Shadows Read Free

married.”
    Melissa waited, a piece of lettuce poised on her fork, but Rory added nothing else.  His averted gaze told her he really didn’t like talking about his family.  Why the reticence?  Curiosity swarmed through her.  “Did she not regret that?”
    He sighed.  “My parents have strong beliefs about raising children.  They don’t approve of the modern practice of putting kids in nurseries while the mother goes out to work.”
    “Really?  How old-fashioned.  Single-parent families would be considered beyond the pale, then.”  Her heart began to thud in her chest.  Head down, she concentrated on cutting her venison.  Don’t panic.  Once he says goodnight you’ll probably never meet him again.
    “Oh, certainly.  How about your parents?”
    “A little different.”  This was where she must be careful.  She suspected the truth would not go down well, and anyway she was not free to divulge it.  The promise to her mother must be kept.  “Both my parents were Army people.”  Well, that wasn’t a lie, though some might consider her answer evasive.
    “Your mother too?”  He sounded surprised.
    Melissa placed her knife and fork together on the plate.  She must get away from this topic before she said too much.  “Yes, that’s where they met.  I have a brother.  He’s in the same accountancy firm as Jonny.”  She offered a smile.  “Accountancy and law are interesting professions and certainly pay more than librarianship.”
    “I imagine they do.  So neither of you chose the Army?”
    He was back to personal questions again.  Just what she didn't want.  Her hands gripped together in her lap for comfort in the lull between courses.  “I don’t know about Gareth, but I had more than enough of camping out in all weathers and hiking over wet hillsides all through our childhood.  I wanted something quieter.”  Desperate to shift the conversation, she smiled.  “Did you ever camp out?  We had some wonderful times.”
    She sat back as dessert appeared, and picked up her spoon.
    “Tell me one of your adventures.”
    She probed the raspberries and meringue.  “The funniest one was in Scotland, I remember.  We drove onto a lovely green spot and the car sank up to its axles before we’d gone ten feet.”
    He groaned but went on spooning up cream and raspberries.
    “Cars pulled up to help but nothing would shift it out of the mud.  In the end they shoved me into the driving seat because I was the lightest, and everyone pushed from the rear.”  No need to tell him neither her father nor her brother had been involved.  “I remember it so well even now.  The car roared onto the road and when I looked back they were all covered in mud that flew up from beneath the back wheels.”
    Rory chuckled.  “Sounds like fun.”  His mouth turned down.  “All I recall of holidays is sober visits to boring museums.  Castles were better, but they weren’t geared to children then.  No touching, no running, no enjoying yourself.”
    “Museums are good.”
    “Of course.”  He offered a swift, sparkling glance.  “You work in one, or something very like a museum.”
    While she had been speaking, he had cleared his plate.  Melissa was still eating when he placed his elbows on the table and clasped his fingers together.  “I have a girlfriend.”  He said it in a flat, brisk tone, without looking at her.
    Melissa paused with her spoon halfway to mouth.  Her stomach plunged as it did when she used a lift.  Had she misheard him?  One glance at his face told her she wasn't mistaken.  She let the spoon tilt.  The raspberries, suddenly unappetizing, slid back into the dish.
    “That’s a pity.”  Oh, Lord.  Why had she said that?  Now he would think she had been considering him as potential boyfriend material.  She lowered her spoon and eyed Rory with suspicion.  What had this to do with her?  Yet it had.  An absurd lump sat in the middle of her chest and threatened her