by Joanna Neil
‘Oh, Craig…isn’t he beautiful? Can I hold him? He’s a boxer, isn’t he?’ Ruby was overcome with pleasure at the sight of the small animal. ‘How old is he? Is it all right for him to be out here with us?’
‘Yes, he’s a boxer, and of course you can hold him.’ Craig gently lowered the pup into her arms. ‘We’ve been breeding boxers at the kennels next door to the veterinary surgery. He’s twelve weeks old, so he’s been vaccinated, and it’s okay for him to be here. It’ll be good for him to meet up with people and dogs.’
Becky broke into an excited babble of chatter, her eyes growing wide, her arms moving to touch the puppy.
‘I’ll hold you,’ Sam said gently to her, ‘so that you can lightly pat him…all right?’ He looked at the infant as though expecting a response. ‘I’ll hold your arm, and together we’ll touch him ever so carefully. We don’t want to batter him, do we? He might not like it if you’re too heavy-handed.’ Again he watched the baby guardedly, and she looked back at him with a glance that said, ‘Can I touch him? I want to do it now…let me do it now.’
Ruby cradled the puppy in her arms, stroking him lightly and showing Becky his beautiful colouring. Becky’s fingers trailed over his silky fur.
He had a streak of white down the front of his face, a white chest, and the rest of him was a golden-brown colour…except for his socks. ‘Look,’ Ruby said in wonder, ‘he has four perfect white socks.’
She looked at Craig. ‘Oh, I’m done for now. I want him. I want to take him home with me. What have you done? I’ll be a lost soul without him.’
Craig chuckled. ‘And how would you cope with a puppy? You won’t be at home to look after him, will you?’
‘I could take him with me to work and sneak him into the treatment room. He’ll be perfectly all right there, and Sam won’t mind at all, will you, Sam?’
Sam’s eyes widened in amusement. ‘And how am I supposed to answer that? Why would you want to put me in the role of the evil one who denies the princess her dreams?’
‘Oh, but he’s so lovely,’ she murmured, nestling her cheek against the puppy’s silky head. ‘I’m wrecked now that I’ve seen him. I can’t bear to part with him.’
‘She’s broody,’ Sam told Craig, as though that explained everything. ‘You’d have thought looking after Becky would have put an end to all that, wouldn’t you?’
‘Who can tell with women?’ Craig answered. ‘I just knew she’d love to see him.’
‘You see,’ Sam said, looking at Ruby. ‘It’s all his fault. Blame it on him.’
‘No. I won’t. He did the right thing. He knew exactly how I would react.’ She gave a soft sigh, offering Becky the chance of one more stroke of the soft fur, and then she reluctantly handed the puppy back to Craig.
Craig stood up. ‘I have to go and judge the next category,’ he said, ‘so I’ll catch up with you folks later.’ He looked back at Sam. ‘You have a good crowd here today. It’s all going really well.’
Sam nodded. He let go of Becky’s arm and allowed her to settle back on the blanket. She began to rub her eyes.
‘It looks as though she’s ready for a nap,’ Ruby said. ‘Perhaps I should take her back to the house and settle her down for a while?’
‘That’s okay by me.’ Sam started to gather up their belongings. ‘We’ll have some lunch, and then I’ll show you the rest of the place.’
They walked back across the field, with Becky once more in the pushchair. When they reached the house, Sam showed her up to the bathroom where she could change the baby’s nappy and make her comfortable, ready for a sleep.
The bathroom was sparkling with glass fixtures and gold fittings, with ample room for Ruby to tend to the baby. There was even a chair where she could sit and rock her in her arms when she was done.
‘Will she be all right in the pushchair?’ Sam asked, coming to find her a while later. ‘I could probably find her a crib of some sort if need be.’
‘She’ll be fine in the pushchair. I’ll settle her down in the dining room if I may. I brought the baby monitor with me, so I’ll be able to listen out for her.’
He nodded. ‘That sounds like a good idea. We’ll help ourselves to something to eat in the kitchen, and then I’ll show you around the rest of the house and gardens.’
