The Pregnancy Affair Read online

  Olivia’s lips parted. ‘These are for the house?’

  ‘What else?’

  ‘But—are you sure you want me to have them?’ She moistened her lips nervously. ‘I mean, you said—’

  ‘I know what I said,’ Joel told her harshly, not at all sure he was doing the right thing. But it was too late now. ‘The situation’s changed,’ he added. ‘And I won’t be here when you are, will I?’

  ‘Won’t you?’

  Not if I have any sense, thought Joel grimly, but he said, ‘I’ll go and give Sean a shout.’

  However, before he reached the door, they both heard the boy’s feet running down the stairs. Sean paused in the doorway, gazing at both of them with anxious eyes. ‘I’ve changed my mind,’ he said unnecessarily, though his shirt was buttoned unevenly and his tie was skewed. ‘You’re not sending Olivia away, are you?’

  ‘Why would I do that?’ Joel was impatient. What did Olivia have that caused both him and his son to make fools of themselves over her? ‘Come here, kid. Let me put that tie straight.’

  Sean beamed at Olivia as he did so. ‘You’re taking me to school,’ he said, and she nodded. ‘Cool!’

  * * *

  When Olivia got back to the farm, Martin and Andy were sitting at the kitchen table, tucking into bacon, eggs and sausages. She knew they sometimes came back for a proper breakfast, so she wasn’t surprised. But when Linda turned from the stove, there was something less pleasant about her expression.

  ‘Where’ve you been?’ she asked, and, although Olivia resented her tone, she had the feeling her sister already knew.

  ‘Um—Sean’s staying with Joel at the moment and he needed someone to take him to school, so I—’

  ‘Volunteered,’ broke in Linda scornfully. ‘Honestly, Livvy, I’d have thought you had more sense.’

  ‘I didn’t volunteer.’ Olivia flushed in spite of herself. ‘Joel asked me to do it. Didn’t Dad explain?’

  ‘Dad?’ Her sister looked puzzled. ‘Dad knew?’

  Now Olivia looked doubtful. ‘Well, yes, I thought—oh, was it Brian Webster?’

  ‘Louise rang,’ said Linda, scowling. ‘One of the other mothers saw you delivering Sean to school and called her. She wants to speak to you about it. I told her I’d get you to give her a ring as soon as you got back.’

  ‘Did you?’ Olivia objected to Linda making any promises on her behalf. ‘Well, don’t worry. I’ll go and see her. I want to know what kind of mother doesn’t know—or care—if her son’s missing.’

  Linda blinked. ‘Sean’s not missing.’

  ‘He was.’ Immediately regretting the impulse to put Linda on the defensive, Olivia was forced to explain how she’d found Sean in the barn. ‘And it wasn’t the first time,’ she declared defiantly. ‘He doesn’t want to live with his mother. He wants to live with Joel.’

  Linda grimaced. ‘I see.’ She paused. ‘And I suppose Joel can’t look after the kid on his own.’

  ‘No.’

  ‘He could employ someone,’ Linda said thoughtfully. ‘Other people do.’

  ‘Perhaps you should offer to look after the boy on a permanent basis,’ suggested Martin surprisingly. ‘I’m sure he’d be willing to pay you the going rate.’

  ‘Oh, I don’t think so…’

  Olivia shook her head, but she had to admit it wasn’t totally off the wall. After all, Joel had offered to pay her. But she was a trained estate agent, not a nanny.

  ‘You should give it some thought,’ Linda put in, after exchanging a glance with her husband. ‘That way you wouldn’t have to leave Bridgeford. I know you’re worried about Dad and you’d like to stick around.’

  Olivia was taken aback. ‘Well, I had thought of getting a job in Newcastle,’ she confessed, and Linda nodded eagerly.

  ‘That’s a great idea,’ she agreed. ‘Then you wouldn’t need to buy an apartment. You could stay here with us.’

  Olivia was getting the sense that she was missing something here. ‘But—wouldn’t that be an imposition?’ she asked warily.

  ‘Heck, no.’ It was Martin who spoke now, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. ‘This is as much your home as ours. If you can put up with us.’

