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  “I cannot believe I never came here when the boys were little,” she said. “They would have loved it, building sandcastles, and surfing in the water,” she said, as she watched a bunch of kids messing around on surfboards.

  “Yes, it is a kid’s heaven here. I used to come and surf with my friends.” She laughed.

  “Why are you laughing?” he asked.

  “I can’t imagine you surfing,” she said, still giggling. He spun her around, and crushed his lips on hers. She groaned and flung her arms around his neck, her trainers hitting his back with a thud.

  “Come on,” he said, grabbing her hand again and pulling her towards the sand dunes.

  “Hey, where are we going?” she asked.

  “Somewhere more private,” he said, and they clambered up the sandbank. He walked her into the dunes and finding a quiet spot, he pulled her into the sand.

  “Alex,” she said, and her heart thumped as he gazed at her.

  “It is okay I am not going to ravish you here, I want to kiss you,” he promised.

  “Well, that’s fine then,” she said, with a grin, and his lips were on hers, sweet passionate and full of love. Jane’s heartbeat rose, her body tingling at his touch as he slipped a hand inside her t-shirt and caressed her breast.

  “Alex,” she moaned, as he kissed her neck, and inhaled her skin. At the sound of kids, laughing and a beach ball landing in front of them, Alex pulled back from her and tucked his hands behind his head.

  “Afternoon,” he said, as the kids ran passed, followed by their parents.

  “Afternoon,” one of them cheered back. Jane leaned her head on his chest and Alex pulled his hand to her hair and stroked through it.

  “How do you fancy going out for dinner tonight?” he asked.

  “Okay, that would be nice, where too?” she asked.

  “Well, I was thinking more of a picnic than a restaurant.” She gazed up into his eyes.

  “That sounds wonderful,” she agreed.

  “Okay, give me a second,” he said, and he pulled his phone from his pocket and sent a text. His eyes glanced through the tons of messages from work that he had ignored on his phone, and he still had no wish to read them. A minute later, his phone bleeped and he checked the message, and smiled.

  “There all sorted, Maria is going to pack us a picnic.”

  “Great, where shall we have it?” she asked.

  “Well, I thought on the estate, I have not shown you all of it yet.”

  “Why, how much is there?” she asked.

  “Two hundred and seventy four acres,” he replied with a grin.

  “You’re kidding me?” she said, surprised.

  “No, there are acres of woodland beyond the formal gardens, and they run to a lake.” She had an idea and she glanced up him.

  “Do you have tent?” she asked. He shook his head.

  “No why?”

  “I thought we could camp out, have a fire, and toast marshmallows, but never mind, it was just a thought.” Alex looked at her, and he smiled, as that sounded fun.

  “Come on,” he said, lifting her off his chest.

  “Why, where are we going?” she asked.

  “To buy a tent,” he said.

  “Alex, you cannot buy a tent just for one night,” she said.

  “Yes I can, who says it is just for one night. We could use it whenever we want. Come on, we will nip into town, they have a huge camping shop in there.” He laughed at her surprised face. “It will be fun, besides I have to get a few magazines and a book for mum,” he said.

  They stopped by the hospital on their way home, and gave his mother a mounting of magazines and a couple of the latest books released that week. They told her they would see her Monday evening, as they were popping back to London to get Jane’s clothes in the morning.

  ***

  Alex threw the tent, the sleeping bag, and the picnic into the back of his old Landrover and climbed into the driving seat. Jane hopped in beside him, and he started the engine.

  “Alex, I am so excited, this feels like we are going on holiday,” she said, as he started down the drive.

  “I know, I have not been camping since I was twelve,” he said. Half way down the long gravelled drive, he pulled off and turned onto a rough dirt track. They wound around the trees and he pulled up in front of a gate.

  “Wait here,” he said, and he jumped out and opened the gate. Alex jumped back inside the Landrover, drove through, and made their way across the fields towards the woods in the distance. Ten minutes later, he stopped at another gate, jumped out, and opened it. They drove on and made their way into the wood. After another fifteen minutes, he pulled off the track and parked.

