Page 106 of Pervade Montego Bay
“Me holding back is my way of protecting you.”
“No, that’s the lie you tell yourself.”
He sat on the edge of the desk and rubbed a hand across his face. “What can I say to convince you I’m not right for you…or Xavier?”
“Nothing. You were happy with Victoria. I want you to tell me about her. ”
He let out a frustrated sigh. “We married and things ended tragically.”
“I already know that, James.”
He gave a resigned nod.
“How did you meet? Maybe start there.”
“You want to do this now? Here?”
“Yes, I do.”
His shoulders slumped in defeat. “We met at the Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth. I was there for officer training. Victoria’s brother was a fellow student. She came with him to a regimental dinner.”
My kind smile encouraged him to continue.
He gave me a reluctant smile back. “I overheard a conversation amongst the other officers at the dinner. They were placing bets on who would get to take her to bed. She was so gorgeous the men were stalking her all night. They were drunk, of course. I told her about the bet. Thought it was the gentlemanly thing to do. At least that way she would be protected from some dashing rogue of an officer who made a move.”
“How did she react?”
“She was grateful.” He shrugged. “Victoria took my number and a week later she called me.”
“You started dating?”
“No, though we did talk on the phone for a couple of hours. Still, I was heading for my first tour aboard a submarine and she was halfway through her training with MI6.”
“She was an agent stationed where you were?”
“Yes, and a good one, too. A year later, I attended a briefing in Portsmouth. She was the one giving the talk on home security. She was intelligent and funny and brilliant and so damn brave. I asked her out, not willing to let her slip through my fingers this time.” His face brightened as though the memories had found him again. “We were married within six months.”
“Did she want children?” I watched him carefully.
“Yes, of course.”
My heart jolted at seeing his earnest expression, the way he pressed his hand to his chest. It looked endearing and so unlike Ballad’s usual strict stance.
“I’m sorry she died, James.”
“I let her down.”
“How?”
“I wasn’t there…” His face paled. “I couldn’t prevent what they did to her.”
“How could you have known what would happen?”
“I was on a sub when she needed me. Perhaps she’d have shared her concerns about the possibly of a death threat if I’d been around more often. I could have done something.”
“You got him, James…the man who killed her.”
“It was more sinister than that, Em. The man who gave the kill order was the man who would one day become my boss at MI6. He was Victoria’s boss, too. She trusted him.”
