Chapter 37

Pulling up outside number five Magnolia Gardens, Stella stilled the engine of her car and sat for a moment, bracing herself for the unabridged version of the story her mum had quickly given her on the phone. She felt a pinch of sympathy for her mum; her day out with Rhys that she'd been so looking forward to had been scuppered. He'd surprised Alice with tickets to go around Danskelfe Castle and its grounds over on the moors, and had booked a table in the restaurant of the legendary Sunne Inne at nearby Lytell Stangdale. She'd been bubbling with excitement about it ever since.

‘Oh, lovey, come in.' Alice gathered her daughter into a tight hug as soon as Stella stepped into the hallway.

‘Hi, Mum, you okay?' A hug from her mother always felt good, whatever the circumstances.

‘I'm fine, it's you I'm worried about.' Alice released her daughter from her embrace, her hands slipping to her shoulders while she scrutinised Stella's face.

‘Oh don't worry about me, I'm fine,' Stella said, her light tone belying how she was really feeling; the cocktail of emotions still pulsing around her body had her senses on high alert.

Her mum's smile told her she wasn't convinced. ‘Come on through, Rhys has just made a pot of tea.'

She followed her mum to the kitchen where Rhys was pouring tea into a mug. He looked up, his face breaking into a smile. ‘Stella, my love, how are you?'

‘I'm okay, thanks, Rhys.' She hooked her bag over the back of a chair at the table and sat down, her mother sitting opposite. ‘I'm sorry your plans have been spoilt.' It dawned on her she rather liked being in his company.

‘It's fine, we can do it another day.' He smiled again, an air of calm and kindness about him, so very different from the assured arrogance of Johan de Groote. ‘There you go, get that down you.' He set a mug on the table in front of her, patting her shoulder. ‘Things always look better after a cup of tea.'

Stella looked up at him and pressed her lips into a smile. ‘Thanks, Rhys.'

‘Right then,' said her mum, as Rhys took a seat beside her, ‘tell us what happened.'

Alice and Rhys listened quietly as Stella shared the details of how she'd been blanked by her father at the Jolly, right up to him reluctantly leaving her apartment. Even to her ears, it sounded like something from a soap opera.

‘The man's got no shame,' said Alice, her face flushing red with outrage. ‘He clearly hasn't changed, I'm just really angry he had the audacity to turn up at your home and speak to you like that, especially after what had gone on here.'

‘Don't worry about it, Mum, you'd warned me about him plenty, it wasn't as if I wasn't prepared. And at least he left.' Stella gave a reassuring smile. ‘So how come he ended up here?'

Alice and Rhys exchanged loaded looks.

Her mum inhaled deeply before she spoke. ‘I've no idea how he got my address, but you can imagine my surprise when I found him snooping around the back garden.'

‘He was snooping around your garden?' Stella said in disbelief.

‘Oh, yes, having a right good nosy, he was, had a great big holdall with him.' Alice gave an incredulous laugh. ‘Mind, he didn't half get a shock when he spotted me watching him, laughed it off in that annoying way he has when I confronted him about it.'

‘I was out at the time,' Rhys added.

‘So what did he have to say for himself,' Stella asked.

‘Well, after he'd made some weak excuse about having knocked at the door but couldn't get a reply so had headed round to the back – which was clearly a load of rubbish – he then launched into telling me how it had been a wonderful "surprise" to find I was living in Micklewick Bay; the place he just so happened to be visiting.' Her tone was laced with sarcasm.

Alice went on to explain how he'd managed to wangle his way into the kitchen where he'd wasted no time in utilising his well-worn smarmy techniques, telling her she was still beautiful, how a day hadn't passed when she hadn't been in his thoughts. ‘Did he really think I was going to fall for that?' she said. He'd then launched into an over-sentimental speech, talking of their days together when they were "young and carefree and in love". ‘He seemed to have conveniently forgotten that he'd walked out on me when I'd told him I was pregnant, leaving me penniless.'

Rhys placed his hand over hers, squeezing it gently, the gesture sending a wave of warmth through Stella.

Alice then described how his attention had quickly turned to her home, commenting on how much room she had, wondering as to the value of the property, saying how she'd made a success of her life. From what he'd been spouting about her financial situation, he'd clearly done his research on her cleaning company. ‘Didn't take long for him to sneak in with the suggestion that he move in for a while, giving me the same spiel he gave you about his health diagnosis, how he couldn't afford his medication.'

‘Wow,' Stella said, eyebrows raised, wondering at the nerve of the man.

‘Told me it'd be just like old days, us living together. Like that was ever going to tempt me,' Alice said, rolling her eyes. ‘And then, the next thing I knew he'd grabbed hold of me and was telling me he still loved me, even tried to kiss me, can you believe? "For old times' sake." Saying one kiss was all it would take to make me fall in love with him all over again. Cheek of the man! He's deluded!'

‘He did what?' The colour drained from Stella's face. ‘There's absolutely no excuse for that kind of behaviour.'

‘Oh, don't worry, lovey, he got a stiff knee to the testicles for his trouble.' Alice said, reminding her daughter just what a tough cookie she really was. ‘One kiss indeed.'

‘And that's when I returned,' Rhys said.

‘And thank goodness you did.' Alice looked at him, rubbing her hand over his arm.

It transpired that the couple had asked Johan to leave but he'd turned hostile, demanding money before he left. When they'd refused to give him anything, he'd threatened to sue Alice for denying him contact with his daughter, his argument being that she'd moved away, leaving no forwarding address and no way for him to contact her. ‘Stood there, bold as brass, shouting the odds. Unbelievable,' Alice said. ‘But Rhys was amazing.' She turned to him again, affection shining in her eyes. ‘Told him he'd get nothing from us and frogmarched him out of the house.'

‘Go, Rhys!' Stella said, her admiration for the man who'd captured her mother's heart growing by the minute.

‘So,' Alice sat back in her seat, ‘he'd already tried his luck here before he landed at your place. It was Rhys who said we should warn you, it hadn't even crossed my mind that he'd end up on your doorstep.'

‘Yeah, thanks for that, Rhys. It definitely put the wind up him when my mum rang.'

‘Happy to help,' he said. ‘I'm just sorry things have turned out the way they have for you.'

‘Don't be, it's no more than I expected.' And it was true.

‘I don't know about you, but I reckon this calls for another cup of tea before you tell us what Pim had to say.' Alice pushed herself up and headed over to the kettle.

‘Best make it extra strong, Mum.'

What Johan de Groote had done in his short time in Micklewick Bay was bad, but what Stella was about to share was a whole lot worse. His misdemeanours weren't going to improve his already tarnished reputation.