The Diamond Dad

CHAPTER TWO

'Faye, you shouldn't have been alone with this man. He's a monster.'

Faye smiled at Kendall Haines, the man she planned to marry as soon as she was free. 'Garth isn't a monster,' she protested. 'He just steamrollers over people.'

'All the more reason for you to stay away from him.'

It was the day after Faye's visit, and she and Kendall were spending the afternoon together at her home. It was as small and modest as Elm Ridge was rich and grand, but it was her very own and she loved it. The furniture was mostly second-hand, and it showed the wear and tear of two boisterous children. The house looked what it was, a place where a family lived, a real home.

Faye was dressed to fit in with the furniture, in a worn pair of jeans, topped off by a flowered shirt.

Kendall's voice became firm. 'You must promise never to do such a thing again. I can't bear to think that you're still legally his wife.'

'Not for much longer.'

Faye plumped up the cushions as she spoke so as not to let him see her face. There were things about her meeting with Garth she couldn't speak of. She was still shocked at the treacherous way her body had responded to him at the very moment she was rejecting him.

'Do you mean that he's actually agreed to a divorce?' Kendall demanded.

'Not exactly…'

Then he's still fighting you.'

'It doesn't matter,' Faye said with a conviction she was far from feeling. 'When we broke up he threatened to claim custody of the children if I insisted on a divorce, so I didn't. But after all this time, he hasn't any cards to play.'

'It's time I went to see him,' Kendall mused.

'Ken, no. Don't even think of it.'

'But you're not handling him very well, and perhaps some straight talking would do the trick.'

Kendall believed in straight talking. He was a vet and a minor celebrity in the ecological world. Occasionally he was invited onto television panels, where his forthright manner went down well.

'Straight talking is the worst thing with Garth,' Faye protested. 'He can talk back even straighten'

'You think I can't handle him?' he asked, raising his eyebrows in amusement.

She could understand his confidence. There was a massiveness about Kendall, both in his physique and his personality. He was six foot two, broad-shouldered, with copper hair that touched his collar, and a beard. He sometimes resembled a lion.

But if Kendall was a lion, Faye thought, Garth was a panther, ready to spring and demolish unwary prey.

'Ken, please, forget this idea,' she begged. 'It would only make things worse.'

His mouth tightened slightly in displeasure. Then he shrugged, good humour restored, and drew her close for a kiss. But they jumped apart almost at once as the front door banged and there came the sound of children's voices. Faye sat up hastily, straightening her hair just in time.

Two attractive children, both dressed in jeans and trainers, bounced into the room and greeted Kendall.

Cindy, almost eight, had the dark hair and intense eyes of her father. Nine-year-old Adrian had his mother's fairness, her fine features, and her sensitivity. He and Kendall grinned at each other. Cindy regarded her mother's friend with more reserve but still offered him a toffee, which he accepted at once for he had a very sweet tooth.

'Tea will be ready in ten minutes,' Faye said, hugging her. 'Go and have some sort of wash.'

Both children made ritual groaning noises, but headed for the door. Adrian turned back to Kendall. 'You will play football with me before you go, won't you?'

'Promise.'

Adrian vanished, satisfied.

'Do we have to jump apart like a pair of canoodling teenagers?' Kendall asked plaintively. 'The kids know about us. They even like me.'

'Adrian especially,' Faye agreed. 'But Cindy still adores Garth. That's why we have his picture over there. It's part of her make-believe that one day things will come right. I get so angry that he doesn't treasure her picture in the same way.'

'Don't let him get to you,' Kendall said with a shrug.

'You're right. He's the past.' She put her arms about him. 'Once I've got this divorce, everything will be fine for us.'

For three days Faye waited to hear from Garth, but there wasn't a word. Reluctantly she decided that she would have to contact him again, but just now she was snowed under with work.

She was settling down to it one afternoon when a sound outside drew her attention, and she was surprised to see a luxurious black car drawing up outside. The next moment Garth stepped out and headed purposefully towards the house.

