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She opened her eyes to face his broad chest. He’d made a miraculous recovery and was standing in front of her with his hand on her arm to steady her.
The irony wasn’t lost on her. She was supposed to be looking after him—not the other way about.
He’d told her he needed help with publicity. Maybe she’d unwittingly played into his hands? Her brain started to spin.
Her head sagged back and hit against the cold hospital wall. Her eyes sprang back open and he was staring right at her again.
How many women had he charmed with those blue eyes? And that killer dimple...
His arm slid around her shoulders. ‘It’s hot in here. Maybe you’ll feel better if we get some fresh air.’
His body seemed to automatically steer hers along. Her feet walking in concordance with his, along the hospital corridor and back out to the car park. Her first reaction was to shake off his unwanted arm.
But something weird was happening. Her body seemed to enjoy being next to his. She seemed to fit well under his shoulder. In her simple sundress the touch of his arm across her shoulders was sending little currents to places that had been dormant for a while.
Twenty-four hours. That was how long she would have to be in his company.
Panic was starting to flood through her, pushing aside all the other confusing thoughts. This guy could charm the birds from the trees. She’d thought she’d be immune. But her body impulses were telling her differently.
As soon as the fresh air hit she wriggled free from under his arm. ‘I’m fine.’ She walked across the car park and jiggled her keys in her hand.
‘We need to have some ground rules.’
He leaned against the Rolls-Royce. She could almost hear her father scream in her ear.
‘What exactly might they be?’ One eyebrow was raised. He probably couldn’t raise the other. That part of his forehead would still be anaesthetised. Darn it. The guilty feelings were sneaking their way back in.
‘I think when we get back to Hawksley Castle we should ask Violet to stay with you. After all, she knows you best. She’ll know if you do anything out of character—like grope strange women.’ She couldn’t help but throw it in there. She waved the instructions at him. ‘You know, anything that might mean you need to go back to hospital.’ Now she was saying the words out loud they made perfect sense.
He waved his finger at her. ‘Oh, no, you don’t.’
‘Don’t what?’
‘Try and get out of this.’ He pointed to his forehead. ‘You did this to me, Rose. It’s your job to hang around to make sure I’m okay.’
He was so smooth. A mixture of treacle and syrup.
‘Oh, stop it, Will. I’m not your typical girl. I’m not going to fall at your feet and expect a ring. And if you keep going the way you are I’ll hit you again with the next vase I find. I’ve got things to do. I can’t hang around Hawksley Castle.’
He smiled and opened the car door. ‘Who said we were spending the next twenty-four hours at Hawksley Castle?’
She started as he climbed in. She pulled open the car door and slid in. ‘What on earth do you mean? Of course we’re going back to Hawksley Castle.’
He shook his head. ‘I think both of us have overstayed our welcome. You’ve damaged one of Seb’s precious heirlooms and I’ve probably put immovable stains on an ancient carpet and wall. I suggest we regroup and go somewhere else.’
She started the engine. ‘Like where?’
‘Like Gideon Hall.’
Gideon Hall. Will Carter’s millionaire mansion. At least at Hawksley Castle she’d be surrounded by family and friends. There was safety in numbers. Being alone with Will Carter wasn’t something she wanted to risk.
‘Oh, no. I need to work, Will.’
‘I can give you access to a phone and computer. What else do you need?’
‘My jewellery equipment, my soldering iron, my casting machine. My yellow, white and rose gold. My precious stones. Do you have any of those at Gideon Hall?’
The confident grin fell from his face. ‘You’re serious about making the jewellery?’
His question annoyed her. ‘Of course I am. Working for my dad is the day job. Working to make wedding jewellery? That’s the job I actually want to do. I spend most of my nights working on jewellery for upcoming weddings. I have an order to make wedding rings for a bride and groom. I can’t afford to take any time off.’
It was nice to see his unwavering confidence start to fail. It seemed Mr Charming hadn’t thought of everything.
She sighed. ‘If need be, we can collect our things from Seb’s, then go back to my parents’ place. If you’ve hung around with Violet long enough you must be familiar with it.’
He settled back in the chair. ‘Do you have your equipment at your parents’ house?’
She nodded. ‘I have one set in New York, and one set here.’
‘That’s fine. We can move it to my house in the next hour. I’ll get someone to help us.’
He pulled his phone from his pocket and started dialling. ‘What? No. What on earth is wrong with you? I’ve said I’ll hang around you for the next twenty-four hours. Isn’t that enough?’
He turned to face her. ‘Actually, no, it’s not. I’ve got a meeting later on today with a potential investor for the homeless charity. It’s taken for ever to set up and I don’t want to miss it.’
