Page 44 of Could It Be Magic?
Nick nodded. ‘I would love you to.’
As Thea’s lips met Nick’s, she suddenly felt as though the years had rolled back and they were at the top of those stairs once more, in the semi-darkness, protected from the rest of the world in their little bubble together. He tasted so good, even without the aid of cherry flavoured vodka, and she wanted that slow, leisurely kiss to go on forever.
‘You’re still a brilliant kisser,’ she murmured as they parted slightly for breath.
‘And you’re a lot better at it when you’re not plastered!’ Nick quipped gently.
He might have been teasing her, but she could tell by the way his body was responding to her that the kiss was turning him on as much as it was her. A warm heat pooled in her belly as they continued the kiss for a few more seconds, before they broke apart again, remembering that they were still on a crowded dance floor.
‘Well, ladies and gentlemen,’ the compère announced as the song faded away, ‘if there are any rogues and chancers among you, or if you feel lucky tonight, you might want to chance your arm at the roulette table in the bar. Or if blackjack is your thing, perhaps the cards will win you a fortune, or at least the next round of drinks. What do you say, ladies and gents? Will tonight be the night Lady Luck comes to visit?’
Nick laughed. ‘What do you say, Thea? Shall we blow it all on black?’
But Thea was still, and her hands, so relaxed when they’d been dancing, had tensed where they rested on Nick’s shoulders. She pulled back from him, and her heart was racing so quickly she thought she was going to black out.
‘Can you give me a minute?’ she heard herself stammering. She’d not had a lot to drink, but she suddenly felt lightheaded and so short of breath she started to take in huge gulps of air.
‘Thea? What’s wrong? Did I do something to upset you?’
Thea gave him a quick smile. ‘No, I’m fine, really.’ She felt her heart starting to speed up. ‘Look, can we find somewhere quiet for a couple of minutes? I really need to get out of here for a bit.’
‘Sure,’ Nick said gently. He put an arm around her, and they walked out of the dining room. The staircase to the upper floors looked quiet, and they both headed upwards, in search of a convenient place to sit for a while.
38
The party was in full swing downstairs with most people taking advantage of the roulette wheel and the other gambling entertainments that had been laid on after dinner. As she and Nick walked along the landing, Thea realised that she was still shaking.
‘What’s wrong?’ Nick asked. His tone was gentle, and Thea felt her eyes welling with tears.
‘It’s so stupid…’ Impatiently, she scrubbed at her eyes, forgetting that Cora had done quite a detailed job with her eyeshadow. ‘Bugger,’ she muttered as she caught sight of the dove grey powder on her knuckles.
Nick glanced across the landing, and then, seeing there was no one else there, he pushed open the door to the nearest room and led Thea inside.
‘Why haven’t they locked up?’ Thea, despite her upset, gave a nervous laugh.
‘Dunno, but let’s not worry too much.’ Nick closed the door quietly behind them. He didn’t switch on the light, as the moon was doing a pretty good job of casting a silver torch across the main part of the carpeted area of the room, which had a four-poster bed to one side and a chaise longue underneath the window. Nick led her to the chaise, and Thea sat down beside him.
‘Talk to me, Thea.’ Nick spoke softly. ‘One minute you were right there with me, the next you seemed like a deer in the headlights. What’s going on? Did I do something wrong?’
‘Oh, Nick,’ Thea sighed. ‘Can you just, for one minute, stop holding yourself responsible for absolutely everything?’
Nick looked taken aback, but he rallied. ‘OK,’ he said carefully. ‘But if it’s not me, then why don’t you tell me what is bothering you?’ He reached out and took one of her hands in his. ‘I want to help, Thea. Honestly. You can trust me.’
That was the crux of it, Thea thought. Somehow, instinctively, she did trust Nick. She wanted so badly to let him in, to confide in him exactly why she had been so freaked out, but she felt so ashamed of it all. Ashamed that she’d been taken in so easily by Ed’s lies, that she’d put up with it for so long, that she’d almost allowed herself and her two children to become homeless because of it, and that, even now, she berated herself for allowing things to go on for so long.
‘I want to,’ she said quietly. ‘I really want to be able to level with you, Nick, but it’s so hard to say all of it out loud.’ She choked back a sob. ‘I didn’t realise until just now how much it all still affects me. But the last thing I wanted was to spoil our evening like this.’
‘You haven’t spoiled anything.’ Nick moved closer to her, and she felt the warmth of his arms around her. ‘I’m here for you, Thea. I want to be here for you, if you’ll let me. And if you don’t want to tell me everything, or anything, right now, that’s fine too. Just know that I’ll be here when you want to talk to me.’
‘Thank you,’ Thea replied. She paused. ‘And before you ask… this isn’t about Mum and Dad.’ She gave a hiccough that was almost a bark of ironic laughter. ‘I mean, I know that you know all about that, and we’ve all been through it hundreds of times over the years. I can’t blame them for this.’
Nick tightened his hold on her, and Thea felt intensely reassured. ‘Understood.’
Thea braced herself. Even though she, Nick, Tristan, Annabelle and Jamie had been friends for so long, none of them knew the true extent of her troubles with Ed, and the real reasons for their subsequent split. She’d put on a brave face for the outside world and glossed over the serious issues they’d faced as a couple, and most of the time she felt as though she truly had moved on from the damage he’d done to her trust. Perhaps it was because she’d begun to make herself vulnerable now, embarking on this new relationship with Nick, that she’d succumbed to a trigger she hadn’t felt in years.
‘Ed had a gambling problem,’ she said quietly. ‘I didn’t know until really late on. When it started, he’d assured me it was nothing more than a bit of fun. Some blokes like the pub, some play five-a-side football once a week, Ed liked casinos. He’d go out once a month with mates from work to a place in Bristol, have a few drinks and a flutter and come back again.’ She began to twist the silver bangle she was wearing around on her wrist. ‘At first, he’d shrug off any losses – but then, over time I noticed his mood became dependent on whether or not he’d had a lucky night. Sometimes he’d come back euphoric, and other times the gloom would last for the rest of the weekend. I learned not to ask too much after he bit my head off once too often.’
‘I’m so sorry, Thea.’ Nick’s quietly shocked tone illustrated that he really hadn’t had a clue about any of it. ‘That must have been a real strain for you.’
