Page 116 of Duplicity

‘Of course, as long as you’re feeling up to it.’ Dave has retired for the night, to one of the guest cottages (yes, that’s a thing here) and has given me his number. I’m to call him if I have any worries in the night.

I’m peppering her face with kisses when Brendan appears in the doorframe. He may be in a linen shirt and shorts, but I’m struggling to erase the image of him in swim shorts from my mind.

‘Hey,’ he says softly. ‘Okay if I say goodnight?’

‘Of course.’ I stand to make room for him by the bed.

He closes the distance and runs a huge hand over Tabby’s hair. ‘You did great today, sunshine. Did you have fun?’

‘I had lots of fun,’ she says. ‘Can we play more Marco Polo tomorrow?’

‘Yeah. Definitely. Though I may have to cheat a little and open my eyes. It was pretty embarrassing when I grabbed Peter thinking he was you.’

Tabs giggles, and it’s a magical sound. He leans over and kisses her on the forehead.

‘Goodnight, sunshine. Well played today. Get some rest, yeah? You’ll need it for tomorrow.’

We walk downstairs in comfortable silence. ‘Come outside with me?’ he murmurs as I head towards the living room, and I nod.

‘Sure.’

He takes my hand and walks me out of the French doors, across the terrace, and down the steps to the lawn. It’s almost dark, but the gardens are illuminated by the light flooding out from the windows of the house.

‘Thank you for today,’ I begin, but he turns and pulls me into his arms, tugging me close and burying his face in my neck.

‘God, I miss you. I miss you so fucking much.’

I’ve seen him every single day since we got back from the US, but I’m in no doubt about what he means. No doubt at all.

I wrap my arms around his back and I allow myself to breathe him in, to luxuriate in the unparalleled joy of being engulfed in his huge body. For two people who used to fuck like rabbits, deliberate celibacy is a real effort. And yet I’m quite aware that, moments like this, days like today, are more intimate in other ways. More meaningful.

‘I miss you too,’ I murmur, and he hugs me more tightly.

‘Today was no effort at all. Spending time with Tabs is a joy. She’s bloody amazing.’

‘You’re great with her,’ I tell him. ‘She has the time of her life with you.’ It’s the truth, and I’m not about to deprive Brendan of that truth, no matter how uncertain our future is.

‘And I with her. But I know this kind of stuff is the fair-weather side of parenting. Anyone can have fun in a pool on a sunny day.’ He kisses my temple. ‘I promise you, sweetheart, I’m going to prove to you that I’m capable of sticking around for the tough stuff, too. I’m not going anywhere, and I’m willing to wait for as long as it takes to prove to you that I will never let you and Tabs down.Ever.’

CHAPTER 55

Brendan

Organising a first date with the woman you’ve given your heart to should be easy when you’re a billionaire. We’ve all seenPretty Woman, right? Take a jet to another city for an evening at the opera. But while Marlowe would love a night at the opera, she’d hate the flashy side of that gesture. The unnecessary expense. So I have to tread carefully here.

Here’s the thing, though. I want to spend money on her. She’s squirrelling every last penny away for Tabby’s future medical needs, a fact that breaks my heart and terrifies me in equal measure, because once she’s happy that that pot is adequate, she’ll be handing in her notice and running for the hills. She’s far too proud to keep taking her current salary for a regular EA role.

My only hope is to win her trust so fully in the meantime that she agrees to enter into an official romantic relationship with me.

After extensive mulling over it, I decide to call in a hefty favour from my good mate Santi to make this an evening for Marlowe to remember, and so it is that she and I meet outside London’s iconic jazz club, Ronnie Scott’s, one Friday night. Sherefused to let me pick her up, so I make sure I’m waiting on the street when she turns up.

‘You look absolutely beautiful,’ I tell her sincerely before planting a chaste kiss on her cheek. It’s true. She looks knockout in heels and a little black dress that shows off her toned arms and legs. Her hair is long and straight, and I wish I could bury my nose in it.

‘Thank you,’ she says a little breathlessly.

‘Tabs doing okay this evening?’

I’ve seen Tabby with Marlowe four times since our weekend at my parents. Given it’s the end of August and the construction industry is as dead as a dodo, I’ve enforced early departure times for the two of us whenever I can. Just this week, we’ve taken Tabs to play mini golf one evening and do roller skating on another. She was excellent at the latter, Marlowe looked like one of the newborn foals at my parents’ stables, and I was pretty fucking awesome. At least it gave me a chance to hold Marlowe’s hand alot.

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