They had a leisurely lunch, enjoying the appetising food that Sarah had laid out, and washing it down with a bottle of light, sparkling wine. Ruby felt comfortably replete and leaned back in her chair to gaze around her.
‘I can’t imagine how it must feel to come back here every day,’ she said in a musing tone. ‘I suppose you can completely relax, knowing that you have all these people to see to everything for you. I don’t know how your parents can bear to stay away.’
‘They’re very busy with all their international concerns,’ Sam said. ‘They have a house in Switzerland, which is where they stay most of the time, and there’s a smaller house in the Lake District near to one of their companies.’
‘Are they planning on coming home any time soon?’
He nodded. ‘They’ll probably be coming back in a couple of weeks. I doubt they’ll stay for long, maybe three weeks here and another three in Scotland, and then they’ll be home for Christmas and New Year. They seem to like that lifestyle.’
‘Hmm.’ She frowned. ‘I don’t think it would suit me at all.’
‘No, but then you’re a home-loving kind of woman, aren’t you?’ He stood up and came around the table, holding out a hand to her. ‘Let me show you around.’
She placed her palm in his, and he helped her to her feet. They went upstairs, and as he showed her all the rooms she’d missed, he draped an arm lightly around her shoulders. ‘It’s mostly bedrooms up here, and bathrooms, but there are also a couple more studies, and then there are the dormer rooms in the attic space.’
‘Are they more bedrooms?’ What she had seen so far was opulence, calm, understated elegance and quality furnishings.
He shook his head. ‘One’s a games room, another’s a sauna and the third one is a small gymnasium.’
‘Good heavens…how the other half live.’
He laughed and went on with the tour, finally showing her into a study that overlooked the courtyard. Again, there were glazed doors opening out on to a small balcony bounded by a wrought iron balustrade.
She stepped out onto the balcony and saw horses being led out by grooms, who walked the magnificent animals across the cobbled yard, through an arched entrance and out towards the fields. ‘Are they the horses that will give the rides around the field?’ she asked, and Sam nodded.
‘They’ll go out for an hour or so, and then they’ll rest while other horses take over. These are the non-thoroughbreds we lease out to a riding school, so they’re well used to being ridden by novices.’
She moved back inside the room, gazing around at the glass-fronted wall cabinets and the bookshelves, all in pale-coloured wood that matched the desk and storage cupboards. Again, there were armchairs and a standard lamp, which changed the focus of the room from businesslike to leisurely and comfortable.
‘I’m overwhelmed…again,’ she said, looking up at Sam with a smile. ‘This has been such an experience, seeing the way you live. I’m so glad that you asked me to come here.’
He reached for her, placing his arms lightly around her waist. ‘I’m glad that you came along,’ he said. ‘I wanted to know what you would think of it, and it’s good that you like this place…but your reaction to the puppy beats everything, hands down.’ He smiled, his gaze travelling over her in gleaming appreciation. ‘You loved him so much, and you took him to your heart as though you would hold him there for ever. I have to say, I was intensely jealous back there.’
‘You were?’ Her eyes widened. Did he want her to hold him and love him and keep him in her heart for ever? She wouldn’t have any difficulty at all in doing that. He had grown on her, worked his way into her heart and soul, and all she wanted was for him to love her in return
. Was that possible?
Probably not…she answered the question herself. Wasn’t she in danger of falling into the trap of loving him, losing her heart to him, only to have him move on as he had done in the past? This was a man who was wary of letting his feelings take control…and maybe his family background was to blame in some way for that.
Even so, temptation had the better of her, and she ran a hand lightly over his chest, loving the feel of him, wanting to draw him closer, to feel the brush of his lips on hers. Perhaps he sensed what was in her mind because he lowered his head towards her and kissed her tenderly, running his hands along the length of her spine and holding her against his long body, so that she was stunningly aware of every hard muscle and sinew.
Her body responded in delicious exultation at the way his hands caressed her. He stroked her back, the gentle curve of her hips, and trailed his fingers over her arms, leaving off to glide once more over the soft line of hip and thigh.
