Mia (4 page)

He
smiled back at her. “Makes life more interesting”, he replied with a mischievous grin as she sat down beside him, nibbling thoughtfully on her bottom lip.  “Look, let me make myself useful…There must be something I can do?”, she asked, her eyes beseeching him.

With a small
smile he shook his head. “No…Not unless you can translate Polish”, he said with a chuckle.  Mia looked at him quickly. “I can do that”, she replied brightly, making him look at her with surprise.  “Really?”, he asked, thinking her to be joking.  “And German, French, Italian and some Russian, Chinese and Japanese… And a few more I’m not so good at”, she answered, her face serious.  “How?…”, he asked in surprise.

“My degree was in
linguistics…and then when I was working for the charity in Africa, my main role was as translator…They get a lot of volunteers from all over the world, and sometimes there can be some communication problems…which is where I came in”  With a smile he handed her a sheet of paper, which she read over slowly before reading back the contents to him in English.

Paul
looked at her in wonder.  “Smart and beautiful”, he chuckled, making her flush gently, much to his surprise.  “I have to go down on site to sort out some problems; we seem to be having a few translation issues”, he grinned, “Care to join me?”  With a quick nod Mia smiled back, glad to be of some use to this man who had rescued her twice.  Looking at him she could not understand why her heart was beating so much quicker when he looked at her, especially when he had called her beautiful.  She had flushed like a child, surprised at the unfamiliar sensations which seemed to flood her body.

Half an hour later she once mo
re found herself seated in his Jaguar as they drove through the countryside together.  He handled the car well and looking sideways at him she marvelled at how sensual he looked, his body relaxed as he effortlessly controlled the powerful vehicle.  She found herself watching his hands on the wheel, idly wondering how those hands would feel on her body, once more feeling the rush of heat on her cheeks as she pushed the thoughts away.

“I spoke with Judge
McLeod today”  Mia looked at him quickly, her hands suddenly nervous in her lap.  “He has scheduled you to attend first thing on Monday, and Jim has got together all the paperwork to show the order was cancelled”, he said softly, looking quickly at her.  “So this should all be finished by Monday morning, in time to go for breakfast”, he grinned at her.

Rubbing her hand against her head she
smiled back at him.  “This will never go away”, she said gently.   “Not so long as I am here…I thought that maybe it would have all gone away after six years…but…” Her voice trailed off.  “You can’t run away forever Mia”, he said softly as she turned back to him, a hard look entering her eyes.  “Is that what you think Paul, that I ran away for my own sake?  I left because I couldn’t protect the people I cared about…Because they were the ones getting hurt”

There was silence for a few seconds before his hand
reached over to cover hers, causing her body to inexplicably jump.  “I’m sorry…”, he apologised softly, still aware of his hand on her she looked over at him, before giving a small sigh.  “No, I’m the one who should be sorry…You have been so wonderful to me, and I snap at you.  I really do appreciate everything Paul”

They
smiled gently at each other, as he smoothly manoeuvred the car around the corner into the building site, Mia now able to see the full extent of the work which was taking place, gasping in awe.  The hotel stood majestically against the English skyline, only a skeletoned outline of what it would eventually be, Mia struck with the sheer size of the project.  All around men in hard hats milled around the many pieces of machinery dotted around the site, the area buzzing with activity and noise.

Pulling up along
side other cars he handed her a hard hat to wear.  Flicking her eyes once more over him, she again thought how wonderful he looked in his jeans and black t-shirt which showed off his broad shoulders and the length of his back, a rush of desire flashing through her body.  Mia was at a loss to understand why she should be reacting in such an unfamiliar way to a man she had only just met, chastising herself at her saved damsel attitude, smiling wryly at this thought.

