A Tainted Beauty

The other thing she’d done was to start buying clothes in more contemporary styles. Money was no longer tight and it was foolish to pretend that it was. She didn’t have to make them herself any more—and there were plenty of designs which suited her, since curves seemed to be back in fashion. And besides, what woman wanted to get stuck in a fashion rut? These days, she experimented with sharp, modern looks—and floaty creations in pure silk for more formal functions.

Her fingers drifted to the row of creamy pearls at her neck. Ciro had managed to buy them back—again. Though he’d told her with mock severity that this was getting to be a habit and that this time they were keeping them. He’d said that maybe one day they’d have a daughter of their own who would wear them. Lily smiled dreamily at her reflection. Maybe they would.

She went back to where Ciro and her brother were waiting for her. Jonny’s hair had grown—it fell almost to his shoulders now and his soulful good looks attracted plenty of attention from the opposite sex. In fact, there was a gorgeous creature hanging onto his arm, wearing a sequinned mini-dress, improbably teamed with a pair of pink wellington boots.

‘I thought I’d walk Fleur to the station before lunch,’ he said. ‘If that’s okay, sis?’

‘That’s absolutely fine,’ said Lily. ‘Ciro and I will wait for you in the restaurant. It was lovely to have met you, Fleur—and hope you have a great summer.’

‘Thanks,’ said Fleur, with a smile. ‘And you.’

Lily looped her hand through Ciro’s arm as they watched the young couple walk away, thinking how curiously grown-up she felt today.

‘You’re very quiet,’ he murmured. ‘Which usually means trouble. Shall we go to the restaurant and I can buy us a very nice bottle of champagne while you bask in the glory of your clever brother and you can tell me what’s on your mind?’

She turned her face up to his, her eyes shining. ‘That sounds perfect. Though I don’t think I’m going to be drinking any champagne.’

‘But we’re supposed to be celebrating.’

‘And we are,’ she whispered. ‘But there’s more than one cause for celebration. I’ve got something to tell you. I was going to wait until tonight, until we got home, but I don’t think I can wait a minute longer.’

He stared at her with an expression she’d never seen on his face before. ‘You’re going to have a baby?’ he questioned unsteadily.

‘Yes.’ She nodded her head, her lips clamping together to try to keep back her tears of joy. ‘Yes!’

For one long moment he did nothing, as if the words were taking time to really sink in. And then Ciro put his arms round her and kissed her. He kissed her so thoroughly that she was giggling as they came up for air. And then he bent his head and kissed her some more.

But fortunately they were in an art gallery, where love was one of the things which kept painters in business. And nobody paid the slightest attention to the man and the woman who stood locked in passionate embrace beneath a brightly coloured canvas.