A Safe Pair of Hands (3 page)

“
Not even the fifth time!” Sadie snapped. “And every SINGLE
time I gave in and gave him another chance!” Her voice thickened
with emotion, but she blinked back the tears defiantly.

“
You didn’t love him?”

Sadie shook her head. “The first time that he hit me, he
killed any love that I felt for him.”

“
Hit... first...?” the colour drained from his face, and for a
moment she thought that he was going to be sick.

“
Are you okay?” she asked concerned.

He gulped down some of the tea and placed his cup carefully on
the table... he kept his attention fixed firmly on that cup –
unable for the moment to meet her eye.

“
Start at the beginning…” he demanded suddenly. “And tell me
everything.”

Sadie sighed. “It’s very late, I’m very tired, and what does
it matter now anyway? It was after all three years ago!”

He looked across at her suddenly, and Sadie sat
back.

“
Please…” he said huskily as he reached out to touch the back
of her hand. “Please Sadie… I NEED to know!”

“
Why?”

“
Because I thought three years ago that I knew what kind of
woman you were… and now… now I think that I might have got it all
wrong.”

Sadie shrugged again. “It’s not really made any difference –
has it? I mean I work for you now and keeping that distance is
probably a good thing?”

“
Please, Sadie,” he begged her huskily. “Three years ago I
never gave you a chance to explain, but now I am asking you… please
TALK to me!”

Sadie sighed as her mind went back to a terrible time for
her.

“
I met Rick, about six years ago;” She smiled ruefully. “I was
just turned twenty at that time, and I suppose, ripe for falling in
love…”

Chapter Three

“
It’s your birthday and we’re going out for a drink!” Shelia
told her firmly.

Sadie grinned cheekily. “Oh well, if you’re going to
insist…”

The older woman chuckled ruefully. “I really thought that it
was going to be harder than that.”

“
After just getting my hair done?” Sadie exclaimed in mock
surprise. “And this gorgeous new skirt and top?”

“
And very nice you look too…” Shelia murmured approvingly. “So
straight after work?”

“
I’ll be ready!” Sadie promised.

The two of them worked in the typing pool of large legal firm,
along with several other women.

At five minutes to five, just as she was logging off her
computer, she sensed someone standing behind her.

She turned around slowly…

“
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” the small group all cried out
excitedly.

Sheila stepped forward with a little party hat and a small
placard, which stated; ‘Birthday girl – kiss me quick!’

She hung it around Sadie’s neck and slipped the brightly
coloured cone on to her head.

“
There now – we’re all ready to go!”

Sadie was then dragged from her chair and hustled along to the
double doors, just as they were pushed open and Mr Peterson their
manager stepped in, leading another man, who looked at the little
party in surprise, and then smiled devilishly at Sadie as he read
the sign hanging around her neck.

“
Oh well since you insist, who am I to argue?” he murmured as
he stepped forward and swept her into his arms to kiss her
passionately on the lips, in a very dramatic fashion.

“
Ahhh!” the other women all sighed in approval of the good
looking newcomer.

“
Ladies…” Mr Peterson began in a slightly superior fashion. “I
just thought before you all leave for the weekend; that I would
introduce you all to Mr Matherson. He’s going to be our new junior
solicitor he’ll be covering a lot of the legal aid work and I
expect you all to offer him your help and support.”

“
Oh absolutely,” “you bet,” “and no problem at all!” were the
general responses from the group of ladies and they giggled
together and whispered about the newcomer, as they eyed him with a
kind of what a ‘dreamboat’ or ‘hunk’ or whatever it was they were
thinking.

All except for Sadie who was still reeling from his unexpected
kiss, and how it had made her feel.

She looked up at the newcomer with a kind of bemused wonder,
her lips felt swollen and sensitive, and as she tentatively touched
them with the tip of her tongue, the man watching her so intently,
drew in a quick silent breath. She was so lovely... he would have
her for his own...

“
Happy birthday Sadie,” Mr. Peterson said a little
pompously.

Mr Matherson leaned forward a little and his blue eyes
glittered dangerously.

“
Yes, Happy birthday... Sadie.”

Laughing merrily the small group of women gathered around her
and hustled her through the doors, out of the building and over the
road to the nearest bar.

It was a fun evening, and at any other time, Sadie would have
loved and relished every moment of her little party. Tonight
though, all she could think about was the dreamy new junior
solicitor.

“
Come on, Sadie; let’s get up and have a dance,” Jacquie, one
of the younger girls suddenly called out. “You’re sitting in the
corner being far too quiet for the birthday girl!”

“
Oh that’s because she’s dreaming about that gorgeous new
junior solicitor!” one of the others laughed.

“
I am NOT!” Sadie denied hotly, although her guilty blush told
its own story.

“
So come on then and have a dance!” Jacquie
challenged.

The bar had a small dance floor with a chunky funky jukebox
squatting in the corner.

Laughing and shouting, the party moved over to the floor and
for the next hour music blared out and the group enjoyed some
energetic dancing.

“
Heavens its nine o’clock!” one of the women suddenly gasped.
“I’d better get home before my family divorces me!”

Several of the other women all agreed reluctantly, leaving
only Sadie, Jacqui and a couple of the younger girls, to carry on
the evening.

“
See you all on Monday! Have a great weekend, you
all!”

The group split and Sadie’s half decided to go in search of
some food.

