A Paper Marriage

by Jessica Steele

  Next Lydie sat down to think about her meeting with Jonah the next evening. She was seeing him at seven, but owned she was feeling more than a shade uneasy about that meeting. Nor was she too thrilled either that, when he full well knew she had a date tomorrow night, the arrogant devil, without thinking about it, expected her to cancel it!

  Well, she jolly well wouldn't cancel it, she thought mutinously. Surely the business they were to discuss-her repaying that colossal sum of money he had given her-would not take all evening? To her way of thinking, their meeting should be all over and done with by seven-thirty.

  Then Lydie remembered the effortless way Jonah had of sparking her to annoyance, and of generally upsetting her. If the same thing happened in their half-hour discussion tomorrow, would she feel at all like leaving his apartment and going on to Charlie's? Charlie wanted dinner and sympathy over his problem with the forward Rowena Fox. Lydie understood his excruciating shyness. She had suffered similarly-still did hit a wall of shyness occasionally-but in the main had outgrown the affliction. So, while she had every sympathy with Charlie, and the shyness he unluckily had never outgrown, she could not help but ponder if, after a half-hour business session with Jonah-whom she suspected was a tough business negotiator-she would feel up to the task of boosting up Charlie's basement-level confidence.

  Another five minutes of tugging at it and she picked up her phone. `I can't make tomorrow after all, Charlie,' she told him straight away.

  `Ooh, Lydie!' he wailed. `What am I going to tell Rowena on Monday?"

  'Do you want to go out with her?"

  'Well, yes, I suppose I do. But-'

  `But nothing, Charlie. Has she, Rowena, been out with any of your colleagues?"

  'Not that I know of. Several have asked her, but so far as I know she turned them down.'

  `So what does that tell you?'

  Charlie thought for some seconds. `I don't know,' he said at last.

  Lydie had to smile. Charlie was older than her, but she felt like some agony aunt. `It tells you she likes you.'

  `But I'm tongue-tied when she's around-awkward; especially with women.'

  `Which is precisely why she wants to go out with you and none of the others.'

  `Why?' He didn't get it.

  `Well, I'm only guessing here, but I'd say she has probably had enough of over-confidentum-perhaps pushy types. Maybe she feels more comfortable with someone who isn't wisecracking all the time.'

  `Do you think so?' Charlie asked in wonder.

  Lydie had no real idea, but now wasn't the time, in this exercise of building up his selfesteem, to admit it. `You've known Rowena for three weeks now. Rowena has known you for those same three weeks. Do you think she would have asked you out, in preference to any of the others, if she was not a little taken by your nonpushy manner?'

  He thought about it for a little while. `Shall I go, then, do you think?' he asked.

  Dear Charlie. He had already agreed that he wanted to go out with Rowena. `I think you should,' she assured him.

  There was a pause while Charlie thought about it. `Do you-do you think I shall have to kiss her?'

  Oh, Charlie! `You're twenty-eight, Charlie Hillier,' Lydie told him severely. `And I am not your mother.'

  He laughed, and they said goodbye the best of friends. To Lydie's way of thinking, with Rowena in charge of this date, she would let him know if she was expecting to be kissed. All he had to do was just be his loveable shy self.

  Lydie was pleased to see on Sunday morning that after a good night's rest her great-aunt was looking so much better. With nothing pressing to get home for, Lydie stayed with her until after lunch, and then made her way back to Beamhurst Court.

  With the time coming ever nearer when she must get ready to go to Jonah Marriott's apartment, a familiar churned-up feeling started to make its presence known. Lydie went upstairs to shower and to think what to wear. She had spent a little time last night in trying to build up Charlie's confidence-she wished someone would come and build up hers.

  She was under the shower, so did not know that her parents had returned home until, dressed in a pale green trouser suit, her raven hair loose about her shoulders, Lydie went downstairs and heard sound coming from the drawing room.

  With her shoulder bag in one arm, car keys in hand, she opened the door to find her parents relaxing there. `Just off out?' her father asked with a smile for her.

  `I'm going to see Jonah,' she answered.

  `I wonder you bothered to come home,' her mother chipped in slightly acidly, and, as Lydie looked questioningly, `Mrs Ross said you didn't come home last night.'

  `I didn't think Aunt Alice looked too well,' Lydie explained.

  `She looked all right from what I could see!'

  `She seems to tire very easily,' Lydie explained.

  `What do you expect?' Hilary Pearson demanded. `She's eighty-one!'

  Eighty-four, Mother! `You didn't think she looked a little pale?"

  'We're all a little pale. And likely to remain so,' her mother went on sniffily, with a baleful look to her husband, `until this whole sorry mess is resolved.'

  Lydie glanced over to her father, who was looking pained and tight-lipped. She felt that her mother could be kinder to him, but knew she could not interfere. Now seemed as good a time as any to be on her way. 'I'll see you later,' she said, adopting a cheerful tone.

  `Would that be tonight or tomorrow morning?' her mother asked sourly.

