by Karen King
“I can’t tell you the difference it makes not to be responsible for everything,” Sue linked her arm through Ellie’s. “Come and see the garden. I’ve been transforming it.”
Mum actually had time for gardening? One of the things she’d frequently complained about was that she didn’t have time to garden, it was her favourite way to relax but since Dad had died she’d been too busy with the hotel.
Ellie stepped out of the back door and gasped. Dad’s vegetable patch had been restored and pretty little flower beds edged the lawn. At the far end of the garden was a rockery. Mum had always wanted a rockery. Dad had been in the process of making her one when he’d died.
“Oh, it’s lovely!” she let go of her mother’s arm and walked down the path, marvelling at the riot of colour, the quirky flowerpots bursting with vibrant blooms. “Did you do all this yourself?”
“The planning yes, but not all the hard work.” Sue smiled. “Would you believe that Reece’s employed a gardener to look after the hotel grounds? And he’s allocated two afternoons a week of his time to work in my private garden. Isn’t that just wonderful?”
“So it’s all working out then? You’re happy with the new arrangement?”
“More than happy. It’s taken so much pressure off me.”
“Do you see Reece much? Is he very hands on?”
“Goodness me, no. He’s based in London, isn’t he? He came down the once to sign the contract and go through his plans with me and I haven’t seen him since. His partner Steve has popped in a couple of times, he lives in Plymouth so he’s nearer. He’s a very nice man, easy to get on with. I think Reece will be down in a couple of weeks though when all the redecorations are finished.” She looked at Ellie. “Why don’t you come down too? See if you two can sort things out.”
“There’s nothing to sort out, Mum. I’m glad it’s working out for you but I’ve got no interest in Reece whatsoever.”
“Well that’s a shame, because you got on so well, and I know it looked bad at the time, but he’s done good by me, Ellie.”
Well, Reece really had wormed his way into her mum’s good books, hadn’t he? He had a way with people, that’s for sure, but he wasn’t going to manipulate her.
“How’s your new job going?” Sue asked, as if sensing Ellie’s reluctance to engage in any conversation about Reece.
“It’s great. I’m off to Rome next week for a conference,” she replied.
“That’s wonderful. Come and have a coffee and tell me all about it.”
Ellie sat on the beach, gazing out at the sea. The same beach she and Reece had frolicked in the waves, spent the afternoon talking on the beach. Then gone back to the hotel to find the room had flooded. The day Reece had tricked his way into her life and her heart.
She had to admit that Mum was happy and the hotel looked great. She was pleased about that. Maybe she’d judged Reece wrong and his interest in the hotel had been genuine – even if he had gone about it the wrong way.
Had his interest in Ellie been genuine?
She shrugged. What did it matter now? They had both moved on. She was no longer angry with him. He’d helped her mum and set Ellie free. Knowing that her mother was happy, her future secure and she was no longer working herself to the ground to run Gwel Teg, Ellie, was free to get on with her life. She could go to Rome with a clear mind.
For that reason alone she was pleased that she’d met Reece.
“Can I join you?”
She looked up to see Lee standing beside her, his fair hair tousled, his toned sun-kissed limbs rippling out of his vest and shorts. He grinned his disarming lop-side grin. It was as if the years had melted away and she was looking at the old Lee. The one she’d been infatuated with.
She nodded. “Be my guest.”
He squatted down beside her. “You haven’t been down here for a while. I’ve been looking out for you.”
That surprised her. “Why?”
“I wanted to talk to you. To say sorry for how I – we – treated you.”
“Lee, we were all little more than kids. It doesn’t matter anymore.” She told him. “I just wish you and Zoe had made a go of it. At least then it would have all been worthwhile. Now there’s two little kids with a broken home.”
“You think it was my fault, don’t you?” he asked. “You think I cheated on Zoe.”
“Didn’t you?”
He shook his head and she saw the hurt in his eyes. “I know what we did to you was horrible but I really loved Zoe. I thought she loved me too, that we had a future together.”
“She did. I’m sure she did.” Why else would her best friend go off with her boyfriend?
“I don’t think she did. She was always a bit envious of you. I think she was just made up that I chose her over you.” His voice was thick with emotion. “I tried to resist, you know. But it was so flattering to have someone throw themselves at you, and Zoe was so outgoing, so popular.”
Whereas she hadn’t been. “And now she’s found someone else with a better job, more charisma?” Ellie asked softly, inwardly reeling from the knowledge that beautiful, popular Zoe had actually been jealous of her.
Lee nodded. “Yep. And she has the house, the car and our two children. So I’ve paid big time for how I treated you.”
Ellie reached out and placed her hand on his. “I’m sorry to hear that. Really I am.”
“I’ve never forgot you, Ellie,” His eyes held hers, pleading with her. “Do you think we could maybe try again? Date each other and see how things pan out?”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry but there’s no going back for us Lee. Any feelings I had for you disappeared years ago.” She leant over and kissed him on the cheek. “I wish you well.”
Then she got up and walked away over the sand. Today had been a day of putting the past behind her. It was time to get on with the rest of her life.
Chapter Thirty
Rome.
