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It was hard for Dana to speak. Her words seemed to be coming from some bleak bitter abyss.
‘It isn’t true. He—he’s lying.’
Miss Grantham sighed. ‘Naturally, you would say so. But why should someone in his position accuse you without foundation? It makes no sense.’
No, thought Dana. It wouldn’t—unless she told the whole story. And by admitting she’d agreed to meet Adam in secret, she’d simply be condemning herself in a different way.
As Zac Belisandro knew perfectly well...
‘And while I was packing for you, I found these.’ She put the green skirt and skimpy top on the table between them. ‘Where did they come from?’
‘I—I planned to wear them at the party.’
‘As a gatecrasher.’ Miss Grantham shook her head. ‘There’s really no more to be said. We’ll leave after lunch.’
Dana drew a shuddering breath. ‘But this is my home. And what about school? My exams next year?’
‘Actions have consequences,’ said her aunt. ‘Under the circumstances, Mrs Latimer feels totally betrayed and is no longer prepared to fund your education. In future you will have to work for your living.’
She paused. ‘The Heston children have recovered from chickenpox and their mother is still desperate to find suitable help. Mrs Latimer has given me the afternoon off to take you to Bayswater and see you settled.’
She added grimly, ‘She has no wish to see you before you leave.’
Dana was silent for a moment. ‘May I at least say goodbye to Nicola?’
‘Her brother is taking her to stay with a friend in Shropshire. You are now considered as an undesirable influence, and required not to contact her in future.’ She rose. ‘If this seems hard, remember you have only yourself to blame.’
Dana felt sick. ‘Only myself?’ she repeated under her breath. ‘I don’t think so. Because now, and for the rest of my life, I shall blame Zac Belisandro.’
And she’d meant what she said. Seven years had passed but she still blamed him. Still hated him for what he’d done. And for what he still might try to do...
Except she was no longer a vulnerable girl to be scared off and dismissed at his whim, but his match and more.
Rehashing the past changed nothing, so from now on she would concentrate her energies on the present and the future. With Adam.
She awoke much too early the next morning, her brain still programmed to working hours. But it was a day worth waking up for, with sunlight and a hazy blue sky promising real heat later.
She took a leisurely bath then, dressed in white linen capri pants and a loose turquoise top, she went quietly downstairs, letting herself out through a side door to make her way round to the terrace.
The air smelt clean and fresh after the rain and the lawns and shrubs sparkled after their dousing.
All’s right with the world, Dana thought, drawing a long breath deep into her lungs. Or most of it.
And for a while, Mannion was hers to wander round alone, dreaming as she went.
She moved slowly, breathing the scents from the garden, scanning the facade for signs of decay or neglect, although it seemed to have fared better than the interior.
Although the ivy needed cutting back, she thought critically, wondering if she could mention it to Adam, but deciding that a softly, softly approach would be a better alternative. Taking nothing for granted until it became a certainty.
Smiling, she rounded a corner and realised she’d reached the former Orangery, now the swimming pool. She paused for a moment, contemplating the shimmer of the turquoise water through the glass, noticing how it seemed to be turning to ripples, spreading wider and wider across the surface.
And discovered why as she saw a dark head and the movement of a bronzed arm. The easy turn of a lean, tanned body through the water.
So, she didn’t have Mannion to herself after all. There was another early riser.
As she watched, the swimmer reached the side of pool and pulled himself out of the water in one lithe movement.
Naked, Zac Belisandro walked across to a lounger, picked up a towel and began to dry himself.
Dana stood frozen, her heart thudding against her ribs.
Don’t let him look round, she implored silently. Don’t let him see me.
She began to move backwards, one slow step after another, steadying herself with one hand on the wall until she reached the corner and safety.
She was gasping for breath as if she’d been running, and sank down on her haunches, bending her head and letting her hair fall across her flushed face.
