Chapter Twenty-Four
James
A sharp pain stabbed James in the ribs, almost like Victoria had prodded him with a nail, but it was seeing Dagmar walk away that increased the ache.
‘I need to go.’ He made to walk away, but Victoria caught his arm, pulling him back. ‘You should leave. This is helping no one.’
‘I need to talk to you. Leave Dagmar. She’s got work to do. And anyway, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about next year’s horse trials. Mother is very keen to discuss the sponsorship you and your father mentioned, but we need to set the ball rolling, and soon.’
James breathed through his gritted teeth. ‘This is not a good time for this because—’
‘Of course I get that,’ Victoria interrupted. ‘But we can’t waste too much time. We’re talking about significant exposure for Duchan Fayre. And having that allied with Dairvin castle. Well, you see the significance, don’t you?’
‘Of course.’ He forced a smile. It was precisely what his father wanted and what James had promised to do – a promise his father wasn’t likely to forget, especially if today’s talks were anything to go by. It had been a gruelling day, all in all. ‘But I really need to—’
‘Mother is hosting a dinner next month. You and your parents will be invited of course. It’ll be the perfect chance to solidify the deal.’
James glanced in the direction Dagmar had gone, the tension in his chest mounting. ‘Listen, I can’t talk now.’
‘Why the hell not?’ Victoria took his hand. ‘Let’s get out of here and go for dinner or something.’
‘I can’t. I need to find Dagmar.’
‘Dagmar?’ She screwed up her face. ‘Why do you need her ?’
Her tone was as disparaging as ever.
‘I really don’t like the way you talk about Dagmar.’ James frowned, struggling to keep his tone polite. ‘She’s not just some “stable person”. She manages this livery and riding school. Plus, she’s an extremely talented horse woman and a very pleasant individual. I think a little more respect is in order.’
‘Oh, good gracious.’ Victoria pressed her hand to her chest. ‘Don’t think I’m disrespecting her. Far from it. If anyone knows how good a rider she is, it’s me. I just think it’s wrong for us to bother her when she’s obviously so busy. And we’ve finally got this opportunity to be together. I feel like I hardly ever get to see you.’
‘That was your choice. You had someone else on the go… And so I… Well, what was I to think?’
‘Oh gosh, yes. That’s exactly what we need to discuss.’ She pulled a side pout. ‘I’ve ditched him completely. He was a mistake. I think it’s time you and I fully committed to each other.’
‘I can’t do that, Victoria… The thing is—’
‘Hello!’
James glanced around to see Ophelia and Brann approaching.
‘Hey,’ James said.
‘Hello.’ Ophelia smiled at them both, and Brann nodded. ‘I didn’t expect to see you here, Victoria.’ Ophelia’s eyes bored into her like she was trying to extract her reasons for being there without asking.
‘So Dagmar hasn’t grassed me up yet, has she?’
Ophelia frowned. ‘No… Why? What have you been up to?’
‘Disturbing the peace.’
‘Oh dear. Well, I’m glad you’re here. I’ve got some stuff for you.’
‘For me?’ Victoria raised her eyebrows.
‘Jacinta left some books and things in the tack room and ordered me to deliver them to you, but needless to say, I’m not her servant and I simply haven’t had time, so this is rather a happy chance.’
‘What kind of books?’
‘Honestly, I have no idea. Perhaps you’d like to come and look for yourself.’
Victoria hesitated, glancing at James. ‘I… Well—’
‘You should,’ James said. ‘I have other things to do.’
Victoria gave him a dirty look, but he ignored it.
‘I heard Duchan Fayre was getting an extension.’ Ophelia said, her eyes lingering between Victoria and James. He had the distinct sense she was trying to suss out what was going on with them.
‘There are always rumours like that going about, but we don’t have any expansion plans at present.’
‘But they might be sponsoring the horse trials next year,’ Victoria said.
‘That makes sense.’ Ophelia caught James’s eye, and he gave her a brief smile, making sure not to betray anything.
‘I’ll leave you to discuss it,’ James said, not looking back. ‘I need to find Dagmar.’
