‘Thank you, but I don’t want to get you into any trouble.’
‘Don’t worry, you won’t. Care to join me?’ She gestured towards the wine.
‘Oh right … thank you.’ He hovered, hands pushed into his jeans pockets, as if he wasn’t sure what to do next. Of course, she thought as she watched him, he was only used to confrontation when he was in her company. This new friendly, relaxed Cat probably had him totally confused.
‘Have a seat.’ She indicated the couch opposite and pulled the bottle from the cooler. ‘Is white wine okay? It’s Chablis but there is red if you’d prefer.’
‘No, no, I’m fine with white,’ he replied settling himself in the softness of the couch. He watched as she poured him a glass, thanking her as she handed it to him. She needed to kick-start conversation. The last thing she wanted was the pair of them staring at each other in stony silence while they waited for Nathan’s return.
‘So,’ she said, giving him a smile as she picked up her wine and took a sip. ‘How long have you been back in Carrenporth?’
‘Oh, a couple of months.’
‘And before that? You were travelling, weren’t you?’
‘Yes, around South East Asia. Spent some time in Australia and New Zealand too.’
‘What was your favourite place?’
‘It has to be Bali. It was probably one of the most beautiful and memorable locations I visited. The sunsets were out of thisworld.’ He gave a wistful smile as if revisiting the memory. Cat smiled, he was beginning to relax, to open up. So far so good.
‘It was such a laid-back place,’ he continued. ‘I met a good crowd of people there, mostly backpackers like me, stopping for a few weeks for the surf and nightlife before moving on. I did the traditional tourist bit too; you know temples, markets that sort of thing.’
‘Sounds wonderful. I’m surprised you didn’t decide to stay, become a beach bum.’
He laughed. ‘If only, but no, I had an agreement with Gareth. Two years out and then I’d come back and work for him.’
‘Of course, you’re one of the Hunter clan, aren’t you?’
He gave a wry smile and stared into his glass. ‘I shouldn’t air those thoughts in front of Evie if I were you.’
‘Ah yes, Dad mentioned she wasn’t exactly your most ardent fan. The thing I can’t quite understand,’ she said, leaning forward to refill their glasses, ‘is why I don’t remember you. I mean, we were good friends of the Hunters. As children Nathan and I were always over there with Dad, being invited to barbeques and buffet lunches. But I only remember Jordan. Where were you?’
‘In my room.’
‘Your room? Ah.’ She smiled thoughtfully as she played with the stem of her wine glass. ‘So you were the archetypal antisocial teenager? Is that what made your aunt angry?’
‘No.’ She watched him shake his head uncomfortably. ‘Evie didn’t feel it appropriate, given the circumstances surrounding my birth, for me to attend any family get-togethers.’
Cat was shocked at such callous behaviour. ‘But didn’t Gareth have something to say about that?’
‘I’m sure he did but, at the time, being so upset over the loss of my mother, I didn’t notice … or care. Anyway, it seemed Evie wore the trousers and Gareth rarely challenged her.’
‘Can I ask you a personal question?’
‘About my family?’
She nodded.
‘Okay.’
‘The thing is I know Ross wasn’t your father but have you any idea about—’
‘—my real father’s identity?’ he finished the question for her. ‘Yes, his name was Scott Stevens and he worked as a mechanic at Arcadia during the summer of 1989. The other guys nicknamed him Silverstone because of his dream of working with a Formula One team. Evidently he was always hanging around Selina and, well, people put two and two together.’
‘I gather you didn’t learn about that from Gareth?’
‘Of course not.’ He smiled, amused. ‘No it was Tony Marsh. Back in the eighties he worked alongside him in the Service Department. Said Scott had a bit of a “thing” for my mother, they went to the same clubs, hung around with the same people. Actually he brought a photo in for me to see and I took a copy.’ Cat watched as he pulled his phone from the pocket of his jeans and trawled through the photo gallery. ‘Ah here we are.’ He passed the phone over to her. ‘It’s from a holiday in Ibiza. My dad’s the one on the far right.’