Faye pulled open the door. 'I wasn't expecting you,' she said.

'I only decided this morning. May I come in?' The question was a formality, as he'd already taken her shoulders and moved her gently but firmly out of his way.

She concealed her annoyance at his high-handedness, thinking that perhaps he'd come about the divorce.

'You left this behind,' he said, handing her a parcel. Inside, she found the jacket that she had left behind in her hurry to escape from Elm Ridge. It startled her slightly to realize that she hadn't even thought about it.

'Thank you,' she said awkwardly. 'It was good of you to bring it yourself-'

'I wanted to talk to you. We can't leave things as they are. Are the kids here?'

'No, they're out with Kendall.'

'He's really taken over, hasn't he?'

'He's my future husband. Of course he's getting to know them. They like him a lot. Please, don't let's have a fight about him.'

'All right. I haven't come to fight. Do I get offered a cup of coffee?'

Reluctantly Faye went into the kitchen but she was very aware of him studying the house, the inside of which he'd never seen before. When he'd collected his children for a visit he'd waited outside, or even sent the car with only his chauffeur.

She came into the front room with the tray, to find him studying her computer and the papers strewn on the table.

'What's this?' he asked critically.

'It's my job.'

'You're still working?'

'Didn't your spies tell you? You drove me out of Kendall's job, but you couldn't stop me doing freelance work.' She was struck by a horrid thought and hastily shut down the file she was working on.

'Don't worry, I'm not going to twist anyone's arm to make them fire you,' he said with a wry smile.

'I wouldn't put it past you.'

'Forget it. That's not what I'm here for.'

'What are you here for?'

'Because I'm tired of waiting. It's over, Faye. All this living in limbo has gone on long enough. It's time to make final decisions.'

'That's what I was trying to tell you the other night.'

'But we got distracted, didn't we?' he reminded her with a wicked grin.

To her own annoyance Faye found herself blushing. 'That won't happen again. I've made my decision, and in future I think we should talk through lawyers.'

'Faye, if you've become as strong and independent as you claim, why don't you deal with your problems, instead of running away from them?'

'What do you mean by that?' she demanded angrily.

'If I'm a problem, deal with me. Here I am. Confront me. Make me back down.'

'You'd love me to try, so that you could make a show of strength, wouldn't you? You fight your way; I'll fight mine. I don't need to confront you to make you back down over this divorce. I think you should go now. Please tell your driver to- Where is he? Your car's gone.'

'I told him not to stay.'

'When is he coming back for you?' 'Tomorrow morning.'

'You don't think you're going to spend the night here?'

'And tomorrow night, and the night after. I'm moving in, Faye.'

'Over my dead body!' she said explosively.

'It's time I studied the influences my children are receiving.'

While she stared at him, speechless, he opened the front door and began carrying in his bags that were piled up just outside.

'No!' she cried. 'This is my home. I won't have you walking in here without a by-your-leave.'

'We need to be under the same roof for a while. If you don't want me here, come back to Elm Ridge.'

'That's out of the question!'

'Then it'll have to be here.'

'There's no room for you. We only have three bedrooms. One for Adrian, one for Cindy and one for me.'

'We can work something out.'

She was distracted by the sight of Kendall's car drawing up outside. The last thing she wanted was for the two men to meet now. Luckily Kendall was in a hurry. Having watched until the children reached the house, he waved and drove off.

Adrian came in first. 'Cindy's gone round the back,' he told Faye. 'She's got dirty shoes.' His eager look faded as he saw his father, and he edged closer to Faye.

Watching their faces, Faye followed both their reactions easily. She saw Garth wait for his son's whoop of delight, then grow tense when it didn't come. Adrian seemed uncertain. In Kendall he'd found a fellow- footballer, who sympathized with him as Garth never had. Yet he loved and admired his father, and she could see that he was torn between the two loyalties.

'Hello, Daddy,' he said at last. 'What are you-? I mean- Has something happened?'

'I've come to stay for a while,' Garth said, pretending not to notice his son's awkwardness.

