. 'After all, this is your
career
...acting is what you're best at, so there's no reason why you shouldn't keep going.'

Connor smiled, then put an arm around me, resting my head against his chest. 'I never thought you'd take it so well...' he said in surprise, leaning down to give me a kiss.

'You're going to have to make it up to me, though,' I warned him jokingly between kisses.

'Yes, I suppose I am...' he replied thoughtfully, grinning widely. 'How about I start now?'

Up until recently, I had never really thought much about marriage, but when I had, I had always imagined being proposed to in a fancy restaurant, by a man in a smart suit with a ring box in his pocket. However, reality never really seemed to comply with my expectations...

Connor finally collapsed beside me in exhaustion, his brow and the smooth curves and dips of his toned upper body gleaming with perspiration. I lay there limp, my eyes still wide, staring up at the ceiling in a dizzy haze of bliss. I had to admire the stamina of this man - just as much as the effect he had on me. I knew it would take several minutes for my heart rate to calm down...

Unexpectedly, Connor sat up, the sheet tumbling to his firm waistline, and he pushed an errant, damp curl out of his eyes, which were dilated with an odd look.

'I love you, Lilly,' he told me earnestly, looking down at me.

I smiled joyfully. 'I love you too,' I replied in a dreamy voice, pulling him back down so that he lay propped on his elbow instead. I just wanted to curl up to his warm body and sleep beside him, the way I always liked to...

'No, but I really, really do love you,' he insisted. 'I've never been so close to someone for so long.'

Warmed by this, I smiled as he cupped my cheek gently in his hand, my eyes still closed.

'Marry me, Lilly.'

My eyes flew open, and I blinked once.

'What?'

'Marry me,' he repeated urgently. 'Marry me and I'll keep out of fights and steer clear of bad crowds - marry me and you'll never have to worry about me, no matter how long we're apart for,' he promised.

Not for the first time in my life, my thoughts had completely jammed. I had wondered if he would ever ask me the question - or, in this case, demand it - but now that he had surprised me with it so suddenly, I couldn't think of anything to say.

Connor became worried at my shocked silence. 'Look, Lilly - I wasn't ready either, but my dad had a word with me back at their place, and the more I'm with you the more I'm starting to realise he's right...I think I really would like to get married,' he told me.

I finally managed to speak.

'You...really want to get married to...
me
?' I whispered in a tiny voice, hardly daring to say it in case it somehow wasn't true.

'I can't imagine myself with anyone else,' he admitted to me truthfully. 'And we're already close enough to...make things official...'

My eyes grew round, and I gave a guilty, stunned little laugh.

'Imagine how many of your fans will want me dead if they find out we're married!' I giggled.

'No, don't say that, Lilly,' Connor chided me. 'All of the ones I've met are really sweet people...'

'Because they love you, that's why - but me...oooh, they're going to hate me so much!'

'You're not scared, are you?' he asked me, concerned at my too-happy tone.

'Terrified. But...very very happy at the same time.'

He looked at me anxiously. 'Will you think about it? I know I don't have a ring yet or anything to do it properly...I'm so sorry...'

'I
will
think about it,' I answered, and then he smiled softly, laying himself down.

He gave a rather lovely sigh, as if a huge weight had been taken off his shoulders -

'There.'

He frowned at me. 'What?'

'I've thought about it. And my answer is yes, yes, yes.'

Connor's eyes lit up magnificently, and he gave me a great grin. The look on his face was absolutely priceless. He laughed out loud in triumphant joy, and then wrestled me into a very tight hug. 'Ach, ye'll no' be disappointed!' he cheerily growled at me, crushed as I was against his firm bicep.

'I' sure I won' be,' I replied indistinctly. Finally releasing me, he gave me a great big kiss, stunning me, then said excitedly:

'I'm thinking it should be after the filming's finished for The Silent Island - we can have it here, at home, and then I can take you anywhere you'd like to go...'

'I can't believe this is happening...' I breathed, unable to stop grinning. 'It's odd to think of you as my husband one day...'

'And I'll need to get used to the idea of having a lovely wee wifie, too...' he replied, kissing the tip of my nose.

I hugged him, and then chuckled. He frowned.

'What?'

'Haha...I never would have thought you'd propose to me in the rik like this.'

Being organised, Connor already had the script for his new film with him, and so, once we had explored the grassy land and run down the green hills surrounding the house together, he began to rehearse his lines over and over and over. This film was rather bigger than the last one, and Connor was naturally the lead actor. I could hardly believe the sheer amount of lines he had to memorise, as well as the countless cues and actions he had to remember as well. From what I glimpsed from the script, this film was about a dishy Commodore who becomes shipwrecked on a deserted island...and it seemed like he had a lot to say, too.

'I'm going to be busy for a while, I think,' Connor agreed grimly, as he flicked through the fat sheaf of printed paper. 'Why don't you take a look around outside? You can take the car - you'll see a bit more that way.'

'The car?' I repeated in surprise. The only car I had ever driven was my old Renault, ages ago - I felt nervous about driving in Connor's glossy beast of a hired car.

'Aye,' he replied. 'The roads are mostly straight, and there's only the odd tourist or two around, so they're just about completely empty.'

'I don't know...' I hesitated.

'Go on! Go and have fun,' Connor encouraged me, so I had no choice but to go out and obey his wishes...

The car was surprisingly smooth, and very sensitive indeed. After a few minor mistakes, I learned just how little the accelerator needed to be pushed. Going down the track from the cottage to the road was a little nerve-wracking, but once on the even surface of the tarmac, I felt much more confident. I had never driven in the country before, and I was amazed at the freedom I felt. I was very glad indeed that I had let Connor convince me to take a drive...

The scenery was absolutely breathtaking; before me was a long, smooth stretch of empty road, that wound gently through a valley between rolling, rocky mountains covered in short coppery-green grass. Intricate little rows of fencing on the mountainside divided up the land on either side, and nearby I could see the stormy-blue waters of a small lake. Up ahead the sun broke through the layer of brooding clouds to cast long shafts of light down upon the ground. It was fully clear to me now why Connor loved this place so much...

As I drove happily past golden-brown marshes, I thought sympathetically of Connor back at the house reading through his lengthy scripts. Even though he didn't let it on, he had obviously fallen behind with his work during these past few weeks; normally I supposed he would be hard at work in New York, meeting up with important people to arrange the filming of his latest movie.