Page 22 of Leather and Longing
We do?
Paul’s mind was in a whirl. He gave himself a swift mental kick up the backside and sucked in a deep breath. “Yes, we do,” he said decisively. Adam walked over to him, cane swinging, andPaul guided him to the door, saying his farewells to Mark and Sonia. Once they were outside in the fresh air, he inhaled. “Okay, what things do we have to do, exactly?”
“Get me in the car and we’ll talk.”
Paul did as instructed. When Adam was secured, he walked around the front of the car and got in. The engine switched on, he pulled away from the curb and joined the slow trail of cars that were making their way down the hill. Ahead lay the deep blue of the Solent that reflected the wide expanse of sky, and across the horizon was Portsmouth, its Spinnaker tower glowing white in the early evening sunlight.
“I did some thinking while Mark was washing my hair,” Adam said at last. Paul waited. “Caroline thinks you’re living in the house.”
“Yes.”
He let out a growl. “I know my sister. She’ll have a good look around, putting that long nose of hers into every corner. If she gets so much as a whiff that you’re not really living there, that you’re not fulfilling your contract, she’ll make things difficult.”
Paul didn’t dare ask how difficult, but it didn’t take a genius to figure out there was the possibility of losing his job. “What do we do?”
“How far are we from where you live?”
Paul laughed. “About five minutes. I live in Binstead.”
Adam nodded. “Then we stop at your house on the way, and you grab whatever you need to convince my sister you’re living at the house. I’ll stay in the car. When we get back you can spend some time making sure your room looks lived in.” He sighed heavily. “You were right. We have to work together on this.”
At last.
“Okay.” Paul turned right at the roundabout and headed for Binstead. All this subterfuge to convince Adam’s sister that Adam was coping.
He must really want her out of his hair.
“Once she’s satisfied, we can have another discussion, especially concerning the living arrangements.”
Well, fuck. Adam’s words prompted Paul to reassess the situation.
What Adamreallywanted was to be left on his own to live his life without interference, and that included Paul.
But what kind of life was that?
Chapter Ten
Paul had been upsince six, cleaning. By the time he heard Adam stirring, the kitchen shone, every bit of stainless-steel gleaming. The library was tidied and dusted, all evidence of Adam’s sleeping habits removed. The cloakroom was pristine.
At eight o’clock he took a mug of freshly brewed coffee up to Adam’s room and knocked.
“Come in.”
Paul pushed open the door and entered. Adam lay in the bed, the quilt folded over to one side: it had been a hot August night. A white sheet covered him. Paul walked around the bed to place the mug on the bedside cabinet. “I thought you might appreciate an early start today.”
Adam sniffed up. “God, that smells good. Thank you, yes.”
“How did you sleep?” After weeks of spending nights on the couch, Paul assumed the bed was a blissful improvement.
He smiled. “Like a log. I haven’t slept that well for a long time. I could hear the waves as I fell asleep. It took me back.” Then his face straightened. “Thank you.”
It felt like—no, itwas—a dismissal.
Paul bit back his sigh and left Adam to his coffee. At least with Adam awake, Paul could use the Dyson on the hall andstairs carpet. He had no idea when to expect Caroline, but she had said early, and he was taking no chances. By nine, the house was spotless, and Paul was preparing soup for Adam’s lunch.
At least she can’t say I’m giving him crap to eat. Paul made sure Adam’s diet was healthy. The bread dough was already proving in a bowl under a damp tea towel. Adam had finished his breakfast and was sitting in the library, listening to music, lost in a world of Beethoven’s piano concertos. That had been one of Paul’s brainwaves. In the car on the way to Binstead, he’d asked Adam what CDs were in the house. A wistful expression had flickered across Adam’s face. It turned out that his CD collection was yet another thing he couldn’t lay his hands on.
Paul grimaced. Somewhere in that house were tons of boxes with Adam’s possessions in them. Now that Adam was beginning to settle a little, it was important to have his belongings around him, so that the house felt like home. Paul wasn’t sure how he felt about tackling Caroline on the subject: his job was in the balance.