She was good. Reece listened to Ellie’s presentation in admiration. He was standing right at the back so that she wouldn’t know he was there.
Sue had mentioned Ellie was going to a conference in Rome when he’d phoned a couple of weeks ago, she was really proud of Ellie’s promotion. So when Reece had to go to Rome on business the same week he’d done a Google search of all the conferences to see which one Ellie might be attending, hoping he might get chance to see her. He’d been astonished to discover that Ellie was one of the speakers at the International Corporate Fundraising conference on Thursday, his last day there. Luckily his flight wasn’t until that evening and the hotel the conference was held at wasn’t far from where he was staying so he’d booked a place. He’d told himself it was just curiosity, because he wanted to see Ellie in action so to speak, not because he was longing to see her again, to hear her voice. Definitely not.
He was lying, of course.
Ellie looked stunning. The red fitted suit with the white blouse underneath made her look professional but gorgeous. As Reece watched her slick presentation on the screen, listened to her answering questions so competently he realised just what she’d been prepared to give up for her mother. She was obviously a high achiever and very good at her job yet she would have walked away from it all to work at the family hotel so her mother wouldn’t have to sell it.
What did she think now that he’d brought Gwel Teg? He thought back to the phone call she’d made asking him what his plans were, trying to get confirmation that he wouldn’t do anything that would upset Sue. He hadn’t heard from her since but he couldn’t get her out of his mind. Every decision he made about Gwel Teg was guided first by whether Ellie would approve and second by financial management. Which was not a very business way to deal with things and had led to a few questions from Steve.
Ellie had finished now. He joined in the round of applause and watched her walk off the stage then down the aisle. She was metres away from him, he could almost reach out and touch her. Would she sense him?
It was ridicu
lous how disappointed he felt when she carried on past without as much as a glance in his direction. Was he expecting her nerves to be on red alert, screaming out for him, as his was for her?
He couldn’t let her go without talking to her. Excusing himself, he left his seat, squeezed past the people beside him and followed in the direction Ellie had gone. Walking through the swing doors he looked swiftly left then right. Which way? The corridor carried on ahead, with a door leading out to a room on each side. The door to the room on the right was open so he decided to try that one first. Right decision. It was the refreshment room and there was Ellie standing by the wooden table hosting the coffee and tea urn, cups and a selection of biscuits and cakes, pouring herself a cup of coffee.
He paused, watching her, his heart thudding. She hadn’t seen him yet. He should walk away while he still could.
She must have sensed him because she turned around slowly and her gaze rested on him. Her eyes widened and the hand holding the coffee cup shook making the cup rattle and slopping some of the contents into the saucer. Time stood still as they gazed at each other. He started walking towards her and she turned, placed the cup and saucer down on the table, turning back as he reached her.
“What are you doing here?” Her voice was little more than a whisper.
“I’m in Rome on business and the conference sounded interesting.”
“Buying another struggling hotel are you?” The words were like darts and he winced inwardly as they struck home.
“It’s my job. And I’m good at it. Has your mother any complaints?”
Ellie shook her head. “No but it’s early days yet.”
“You still don’t trust me, do you?”
“Are you seriously expecting me to? “Her eyes met his and he could see the distrust in them. That hurt more than he would ever admit.
“Look, I wasn’t lying to you.” He reached out, tilted her chin up with his finger so her eyes met his. “Give me five minutes to explain.”
“There’s really no need. It makes no difference to me.”
“I think there is. My company owns your family home. I don’t want you to avoid coming down in case you bump into me. If there are any problems, if you have any concerns at all, I want you to feel that you can contact me, talk about them. And unless we resolve this I don’t think you’ll do that, will you?”
Slowly she shook her head.
“Then can I grab a cup of coffee too and please can we sit down and talk?”
He saw the conflicting emotions criss-cross her face, then she slowly nodded. “Okay.”
Why had she agreed to talk to him? Ellie thought as she refilled her coffee cup then grabbed a chocolate biscuit for emotional support. The last thing she wanted to do was sit down and have a conversation with Reece. She didn’t want to be near him, to see him. She didn’t trust herself.
You can do this. She pulled back her shoulders and lifted her chin. She was in control again. Reece was right, they did need to talk about it. She had to face facts, he owned Gwel Teg and her mother was happy with that. She had to deal with it. And if she wanted to look out for her mum’s interests she needed to keep contact with Reece, not run away from him. She needed to show him that she was strong, and that she would speak up if she had to. Let him know that he wasn’t just dealing with her mother.
Resolutely, she carried her coffee and biscuit over to a table in the corner of the room. Reece pulled out a chair and joined her a few minutes later.
She levelled at him. “Let’s start with a few truths. Did you know I’d be here?”
He met her gaze. “Yes. Your mother told me you were attending a conference in Rome. It didn’t take me long to guess it must be this one, and see that you were one of the speakers. Your presentation was excellent,” he told her. “And congratulations on your promotion.”
“Thank you. I guess you thought someone as dipsy as me wouldn’t be able to do stuff like this?”
“Not at all. I don’t make assumptions about people.”
“Not like me, you mean?” she shot back.
