A Family Affair - First Born by Marilyn McPherson Read Free Book Online

and well dressed. It didn’t look like business.”
    “You’re not thinking...” Tom seemed surprised with their conversation. “I would never do what you’re thinking, you know.”
    “What was going on then?”
    “I can’t believe you are asking me this.”
    Ellen didn’t say anything, hoping he would continue explaining.
    “Well, it was going to be a surprise.” Tom took a deep breath and looked disappointed. “I can see from your expression that I’m going to have to tell you.”
    Ellen’s eyes dropped to the ground. It was hard to look at someone when accusing them of betraying you. “I’m sorry for asking,” she whispered.
    “Last week, I rang some contacts in order to meet Nikki Lucas – the singer. She is the lead singer of the Blue Roses . Remember, we heard that song while shopping last week. You said you liked it.”
    Ellen remembered of course but hadn’t thought Tom was paying attention to her comment.
    “Anyway, she agreed to meet me for drinks. I asked her to perform at our reception, Elle. Just her, not the band. I can assure you it was definitely not a date. I wanted her performance to be a surprise for you; something magical for our first dance as husband and wife. Nikki and I ordered drinks and because she was hungry, I ordered a shared entrée. She had to meet someone at eight, so we didn’t stay there long. I was talking about you most of the time, you know.”
    “Oh.”
    “You should have joined us if you were there. I can’t believe you don’t trust me?”
    Ellen felt the tears starting to form, as his accusatory tone echoed in her head. “I guess it just makes more sense,” she softly explained.
    “What does?”
    “You being with a famous singer. When I saw the two of you, it just looked right, you know.”
    Tom pulled Ellen’s hand towards the sofa, and they both sat down next to each other. “No, I don’t know that. I obviously need to show you exactly what you mean to me. It’s clear that you have no idea. I’ve spent years dating different women – some of them exactly like Nikki. None of them have ever meant to me what you meant from the very first moment I saw you. From that second, you understand, you changed something in me. I’m not going to throw away our relationship for another woman. It’s almost absurd that you are feeling insecure.” Tom shook his head. “If only you could see the situation from my perspective, you would understand. Forgive me, Ellen, for what happened with Chloe, and for not showing you what you mean to me. Let me make it up to you. You’ll never feel insecure again, I promise.”
    Tom shouldn’t be the one apologizing. Memories of waking up next to Kane were flashing in Ellen’s mind - awful, wrong images. She wasn’t ready to tell Tom about her night. How could she explain something that her mind and body were still denying?
    “You still seem upset, Ellen. Tell me how I can make this right.”
    Ellen sipped the soup that Tom had put into her hand. “I guess there are just a lot of different things on my mind. It all just built up on me.” Ellen took a deep breath and tried to explain. “I like to pretend that I’m okay, but maybe things are bothering me more than I realise.”
    “Like what?”
    “Like the wedding preparations, Chloe’s death, the kidnapping, and the fact that Ted still hasn’t been caught.” It was a small lie as none of those things were actually bothering Ellen anymore. However, her reasons were plausible enough to distract Tom from interrogating her further.
    “My poor, Elle. It’s fine for you to be still hurting over what happened last year. You don’t need to worry about telling me how you feel. You know, Hayden has some contacts in the police. I will ask him to find out about the investigation into Ted Blake’s whereabouts. I want to know why they haven’t caught him yet as well.”
     
     

Chapter 9
    Ted sat very still, his hands tightly clasped on the steering wheel in his parked car.