Little Rainbows by Helena Stone Read Free Book Online

never known those words had made it back to Heather, but he was glad they had. He could never have said them to her face back then, had been too much of a coward. Saying them now was easy though. He was glad she’d known how he felt about her. It was good to confirm now that she had been special to him, even if his actions had indicated otherwise.
    “You remember that?”
    He couldn’t disguise the wonder he felt. She still remembered those words, after all these years.
    A warm smile lit up Heather’s face.
    “Of course I remember. It’s one of the nicest things anyone’s ever said about me. It’s hard to imagine a bigger compliment than being the sort of person somebody hopes to marry.” The smile deepened. “Finding out you’d said those words did wonders for my self-esteem.”
    Jason was glad the conversation was interrupted by the arrival of their desserts. The fresh strawberry mousse looked tempting, and watching Heather dive in with obvious pleasure gave him an excuse for the happy feelings rushing through him.
    He hadn’t imagined it. Heather had been as interested in him when they were in Wexford as he’d been in her. While he regretted ignoring the attraction, he still felt it had been the right—the only—decision. He’d been so inexperienced then. All enthusiasm with nothing to back it up. Moira had been able to deal with that. She’d known what it was he needed, because she’d needed it too.
    Against his better judgment he asked. “Are you saying Moira and I made you curious enough to find out more when you met Darren?”
    Stupid .
    The shutters came down. The warm smile evaporated as if it had never been. Pain and anger were clearly visible in her eyes. She’d told him she didn’t want to talk about her husband. He understood why and had still opened his big mouth.
    “Heather, I’m sorry.” He picked up her hand and stroked his thumb over the soft flesh. “I had no right to ask that question and I don’t expect an answer.”
    The weak smile she shared went a small way to alleviating the guilt he felt.
    “Don’t apologize, Jason.”
    He watched with admiration as she shook her head and visibly forced the tears and the pain back.
    “Most, if not all, of the guests coming to your weekend know me only as part of Heather and Darren.”
    He watched her as she stared off into the distance, as if the real implication behind her words only now became clear to her.
    “If I’m going to be here then, and that is the plan, I’d better be prepared to talk about him. And about losing him.”
    Jason could have sworn he saw the exact moment she made up her mind to find the strength somewhere.
    “I’ll have to get used to talking about him.”
    A weight he hadn’t known he’d been carrying lifted from his chest when she smiled rather ruefully.
    “Do you mind if I use you as a guinea pig? If I get used to talking about Darren with you, it might make dealing with all those people who knew us as a couple, easier.”
    “Not at all, I’d be honored.”
    He looked at her, trying to figure out what her real feelings were. She might be pretending to make him feel better. It worried him that he couldn’t tell for sure.
    “Yes, Karl?”
    Jason looked up at his manager who had succeeded in approaching their table without being noticed, despite his size.
    “You asked me to warn you when Hector was ready to proceed, Jason. He’ll be starting in about fifteen minutes.”
    “Thank you, Karl. I’m not sure if… Never mind. You go back to what you were doing.” He saw the curiosity in Heather’s face and knew he had to explain. “I know I said we’d postpone the party planning until tomorrow, but I did want to show you one thing tonight, because I’m not sure we’ll have another opportunity.” He rushed on before Heather could ask questions. “Hector is my best Dom. He and his sub Amber are about to start a demonstration. They’ll be doing one or two during the weekend as well and I thought you