A Safe Pair of Hands (19 page)

It was probably the most romantic evening of her life, and
when Nick dropped her off at eleven thirty, she hoped very much
that he would come inside, for an hour – or two... or even for the
night.

“
It's late, and we are both tired,” he said regretfully as they
stood outside her front door. “As much as I would have loved to; I
won't come in tonight, Sadie.”

“
Oh well, if you are sure?” she was disappointed and she could
not hide that from him. “Thank you for a lovely evening
then.”

He bent to kissed her on the mouth, and Sadie reached up her
arms to wrap them around his neck.

Nick pulled back before she could.

“
I'll see you in the morning... sweet dreams, my Sadie.” he
stepped back, and with a little nod, she opened her
door.

“
Good night, Nick.”

*

Sadie spent the rest of the week, working just down the
corridor from Nick, but hardly ever seeing him.

He was confusing her no end at the moment. He would look at
her and his eyes told her that he wanted her; that his declaration
of love was the truth, but at the moment she felt like he was
keeping her at arm’s length, and she did not understand
why.

She popped into his office on the Tuesday morning, firstly to
get his signature to authorise a payment, and secondly to confirm
that she could still hold her family dinner at his place on the
Friday night.

“
If you are sure that you are sure,” she said
hesitantly.

He smiled absently as he read through the document which she
had brought in with her.

“
Yes, not only am I absolutely sure, I am very much looking
forward to it...” he scribbled across the page and held it out to
her. “We will have to confer and decide on the menu.”

“
Yes?”

He smiled again, but his eyes were not keen so meet hers, she
noticed worriedly.

“
You need to talk to your parents, and make sure that they are
able to make it?”

“
Yes, I said that I would give them a call tonight.”

“
Good, I will see you in the morning then, and we can talk
about it.”

She had just been dismissed, she realised, and so with a
little nod she turned and left the room.

The moment the door was closed, Nick gave a little sigh, and
then turned back to his computer, so that he could continue
searching for the perfect ring...

**

“
Mum, dad, I would like you to meet Nick,” Sadie said a little
nervously as she led them through to Nick's living room.

Nick stood up with a calm smile and held his hand out to
them.

He could see the worry on Sadie's face, and the guarded
expression on her parents.

“
Welcome to my home, and it is very good to meet you
both.”

They each shook his hand with a slightly forced
enthusiasm.

“
Thank you for having us, and it is always very nice to meet
any... friend? Of Sadie's.” her mum said uncertainly

“
Please come and sit down... and what can I get for you to
drink?”

“
I'm driving I am afraid, so just a tonic water for me,
please.” Sadie's dad requested politely.

“
Can I have a vodka and tonic, please,” Sadie's mum
asked.

“
Of course,” he nodded and looked across at Sadie. “What can I
get for you?” he asked her warmly.

“
I'll have a vodka too, please, but with lemonade?”

While Nick was fixing the drinks, the doorbell
rang.

“
That will be Nancy and co; shall I get it, Nick?”

“
If you could, Sadie – thanks.”

The stiffly formal atmosphere seemed to dissolve with the
entrance of Nancy and little Pete, and Rob.

Firstly because the little boy was all excited to see his
grandparents again; and he was also delighted to be in Nick's
home.

And Sadie's parents were also quick to see the warm handshake
that was exchanged between Nick and Rob. And the very warm and
enthusiastic kiss, that Nancy gave to Nick.

It helped them no end to see the casual friendliness between
their daughters and the men in their lives.

There were no undercurrents at all it seemed. And if Nancy had
harboured any doubts at all about this new man in Sadie's life,
then they felt sure that she would have been quick to show
it.

Once they started to relax, and the conversation began to
flow, the evening turned into a roaring success for all of
them.

The dinner had been delicious, and when Sadie's mother had
tried to compliment her daughter, she had been surprised at the
guilty colour that flooded her daughter’s cheeks.

“
Well actually I was only the chef's helper tonight. It was
Nick who did all of the cooking!”

It caused a gentle laughter around the table, and some teasing
of Sadie’s ability to find a man who could cook so well.

It was a fun meal, and very soon after the dinner, little Pete
began to yawn tiredly, and when he curled up on his mother’s lap,
he was asleep in moments.

“
Now then, mother and father,” Nancy said, after she had laid
the sleeping child down on a sofa in the corner of the living room.
“We all want to hear all about your cruise!”

Nick and Sadie waved her parents off as they stood arm in arm
in his doorway.

“
So what did you think?” Sadie’s mum asked her dad, as he drove
down the dark road.

Sadie’s father shrugged, and flicked her quick glance. “I
liked him,” he said simply. “I think that he could be good to her,
good for her.”

Mrs Forester gave a little sigh. “I liked him too... I just
hope that we are not all kidding ourselves though.”

“
Just because one nice guy turned out to be a total monster...
it doesn’t mean that is all she can pick in man.”

“
No... Oh well we shall just have to wait and see, won’t we?”
Sadie’s mother shrugged her shoulders, and they finished their ride
home in silence.

Back at Nick’s place, Sadie was wrapped in Nick’s arms, as he
kissed her like he had never kissed her before. He kissed her with
such a burning hunger that he had her trembling all
over.

“
Stay the night with me?” he asked her longingly. “Stay the
rest of your life with me?” he begged, totally shocking her after
his arms length treatment of recent days.

She froze in his arms as she looked up at him blankly. Just
what was it that he was asking of her?