'Oh. That's nice.'

'Is that all you've got to say to me, son?' Garth asked, with determined cheerfulness. 'Doesn't your old man get a hug?'

Adrian hugged him obediently. Faye came to the child's rescue. 'Go and change those dirty clothes,' she said with a smile.

He turned to her with relief. 'We had ever such a good time, Mummy. I found a frog.'

'Yuk! You didn't bring it home, I hope.'

'No, I wanted to, but Ken said it would be happier where it was.'

'Thank goodness one of you's got some sense. Off now.'

When the boy had gone Faye saw the condemnation in Garth's eyes. 'I thought he at least would be pleased to see me,' he said bitterly. 'Your boyfriend's done his best to distance my son from me, hasn't he?'

'No, you did that. Ken's simply given him all the attention you never did. He's taken trouble to know who Adrian really is.'

'Evidently I'm here not a moment too soon.'

'Garth, about your staying-'

She stopped at the sound of feet pattering in from the kitchen. Next moment her little daughter was standing in the doorway, a look of ecstasy dawning on her face. Cindy drew a deep, thrilled breath, shrieked, 'Daddy!' and hurled herself into his arms.

Garth reeled under the impact, then lifted her high off the ground so that she could hug him properly. Two strong young arms tightened around his neck so firmly that he was almost strangled, but he clung on to the one person who was pleased to see him.

'Daddy, Daddy, Daddy…' Cindy squealed in delight.

'Steady, pet,' he said in a choked voice. 'I can't breathe.' He set her down and knelt to meet her eyes. 'Let me look at you. It's been a long ti- That is-er- let me have a good look at you.' He was struggling for the right words. What did you say to a little girl whom you hardly knew? But she made it easy for him, bouncing up and down, hugging and kissing him.

'You came back,' she bubbled. 'You remembered my birthday. You did, you did, you did!'

With a shock Garth's eyes met Faye's. He hadn't remembered Cindy's birthday, and even now he couldn't recall the exact date.

'Mummy said not to be disappointed if you forgot,' Cindy said. 'But I knew you wouldn't.'

He had the grace to be conscience-stricken. 'Of course I didn't forget,' he improvised. Frantically his eyes meet Faye's, asking her help.

'Daddy knows it's your birthday on Saturday,' she said. 'In fact he came over to tell us that he'll be spending the whole day with us.'

Cindy squealed again with delight. Garth ground his teeth at the way Faye had backed him into a corner. Saturday was fully booked with important meetings. Faye's eyes were still on him, understanding everything, daring him to refuse.

He thought faster than he'd ever done in his life. 'That's right,' he said. 'We'll all be going out together. You, me, Mummy and Adrian.'

'Adrian's got a football match that afternoon,' Cindy said. 'Can we all go and watch it?'

'Of course we will,' Garth responded at once. 'Actually, I thought of inviting myself to stay with you for a while. Only if you want me, of course.' He was throwing the challenge back at Faye.

'Of course we want you,' Cindy declared, shocked. 'We do, don't we, Mummy? We want Daddy ever and ever so much.'

'Well, it's not quite that simple,' Garth said, as if giving the matter serious thought. 'You see, this house has only three bedrooms, so there isn't anywhere for me.'

'But it's easy,' Cindy said. 'I'll move in with Mummy and you can have my room.'

'Can I, darling? That's very nice of you.' He looked at Faye. 'You see? It's easy.'

Cindy danced off to find her brother, singing, 'Daddy's home! Daddy's home!' The other two regarded each other.

'I think you're the most unscrupulous man I've ever known,' Faye seethed. 'How dare you use a child's love in that cynical way?'

'But perhaps I'm not being cynical, Faye. You told me I should pay them more attention, especially Cindy. That's what I'm doing. Don't you think I've made her happy?'

'For your own ends, the way everything is for your own ends.'

'She's happy. Does it matter why?'

'It will matter, when you decide to change tactics and drop her. It's bad enough that you've neglected her until now, but when she finds that this sudden interest is only a way of using her, she'll stop trusting you. I don't want her to lose faith in the world so soon.'