‘Can’t you just change the venue?’
Will let out a long, slow puff of air and named a footballer her father had had a spat with a few months ago. ‘How would your dad feel about him being in his house?’
She gulped. ‘Wow. No. He’d probably blow a gasket. He hates the guy.’ She frowned. ‘Are you sure he’s the right kind of guy to help your charity?’ She was racking her brains. Her dad was a good judge of character. He could spot a fake at twenty paces and didn’t hesitate to tell them. She was sure there was a good reason he didn’t like this footballer—she just couldn’t remember what it was.
Will still couldn’t frown properly. It was kind of cute. ‘I’ve no idea. I’ve never met him before. But he’s well known and popular with sports fans. It’s not so much about the money. It’s the publicity I need help with. We need to get the homeless agenda on people’s radars. They need to understand the reason people end up on the streets. It’s not just because they’re drunks, or drug addicts or can’t hold down a job.’
She turned back into the grounds of Hawksley Castle. ‘You’re really serious about this, aren’t you?’
‘Of course I am. Why would you think I’m not?’
She bit her lip. ‘What’s in it for you? Why is a homeless charity your thing?’
It took him a few seconds to answer. ‘I had a friend at university who ended up on the streets. I didn’t know. He didn’t ask anyone for help because he didn’t want anyone to know the kind of trouble he was in. I found out later when someone tried to rob him and stabbed him in the process. The police found my details amongst his things.’
She pulled the car to a halt and turned to face him. ‘Was he dead?’
Will shook his head. It was the first time she’d really seen complete sincerity on his face. No charm, no dimple, no killer smile. In a way, it made him all the more handsome even though she tried to push that thought from her brain.
‘No. But Arral needed help. And there’s a lot more people out there who need help, too.’
‘So, you really want good PR to raise awareness and you think this footballer will give you it?’
He folded his arms across his chest. ‘Is that scepticism I hear in your voice, Rose?’
She gave him a smile as she opened the door and took the key from the ignition. ‘I just don’t know if he’s your best choice.’
Will climbed out next to her. ‘Neither do I, but, right now, he’s my only option. How long will it take you to grab your stuff?’
She shrugged. ‘My clothes? Five minutes. What about my equipment?’
‘I’ll arrange for someone to go your parents’ and pick it up. Do you want to drop by first?’
She nodded. ‘It won’t take long. Let me get my clothes and I’ll meet you back here.’
* * *
Will was true to his word. There was a man with a van waiting outside her parents’ house when they arrived. She took him around to her workshop and collected the things she’d need to start work later that night.
As she was collecting a few other items her father appeared. ‘Oh, hi, Dad. I didn’t expect you to be back yet. I thought you’d still be at Hawksley Castle.’
He smiled. ‘Your mother and I came back an hour ago. We had a few things we wanted to discuss.’
Her mother appeared at her father’s side, his arm slipping around her waist and resting on her hip. Sherry Huntingdon still had her model-girl looks and figure even though she was in her fifties.
Rose’s father’s face was a little more lived-in. Rock and roll did that to you. His hair was still longer than normal—he still loved the shaggy rock-star look.
Rose’s stomach started to do little flip-flops. Her father’s words were a bit ominous. He had a tendency to spring things on her. And it looked as if nothing was about to change.
Rick crossed the room and put his hand out towards Will. ‘Will, aren’t you hanging around with the wrong daughter?’ There was an amused tone in his voice. ‘And what happened to your head? Did one of those brides finally get you?’ He threw back his head and let out a hearty laugh.
Rose cringed. How many times was Will going to hear those words?
But Will seemed unperturbed. ‘Ask Rose—she was the one that socked me with a vase.’
‘She what?’ Rose’s mother seemed shocked.
Rose waved her hand quickly. ‘It was a misunderstanding. That’s all. What did you come back to talk about, Dad?’ She wanted to distract them before they asked too many questions.
Her mother and father turned and smiled at each other. There it was. That sappy look that they got sometimes. In a way it was nice. Still romantic. It was obvious to the world that they still loved each other.
It was just a tad embarrassing when it was your parents.
‘Your mother and I have made a decision.’
‘What kind of decision?’ She had a bad feeling about this.
Both of them couldn’t stop smiling and it was making her toes curl. She just knew this was going to be something big.
‘After all the preparations for Daisy’s wedding—and the fact everything went so beautifully—your mother and I have decided to renew our wedding vows.’
‘You have?’ It was so not what she expected to hear.