‘I don’t think you have any idea of what you do to me,’ he murmured raggedly, his breath warm against her temple. ‘I try to concentrate on whatever I’m doing, here, or at work, and you’re always on my mind, luring me into a world I’ve never known before. I want you. I need you. You’ve bewitched me, taken over all my senses, so that I’m not in control any more.’
His words brought with them a heady rush of power so vibrant that it left her dizzy with sensation. Was it possible that she could have this effect on him? Was it true that this man, who was so in control of every aspect of his life, was laid waste by his need of her? A warm tide of desire flooded her veins. It was an intoxicating feeling to know that he wanted her this way.
His fingers shifted to slide over the soft swell of her breast, and she moved against him, longing to feel the touch of his hands over the whole length of her body. Her breathing was as ragged as his by now, her heart rate quickening, the thunderous rhythm rising to a crescendo of chaotic, frantic beats that threatened to overwhelm her.
His kisses had a passionate intensity that took her breath away, and all she could think of was that his thighs were pressuring hers with intimate, thrilling heat, and she wanted more, much more. Her arms circled his rib cage, and she revelled in the strength of his male body next to hers, wanting this moment to go on and on.
Only, a noise filtered into the air, disturbing their solitude and tugging them back into the real world once more.
‘What is that?’ Sam said with a frown, his eyes closing briefly in recognition that the moment had been torn from them.
Ruby’s sensuous glow began to rapidly cool, and perhaps it was just as well that she had come back down to earth. He wanted her, but that didn’t mean that he longed for her to be part of his life, that he would love and cherish her for ever, did it?
The sound came again, a faint murmuring, and she gazed around, mystified.
‘It must be the baby monitor,’ he said at last. ‘Did you clip it somewhere?’
She drew in a deep breath. ‘I put it on the desk when we came in here,’ she murmured. ‘I’ve nowhere to clip it to on this dress.’
The sound came again, but this time it was a ‘doh, doh, doh’ that they both heard. Ruby slowly eased herself away from him and went to check the video monitor.
She gave a faint smile. ‘I think she must be dreaming of dogs and puppies,’ she said. ‘Look, her lips are moving, but her eyes are closed.’
He came to look down at the video screen. Sarah, his housekeeper, had come into the dining room and was checking the baby, soothing her with gentle words, so that Becky lapsed into a deep slumber once more.
‘Yes, you’re probably right.’ He glanced at Ruby. They both knew that the moment of closeness between them was lost, but Ruby still had those warm embers of pleasure to boost her spirits. ‘Dogs and puppies,’ he echoed. ‘You and Becky have both been pulled into that well of emotion that makes you want to care for everyone and everything, haven’t you?’
‘Does that seem strange to you?’ she countered. ‘It’s the breath of life to me. It comes from being brought up that way,’ she told him.
He shook his head. ‘I don’t get it,’ he said. ‘I don’t hold with all this need for closeness and dependency…with animals or people. Why can’t people just live for the moment and enjoy what’s on offer, without getting sentimental about everything? Even Sarah has that gooey look in her eyes.’
She sent him a guarded look. So what had just happened between them? Was it purely a physical thing as far as he was concerned? Was there no deeper meaning to his kisses, no subtle invitation to share something special with him, no unspoken word to say that he cared for her?
She floundered for a moment or two then said hesitantly, ‘We…Sophie and I…always had pets around us, and Becky will more than likely follow suit. We were shown from a very early age how to look after those who needed us.’ She threw him an oblique glance. ‘Didn’t you and your brother have those same experiences? You must have had pets at some time…a cat maybe, or even a guinea pig or a rabbit?’
‘No, we didn’t.’ He moved away from her, and she sensed the sudden tension that had risen up in him. What had happened to bring about the stiff manner in the way he stood or to cause the tautening of his features? Had she done or said something to cause this change in his mood? Was he disturbed because of the way they had been interrupted? ‘Did your parents not like having pets around the place? I suppose they might tend to run amok, or be a bit smelly on occasion—but there’s usually somewhere outside where cages could be positioned.’