  Olivia didn’t know what to say. ‘Well—thanks,’ she said at last. ‘I do appreciate it. But if I get a job in Newcastle, I’ll buy an apartment there.’ She took a breath. ‘I’m sure you’ll agree that one bathroom isn’t enough for five of you, let alone six.’

  ‘Dad can’t get upstairs,’ pointed out Linda at once.

  ‘And we’re thinking of dividing the main bedroom so Linda and I can have an en suite shower room,’ Martin added swiftly. ‘Anyway, at least think about it, Livvy. We are your family. And I know Ben would be delighted if you stayed.’

  Which was probably true, Olivia conceded, accepting a cup of tea from Linda but refusing anything else. She felt a little hollow inside, but she wasn’t hungry. All of a sudden she had a family again, and she wished she didn’t feel as if none of them was being quite sincere.

  Church Close was, as Sean had said, a road of new mock-Tudor houses. Driving into the road later that morning, Olivia hoped she was doing the right thing. She had no idea if Joel would approve of what she was going to say to Louise really. But she had to put the woman straight about hers and Joel’s relationship. The last thing she needed was more gossip about her and her ex-husband.

  Belatedly, it occurred to her that Louise might not be at home now. Sean had said his mother had a job, and it was certainly true that most of the houses in the road looked unoccupied. There was a car parked on the drive of one house, but, although Olivia’s spirits lifted, it was the house next door to the Barlows. Still, she was here now. It was worth taking a chance.

  It was as she was locking the car that she looked up and saw Louise watching her. She was standing at the bedroom window, staring down at her visitor, as if she didn’t quite believe her eyes.

  Olivia didn’t attempt a smile, but merely nodded before walking up the open-plan drive to the house. And, by the time she reached the door, Louise had it open, her expression mirroring the obvious agitation she was feeling.

  ‘Well,’ she said tersely. ‘You’ve got a nerve!’

  Olivia blew out a breath. ‘May I come in, or do you want to discuss Sean out here?’

  Louise’s lips tightened. ‘You’d better come in,’ she said, albeit unwillingly. ‘I just hope nobody recognises your car.’

  ‘It’s a rental,’ said Olivia flatly, following the other woman across a narrow hall and into a pleasant sitting room. Then, noticing how pale Louise was looking, she added, ‘I’m sorry if I’ve upset you, but Joel should have told you what he was going to do.’

  ‘Yes, he should.’ Louise nodded to a chair. ‘You’d better sit down and tell me why he isn’t looking after Sean himself.’

  Olivia sighed. ‘The tutor who was going to cover his lectures has broken his hip.’

  ‘So why didn’t he tell me he couldn’t have Sean and been done with it?’

  ‘You’ll have to ask him that.’ Olivia hesitated. ‘I assume because he didn’t want to disappoint the boy.’

  ‘And I dare say he was glad of any excuse to ask you to help him out,’ said Louise scathingly. ‘If it wasn’t so embarrassing, it would be pitiful!’

  ‘Actually, it wasn’t like that,’ said Olivia, taking the seat she’d been offered and crossing her legs as if she was completely at her ease. ‘Did he tell you I found Sean after he’d spent the night in our barn?’

  Louise sagged a little, and then sank onto the sofa opposite. ‘It was you who found him!’ she exclaimed. ‘No, I didn’t know that. Joel just said someone had found him and Sean had insisted on being taken to Millford.’

  ‘Well, it was me.’ But Olivia was feeling concerned now. Louise did look incredibly white and exhausted. ‘I—we—he did insist on speaking to his father. And I have to admit, I was pretty peeved that you apparently hadn’t even noticed he was missing.’


  Louise nodded. ‘I suppose it did look bad,’ she admitted in a much less confrontational tone. ‘But he had run away just a few days before, and I’ve been feeling so—well, so sickly, I suppose I didn’t give it the significance it deserved.’

  Olivia frowned. ‘You’ve been ill?’

  ‘No.’ Louise flushed. ‘Just a bit under the weather, that’s all.’

  ‘And you assumed Sean had gone to Joel’s again?’

  ‘Yes.’ Louise pushed weary hands through her tumbled dark hair and Olivia saw with some concern that she was sweating. ‘I suppose you think I’m a bad mother. But Sean’s not an easy kid to deal with. Not when he and Stewart don’t get on.’

