The Darkest of Secrets by Kate Hewitt Page B

couldn’t manage on my own. So I just put it all back and tried to forget about it—for a little while at least. But I couldn’t forget. I’ll never forget.’ Khalis shook his head, his eyes narrowed against the harsh glare of the sun, or perhaps just in memory.
    Grace swallowed. ‘And so you left.’
    ‘Finally.’ The one word was harsh with self-recrimination. ‘I took his money to go to university first. I didn’t work up the courage to leave until I knew I could make a go of it on my own.’ His mouth twisted in condemnation of his own actions. ‘So I wasn’t really much better than he was.’
    ‘That’s rather harsh,’ Grace protested. ‘You weren’t responsible for your father’s actions.’
    ‘No. But doing nothing can be as damaging as the action itself.’
    ‘You were young—’
    ‘Not that young.’ He turned to her with a quick smile, his expression clearing although Grace still saw the storm clouds lurking in the depths of his agate eyes. ‘You’re very forgiving, much more forgiving than I am.’ Grace looked away. Yes, she tried to be forgiving because she knew how easy it was to fall. The only person she couldn’t forgive was herself. ‘We’ve talked about this enough,’ Khalis said. ‘I didn’t intend to spend the day with you raking up bitter memories. What is done, is done.’
    ‘Is it?’ Grace asked, her voice hoarse as she stared out to sea. ‘Or does it just go on and on?’
    Khalis gazed at her for a moment. ‘It is done,’ he said quietly. ‘Whatever it is, Grace, it is done.’
    She knew he didn’t know what he was talking about, what secrets she still hid, and yet even so she wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe that things could really be finished, sins truly forgiven. His father’s … and hers. She wanted to believe in a second chance even if she never got one. Silently she took his hand and let him lead her out of the Jeep.
    They walked down the beach, Khalis’s hand still loosely linked with her own, until they came to a sheltered spot, the rocks providing protection from the relentless wind. Grace stopped in surprise at the sight of two gorgeous horses, a bay mare and a chestnut stallion, saddled and waiting, a groom holding their reins.
    ‘What—?’
    ‘I thought you might like to go riding.’
    She shot him a sideways glance. ‘How do you even know if I ride?’
    ‘You mentioned a horse-mad phase,’ Khalis said with a smile. ‘That first night.’
    ‘So I did.’ She’d forgotten. She’d almost forgotten how to ride. She stared at the horses, reached out to stroke the bay’s satiny coat. ‘And I suppose you’ve been riding since the day you were born?’
    ‘Only since I was two. But it’s been a while.’
    ‘For me, too.’
    ‘We can take it slowly.’
    Were they talking about riding, Grace wondered, or something else? It didn’t really matter. She was touched Khalis had thought of this, had remembered her offhand comment. And she wanted to ride. With a smiling nod she let the groom help her to mount. She was glad Khalis had told her to wear serviceable clothing.
    Khalis mounted his own horse and smiled at Grace. ‘Ready?’
    She nodded again, surprised and gratified by how much she enjoyed the feel of riding again, the wind at her back, the sun shining down. She nudged the horse into a canter and Khalis followed suit, the horses happy to trot down the length of the beach.
    The breeze ruffled her hair and gulls cried raucously overhead. Grace felt a grin bloom all over her face. She’d forgotten how free she felt when she rode, how everything seemed to shrink to a point of a pin, the cares and fears and even the memories. Nothing mattered but this moment. Without even realising she was doing so, she urged her mount into a gallop. She heard Khalis laugh as he matched her pace.
    ‘Are we racing?’ he shouted to her, his words torn away on the wind.
    ‘I think we are,’ she called back and leaned low over her horse, her heart