Tied Up With Love: A feel-good, romantic comedy to make you smile. Holly Martin

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СКАЧАТЬ is lovely.’

      ‘You won’t be saying that in a minute.’

      ‘I won’t have you spreading vicious rumours about him. This isn’t like you, you hate gossip. And this sort of thing could really damage someone’s reputation. He is not a rapist.’

      ‘Honey, I’m not partaking in idle gossip here, this is fact. I was worried after I left you in the pub yesterday, so I did a little research. Joseph Chase, aka Gizmo, went to prison for having sex with a minor or statutory rape. The proof is here.’

      Bex had obviously handed Izzy something to read because there was a rustle of paper and Izzy went very quiet.

      ‘I don’t care what this says,’ Izzy said. ‘He was obviously wrongly imprisoned. I know he is innocent in this. You spend five minutes in the company of this man and you’d know it too.’

      Ethan frowned. Why was she defending him? Everyone looked at the size and strength of Gizmo and decided straight away that he must have done it. No one knew him like his family did, no one believed him to be innocent.

      ‘Look maybe he is, maybe he isn’t. Just be careful. You’re up here in the middle of nowhere, with a convicted rapist – ’

      ‘He didn’t rape anyone Bex.’ Izzy’s voice had risen, her patience had clearly snapped. ‘And I’ve got work to do, so I’d like you to go.’

      ‘Iz –’

      Ethan walked out into the office and saw Izzy jump with surprise. He looked at her, her eyes were suddenly fearful.

      ‘I didn’t know you were here.’

      ‘Evidently.’ His eyes slid to Bex who quickly closed her mouth. She recovered herself.

      ‘Ethan Chase, I presume, I’m Rebecca Dale – ‘

      He ignored her outstretched hand. ‘I don’t care. If you’re quite finished slagging off my brother, you can leave.’

      She looked startled at this but after a moment she moved to the door. ‘Iz I’ll call you later.’

      Izzy nodded and Bex left.

      Ethan turned back to face Izzy.

      ‘I’m sorry…I didn’t –’ she started.

      ‘What are you sorry for? For defending my brother? No one has ever done that before.’

      She looked down, still clearly embarrassed. ‘I like Gizmo.’

      ‘He’s very likeable. However you should know that technically your friend is right.’

      Izzy’s mouth fell open. He sat down opposite her with a sigh.

      ‘Gizmo did sleep with a minor. He was sixteen, she was fifteen. There’s only four months between them. They grew up together, were best friends, they had been going out since they were thirteen. If anything she seduced him, he was always too innocent in that side of things. Anyway, they had sex, her father found out and had him arrested. It didn’t matter that she consented, that she stood up in a court of law and said that she loved Gizmo. She was not considered to be legally mature enough to be able to consent. It was a total sham, but the judge sided with her father, made Giz out to be some sexual predator and he went to prison. We only found out later that the judge was a very good friend of her father’s.’

      ‘That’s horrible.’

      ‘It was. Gizmo stood in the dock and cried. It was heart-breaking, for all of us. I felt so bad that he was my little brother and there was nothing I could do to protect him. Initially, when the police came to arrest him I fought with them to stop them taking him. Something else your friend will probably tell you. At that stage I don’t think any of us thought he would actually go to prison over it. But he did. The press were heavily involved and even they were on our side. In the end it went to appeal and we got the conviction overturned, his record wiped clean. But that doesn’t erase the eight weeks he spent behind bars, or people’s opinion of him. Regardless that he was eventually found innocent, there will always be people that look at him like he’s some kind of paedophile.’

      ‘What happened to the girl?’

      He smiled. ‘Gizmo married her. They’re expecting their second child in a few months. Needless to say, relations between him and his father-in-law have always been a bit strained.’

      ‘But surely people must see that he is innocent when the girl he is accused of raping married him.’

      ‘You would think wouldn’t you, but people don’t remember the victim, just the culprit. It’s a lot easier to believe that someone is guilty than it is to believe they are innocent.’ He looked at her with approval. ‘Well for most people it is.’

      ‘You should have told Bex all this.’

      ‘It was none of her business.’

      ‘It’s none of mine.’

      ‘It is when you’re defending him so vehemently.’

      She looked down and that awkwardness between them returned. He stood up. ‘I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Gizmo you know, he gets all funny about it.’

      She nodded.

      ‘Then I’ll let you get back to work.’

      *

      Ethan watched Izzy run round the side of her house towards the van, dressed now in suitable kidnap attire. She was wearing black combat pants, black walking boots and a tight black hoodie. She looked like a ninja and an incredibly sexy one at that. Even more annoying was that, apart from Gizmo, everyone else in the van was openly staring at her too. Jim looked like he wanted to devour her. Ethan leaned forward in his seat, snagging Jim’s attention away from her.

      ‘You look at her like that again and I’ll gouge your eyes out. Do you understand?’

      Jim stared at him for a second, clearly wondering if Ethan was serious. Whatever Jim saw made him get up and move to the furthest point away from Ethan, leaving the chair opposite him empty.

      The van door slid open and Izzy, beaming like the Cheshire Cat, climbed in, clearly unaware that both Jim and Kyle were now too scared to even look at her.

      What the hell was wrong with him? Jim and Kyle had always openly admired his women and it had never bothered him before. He didn’t want anyone looking at her like that. He didn’t want to look at her like that himself but he was damned sure no one else would ever look at her like she was a piece of meat, least not while he was around.

      She looked up at him and the smile fell from her face. He couldn’t take his eyes of hers and she didn’t look away either. Gizmo took off and she lurched forward in her seat. He caught her, his hands on her arms to steady her, as he pushed her back gently into her seat.

      ‘Put your seatbelt on,’ he growled.

      She nodded, suddenly compliant as she fumbled around with the clip.

      ‘When we do the collection, I want you over there out the way. СКАЧАТЬ