Her mother put her hand on her father’s chest. She was in that far-off place she went to when ideas started to float around her head. ‘You know we never had a big wedding.’ She turned to acknowledge Will. ‘We ran away to Vegas and got married after only knowing each other for a weekend. I never really had the fancy dress, flowers or meal like Daisy had. So, we’ve decided to do it all again.’
Rick shrugged and smiled at Will. ‘It might seem hasty, but believe me—’ he smiled at his wife ‘—when you know, you just know.’
A thousand little centipedes had started to crawl over Rose’s skin. She had a horrid feeling she knew exactly where this was going.
‘It’s a lovely idea. When were you thinking? Next year—after the tour is over?’
‘Oh, no.’ Rose’s mother laughed. ‘In a few weeks.’
‘A few weeks!’ She couldn’t help but raise her voice. Will shot her a look, obviously trying to calm her. But he had no idea what was coming next. Rose did.
Sherry stepped forward. ‘What’s the problem? We have the perfect venue.’ She spun around. ‘Here. We just need a marquee for the grounds. And a caterer. And some flowers. And some dresses.’ She turned to Rick and laughed. ‘And a band!’
Rick stepped forward. ‘It shouldn’t be a problem. You can arrange all that in a few weeks, can’t you, Rose? You do everything so perfectly. And you’re just so organised. We couldn’t possibly trust anyone else with something so important.’ Her father stepped over and gave her a hug and dropped a kiss on her cheek. It was clear he was floating on the same love-swept cloud that her mother was.
‘Me?’ Her voice came out in a squeak as Will’s eyes widened in shock.
Oh, now he understood. This was what she got for doing such a good job. She was the official PA for her father’s band and her mother’s career. With all the tour preparations she barely had time to sleep right now. But she loved her parents dearly so she let them think it was all effortless. Her parents had been so strong and so supportive when she’d needed them—even though she secretly felt she’d disappointed them. Their love and support was the only thing that had got her through. All she wanted to do was make them proud. If they were trusting her with something like this? It made her anxious to please them, to let them be confident in her choices, even if this was the last thing she needed.
Her father’s voice was steady. ‘You know just how hard your mother’s been working recently. And what with planning Daisy’s wedding, she’s just exhausted. If you could do all this it would be a whole weight off our minds.’
The dopey smiles on her parents’ faces were enough to melt her heart—even though it was fluttering frantically in her chest and her brain was going into overdrive.
Will seemed to pick up on her overwhelming sense of panic. He stepped forward. ‘What a fantastic idea. But these things normally take a while to plan—don’t you want to wait a while and get everything just right?’
It was a valiant attempt. But Rose knew exactly how this would go. Once her parents got an idea in their heads there was no changing their minds.
Rick gave a wave of his hand. ‘Nonsense. It didn’t take long to sort out Daisy’s wedding, did it?’ He gave Rose that look. The one he always did when she knew he meant business. Rick Cross had invented the word determined.
‘I’m not sure, Dad. There’s a lot to do, what with the tour and the charity concert and everything.’
His hand rested on her arm and he glanced in his wife’s direction. ‘Now, Rose. Let’s give your mother the wedding she always deserved.’
The truth was he wasn’t picking up her cues. He was too busy concentrating on the rapt expression on his wife’s face. Anxiety was building in her stomach. If she could do this, maybe she could repay her parents for everything they’d done for her. When she’d been splashed over the press when her friend had died she couldn’t have asked for better advocates or supporters. Family was everything.
She started to murmur out loud. ‘But I know nothing about weddings. Receptions, marquees, dinners, dresses...’
Her mother smiled. ‘Oh, honey. Leave the dress to me. I’m going to get the one I always wanted.’ Her gaze locked with Rick’s and it was clear they were lost in their own little world.
Rick waved his hand. ‘Ask Daisy. She knows all about it.’ He let out a little laugh. ‘Or ask your friend. He’s had his fair share of organising weddings.’
Her parents turned and drifted back out of the room, lost in conversation with each other. That was it. Decision made. And everything left to Rose.
Rose turned to face Will. Her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. She’d kill for a cosmopolitan right now. Her mouth was so dry she couldn’t even begin to form words. She’d been blindsided. By her parents.
Will was looking just as pale.
She lifted her hands. ‘I... I...’ But the words wouldn’t come out. The only sound that did come out was a sob. All this work. Organising a wedding in a few weeks might be okay for some people. But some people weren’t Rick Cross and Sherry Huntingdon. They’d have a spectacular guest list—who’d all come with their list of demands. Where on earth would she find the kind of caterer she’d need at short notice? Her parents were very picky about food.
