‘You too,’ Niahl commented.
‘What do you mean, me too?’
‘I imagine Luc is in the air by now.’
‘You’ve spoken to him?’
‘You left without saying goodbye. What’s that about?’
‘Do I cross-examine you?’
‘All the time.’
‘Not this time, Niahl,’ she warned in a tone that told her brother she meant it.
‘Because this time it’s serious?’
‘You took the words right out of my mouth. I heard you talking to him.’
‘You mean youoverheardus talking about you?’ Niahl corrected her. ‘What have I told you about that?’
‘No lectures, Niahl. I need to speak to him.’
‘How much of our conversation did you hear?’
‘Enough,’ she insisted.
‘So you heard the part about him loving you like no other woman in his life before?’
‘What?’ she said faintly. ‘I heard him say he overstepped, and that getting together with me was a huge error of judgement on his part. How does that square up with him loving me?’
‘Simple. It takes time for any normal person to come to terms with the depth of their feelings, and you and Luc are far from normal. He’s damaged and you’re crazy impulsive sometimes.’
‘Damaged?’
‘Give him a chance to explain.’
There was a long pause, and then she asked, ‘So you’re okay with this?’
‘Does it matter?’
‘Of course it matters. Who else do I have to confide in?’
‘Luc,’ he suggested. ‘That’s if either of you can open up enough to trust each other with the truth.’
When the line was cut she stared blindly ahead, hollowed out at the thought that if Luc’s barricades were high, hers were even higher, to the point where he’d found it easier to confide in her brother.
Even taking the pilot’s seat, it seemed to take longer to fly to London than it ever had. He’d never been so restless or felt in such danger of losing something so vital to his life. He had to get this right. He’d tried to stay away from Stacey to save her from him, and had failed spectacularly. He’d made to love to her, yet never once told her how he felt.Was it too late now?They shared equally in their love for an unborn child, so it had to be possible to save the situation.
Hewouldsave the situation.
Hemust.
‘Luc!’ She shot up from her office desk so fast, he worried for her safety and crossed the room in a couple of strides. Whatever had gone before, his relief at seeing Stacey was so overwhelming he dragged her into his arms and kissed her over and over again.
‘I was just ringing you,’ she gasped when he let her up for air. ‘I wanted to say that I’m so sorry I left without speaking to you. I acted on the spur of the moment, thinking I’d heard something when I hadn’t, and—’
‘Don’t worry about that now,’ he soothed. ‘I should have answered my phone but I didn’t, because all I could think of was seeing you again. I flew straight here, then drove from the airport.’
