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What would Lucas think when he saw her? She caught at the thought, refusing to let it have head room, but nevertheless the thrill of excitement the beautiful clothes had induced lingered in spite of herself, and as Kim applied a dab of perfume to each wrist and small crystal studs to her ears her hands were trembling.
She popped in to kiss Melody goodnight before she nerved herself to go downstairs, and as she stepped into the room her daughter’s eyes widened appreciatively. ‘You look so pretty, Mummy, like the princess in Aunty Maggie’s story.’
‘Thank you, precious.’ Kim sat down on the edge of the bed and gathered the small body close, careless of the new outfit. Melody smelt of baby powder and her soft blonde hair was still slightly damp from her bath and curling slightly round the elfin face. Kim felt such a surge of love well up in her as her daughter’s arms wound round her neck and Melody’s lips pressed against hers that she closed her eyes against it, holding Melody against her heart for some seconds before she settled her daughter back under the duvet.
‘You look stunning.’ Maggie had been with her when she had bought the outfit, and her voice was wry as she added, ‘But you’d look great in sackcloth and ashes, like I told you before.’
Kim smiled at her friend; she knew Maggie found her lack of confidence in her looks amazing but she couldn’t help it. The years in the children’s home followed by her disastrous marriage and Graham’s mental abuse had damaged something deep in her psyche, and although she had fought back—and would continue to fight—she wasn’t quite there yet.
But she looked good tonight. She gave a mental nod to the declaration as she stood up, her voice low as she said to Maggie, ‘Well? What do you think?’, inclining her head towards the door.
Maggie answered the unspoken question about Lucas by shaking her fingers as though they’d been burnt. ‘Wow.’ One word but it covered everything.
And then both women turned to the small figure in the bed in consternation as Melody said, her piping voice very clear and direct, ‘I think Lucas is scrumptious.’ One of Melody’s Christmas presents had been a video of the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and ‘scrumptious’ was
her new word for the moment and used for all sorts of good things.
But Lucas? Kim glanced at Maggie anxiously and Maggie shrugged, her voice dry as she said, ‘Bright as a button, and serves us right for being so arrogant to think we could talk in code with Miss Muffet around.’
‘I do, I think he’s scrumptious.’ Melody had caught the vibes concerning her new hero and wasn’t having any of it. ‘Look what Lucas brought me, Mummy.’ She held up the little bear for Kim’s inspection.
‘Lovely, darling.’
‘He brought me flowers.’ Maggie’s voice was magnificently expressionless.
‘He did?’ Kim eyed her helplessly. ‘But I hadn’t told him you’d be babysitting.’
‘You might not have told him but he knew anyway.’
The two women stared at each other for another long moment and then Kim said, her tone one of resignation, ‘I’d better go down.’
The sitting room door was open, and as Kim came down the stairs and reached the threshold, Lucas turned from his quiet contemplation of the garden and Kim received a bolt of electricity as the thickly lashed, curiously silver eyes looked at her. He didn’t say a word for what seemed like an eternity; he just stared at her, the most strange expression on his hard, attractive face.
‘Hello.’ Kim attempted a smile but it was more a quiver of her lips.
‘Hello.’ It was very soft and very deep and made every nerve in Kim’s body twang. ‘You look…exquisitely lovely.’
‘Thank you.’ The intensity of his gaze was making her skin tingle and to combat the feeling, and the warm seductive spell that had settled over the last minute or two, Kim said evenly, ‘It was nice of you to bring Maggie the flowers and to think of Melody but it wasn’t necessary.’
‘Meaning you didn’t like it,’ Lucas challenged pleasantly.
‘I didn’t say that.’
‘You didn’t have to.’
He seemed quite unconcerned and it rankled, badly. She stared at him, totally unaware of how her face was betraying her, and was further taken aback when he strolled over to her with lazy assuredness, taking her arm as he said, ‘So, my prickly little secretary, ready for an evening with the big bad wolf? Do you have a coat? It’s chilly outside.’
‘It’s in the hall.’ She had stiffened at his touch and had seen his mouth tighten but she just couldn’t help it. He was so…big.
The Aston Martin was crouching on Kim’s short drive, looking quite incongruous in such humble surroundings, and she found herself taking several deep silent breaths as she slid into the car and waited for Lucas to join her after he had shut the passenger door.
‘Have you eaten since lunchtime?’
‘What?’ Kim turned startled eyes to his dark face.
‘Food.’ His voice was patient now, overly so, and made her want to kick him. ‘Has any passed your lips lately?’
‘I had a little of the spaghetti bolognese I made for Melody’s tea,’ Kim said a trifle defensively. ‘Just the last bit in the pan. There was too much to put on her plate.’