  “Well, that is as far as the track goes. Shall we set up near the lake?” he asked, and he pointed through the trees. Jane followed the line of his finger and, she saw a glimmer of water.

  “Wow, this is spectacular,” she said, as she opened the door and jumped out. They found a clearing beyond the line of the trees, and way back from the lake. They unloaded the Landrover and Jane could not stop laughing as she watched Alex try to put up the tent.

  “Bloody hell,” he cursed, for the hundredth time. “That man in the shop made it look so easy,” he groaned. Half an hour later, he had the tent up, the ground sheet in and the sleeping bag and pillows inside ready.

  Jane meanwhile had opened the picnic basket and laid out their dinner. Maria was a marvel, as inside there was chicken, potato salad, coleslaw, and bread rolls, cheese, strawberries and cream, and in fact, there was so much in there, she thought they could survive three days. There was also two bottles of champagne.

  “I am knackered,” he said, dropping beside her and lowering his head back onto the rug. She rolled over onto him.

  “How knackered?” she asked, as she ran a finger over his lips.

  “Not that knackered,” he said, with a grin, and he kissed her and pulled his arms around her holding her tight.

  “Let’s eat,” she said, breaking from his kiss and sitting up again. He sat up and grabbed a bottle of Champagne and opening it, he poured them a glass each.

  “Thank you,” she said, as she took the glass from him. For a while, they sat, ate, talked, and took in the wonderful view.

  “Ah, look you have ducks,” she said, pointing to a group of ducks swimming across the lake towards them.

  “Really?” he said, shading his eyes from the sun as he watched. He grabbed a couple of rolls and stood up, she joined him, and they wandered to the edge, and fed them.

  “Fancy a walk?” he asked, when they ran out of rolls.

  “Sure,” she said, and he took her hand as they walked along the edge of the lake.

  “You are so lucky,” she said, “having all this. Some where you can go and be away from everyone.”

  “Yes I am, but it has taken you to make me realise that,” he replied. She leaned into him.

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “Well, I have lived here all my life, so to me it is normal. I used to fish and swim here with my friends, but I have not been to this lake since I was a teenager. Yet, here with you I can see how fortunate I am. Especially in having you as my girlfriend,” he said, and he stopped and turned her to him.

  “I love you so much, Jane Elizabeth Archer,” he said. Jane’s body trembled as his eyes penetrated her, longing spread through her body, and she took a deep, uplifting breath.

  “And I love you Alexander-Hartley-Stone,” she whispered, and she closed her eyes as his lips met hers. He ran his hands through her long, dark hair and pushed his body against hers. Jane slipped her hand up inside his t-shirt and ran her hand across his chest. Alex grabbed her waist, and as their passion rose, he lifted her t-shirt, pulled it over her head, and threw it to the floor. She did the same to him, and they dropped to floor, lying in the soft grasses of a clearing.

  He unclipped her bra, and took it off, his mouth engulfing her nipple. Jane groaned, as she slipped her hand into
his shorts, and took hold of him.

  “Jane,” he moaned, as he kissed his way up her chest, across her neck and back to her mouth.

  His hands pulled at her shorts, and at the same time, he took down her knickers. He discarded his shorts, and pulled her to him, kissing her.

  As they made love, Jane’s was so turned on, the grass beneath her, the wind caressing their naked bodies, the sound of the trees rustling overhead, everything in her life right now was perfect.

  “Fancy a swim?” he asked, as they lay, holding each other.

  “What skinny-dipping,” she said, with a giggle.

  “Yes, come on,” he said. He jumped up and grabbed her hand, and laughing they ran and jumped into the lake.

  “It’s freezing!” she screamed, and Alex laughed. He grabbed her, and held her close, feeling like a teenager and not a man that had recently turned forty. They swam, and played around for half an hour until it became too cold and they got out. They got dressed, and headed back to camp.

  Alex built a fire, and they toasted marshmallows and drank the second bottle of champagne.

