Micah, always in tune with her, sent her a sympathetic smile. ‘What if we all disappear for a few days? Why don’t we take a family holiday? You booked Petit Frère for your honeymoon. I instructed our booking agents not to take any other bookings for the next ten days. We could fly out tomorrow and return on Sunday, and Thadie could stay longer if she needed to.
‘Apart from a small staff crew, the island is empty,’ Micah explained, turning to Angus. ‘Petit Frère is a small, exclusive resort on an island we own in Seychelles. The island has four villas, each separated from the other, as well as a small two-bedroom cottage. There’s a central building housing the communal restaurant and bar, pool, gym and sauna.’
‘Access?’ Angus asked, his expression impassive.
‘People can only get there by boat,’ Jago replied, sounding enthusiastic. ‘I think going to Petit Frère is a great idea.’
Micah flashed her a smile. ‘It’s simply a matter of calling our pilot, getting him to file a flight plan and getting Jabu to pack our bags. He’ll insist on coming along to look after us.’
‘Jabu?’ Angus asked.
‘Our semi-retired butler,’ Jago answered him.
Thadie always felt uncomfortable calling Jabu by his official title. ‘He’s so much more than that,’ she told Angus. ‘He started at Hadleigh House when Jago and Micah were little, before I was even born. Jabu was the first person to see me walk, he taught me Zulu, because my mother wouldn’t teach me the language. He’s been my guide to my African ancestry.’
‘He’s more of a father than a butler,’ Micah agreed.
‘Anyway, getting back to taking an island holiday,’ Thadie said, uncomfortable with the I-can-see-through-you gaze Anguswas giving her. ‘I think going away together, Jabu included, is a great idea and I would love it if we can make that happen.’
‘When should we leave?’ Micah asked. ‘Tomorrow morning okay?’
Thadie nodded enthusiastically. ‘Fine by me.’ She turned to face Angus again. ‘Since I’m going to be out of the country, I won’t need additional security. But thank you for your concern,’ she added, wincing at her formal tone. She needed him to leave. Needed some space to collect her thoughts and decide how she was going to tell him about Gus and Finn.
Angus stood up and put his hands on his hips. ‘You’re not getting rid of me that easily,’ he rumbled in his water-over-gravel voice.
‘I can’t think of anything else we have to discuss,’ she told him, lifting her nose. She hoped he didn’t pick up on the fact she was lying.
‘Youcan’t?’ said Angus, sounding intense. ‘I can think of a couple of things...’
He turned to Micah and Jago, his smile cool and composed. ‘If you would excuse us, Thadie and I need to talk privately. It’s nothing that concerns her security.’
Or you. Thadie heard his silent subtext and did not doubt that Jago and Micah did too. Jago looked at her, his eyebrows raised. ‘Do you want us to stay?’
Absolutely not!
Thadie shook her head, her braids bouncing violently. ‘No, it’s fine. He’s right...we need to talk. I’ll call you later.’
Her brothers stood up, kissed her cheek, and walked out of her front door. Thadie suppressed the urge to run after them.
She waited until she heard the slam of their car door and sighed. She turned back to Angus and straightened her shoulders. ‘What did you want to discuss?’
Angus’s hot look pinned her feet to the floor, and she felt like a bug under a microscope. ‘I want to return to my earlier question. I want to know why you didn’t contact me, given our chemistry. You said you would, and I don’t think you are a woman who goes back on your word. So why didn’t you call me or send me an email?’
There was something different to Angus’s tone this time. Something Thadie couldn’t quite put her finger on.
She started to explain but he spoke right over her. ‘But, mostly, I want to know why you didn’t tell me about them.’
He pulled a photograph from his back pocket and Thadie gasped, going hot and cold. She recognised the photo as one she’d pinned to the fridge months ago. Gus and Finn had put their plastic-moulded motorbikes in their bubble bath and were sitting on them, laughing like loons. The photo had always lived on the fridge, along with takeout menus and magnets and, honestly, she’d forgotten it was there.
Angus had not only noticed the photo but had managed to remove and pocketed it without her or her brothers noticing. Impressive in a slightly James Bond, scary, superspy way.
Her secret was out.
CHAPTER FOUR
‘YES,THEYAREYOURS.’
What else could she say? She’d wanted time to think, and this wasn’t the way she wanted to impart the news, but she wasn’t going to lie to him.