Lacybourne Manor (28 page)

She felt him come up behind her
but she didn’t turn.

Instead of his voice being
angry as she expected it to be, it was soft when he asked, “What
are you doing?”

She was surprised at his
question and the curious tone behind it.

“Making bath salts. I have a
small business,” she answered.

He made no reply.

Then she felt his finger run
gently along the marks on her right arm and the skin tingled where
he touched it. Then she felt him move closer to her back.

She continued talking to her
salts; she’d completely filled the jars and was now screwing on
their lids. “Have you ever had an episode like that before?”

His reply was immediate.
“Never.”

She felt the word on her neck
and then, to her complete surprise, she felt his chin settle on her
shoulder as his arms slid around her belly.

She sucked in breath. It was a
moment so tender, so unlike anything she and Colin had ever shared,
Sibyl froze.

And in that moment, she knew
she should tell him everything but she decided there was the good
possibility that if she informed him that she thought she was a
latent witch, expunging magical powers through her dreams or
possibly her home (or both) and he was bewitched, he would think
(perhaps rightly) she was a screaming loon.

Furthermore, she didn’t want to
do anything that would make him pull away from her when he was
holding her like that.

Therefore, instead she
remarked, “You should see a doctor.”

This was true, he probably
should, but she knew in her core Western medicine would probably
not be able cure this ailment.

“I’m sorry I hurt you.” His
voice was warm and she felt a shiver pass through her not only due
to his tone but also due to the guilt she felt. “I don’t remember
it, not a moment, but that’s no excuse.”

It
was
an excuse, since
he had been possessed by some other being, but Sibyl couldn’t tell
him that. Therefore, she could do nothing but nod her head and
whisper, “It’s okay.”

His arms gave her a gentle
squeeze then he queried, “Did I say anything to you?”

At that, she shook her head and
lied, “I just knew, the minute you arrived, you weren’t you.” Then
she shrugged her shoulders as if to indicate it was a matter of
little importance.

“What did I say?”

“
Nothing that made
sense.” That was almost true. “Nothing important.” That was most
definitely
not
true.

“Why was I kissing you?”

She smiled to herself at the
memory of the kiss, a secret smile she hoped he couldn’t see.

She had broken a rule, she
knew, not blatantly but she still broke it. She had allowed another
man to touch her and kiss her, even though it was Colin, it was
also not.

She lied again on a whisper,
“You always kiss me.”

Colin was silent a moment
before he said softly, “If this was as unimportant as you wish me
to believe, why aren’t you looking at me?”

At his comment and the soft
accusation in his tone, she turned quickly and he loosened his arms
and lifted his head so she could do so. The minute she was facing
him, his arms tightened around her again, drawing her into his
warm, hard body. She lifted her eyes to his, he stared into hers
and must have seen something there because she felt his body
instantly relax.

There was something intensely
sweet about his reaction for she knew he was concerned. She worked
desperately to quell the even sweeter feelings this realisation
sent surging through her and managed it (just).

“I’m sorry about answering your
phone,” she told him. “I wasn’t thinking.”

His mouth came down and brushed
hers lightly but swiftly before his head lifted and he replied,
“Don’t worry, I can deal with my sister.”

As if on cue, his mobile began
to ring again. Instead of ignoring it, he pulled it out of his
pocket and glanced at the display. When he did, he sighed and
flipped it open. Without letting go of her, he put it to his
ear.

“Mum,” he said as greeting.

Sibyl’s body stiffened and in
response, his hand travelled up and began to stroke her back. This
was done without thinking, she could tell, a spontaneous reaction
to her tenseness and the thoughtfulness made her pull in her breath
to mask her reaction.

“Yes,” he answered some
question while she watched his face change expressions from wary to
exasperated before he shuttered it from her. “Yes,” he said again
then, “There is absolutely no need –” Then, the short conversation
apparently over, he flipped it shut again with a heavy sigh.

“I’ve caused a problem, haven’t
I?” she asked, feeling even more guilt.

She had no idea what was
happening with his family and she knew it was none of her business.
She also knew his sister had jumped to a conclusion about what
Sibyl was to Colin and now Colin had to find some tactful way to
explain.

“I’m going to have to go. My
mother and sister will be descending on Lacybourne. They’re leaving
within the hour.”

Sibyl felt a rush of gloom at
his leaving.

“My parents are coming next
week,” she blurted and had no idea why she felt compelled to tell
him a piece of information he already knew, except to prolong his
departure.

“I know.” His answer was
distracted, he’d already pulled away from her and she already
missed his arms. Then he tipped up her chin and kissed her but that
was distracted too.

She wanted to do all the things
a girl would normally do when her lover was going to spend his
first night away from her while both of them were in the same
town.

She wanted to give him a
kiss.

She wanted to ask him if she
could come with him.

But she did neither of these
because that was not what she was to him.

Instead, she walked to her roll
of labels to finish the jars.

He was watching her.

“How are you getting to
Heathrow?” he asked as if he’d just thought of it. “You can’t be
taking the MG.”

Even though it would have been
physically impossible for herself, her father, her mother and their
luggage to ride the two and a half hours back from Heathrow in the
MG (not to mention, the MG would never make the trek), his
statement was not exactly what the words said.

He said “can’t” he meant
“won’t”.

“Hire car,” she answered. “I
pick it up the night before.”

“Cancel it. I’ll arrange for a
car to come ‘round to get you.”

She felt her mouth part at this
announcement before she informed him, “I’ve already booked the
car.”

“Cancel it,” he repeated, still
distracted but clearly issuing a command.

She felt both irritation and
tenderness at his domineering. It was beginning to dawn on her that
many of his commands had something to do with her protection,
safety, convenience or comfort (but, of course, not all of
them).

