Read Online The Scent of His Woman by Maggie Pritchard - Free Book Online Page B

ruthless reputation was
well known. So Geth was there already she thought, wondering if he was watching, if he’d
seen her playing her part in opposing him.
Just at that moment she heard a commotion at the gates, Rowan was back and she
could hear his voice raised in anger. It took her a minute to realise that whatever he was
saying, it involved her, somewhere in the tirade he was issuing she could make out her
name and the others around her were starting to make the link too. Pushing through the
crowd Lexie made her way to the front, her heart in her mouth, please don’t let him have
found me out she prayed, but how could he know, it just wasn’t possible? As she reached
the front of the crowd the ranting Rowan was waving a newspaper in the air, almost
incoherent with rage and as he caught sight of Lexie, she knew with certainty that he did
know and somehow it had to do with the rag in his hand.
‘There she is’, he screamed, ‘there is the traitor, the one who sold out to the
capitalists, it must have been worth it because here she is still spying on our work so she
can sell us out a second time.’
Geth must have spoken to the papers, she thought, but why it made no sense. She
tried to take hold of the paper Rowan was waving in front of her face as he shouted, but he
whipped it away handing it to the others, who passed it around and as they did so the level
of anger escalated frighteningly. Lexie, struggling to make sense of it all, was aware of
being pushed and shoved around, of Rowan and others accusing her, of camera flashes
exploding all around. The world seemed to take on a new and frightening reality in which
she was the focus for all this anger, all this contempt.
Then Geth was there, pushing through the crowd of angry faces, a couple of big
men each side of him also pushing back the protestors. Lexie didn’t for one moment
question why he had come for her, all she knew was that he was here and she felt safe.
Within seconds, he and his men had extricated her from the crowd and they were headed
back through the now open site gates. Lexie vaguely heard the sound of the gates
crashing shut and before she knew it she was bundled into one of the temporary site
offices.
All at once the noise stopped, she was seated on a hard backed chair in someone’s
untidy office and the clamour had stopped. Slowly she regained her senses, there were a
number of men in the room too, Geth was one of them and he was asking her something,
but she couldn’t make sense of it to answer.
‘Lexie, cariad, speak to me, are you alright? Did they hurt you?’
Looking up he barked at the others, ‘ok boys good work now get out and give her
some air, will you? Alun we need an ambulance.’
At the word ambulance Lexie woke up to what was going on around her and found
her voice.
    No, please no I’m alright there is no need...’
All of a sudden he was back at her side, all concern.
‘It’s alright cariad, you’re safe now, what happened back there?’ ‘
I don’t know,’
Her voice was shaky still as she tried to make sense of it all.
‘The newspaper, there was something in the paper, did you speak to the papers?’
He didn’t answer, turning to the man he’d called Alun who still stood by the door.
‘Can we get the papers for today?’
The man didn’t answer, just turned on his heel to obey. Geth moved to the corner of
    the room and flicked the switch on an electric kettle, soon he pressing a cup of something
warm into her hands.
‘Drink this it will help.’
He was still hunkered down beside her, encouraging her to drink the awful
concoction when Alun returned, a paper in his hand and a grim look on his face. Passing it
to his boss he then beat a tactful retreat, best not be around when the boss saw what was
on the front page of the paper, he thought.
Geth looked at the article together with its damning photograph and cursed himself
for a fool. How many times had he been caught like this, he ought