Mia

Special Kindle Edition

Mia

by

Marie Kelly

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.

Mia

Special Kindle Edition

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

Copyright © 2011 Marie Kelly
. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written permission of the author. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials.

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

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Visit the author website:

www.romancemarie.com

Marie Kelly

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The rain poured down heavily on Mia Drake as she hunched down, desperately trying to budge the nut which seemed welded to the wheel.  With a small scream of frustration she stood once more, wiping away the water which now flowed unstopped down her face and over her clothes, clinging to her body like a second skin.  The rain, now unable to soak into the fabric any further, moved down her in rivulets, Mia shivering with the cold. 

When her
tire had blown she was driving down the lonely road to the village she had grown up in, her mind already in turmoil over her return.  She had long ago vowed never to set foot back in the village and the tire blowing seemed to be an omen that she should turn around and stick to her original vow.  Pulling out her mobile, she was unable to pick up a signal and with gritted teeth she once more retrieved the jack she had thrown to the side of the road in her frustration, turning back to her impossible task. 

Dressed
only in jeans and a jumper, which now was stretched halfway down her hands, she was cold and miserable and completely unable to budge the offending nut to make the change.  Still she kept trying, nervous on the lonely dark stretch of road.

Paul James
sighed, feeling tired from the long day.  Nothing seemed to go right, and he was a man who did not like delays, grimacing as the rain lashed down on his car, his windscreen wipers moving ferociously to allow him to see the road ahead.  From a distance he spotted the small abandoned car by the side of the road, not remembering it being there earlier.  Slowing slightly he concentrated on the windows, checking to see if anybody was seeking shelter inside the vehicle.  Passing the car, with a small smile he decided that the driver had no doubt been rescued long ago.  Only the sudden movement at the corner of his eye sent his look flying to the rear-view mirror, surprised to see a small shape rising from the larger shadowy bulk of the car.

As
she saw the headlights appear in front of her, part of Mia felt an overwhelming sense of relief to see them, the first in over an hour.  Standing up, she was in time to see as the car, a large Jaguar, moved past her.  She could hardly believe that anybody would drive past somebody so obviously in need of help and she swore loudly at the driver, before returning to the task of the wheel, tears rushing to her eyes.  However, the sound of a reversing engine had her looking around once more, as she blinked away the water, standing again.  Slowly the door of the car opened and a tall handsome man stepped out, holding a large umbrella over himself.

“Do you need help
?”, the strong masculine voice cried out, Mia feeling instant relief as she nodded her head furiously, feeling as the water sprayed from her, she was so wet.  “Yes please”, she returned, her voice uneven as her teeth chattered.

Returning to
his car the man retrieved something from the back seat before moving over to where she stood. “Here, put this on before you catch your death”, he said abruptly, handing her a long trench coat which she pulled on thankfully, instantly appreciating the heat it offered, even though it swamped her.  As she lifted her head to thank him he had gone, already looking thoughtfully at the car, bending down to the tire before trying the jack himself.

“Your tire needs a special tool”
, he finally declared, “Do you have it?”  Shaking her head she explained that she was only borrowing the car and had only been able to find the tools currently lying on the roadside in the small trunk, her voice shaky as her teeth chattered.  With a small grimace he then moved back over to her looking down into her hair-splattered face before with a decisive action taking her by the arm, moving her over to his car.

“You
can’t stay here, I’ll call a truck to retrieve your car”, he said, opening the passenger door and depositing her in the seat.  “Do you have any luggage?”, he asked, moving over to retrieve it as she nodded.

