A WEEK LATER Joanna wheeled the baby down the path to the jetty.
Matt had gone out in his dinghy earlier that morning for the first time since the baby was born. He hadn’t wanted to leave her, but Joanna had insisted she could manage on her own. Well, with Callie’s help, she appended. Teresa and Henry’s granddaughter had proved her weight in gold since the baby’s birth.
Adrienne and Oliver had gone home the day after the baby’s birth, and Oliver seemed satisfied that he had played some part in Joanna’s and Matt’s reunion.
For her part, Joanna knew that she and Adrienne would never be friends. But Matt’s mother had apparently accepted that, as they were getting married again, there was no point in depriving herself of her grandson by trying to keep them apart.
Jealousy was a terrible thing, and Joanna guessed Adrienne would have been jealous of any woman who took her son away from her. Discovering Joanna was Angus Carlyle’s daughter must have been doubly distressing. Particularly when her husband had announced he was going into business with her old lover. She must have lived in fear of their previous relationship being made public.
Joanna wondered now if Angus had sought to destroy her and Matt’s marriage to hurt Adrienne. As with so much else, his actions were hard to forgive.
To be charitable, Joanna knew her father’s illness had changed him. Learning he was suffering from terminal cancer had made him brooding and resentful of other people’s happiness. Even her own.
But that was in the past. Matt and Joanna were planning to get married again as soon as they could. And then, later, they’d agreed to return to Miami for the baby’s christening.
Joanna had destroyed Adrienne’s letter. That was one piece of poison that would never again see the light of day. She and Matt were together and that was all that mattered. She really hoped that her father had forgotten the letter was there.
She could feel the sun’s rays on her shoulders as she emerged from the shadow of the palms, but she didn’t mind. It was so good to be out and about again, so good to be able to wear an outfit that didn’t outline the swollen curve of her stomach.
Their son lay on his back in the stroller, protected by the shade cast by its hood. Matt had had the baby carriage flown over from Nassau the same day the baby was born. Along with baby clothes and equipment of every kind.
It was a thrilling time for Joanna. And Matt, too, she knew. Their son was a constant delight to both of them but, more importantly, they were rediscovering every aspect of their love for one another.
Joanna heard Henry’s voice and a moment later she saw her husband vaulting onto the jetty. He hadn’t been out very long, she thought humorously. Evidently, since he’d become a father, sailing had lost much of its appeal.
Matt saw Joanna at once, and, leaving Henry to moor the craft, he came striding towards her. ‘I’ve missed you,’ he said huskily, slipping his arm about her shoulders, uncaring who was watching them. He bent his head and covered her lips with his. Then, with some concern, ‘Should you be out in this heat?’
‘Well, if I’m going to live here, I’ve got to get used to it,’ replied Joanna, slipping her arm about his waist. ‘We are going to live here, aren’t we?’
‘I like the way you say “we”,’ murmured Matt, his eyes devouring her. ‘How did I ever live without you?’
Matt bent to bury his face in the curve of her shoulder and Joanna cupped his neck with gentle fingers. ‘I should have believed you all along.’
Matt lifted his head. ‘Yeah, you should,’ he agreed roughly. ‘I’ve never lied to you, and I never will.’
Joanna gnawed on her lower lip. ‘Will you believe me if I tell you that soon after I got here, I was prepared to put all that behind us and ask you if I could stay?’
‘Because of the baby?’
‘No, because of us,’ exclaimed Joanna huskily. ‘I didn’t want you to think I had any ulterior motive for being here, but perhaps I had.’
Matt stared at her. ‘Do you mean that?’
‘Of course, I mean it.’ She paused. ‘But after—after that—that time on the beach, you seemed so—remote.’
‘I wanted to see you; of course, I did.’ Matt groaned. ‘But it was hard to know what I was going to say. Then my parents being there meant we couldn’t have a private conversation.’ He paused. ‘But surely it was obvious how I felt? I couldn’t keep my hands off you.’
There was another satisfying moment, and then Henry’s hearty voice broke into their embrace. ‘Would you like me to take your son back to the villa?’ he asked, peering into the stroller and making goo-goo noises at the baby.
Matt grinned at Joanna. ‘I didn’t know you were a nursemaid, Henry,’ he said, and the older man lifted his head to pull a face.
‘I thought you might like a little privacy, that’s all,’ he said innocently. ‘Particularly with Mrs Sophie coming this afternoon.’
‘God, I’d forgotten that. She’s dying to see her nephew, I know.’ Then Matt looked at Joanna. ‘So, what do you think? Have you got time to take a walk along the beach with me?’
‘A walk?’ she echoed, handing the stroller into Henry’s capable hands. ‘Why, Mr Novak, I do believe I have. Do you mind if I take your arm?’
‘I’m hoping you’ll take every part of me,’ murmured Matt in an undertone, and Joanna was still giggling when Henry disappeared from view.
* * * * *