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'I'm fine where I am I've already had one hand-to-hand combat on that bench I can do without a repeat performance'

He laughed shortly 'Don't worry, I'll keephere while you stand, so please sit down!'

'Oh, well, if you say please,' Sian said, deliberately provocative, and took a seat at the far end of the bench

He eyed her sideways 'Are you always this irritating?'

'Always'

'I feel quite sorry for ain, but she kept her face averted, hoping he wouldn't notice 'Can we get on with this, please?'

He sat sideways, facing her, his ar the bench, but his hand didn't actually touch her, just lay nearby, his fingers tapping on the back of the ironwork

'When my mother died it left ain, partly for Magda's sake, because she was very jealous and clinging even then, and he was afraid of what it h, he decided she needed feirls to talk to, older woirls' school She hated boarding, but Dad insisted, although he missed her and he was alone even more While she ay at school, he visited Annette's hoht of Annette as another daughter, in sorew up, so that she could really be his daughter'

Sian looked incredulously at hi to tell me you proposed to her simply to please your father?'

He laughed 'Nothing that sio Annette was just a little girl then I didn't take him seriously, and I don't think he ot aged too any day, I suddenly felt lonely, the way Dad had been when ourhouse, and half the ti very hard and I was often too tired to go out in the evenings At weekends it wasn't so bad, but even if I did go out with a girl after work I caught , and they didn't like that much'

'I'

He watched her, his grey eyes gleah like that; your whole face lights up'

Sian stopped laughing and looked down, her throat dry 'Go on with your story'

'You wouldn't put any of this in your paper, would you?' he asked with a rueful note which meant that he didn't really believe she would

'No,' Sian said, and he sh her lowered lashes and ached with passion It hurt to love this much; she wished she had never stopped that day to pick up the runaway bride, she should have driven on and ignored her She wouldn't now feel this need and pain if she had