  And, while Lydie thought her mother meant that by the time she got in that night her parents would be in bed, her father was saying, `Hilary!' in his newly found cross manner, causing Lydie to realise her mother was assuming that her daughter might spend the whole night with Jonah Marriott. Without another word Lydie left them and went out to her car.

  She was driving out through the gates of Beamhurst Court before it all at once struck her what had brought on her mother's rancid comment. Her mother had not associated her nonreturn home last night with Aunt Alice, but had associated it with Lydie first dropping off Aunt Alice and then going to stay overnight at Jonah's apartment! Mrs Ross must obviously have commented to her that, with all of them being away, she'd had the house to herself last night. Her mother had, Lydie could see now, put two and two together-and had got her sums wrong. Lydie thought she had as good as told her mother that she hadn't come home last night because, concerned for Aunt Alice, she had stayed the night with her. Jonah, Lydie realised, had probably not gone back inside Alcombe Hall after seeing her and her great-aunt to her car.

  Lydie groaned, the words `tangled web' and `deceive' floating about in her head. She began to wonder what she had started. Though, in fairness to herself, knew that she would never have gone to see Jonah in the first place if her mother hadn't misled her the way she so dreadfully had. But as her thoughts drifted on to her father, and how he was hurting inside, Lydie knew that, whatever it cost, she could not regret any of what she had done.

  Her insides were in turmoil when she arrived at the smart building where Jonah had his apartment. She approached the security desk-and was expected. In no time, tummy butterflies turning into vampire bats, Lydie found herself at his door.

  Almost as soon as she had rung the bell, Jonah opened the door. `Come in, Lydie,' he greeted her, his glance flicking over her long-legged shape in her trouser suit, her long dark hair and green eyes. `I should have known you wouldn't be bridesmaid.'

  His comment took her totally out of her stride. `W-why?' she asked, to her own ears sounding as witless as she suddenly felt. He was casually dressed-and dynamite with it!

  `You're much too beautiful,' he replied as they ambled into his drawing room. `No bride would want such competition.'

  `It strikes me you know too much about women,' Lydie replied, some of her wits returning. Did he really think her beautiful?

  `Alas, true,' he sighed. `Can I get you a drink?'

  `No, thank you,' Lydie replied primly. She wanted to keep a clear sharp head here. There wo
uld be figures to discuss and, she owned, she was not much of a business woman.

  'You'll take a seat, I hope?' he invited urbanely.

  Lydie glanced around the gracious room with its sofas, its luxurious carpeting, its pictures. She walked over to a high-backed chair and sat down. `This probably won't take long,' she began. It was as far as she got.

  `You're anxious to keep your date?' Jonah asked, not sounding too pleased about it-as though he would be the one to decide how long it would take.

  `Actually, no,' she replied coolly-outwardly cool, at any rate. Already she could feel herself starting to boil. `I cancelled-in your honour,' she added sarcastically.

  Water off a duck's... `You enjoyed the wedding?'

  Lydie stared at him, almost asked what that had to do with why she was there-but abruptly realised that Marriott was in charge here, and there wasn't a thing she could do about it.

  `Very much,' she replied with what control she could find. `You?' she asked sweetly. `You have a penchant for other people's weddings, I believe.'

  She thought the corners of his mouth tweaked a little-as though she had amused him. But he did not smile and she knew herself mistaken. `Have you been in touch with your aunt this morning?' he asked solemnly.

  `Aunt Alice was a little tired yesterday, but she looked more her old self this morning,' Lydie informed him.

  `You've seen her?' The man missed nothing. `You went over to see her? She told me she lives in Oxfordshire.'

  `It's not so far away. Though I didn't have to travel; I stayed overnight with her.'

  Jonah stared at her, but she had no idea what she expected him to say, and experienced familiar thumping tendencies when he remarked, `You've gone a fetching shade of pink, Lydie.' And accused, `Now, what guilty secret are you hiding?'

  'I'm not guilty about anything!' she deniedthank you, Mother! But when he just sat there waiting, she somehow-and she blamed him for it-found she was blurting out, `My m-mother got hold of the wrong end, and instead of her two and two adding up to her believing I stayed the night at Aunt Alice's, as I intended, she seems to think I-er-spent it with you some...' Her voice tailed off. But, feeling extremely warm suddenly, she knew her hopes that having had his explanation he would leave it there were doomed to failure.

  `And why would your mother think that?' he determined to know.

  `I hate men with enquiring minds!' she erupted. `Which probably means you're in the cart here, little Lydie,' he commented pleasantly. But insisted, `Why?'

  Lydie gave him a huffy look. 'I'm not here to discuss that!' she told him-a touch arrogantly, she had to admit.

  Little good did it do her! He just waited. And she saw that if she wanted to get down to talking facts and figures, which she did, then the sooner she told him, the sooner they would get down to the nitty-gritty of how much per month he would expect from her salary.

  She sighed heavily, but realised there was nothing for it but to make a full confession. `If you must know,' she started, gone from merely feeling warm to roasting, `I stayed over with Charlie the previous Saturday...'

  `Charlie?' he interrupted. `Charlotte?'

