by Anne Styles
'We must make some decisions, Sarah,' he said quietly. 'I have to sort out the paperwork here - get him registered and stuff. There are always reams of it in France. Do you have your passport, by any chance?'
'Oh, hell, no! Charles has it!'
Nick cursed. 'It may take more than a few days at Cap Ferrat, then! We certainly can't take him to the States without it. Maybe I can put him on mine, because he sure as hell is going to have my name, right from the start! But I'll have to organize a new one for you somehow.'
'George has all my paperwork, he'll do it if you ask him. After all, he'll be your brother-in-law soon.'
'If and when Diana divorces me!' he sighed. 'I want to marry you so much, Sarah Campbell!' 'To legitimize your son?' she teased. 'Just to please your mother? Shame on you. Nick! And I thought you were a big boy too!'
'Don't push your luck! Now get some rest while I go and do battle with the doctors and the registration people.' He scooped her up and tucked her into the bed, accompanied by giggles from Sarah.
'Will you do this every day, Nick?'
'Try and stop me!' 'Now, rest!'
CHAPTER 26
Diana smiled, and, stretching lazily, felt pleased that she had remembered to tan her legs as she watched Paul pour champagne. He looked really distinguished, she thought, in the silk dressing gown she had bought him, and at least he'd worn it to go down to the kitchen for glasses. She had always been embarrassed by Nick's casual habit of wandering around without any clothes on, even when Charlotte was about.
She loved Paul's comfortable body, though, and the delightful things it could do to hers. It had been a revelation to discover how good sex could be with a man who truly desired her, and now she couldn't get enough of him. He gave her undemanding, thoughtful loving such as she had never known, and Paul never seemed to mind the fastidious precautions she insisted on - unlike Nick, who had always railed against them. All that and now added to it the news that Paul had been offered a knighthood in the Birthday Honours. Finally things were really looking up.
'Lady Miller!' she mused happily.
'Sounds good, doesn't it?' Paul brought the glass to her. 'When, Diana?'
'When, I've managed to screw enough cash out of that bastard I'm married to!' she told him with a grin. 'He is getting to the point of giving in, I'm sure. I'm going to be a very rich divorcee, Paul, you just watch!'
'Angel, you'll have this house - isn't that enough?' Paul had always envied the Greys their beautiful Georgian farmhouse. He could hardly believe his luck in knowing he would finally be living in it. 'We really don't need Nick's money. A dean's salary is pretty good, you know.'
'Oh, no, Paul, the house is not half enough! We are going to live in style. Sir Paul, mark my words. Mmm . . . do that again!' Paul obliged, and pulled the sheet from around her and began his slow teasing of her breasts with his fingertips.
Diana loved it, and was just reaching to pull him closer when the phone rang.
'Leave it,' Paul urged, but she laughed and picked it up despite his protests. She was glad she had, and was grinning broadly when she finally put it down.
'That was Maxie - Maxie Moreton!' she announced. 'And oh, boy, did he have some news! It appears my about-to-be-ex-husband registered the birth of a son a few days ago! In the South of France, of all places, and he's now holed up at Cap Ferrat with the child's mother.'
'Madeleine? Madeleine wasn't pregnant; I'm sure of that!'
'Not Madeleine? Diana sat up and took a large mouthful of champagne. 'Remember all those rumours in the papers a few weeks ago about that little bitch Sarah Campbell being pregnant? Guess who the father is?'
'But he finished that months ago!' Paul stared at her, astonished that she could be so cheerful about it. Not so long ago she had been completely distraught about Nick's affair with Sarah Campbell. Mind you, that had been before he had decided to be truly bold and take her to bed - the day after Madeleine had walked out - he reminded himself smugly. He was delighted that she seemed to have completely changed her mind.
'Obviously not! The stupid fool has finally pushed me too far! I've waited years for this moment, ever since he first started playing around. Oh, goodness, I can just see him buried under nappies and toys! Serves him right! Nick loathes babies! I think I'll send him Charlotte and her grotty-moods for a week or two as well. That will really fix them! But he'll be desperate for a divorce now; the sky will be the limit financially, wait and see. At last I can take him for a fortune, and for that I think I can actually let my principles go hang. It might really be time I divorced him after all.'
