Page 65 of Stolen Kiss

Jason’s eyes narrowed at her snippy tone and attempted to rein in his temper. He was running the show and not her, not this time.

He moved forward at a slow pace, making sure Archer was with him. He was grateful his brother was there because it would make sure he kept things civil. He knew Archer would intervene if he went too far.

“What did you tell Keith eleven years ago?” Jason asked calmly.

“That’s the Shaw boy isn’t it?”

“You know who he is Cynthia. You know everyone on this island. What did you say to him?”

“I can’t be expected to remember every conversation I’ve had, I’m nearly eighty.”

Jason dropped his head and rested his hands on his hips, resisting the urge to tap his foot in annoyance.

“You’ve wrecked a lot of people’s lives with omissions of truths. I’d tell me what I want to know.”

“Or what? This is still my home.” Cynthia’s eyes narrowed on him.

“For some reason you want us all back on the island. And don’t try to deny that because you wouldn’t have given Archer, the ultimatum to get the non-existent wedding business. In your twisted mind you need us here to carry on the legacy of the Turners.”

Jason knew he hit a nerve because Aunt Cynthia stopped squirting her bottle. She stayed perfectly still for a full minutebefore she carefully placed the green glass atomiser on a tall table. It looked older than she was. Everything in the morning room was older than she was.

Cynthia had the past around her like a comforting blanket. How lonely she must be.

Jason continued his questioning. “Why did you feed Keith lies?”

“They weren’t lies.” Her indignity straightened her spine, like she’d been caught out.

“Who the fuck was I supposed to be marrying?” Jason yelled.

He felt Archer at his back but he hadn’t touched him yet, but Jason knew it was a warning to go easy.

Cynthia waited a full minute before she spoke. It wasn’t without her fingers touching her pearls and a twist of her sapphire ring.

“Someone from the mainland.”

“What is it with this family and being forced into marriages?” Jason said to himself more than anyone else.

“It’s how we’ve done things for centuries.”

“But not dad. He chose his wife.”

“And she didn’t stick around,” Cynthia answered in a flash.

“Why was that?” he countered. “You have anything to do with that?”

The flicker in her steely gaze made Jason’s stomach turn. Did she chase off their mother?

“What did you tell Keith?” he said again.

“I’m sorry to hear Heidi experienced the still birth,” his aunt said more quietly.

Jason hadn’t recovered from his previous accusation and snapped at her. “What would you know about that kind of pain? Why do you care about Heidi? You destroyed us with a lie.”

“It wasn’t a lie.” Aunt Cynthia was raising her voice again.

“Heidi and Keith believed I was engaged to be married, and that I led Heidi on. That entire Shaw family cut me out of their lives. I loved Heidi, I wanted to marry her and your scheming plans put an end to that. You made me hate the island, hate my final summer before I started earning a living, to stand on my own two feet. You ruined it for me to come back with my dad to spend our down time together. Your selfish ways…”

He couldn’t go on, his mind was racing with all the hurt his aunt had caused. All the repercussions just to preserve the Turner line.

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