“Colin, is that an order?” He
was watching her affix the labels, for some reason regarding this
act as if it was fascinating, but, at her voice saying his name,
his eyes came to hers.

“Yes,” he replied shortly.

She glared at him and then,
having no choice, nodded.

For some reason, this made him
grin.

And the grin was unlike any
grin he’d ever given her before.

It was a Royce-like grin,
teasing, playful, knowing and intimate. As if he found her amusing
and adorable. She felt her body instantly react and had to fight
against the overwhelming desire to throw herself across the room
into his arms and kiss him senseless.

But maybe he
was
Royce
again. Maybe, she thought with alarm, that Royce was
back.

Her head tilted to the side and
tentatively she called, “Colin?”

“Yes?” he answered.

A gush of relief spread through
her, then her body tensed again because it was Colin giving her
that grin, not Royce.

She didn’t know what to make of
that.

“Nothing,” she muttered and
continued writing on the labels.

He came forward and kissed her
shoulder in a gesture so intimate Sibyl had to steel herself
against it.

Maybe, she thought, there were
residual Royce-waves floating through him. This was not Colin,
nothing like him.

This was not arm’s length.

This was real, heady,
wonderful, couple-like stuff.

Maybe he felt guilty about
hurting her. That had to be it.

“I’ve got to go,” he said.

She nodded, wanting to be alone
to think about all of this.

At the same time wanting
to throw herself at him, beg him to spend the night and make love
to her.
Not
have sex with her but make love to
her.

“Sibyl.”

Her body jolted at his voice
then she turned her head to him. The look on his face was now
definitely the Colin she knew.

“I’ll take a good-bye kiss
now.”

Definitely the Colin she
knew.

She moved forward and gave him
what he demanded.

Regardless of the fact
that when she first met him he behaved like a deranged madman then
he had charmed her and she thought he was her dream man
then
he’d
bought her body, and she thought she hated him – despite all that,
despite how she knew it was very, very dangerous – she was
beginning to have feelings for him. Strong, wonderful, scary
feelings that were no good for her at all.

And because of that, when she
kissed him, she pressed her body to his and pulled him to her by
wrapping her arms around his sides and pressing hands between his
shoulder blades. Then she went up on her toes and kissed him with
all the strong, wonderful, scariness she felt. She opened her lips
under his and slid her tongue in to taste his beautiful mouth and
when she did, his arms swept around her, pulling her deeper into
him and, at the touch of her tongue against his, he took over her
good-bye kiss.

It wasn’t Royce’s beautiful
kiss, but it was a good-bye-for-now kiss that she would never, ever
forget.

As she stood, shaken and
trembling from the kiss, watching him walk with his masculine grace
back through her garden, she heard his mobile ring again.

* * * * *

Marian saw Colin walking toward
his car and would have been alarmed at his much-earlier-than-usual
exit had she not seen the look on his face.

Colin Morgan looked quite
content with the world.

He got in his Mercedes and
deftly manoeuvred down the lane.

Marian was about to follow when
she saw something out of the corner of her eye.

Marian was hiding in the wood
outside Sibyl’s house.

And so was someone else.

She stared, looking closely at
the place where she saw the movement and she stood stock-still.

It would not do
for
them
to see
her
.

Minutes passed but she saw
nothing else.

An evil shiver slid through
Marian’s body because she knew she was in the presence of the dark
soul that, in this time, crossed the lovers’ stars.

She had been planning to follow
Colin but she decided it was best to spend a little bit more time
watching over Sibyl.

Just to be certain everything
was all right.

Realisation

Colin Morgan had made up his
mind about Sibyl Godwin.

And when Colin made up his
mind, that was that.

For the last two weeks, she
resolutely kept herself guarded and distant from him.

She was not wheedling her way
into his life. She was not using her rather considerable feminine
wiles to force some avowal of feeling from him. She made no
demands, never dissolved in tears, didn’t ask to go back to
Lacybourne and never mentioned Beatrice or Royce.

She had her own life, her own
interests, her own business and a job somewhere for which she
obviously felt a great deal of passion.

She was not, he decided, a
scheming bitch like all the other women of his acquaintance.

She was just… Sibyl.

Colin had no idea why she
needed fifty thousand pounds but he knew she had not spent it on
herself.

She had not bought a new car
(which she definitely needed, how she could lecture him on fuel
economy and drive her petrol-guzzling wreck, he could not fathom,
though she referred to her MG as “recycling”).

She was not surrounded by bags
of new clothes. She didn’t wear expensive jewels. She always
dressed well (albeit often endearingly bohemian) but she clearly
did not have expensive tastes.

She didn’t drink too much and
he’d spent enough time with her to know she didn’t take drugs. She
was a resolute vegetarian and the first morning she’d presented him
with a breakfast bowl filled with a hideous concoction of organic
Wheatabix mixed with yogurt, honey and strawberries, he’d known she
was likely not the type to start drinking or taking drugs.

Her home was well-presented,
well-kept and sound and she needed nothing to fill it and did
nothing to it. He’d seen an open credit card statement and utility
bill and shamelessly looked at them, both were paid up fully and
current.

It seemed her only extravagance
was that she always kept expensive fresh flowers on her dining room
table this, he thought (correctly) was an unconscious show of love
to her father, but as lovely as they were, she was not spending
fifty thousand pounds on them.

She was definitely fit and
energetic, except in the mornings when she was quite hilariously
moody, and he couldn’t see that she had any ailment which needed
treatment.

He had no idea what she did
with her days but he knew she worked somewhere, somewhere that
meant a great deal to her. He’d discovered last night that she had
her own small business and the fact that she was still working
meant she hadn’t taken the money so she could quit and spend her
days shopping or doing whatever it was that women who didn’t work
did with their time.