'You've changed your mind?' Paul stared. Diana had seemed so determined not to divorce.
'You bet your sweet life I have! I never thought I'd say this, but I've finally had enough of Nick. Years ago I managed to palm Natasha off on Charles Hastings, and I married Nick because I knew he had talent and all the right connections. We all knew it. I got Daddy to back him at the right moment, and it worked! I did it all for Nick. But - now the time has come when I collect what I earned. The rotten bastard will have to pay for everything he's done to me over that bitch Sarah Campbell!'
'Hardly rotten, darling,' Paul pointed out. 'He has always been very generous, and he always seemed very fond of you.'
'When it suited him! He would never accept what I wanted in bed, though, as you always do. Mummy thinks he's a sex-maniac - the things he tried to make me do!' Mummy, thought Paul, wryly, was going to be put straight on a few-things fairly soon!
'So am I not allowed to make demands?' He raised enquiring eyebrows. He had already made love to her once that day.
Diana laughed. 'That's different! I could do it for ever with you!' Paul savoured the thought and took a swig from his glass before he leant over her. Give the man his due, he mused, the absent Nicholas had very good taste in champagne -and women, come to that.
'To us, darling,' he toasted. 'And success for the lawyers!'
* * *
For two weeks. Nick and Sarah lived in a blissful cocoon of happiness. Both desperately needed the respite that the sanctuary of Seth's home provided them with.
In the warmth of the Mediterranean sun they had the time to talk to each other, to walk in the spacious gardens and lie by the pool. They both took enormous pleasure in caring for their son, with the help of Isabelle, the young French nanny Miriam had found for them.
After only a few days Sarah had been astonished at the capable way Nick handled the tiny slippery baby in the bath, and he even changed the odd nappy, when she or Isabelle teased him into it - though he firmly drew the line at dirty ones!
Since he insisted that Sarah needed to rest. Nick did too, joining her in the huge canopied bed every afternoon for a couple of hours. Sometimes to sleep, often to lie in each other's arms and talk, and in doing so his own phenomenal energy began to resurface. In turn it gave him the strength to deal with the army of pressmen who, as they had dreaded, besieged the villa from the moment news of their presence leaked out.
'It's ridiculous!' Sarah protested, viewing the attendant hordes on the security monitors one day 'What on earth can they want with us?'
'Darling!' Nick laughed. 'Don't you realize what a furore you caused by disappearing?'
'Not really,' she admitted. 'I hardly saw a paper at Hastings.'
'Probably deliberate on Charlie's part,' Nick commented drily. 'And God help us when they find out about Sam - because they will! I still can't believe you managed to hide your pregnancy from them.'
'Clever clothes and a good figure!' Sarah grinned. 'I don't think even Mrs J. knew for certain!' Restless, Nick strode the terrace. Now he felt better he was feeling the strain of the restrictions placed on their movements.
'Sarah, I really should go and see Charlotte, before the Press get to her. I can't tell her about Sam over the phone.'
'No, of course you can't. Why don't you go to London to see her? I'll be fine. Miriam is here, and Isabelle.'
'I think it might be for the bes
t. I am worried sick about her, I admit. I could check on the office too, but I'll only be a day, I promise.' He was as good as his word, but he arrived back with a truculent Charlotte in the car with him. He had seen the press cuttings Jane had collected up and, knowing it was only a matter of time before things began to get really heavy, he'd taken the decision to whisk her away. The only surprise was that Diana had made no objection, and in fact had seemed to welcome his request, according to his lawyer.
'Lotte is terrified that I don't love her any more,' he told Sarah, wary of her reaction. 'I couldn't leave her - especially as her exams are finished. We have to try, darling, please?'
'Of course we must.' Sarah swallowed her fears. 'Poor child, it must have been a horrible shock.' 'It wasn't the best half-hour of my life,' Nick admitted, remembering how his daughter had sobbed out her fears in his arms.
'Don't worry. Nick,' Sarah said softly. 'We'll cope -together.'
