A Safe Pair of Hands Read Online Free Page A

braced herself for another one of those hard kisses –
like the one that he had given her earlier.
    So she was monumentally surprised, when, after a quick look
into her worried eyes, he changed his mind, and swooped down to
kiss her lightly on the cheek instead.
    “ Good night, sweet Sadie,” he whispered ruefully.
    He let her go immediately and Sadie – feeling totally
flustered, and more than a little bit disappointed – spun on her
heel and almost ran for her home.
    “ Good night, Rick,” she threw over her shoulder. “Thank you for
the lift home.”
     
    “ He was such a gentleman,” she whispered now. “Always opening
doors for me, and making sure that I was comfortable and happy. He
made me feel like I was someone so… precious!”
    Nick grimaced as he heard the raw pain in her voice.
‘ How could he have gotten it all so
wrong?’
    “ So when did it change?” he had to ask, when she seemed to have
stopped talking.
    Sadie gave a little sigh.
    “ It was every girl’s dream, the handsome, caring suitor, the
marriage proposal… the wedding!”
    “ You married him!” Nick had not realised that it had gone that
far with them, and he felt a rush of pure jealousy rip through
him.
    She had felt like she was in a fairy-tale, her virginal white
dress that was so appropriate too – because Rick had wanted to wait
until after they
were married. The pretty little bridesmaids and the proud and
handsome groom.
    He had looked at her with such love – that everyone in that
church on that day had been fooled by him.
     
    “ He took me away for our honeymoon, to a nice little house in
the country, all private and secluded…”
    Nick tensed when she hesitated; he just knew that here, was
when things began to change.
    She smiled suddenly and the bitterness and self-disgust, in
that smile, made him want to take her into his arms and hold her
tight, and tell her that it wasn’t her fault – that she wasn’t to
blame for any of it – that she was a good person, a wonderful
person, that was why he’d fallen in love with her…
    “ At first it was wonderful,” she said
oblivious to the change in the man across from her.
“ He was
wonderful. Caring, considerate, passionate!”
    The colour came to her cheeks as she obviously relived her
honeymoon night – and Nick felt the rush of jealousy
again.
    “ But it didn’t last?” now how he managed to keep his voice calm and
casually interested like that, Nick would never know.
    She gave him a quick glance. “No, although it did last for
several days. But it was close to the end of our honeymoon and so I
started to pack my things together…”
     
    “ Come on Sadie,” Rick laughed. “Leave that until
later.”
    He was lying on the bed with that look on his face, which she
was beginning to recognise.
    She smiled at him quickly – hiding the fact that she was not
really in the mood for making love… she was feeling more than a
little tender from his almost constant attentions.
    “ I just want to sort these bits out – and then I’ll be right
with you.”
    A frown marred his brow for a second, just a second, but it
unsettled her immensely.
    He sat up on the bed and grabbed her wrist – rubbing at the
flesh slightly.
    “ Leave it wife!” he said as he pulled her down. “Your husband
has need of you!”
    She was so startled, that she could not stop the surprised
exclamation.
    “ Ouch! Rick, you’re hurting me!”
    He leaned over her, and again she was disturbed to see a
shadow of anger in his eyes, and not even a little bit of
remorse.
    “ Your husband has needs,” he said again as he began to tug at
her clothing.
     
    “ He hurt me,” she whispered now, as a tear trickled down her
cheek. “He had been my first lover, and was so gentle at first… but
that day he was… he hurt me so much!”
    Nick was round the table without even thinking about it – as
he sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her. “Ssshh,”
he murmured huskily.