Page 7 of Marry Me…Maybe?
‘Before we begin, I want to make sure we’ve got this clear, Emily – I help you and you help me, then when it’s over we walk away.’
‘That works for me.’
‘Are you sure? Because I’m not looking for a relationship right now.’
She let out a long breath through her nose, an expression of irritation taking over her face. ‘Neither am I. Like I said, I don’t do hearts and flowers either. It’s not my style.’
The veracity of her statement came through loud and clear in the tone of her voice.
He nodded, feeling reassured that she meant what she said.
‘Just out of interest, why is it up to you to sort out your friend’s wedding venue? Shouldn’t it be her husband-to-be turning up here, bargaining with me?’
She leant one hip against the wall and gave him a look fromunder her lashes. ‘We thought you’d be more likely to want to sleep with me.’
He rolled his eyes at the trite joke.
‘Seriously, though,’ she said, grinning at his reaction, ‘Tristan’s away on business in China at the moment, and Lula has enough on her plate, so as chief bridesmaid I offered to come instead. Because she’s the person I love most in the world. She’s been my rock, and I want to do this for her because I know how devastated she’d be if her wedding plans went awry. She’s had a pretty tough life and she deserves to be happy.’
The determination in Emily’s face clinched it for him and the last bit of tension drained away.
‘Okay, then we’d better get on with it,’ he said, laying down the hacksaw he’d been holding. ‘We only have a short time to get to know each other. My mother’s visiting friends today, but she’ll be staying here later and it’s probably better not to catch her on the hop. She doesn’t like to be put on the back foot. I’ll tell her about you first, and wait for her to insist on meeting you, then I’ll suggest I invite you over tomorrow for Sunday lunch. We’ll start simple.’
‘So, we’re not going to pretend I live with you here?’
‘No. That would seem suspicious. She’d expect to have heard about you already if you’d moved in with me.’
‘Still, you’d better show me around in case I need the loo or something when she’s here and have no idea where to find it. That might look a little suspicious too.’
‘Good idea.’
Walking over to a small sink in the corner of the workshop, he washed the grease off his hands before turning back and gesturing for her to step through the door. ‘After you.’
They strolled side by side from the workshop to the front entrance of the house, with Emily craning her neck to look up atthe impressive building, with its gold-coloured stone, mullion windows and carved geometric frontage.
She let out a low, complimentary whistle. ‘It’s quite a pad you’ve got here, Theo.’
He experienced a surge of pride as he took the opportunity to experience the place through her eyes. After living here for the last couple of years, ever since his mother had moved out to go and live in Spain with her new husband, it was easy to look past the magnificence of the place, but he knew how special it was. He felt a deep and meaningful connection to the place, right down to his bones.
While he rummaged in his pockets for the keys she bent down and pretended to pet the stone lions that guarded the door. ‘Hello again, my fine feline friends. Don’t worry – I come here with the full benediction of your owner this time,’ she purred at them.
He had a disquieting moment when he wondered whether he was crazy to put his faith in such an unknown quantity and had to remind himself that he didn’t exactly have a better option.
Opening the door, he ushered her inside and introduced her to the grand hallway, with its stone-flagged floor, dark wood panelling and arched stone doorways leading off to the downstairs rooms.
‘This is where the tour begins.’
‘Should I take my shoes off?’ she asked, he suspected only half-jokingly.
‘No need. Let me show you the rooms down here first.’
He led her through to the drawing room, then the morning room, pointing out the odd period feature, then the library – which smelled like nostalgia and was his favourite place after the workshop – then finally the comfortable, converted kitchen-diner.
‘Very nice, Theo. I can see why Lula’s so keen to have her reception here. All this dastardly scheming is definitely going to beworth it,’ Emily said as she gazed around at the oak cupboards and bi-folding doors leading out to a large, tiled terrace which looked over the extensive gardens.
‘Speaking of which – we ought to get on with it,’ he said, aware that they had a lot to cover in a short amount of time.
She nodded. ‘Yeah, if we’re going to make this work, we need to keep our stories simple.’
