‘THERE’S a phone call for you, Mrs Sloan.’
Ally looked up from the spreadsheet she’d been studying to find a glamorous young woman leaning over her desk. Jennifer Morrell was the boss’s secretary here at Jedburgh Transport and it was obvious from her expression that she resented having to deliver a message to one of the lowlier members of the staff.
‘A phone call?’ Ally felt a wedge of apprehension rise to lodge itself in her throat. ‘Who—who is it?’
‘Your daughter, I think,’ said Jennifer shortly, and Ally breathed a little easier. ‘I didn’t ask. You know Mr Jedburgh doesn’t like anyone taking private calls during office hours.’
‘I know.’
Ally’s response was apologetic, but inside she was a seething mass of doubts and frustrations. She’d been like this ever since she got back from San Cristobál, and even the fact that Jeff seemed to have accepted that he was wasting his time and she wasn’t going to take him back hadn’t helped. She was far too conscious of the power he had over her and, although there was a good four thousand miles between San Cristobál and here, she still wasn’t convinced he wouldn’t take it into his head to tell Suzanne what had been going on.
Of course, there was always the chance that Suzanne would refuse to speak to him. Her friend hadn’t taken Ally’s decision to return to England with her ex-husband at all well, and she’d blamed Jeff for ruining Ally’s holiday.
Which wasn’t altogether fair, Ally acknowledged ruefully. She had ruined it herself long before she’d got to the island. She just hadn’t known it at the time.
In any event, returning to England had been her only option then. Somehow, she had had to get Jeff out of the hotel before either Suzanne or Peter saw him and precipitated the kind of scene she’d dreaded most. If he had been challenged Jeff would have had no compunction about telling Suzanne what her precious friend had been up to—though even he could have had no idea how destructive that would be.
Consequently, Ally had had to persuade him that it was in his best interests to return to the airport at San Cristobál and wait for her there. There’d been a flight back to London at ten o’clock that night and, as she’d had Mike Mclean’s number, it had been a simple matter to phone him and arrange for him to fly them to Nassau in the early evening.
At the time, Jeff had demurred, of course. He’d just arrived, and Ally guessed he’d been hoping to plead his case in San Cristobál’s semi-tropical surroundings. But somehow she’d managed to convince him that unless he agreed to her terms, she’d return to England without him and that would defeat his objective anyway. And, because he still hadn’t been able to believe that ultimately she would turn him down, he’d agreed.
The interview she’d had with Suzanne had not been pleasant. Her friend had been in a bad mood to begin with and she hadn’t been able to see any reason whatsoever why Ally should feel any obligation towards her ex-husband. And because she hadn’t known that Jeff was on the island, she’d considered Ally’s sudden departure to be both foolish and ungrateful.
And it had been, thought Ally now, abruptly becoming aware that Jennifer was still standing by her desk staring at her with wide impatient eyes. She was obviously waiting for Ally to answer the phone which was situated on her desk, and her toe was tapping a frustrated tattoo on the rubber-tiled floor.
Pushing up from her desk, Ally hoped it was Sam on the other end of the line. Ever since her return, she’d been dreading a call from Suzanne, demanding to know why she hadn’t mentioned the fact that Jeff had been responsible for her precipitate decision to return to England. Mike was bound to have told her friend that she’d had company on the flight, particularly as her companion had had the same surname as herself. She still hadn’t thought of a convincing reason why she’d kept Jeff’s arrival to herself, and she was hoping that, if Suzanne did find out, she’d assume Ally hadn’t told her because she’d known how angry Suzanne would be.
Angry! Ally shivered. Thank God Suzanne hadn’t had a chance to confront Jeff with her opinion of him. In those circumstances, there would have been only one outcome, and Ally would have been the loser on all counts.
Trying not to be aware of Jennifer, who had now resumed her seat at her desk, Ally picked up the receiver. ‘Hello,’ she said nervously, pressing a hand to her stomach. ‘Is that you, Sam?’
‘Yeah, Mum. It’s me.’ Ally’s relief was tempered by the unfamiliar excitement in her daughter’s voice. ‘How are you?’
‘How am I—?’ Ally realised she was repeating her daughter’s words and, conscious of Jennifer’s sullen attention, she took a steadying breath. ‘I only saw you at breakfast, Sam. You know how I am.’
‘Are you sitting down?’
‘Am I—?’ Once again, Ally was compelled to press her lips together to silence the impatient words. ‘No, I’m not,’ she said shortly. And then, as another, less appealing, thought occurred to her, she said, ‘What’s happened? Has there been an accident or something?’
‘How your mind does leap to the worst-case scenario,’ exclaimed Sam drily. ‘No, there hasn’t been an accident. Not as far as I know anyway. Dad called earlier this morning, but it was just to tell me that he’s going for an interview for a job in North Shields, and I doubt Ryan is even out of bed yet. It is only twelve o’clock, you know,’ she added sardonically.
‘Then why—?’
‘If you’ll stop jumping to conclusions, I’ll tell you,’ replied Sam mildly, and, unable to stand Jennifer’s appraisal any longer, Ally turned her back on her.
