Page 25 of A Cornish Wedding Retreat
‘Oh.’ Maggie’s sultry gaze swept down over him and reignited the fierce desire he’d managed to dampen down a few seconds ago. At a guess he’d say she’d never experienced this level of power over a man before and liked it, a lot.
‘You’re one wicked lady,’ he chuckled.
‘What a thing to say.’ Her protest was patently fake and they both laughed. ‘Maybe the original walk we’d planned would cool us down?’
‘A very sensible idea.’ Reluctantly he moved to the edge of the bed and found his shoes.
‘Being sensible sucks,’ she complained. ‘One day I’m going to do exactly what I want with no thought to the consequences.’
‘Oh, Maggie, you could no more do that than Emily could turn into a completely responsible person with a placid disposition,’ he tossed right back at her. ‘Get real.’
She stuck out her tongue and turned her back on him. A noise like a clanging ship’s bell hummed somewhere in the room and Maggie jumped up to grab her handbag from the floor. She pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen before answering. ‘Emily. How are things?’ The smile left her face.
Chad crossed his fingers. He’d backed up Maggie’s sister when she’d insisted they leave her alone with Jonathan. Had he made a huge mistake?
Chapter Fifteen
Maggie listened in amazement and prayed Emily wasn’t making another rash decision. ‘Are you absolutely sure?’ She held the phone away from her ear to avoid being deafened — catching the words insensitive, boring and true love. ‘Okay, okay, I’ll come back right now. Bye.’ She turned back to face Chad who was looking more worried than she’d ever seen him. ‘Don’t panic. Jonathan isn’t lying in a pool of blood on my kitchen floor.’
‘Good.’ His succinct reply made her smile. ‘What happened?’
‘Don’t ask me how but the engagement is back on and tomorrow morning they’re going to the registry office and fill in the paperwork to get married in sixteen days.’
Chad glanced at the calendar on his phone. ‘Is the fifth of August significant in some way?’
Maggie shrugged. ‘Apparently the notice of an intended marriage has to be displayed for fifteen days before the ceremony so it’s the earliest possible date.’ He opened his mouth to speak but she jumped in first. ‘Yes, I know what Jonathan said but I suppose impending fatherhood combined with Emily’s charms persuaded him otherwise. His parents won’t be pleased because they consider my sister to be nothing but trouble.’ Chad held out his hand and she let herself be pulled back into his arms. She’d never realised before how strong and reassuring a hug could be and snuggled into him, as close as it was possible to get with their clothes on.Stop thinking about that, Maggie Taylor, or you’ll never leave this room.
‘Would you like me to take you home?’ he murmured, kissing his way down her neck. ‘You’re so hot, Maggie Taylor, you should come with a health warning.’
‘I’ll have you know my kitchens have always scored top marks in inspections. My potentially hazardous foods areproperly thawed. I maintain good hygiene practises and all handling of food is minimised.’
‘What a relief,’ he teased. ‘Let’s go before I lose the will to say no to you about anything.’
Maggie tried not to look incredibly satisfied but didn’t succeed judging by the gleam in Chad’s eyes, turning them a rich shade of dark, decadent toffee. She found her shoes and slipped them back on before gathering up her handbag. Folding her hands demurely she waited for him to get ready.
‘Don’t give me that fake innocent look as though butter wouldn’t melt in your mouth.’ Chad waved his keys in the air. ‘Downstairs. Now.’
She obeyed without saying another word, enjoying the fact the light-hearted flirtation had briefly taken her mind off Emily. She should do it more often.
* * *
What was it with her and sitting alone in the kitchen? Somehow it always helped after a challenging day and this one certainly ranked up there with the most difficult she’d experienced. She stared at the clock and was surprised to see it was nearly midnight. In her heart she wanted to be happy for Emily, but the nagging sensation of impending doom wouldn’t go away. Chad had made it all sound perfectly rational but the man was a lawyer and everyone knew they could convince other people black was white with the right choice of words. Maybe she wasn’t being fair to him because he dealt with music rights day in and day out not defending murderous criminals.
We’ve got it all planned, Maggie. It’ll be an intimate ceremony with only our immediate families. Afterwards I’ll move into Jonathan’s flat in town until we find a house to buy. You’ll be able to have this place to yourself.
Maggie couldn’t imagine rattling around in their old family home alone, plus legally it belonged to them both and should be sold to give Emily her share.
I’ll stay in the business, but I’m not sure how much work I’ll be able to put in so you may need to get someone else to help out.
It’d taken all her waning self-control to hold back from screaming at that point. She hadn’t wanted to open a catering business in the first place. Cakes were her real love. They’d have to talk about it more when Emily’s head wasn’t full of flower colours and whether the dress she’d bought was suitable for a registry office wedding.
Jonathan had whisked Emily off out for a celebratory dinner but Maggie pleaded a non-existent headache when Chad tried hard to persuade her to go out with him. Now she wished she wasn’t here alone with her thoughts.
The clock chimed the hour and she realised it was Monday meaning her bizarre weekend was officially over. Maggie sighed and decided she’d better drag herself up to her empty Chad-less bed.
* * *
The sheets were tangled uncomfortably around his legs and Chad threw off the covers before turning the bedside light back on. He didn’t do restless well. When he went to bed he slept, but the combination of craving Maggie and knowing he’d said all the wrong things earlier had kept him wide awake. He picked up his phone and tapped in a text message before hitting Send. No doubt she was fast asleep but at least when she read it in the morning Maggie would know he’d been thinking about her. A couple of seconds later a reply came back.
