Page 63 of Finding Love in Micklewick Bay

He laughed again, shaking his head, tutting. ‘Stella, Stella, Stella, you really need to soften up a bit. You’re all hard edges, sharp corners, primed for battle. I haven’t come here to fight with you, I’ve come to talk, get to know you, let you get to know me.’

‘So you keep saying, but we don’t seem to be getting anywhere.’ She wished he’d hurry up and get to the real reason behind his visit. Pim’s words started ringing in her ears, the request for a place to stay, asking for money. Surely he hadn’tcome here for that, had he? She’d only spoken to him once before; they were little more than strangers.

‘That’s because these things can’t happen in a hurry, they take time.’ He brushed his damp hair off his forehead and smiled.

In that moment, she knew exactly where the conversation was going.

Uh-oh!‘In that case, we’d better get started then.’ She kept her tone cool.

He gave another dry laugh, making himself more comfortable on the sofa. The man was so laid-back he was almost horizontal.

‘I don’t suppose we could chat over a bite to eat? He flashed his languid smile at her. ‘I’m feeling quite hungry.’

Not speaking, she got to her feet, marched over to the kitchen, returning moments later with a plate of biscuits, placing it on the table in front of him.

‘Oh, okay,’ he said with an unimpressed snort, reaching for one of the biscuits and examining it as if it were something inedible.

Stella looked on as he took a bite, before launching into giving her a potted history of his life.

As she listened, she found herself wondering yet again what her mother could possibly have seen in him. They were polar opposites; her mum was driven and hardworking, he gave the impression he was bone idle, a loafer who’d spent his life simply bumming around from place to place, sofa surfing, with no direction, no aspirations. To Stella, these were deeply unattractive traits.

‘So,’ he said, swallowing the last of the biscuits and wiping crumbs from his hands, ‘I thought it would be good for both of us if I spent a bit of time here with you. That way we could start building a bond between us.’ The way he spoke, she rather gotthe impression he was telling her that’s what would happen, that there was no option for her to refuse. The disingenuous smile he gave confirmed her thoughts. ‘If you could point me in the direction of a bedroom where I can put my bag. You can make a start on lunch while I take a shower; that plate of biscuits wasn’t enough to fill a man.’ His mocking laugh made Stella grit her teeth.

‘There’s no room for you here; that’s not going to happen,’ she said firmly. ‘I use the spare room as a mini gym. I keep my treadmill and spinner bike there.’ Yet again, he hadn’t asked a single question about her. The only thing that appeared to interest him about her was the amount of money she must be earning to afford an expensive apartment and a fancy car.

‘Oh, Stella, don’t be like that. I’m here now, you’ve seen I’ve brought my bag with all my stuff, you might as well let me stay. What harm can it do? I’ve already told you I’m not a well man. I need somewhere warm and calm to stay where I can rebuild my strength.’

What harm can it do?She got the feeling if she let him stay even for one night, she’d struggle to get rid of him. Maggie’s recent unwelcome houseguest sprang to mind. Maggie had thought she’d never leave. That most certainly wasn’t going to happen here. And that was something else, she couldn’t help but doubt what he’d told them about his illness, there was something in the way he couldn’t make eye contact when he mentioned it. She’d noticed it when she’d first met him at The Cellar with Pim.

‘You’re not staying here and that’s final.’ She got to her feet. ‘You’ll have to stay with your friend, Guy, is it? If we’re going to get to know one another, I’d prefer to do it slowly, rather than have you staying in my home.’ She’d be interested to hear what had happened between them that meant Johan was suddenly looking for somewhere to stay.

Johan’s gaze slid away from her as he mumbled something indiscernible. She’d clearly hit a nerve. ‘Guy isn’t being a great friend to me at the moment. He’s heading back home, says I can’t stay at the cottage any longer. He can be a very selfish man. He has two homes, I have none. It wouldn’t hurt to let me stay, it’s not as if he lets it out, it’s only him that uses it.’

And there it was, the reason Johan de Groote had landed on her doorstep. He needed somewhere to stay. The man really was something else.

‘If you’re wanting to stay in Micklewick Bay there are plenty of bed and breakfast places. I know for a fact that there are several with vacancies.’ Stella had been told this by her mum who’d heard it directly from some of the owners whose properties Spick ‘n’ Sparkle cleaned for. They’d expressed their disappointment at the lack of last minute bookings considering it was a Bank Holiday weekend, blaming the bad weather.

‘Staying in a bed and breakfast is hardly the same as staying in a proper home.’ Johan coughed, patting his chest. ‘I’m not in the best of health, the doctors say I should really have someone to look after me, but instead I just plough on alone, never complaining.’ He looked at her, the self-pity in his eyes making her stomach turn over.

From what she’d witnessed, Johan de Groote was more than capable of looking after himself. ‘Most of the bed and breakfast places are nice and homely.’

He heaved a sigh, drumming his fingers impatiently on the back of the sofa. ‘Well, this really isn’t what I’d expected. I thought you’d welcome me into your life with open arms; your long-lost father shows up, the man you’ve been desperate to see all your life.’ He shot her a disapproving look, his arrogant smile finally slipping away.

Stella could hardly believe what she was hearing, her anger was inching up to boiling point. Telling herself to stay calm, shegritted her teeth and said, ‘I’m not sure how you ever arrived at such an assumption. But anyway, I think we’ve talked enough for one day.’

‘That causes me a bit of a problem.’ Rubbing his hand over the light stubble of his chin, Johan paused, as if running something over in his mind. ‘If you’re not going to let me stay here, I don’t suppose you could help me out with some cash? Just a couple of thousand. Only, I haven’t been able to afford my medication, and if I’m going to have to pay to stay somewhere else…’ He gave in to an elaborate bout of coughing. ‘My heart isn’t strong. I don’t know how much longer I’ve got…’ He stole a look at her from beneath his fringe that was now flopping over his eyes.

This performance was something else. It begged the question, if he had such a bad heart, why had he just stuffed his face with a load of chocolate biscuits?

The ringing of her mobile spliced through Stella’s thoughts. Johan ceased his coughing and sat upright. Stella got to her feet.

‘You’re going to answer it?’ he asked in disbelief. ‘But we’re talking.’

‘I’m going to see who it is.’ She headed to her desk and picked up her phone, surprised to see her mum’s name. She tapped her fingernail on the screen, answering it. ‘Hi, Mum, you okay?’ She was glad to have her attention diverted away from Johan for a moment.

Stella turned to look at him. ‘Yes, he’s here,’ she said, her words eliciting a frown from him. She fell silent, her eyes never leaving him as she listened to what her mum had to say.

‘What did your mother want? Was she talking about me?’ he asked when the call had ended.

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