Kimberley Chambers 3-Book Collection: The Schemer, The Trap, Payback. Kimberley Chambers
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Название: Kimberley Chambers 3-Book Collection: The Schemer, The Trap, Payback
Автор: Kimberley Chambers
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Современная зарубежная литература
isbn: 9780008141349
isbn:
Stephanie stared into Barry’s soft brown doleful eyes and, for the first time since she had got with Wayne, she saw what she had seen all those years ago. A handsome, kind, honest person, who would one day make a wonderful husband and father to some lucky girl.
Aware of the nostalgic way that Stephanie was looking at him, Barry debated whether to go in for the kill, but quickly decided against it. He knew Steph was warming to him, but she hadn’t completely fallen hook, line and sinker for him yet and he didn’t want to jeopardize the outcome of his plan. He stood up. ‘Right, I’ll put on the Eighties music while you pour us some more drinks. Tonight, Miss Crouch, you will forget all your troubles, because me and you are gonna party, girl.’
And party Stephanie and Barry most certainly did. Over the next few hours, they sang along to all the songs that reminded them of their teenage years, drank two bottles of Wayne’s expensive champagne after they had polished off the cider and lager, reminisced about old times and even got up and danced to a Duran Duran record for a giggle.
Stephanie knew that she was very drunk, but for the first time in weeks the smile on her face was genuine. Tomorrow, she would probably wake up and have the weight of the world on her shoulders once again, but tonight she was having a blast and that was all down to Barry Franklin. In her heart of hearts, Steph was sure that Wayne wasn’t ever coming back home again. What had happened to him would play on her mind forever, but one day she would have to move on with her life, whether she learned the truth or not. When Barry began singing along to ‘The Love Cats’ by The Cure, Stephanie laid her head on his shoulder. It had been years since she and Wayne had spent a night laughing, drinking, singing and chatting intimately like she and Barry just had, and it made Steph wonder if her relationship with Wayne had been as good as she thought it had.
Barry tilted Stephanie’s chin towards him. ‘What’s up? What you thinking about?’
Not wanting to slag off her relationship with her missing fiancé, Steph shrugged her shoulders. ‘I’m just thinking about how much I’ve enjoyed myself tonight. Do you have nights like this with your girlfriend, Barry? What’s Jolene like? Tell me more about her.’
‘Jolene’s only a baby and she wouldn’t be interested in the music we listen to or the subjects we talk about. She’s a lovely girl, but I wouldn’t say I have as much in common with her as I do with you.’
‘So, why are you with her then? Why don’t you go out with someone older who you have more in common with, like me?’
Treating Stephanie to his killer, intense stare, Barry smiled. ‘Do you want the truth?’
Steph could feel her heart beating at double its usual speed. ‘Yeah I do.’
‘The reason I don’t go out with someone older who I have more in common with, like you, is because there is only one you, Steph.’
About to ask Barry exactly what he meant, Stephanie stopped herself from doing so. Barry’s penetrating gaze told her all she needed to know. Over the course of the evening, Stephanie had drunk an enormous amount of alcohol so whether it was that, or the thought of spending the rest of her life alone that was affecting her judgement, she really didn’t know. What she did know was that, as she locked lips with Barry for the first time in years, it not only felt good, it also felt so bloody right.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Stephanie felt mortified when she woke up the following morning. Her last memory of the previous night was of her asking Barry to go to bed with her, and then bursting into tears when he said no. Gingerly sitting up, Stephanie put her aching head in her hands. She was fully clothed, thank God, but she could recall the heavy petting session with Barry getting rather heated at one point. Stephanie stared at the photo of her and Wayne on the bedside cabinet. It had been taken on her twenty-first birthday at the party Wayne had organized for her as a surprise. Feeling incredibly guilty and absolutely disgusted with herself, Steph felt the watery bile reach the back of her throat. She dashed to the toilet, and moments later was violently sick.
Barry Franklin was inside Dagenham East Police Station. He had received a phone call from his mother at seven a.m. this morning to inform him that she and Marge were getting charged with being drunk and disorderly and affray. With it being a Sunday, Barry had told his mother to use the duty solicitor, and then he had driven straight to the nick. Steph had still been in bed when all this had happened, so Barry had left her a note telling her he would call her later this afternoon. Last night was a bit of a blur for Barry as well. They had sat up boozing until four a.m., and even though Barry had been tempted to go to bed with Stephanie and shag her brains out, he knew he’d done the right thing by saying no. Taking advantage of Stephanie while she was drunk wasn’t part of his plan. He needed to reel her in more first, and it was a tad too early for him to make his move just yet. As his mother and Marge walked towards him looking rather bedraggled, Barry stood up. ‘Was the solicitor OK? What did he say?’
‘He just advised us to say no comment. He reckons we’ll get a hefty fine, but that’s all. No thanks to you running off and leaving us in the lurch, may I add,’ Marlene said, obnoxiously.
Barry led them around the corner to where he had parked the car. ‘Look, don’t be worrying about your fines, ’cause I’ll pay ’em for both of you. As for me leaving the restaurant, I can’t afford to be getting meself nicked over ’ere. Say it had turned really nasty and I’d got nicked for GBH or something? I can’t be having my passport taken away from me. I need to get back home to Spain soon.’
‘I can’t understand why you’re still hanging around in England? I thought you’d have gone back to Spain like a shot to get your grubby little maulers on my bloody bar. It’s that slag, Stephanie, that’s keeping you ’ere, ain’t it? You poking her, or what?’ Marlene asked crudely.
‘No, Mother. I’m not “poking her”, as you so daintily put it. I’m still over here because I have a few loose ends to tie up. Once that’s done, I’ll be heading back to Spain immediately.’
‘What loose ends you got to tie up, then?’
‘Nothing for you to worry your pretty little head about. Now, do you want me to drop you back at Marge’s gaff or somewhere else? You didn’t lose that dosh I gave you last night, did ya?’
‘The money’s still in my bag, I checked, and yeah, take us to Marge’s. I was saying to Marge while we were stuck in those pissy-smelling cells last night, that me and her could really do with a nice holiday abroad somewhere. Really cheer us up, that would.’
‘Don’t you dare blackmail him,’ Marge hissed in her friend’s ear. She had been appalled last night when Marlene had said she was going to. In Marge’s eyes, blackmailing your own flesh and blood was as below the belt as anything.
Barry sighed. He knew his mother was on his earhole for more money, and because he still felt guilty about nearly strangling her years ago, decided to be generous once again. ‘I’ll tell you what I’ll do for you. Meet me in Romford outside the Royal Bank of Scotland at midday tomorrow, and I’ll take you to a travel agent and book you an all-inclusive somewhere nice. I’ll pay for you and Marge and I’ll give you a bit of spending money. But, only on one condition.’
‘What?’ Marlene asked, sulkily.
‘If I treat СКАЧАТЬ