‘The occasion would never have arisen,’ he told her. ‘We weren’t here for all that long. At least, I don’t remember much about being here when we were young…and then I went away to boarding school for several years, so the question didn’t come up.’
‘I’m sorry,’ she said, going over to him. Was he uncomfortable because she was reminding him of things that had been missing in his life…the feelings of love and security and all the things that went along with close family relationships? Was that what this was all about?
‘I keep putting my foot in it, don’t I?’ she murmured. ‘I didn’t mean to rake up bad memories. I just wanted you to know that I care about you, and I want to understand what makes you the way you are. I hoped that you might feel closer to me in some way.’ She laid her hand gently against his chest, wanting to establish that warmth of connection once more.
‘You didn’t rake up any bad memories,’ he said, moving away from her, ‘and it would be better for you if you didn’t try to understand me or get closer to me. I don’t have anything to offer other than what I am. I’ve never promised anything more, and I don’t have any plans for the future other than to secure the A&E unit.’ He pulled in a quick breath. ‘As to the rest, like I said, boarding school was okay. We had a good education, and we were privileged to be able to experience that. It stood both my brother and me in good stead for later years.’
He glanced around the room. ‘Shall we go back to the field and see what’s going on out there? I have to draw the tickets for the raffle in half an hour or so, and I expect you want to spend some time talking to Craig and your friends from A&E.’
Ruby gave him a bewildered look. It hurt that he was pushing her away, in both a literal and a physical sense. It was like a rejection, and she wasn’t sure whether he was rejecting her or the notion of close emotional ties.
She didn’t want to show her despair. Instead, she nodded. ‘Yes, of course. I said I’d pick out the winner of the treasure trail map too.’
She wished things hadn’t ended on this restrained, sour note. Everything had been going so well, but now Sam had reverted to his former self, keeping his emotions locked in, and the barriers were firmly in place. The shutters were down, and it dawned on her that she was right to have kept a guard on her innermost feelings. He had kissed her and drawn her close and made her feel wanted, but he would not let her into his heart, the one place where she wanted to be.
Cha
pter Nine
‘I HEARD that the fund-raiser made a huge amount of money for the A&E unit,’ Olivia said as her gaze skimmed the details on her patient’s chart. ‘That’s terrific news. I expect Sam’s enjoying telling the hospital board all about it this morning. They’re bound to reconsider the need to close us down after that, aren’t they?’
‘I hope so,’ Ruby answered. ‘Especially when you add to that all the savings we’ve made by cutting down on supplies, changing the prices we pay for medicines, and bringing in-house servicing contracts on board…and that’s without taking the staffing changes into consideration.’
She looked at the list of patients the triage nurse had given her. ‘I’ll go and look at the baby with the heart murmur,’ she told Olivia. ‘Perhaps you could see to the woman with the blurred vision?’
Olivia nodded. ‘I’ve looked at her notes, and I’m thinking migraine,’ she said. ‘I don’t believe there’s any need for a CT scan, do you?’
‘It doesn’t appear so from what we’ve learned so far, but do a thorough neurological check up and make certain the history is correct. Come and find me if there’s anything you’re not sure about.’
‘Okay, I’ll do that.’ Olivia glanced at Ruby. ‘I heard you had some problems when you went home after the fund-raiser. James told me your neighbour thought she had seen Sophie at the house…I thought that would be good news.’
‘It would, under normal circumstances…but Mary, my neighbour, wasn’t exactly sure what she had seen. She said she saw someone coming out of the house, and that could only have been Sophie, surely, since she’s the only other person who has a key—apart from my parents—and there was no sign of a break-in. When we looked around later, it seemed that some of Becky’s clothes had been moved from where I left them, almost as though Sophie had picked them up and not put them back in the right place. Anyway, since then there’s been no sign of her.’
Olivia frowned. ‘James said there was something else wrong…a man had been seen hanging around the house and farm.’
