Secrets and Lies (Sequel to Your Lying Eyes)

Secrets and Lies Chapter 19

How long they stood there, their arms wrapped around each other, Howard kissing her hair, neither knew.  As Anna's tears subsided, they pulled apart, both of them soaked through.

"You're cold," he said taking hold of her hands, raising them to his cheek.  "And drenched.  Come with me."  Holding her hand he began to run down the path, taking her with him.

"Where are we going?" she asked, trying to keep up with his long strides.

"Somewhere warm and dry for a start," he told her as they paused at the edge of the pavement before running across the road.  

Howard began to walk up the drive of the house opposite the park.  Anna stopped in her tracks as she realised where he was going.

"What are you doing?" she asked him, "We can't go there!" she said, nodding at the house.

"Yeah we can!  I'm house sitting for a friend!" he replied, his blue eyes twinkling at her.

"What friend?" she demanded.  "Have they just bought our old house?"

"Yeah, they saw it, fell in love with it and snapped it up.  Just a couple of weeks ago it was," he explained to her, pulling her up the driveway to the kitchen door.  "Come on Anna, you're getting even more soaked out here!"

He unlocked the kitchen door and led her inside.  Anna looked around, nothing had changed from when they used to live there.  The warmth in the kitchen hit her and made her shiver.

"I knew you were cold," said Howard coming to her.  "Take your coat off and I'll get it to dry over the radiator.  Your jeans and jumper are drenched too.  Think you should take a shower to warm up again.  I'll get your things dried in the tumble dryer."

He put her coat on the radiator and then led her through into the hallway, going up the stairs to their old bedroom.  Again nothing had changed in there.  Anna looked around, memories coming back to her.

"Go and have a shower! Give me your wet things and I'll get them dried for you," he told her, pushing her towards the ensuite door of the bedroom.

"I don't like doing this in someone else's house," Anna tried to object.  "It doesn't feel right."

"It's ok.  There's only us here.   My friend is due back next week," Howard reassured her, as she reluctantly went into the ensuite.  "It's not like he's just going to turn up."

"Well it would make me feel a bit warmer," she agreed with him.  She closed the door behind her and turned on the shower.  Once she had stripped off, she opened the door and gave her clothes to Howard.

"You lost weight love?" he asked as she closed the door, "some of these things seem to be a lot smaller than what you used to wear," he smirked as he noticed her bra on top of the pile.

"Oi, you were meant to be getting them dried not sizing them up!" she cried, poking her head through the door.

"Just saying, that's all!" he laughed at her as she disappeared back inside.

Anna stepped into the cubicle and let the hot water run over her.  Her skin tingled as it began to warm up again.  She took a piece of soap and ran it over her body, then quickly rubbed some of the shampoo into her hair.  She recognised it as being one of Howard's favourites. She smiled and breathed in the smell of it. It smelled of him.

Rinsing the soap and shampoo off her, she stepped out and wrapped one of the bathsheets around her.  She felt much better now, not that she was going to admit that to him.  Pulling a smaller towel off the shelf she went back into the bedroom, rubbing her hair dry and sitting on the edge of the bed.  The door behind her opened slowly as Howard cautiously came back into the room.