It was gone eleven o’clock when the girls ended the evening on
the pavement – planning to share a taxi home.

“
Cos’ it makes sense,” Jacqui declared bossily. “We do all live
within five minutes of each other; after all!”

A sleek silver Mondeo car slid to a halt by the kerb – just
ahead of them.

“
Hello again ladies!” the voice was familiar enough to Sadie to
cause her skin to prickle, but she was obscured from vision by
Jacquie who for some mysterious reason, suddenly stepped in front
of her.

Sadie looked across at Nicholas, who had sat silently as she
told her story, almost as though she was reliving it. “It’s funny
how some people can look straight at a person and
know
what they are like!”
she said a little enviously. She gave a short bark of laughter and
Nick winced at the bitter edge to it. “Me, I’ve never had that
knack!”

She looked away again as his eyes darkened with some
emotion.

“
I looked at Rick Matherson and I saw our handsome new junior
solicitor. I saw a man who seemed to be falling in love with me!”
her lips twisted as she remembered her naivety back
then…

Rick had given them all a ride home, and even though Jacquie
had obviously not been happy about it, he had made sure that Sadie
was the last one to be dropped off.

“
Ring me when you get home ducks,” Jacquie murmured to Sadie as
she stood on the kerb beside his sleek car.

Sadie was in the front seat – something else that Rick had
arranged, and she smiled at her friend as Jacquie leaned into the
window to kiss her on the cheek.

“
Happy birthday again, Sadie, and…” she looked across to the
smirking man behind the steering wheel. “I know who you are, so
make sure that she gets home safely.”

He continued to grin at her obvious threat, and Jacquie’s
scowl deepened.

Sadie suddenly realised that her friend really did not like
one Rick Matherson, and her surprise made her look across at the
man uneasily.

He caught her look as he set the car in motion once
more.

“
Where to now then?” he asked in an easy carefree tone that
relaxed her shoulders and made her breath again.

“
Turn left at the end, and straight down to the bottom,
please,” she requested huskily.

When he pulled up outside her parent’s house, Sadie was
surprised when Rick climbed out of the car and walked quickly
around to open her door for her, and help her out.

He had not done that with any of her friends.

“
Thank you.”

He did not let go of her hand immediately as he looked up at
the house. “I’m guessing that you don’t live here on your own,” he
said with obvious regret.

She followed his gaze, to see that her parent’s bedroom light
was still on – visible behind their drawn curtains, despite the
lateness of the hour.

“
No, this is my parent’s house, and since it’s getting late – I
really should get inside.” Again she felt that fluttering in her
stomach, as he turned her around and pulled her closer to
him.

“
I can see that you won’t be inviting me in for a – nightcap,”
he murmured. “So I’ll just be wishing you a good night.”

Sadie braced herself for another one of those hard kisses –
like the one that he had given her earlier.

So she was monumentally surprised, when, after a quick look
into her worried eyes, he changed his mind, and swooped down to
kiss her lightly on the cheek instead.

“
Good night, sweet Sadie,” he whispered ruefully.

He let her go immediately and Sadie – feeling totally
flustered, and more than a little bit disappointed – spun on her
heel and almost ran for her home.

“
Good night, Rick,” she threw over her shoulder. “Thank you for
the lift home.”

“
He was such a gentleman,” she whispered now. “Always opening
doors for me, and making sure that I was comfortable and happy. He
made me feel like I was someone so… precious!”

Nick grimaced as he heard the raw pain in her voice.
‘
How could he have gotten it all so
wrong?’

“
So when did it change?” he had to ask, when she seemed to have
stopped talking.

Sadie gave a little sigh.

“
It was every girl’s dream, the handsome, caring suitor, the
marriage proposal… the wedding!”

“
You married him!” Nick had not realised that it had gone that
far with them, and he felt a rush of pure jealousy rip through
him.

She had felt like she was in a fairy-tale, her virginal white
dress that was so appropriate too – because Rick had wanted to wait
until
after
they
were married. The pretty little bridesmaids and the proud and
handsome groom.

He had looked at her with such love – that everyone in that
church on that day had been fooled by him.

“
He took me away for our honeymoon, to a nice little house in
the country, all private and secluded…”

Nick tensed when she hesitated; he just knew that here, was
when things began to change.

She smiled suddenly and the bitterness and self-disgust, in
that smile, made him want to take her into his arms and hold her
tight, and tell her that it wasn’t her fault – that she wasn’t to
blame for any of it – that she was a good person, a wonderful
person, that was why
he’d
fallen in love with her…

“
At first it was wonderful,” she said
oblivious to the change in the man across from her.
“
He
was
wonderful. Caring, considerate, passionate!”

The colour came to her cheeks as she obviously relived her
honeymoon night – and Nick felt the rush of jealousy
again.

“
But it didn’t last?”
now how he managed to keep his voice calm and
casually interested like that, Nick would never know.

She gave him a quick glance. “No, although it did last for
several days. But it was close to the end of our honeymoon and so I
started to pack my things together…”

“
Come on Sadie,” Rick laughed. “Leave that until
later.”

He was lying on the bed with that look on his face, which she
was beginning to recognise.

She smiled at him quickly – hiding the fact that she was not
really in the mood for making love… she was feeling more than a
little tender from his almost constant attentions.

“
I just want to sort these bits out – and then I’ll be right
with you.”