to make your life difficult, but you need to know the truth.’ The panic that raced through her eyes clutched at his heart. ‘Nell, I know you loved your grandmother.’
‘Yes, of course, but...’
But what did that have to do with anything? He could see the question in her eyes even if she didn’t ask it out loud. ‘How badly do you want to save Whittaker House? How badly do you want to turn it into a Victorian teahouse?’
She shot to her feet and clenched her hands so hard she shook. ‘It’s the most important thing in the world to me.’
Because she wanted to honour the memory of the only person who’d shown her unconditional love? Because she wanted to prove she wasn’t useless and that she could make a success of her life? Because she had nothing else in her life? Oh, Princess, you deserve so much more.
The last thought disturbed him. He shook it off. ‘You really want it more than anything?’
‘Yes.’ Her chin lifted.
Stop thinking about kissing her! ‘So you’re prepared to make sacrifices?’
‘Of course I am!’
His heart grew heavy in his chest. ‘You have a source of income that will get you started and keep you out of trouble for a long while. Nell, you need to sell your grandmother’s diamond ring.’ And probably the emerald as well.
The last of the colour leached from her face. She sat.
He found himself crouching in front of her and clasping her hands. ‘It’s not a betrayal of your grandmother.’
‘Then why does it feel that way?’
‘If she were here now, what would she tell you to do?’
‘I...’
‘Did she place more value on things rather than people?’
‘No! She...’ She gave a half-laugh full of love...and loss. ‘She’d just want me to be happy. If she’d ever had to choose between her diamond ring or this house she’d have sold the ring in an instant.’
He waited and eventually she lifted her chin and squeezed his hands. ‘You’re right. It’s time to be practical. My grandmother’s spirit doesn’t reside in a few pieces of jewellery.’
He stood and moved back. Holding Nell’s hand when she was upset was one thing. Holding it when she fired back to life was altogether different.
Different and compelling and bewitching.
‘Besides, those jewels would’ve been more trouble than they’re worth. I’d have had to be constantly looking over my shoulder waiting for my father to try and take them.’
Rick had grown up among people like that, but it made his gut clench that the Princess had experienced it too.
‘For heaven’s sake, look at me! Sitting around here comfort eating and feeling sorry for myself. How pathetic!’
She was a lot of things, but pathetic wasn’t one of them.
He shifted his weight. ‘If someone offered you a pot of gold to get you out of this fix...and it’d mean you’d get to keep your grandmother’s rings, would you accept it?’
She bit her lip and then shook her head. ‘No.’
He breathed easier.
‘I want to do this under my own steam.’
Good.
‘So while you go and play bailiff I’m going to get my grandmother’s ring out of the safety deposit box and make an appointment with a jewellery evaluator. An antique piece like that...it might even be worth placing in an auction.’
A coil of tension in his chest loosened at the colour in her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes. Way to go, Princess.
‘I think it might be a good idea for me to attend that appointment with you.’
She stared at him and then a Cheshire cat grin slanted across her face. ‘While I have absolutely no intention of being taken advantage of, I think that’s an excellent plan. I dare anyone to even think of it while you have my back.’
Exactly. ‘I’ll see you back here in a couple of hours.’
‘Won’t you need more time?’
The addresses were all within twenty minutes of Nell’s house. ‘I don’t think so.’ He made for the door.
‘Rick.’ She bit her lip. ‘Don’t let any of them make you feel like a second-class citizen. You have more true honour in your pinkie finger than any of them have in their entire bodies.’
Something inside him expanded. He couldn’t utter a word.
‘And you—you who have every reason to bear me a grudge—have shown me more true friendship than just about anyone.’
As she spoke she moved towards him. All he could do was watch. Common sense told him to back up, but his feet refused to move. Reaching up on tiptoe, she kissed his cheek, drenching him in all of her sweetness. A groan rose in his throat, but he swallowed it back.
‘Thank you.’
The sincerity of it shook him loose. ‘No sweat, Princess.’ He had to break the moment or something would happen—something earth-shattering that had the potential to break both of them.
It doesn’t have to.
But it would. Guys like him didn’t end up with girls like her.
He cleared his throat. ‘I don’t suppose you could spare a cupcake or two for a hardworking bailiff on his weary travels?’
She laughed at that, retrieved a large cardboard box of them and pushed it into his hands. ‘Maybe you could leave one with each of them as a gesture of...goodwill.’
He grinned. ‘Behind that pretty face you’re evil, you know?’
She blinked.
‘Because we both know one cupcake is never enough.’
That slow smile spread across her face again. ‘Give them hell, Rick.’
He tipped an imaginary hat at her and left. He fully intended to.
* * *
Rick returned to find Nell waiting for him. She immediately leapt up to put the kettle on to boil. ‘How did it go? Were they horrible to you? Did they say mean things to you?’
Not: Did you get my money? Not: Was the mission successful? But: Were they horrible to you? He stopped dead and just stared.
Her face darkened. ‘They were.’ He watched in a kind of bemusement as her hands clenched. ‘I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have asked that of you. I should’ve done my own dirty work and—’
