The High Price of Secrets

As attractive as he was, and as immediate as her reaction was to him, he still unnerved her on some levels. His attentive behavior since their not-so-friendly first meeting definitely was appealing, as was the way he looked at her as if she was all woman, but coming so close on the heels of her broken engagement she still felt nervy, distrustful. And while it was flattering at the time that he’d obviously wanted to keep her company all to himself yesterday, when she’d thought about it late last night she’d started to get the niggling feeling that he had some ulterior motive for doing so.

Maybe she was just overreacting. After all, it wasn’t every day a woman had to accept that she’d been efficiently lied to for the better part of two years by a man she’d trusted enough to want to marry. The dull ache that seemed to permanently reside in her chest intensified.

In the clothing store, wearing a beautiful dress and anticipating an afternoon with a handsome man, it had been easy to lay the mess of their shattered engagement entirely on Trent’s shoulders…but deep down she felt it had to be her fault. How could she not have seen Trent and Zac’s interest in one another? How could she never have suspected a thing? Sure, her relationship with Trent had been cool, their sex life minimal, but she’d put that down to the type of man he was. And she’d loved him—believed they had a future together. Just went to show what a rotten judge of character she really was, she told herself with a rueful glance in her rearview mirror.

She pulled her car to a halt outside the front of an old detached garage next to the cottage and got out. Maybe she was just being paranoid. Actually, more than maybe and that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Her experience with Trent had been a rude and very unpleasant awakening. It wouldn’t do her any harm at all to be a little less eager to salve her mortally wounded pride with the company of a handsome man, even if he did have the power to make her heart skip.

The cottage was old, probably circa early 1900s, but very well maintained by the look of things. A large deep veranda stretched invitingly along the front of the house and around to one side. She hoped the interior was as appealing. Tamsyn grabbed the plastic bags Penny had enthusiastically filled with what she’d deemed to be the essentials to see her through the next day or so. Tam had been overwhelmed by the other woman’s generosity, even more so when Penny had refused any payment for the items. As a result, Tamsyn doubted she’d need to make her way into town for supplies for several days, given the fresh meat, milk, eggs and other items the hotelier had given her.

The key slid smoothly into the front door lock and turned easily. Feeling almost as if she was trespassing, Tamsyn stepped inside.

Dust motes floated on the gilded rays of morning sun that streamed in through windows to her left, but aside from that, the place looked well kept. Almost as if the owners had stepped outside for only a moment.

“Prrrrp.” She jumped at the sound as a sleek black cat followed in through the front door behind her, eyeing her carefully with its golden eyes before winding in and out of her legs and purring.

“Well, hello,” Tamsyn said, bending down to stroke the cat. “I guess you’re one of my responsibilities while I’m here, hmm? What a shame no one thought to tell me your name.”

The letting agent had mentioned that a neighbor had been caring for the animals at the house, but that they’d be her responsibility for the duration of the tenancy. How hard could it be, right? A few chickens, a cat. It wasn’t rocket science.

The cat looked up at her and blinked slowly before lithely jumping up onto the windowsill and grooming itself in the sun. For some reason, the animal’s presence made Tamsyn feel more at home. She took her supplies through to the compact and slightly old-fashioned kitchen and put them in the refrigerator. Through the window over the kitchen counter she could see a vast, somewhat overgrown, vegetable garden.

She wrapped her arms around herself and squeezed tight. It shouldn’t be so exciting to have this—temporary—home of her own. After all, she’d grown up on an amazing estate. But it was her family’s estate, never solely hers. She’d never truly been on her own. It was surprising how much she liked it. She really was pretty self-sufficient for the next few days. If she didn’t want to, she needn’t go anywhere. But how would she find her mother if she didn’t keep going out into the community and asking around?

Tamsyn groaned aloud as another thought came to her. The internet. Of course. Why hadn’t she thought of that?

Because her mind had been too distracted with other thoughts—thoughts of Trent and, more so, thoughts of the tall, enigmatic man who lived at the top of the hill—she’d completely discounted using her smartphone to do an internet search for her mother. As soon as she’d unpacked she’d get right onto it.