‘I wish you would,’ she said in a low impatient voice. ‘I’ve got work to do.’
‘Oh, well, if you feel like that—’
‘Sam!’
Ally spoke through her teeth and, as if taking pity on her, Sam gave in. ‘You’ve had a visitor,’ she said without further preamble. ‘Does the name Rafael Ramirez mean anything to you?’
‘Raf—Raul!’ Ally’s legs simply refused to support her and, uncaring at that moment what Jennifer might think, she hooked a trembling hip over a corner of the desk. She licked her dry lips. ‘Raul—is—is there?’
‘He was,’ agreed Sam, apparently pleased at her parent’s reaction to her news. ‘He’s quite a hunk, isn’t he?’
Ally didn’t know how to answer her. ‘Wh—what did he want?’ she asked, while her mind posed and rejected all the reasons why Raul might be in the north-east of England. Although there were boatyards in the area producing the kind of craft his father chartered to holidaymakers, companies, and the like, she couldn’t believe he had come so far to place an order he could have made at the Boat Show over a month ago.
‘Don’t you know?’ asked Sam, turning the question back on her, and, realising she couldn’t go on conducting this conversation in the presence of an audience, Ally made a decision.
‘I’m coming home,’ she said, uncaring that Jennifer sucked in an indignant breath behind her. ‘I’ll be with you in fifteen minutes.’
As luck would have it, Andy Jedburgh was out of the office that morning. Ignoring Jennifer’s shrill warning that he wouldn’t like her leaving without finishing the salary spreadsheets, Ally forced her unsteady legs to carry her across the car park to where she’d left her second-hand Mini. It only took her a few minutes to reach the small house in Penrose Terrace that she shared with her daughter, and Sam opened the door as she walked up the path.
‘Hey,’ she exclaimed, as Ally pushed past her into the house. ‘I’m sorry if I gave you a shock.’ She viewed her mother’s retreating back with some concern. ‘I thought you’d want to know that he was here.’
Ally shook her head, going straight down the narrow hall to the small kitchen, filling the kettle and plugging it in before answering her. Then, when she was sure she could face Sam without betraying how she really felt, she turned and said tightly, ‘What did he want? Did he say why he’d come?’ And then, less surely, ‘Is he coming back?’
Sam looked anxious. ‘I think you ought to sit down and have a cup of tea first, Mum,’ she said, trying to be helpful. ‘You look so pale.’
‘I’m all right.’
‘You’re not all right.’ Sam sighed. ‘Do you want to tell me what’s going on?’
‘I don’t know what’s—’ Ally started to make some excuse, but, if he was really here, her daughter deserved at least part of the truth. ‘Honestly, Sam, I never thought I’d ever see Raul again.’
‘Raul?’ Sam looked puzzled for a moment. Then her face cleared. ‘Oh, right. That’s what you call him, is it?’
‘It’s what everybody calls him, except his parents,’ said Ally steadily and Sam’s eyes went wide.
‘Oh, wow! You’ve met his parents!’
‘Well, yes.’ Ally was afraid her daughter was getting totally the wrong impression. ‘But it’s not what you think. I only met them because they’re friends of Suzanne and Peter.’
‘So did Aunt Suzanne introduce you?’
‘No.’ Ally drew her lower lip between her teeth, trying to think of an appropriate response. ‘I—we—met at the hotel in London. Before I flew out.’
‘I see.’ Sam digested this. ‘So is he the man you’ve been seeing while you were away?’ Her expression was incredulous. ‘God, Mum, no wonder you were so cagey about him!’
‘Why?’ Ally stared at her daughter. ‘Because he’s so much younger than me?’ she demanded, and Sam’s cheeks turned a little pink.
‘No—’
‘You don’t need to lie, Sam.’
‘I’m not lying.’ Sam drew a breath. ‘Honestly, Mum. His age has nothing to do with it. What is he? A couple of years younger than you? That’s nothing nowadays.’
‘Then—’
‘Oh, come on, Mum.’ Sam was uncomfortable. ‘I mean, you are attractive. And that tan you acquired in San Cristobál really brings out the green in your eyes. Even the streaks in your hair—well, you should have had them done years ago. But—but—’
‘I’m not the kind of woman to attract a man like Raul Ramirez? Is that what you’re saying?’
‘Sort of.’ Sam’s face was red. ‘Help me out here, Mum. Are you saying he really is interested in you?’
‘I don’t know.’ Even now, Ally couldn’t admit it. Turning away, she busied herself by setting out two cups and taking a carton of milk from the fridge. ‘What did he say?’
‘What did he say?’ Sam repeated the words, clearly trying to remember. ‘Well, he wanted to see you, obviously. He asked where you were and I told him you were at work.’
‘Just like that?’ Ally glanced over her shoulder. ‘A strange man comes to the door and asks you where I am and you tell him?’
‘No. Not like that,’ exclaimed Sam defensively. ‘He knew who I was. When I opened the door, he said “You must be Sam”, or something like that, and he disarmed me.’