'Would I do that to my own child?'

'You wouldn't even know you were doing it,' she said despairingly. 'But you mustn't do this. Go away, Garth. Leave us alone. We were happy without you-'

'Was Cindy?'

'All right, we weren't happy, but we survived.'

'And you don't think you could be happy with me around?'

'I don't think anyone could be happy with you around,' she said desperately. 'You don't bring happiness, or know how to create it. You only know things. Getting them, winning them, and buying them. Go back to that. You're good at it. But with people, you only destroy…'

Her voice choked off, and she turned sharply away.

'What is it?' Garth asked, coming after her.

'Nothing!'

'You're not crying, are you?'

'No, I'm not crying,' she insisted, quickly brushing her eyes. For a moment she'd been shaken by the thought of Garth here, ruining her hard-won peace. But she definitely wasn't crying.

'Here, let me look at you,' he said, turning her to face him. He pulled a clean handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed her eyes. 'There's no need to get upset about this.' His voice softened. 'I'm not really so bad, Faye.'

'Yes, you are,' she said huskily, almost hating him for that gentle note. She could cope with him angry, but gentleness recalled too many sweet memories that she had to block out to survive.

'Then teach me to be better. While I'm here you can show me how to get closer to the children, the way you've always said I should.'

'You're not going to stay here,' she insisted, desperately trying to hold her position against his clever tactics. 'The house is too small.'

'Then you know the answer. Move back to Elm Ridge, which is big enough for all of us.'

'Never. It's all over. You've got to accept that.'

'And suppose I don't choose to?' His voice was quiet, but the undertone of stubborn determination still throbbed through it.

'Doesn't anyone else get a say? What about how your family feels?'

'I think I'm doing the best thing for my family.'

She stood silent, wishing he would release her. His closeness, the feel of his hands on her arms, was recalling her reaction to his kiss only a few days ago. She'd thought herself safe until the devastating discovery that he could still play on her senses. Ten years ago, on their first date, he'd touched her carefully, as though fearing to break something precious. She could stand anything but that memory. If only he would let her go…

'Faye…' he said in an almost wondering tone.

'Garth, please…'

'Mummy, Mummy, I've done it.'

The shock made them break apart, staring at each other with startled eyes. Cindy erupted into the room.

'I've done it, Mummy. I've put my things into your room, and I've put everything tidy so that you won't have a mess to clear up. Honestly I have.' She grabbed Garth's hand. 'And I've taken one of your bags up to my room.'

'They're too heavy for you, pet.'

'It was just a little one. We could take the others up and I'll help you unpack. Let's do it now. Please.'

Faye met Garth's eyes, expecting to see in them a look of triumph. But instead there was something that might almost have been a plea. For a moment, father and daughter were almost comically alike, their faces both registering an urgent need to have their own way. Against her will, Faye's lips twitched.

'What's funny?' he asked quickly.

'Nothing that you'd understand,' she said with a smile.

'Mummy!' said Cindy insistently.

'All right. Help your father unpack.'

Cindy let out a yell of delight. 'Hooray, hooray, hooray! Daddy's home today! Hooray, hooray…' She repeated the couplet over and over, dancing a little jig of happiness, while Garth stared at her. It was the first time Faye could ever remember seeing him nonplussed.

Adrian appeared and came halfway down the stairs.

'Daddy's back, Daddy's back,' Cindy told him unnecessarily.

'Yes, I know-' Adrian looked awkward. 'Is it really true?'

'Just for a while,' Faye said quickly. 'None of us knows what's going to happen, but we'll try to make his visit nice.'

'Daddy,' Cindy called anxiously over the staircase.

'Coming,' Garth called, and went obediently up the stairs.

Faye had warned Garth that he was Cindy's idol but now, for the first time, he understood that this was the literal truth. Her joy at his arrival had confused him. He'd found himself instinctively clinging to the little girl as his only friend in hostile territory. Her adoration touched his heart and her relief that he'd returned for her birthday, as she thought, gave him a rare twinge of guilt.