Nick sighed as he reached for her. 'I'm so lucky to have you. Come on, let's show her Sam together, then.' Though she said very little, it was obvious that Charlotte was entranced with her baby brother. She continued to be wary of Sarah, however friendly Sarah was to her, but wisely Sarah never let her see that her coolness worried her. She maintained her serene attitude to the confused child thrust into their care and they began to hope things were beginning to turn the comer when Charlotte started spending hours with Isabelle in the nursery.
When Nick's presence was again needed in London and he offered to take Charlotte back with him, she refused.
'I'll stay here with Sarah and Sam,' she elected. 'Isabelle said I could bath him tomorrow.'
'No problem, then!' Nick smiled at Sarah later that evening. 'I'll try and be back in a day, but my solicitor tells me there are an awful lot of problems to deal with - it may be overnight.'
'Is Diana being difficult?'
Nick sighed. 'You could say that! I had no idea how complicated divorce was! I'm certainly not going to make a habit of it, you'll be glad to know! But don't worry, we'll sort it out as quickly as we can.'
'At least we've got the Press off our backs for a while,' Sarah comforted him.
'At a price!' They had both hated having to invite them in for a photocall, but on the advice of his own PR company Nick had bowed to the inevitable and allowed them to set it up. Charlotte, surprisingly, had been almost enthusiastic.
'The girls at school will probably fall about laughing,' she had complained. 'But at least they'll know that my dad is not like the dinosaurs their dads are - at least he still does it.'
'I'm so glad you approve!' Nick had hugged her. 'And I think your dad needs all the moral support you can give him.'
'Well in that case, Daddy, let me choose what you're going to wear!'
'Over my dead body!' Nick had retorted, laughing. 'Ripped jeans and T-shirts are not my style! My wardrobe is my own affair! Go and advise Sarah instead, you cheeky baggage!' Good-naturedly, Sarah had let Charlotte help her choose a dress from the dozens Nick had bought for her on an expedition to Monte Carlo, and had even let her do her hair for her. Both she and Nick had congratulated themselves on the easing of the atmosphere after that event, and Nick left for London in the early morning, confident that things would be easier from now on.
Sarah wasn't quite so sure, after a few hours of Charlotte's company, although at first Charlotte was happy to bath Sam and wheel him around the garden with Isabelle. Her discovery of the powerful sound system in the family room had led to several sharp rebukes from Nick in the past couple of weeks, but with him absent, and Miriam calling on a neighbour, she took full advantage and played her very individual CDs at top volume.
Struggling with her irritation, Sarah tried desperately to put herself in Charlotte's place and ignore it, but it proved incredibly difficult. Mild requests had very little effect, and she was almost at screaming point before Miriam came back and immediately turned the music off with a firm hand. She had known Charlotte for many years and her bloody-mindedness cut no ice with her.
'Lotte, I'm surprised at you!' she said quietly. 'You'll wake Sam up with that racket!'
Charlotte was unabashed. 'Sorry, Auntie Miriam. I didn't think,' she said breezily. 'I'll go for a swim.'
'We'll have lunch by the pool, then,' Miriam said. 'I'm going into Nice this afternoon, do you want to come? Your father will be on the five o'clock plane after all, we can pick him up.'
'No, I'll stay here and sunbathe, I think,' Charlotte replied, surprisingly, and strolled out to the pool.
'Thank goodness you came in,' Sarah said. 'I have to admit that a few more minutes and Nick would have come back to find her floating in the pool!' she confessed.
'Honey, don't try and be too nice to her! She has to learn,' Miriam protested. 'Let her know you won't tolerate that kind of thoughtlessness, for heaven's sake! I know what it's like -1 went through purgatory with Seth's kids. I know exactly what she's up to. Let her know where the limits are.' 'Miriam she's so young still.'
'And the little devil is playing on it! Nick won't allow it, he tells her and so should you. Stand up to her - believe me, it's the best way,' Miriam said. 'She already adores that babe, though at the moment she's shy of showing it to you both. She is coming round to the idea of you and Nick, I'm sure of it.'
'Oh, Miriam, I hope so - for Nick's sake,' Sarah sighed. 'I love him so much, and I know he loves me.'
'Yes, he does, and don't you forget it! I've never seen him so happy, Sarah, and it's all your doing. When he discovered you had dumped him, he was almost demented with grief.'
'He told me. Oh, Miriam, I wish I could come to the airport with you.'
