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“Yeah, two brothers and one sister.”
I hesitate. “Hey, listen: this year, why don’t you spend Christmas with me and my family?”
“Oh, no. I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“You wouldn’t be intruding. My mother would love to have you. The more the merrier.”
“But she hasn’t even met me yet.”
“I know, but when she does, I just know she’s gonna love you.”
He’s silent for a beat as he considers my offer. “I won’t give you a definite answer yet,” he says slowly. “It’s still early days, so let’s just see how things go. But you never know, I might take you up on your offer.”
“Brilliant!” As long as there’s a possibility he might come, then I’m happy. “Oh, by the way, I had a dream about you.”
“Really? What was it about?”
“It was really weird. I dreamt that you came to my room in the middle of the night.”
“That sounds sort of kinky. Did we have sex?”
“Not exactly. It was just really …weird. It felt so real, I could have sworn you were actually there with me.”
Nick hesitates. Then he says, “Perhaps it’s symbolic.”
“Symbolic?”
“Of us finally getting it on.”
I nod vacantly.Perhaps …
When we’ve finished bathing, Nick wraps me in a big towel and goes downstairs in search of my clothes. He’s gone for ages and I wonder what on Earth’s keeping him. Finally, he returns looking rather sheepish.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
He scratches the side of his mouth and suppresses a smirk. “I seem to have destroyed your clothes. I’m afraid we got a little too carried away again. Sorry, I promise it won’t happen again.”
I flash a mischievous grin. “Famous last words.”
His smile widens. “Well, you certainly won’t be able to wear them home, so I’ll have to find you something of mine. But for the life of me, I can’t think what. I don’t think I’ve got anything that will fit you.”
My eyes dance with amusement. “Is this your not-so-subtle way of sabotaging my attempts to go home?”
Nick bursts out laughing and disappears again in search of something for me to wear. Five minutes later, he returns with an old T-shirt and a pair of purple tracksuit bottoms. They’re kind of big, but I figure I can always use my coat to cover them.
When I’ve finished getting dressed, Nick takes me on a fleeting tour of the house. In addition to the bathroom, the first floor holds three bedrooms and a stairway leading to the attic. Nick’s room is dark and gothic, with a huge fireplace, black velvet drapes and a sumptuous four-poster bed. Downstairs has a huge kitchen, two receptions, a study lined with books and a conservatory that overlooks an immaculately pruned private garden. Every room is fitted out with Persian rugs and antique furniture; every available surface covered with priceless porcelains, urns and crystals vases. I’m very, very impressed. The contents of the house alone must be worth a cool couple of million.
As we sashay around, I recall the strange conversation we had in the car earlier: the one about Nick not being ‘worthy’ enough of me. Drunk in love as I am, I’m not as foolish as to dismiss his warning entirely, and my eagle eyes are constantly on the look-out for any sign of a female in residence. The optimist in me says Nick’s reluctance to start a relationship was a simple commitment issue, but the pessimist still worries that there might be another woman lurking around in the background.
However, as we move from room to room, I see no obvious feminine touches. Sure the house is immaculately clean, and everything clearly has a place, but there are no signs of women’s clothing or trinkets and the overall décor is decidedly male. In fact, I see no personal touches anywhere: no family photographs, no birthday or greeting cards to give the place a more intimate feel.
I breathe a sigh of relief.So far, so good.
Finally, Nick shows me the sitting room: an impressive living space with a marble-mantled fireplace, oak flooring, sash windows fitted with venison blinds and the same aristocratic furniture as the rest of the house. I’m completely blown away and make sure I let Nick know it.
“But I can’t take all the credit,” he says modestly. “The place is exactly the way my father left it. I’ve only made a few adjustments so really, this is his labour of love, not mine. Even so, I’m thrilled you like it. Hopefully, you’ll be spending a lot more time here, and I want you to be comfortable.” He takes my hand. “Darling, are you sure you definitely can’t spend the night?”
“Honestly, I’d love to but …”