Mia
sat quietly, aware of the small puddle forming on the mat at her feet as the water gathered. “Thank you”, she whispered softly, “If you could take me into town, I’ll get a hotel room”

Looking at her with a soft sigh the stranger
started the engine of his car.  “Not at this time of night you won’t”, he replied, looking thoughtfully over at her. “Do you have family in the area?”  Mia shook her head gently, “No…Not anymore”

“Well you
had best come back with me…My housekeeper will sort you out for the night and you can make arrangements tomorrow”  Mia fidgeted nervously, her eyes flitting quickly to his face “No…really…I’m sure that it’ll be fine”

With a frown the man
looked down on her with exasperation, “If you would rather stay here”, he said with an impatient tone in his voice, surprised to see the look of fear which crossed her eyes, as she clamped her mouth shut, shaking her head once more before pushing herself further into the seat as he drove off.

After several minutes of silence he
finally spoke more gently to her.  “My name is Paul James…You are?”  Mia frowned.  She recognised that name, but couldn’t quite pin down from where.  “Mia Drake”, she replied, finally looking over at her rescuer.  As she did, she held back the gasp of surprise.  He was the most handsome man she had ever seen.  Jet black hair, slightly wet from the rain, framed his strong features.  As he looked quickly at her she saw the darkest eyes she had ever thought possible with long lashes which gave him an exotic look.  His expression was serious and he exuded a raw masculinity which had her senses jumping.

“Drake
…Drake”, he muttered gently, “Why do I know that name?”  “My father ran the local newspaper”, she replied softly, remembering why she had returned to the small village in the middle of nowhere, once more feeling the grief tugging painfully at her.  “You’re Ben Drake’s daughter?”, he asked, his voice suddenly icy, “I don’t remember seeing you at his funeral”

“You knew my father
?”, Mia replied in surprise before looking once more ahead of herself, her voice full of sadness, “I only just found out about my father’s death”

His however, was dripping with sarcasm
. “No phones or internet access where you were?”, he threw at her.  Looking down at her hands which were still shaking with the cold in spite of the warm air blowing onto her she replied gently, “No”  With a confused sideways look at her the man once more became silent before turning off to a side road.  Catching her bearings Mia suddenly realised where she was.

“You live on the Kennard estate
?”, she cried in surprise.  “I own it now”, his brusque reply.  Mia became silent once again as they pulled up in front of the grandest house in the whole area.  She had always loved the old building, having spent many days exploring it with her best friend Janey Kennard.

“Come on”
, he said, lithely sliding from the car and moving to open her door.    “Sooner you get out of those wet things the better”, his tone more gentle, seeing how she still shook with the cold.

At the door
they were met by the housekeeper, who Mia instantly recognised as the same women who looked after the house when the Kennards lived there.  “Mrs Mac!”, she exclaimed with delight, the older woman looking carefully at her.  “Mia Drake”, she cried, pulling the younger women into her arms in a surprise embrace.  “What happened to you?”, she cried, “You just disappeared one day.  Good grief it’s so wonderful to see you…Janey always wondered where you had gone”

“As touching as this is”
, a deep voice behind interrupted, “Could we please move inside?”  With an apologetic sound from the housekeeper Mrs Mac pulled Mia further into the house, guiding her in and shaking her head seeing as the younger woman dripped onto her clean floor.  “Good grief young lady, you need to get out of those wet things and into a bath before you catch your death of cold”, she said sternly, as the young woman smiled back at her, so happy to see a friendly face.

Paul James
handed Mia her case. “I’ll phone the repair van and see if they can fix that tire of yours”, he said before moving into his study, leaving the two women alone.  Mia couldn’t help but notice how tall he was, broad shoulders narrowing to a slim waist as he walked across the hall with a masculine grace.

Mrs Mac
then moved upstairs with Mia, insisting on running her bath for her, as she filled her in on what had happened in the six years she had been away.  She discovered that Janey, who was the only child of Mr Kennard, was now married and living in Africa with her 2 children, and that when her father had died a year ago she decided to sell the estate, hence the new owner.  “Who is he?”, Mia asked softly trying hard to keep her voice objective, “The name sounds familiar”  

With a small laugh
the housekeeper chuckled.  “Where have you been dear?…Paul James owns the largest chain of hotels in Europe…When he decided to move here it made all the papers…But a very nice man”, she added, “so long as you don’t get on the wrong side of him”, before becoming serious.  “Do you know about your father?”, she asked gently, seeing as Mia nodded, a small sad sigh leaving her.  “Yes, that’s why I came back…the lawyer said there were papers which had to be sorted out…I only just found out”

By now the bath was run and with a
comforting pat on her arm the older woman rose.  “I’m just making some dinner.  It should be ready in about 30 minutes, OK?”, she said gently before leaving.