“We have a large contingency of
Polish workmen on the project, as well as local builders”  Paul’s voice broke through her thoughts before a loud voice interrupted him, silencing the tall man.  “Mia!!…Mia Drake!!”, she heard the cry from behind her.  Turning around not sure what to expect, she saw a face she had not seen in six years and with a sob rushed into the open arms of Bill Anderson.  He lifted her off her feet and kissed her fully on the lips before placing her gently back down onto the ground, his face scanning hers with wonder.  “Where have you been?…You just disappeared…”, he cried in excitement, his hands cupping her face to once again plant a kiss on her mouth.

S
he was laughing back, her eyes sparkling with joy at seeing him, the two grinning happily, so pleased to see the other, before her features became more sombre and sad.  “I had to go Bill…after what happened with…”  She seemed unable to say the name as he looked understandingly into her eyes.  “And then with my father”, she said softly, “It wasn’t safe for anybody around me…even you”

Paul James
watched the reunion with a cold knot in his stomach.  He felt the jealousy rise within him as he watched the younger man kiss her beautiful lips, instantly recognising Bill Anderson as one of his most talented foremen, a man he planned to use again, he was so impressed by him.

He
stood back listening and watching as she filled Bill in on all that had happened since her return.  He could see the shock and anger fill the young man’s face as she related the story of her arrest and subsequent rescue, seeing as Bill looked over, a thoughtful expression on his face.  He then moved over with her his voice full of genuine thanks.  “Paul…I don’t know how to thank you”, he said with real sincerity in his voice, seeing as Paul smiled back at him.  “You could make sure this build finishes on time”, he replied with a grin.

Bill Anderson
smiled back. “Well that I can do”, he nodded before giving a frustrated sigh. “We’re just waiting to find a Polish interpreter, because they can’t understand what we’re trying to do with the winch”, Bill explained, suddenly more business-like. “But I’ve got my people making calls to different agencies”  Mia giggled, flashing him a large smile. “Ah…I see”, quickly giving Paul an understanding look.

“Well I think he beat you to find
ing an interpreter”, she said with a chuckle.  Bill looked down on her, his boyishly handsome face smiling.  “So you did go to Uni to do languages then”, he said with a grin, laughing and giving her a quick hug as she nodded back at him.  “OK…Well it’s this way”, he said, Mia giving Paul a goodbye smile as Bill led her to a group of men who stood quietly together further down the building site.

As she approached them talking in their own
language, the workers became animated chatting fast and loudly at her.  Paul watched as she raised her arms laughing telling a joke which had the men laughing with her.  He was impressed at her ability to quickly handle a situation while maintaining a good rapport with everybody involved.  She quickly communicated Bill’s needs to the men and asked him the appropriate questions back, until both sides were smiling happily at each other, the men moving to carry out the required job.

“OK
Mia…thanks, don’t suppose you speak Russian?”, Bill asked hopefully.  Smiling broadly as she nodded her head eagerly.  Back at the entrance Paul moved to talk to the architect who had appeared, part of him wanting to follow Bill as he threw an arm around Mia’s shoulders, the younger man grinning as he led her to another part of the site. 

Mia
had been surprised to see Bill; she was unsure of how he would react to her, so worried that he might blame her for his sister’s death.  But his reaction caused a small lump within her throat, the first positive thing to have happened to her since she had come back, her eyes fleetingly flicking to Paul, correcting herself: the second. When they had been young Mia, Bill and Janey had been inseparable - they went everywhere together and the thought of his hatred towards her had been one of the many things which kept her away for so long.  Now he was smiling down on her so delighted to see her, and she had to swallow quickly to push down the small tear which arose.  When Bill kissed her it had been unexpected, and she had been so aware of Paul watching them, the taller man however not seeming to care, surprising herself with the small stabs of disappointment which coursed through her.