The voices of Ophelia, Brann, and Victoria chattered as they went towards the tack room. James nipped into the stable block and looked around. Where was she?
He pulled out his phone and saw several messages. He’d been so busy all day, he hadn’t replied to any of them. Some of them were from Dagmar. Opening the thread, he read some she’d sent that morning about her mum’s café.
Shit.
Zephyra shuffled her feet in her stall as she ate. James took a deep breath; the scent of hay and horses had become like old friends but couldn’t ease the squeezing sensation in his chest. This ultimatum made his plans for the Cosy Bean Café almost impossible. After his discussions with his father today, he was already in a state of flux. He was having to tread so carefully around his father that getting the finances sorted by Friday would be near impossible.
Victoria’s voice floated into earshot. ‘Where’s James? Is he still here?’
‘Not a clue,’ Ophelia replied.
‘This is so annoying,’ Victoria huffed.
James held his breath, waiting until the sound of footsteps retreated, followed by the murmur of voices fading away. He peered around the door to make sure the coast was clear. Seeing no one, he cautiously stepped out of the stables.
Victoria was heading back towards the car park. He needed to find Dagmar.
‘James.’
The voice made him jump. He turned to see Ophelia standing just outside the tack room, her eyebrows raised.
‘Oh, hi.’ James forced a would-be casual smile.
‘Is Dagmar in there?’ Ophelia gave him a long, penetrating look.
‘No.’ He raked his hand through his hair. ‘She might be in the office. I think she went to call you.’
‘What about? Was Victoria actually disturbing the peace?’
‘Well…’ His eyes strayed across the field. ‘She was being rather demanding and pretty rude.’
‘To Dagmar?’
‘Yes.’
She put her hands on her hips and sighed. ‘She can be very entitled, and she likes getting her own way. Why was she here anyway?’
James half rolled his eyes and sighed. ‘I’m not even sure I know. I think Jacinta might have had something to do with it. She was definitely stirring up trouble with my mother.’
‘That sounds like Jacinta alright.’ She looked back into the tack room at a clattering sound. ‘What’s Brann doing in there?’
‘Not sure, but I should head… I need to talk to Dagmar.’ He didn’t make eye contact with Ophelia. ‘I’m not sure where she went though.’
‘How are the lessons going?’
‘Extremely well.’ Though he wasn’t talking about the horses. Dagmar was riding like a pro these days – a totally crude thought, but he couldn’t stop it from flitting through his head.
‘Well, that’s something.’
His gaze met Ophelia’s, and he had a weird sense that she’d guessed what he was thinking.
‘I’ll go find her. Nice seeing you.’ He walked toward the office and looked in the door. Was Ophelia still watching him? He didn’t dare look back to check.
Maybe Dagmar had gone to the cottage. He darted up the path in that direction. When he got to the crest of the hill, he looked down at the row of cottages. Dagmar was outside, hanging washing on a pull-out line to the side of her cottage. Without hesitation, he jogged down the path.
‘Hey,’ he called as he opened the gate.
‘James. What—’
‘Listen, I’m so sorry. I just saw all your messages. Today has been hellish. That ultimatum will make everything a hundred times worse.’
‘Does that mean you can’t do anything?’ Her eyes were wide and fearful.
‘I’ll try my best.’ He shook his head. ‘But my father is not in a good place.’
‘How do you mean?’
‘Apparently, he’s not feeling well and finding out that I don’t want to see Victoria has made him worse. He thinks I’m not trying hard enough… and… I don’t want to repeat it all, but I need to tread carefully. He could pull the plug on the whole café business, so I need to keep him onside.’
‘It’s such a nightmare.’
‘I’m sorry. I never thought time would run out like this. These deals usually take a while to go through. I’ve done everything I can. I hope you believe that and don’t think I’ve been slacking. Everything is in motion, but this changes things.’
‘I believe you.’ Before he could utter another word, she pushed onto her tiptoes and her lips were on his, urgent and demanding.
He responded with equal intensity. ‘I’m not giving up,’ he whispered between kisses.
Her hands gripped his shoulders, pulling him closer. He slipped his tongue into her mouth, deepening the kiss, and heat burned through him.
