Page 60 of His Housekeeper's Twin Baby Confession
But he didn’t disappear.
She whirled around, dropping the sweatshirt again to cover her belly. ‘Excuse me?’
Massimo looked unrepentant. ‘I did knock. You didn’t hear me.’
That was very possible. Carrie felt exposed. And shabby. And then she noticed that Massimo was wearing faded jeans and a woollen sweater. He hardly ever dressed down.
‘Was there something you wanted?’
He looked at her and she felt the zing of his silent response. Her cheeks grew hot. Then he said, ‘Yes, I want to show you something, but it’s out of the city. It’s a drive. Will you come with me?’
Carrie automatically wanted to say no, but she felt as if she’d been running for a long time, and she just wanted to give in and let someone else take over.
‘Okay.’
Massimo looked shocked. ‘You’ll come?’
‘Yes.’
‘You might want to change into something warmer—it’s cold out.’
She’d heard snow being forecast on the radio earlier. ‘When do you want to go?’ she asked.
‘As soon as you’re ready.’
‘Give me fifteen minutes.’
He left, and Carrie slipped out of her casual clothes and picked out a pair of maternity jeans, which she paired with thick socks and an undershirt and a fleece top. She pulled her hair back, and then at the last moment a rogue part of her made her leave it down.
Because Massimo liked it down.
She made a face at herself. But she left it down.
She went downstairs to meet Massimo and took a sheepskin jacket out of the closet. She was effectively swaddled. No chance of anyone noticing the bump.
But Massimo had just seen it.
He appeared then, as if conjured from her thoughts. He pulled on a warm jacket too, and said, ‘Ready?’
She nodded and followed him out to his SUV. He was driving. He opened the passenger door and she got in. She watched him walk around the front and sighed a little at the way he moved with such effortless athletic grace.
They were silent as Massimo drove through the relatively quiet streets and then took one of London’s main arteries out of the city. Carrie saw signs for Surrey.
Massimo asked, ‘Aren’t you curious about where we’re going?’
No, because that would mean initiating conversation.
Carrie said, ‘I like surprises.’
‘Fair enough.’
The skies were even lower now, and that particular leaden colour that signalled snow. But Carrie wasn’t unduly worried. Even if it did snow, it most likely wouldn’t settle.
After about an hour, Massimo drove through a picturesque village and then slowed down on the other side as they drove alongside an old wall. After a few minutes he turned into a wide gateway. The iron gates opened automatically and he drove up a long and winding drive, surrounded by nothing as far as the eye could see except rolling hills and bare trees, lush fields even in winter.
Carrie sat up straight when a very imposing and frankly intimidatingly large house—no, surely a castle?—came into view ahead of them, between two long lines of manicured bushes.
‘Where are we?’