  “Jane, this was a brilliant idea of yours,” he said, and he stuck another marshmallow into his mouth, before passing one to her. She lay in his lap, as she ate the marshmallow, and he stroked a hand through her hair

  “Yes, it was,” she agreed. As it grew dark, they went into the tent, stripped naked and climbed into their double sleeping bag. He wrapped her in his arms, and held her tight.

  “Alex,” she whispered.

  “Yes, Jane.”

  “Apart from your mum being taken ill, this is the best weekend I have ever had in my entire life,” she confessed.

  “Me too,” he agreed. He turned sideways, and faced her, “But it is not over yet,” he said, and cupping her face with his hand, he kissed her. She wrapped her leg around his, her hand massaging his back as he continued kissing her.

  “I love kissing you,” he groaned.

  “I love you kissing me,” she groaned back. They made love again, and fell asleep in each, others arms.

  The next morning they awoke to the sound of the birds chirping in the trees. They ate chocolate croissants for breakfast, and drank a carton of orange juice as they watched and fed the ducks on the lake. After which, Jane dragged him back to the grassy clearing, where they made love again. At nine o’clock, they packed up and headed back to the main house. By ten o’clock, they had both showered and changed. Jane wore a short-sleeved blouse and a pencil skirt, and Alex jeans and a t-shirt. They were on the road to London by ten-fifteen.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Oh for goodness sake, who is that in my space,” she groaned as they pulled up outside her flats to find someone’s car in her parking space. She knew she did not have a car, but the boys used it when they were home.

  “Not one your boy’s?” he asked, and she shook her head.

  “No, unless they’ve won the lottery,” she replied.

  “Look, jump out and I will find somewhere to park and meet you upstairs,” Alex suggested.

  “Okay, try the supermarket car park, if you can’t find anywhere. See you in a minute,” she replied, jumping out of the car.

  Jane stared at the car as she walked passed. Bloody cheek, she thought, perhaps she would come back, and stick a note on it, telling whomever the car belongs too not to park there again. She walked up to the second floor, and putting the key in the lock, she went into the flat, so he could come straight in, Jane left the door on the latch. She stopped for a second in the hallway, sensing someone was there.

  “Jack?” she called. “Are you in here?” He had text to say he and Michael were going to pop by, and if she had time, they wanted to take her and Alex to lunch. She wandered into the living room and stopped dead.

  “What the fuck, are you doing in my flat, how did you get in?” she yelled when she saw Sam, sat in her armchair. He stood up, and jangled a set of keys.

  “I took Jack’s,” he replied. She glanced behind her at the door, but Alex was not there yet.

  “Get out or I will call the police,” she said, and she pulled her phone from her bag and readied the number.

  “Fuck you, Jane,” he yelled and launching himself at her, he whacked it out of her hand, and struck her across her face. Jane screamed, and fell backwards onto the sofa.

  “So got yourself a boyfriend, have you?” he growled as he moved towards her.

  “Sam, leave me alone,” she cried, and she held her hand to her face as her cheek throbbed. He grabbed her wrist and lifted her up, and she screamed as he took a handful of her long hair and dragged her into her bedroom.

  “Sam, no I’m not alone, please don’t do this,” she begged. He was not listening, rage fuelled him, he hit her again, and she fell back onto the bed. Her head spun, and she watched dazed as he took off his trouser.

  “Sam, no!” she screamed, and she dragged herself across the bed to get away from him.

  “You don’t say no to me ever!” he yelled. He grabbed her leg and yanked her back towards him. Sam ripped her shirt open and pulled up her skirt. She kicked him, and he whacked her again. Stunned, she was unable to move, and years of abuse flooded back to her. Why had she put up with this, she should never have allowed this to happen?

  “Does he make you scream like I did, Jane? Does he tie you up, and slap you hard when he is fucking you, Jane,” he growled as he squeezed her cheeks hard. “You tricked me you bitch, making yourself fat and ugly so I would not want you. The minute I leave you turn yourself into this whore!” He slapped her again and as he grasped at her knickers, she screamed, as she had never screamed before. His hand clamped over her mouth trying to silence her, but he was not quick enough.

