Read Online Must Be Love by Cathy Woodman - Free Book Online Page A

me,’ Lucie says.
    ‘Have you been in to see the head?’ Alex asks.
    ‘When do you think I have the time, Alex? Oh, don’t look at me like that.’
    Astra doesn’t work, but she’s always given the impression she’s more of a go-out-a-lot than a stay-at-home mum, definitely more yummy than slummy. ‘Lucie, Seb, collect the rest of your toys together so we can get going.’
    ‘That wasn’t so bad, was it?’ Alex’s fingers tangle in my hair at the back of my neck as we watch Astra and Hugo drive away with Lucie and Seb strapped into the back of Hugo’s Mercedes, Seb clutching a teddy bear almost as big as he is.
    ‘How do you know?’ I accuse him lightly. ‘You weren’t here.’
    ‘It probably worked out for the best, getting to know the children without their interfering dad in the way.’ Alex falls silent for a moment. ‘You were nervous before – all those excuses – but you seem to have coped really well.’
    ‘Okay.’ I think it’s time to ’fess up. ‘I wasn’t sure about getting involved. I didn’t want to complicate things.’
    ‘And now?’
    I lean back against him.
    ‘I’ll give it a go – with the children – but I don’t think I can bring myself to have any relationship whatsoever with your parents. They just don’t like me,’ I say, my voice sounding small. ‘Your father called me a floozie.’
    ‘Oh, that’s just him,’ Alex says dismissively. ‘It’s his general term for anything vaguely female and blonde.’
    ‘Well, that’s made me feel a whole lot better,’ I say with sarcasm.
    ‘I didn’t think you’d worry about what other people thought of you, Maz.’ Alex’s hand follows the curve of my waist and settles on my hip. ‘I think you’re gorgeous,’ he whispers in my ear, the touch of his lips sending quivers of heat and desire flaring across my skin. I turn to face him, keeping him at bay with my palms pressed against his chest.
    ‘Alex, I’m being serious. Your parents. They hate me. Your father said I was dragged up on a council estate – apparently, you told him that. And then your mother called me a chav.’
    ‘No?’ Alex says. ‘Oh, I’m sure she didn’t mean it.’
    ‘That isn’t how it came across to me,’ I say stubbornly. ‘Alex, they made me feel very unwelcome.’
    ‘Maz, you aren’t going to let my parents come between us, are you?’ Alex’s mouth curves into a smile, which is both infuriating and endearing at the same time.
    ‘Hey, whose side are you on?’ I say, irritated with him for not believing me. ‘I know very well what I heard.’
    ‘All right, I apologise for my parents’ appalling behaviour,’ he says, drawing me closer, squeezing the breath out of me like a muscular python. ‘I’m really sorry they’ve upset you.’
    ‘So you do believe me?’ I say, still uncertain of Alex’s sincerity.
    ‘Course I do.’ Alex pauses. ‘Forgive me if it seemed otherwise.’ He raises one eyebrow and tilts his head. ‘Please …’
    I imagine falling out with him, never seeing him again, and my chest feels tight with anxiety. Then I give myself a mental kick up the backside because this situation is exactly what Alex’s parents are aiming for.
    ‘I forgive you,’ I say, knowing I’d actually forgive him pretty well anything, apart from infidelity and domestic violence. Oh, and wearing socks with sandals. I smile at the thought.
    ‘Thank you, Maz.’ Alex rests his forehead against mine. ‘You know, I’m a lucky man. There aren’t many women I know who’d take on someone like me, a divorced dad of two – well, let’s just say they aren’t the easiest of children – who’s always cutting dates short or abandoning them altogether to attend to sick horses. You don’t yell at me when I don’t turn up on time for dinner, or nag me for staying out all night.’
    ‘It works both ways,’ I point out. There are times when I’ve had to cancel at the last minute.
    ‘I know, but you’re different. You’re kind,