‘I know you’ll do what you can.’
He broke away, his breath ragged. ‘I’ll do everything within my power,’ he murmured against her lips. ‘I promise.’ The word echoed in his mind. He’d made a promise to his father too, and it looked like he’d have to break it. What if he couldn’t save the café either?
Dagmar’s chest heaved, the outline of her bra showing through the thin white cotton t-shirt, and James barely mastered the urge to rip it off. ‘Did you get rid of Victoria?’
‘For now. I tried to tell her I wasn’t interested anymore, but Ophelia showed up, and I had to stop talking.’
‘Victoria reckons it’s Caitlin who’s sweet on you, not me.’
‘What?’ He looked away and frowned. ‘Isn’t she just a teenager?’
‘Yup.’
‘I’m going to have to either meet Victoria or message her and tell her she and I aren’t ever getting together.’
Dagmar shook her head. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Yes,’ he said, his voice low. ‘I only want to be with you.’
‘You what?’
‘You heard me.’
‘But… I thought this was just a fling.’
‘Is that what you want?’
She smiled. ‘I thought I did, but… Well, I’d like to think we had a future. I assumed you’d need to go and find someone richer than me for the long run.’
He shook his head. ‘That’s what my father wants, and it’s what I promised to do, but I’m working on a way to let him know I want to be with someone of my own choosing.’
‘And that’s me?’ She stared at him like she could hardly believe her ears.
‘It’s always been you. I just didn’t know how to bring it about. Even now, I’m not sure, but I’m determined to find a way.’ His mouth found hers again. ‘You are the future I want.’ Though getting it wouldn’t be an easy task. His father was bound to find obstacles even Zephyra would have difficulty clearing.
The kissing continued, growing more passionate. ‘Let’s go inside,’ Dagmar said. ‘Camilla, the mad artist, might be watching, and god knows what she might say to Jacinta or Ophelia.’
‘I think Ophelia suspects already.’ James followed her in.
Dagmar’s eyes widened. ‘You think?’
‘Yep, she’s sharp.’
Dagmar bit her lip. ‘Are you sure we’re doing the right thing?’
‘Yes. We just need to keep quiet about it for a little longer, then it doesn’t matter who knows.’
He captured her lips once more, sliding his hands under her top and popping her bra open. Their kisses grew more frantic.
‘I need a shower.’ Dagmar pulled back. ‘I can’t do this when I’m in such a state. I feel sticky from working.’
‘Let’s clean up together.’
‘Are you serious?’
‘Deadly.’ He wanted her, needed her, and every fibre of his being screamed for more. ‘Come on,’ he murmured against her lips, tugging her up the stairs.
They stumbled inside the little bathroom, barely managing to close the door behind them, before James started undressing her, then himself. His body was so ready and thankfully he’d prepared by shoving a couple of condoms in his wallet. He retrieved it from the pocket of his trousers and rolled one on.
Dagmar looked a little uncertain, standing wholly naked in the small space, which was pristinely white with grey accents on the tiles and a potted plant at the window. James kicked their clothes into the far corner and reached for the handle, turning on the water. It flowed out in a somewhat unenthusiastic trickle.
‘It takes a moment to work up.’ Dagmar glanced at it.
‘Me too.’ James stepped under the water in the glass cubicle and drew Dagmar towards him, turning her under the flow. ‘God, you’re beautiful.’ His hands slid up her wet skin.
‘Am I?’
‘You always have been.’ He flipped up the lid of a shower gel bottle, squeezing some creamy white liquid onto his palm and smoothing it over Dagmar, lingering longest on her breasts, watching them rise to his touch. She tossed back her head with a moan. He dipped in and kissed her neck.
‘Oh, god, James.’ She put her hands on his shoulders. ‘I have to ask you something.’
‘What?’ He lathered around her shoulders and her upper arms.
‘Will your parents ever accept me? I mean, if we do end up having a future together.’
‘My mother will, I’m sure.’ James gently massaged her shoulders.
‘But my father will take some work. Leave it with me. I’m working on it.’ He put his hands under her bum and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist. ‘But, right now, I’m working on you, and only you.’