  Olivia shook her head. ‘It’s nothing to do with me, Louise.’

  ‘So you’re not going to spread the fact that I neglect my child around the village?’

  ‘No.’ Olivia was horrified. ‘I came here because I didn’t want you to get the wrong impression about Joel and me. He was in a bind and I was—available.’ Oh, God! ‘There’s no hidden agenda,’ she added hurriedly. ‘I’m not trying to cause trouble between you two.’

  Louise regarded her curiously. ‘You and Joel aren’t getting back together, then?’

  ‘Heavens, no!’ Olivia was very definite about that.

  But even as she said the words, she wondered at the pang of regret that stirred deep in her stomach. Was it possible to want a man you didn’t like? She had to believe it was, or face the alternative. That these feelings she couldn’t seem to control weren’t going to go away.

  ‘I wondered,’ Louise was saying now, and Olivia found it very hard to remember their conversation. The other woman pulled a wry face. ‘It took him a long time to get over you, you know.’

  ‘Oh, I don’t think—’

  ‘It’s true.’ Louise had evidently decided to be generous now that her own position wasn’t threatened. ‘I’ve thought, since the divorce, that he only married me because he wanted to prove to himself—and all the gossips in the village—that he’d moved on; made a success of his life.’

  Olivia shook her head. ‘Well, thanks for that, but Joel isn’t the reason I came here. You probably know, my dad had a stroke and I wanted to come home to see him.’ If that wasn’t quite the way it had happened, it served the purpose. ‘I am thinking of staying on for a while, but just so I can be with the family.’

  ‘All the same—’

  ‘Louise, really, I’d rather you didn’t say anything about Joel and me to anyone. You may not know it, but I only came back to England because my second marriage didn’t work out either.’ She paused, and then, realising she had to say something dramatic to wipe that smug look off Louise’s face, she added, ‘Bruce and I were together for much longer than Joel and me.’

  Louise’s eyes widened. ‘So you’re divorced again?’

  ‘Afraid so.’ Olivia got to her feet, trying to sound philosophic. ‘Anyway, I’m glad we’ve had this talk, Louise. I think we understand one another now.’

  CHAPTER TEN

  OLIVIA parked her car above the dunes and turned off the engine. It was a beautiful evening. It had been an incredibly mild day for early May and, now that the sun was sinking in the west, the sky above Redes Bay was streaked in shades of red and orange and purple.

  Reaching into the glove compartment, Olivia pulled out a scrunchie and tugged her hair into a high pony-tail. Then, thrusting open her door, she got out of the car.

  She was dressed in just a khaki tank-top and running shorts, and, after checking that her trainers were safely tied, she tucked the car keys into her pocket and set off.

  It was weeks since she’d run any distance. When she’d first returned to England she’d contented herself with exercising at the local gym, but there was nothing like running in the fresh air. And today, particularly, she’d needed to get out of the house.

  It wasn’t that either Linda or Martin had said anything to upset her. On the contrary, during the past week or so, since she’d been ferrying Sean about, they’d been very supportive. In Martin’s case, amazingly so, but she still felt as if sooner or later the axe was going to fall.

  She had talked to her father about Linda and Martin’s ambitions for the farm. It was he who’d brought the subject up and she’d had to admit that she thought it had some merit. But Ben Foley was opposed to letting strangers have free use of his land, even if he could offer no other solution to the problem.

  Nevertheless, Olivia enjoyed the time she spent with the old man. Unlike the rushed awkward encounters she had with Joel, she and her father had long conversations about everything under the sun. She’d even told him about Bruce and why he hadn’t wanted her to leave him. And discovered that the pain of that betrayal no longer had the strength to hurt her.

  Her relationship with her first husband did not progress so easily, however. Not that she saw a lot of Joel really. He was there to say goodbye to his son in the mornings. And on those occasions when she was obliged to stay with Sean until his father got home in the evenings, she’d usually got her coat on before he’d got out of the car. Their exchanges were brief and always subjective. They spoke of Sean, of any conversations she’d had with Sean’s teachers, and little else.

  On the other hand, she and Joel’s son had become much closer. Indeed, she was dreading the time when he would have to go back to his mother. It was almost two weeks now, but talk of his return hadn’t been mentioned yet, and Olivia was hoping that Joel would be granted a stay of execution.