  Alex hurried up the stairs. It had taken him ages to find a space, and he had almost reached the top of the second flight of stairs, when a terrible, ear-piercing scream stopped him in his tracks. His heart stopped dead, and his hand gripped the bannister rail as he listened. The woman screamed again.

  “Jane,” he yelled in panic, and he sped up the rest of the stairs two, three at a time and flung open her front door.

  Her vision although blurred caught sight of Alex at her bedroom door.

  “You fucking son of a bitch, get your hands of her!” Alex yelled. He launched at Sam, grabbing hold of him, he pulled him off her and punched him the face. Sam stumbled backwards and hit her dressing table, knocking off the entire contents.

  “So you’re the bitch’s boyfriend are you,” he growled at Alex.

  “Who the fuck, are you?” Alex yelled.

  “Her husband,” he growled back.

  “Ex fucking husband,” Alex retorted, and Sam attacked him. She screamed as the two men hit the floor, punching and kicking at each other.

  “Alex!” she screamed, as she crawled across the bed towards them.

  “Don’t you ever fucking touch her, you son of bitch,” Alex yelled, as he thumped Sam repeatedly in the face. Sam kicked him in the stomach and sent Alex flying backwards, hitting the wall hard he groaned.

  “Alex,” she wept, terrified Sam was going to kill him. Alex glanced at her, he stared at the bruises on her face, at her torn clothes, and he went berserk. Alex wrestled against him, and pinned Sam to the floor, his hands around his throat he began to choke him. All she could think of was Alex being sent to prison for his murder, she did not give a shit about Sam dying, only that she would lose Alex.

  “Alex, stop, please don’t kill him, I don’t want you to go to prison,” she begged. She looked to the door, and the twins stood there, looking at Alex throttling their father.

  “Dad,” Jack yelled. “What the fuck is going on?” he shrieked. His voice took Alex out of his rampage, and as he looked up at the boys, he released his hands from around Sam’s throat.

  “You touch her or come near her again I will fucking kill you,” he warned and he stood. “He was trying to rape your mother, that’s what the fuck is going on,” he yelled. Both boys looked at Sa
m and at their mother, and Jane wept. Eighteen years she had hidden this abuse from them, and now they had seen it in full force.

  “Alex,” she wept, all she wanted was for him to hold her. He came over to her and pulled her to him.

  “Oh my god Jane, are you okay?” he asked, as his fingers touched her bruised and battered face. She collapsed into his chest and cried.

  “You fucking son of a bitch,” Michael spat. He stood over his father, bent, and dragged him to his feet.

  “You touch my mother again and I will fucking kill you myself,” he yelled. “Now put your trousers back on, you sick bastard!” he shouted, and picking them up he shoved them into Sam’s hands. Sam put them on, without once saying a word.

  “For fucks sake dad,” Jack said, as it sank in, and he held his hand to his head.

  “Mum, do you want me to ring the police?” Michael asked. She was going to shake her head, but she thought of bimbo bitch. None of this was her fault, what if he was beating her too. Urshula was only twenty-two, not much older than the twins were. In a way, she owed Urshula, her life, her freedom. If it had not been for bimbo bitch, she would still be with Sam, and not Alex.

  “Yes,” she said, and she looked at Jack. “Jack, I am so sorry,” she wept, as she knew he adored his dad.

  “Has he done this to you before, Mum?” Jack asked, and he sobbed back a tear as she nodded.

  Jack looked at his brother and at Sam.

  “Urshula, those bruises, she didn’t fall down the stairs did she?” he asked. Sam glanced at Jack briefly before screwing his nose up at him and looking back to the floor.

  “Oh god,” she gasped, lifting her shaking hand to her mouth, she was right he was beating her too.

  “Jack, ring the police, now, and get an ambulance as well,” Michael said, as he looked at his mother’s battered face, and back at his twin. Jack took one look at his dad, and he nodded. Jack pulled out his phone, walked into the living room, and made the call.

  They dragged Sam into the living room, and made him sit on the armchair. The boys stood watching him while they waited for the police to arrive. Jane changed and went into the kitchen with Alex and she put the kettle on, thinking a sweet tea might help her to stop shaking.