A Very Dishonest Scandal (The Hero Next Door Book 5)

by Rebecca King

  Rosemary met his gaze when he didn’t answer. The atmosphere between them became watchful, intimate. Something shifted in the air between them and became palpable, but Rosemary had no idea what to call it. It created a sense of anticipation and excitement. She tried to warn herself that she would be foolish to expect anything more from this man, but deep inside she wanted more. Rosemary wanted to be able to turn this house into a home, but for who she couldn’t quite be sure. It was wise to remind herself that this couldn’t possibly be her permanent home, but what he had just said hovered in the back of her mind. It hinted that it wasn’t impossible that she could have a life with him, in a house like this. The prospect of it hovered before her like a dream waiting to be fulfilled.

  ‘I don’t like people who bully others. When I saw what those women did to you yesterday, I knew that I had to do something to help you. But, when it came to leaving you, I just couldn’t. It isn’t altogether because of the Star Elite. This is personal, Rosemary,’ Luke whispered. He ran a hand through his hair. ‘I have to confess that I am not usually a man who takes foolish risks. My work with the Star Elite has taught me to be cautious and think about situations before entering them. I don’t usually make spur of the moment decisions about anyone or anything. However, I have also learnt that I must trust my gut. My gut has been telling me for a while that I need something outside of the Star Elite. A few of my colleagues have married, and settled down, and are extremely happy. While I had no woman in mind to make my wife, I made the spur of the moment decision to purchase this place in the hopes that one day I would find a wife to bring here; to share this house with me. I want it as a home, my home.’

  ‘Then that is what you should do. It strikes me that it isn’t a bad spur of the moment decision,’ Rosemary replied with a smile. ‘Like you have said, it just needs a few minor repairs here and there, a good paint, and a thorough clean. It will make a wonderful home.’ She hesitated because the way that Luke was looking at her warned her that he wanted to say something more.

  Luke contemplated just how much he was starting to dream about a future with her. If he was honest, it was alarming that he had already moved her and her father into his house, even before he had a chance to fix it himself, or stop to consider if it was a wise move or not. Now that they were here, though, he couldn’t just send them on their way again.

  I can use the time she is here to decide if there can be something more between us.

  ‘I will leave you to settle in. I have a few things to do, and will unpack the cart,’ he whispered. Contrarily, Luke stepped closer when he should have moved away.

  Rosemary’s heart began to pound because Luke was so close that she could see the tiny flecks of gold in his warm brown eyes. Luke swept a gentle thumb against a streak of soot on her cheek and showed it to her with a soft smile.

  ‘I am a state,’ she murmured ruefully.

  ‘You are beautiful,’ he assured her with a grin before eyeing the length of her. ‘Even covered in soot, having had little or no sleep, you are still beautiful.’

  ‘Oh, I don’t know about that.’ Rosemary muttered and began to ineffectually poke at her hair. ‘I look a fright.’

  Luke shook his head. ‘Do you think you can be happy here?’ he whispered. He knew that question hinted that he wanted her to become a permanent resident in the house, but the words were out before he could stop them.

  ‘I will enjoy my time here, I am sure of it,’ Rosemary replied. ‘Thank you for allowing us to stay.’

  ‘You are most welcome.’ Slowly, carefully, Luke eased his arms around her. He waited for her to object, but when she merely placed her hands on his shoulders, he lowered his head.

  The second his lips touched hers, Luke realised the severity of his mistake. They were in a secluded location, tucked away from prying eyes. Consequently, they were both free to be who they wanted to be, to do what they wanted to do, without fear of anybody discovering them. In the quiet of the sitting room there was just Luke and Rosemary, with no restrictions. They both faced the desire that had simmered beneath the surface from the second they had met. It flared to life and whirled around them, compelling them both to step closer. Luke’s arm’s tightened about her. Rosemary clung to him with desperate hands. Their lips challenged, battled, and mated. The need for more became the driving force behind the raw need that slowly became so fierce that Luke stepped forward again and again until Rosemary’s back was against the wall. Rosemary leaned against the solid surface because she was physically shaking. With the solid wall behind her, and Luke’s strength before her, she was safe, and free to indulge in the new, wonderful sensations coursing through her.

