been a memorable weekend, one she knew she would never forget, no matter what happened with him. She had heard what he had said about falling in love with her, but she didn’t want to address it yet. She knew he wasn’t serious after knowing her for two weeks. But he brought it up again himself when he dropped her off at her house.
“I meant what I said,” he said gently. “Coco, I’m falling in love with you.”
“Let’s take it slow for a while,” she said, smiling. He didn’t know about the affair with Ed, but it had only ended three months before, and she didn’t want to rush into anything. She wanted time to get to know Nigel, not just at parties, but with time alone. If it was real, it would unfold. And if it wasn’t, she didn’t want to get hurt again, or to hurt him. There was a vulnerable side to him too, beyond the good manners, good looks, and good breeding. She knew by then that he’d had a lonely upbringing, at boarding school since he was seven, with cold parents who had died when he was young, and the older brother who treated him like a nonentity as soon as he’d inherited the title and what was left of the family fortune. Nigel had had almost no love in his life and she didn’t want to tell him she loved him until she was sure she did, or to mislead him, or rush into it before she was sure of how she felt herself.
“Please don’t be so sensible,” he said longingly, as he kissed her outside her front door. “I’m in love with you. Let’s seize the moment.” He was almost begging her, and it touched her profoundly.
“I don’t want to rush into anything until we’re sure.”
“You’re too young to be that reasonable,” he complained. “What happened to the impetuousness of youth? You must be lying about your age.” She laughed. It was hard to resist him, but she forced herself to. He carried her bags inside for her, and took them upstairs. They sat on the couch in the small library, and had a glass of wine, and kissed in front of the fire he had made, and then reluctantly he left her, and texted her right away. “Call me at any hour, if you need anything. I do house calls, especially at night.” She laughed and answered him, thanking him again for the best weekend imaginable.
“How was it?” Leslie asked her the next day at work.
“Absolutely fabulous. Magical. I had the best weekend of my life.”
“Nigel is good at that. And the castle is incredible, isn’t it?”
“Everything was perfect.” Coco glowed.
“Nigel must be head over heels in love with you by now.” She smiled knowingly at Coco.
“So he says.”
“He probably means it. He’s always very upbeat, but I think underneath that, he’s a very lonely guy. He says he wants to get married and have babies. I think he probably does.”
“I’m too young for that,” Coco said, “and he wants to move too fast.”
“If you make him wait, he’ll love you forever. That always works with men,” Leslie said wisely and went back to her office. But Coco wasn’t trying to play him or inflame him. It really was too soon for her.
Two dozen red roses in a vase from a fashionable florist were waiting for her on her doorstep that night when she got home. She knew he was in late meetings, but he called her at ten o’clock when he got out, and wanted to drop by.
“Can I trust you?” she asked, and he laughed.
“No, but I’ll try to behave. I’ve had fifteen years of slutty women I never cared about. Now I’m in love, and I actually found one with decent morals. What miserable luck.” But it was also why he was falling in love with her, because he couldn’t have her easily, and she was falling in love with him too. She wanted to savor it. No one had ever been as loving in his attentions to her. She wanted to know his flaws as well as his virtues, and give it a little time.
He was there half an hour later and they chatted about their respective days at work. His roses were almost bigger than her dining table, and looked beautiful. She thanked him. She had sent flowers to their hosts for the weekend.
They kissed and cuddled and he left at midnight. They had dinner