It charmed him to discover that everything about her was emphatic. Neither her actions nor her feelings was moderate. Her enthusiasms filled the horizon, and whatever pleased her was the very best in the whole world. He knew how she felt, for he'd been the same as a child, and his adult single-mindedness had played a large part in his success.

Later that evening he sought her out where she was sitting on the steps of the French windows surveying the tiny garden, and sat down beside her. At that moment he had no other motive than to repay her love by being a good father.

'It's about time we planned your birthday present,' he suggested. 'Why don't you give me a list of what you want and I'll arrange everything?'

Cindy regarded her father in a way that Faye could have warned him meant she had a secret agenda. 'Anything?' she asked.

'Anything.'

'Anything at all?'

'Absolutely anything in the whole wide world,' Garth promised incautiously. 'Tell me what it is.'

'A dog.'

He felt almost ludicrously disappointed. A dog was too easy. It gave him no chance to show Faye that she was wrong about him.

'Of course. I'll get in touch with a good breeder tomorrow,' he said, 'and I'll bring you the best puppy there is.' Then he recalled Faye's accusation that he settled everything without reference to others and, with a feeling of conscious virtue, he amended, 'No, you'll want to choose it yourself. You get the puppy and-I mean, we'll go and pick one out together.' He was learning fast.

Cindy nodded vigorously, beaming. A growing understanding of his daughter made Garth add, 'I expect you already know where to go.'

'That's right. Spare Paws.'

'Pardon?'

'Spare Paws. It's a home for abandoned dogs. I pass it every day on my way to school.'

'Darling, what do you want an abandoned dog for? Do you think I can't afford to buy you one?'

Cindy frowned, not understanding his argument. 'Nobody wants them,' she explained. 'They keep hoping and hoping that someone will give them a home.'

Just as she didn't understand his language, so he didn't understand hers. 'I can get you a pedigree puppy,' he protested, 'with a good bloodline-'

'But Daddy, people always give homes to pedigree puppies. I want a dog that nobody else wants.'

Garth ran a hand through his hair. 'But you won't know anything about this animal,' he argued. 'It might be full of diseases or fleas-'

'No, Spare Paws always gets its dogs clean and healthy before it lets them go,' Cindy contradicted him gently but firmly.

'Do they also make sure the dogs are friendly? Suppose this creature is vicious? No, darling, it's too chancy. You can choose a puppy from a breeder-'

'I don't want to,' Cindy said, sticking her bottom lip out. 'I want a dog that nobody else wants, one who's old and ugly, and blind in one eye, with a leg missing, and-and lots and lots and lots of fleas. And if I can't have that I don't want one at all.' She got up and ran away before Garth could reply.

A choke of laughter from behind made him look up to find Faye regarding him. 'If you'll pardon the pun, you made a real dog's breakfast of that,' she told him.

'Thank you,' he said, chagrined.

'Cindy doesn't care about bloodlines. She wants a dog who needs her love.'

'Isn't that true of any dog?'

'Yes, but it's more true if they're abandoned. And that matters to her.'

'The whole idea is impractical. I'm sorry. She can have a dog, but not like this.'

'We'll see.'

'I'm not going to change my mind.'

Faye took a deep breath. 'Well, it doesn't matter whether you do or not, because you don't make the decisions in this house,' she said calmly.

He scowled but she met his eyes.

'You're trying to make me sound unreasonable when I'm just being sensible,' he argued. 'That's very unfair tactics.'

'Well, if we're going to talk about unfair tactics, what about you barging in here?' she said indignantly.

To her surprise his manner held a touch of sheepish- ness.

'I used any method that would work,' he admitted.

'Anything that would get your own way,' she said lightly.

He grinned, and for a moment there was a touch of the old, boyish charm. 'It's what I'm good at.'

'Not as good as your daughter. I can't think who she gets it from, but she could give you lessons. Go and do your arguing with Cindy. My money's on her.'