  ‘We must stop,’ Luke murmured several moments later, but then buried his lips into her neck. The warmth he found there was scented delicately with lemons. It was tempting to remain there for the rest of the morning, but Luke knew that the longer they stayed where they were the more chance there was of being caught. ‘God, I want you,’ he whispered.

  Rosemary shivered. When she felt Luke start to pull away, she tugged his head back down. He moaned and gave her what she wanted. Rosemary knew she was being bold, daring, and wanton, but revelled in her feminine freedom. It was startling that he was allowing her to be so bold, but also thrilling. So much so, she kept exploring even when she knew that she should put a more decorous distance between them. Luke didn’t help. He was doing tempting things to her neck that were addictive and made her tip her head to one side to allow him to do more. When his lips reached her ear, she turned her head and found them with unerring accuracy. Seconds later, she gave herself over to a mindless passion that was overwhelming.

  Their kisses might not have stopped at all had it not been for the slamming of the back door and her father calling ‘hello’. Luke lifted his head but only so he could rest his forehead against hers.

  ‘We need to talk about this,’ he whispered, more shaken than he had expected to be by what they had just shared. Deep inside, he felt as if something had clicked into place and inadvertently reaffirmed that he had made the right decision by bringing Rosemary to his house.

  At two and thirty, he had enjoyed his fair share of women, but none had ever stirred him as much as Rosemary had. He had never felt reluctant to leave any woman before, but he had to wrench himself away from her to take a few steps across the room so that when Thomas found them, he saw nothing more than them several feet apart, staring at each other. Luke shoved a hand through his hair that shook alarmingly. He needed a moment to try to think of something he could say but words failed him – and that was rare for him. Consequently, when Thomas appeared in the doorway of the sitting room, all Luke could do was stare blankly at him as if struggling to remember who he was.

  ‘The cart is empty now, so I am going to get changed,’ Thomas announced.

  ‘I think I had better get into a clean dress as well,’ Rosemary added, but didn’t move because she knew her knees weren’t going to hold her up if she tried to walk. She felt as if the world was still swirling around her. All the while she talked her eyes sought out Luke. He looked as bemused by what had happened as she was. The raw need that still thrummed through her was so strong she suspected that it was tangible, and she would be able to reach out and touch if she looked for it. But she daren’t. Moreover, she couldn’t bring herself to look at her father either. She felt sure that Thomas would be able to read what had happened on her face.

  ‘When you are ready, we will head back to the shop,’ Luke informed Thomas, who nodded and made his way upstairs to his new bed chamber.

  Rosemary and Luke looked at each other. Neither of them narrowed the distance between them but neither of them left the room either.

  ‘We have to talk, but I need some time to think about this,’ Luke murmured.

  ‘I am not sure what is going on,’ Rosemary admitted wryly.

  ‘So much has happened so very quickly.’ Luke shook his head in disbelief.

  ‘We – I – need time,’
Rosemary said even though she already knew that she wanted Luke.

  ‘Do you ever see yourself moving back to Oakley Bridge?’ Luke asked.

  ‘No, if I am honest, I don’t,’ Rosemary said. ‘I don’t think our relationships with any of the villagers can ever be repaired given how quickly they have been keen to judge and condemn us.’

  ‘Moving wouldn’t ordinarily be a bad thing then,’ Luke edged.

  ‘No. I had believed that moving was the very last thing I wanted, but after everything that has happened, and now that we are here, it isn’t bad,’ Rosemary replied. ‘It’s wonderful, really. I have to wonder why we have stuck it out in Oakley Bridge for as long as we have.’

