Page 57 of The Beekeeper's Cottage
‘You see, we’re honest people too, Grace, which is why we’ve not only made the decision we have, but why we wanted to share it with you too. Otherwise you might feel thatyouhave failed in some way and nothing could be further from the truth.’
Riley leaned forward. ‘Your home is beautiful and your hospitality has been absolutely wonderful, perfect in fact. I wish every business trip could be like this—’
‘Hell, I even found someone who loves my favourite book,’ interrupted Zac. ‘But I’m afraid that we were never here to pass judgement onyourskills, Grace, and I think you know that.’
Grace felt sick to her stomach. Of course she knew that, she’d known it all along, and worse, now that she had heard the words from Zac’s mouth, she realised that she’d also known that Dominic wasn’t going to get the contract, Paul wasn’t going to be their star. It had been obvious from Zac’s small comments, from the glances he had shot Paul. She bit back her shock and managed to nod.
‘Yes, of course…’ She found a smile from somewhere and dragged it onto her face. ‘And I’m very grateful to you, not only for your compliments but also for having the generosity to let me know that your decision has in no way been dependent on me.’
‘You’re in a very difficult position, Grace, we realise that…’ added Riley.
She almost laughed.You don’t even know the half of it.
‘… And we’re also a little concerned as to whether you’re going to be all right.’
Her head came up in shock to find Zac looking at her, a gentle expression on his face. He smiled softly. ‘The world of television is notoriously cut-throat, shallow and really not all that nice… although, I don’t think I’m telling you anything you don’t already know.’
He carried on without waiting for an answer. ‘The other thing this business is, is full of gossip-mongering, and so your husband’s… indiscretions, shall we call them, are not that much of a secret, despite what he believes. We’ve been aware of them for some time.’
She sat up a little straighter as the implications of Zac’s words ricocheted through her.
‘So it might surprise you to hear that there are still people who work in the industry who consider themselves honest, basically decent, and who at least know what the word integrity means.’ Zac thumbed his chest. ‘That’s us by the way, in case you haven’t worked it out. And so although Dominic can potentially offer us a very good home for our show, I’m afraid that Paul is not the right face to go with it. We had our reservations before we arrived, but I’d hate you to think we were taking advantage of you. This weekend was all about checking whether Paul was the right man,despitewhat we’ve heard. It was about giving him a chance to prove us wrong.’
‘And he didn’t,’ muttered Grace.
‘No, he didn’t. I’m sorry.’ Zac looked apologetic. ‘We can’t in all conscience go with someone who we don’t believe in.’
‘No, I understand that.’
‘But, we also know that’s going to come as rather a shock to him… and we don’t want there to be any repercussions for you.’
Grace laughed, she couldn’t help herself. ‘Yes, it will be a shock,’ she said slowly, lifting her chin a little defiantly. ‘But don’t worry, I can look after myself. And you know, perhaps it’s time someone gave Paul a shock, he seems to be under the illusion that he can do exactly what he likes with no consequences.’
She met Zac’s steady gaze. ‘And I appreciate your honesty. In fact, since wearebeing honest with one another, I think it’s only fair that you know I asked Paul for a divorce a couple of months ago. He moved out the same night and up until Friday night I hadn’t seen him since.’ She gave a sad smile. ‘So, in a bizarre way it means even more that your decision hasn’t been affected by anythingI’vedone. Paul has brought all this on himself and, if there’s any justice in the world, perhaps he’s just had his served.’
Riley was watching her, an astonished expression on his face. ‘Sorry… let me get this straight. You and Paul are separated and yet you still went to all this trouble for him? Why would you even do that?’
‘Let’s just say I had my reasons.’ Grace wasn’t about to share the details of the agreement they had made over the house. What was done was done and she wouldn’t want them to feel in any way awkward about their decision.
Zac exchanged a look with Riley. ‘Well, all I can say is that Paul is an even bigger idiot than I thought he was. But, for your sake, I’m glad that you’re striking out on your own. You deserve better, Grace, I sincerely hope you find it.’
She swallowed. It was a lovely thing to say, and they had been incredibly kind and thoughtful to give her the consideration they had, but it was over for her now. The weekend had proved to be the final nail in the coffin as far as keeping the house was concerned, and the irony was that none of it was her fault. Dominic had made Paul agree to give her the house if she did nothing this weekend to his detriment, but she hadn’t needed to – he had failed all by himself. What made it worse was that Paul was so arrogant, thinking he had the Midas touch, that he had even managed to place the onus for this weekend squarely on her shoulders, and she had been so desperate, she had let him. She had prostituted herself to keep her house, so what did that make her?
‘Thank you,’ she said quietly. ‘I have some good friends. I’ll be fine.’
‘And I sincerely hope Amos is one of them,’ replied Zac, a twinkle in his eye. ‘He thinks the world of you, you know, and if I were you, I would make him averygood friend…’
Grace looked up, frowning. ‘Amos?’ He’d been in her head almost constantly throughout the day, but she was surprised to find him in someone else’s.
Zac grinned. ‘Yes, Amos. We got chatting after the palaver with the tyre this morning. I went to say thank you and to apologise for Paul treating him like a servant and he asked me if I was enjoying my stay.’ He pursed his lips in amusement. ‘I might have mentioned your many talents and he rather waxed lyrical in return. I could quote him if you like.’
‘No, don’t.’ Grace put her hands to her cheeks, blushing. ‘I get the idea.’ She smiled at both men. ‘I am still glad you enjoyed your weekend, just sorry it didn’t turn out quite the way you wanted it to.’
‘Don’t be,’ replied Zac. ‘I don’t suppose you’d like a job, would you?’
She stared at him. ‘A job? Oh, come on… what would I do?’
He dipped his head a little. ‘Forgive me, I’m being mischievous, but… what we do need from time to time is a good location somewhere in the UK – to use as a film or studio set. Admittedly I’m rather talking off the top of my head here, but have a think about it. If the idea interests you, get in touch.’ He pulled a card from the inside pocket of his jacket and laid it on the table. ‘You never know when these are going to come in handy.’
