Читать книгу The Little Book Café - Georgia Hill - Страница 16

‘Find it?’ Adrian asked casually.

‘What?’

‘Darling, you jumped a foot. I asked if you’d found your sweatshirt. Ah yes, I see you have. And you were quite right as always. It’s too nice to go in just yet. Autumn will be upon us before we know it.’ He patted the space beside him. ‘Come and cuddle up on the bench. Drink?’ When she shook her head he asked, ‘Is everything alright, Natasha? You look awfully pale.’

‘Headache,’ she mumbled as she slid in next to him.

‘Oh my darling, why didn’t you say? Shoulder massage?’ Without waiting for an answer, he got up and began kneading her muscles. ‘My, there’s a lot of tension here. No wonder you’ve got a bad head. You really do work too hard, Natasha.’

She let her head loll back. Adrian was good at rubbing away her headaches.

‘Perhaps we should look into booking a break? Somewhere hot where we can do nothing but lie in the sun. Or a city break? I know you’ve always wanted to go to Italy. Florence maybe?’

‘I’m not sure I can take the time off.’

‘Well, not immediately but maybe November or December.’ He stopped massaging for a moment. ‘Oh Natasha! What about a Christmas holiday? Iceland or somewhere really wintry? Just think, sleigh rides, ice hotels, vodka shots.’

‘It sounds wonderful.’ It did but Tash had never been away from her parents at Christmas and she was their only child. Would it seem like a proper Christmas for them if she didn’t see them for lunch? And December was a long way away. Over four months. If she committed to going to Iceland, it would be even harder to break away. Did she really want to leave? She opened her eyes wide. Was she serious about leaving Adrian? She watched as he wandered into the kitchen murmuring something about finding aspirin. He could be very kind. He looked after her, treated her like a porcelain doll. She must have made a mistake about the shoes. There were too many bedrooms and too many cupboards in the house. It would be an easy mistake to make.

Adrian returned with a packet of tablets and a tall glass. ‘Elderflower cordial,’ he said. ‘Lots of ice.’ He smiled benevolently as she took the pills and drank.

‘Delicious. Maybe that’s what I needed. Dehydrated, probably.’

‘Easily done in this hot weather. Maybe we should talk more about snow and ice hotels to cool us down?’

Tash laughed.

‘That’s better.’ Adrian looked at her thoughtfully. ‘You know, I haven’t heard you laugh for quite a while. I’ve missed it.’ He sat next to her and took her hand. ‘I’m worried about you, darling. You seem so busy all the time.’ He gestured to the garden. ‘If you didn’t work you could be here more. Look after the garden, the house.’ He squeezed her hand reassuringly. ‘You don’t have to, you know. We could afford for you to stop work quite easily. If the Manchester job comes off, I’m targeting half a mill profit.’

Tash eased her hand away. Adrian had never before suggested she give up work. He’d nagged at her for working too hard, wanted her to cut her hours but this was new. She put the glass down carefully. ‘I love my job, Adrian.’

‘I know you do, my sweet. But you don’t see what it’s doing to you. Always running late, never having enough time to do the things you enjoy.’ He paused. ‘Getting forgetful,’ he added, meaningfully.

‘Am I?’ Tash frowned. She didn’t recognise the picture he was painting. She’d always been efficient, organised, focused.

Adrian smiled. ‘Why don’t you have an early night? I’ll bring you up a cup of tea. Pretty Woman is on later, we could watch it in bed?’

It seemed easier, the less exhausting thing, to agree.