  Tonight she hadn’t been needed, however. Sean had gained permission from his father to spend the night at his best friend’s house. They were having a sleepover, Sean had told Olivia that morning, full of excitement at the thought of the midnight feast they were planning. She wouldn’t be needed in the morning either, because the other boy’s mother would take them both to school.

  Now Olivia stopped at the edge of the dunes, doing some warm-up exercises before stepping down onto the sand. She intended to run along the shoreline where the sand was damp and firm. Then she might call in the pub for a cool drink before heading back.

  Drawing one knee up to her chin and then the other, she felt a rising sense of anticipation. Running had always given her a feeling of freedom, of the confidence she could have in her own muscles, her own strength.

  And then she saw him. He was doing what she had planned to do, running along the shoreline, pounding the sand in a steady pace, long strides stretching long, powerful legs.

  Joel!

  Olivia blew out an impatient breath. Wouldn’t you know it? she asked herself. Two minds with but a single thought. Why hadn’t she considered that he might take advantage of his freedom? Redes Bay had always been a favoured spot for both of them.

  She would have turned away then, but he’d seen her. There was a moment when he faltered, when she was sure he would simply acknowledge her with a lift of his hand perhaps and go on. Contrarily, he didn’t do either of those things. He stopped for a moment, and then jogged towards her. What now? she wondered uneasily. She hoped he didn’t think she was following him.

  For all that, she couldn’t help watching him as he drew nearer. A grey tank-top clung damply to the contours of his chest and his arms bulged with muscle. Tight-fitting cycling shorts did nothing to hide his maleness, and with sweat beading his forehead he looked big and impressively virile.

  ‘D’ you want to join me?’ he asked, surprising her. He was closer now, but remained on the damp sand, jogging on the spot, not allowing his body to cool down.

  ‘I—well, if you don’t mind,’ said Olivia, stepping over the soft sand and testing the damp sand for its firmness. ‘Do you often run here?’

  ‘Why? So you can avoid it in future?’ Joel asked drily, realising he had probably made a mistake by inviting her company. But the beach was free to all, for goodness’ sake, and he’d sensed that if he hadn’t spoken she’d have abandoned her run.

  ‘No.’

  Olivia’s response was
defensive, and, breaking away from him, she jogged away along the beach. She took it slowly at first, only increasing her pace when she felt the muscles in her legs loosen and the adrenalin started flowing through her body.

  Joel let her go, let her get some distance ahead of him, knowing that in a few loping strides he’d overtake her. As he watched her, however, he felt his body tighten. In the skin-tight tank-top and running shorts, she was every man’s wet dream come true and heaven knew he wasn’t immune to her appeal.

  She was so sexy, that was the problem. Long, slim arms and legs; hips that swelled into the provocative curve of her bottom. She might not have been aware that her breasts had puckered when he’d challenged her, but he was. Distinctly upturned, they’d pushed delicately against the cloth of her vest.

  Hell!

  He saw her glance back over her shoulder then and guessed she was wondering if he’d changed his mind about them running together. He should, he acknowledged grimly. But although his brain might protest his recklessness, his flesh was shamefully weak.

  Picking up his pace, he went after her and seconds later he came alongside her. She was running smoothly now, taking long, ground-covering strides, her breasts bobbing rhythmically beneath the tank-top.

  They ran in silence for a while, but then Joel saw the line of dampness appearing in the small of her back. ‘Don’t overdo it,’ he warned, feeling obliged to remind her that, unless he was mistaken, she hadn’t done any running since she’d come to Bridgeford.

  ‘I’m OK.’ Olivia spoke breathily. ‘It’s a beautiful evening, isn’t it?’

  ‘Beautiful,’ agreed Joel, dragging his eyes away from her and looking towards the horizon. ‘On evenings like these, it feels as if it’s going to stay light forever.’

  ‘I know what you mean.’ Olivia was relieved that he seemed prepared to meet her halfway. ‘At this time of year, you don’t want to go to bed.’

  Joel couldn’t help himself. ‘I suppose that depends who you’re going to bed with,’ he remarked wryly, and Olivia gave him an impatient look.