'Hardly wise in the circumstances, is it? Cheer up, Sarah, he'll be back here by six, I promise.' 'Well, let's hope I can keep my hands off the little fiend till then!'
'Patience, honey, patience,' Miriam counselled wisely. 'Spend the afternoon resting, with earplugs in, if you can't bring yourself to discipline her!'
'I may have to! Oh-ho!' Sarah leapt up as a definite wail came from upstairs. 'Lunch-time for someone!'
* * *
Surprisingly, Charlotte was affable all afternoon, but she still seemed rather jumpy and was on the phone frequently. Sarah put it down to her looking forward to Nick coming back, as she was herself, and simply carried on with her normal routine - feeding Sam and playing with him for a while, before she went for the rest that Nick and the doctor still insisted on. It was still warm outside when she came down, and Charlotte was still spread out by the pool.
To hell with it, Sarah decided suddenly. A swim couldn't hurt her, she was sure. She had put on a swim-suit intending only to sunbathe a while, but it was almost a month since Sam had been born and her body felt back to normal. 'Coming in. Charlotte?' she asked, poised by the edge.
'Did Daddy say you could swim?' Charlotte drawled as she sat up, taking off her sunglasses to stare at Sarah 'Hey! You look great!'
'I've been lucky, I guess.' Sarah looked down at her body. 'I'm a dancer. Charlotte, and my muscle tone is still good - and despite your papa I have been exercising. Surprise, surprise, I don't do everything he tells me to do; there's no fun in that!'
Leaving Charlotte staring in amazement, she slid into the warm water and swam lazily up and down, until Charlotte finally gave in and joined her. They were actually laughing together when they climbed out and sprawled on the loungers having tea.
'Do you really love Daddy?' Charlotte demanded, after lying in silence for several minutes.
Sarah rolled over and met her eyes squarely. 'Yes, I do, Charlotte. I really am sorry if your mother has been hurt, darling, but . . . well, things haven't been that great between them for a long time.'
'It worked until you came along!' Charlotte retorted. 'And trapped him by getting pregnant!' 'Believe me. Charlotte, I never intended to get pregnant.' Sarah stood up and reached for her robe. 'I knew only too well what Nick felt about that. But he's happy about it now, you must be able to see that?'
>
'Oh, yeah! And Mummy has that creep Paul hanging around her! Cosy, isn't it? Daddy never liked him.'
'Charlotte, is it Paul that's bothering you?'
'Not me ... no, sir! I told you, everything is cosy. Now I'll have a stepfather, just like everyone else at school. Lucky me - an extra set of presents at Christmas!'
'Stop it. Charlotte!' Sarah was angry now. 'I'm not going to listen to self pity, and that's what it sounds like to me! Your father loves you dearly, probably even more than me, and that means he loves you a lot. I want us to be happy together because it means the world to him, and you are not going to spoil it, I won't let you, and that's an end to it!' Leaving Charlotte stunned at her outburst, she stalked off, trembling with fear at what she had done, praying Miriam had been right and that she hadn't made things worse.
She looked in on Sam, asleep in his nursery as Isabelle sat calmly knitting, then went to shower and dress.
Even the sight of her son didn't calm her quite as much as it usually did, since she was so worked up. He certainly seemed to look more like Nick every day, and he was growing at an amazing rate. Nick frequently laughed and demanded to know what on earth she was feeding him on to make him plump out so quickly.
Surprised by a sudden knock, she jumped, then called out cheerfully, hoping it would be Charlotte. It was a maid, telling her that there was a visitor in the drawing room with Mademoiselle. 'Who is it?' Sarah demanded, annoyed that one of Miriam's friends should arrive just as Nick was due home. They would have to stay downstairs and be sociable, when it was the last thing she wanted. Then she shook herself and told herself firmly not to be so selfish. They were, after all, Miriam's guests.
'I don't know, madame, but Mademoiselle seems to know him.'
'OK. Well, I'll be down in a second.' She pulled a brush through her barely dry hair and ran down to the drawing room. Easier to get it over with she thought, realizing from the fullness of her breasts that it was almost time to feed Sam. Normally he was yelling for his feed by quarter to six. Trust him to sleep on when she didn't want him to.