‘He does that.’ Ally bent her head over the teabags. ‘Then what?’
‘Oh—’ Sam tried to think. ‘He asked if I would tell you he was here, in England, and that you—you could reach him at the Post House if you wanted to speak to him.’
‘The Post House?’ Ally swung round. ‘Is that what he said?’
‘Yes.’ Sam moistened her lips. ‘Are—are you going to see him?’
Ally expelled a breath. ‘I don’t know.’
Sam gasped. ‘What’s not to know? Either you are or you aren’t?’ Her brows drew together. ‘Hey, does Dad know about him?’
‘Why do you ask?’
‘Just something he said.’
Ally felt a twinge of apprehension. ‘What? What did he say?’
‘Oh, Mum.’ Sam shook her head. ‘I can’t remember everything everybody says.’ She considered. ‘I don’t know. I didn’t take much notice of it at the time. I just thought he was being grumpy because you’d refused to take him back.’
‘How grumpy?’
Sam sighed. ‘Well, he said something about you making a fool of him. That he shouldn’t have believed you when you insisted that you weren’t involved with anyone else.’
Ally’s lips parted in dismay. ‘So why didn’t you tell me?’
‘Oh, right.’ Sam was sardonic. ‘What was there to tell, Mum? He didn’t mention any names. He just said he wished he’d told Aunt Suzanne what a liar you are. I was hardly likely to tell you that. As a matter of fact, I warned him not to make those kind of allegations about you. As far as I knew you weren’t seriously seeing anyone else.’
‘And I’m not,’ said Ally swiftly. ‘Oh, Sam, you don’t think he could have phoned Suzanne, do you?’
‘What if he did?’ Sam was confused. ‘Why would it matter? Aunt Suzanne has nothing to do with this.’
‘She does!’ Ally was distraught. ‘Oh, Sam, Raul is Julia’s boyfriend. Suzanne and Peter are expecting them to get engaged soon.’
Sam’s jaw dropped. ‘You’re kidding!’
‘No, I’m not.’
‘But he must be years older than Julia.’
‘Not that much,’ said Ally flatly. ‘It’s less than the difference there is between Raul and me. He’s only twenty-nine, Sam. I’m nearly ten years older than he is.’
Sam studied her mother’s face. ‘And that matters to you?’
‘Doesn’t it matter to you?’ countered Ally, and Sam lifted her arms to clasp the back of her neck with both hands.
‘Me?’ she echoed. ‘Why should it bother me?’ She blinked. ‘Are you saying there is something between you?’
Ally shook her head. ‘I don’t know what to think any more.’
Sam tried to understand what her mother was saying. ‘Let me get this straight,’ she said carefully. ‘How does Dad know about it—if indeed he does?’
‘Oh—he saw us together,’ answered Ally wearily. ‘I was on my way to tell Suzanne that I was leaving when Raul intercepted me in the—in the lobby.’
‘And what?’ Sam’s eyes were wide. ‘Was Raul kissing you or—’
‘Nothing like that,’ exclaimed Ally, her own face burning now. ‘We were just—talking, that’s all.’
Sam’s arms dropped to her sides. ‘And Dad could tell from that that you and this Raul were having an affair?’ She made a disbelieving gesture. ‘I don’t think so.’
‘All right.’ With some misgivings, Ally gave her daughter a brief description of the events that had precipitated Raul’s attack on Jeff. ‘So now you see it isn’t as unlikely as it sounds.’
‘Hey.’ Sam couldn’t prevent an illicit giggle. ‘And I thought you led such a boring life. I bet Daddy didn’t like that.’
‘He didn’t.’ Ally nodded her agreement. ‘That was when I knew I had to get him out of the hotel. If he’d told Suzanne…’
‘Do you think he has?’ asked Sam suddenly. ‘Do you think that’s why this Raul has come here? Because his relationship with Julia is off?’
Ally didn’t want to believe it, but it had the ring of truth about it. ‘I hope not,’ she said, squashing the germ of hope that had seeded in her belly when she’d thought Raul had been prepared to tell Julia the truth rather than let her go. But that was foolish, she conceded unhappily. It had been three weeks since she’d left the island. Much too long for Raul to make up his own mind.
‘What do you mean, you hope not?’ Sam asked now. ‘Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve been getting the distinct impression that you—that you care about this man. Don’t you care if he marries someone else?’
‘It’s nothing to do with me.’ Ally refused to discuss the Davises’ problems with her daughter.
‘You wish.’ Sam stared at her. ‘Are you peeved because you think Dad may have spilled the beans to Aunt Suzanne?’
It was easier to let Sam think that. ‘Perhaps,’ said Ally, amazed that her hand was steady enough to make the tea. She set the cups and milk on a tray to carry into the living room. ‘I’d better have this and then get back to work.’
‘But—’ Sam was incredulous. ‘Aren’t you going to ring— Raul?’
‘I don’t think so,’ said Ally carefully, lifting the tray and brushing past her daughter. ‘Don’t look at me like that, Sam. I know what I’m doing. As you said before, men like Raul Ramirez don’t get seriously involved with women like me.’