enjoyed a glass of wine. Watching him surreptitiously, listening to him talk, Jessica found it difficult to believe he was even as old as he was, much less on the verge of dying.
‘We’re usually in bed by ten o’clock,’ said Esther over coffee, ‘but you mustn’t feel you have to retire then yourselves.’
‘Just try not to waken us when you do come up,’ said her husband. ‘At our age, we need our beauty sleep.’
‘You neither of you look your age,’ Jessica commented, and drew an appreciative smile.
‘I’d like to say I don’t feel it either, but it wouldn’t be entirely true. You must make sure you have your children while you’re still young and fit. This modern idea of waiting until middle age is abominable! I had my two sons by the time I was twenty-three.’
His two sons, Jessica noted. She stole a glance at his wife, expecting to see some sign, however faint, of resentment, but her face was devoid of expression.
‘We’re a bit late getting away from the starting post,’ said Zac easily, ‘but we’ll do our best.’
‘Good.’ His grandfather looked from one to the other. ‘So, when’s the wedding to be?’
Jessica drew in a long slow breath. It should have been a foregone conclusion that the question would be asked at some point, but it hadn’t even crossed her mind until this moment.
‘Soon,’ Zac answered.
‘How soon?’ Henry insisted. ‘I’d like to be around for it.’
Esther made a sound as if about to say something, shaking her head as he gave her a sharp glance. It was left to Zac to fill the silence.
‘Weddings take time to arrange. We didn’t even set a date yet.’
‘Then it’s high time you did.’ The older eyes were unyielding. ‘What reason is there to wait if you know your minds?’
Jessica sent Zac an urgent signal via a foot under the table. There was no way they were going to get out of this other than admitting to the whole fabrication, so best to just get on with it and face the consequences.
Zac gave no sign of even feeling the kick. ‘No reason at all,’ he said. ‘We’ll set things in motion.’
‘Good,’ his grandfather said again. His gaze shifted to Jessica. ‘You’ve no objection, I take it?’
She had every objection, but no nerve to voice them. Calling all kinds of curses down on Zac’s head, she managed a creditably steady answer in the negative. This was one bridge he would definitely be crossing on his own. Once away from here, she was out of it!
There was no further talk of weddings, to her relief, but she found it far from easy to act naturally. Zac appeared completely at ease. The hallmark of a born con man, she thought wrathfully.
She refrained from immediate comment when the Prescotts departed, seeking just the right words. Zac forestalled her.
‘Get it off your chest,’ he advised drily. ‘Then we can decide where we go from here.’
‘There’s no going anywhere from here!’ she snapped back, losing track of the flak she’d been about to turn out. ‘You have to tell them the truth!’
‘You think that wise?’ he asked after a moment.
‘I think it quite likely you could lose your precious shares, but I doubt if it will kill him outright.’
‘There’s no certainty of it though. He has little enough time left as it is. Would you want to be responsible for adding to the stress?’
Jessica was silent for a lengthy moment. When she spoke again her voice sounded strained. ‘So, what’s your proposal?’
‘Just let it ride for now.’
‘Where will that get you if he lives longer than expected?’ she asked. ‘And don’t say you’ll cross that bridge if and when necessary, or I swear I’ll hit you!’
‘I won’t, then.’
Jessica glanced at him suspiciously, sensing a certain lack of gravity in his voice. ‘I must have been mad letting you talk me into any of this!’
‘Not mad,’ he declared. ‘Just exceptionally charitable. I can’t think of anyone else who would have agreed to do what you’re doing unconditionally.’
‘Some would have been prepared to take money for it?’
‘I reckon I might have been called on to offer a great deal more than that.’
‘A real engagement rather than a spurious one, you mean?’ Jessica gave a short laugh. ‘I’m sure you’re considered quite a catch, but a woman would have to be pretty desperate to take that kind of advantage.’
‘You might be surprised by the lengths some will go to when it comes to securing a comfortable future.’
‘You’ve been mixing with the wrong type then!’
‘There could be some truth in that. Your cousin aside,’ he added. ‘Leonie regards marriage the same way I’ve always seen it up to now, as something to be avoided at all costs.’
‘So all that talk last night about gaining breathing space to find a woman you could contemplate sharing your life with was so much hogwash!’ Jessica berated.
‘I said up to now. Given the right woman, it might be possible to make something worthwhile out of it.’ He slanted a glance. ‘Fancy giving it a try?’
‘I’d as soon jump off a cliff!’
The sigh was exaggerated. ‘You’re probably right. I’d make a lousy husband!’
The flickering glow from the log fire crackling in the wide stone hearth highlighted the firm masculine features, bringing an all too familiar tension in the region of her stomach. Two nights ago they had shared a bed. At this precise moment she could think of nothing else but the muscular feel of him. Whatever her views on his conduct, there was no denying the need he aroused in her.
He knew it too, if the expression in the grey eyes was anything to go by.
‘Electrifying, isn’t it?’ he said softly. ‘The question is, what are we going to do about it?’
Making out she didn’t know what he was talking about was pointless, Jessica acknowledged. He knew exactly what was in her mind.
‘Absolutely nothing,’ she said flatly. ‘After tomorrow you’re on your own. I don’t want to see you or hear from you again.’
His smile was slow. ‘You don’t lie very well.’
‘It’s the truth.’ She did her best to keep both voice and expression impassive. ‘As Leonie won’t be expecting me back for a day or two I’ll have to check into a hotel for a couple of nights at least. You can pay for that, but nothing more.’
‘And