  ‘We would have been better off moving as soon as the rumours started,’ Thomas added from his position on the stairs. He descended them to look at his daughter. ‘I am sorry to interrupt your conversation but having seen that workshop out there, I now realise how much I have missed. While we will lose some trade being out here; you know, people who just pop into the shop to get their watch repaired while they are passing, we will at least be safe here and will have a better quality of life.’

  ‘There is nothing to say that you couldn’t have a shop in another village, or in Mirsley Ford. Mirsley Ford is a bigger town and will have more trade than Oakley Bridge. You could keep a shop open and pay someone to manage it while you work in your workshop at home,’ Luke offered. ‘That way, you get the best of both worlds.’

  Rosemary’s brows lifted in astonishment when she saw her father nod. She didn’t want to question her father’s plans, or Luke’s for that matter, by pointing out to them both that their stay in the property could only be temporary, but it was worrying that there was an assumption that she would want to stay. It was alarming that both men were already planning on making their move to the house a permanent arrangement. That made what had just happened with Luke more concerning because it was slowly but steadily paving a way toward a future that she hadn’t planned on having, and still wasn’t all that sure about. Until now, marriage, running a home, and having children, had been something other women did. Life had never afforded her the luxury of being so blessed. Now, Luke was before her offering her everything she had ever dreamt of having in life. Although she knew she wanted Luke, she didn’t want to base her entire future on a spur of the moment decision, or other people’s expectations. But, with that came the worrying knowledge that life was fragile. What had just happened to her in Oakley Bridge had warned her that hers could be stolen from her at any given moment.

  Doesn’t that mean that I should make the most of every moment I have with him and damn the consequences?

  Rosemary knew that she should. She could only hope that her heart didn’t get broken while she was enjoying herself. The problem was, although she barely knew him, Rosemary suspected that she was already starting to fall a little bit in love with the handsome investigator with the Star Elite. What she didn’t want to happen was for Luke to want her to fill a gap in his life. He had brought the house because he wanted to settle down. He had then met her when she needed him the most.

  I want him to need me too, not just want me to fill the position as his wife because he decided that it was time to settle down.

  That left Rosemary with a whole different set of problems because she had no idea how she was going to get a man as strong and capable as Luke to need her and want her.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Later that morning, Thomas watched the door close behind another of his customers and heaved a sigh of relief. He knew that he wasn’t going to see them again but couldn’t be sorry about it. He wasn’t sorry to see the back of any of the locals who thought the worst of him.

  Before he could talk to Luke again, the bell above the shop door tinkled. Thomas looked regretfully at Luke because he wanted to spend more time with him. Having another man to talk to, someone whom Thomas felt understood him, had gone a considerably long way toward making him feel better about himself, his life, and his present situation. Luke was a good man; extremely intelligent, forthright, honest, dependable. His friends in the Star Elite were the same. There was a camaraderie between the Star Elite that was almost tangible. They understood each other, more importantly all of them understood him. The men from the Star Elite were respectful of him, his equipment, and the clocks he had in his workshop. All of them were curious, and had asked intelligent questions before listening patiently while he had said and even demonstrated.

  As the morning had passed, Thomas rather felt that he had become firm friends with Luke and his colleagues. Consequently, he had become less and less upset when each time a new customer entered the shop and asked for their watches and clocks back. Thomas had merely carried out the transactions without displaying anything of his emotions. He was relieved that everything had turned out the way it had because it meant that he was going to be forced to change – for both himself and Rosemary. All the things he had talked to his daughter about wanting over the years, or possibly moving to try to get, was suddenly right before him and he was glad for the chance to improve their lives.

  Maybe this will work out for the best after all.

  It was difficult to keep his positive attitude toward his bright new, completely unexpected, future though, when he saw who his next customer was. Thomas’s face remained stony when he looked at the man whom he had known all his life amble into the shop. Walter Crabtree ran an assessing gaze around the shop, as had everyone else who had called by that morning. They were curious about the state of the place after the fire yesterday and made no attempt to hide their interest in the property. What was awful was nobody bothered to ask if he and Rosemary were all right.