He saw the doubt and confusion immediately and smiled a sad
little smile.

“
Stay the night,” he asked quietly. “I know I have been a
little distant lately, and I want to make it up to you... please
stay the night with me, in my home, in my bed?”

Chapter Twenty

Over the next week, Nick spent every evening that he could
with Sadie, and she spent more time at his house than she did at
her own.

She had met his cousin Phillip, on the Saturday, after the
dinner party, and she had like him a lot.

They took a quick look around his empty flat, and Sadie pulled
out a tape measure and notebook, and whizzed around making notes,
as the two men followed in her wake. She noticed the little camper
bed in the otherwise empty bedroom, and felt a rush of sympathy for
the young man. Nick had no such concerns however.

“
I can see that you wasted no time in moving in here,” he said
to Phillip, “so let’s see how fast we can turn it into a proper
home for you.” He then piled them both into his car to go
shopping.

Phillip had managed to save just over a thousand pounds, and
Nick decided that since Christmas was so close, he would match
Phillip’s thousand and add another as well.

“
But that is too much,” Phillip protested heatedly.

“
I can afford it cousin of mine, I have no family of my own...
yet, but you are my blood, and so rather than it sitting in a bank
account achieving nothing, I would like to help you to set up a
nice first home for yourself.”

Nick smiled a slow smile. “You and Uncle Arthur are the only
two members of my family that I would care to know, and I want to
help you... if you will let me.”

He sounded so wistful that even Sadie wanted to surrender to
him, and Phillip was no more immune to him either.

“
Well if you are sure?”

“
Good that’s settled then.” Nick said smugly, and Sadie shot
him a quick suspicious look.

It was a very productive day. They went to the nearest
electrical store, where Nick ordered a washing machine and a
cooker, and a fridge freezer.

Next they went to a furniture store, where a proper bed and
sofa suite were ordered.

Nick’s budget was pretty much exhausted by now, but he
insisted on taking them to the carpet shop where carpets were
ordered, and booked in for fitting on the following
Monday.

This left Phillip to pay for the paints which he purchased on
Sadie’s suggestions, after his sofa had been picked, and the
carpets chosen.

He was such a gentle giant of a young man, and as they walked
around the warehouse, Phillip listened to her ideas about colour
schemes, and the pros and cons of paint against
wallpaper.

A quick stop off for curtains and bedding, and they were ready
to call it a day, upon which Nick took them both to the nearest pub
for a cooked dinner before taking Phillip back to his
flat.

*

“
We are all spending Christmas day, at Nancy’s,” she told Nick
after they had dropped Phillip off at his new flat, with the
promise that they would be round bright and early on the following
morning, and ready to do some painting.

“
I’m sure that Nancy can fit in two extra seats at the dinner
table?”

“
We haven’t actually spoken about Christmas yet, have we?” Nick
murmured thoughtfully. “But if your sister is happy to take pity on
me and my poor cousin, that I will be delighted to accept on both
of our behalves.”

Sadie chuckled. “I’ll pop round when we get back to your
house, and make sure that it will be okay.”

*

“
It will be more than okay,” Nancy declared enthusiastically.
“The more the merrier in my eyes; and some young blood would help
to offset the older blood of our parents, and Rob’s parents, and a
couple of Rob’s aged aunts as well.”

She rolled her eyes, as she did some mental sums in her head.
“Yes, we can set up the table in the back room, and extend it all
the way... we could get a smaller table perhaps for the children,
for little Pete, and Rob’s sister and her husband will be coming
with their two kids... I could invite the cousins, Belinda and
Lindsey – Lindsey has got her little boy as well, and I bet that
neither of them have made in plans yet...”

Sadie left Nancy to make her own plans. “I will come and sleep
at your house on Christmas Eve,” she promised. “And give a hand
with it all?”

Nancy grinned. “You know that you are more than welcome, but
surely right next door is close enough – since you seem to be
pretty much living there these days anyway?”

**

The next day as she helped young Phillip to paint his flat,
Sadie formally invited Nick and Phillip to Christmas dinner at her
sister’s house.

“
There are going to be quite a lot of us I think,” Sadie told
the shy young man. “But it should be fun as well.”

“
You could come and spend Christmas Eve night at my house,”
Nick declared jovially, to Phillip. “I have that spare room, it’s
been crying out to be used, for some time now.”

Phillip glanced at Sadie and his brown eyes still looked
uncertain in his plain face.

He was a giant of a young man, strong and lumbering, but his
eyes were soft and gentle and Sadie felt a rush of protective
affection for him.

“
Well if you are sure that I wouldn’t be intruding?” he said
slowly.

She smiled a wide a confident smile. “I am really sure, that
we would all love to have you – both over for Christmas
dinner.”

*

“
Since you will be spending Christmas Eve with Phillip, I said
that I would sleep at Nancy’s and help her get things ready. I will
lock up and drive across to Nancy's on Christmas Eve morning, and
maybe see you there?”

He scowled irritably. “I really wanted to spend Christmas Eve
with you.”

“
Well I would only be next door, maybe you and Phillip could
come across and help move some of the furniture around – I am
pretty sure that Nancy will want to clear a lot of the downstairs,
to make room for everyone, and so maybe we could all spend the day,
or the afternoon together?”

“
I guess so,” Nick sighed in resignation. “And it would give
Phillip a chance to meet a few people before hand, so that not
everyone will be a stranger on the day.”