Read Online To Wear His Ring Again by Chantelle Shaw - Free Book Online Page A

Derbyshire.’
    Isobel bit her lip as she remembered the one and only occasion that Constantin had met her parents. They hadn’t attended the wedding because her father had been too unwell to travel to London. After she and Constantin had returned from their honeymoon, they had driven through the picturesque Peak District, before arriving at the far less attractive village of Eckerton, where rows of ugly terraced miners’ cottages stood in the shadow of the abandoned colliery.
    Her mother had been overawed by Constantin and kept up a stream of nervous chatter as she had served tea from her best china. Her father had been his usual, dour self and had barely uttered a word. Looking around the tiny sitting room, with its threadbare carpet and old furniture, Isobel had shuddered to imagine what Constantin had made of her childhood home and her unwelcoming father. The visit had emphasised the huge social divide between her and the enigmatic Italian aristocrat she had married.
    â€˜They never speak of Simon. He died in an accident when he was fourteen and my father wouldn’t allow my mother or me to mention his name, or even have photos of him on the wall. I suppose it was Dad’s way of dealing with the tragedy of losing his son. You dealt with the loss of our baby in the same way, by refusing to talk about Arianna.’ Her voice was husky with emotions that she was struggling to suppress.
    A nerve flickered in Constantin’s jaw, but he ignored her jibe. ‘What happened to your brother?’
    â€˜It was a scorching hot summer’s day and Simon and a group of his friends decided to swim in the reservoir near to where we lived. Actually, it was Ryan who suggested it and he has never forgiven himself. My brother was a daredevil, and while some of the boys went into the water and stayed close to the bank, Simon swam out of his depth. It’s thought that he had an attack of cramp. Ryan said that he was fine one minute but then he suddenly started shouting for help. By the time Ryan had swum out to him, Simon had disappeared below the surface. Somehow Ryan managed to grab hold of him and drag him back to the shore. He tried to resuscitate him, but he was unable to save him...and Simon died.’
    It was difficult to talk past the lump in her throat. ‘Afterwards, Ryan became severely depressed. He felt guilty that Simon had swum in the reservoir. But what happened wasn’t Ryan’s fault. Simon always pushed the boundaries, and it was typical of him to have swum out of his depth. I didn’t blame Ryan. He and my brother were best friends and Simon’s death forged a bond between us that will always remain. But friendship is
all
there is between me and Ryan. He is in love with his girlfriend and he and Emily are planning to get married.’
    â€˜If that’s true, why didn’t the pair of you scotch the rumours of an affair?’
    She shrugged. ‘We told the truth when we said that we are good friends. The press decided that there must be more to our relationship, and we didn’t deny the rumours because, while attention was on us, it allowed Ryan’s girlfriend to escape the media’s interest.’ Isobel hesitated. ‘I guess it is okay to tell you, as Ryan is going to make a public announcement in the next day or so. Emily’s father is a well-known politician and a member of the government. If it had become known that Ryan was dating her, they would have been constantly followed by the paparazzi.’
    â€˜So, being a loyal friend, you allowed the speculation about your relationship with Fellows to continue,’ Constantin said grimly. ‘You did not care if I heard the rumours that my wife was involved with another man. Didn’t you think you owed
me,
your husband, your loyalty?’
    â€˜Not when hardly a week went by without a picture of you with a different beautiful woman in the newspapers. How dare you accuse me of disloyalty