He hadn’t actually visited the site once since the day he had taken her there. It was unfortunate that the boss of the building firm she’d contracted for the alterations had an Aston Martin too. A number of times her heart had stopped as she’d heard the car draw up, but it had never been Steel unfurling himself from the sleek interior. Just a paunchy little man who laughed too loudly and stank of BO and garlic.
The day she had set aside for Steel to come and view her work was one of extreme cold and bitter winds. She arrived at the house early in the morning, driving there as soon as she had dropped the girls off at breakfast club.
After checking every cushion was in place and every drape arranged just so, she wandered through to the beautiful drawing room and stood gazing out over the grounds. The frozen landscape intensified every colour and shade, highlighting the few brightly toned leaves clinging to a mature beech tree and the green of the ivy climbing a far wall. The sky had clouded over as she’d been titivating this and that, and there was the smell of snow in the air when she opened the front door to Steel mid-morning.
He smiled at her and a vice gripped her heart. It was the first time for some weeks she had allowed herself the luxury of looking straight at him, and the silver-blue eyes cut through to her soul. He looked wonderful but tired. Definitely tired.
‘You have a house to show me, I think?’ His voice was warm, relaxed, and yet she thought she detected something else underneath. A tenseness perhaps? Or perhaps it was just excitement. This was to be his home, after all. It was much more important than her previous projects.
He wandered through the downstairs rooms, saying very little. The soft green and cream colour scheme for the drawing room met with his approval, and the taupe and pale lemon for the dining room. The kitchen was now a thing of beauty. When deciding to go all out and make the first reception room into the magnificent drawing room it was always meant to be, Toni had chosen warmer, more family colours for the smaller sitting room. The soft cherry red and mix of dusky pinks made the room cosy and welcoming, a place where children could play and watch TV.
Upstairs each bedroom and en-suite had its own colour scheme, but she was especially pleased with the master bedroom, partly because she felt it was a tribute to her professionalism that she’d made this room as perfect as she could and ignored the fact that Steel might be occupying it with the lady of his choice.
The pale coffee and gold mixed with a blend of oatmeals wasn’t overtly masculine or feminine, and she’d taken care the full-length walk-in wardrobe was divided into two distinct halves for the occupants who would share the huge, billowy soft bed, which had been specially made and constructed inside the room and which dominated the space. The drapes that framed the full-length French windows were in the same fabric as the duvet, and the windows opened out onto a stone balcony from which there was a wonderful view over the grounds and the countryside beyond.
Altogether it was a dream of a bedroom, uncompromisingly luxurious from the music system and huge TV down to the concealed fridge holding vintage champagne and a selection of the best wines.
She stood aside for him to enter the room and remained in the doorway as he strolled round, opening the doors onto the balcony and standing there for a moment or two before coming back into the room and shutting the French doors. ‘You’ve created a wonderful home,’ he said quietly. ‘Now all it needs is the family it was made for.’
She wanted to smile but it was beyond her. Stiffly, she said, ‘Thank you. I’m pleased it meets with your approval,’ as she stepped backwards onto the wide landing.
He followed her downstairs, and once in the hall took her arm. ‘Come into the drawing room a moment. I need to talk to you.’
This was when he formalised her departure. Keeping herself very straight, she walked with him into the elegant reception room and, when he indicated for her to be seated, sat on the edge of one of the cream sofas. She wondered what was different as she’d walked into the room and realised it was snowing: big, fat, feathery flakes falling from a laden sky. The Christmas snow that had been expected had arrived at last.
She had lit a fire earlier in the massive old stone fireplace that blended so well with the beamed ceiling of the gracious room, knowing it would set the room off to perfection for his inspection. Now he walked across and stood with his back to it as he looked at her. ‘The envelope on the table,’ he said, indicating a large manilla package on the glass coffee table close to the sofa. ‘It’s yours.’
She nodded. ‘I’ll take it with me and look at it later.’ She couldn’t do this right now, not with him standing there reminding her of all she’d given up.
‘I’d rather you open it now. There are a couple of things I need to go through with you.’
Numbly she reached for the somewhat bulky package and extracted the papers within. She stared at the top page. The words blurred and danced before her eyes and it was a moment or two before they made sense. Only they didn’t. She read the letter through twice and then looked at the wad of papers beneath. Raising her gaze to the silver-blue one watching her so intently, she said dazedly, ‘I—I don’t understand.’
‘It’s very simple. I’m giving you the house and those are the relevant papers. I have also deposited an amount in your account to clear your debts and to provide a breathing space while you decide what you want to do from here. I was speaking to James only yesterday and he is very keen to have you back. I understand there will be a vacancy in three months’ time when his present interior designer leaves to have a baby. She may return after maternity leave but James is sure they can work out something. You have a life stretching before you free of debt.’
She stared at him. ‘I can’t accept a house from you.’
‘Of course you can. It was always meant for you. Of course at one time I imagined the pair of us in that bedroom upstairs, but—’ he shrugged ‘—your decision changes nothing about the house. Whether we’re together or no, it is yours.’
‘This is madness.’ She felt as though she were in a dream. ‘I can’t possibly have it, or the money either. You must see that?’ She was trembling with shock.
‘I see nothing of the kind. You and the twins need your own place and this is a perfect home. It’s all arranged.’
‘Steel—’ She felt as though she were losing her grip on reality. ‘This is madness, it’s crazy.’
He smiled, but it didn’t reach the beautiful eyes and showed how deliberate his air of relaxation was. ‘Everyone’s allowed to be a little crazy once in their lives. This is my time. It’s all official and above board, no strings attached, by the way. All that is required is a few signatures.’
‘I can’t.’ She waved a shaking hand. ‘I just can’t.’
‘I’m not trying to buy you, Toni. I don’t work like that. I simply need to know that you and the twins are safe and secure and then we can both get on with our lives. I expect nothing from you, you made it very clear how you feel, but it doesn’t change how I feel, OK? So indulge me. You know I can afford to do this without it making a dent in my bank balance, but it would mean a great deal to two little girls and their quality of life. If you can’t accept it for yourself, accept it for them. I won’t come knocking on your door if that’s what’s bothering you. Not without an invitation anyway.’
He was bewildering her with his gentleness. ‘But why would you do this?’ she asked helplessly. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Isn’t it obvious?’ He held her frantic gaze.
‘Not to me. People don’t give other people houses.’
If any other woman of