Stripping out of her soggy clothes which flopped onto the floor with a
squelching sound, Mia stepped into the piping hot water, her whole body starting to unfreeze as the water thawed out her numb bones.  With a sigh of pure pleasure she felt the blood start to flow back through her body, bringing some of the colour back into her pale cheeks.

As she dried herself she
fished out some clean trousers and a shirt from the case before brushing out her dark hair which fell gently about her shoulders.  At 23 Mia was small, about 5’3”, with a perfect figure which was visible even through the unflattering clothes she now wore.  Her large blue eyes looked out from her beautiful face, with full soft lips which curved into a smile at the thought of one of Mrs Mac’s homemade meals. 

When the housekeeper
had taken her to Janey's old room, she remembered the many nights she had spent over at her friend’s house, her eyes scanning the area nostalgically, the room so familiar and so unchanged.  Finally ready she moved onto the landing, Mrs Mac meeting her on the stairs, looking at her with an approving grin.

“Much better
Mia…Now you look like the Mia Drake I remember. Paul is in the dining room if you want to join him.  I’m just about to bring in dinner”  With a smile Mia moved over to where she knew the dining room to be, entering softly. 

“The tow truck is going to fix the tire and bring your car over here in the morn
…”, Paul James began before finally lifting his head from the document he was reading to look at her, stopping abruptly.  She could see the look of surprise on his face as he surveyed the young women before him before continuing, his voice a little husky.

“Much better.  The drowned rat look didn’t suit you at all”  Mia smiled, her cheeks flushing a little at the open admiration in his eyes.  “I’ll let Vogue know”, she said with a chuckle which saw his lips twitch slightly.

“Please join me”
, he smiled, standing and indicating a seat beside him for her to sit on.  “So you are a local then”, he spoke, his voice silky, watching her closely with his wonderfully sexy dark intelligent eyes.  “I was”, Mia replied “but I left six years ago”

Paul
raised an eyebrow in surprise, “That would have made you…how old exactly?”, he asked softly.  “17”, she replied, heading off the question she could see forming on his lips, “And yes it was young…but I had my reasons”, she said with a finality in her tone which discouraged further questioning.

At that point Mrs Mac appeared
, carrying two plates of steaming food.  With a smile at them both she placed the dishes before them.  “I know you like this Mia”, she smiled, seeing the younger woman’s face light up at the contents of the plate.  “You always were my favourite cook Mrs Mac”, she chuckled, flashing a warm smile at the housekeeper who returned the look affectionately, before leaving the room again.

“Well you and Mrs Mac seem to know each other very well”
, he said, “How exactly is that?”  With a small laugh she explained how she had been friends with the previous owner’s daughter, talking about the many nights she had spent in the house.  He listened with interest, encouraging her to tell him more about the area.  Mia found herself relaxing in his company, enjoying his dry sense of humour and the way his voice washed so pleasantly over her.

“So why did you buy here
?”, she asked.  “I’m building a new five star hotel close-by”, he replied, “And rather than staying in a hotel myself I bought this place for while the build is going on”  Mia looked at him in surprise.  “So you’re not planning on staying then, you don’t have a family here?”, she asked, seeing his lips twitch again.  “No, no family and I rather enjoy my life the way it is”, he murmured flicking his eyes over her again with a sensual look which made her shiver slightly in a most unexpected way.

“
The place suits me at the moment when I’m in the country, but the build should be complete in about 12 months and then I’ll probably sell the place”, he said in a matter-of-fact tone.