Mills & Boon Christmas Delights Collection. Rebecca Winters

your clients should be ashamed of themselves for letting you do so.’

      ‘It wasn’t a client and that’s a very old-fashioned view.’

      ‘One I make no apologies for. So who was it? Not the boyfriend.’

      ‘No. And I’m surprised you’re not more modern than that. I can’t imagine Janey lets you get away with your dinosaur values.’

      ‘Janey is a very intelligent woman. She has no qualms about getting any and all heavy lifting done by someone else if it’s at all possible. You could learn a few things from her.’

      ‘I’ve already learned a few things from her,’ I said, raising an eyebrow.

      Michael looked at me and tilted his head back a little more, bravado kicking in. ‘Oh? And what things would those be?’

      The truth was I hadn’t learned anything about Michael from Janey that he hadn’t confirmed himself but the tease seemed too good an opportunity to miss.

      ‘Nothing you would be interested in. Just girl talk, you know,’ I said, airily.

      He narrowed his eyes at me.

      ‘Now. Can you please go back and sit down so I can get on with things?’

      ‘If by getting on with things you mean moving furniture, then no.’

      I threw my hands up. ‘You are entirely impossible.’

      ‘I am. At last, we actually agree on something.’

      ‘Fine,’ I conceded, ‘we’ll do it together then.’

      He smirked.

      ‘Oh, grow up.’ I said, which only proceeded to make him laugh and wince again.

      ‘Right. Ready? Go.’

      We moved the footstool, with me directing, to the sofa where he’d been sitting.

      ‘Down.’

      Michael glanced at me, but obeyed.

      ‘I thought this was going to be for you to sit on.’

      ‘It’s for your foot. I think it’s best elevated.’

      ‘Kate. You’re fussing way too much. It was just a bump.’

      ‘So you didn’t hit an open car door, get catapulted across a busy London street and narrowly avoid being squashed into the ground by passing traffic?’

      The thought, now voiced, made my blood cold and I felt the colour drain from my face. I sat down quickly on the footstool, my head feeling suddenly light. I knew it was just because the thought of Janey losing someone she loved would be so awful. Obviously I wouldn’t want anything to happen to Michael either, but I hardly knew him well enough for me to be as upset as I felt at this moment. I guessed it had to be some sort of ‘referred’ upset.

      Large, warm hands on my shoulders brought me back into the moment.

      ‘I’m fine Kate. Honestly.’

      I took a breath. ‘Yes, all right. But you should still rest. It’s common sense – something that was clearly knocked out of you during your exploits. Now please sit, before I have to ring your sister.’

      Mikey sat.

      ‘Foot up,’ I said, pointing at the footstool I’d now vacated.

      He looked at me.

      I raised an eyebrow.

      ‘I’m fine.’

      ‘You won’t be if you don’t do as you’re told. You’ll be nursing another broken rib. Now just put your damn foot up and stop being such a pain in the arse.’

      Michael burst out laughing and immediately regretted it. Unable to stop he countered the action by holding his chest tightly until he calmed.

      ‘You really are something,’ he wheezed.

      ‘I dread to think what you believe that “something” to be so I’m going to suggest we move right along now. OK. Let’s start with this pile.’

       Chapter Eight

      Four hours later and we’d made quite an impact. There were four boxes full of items for the charity shop and another full of recycling. I’d chucked the rubbish straight out. In between the organising, I’d made more tea and persuaded Michael to take some painkillers as it was obvious he was in more discomfort than he was letting on. As they began to kick in, his face relaxed and I felt a little more at ease with his decision not to be taken by the paramedics for a check-up.

      ‘It really is a beautiful house,’ I said, stretching my back and catching sight of the ornate plaster ceiling rose above me.

      ‘Thanks. I know I’m lucky to be able to live here. I’m sure you think I don’t appreciate it because of the state I’ve let it get into.’

      ‘No, not at all.’ And it was true. I knew it was all too easy to make sweeping judgements about a situation from the outside. And just how hurtful those judgements could be.

      Michael studied me for a moment, assessing me with those incredible eyes and that look that felt like he could see further than I might want him to.

      ‘My grandfather’s a canny man when it comes to property. He started out with nothing and built up his business gradually, taking on places that needed work and selling them on for a profit. All this area used to be cheap flats run by shady landlords. Maintenance was practically unheard of. Grandad got a couple of places at auction. They were in such a state and in a bad bit of town so there wasn’t a great deal of demand. But he felt that things were going to improve. Of course, everyone thought he was barmy when he said that, but he made similar investments in various parts of London and he got it right every time. There’s no way I’d be able to live here if he hadn’t had that insight all those years ago.’

      ‘So you bought it off him? He must have still done you a heck of a deal!’ I said, caught up in the story before realising that my comment was probably incredibly inappropriate. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to – ’

      ‘No, it’s fine. I actually rent it. We talked about me buying it off him a few years ago but he wasn’t ready to let it go. All the time that property values here are going up, it’s the right thing for him to do.’

      ‘You didn’t mind that he wouldn’t sell?’

      He gave me a quick smile. ‘Not at all. In fact, I was pretty damn grateful he didn’t.’

      I shook my head. ‘I don’t understand.’

      ‘When I split up with my wife, she seemed to be under the impression that I owned this and wanted it sold and half the profits.’

      ‘Oh. You never told her you rented?’

      ‘I never told her I owned it. She assumed. And I assumed she knew it wasn’t mine. It was all kind of a whirlwind thing, her and I getting together. And then I guess because I did all the maintenance and so on, she just thought I owned it.’

      ‘She didn’t get a clue from bills and stuff?’

      ‘Angeline never bothered herself with little things like that. I paid all the bills, handled all the paperwork. Which I was happy to. It wasn’t really her thing.’

      ‘I’m not sure it’s anyone’s “thing”. You just have to get on and do it.’

      ‘Unless you have some mug to do it for you.’

      I pulled a face, unsure what to say.

      ‘If I’d have realised what she thought I would have told her, of course! It just never occurred to me that she thought I was wealthy enough to own a place like this.’

      ‘She