“Well I guess I can’t blame you for jumping to conclusions in the circumstances,” he admitted. “But I promise you half an hour later and you would have known all the facts. I asked you to come for a walk with me because I wanted to talk to you – remember? I was going to tell you about it then. “ He leaned forward, his gaze intense. “I wasn’t taking you for a ride, Ellie. And I wasn’t seeing Cindy. We’d finished weeks ago. Will you let me explain?”
Ellie nibbled the end of her chocolate biscuit and chewed it thoughtfully. Reece had what he wanted, Gwel Teg. He didn’t need to explain anything to her. He didn’t need her approval. So why had he gone to the trouble to find out which conference she was attending and book onto it himself?
His eyes held hers and she felt herself drawn into them, sensed his sincerity. And something else. It was as if he really cared what she thought about him.
Could he … could he possibly have feelings for her like she had for him?
No, of course he didn’t.
Then why?
Perhaps it was as he said, that he needed her onside, to contact him if she had any worries about the hotel. After all, he’d make a big financial commitment to it and if Mum was taken ill again he’d be left without a manager. It wasn’t just his company either, he had a partner and this partner must have agreed to the decision. Without even seeing Gwel Teg. Did he trust Reece that much?
That was the first time she’d thought about what a risk Reece had taken putting his money into Gwel Teg and keeping Mum on as his manager. Ellie had been so angry that Reece had tricked her, deceived her that she hadn’t stopped to think about his financial outlay. He – or rather his company - was investing quite a lot of money in updating the hotel too. Perhaps she’d been a bit unfair.
“Okay. I’m listening.”
She saw surprise then relief in his eyes. This was important to him.
She bit off another chunk of the biscuit and chewed it as he started to speak.
“I agree that when I found out your mother was ill and struggling to manage the hotel I realised it might be a good opportunity for me. Steve – my business partner - and I were going to buy a hotel in Truro but the deal fell through – that’s where I was rushing off to when I honked at you that day,” he explained ruefully. “When I came back and saw you still working so late I felt guilty about snapping at you.”
“Then I spilled it all out about Mum and the hotel not doing very well and you thought ‘Bingo’,” she added.
“Well, yes. I told you that’s my job. I didn’t know you or your mother then, remember. It was just a business deal.”
“And then you found out what a dip-head I was and thought you could take advantage.”
“Except I didn’t take advantage, did I? I helped you get the hotel straight. I didn’t have to do that. I could have left you to it, then you’d have had a compensation claim from the Smythes to deal with and I could have got the hotel at a cut down price.”
He was right, she admitted. Okay, so he hadn’t taken advantage of them business-wise but what about personally?
“So you didn’t rip us off. I’ll give you that. But what about your girlfriend?”
“Ex-girlfriend. And not a serious one at that,” he briefly explained about Cindy pestering him. “I had no idea she was going to turn up.”
“Maybe you are telling the truth.” Ellie crossed her arms, sat back in her chair and levelled her gaze at him. “But you took advantage of me personally.” She swallowed before continuing. “Do you think I’d have gone out with you … gone to bed with you… if I’d have known that you were secretly planning to buy Gwel Teg?”
“I liked you. There’s nothing wrong with that.” He leaned forward. “More than liked you. You’re quirky and gorgeous and honest. I love your ‘can do’ attitude, your caring personality, how you can laugh at yourself.” His eyes met hers, held hers, pulled her down into his soul. “I love you,
Ellie. I miss you like crazy. Won’t you give us another chance?”
He loved her.
The words swam around in her head like moths flittering around a light. He loved her.
And she loved him.
It wasn’t as simple as that though. They barely knew each other. How could she trust him? Yes, she loved him. And maybe he did love her but this wouldn’t work. It couldn’t work. And she had no intention of giving up her heart, her freedom, her future to someone she didn’t trust.
“You had a relationship with me based on a lie.” Ellie stood up and pushed the chair back. “How can I trust you? I’ll contact you if there is ever a problem with the hotel, but that’s all. I’m sorry, Reece, but we can only ever have a business relationship.”
She turned and walked away before he could see the tears streaming down her face.
She’d only ever cried over a guy once before, and she had vowed she’d never do it again. She squeezed her eyes tight. This time the pain in her heart was far greater than it had been with Lee. But she would get over it. She was not going to let Reece Mitchell into her heart, her life, just to destroy it. Absolutely not.
She walked out of the hotel and into the busy Italian street. For a moment, she stood outside wondering what to do next.
A hand clasped on her shoulder. “Ellie...”
Reece. Her whole body reacted to his touch. She longed to wrap her arms around him and bury herself in his embrace. She took a deep breath and turned to face him.
“We’re done, Reece. Now will you leave me alone?”
“Sure I will,” he said softly. “Look into my eyes and tell me you don’t love me and I’ll walk away. I’ll never bother you again.”
Chapter Thirty One
I don’t love you. Say it. She formed the words in her mind, opened her mouth to say them but they wouldn’t come out. She turned away but he gently pulled her back. Using the back of his thumb to wipe away the tears trickling down each cheek he drew her into his arms, nestling her head into his body. “You do love me, don’t you?” his voice was raw with emotion.