“So how are you doing Bill
?”, she was finally able to ask when they were alone, her eyes seeking his out, seeing as his jovial mask slipped as he became more serious looking back at her.  “I still can’t cope with what happened Mia”, he replied softly. “And I’ve never believed she killed herself…I just can’t prove anything”, his voice tinged with anger. “You were right to go…I think that you were in real danger here”, he continued holding her eyes, his full of real concern.  “It worries me that they seem determined to keep you here, especially as…”

H
is voice faltered slightly, a shadow crossing his face before carefully continuing, “Do you know about Lucas, Mia?” “What about him?”, she asked, her voice hard, Bill paused for a second.  “He was released two months ago”  Mia froze in complete shock, the words thumping into her as she felt herself physically start to shake, looking at Bill with complete disbelief.  “But…he was meant to be in jail for ten years”, she whispered, her voice suddenly shaky.

Bill
looked at her softly, seeing how pale she had grown. “Good behaviour and daddy pulling in favours”, he replied, his voice full of disgust.  Moving again she stared around herself, suddenly nervous, feeling the need to be close to Paul, her eyes scanning for the man who had rescued her twice, breathing a sigh of relief as they fell on the tall man, the sense of relief tangible.  After translating for the Russian carpenter she walked back with Bill to where Paul was talking with another man.  As she approached he looked at her with a questioning expression, seeing how nervous she had become, frowning at the change in her.

Mia
gave Bill a hug as he made sure he had her mobile number for any other emergencies, before moving off to continue his work.  She then stood back quietly while the other two men talked, her hands nervously clasped together while her eyes constantly scanned the area for any sign of the danger she now knew might lurk there. 

Paul
ended his conversation as quickly as possible, gently guiding her to the car before turning to ask her what happened. “What did Bill say to you?”, he asked, his expression grim, wondering how the young man had caused such a change in her.  Mia fought hard to control the tears which so badly wanted to fall and the sudden desire to throw herself into the safety of his arms.  “He told me that Lucas was out of jail”, she said quietly, her eyes dropping as her teeth savaged her lips, but not before she saw the look of surprise in his eyes.

“But I thought he was
…”, he began as she icily cut across him.  “Ten years…He only did six… Where is the justice?”, she cried angrily, her eyes glaring wildly into his.   “He destroyed Susan’s life… and mine”, she added, the last part hardly audible as the tears finally fell.  Paul reached for her as she gratefully fell against him, the feeling of safety enveloping her as she clung to him.

“I won’t let anything happen to you
Mia”, he said softly against her hair as she nodded.  “I know”, she whispered.  Holding her breath she looked deeply into the warmth of his eyes, hers falling to look at his mouth, hearing as he groaned softly.  Raising her eyes she could see as he was now looking at her mouth, his head moving closer towards her.  As his lips touched, she sighed gently, hers parting to deepen the kiss between them as his tongue explored her softness, caressing her tongue, causing such sweet sensations to run through Mia.  As he pulled his mouth from hers, his eyes saw how she blinked in confusion, his own full of apology and something more, something which sent shivers through her.  “I’m sorry”, he said huskily, “I shouldn’t have done that”

Mia
could not speak, her whole body wanting his lips back, not understanding the torrent of sensations running through her, before she sat back in the seat.  “It…It’s OK”, she said, her tone still surprised at the intensity of her desire to have him back against her.

Sitting back
, he fired up the car, suddenly feeling the need to be doing something else, his whole body aware of her sitting silently beside him.  “I’ll see what I can find out about Lucas Mathers”, he finally said, his tone determined.  Silence fell between them before looking sideways at her, he smiled, “You did a great job today - you really are a natural with people”  Mia returned his smile.  “Got plenty of practice in Africa”, she grinned.   “Some of those talks got really heated” 

“What are your plans
Mia?”, he asked softly, “When you leave on Monday I mean”  She shrugged her shoulders.  “I don’t know…Maybe go back to the charities…they always need good interpreters”, she replied absently. 

“Would you like a job
working for me?”, he asked casually, as she looked at him in surprise, her mouth opening and then closing, a haunted expression on her face.   “Think about it”, he added quickly before she could say anything, Mia falling silent as she stared unseeing at the green lush countryside passing them.