  ‘Good morning,’ Walter said somewhat awkwardly.

  Thomas nodded.

  ‘I wondered if my watch is ready.’

  Thomas opened the drawer at his knees. It was almost empty after the busy morning he had just had. Each customer who had left their watches with him over the last few weeks had returned to fetch their property. Thomas and the Star Elite knew that they had heard about the fire in the shop and were fetching their precious belongings to see if they had been ruined. Thomas removed Walter’s fob watch from the drawer and placed it onto the counter between them. Without saying a word, he unrolled it to show Walter his now highly polished fob watch.

  ‘How much do I owe you?’ Walter watched as Thomas placed a ticket onto the counter. He handed Thomas the requisite coins before muttering his thanks, gathering up his property, and turning to leave. At the door, though, Walter hesitated as if he had something on his mind.

  Thomas flicked him a disinterested look before retreating to his workshop. As far as he was concerned there was nothing Walter had to say that he was interested in hearing. Their friendship was over. After the last couple of weeks, Thomas had realised that he would never call the man anything more than an old acquaintance now, and he would be glad when he didn’t even have to call Walter that anymore.

  ‘Is that everything gone?’ Roger asked quietly when the shop door had closed.

  ‘There is just one more left.’

  Roger nodded. ‘Do you think you can start to pack up all the clocks yet?’

  Thomas pursed his lips. ‘I think that I would feel happier if that last watch were fetched first. I don’t doubt its owner will be here soon.’

  Because I think the owner is the one who is responsible for the fire.

  Thomas had no idea why he was reluctant to tell the Star Elite who he suspected had started the fire on his doorstep. Something made him want to keep his suspicions to himself for the time being, despite knowing that not just the Star Elite but the magistrate was working to find out who was targeting him. Thomas had no proof, and his sense of fairness prevented him from doubting anybody until he had evidence to support his theories because he was determined not to be like the villagers.

  Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said of the last fob watch’s owner, who appeared in the shop moments
after Walter had closed the door. Unlike the other customers who had cautiously entered the shop throughout the morning, and been polite if withdrawn and watchful, this last customer strode in boldly and glanced around with such scorn that Thomas stiffened. The man’s arrogance was evident in the haughty way he looked around the shop as if assessing whether being there was worth his time.

  ‘I am here for what is mine,’ Finley Morton announced.

  Thomas opened the drawer at his knees and placed a rolled piece of cloth on top of the counter. Without saying a word, he unrolled the cloth and watched Finley study his watch. Finley’s daughter, Samantha, was looking around the shop with as much spiteful contempt as her father. There was such an air of superiority about the pair of them that even the Star Elite tensed. Luke stood to one side of the room while Roger was on the other. Both knew immediately that neither Samantha nor her father were pleasant people. Consequently, Roger didn’t even acknowledge Finley when he stared at him, clearly expecting an introduction.

  Finley squinted at the fob watch. ‘That is not my watch,’ he announced bluntly.

  Thomas gasped. ‘I am afraid that it is.’ He flipped it over. ‘Look, it has your inscription on it: F.M. That’s the watch you left me to repair and clean. It’s been repaired and cleaned.’

  ‘It is not my watch, I tell you. The one I left with you had a casing that was elaborately engraved.’ Finley didn’t even bother to pick the watch up. ‘Give me my watch. The one I had was far more valuable than this.’

  ‘This is your watch,’ Thomas replied. ‘I think you should know, sir, that when customers such as yourself brings a watch in, it is immediately allocated a pouch and a ticket. See this? This was attached to your watch the day you brought it in. See? It has got the date on it.’ Thomas pointed to the ticket. ‘This ticket stays on your watch even when I am working on it. There is no possibility this fob watch could be swapped with someone else’s.’