Page 18 of A Summer of Secrets on Arran (Scottish Romances #5)

Bella noticed the switch in Rosie’s manner straight away. She was always the warmest and most welcoming person in the room. Now the atmosphere was distinctly chilly and Rosie stood, her arms crossed defensively in front of her, glaring at Luke.

‘What’s going on, Bella?’ Rosie said, her voice icy.

Isobel was now looking at both of them completely bemused.

What was wrong with everyone? Why were they acting so weirdly? Bella wished the ground would open up and swallow her. Especially as Rosie was now throwing daggers at Luke. Bella wanted to be anywhere but here. Despite everything that had happened today, she knew this was a big mistake. Huge.

‘Has anyone ever told you that you look awfully like Luke Giles?’ asked Rosie tersely. There was a moment’s silence as the penny dropped and she and Isobel looked at each other. Then Isobel screwed up her face and squealed. ‘Bloody hell, you are Luke Giles! What the hell are you doing here?’

There was a long and very awkward pause. Bella watched as Luke carefully studied her mum’s face and waited for a flicker of recognition from him. Anything at all. There was nothing. Then he turned and held out his hand to Rosie. This time Bella could see something in his eyes.

‘Nice to meet you,’ he said, then frowned.

‘Actually, we have met before,’ said Rosie, picking up her mug.

He blushed and looked a bit embarrassed. Then he looked back at Rosie. ‘You do look kind of familiar,’ said Luke.

‘That’s because we have met before.’

And then Bella became completely confused.

‘Bella, please tell me you’re not going out with this man?’ said Rosie incredulously.

‘No!’ she shouted.

‘Then what are you doing with my daughter?’ Isobel challenged Luke. ‘Why are you here? Can’t you find a woman nearer your own age?’ She started to pace, which was never a good sign. ‘This is completely outrageous. I mean, you might be famous but seriously ?’

Oh, good gawd, thought Bella. What was wrong with her mum and Rosie?

They were behaving like a pair of morons.

‘Have you two been on the wine or something?’ She glanced through the doors out to the garden and clocked the empty wine glasses and the ice bucket.

She frowned at them both and shook her head in disappointment.

This day was getting worse by the second.

This was all she needed. A showdown with her tipsy mother and Rosie.

‘Tsk,’ said Isobel, shaking her head and ignoring Bella.

‘Look at that Titanic fella who is always hanging around with the young girls. You don’t want to become one of those famous guys who only dates women under the age of twenty-five.

That’s just sad and very desperate. I mean, is that really what you want, Bella?

To be hanging around some old guy with a paunch while you frolic on a yacht?

It’s a Daily Mail story just waiting to be written . . .’

Luke widened his eyes in horror and was seemingly patting his stomach to check for the said paunch. Bella glared at her mum. ‘Don’t be ridiculous. Or so rude. That is just disgusting. We’re not dating , Mum. I had to do this because you have refused to tell me the truth all these years.’

‘Bella, what are you talking about?’ demanded Isobel.

Bella sighed and stamped her feet in frustration. ‘For years I have been asking you who my dad is and you refuse to tell me,’ she said.

‘That’s not entirely true,’ said Isobel, tears smarting in her eyes. ‘You know I said he was a one-night stand in Glasgow . . .’

‘You lied!’ shouted Bella angrily.

Isobel looked ashen-faced and Bella momentarily felt awful.

She was never normally short-tempered with her mum.

But Bella was now on a roll. ‘I found your diary in that box from Gran’s house .

. . when she was moving, she asked you to take some of your stuff back?

It’s full of old papers and photos and your journal from travelling in Australia. ’

Isobel shook her head in disbelief. ‘I don’t understand what you’re talking about. A journal? I didn’t keep a journal.’

Bella looked across at Rosie hoping for some help. But Rosie was staring strangely at Luke.

Isobel sighed. ‘Look Bella, can you just get to the point and tell me what this is all about?’

‘I want to know if it’s true,’ said Bella flatly.

She was tired now and the adrenaline from earlier which had kept her going all day had now seeped out of her.

‘Is it true that Luke is my dad? In your journal you wrote that you were off to meet him again at some bay. You’d been having a fling with him in Sydney when he was on tour. ’

Rosie clattered her mug down on the coffee table.

‘Oh no,’ she gasped and her cheeks turned red.

‘I always wondered what I’d done with my diary.

I thought I had chucked it away. I must have left it at your house.

’ She turned to Isobel sheepishly. ‘And your mum put it in that box with the other stuff. I am totally mortified.’

Just then Bella looked between her mum and Rosie as she put two and two together again and finally worked out what had happened. Then she glanced at Luke who was staring at Rosie.

‘I thought I recognised you,’ said Luke.

‘Yes,’ said Rosie with an embarrassed chuckle. ‘Once upon a time, we knew each other fairly well.’

‘The Q bar in Sydney . . .’ his voice trailed off.

‘Yes, that was the place. We were supposed to meet up there but you didn’t appear.’

Bella looked over at Luke in shock. He did at least look shamefaced.

‘We left Sydney a day early. I called and left a message at the bar.’

Rosie shrugged. ‘I never got the message. I just assumed you’d done a runner.’ She waved her hand dismissively. ‘Anyway, it’s all water under the bridge now. That was a lifetime ago. It’s just very odd seeing you again now.’

‘So does that mean you’re not my dad?’ whispered Bella, feeling very dejected. Her heart sank as the disappointment washed over her.

‘He is most definitely not your dad,’ said Isobel, gently. ‘Nothing ever happened between us.’ She glanced over at Luke and shrugged.

There was a heavy silence and Bella gulped. ‘I’m so sorry,’ she said, her voice wobbling. ‘What a complete mess I’ve made of all of this.’

‘Oh, Bella,’ said Isobel.

Rosie, who was obviously lost in a distant memory, cleared her throat. ‘Your mum is right, darling. Luke is definitely not your father.’

There was another heavy pause before anyone spoke. Bella was the first to break the silence. ‘I’m sorry, Luke. I am so sorry about all of this. What a mess.’

Luke patted her on the shoulder and at that moment, Bella wished that Luke was her father.

He was actually really nice. Especially as he had been so kind to her today and had come over here with him on a crazy whim.

She groaned, feeling completely mortified at the mess she had created by jumping to the wrong conclusions.

She watched as her mum and Rosie continued to look at each other.

Something passed between them which made Bella feel uneasy.

They definitely knew more than they were letting on.

At least if Luke was her dad, it would be a bit easier to make sense of than the complicated mess that was now starting to unravel.

It was all too much and she sank down on the sofa and burst into tears.