“I’m asking her to marry me,” Colin found himself saying, simply for the sake of giving his mother a happy thought instead of leaving her with images of possible murder and despair.
There was silence again and then, “Okay,” and this time he heard tears in her voice.
“Don’t tell her that either.”
A sharp gasp then, “I wouldn’t dream of…”
“Put Rick on the phone.”
“Colin?”
“Yes?”
“I’m so proud of you, my darling. You’re a good man.”
He’d heard that before recently from Sibyl and he feared his carefully cultivated reputation as a ruthless bastard was soon to be in tatters.
She gave the phone to Rick and Colin related the current situation and gave him his instructions. Then Colin rang off, called Robert and ordered men to oust the reporters and watch the house.
Then the clock hands approaching noon, with an immense effort of will, he set all of his current situation aside and set about making back some of the money he was losing in this travesty.
At a quarter to four, Rick phoned and without preamble announced, “She’s having a barbeque.”
Colin couldn’t believe his ears. “What did you say?”
“I should have confiscated her mobile,” Rick muttered under his breath. “I thought she might need it in case of emergency. I should have –”
“Tell me what’s happening,” Colin demanded.
Rick didn’t delay. “Ten minutes ago, a minibus loaded with old people and kids drove up and unloaded. They all carried in a mass of grocery bags and even a charcoal grill and now they’re in your back garden preparing for a goddamned barbeque.”
“Is the team there?”
“Yes.”
Colin took in a steadying breath and ordered, “Just watch them.”
“Mr. Morgan, I know this’ll get me sacked but I got to tell you that your girlfriend is the most annoy…”
Colin felt Rick’s pain, acutely but he interrupted him before he said something Colin could not ignore. “I know.”
Then Colin again rang off from Rick and went back to work.
At ten to five, displaying an amazing swiftness he’d never have expected when a woman was shopping and had a great deal of money to spend, Mandy came back to his office.
She set a small, glossy, burgundy bag with expensively corded handles in the middle of his blotter and stood back with her hands clenched in front of her.
When he just stared at it, she jumped forward and grabbed the bag, upended it and then carefully, even reverently, placed a small, burgundy, velvet box in front of him. Then she resumed her position of hand clenching.
He opened the box. Then he stared at the ring.
And it was perfect.
He looked his secretary directly in the eyes. “Well done, Mandy. I knew you could do it.”
Mandy beamed.
And then Colin did something that he did not know and likely would never know (or even understand), assured his secretary’s employ for the next twenty years.