AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘I have to point out that I’m not your “employee”, as you put it. I’m a contractor whom you’ve hired to perform a particular job. It’s my role to stay in the background unless I’m needed. I’m very pleased that your event is going well, and—’
My words stop abruptly when he grabs my face, leans in, and kisses me. It’s not a tender kiss; he’s crushing my lips with his. I can smell the sourness of the wine on his breath as his other hand reaches around to the back of my head to pull me harder against him. His tongue is trying to force its way into my mouth. There’s nothing loving here; this is about dominance and power.
He breaks off just as suddenly, and I can already see his cheek reddening where I’ve slapped him.
‘Don’t you ever,ever, do that again,’ I tell him, and my voice is shaking with rage. ‘If you so much as come near me, I’ll slap a sexual assault complaint on you so fast your feet won’t touch the ground. Do you understand?’
‘You wouldn’t dare,’ he snarls. ‘It’s your word against mine, and all I have to do is complain about you to your boss and you’ll be out of a job. I’ll tell her you wouldn’t leave me alone, that you were harassing me and trying to get me back.’
‘I wouldn’t do that if I were you,’ Emily’s voice says from behind him. ‘I saw everything, and I’m more than happy to back Sophie up. I suggest you get back to your guests, and we’ll look forward to a glowing review, okay?’
James stands there pouting and moving his mouth, as if searching for a comeback, before turning on his heel and stalking back towards the dining room.
‘Are you all right?’ she asks.
‘Thanks to you, yes.’
‘Don’t sweat it. I owed you one for not dobbing me in to Annabel when you first came back. Shall we see if there’s a glass of wine anywhere? I reckon you need a bit of mouthwash, probably even disinfectant. Wine is a disinfectant, isn’t it?’
‘You’re rapidly becoming one of my favourite people in the world,’ I tell her.
31
The next morning, James is understandably wary of me and raises no objection to running the clay pigeon shoot on his own. Emily has gone off with the ladies, so I decide to go for a walk, as there isn’t really anything I need to do for the moment, and I don’t want to hang around the house in case I bump into Becky. I also need some time alone to process what happened last night. As I walk down the drive towards the stables, I fish my phone out and take advantage of the improved mobile coverage to call Elliott.
‘How are you holding up?’ he asks.
‘I could be better,’ I admit. ‘James tried to kiss me last night.’
‘Seriously? What a scumbag!’
I fill him in on all the details. ‘Don’t worry, I slapped him so hard I think his cheek is still tingling,’ I tell him. ‘I just don’t know what to make of it. What did he think he was doing?’
‘I suspect it’s what I told you before. Although I’m sure the shoot and the income from it are important, the underlying motive was always about you.’
‘Go on.’
‘He’s determined to prove that you would have been better off if you’d stayed with him. I think he’s hoping you’ll spend the rest of your life regretting walking away from your marriage, especially now that the farm appears to be a success. When he saw you dressed like a member of the waiting staff, eating off your lap, it was practically his wet dream. There he is, lord of the manor, and you’re his servant, as he put it. The kiss was all about him having power over you. He probably hoped you’d be into it, so he could be the one to reject you this time.’
‘You seem remarkably calm about the fact that some other man tried it on with your girlfriend,’ I observe.
‘I don’t like the idea, of course I don’t. But I’m not going to get all Neanderthal about it and threaten to beat James up. Apart from the fact that it sounds like I’d probably come off worse than him, you’re not some object to be fought over and owned. You’re a free agent, and you make your own choices. I want you to choose me every time, and I hope you will. But I don’t own you, and I hope I’ll never treat you like a possession.’
‘You are the most amazing man. Of course I choose you!’
‘And I choose you too. I can’t wait for these negotiations to be over so I can spend more time with you.’
‘Me too,’ I tell him. ‘Me too.’
I’m grinning from ear to ear as I replay our conversation in my head after we’ve hung up. Elliott may feel that he’d come off worse in a fist fight, but in my mind he’s twice the man James could ever be. It’s just a shame I didn’t meet him first, but then maybe I needed to be married to James to appreciate Elliott fully. I’m no believer in karma, but sometimes things happen for a reason. I’m nearly at the end of the drive when I spot a familiar figure walking towards me and the smile leaves my face.
‘Good morning, Rosalind,’ I say as she comes to a halt in front of me.
‘Hello, Sophie. I heard you were working here this weekend. Shouldn’t you be back at the house, doing something?’
‘No. Everything is under control, thank you.’
‘I see. So you decided to have a poke around, did you?’