  Lydie gave him a peeved look. 'Charlie Charles.'

  `You're saying you-slept over-at his place?' Jonah asked, his expression grim suddenly. `He was the man you were at the theatre with?'

  Lydie nodded. `I do sometimes stay when-'

  `Spare me the gory details!' Jonah cut in harshly. And reminded her, `You were telling me why your mother should think I-entertained you here last night.'

  Entertained! That was a new name for it. He was not smiling. `Well...' she began, and did not want to go on, but knew, blast him, that she had to. `Well, you know most of it,' she suddenly exploded. `It was after ... when I got home last Monday, after seeing you in your office. Dad seemed to get the impression that you and I were an item...'

  `An impression which you gave him.'

  `Oh, shut up!' Lydie snapped, irritated. `Anyhow, Dad seemed to think I'd fallen for you...'

  `Because, for some obscure reason, that is what you let him believe.'

  `If you don't stop interrupting I shall never get this out!'

  `I won't say another word.'

  Lydie borrowed one of her mother's sour looks and bestowed it on him. He did not so much as flinch-she'd have to get more practice. `Anyhow, my father said something about me hardly knowing you, and how I'd only seen you twice recently, and I said it was three times, that I'd seen you at the theatre on Saturday. People are always misinterpreting me!' Lydie shrugged, feeling totally fed up by then. `Anyway, Dad suddenly remembered how I hadn't come home on Saturday night-and there you have it.'

  `He believes you spent the night with me?' Jonah asked, amazed.

  Never had she felt more uncomfortable. `Yes,' she mumbled, but went quickly on, `After that, getting you a wedding invite was small beer.' She did not like the fact that, having come to an end, all Jonah did was stare at her long and hard. `So there it is!' she fumed. `And perhaps now we can get down to the details of how I'm going to repay my debt to you.' Her voice softened. `I don't mean to sound ungrateful, Jonah. I am grateful to you; I really am. It's just that everything's been a bit nightmarish recently, and I've been called upon to tell lies which less than two weeks ago I wouldn't have dreamed of uttering.'

  Jonah's harsh look all at once seemed to soften. `Poor Lydie,' he murmured, and, relenting, he smiled a smile that rocked her, then said, `Let's make a pact to always be truthful with each other.'

  `I'd like that-I think. Even if it's-er embarrassing?'

  `Even if,' he stated.

  `Fine,' she said, `I agree.'

  `So, for a start, you'd better dump Charlie.'

  `Dump Charlie?' she exclaimed incredulously. `Charlie's my friend!' she protested.

  `Dump him!' Jonah instructed, his manner totally unyielding.

  `Whys'

  Jonah did not look as if he would answer, but after some cold seconds replied, `All this is about money paid into your father's bank account with no conditions on my part. You have created conditions in order to save your father more embarrassment. And I understand that. But, since you have claimed me to your family as your boyfriend and-not to be too impolite-your overnight lover-' as if he cared about being impolite, she fumed `-what you must understand is that I can't have you running around town staying overnight with some other man.' And, having succinctly explained that, he ended heavily, `So, dump him.'

  She could have told him that Charlie was not her friend in the boyfriend sense-but, hang it all, a girl had to have some pride. `Do I go around telling you to dump your women-friends?' she protested instead.

  `You're in no position to tell me to do anything,' Jonah replied bluntly, and, as the truth of that hit home, the fire went out of her. That was until, his tone more giving, he added, `But, since I must be fair over this, I have to tell you I don't have any women-friends.'

  'Much!' Lydie erupted. `That was a mirage I saw you with at the theatre the other Saturday, was it?"

  'I don't usually go around explaining myself, but with our total honesty clause established I don't mind telling you that my theatre date with Freya was one made before you claimed me.'

  Lydie gave him a hostile look, but, as she recalled the stunning blonde, she found her curiosity needed to be satisfied. `You won't be seeing her again?' she asked, then realised that sounded much too personal and as if she was interested, and added hurriedly, `Not that it's any of my business.'

  `True,' Jonah agreed, `it isn't.' But went on to confide, 'I'm a bit jaded with the hunt, if you'd like more truth.'

  Her eyes widened. `You've given up women?'His lip twitched. `That wasn't what I said,' he corrected her. Then proceeded to send her rigid with shock, by continuing, `From what you've said, it doesn't sound as if your parents will be too upset should you spend next weekend with me.'

  First Lydie went scarlet, and then pale. Then realised that he could not possibly be suggesting what she thought he
was suggesting. 'Er...' she mumbled, but found she was stumped to say more.

  Jonah smiled-that insincere smile that she hated. 'I'm going to Yourk House, my home in Hertfordshire, next Friday evening. You can come with me,' he decided.

  Lydie stared at him, a drumming in her ears. `W-what for?' she found the breath to ask.

  That insincere smile became a twisted grin. `Use your imagination, Lydie,' he suggested charmingly.

  This wasn't happening to her! It couldn't be happening to her! This sort of thing didn't happen to her! She strove valiantly to block her imagination. 'I'm not much of a cook,' she managed.