Under Grey Clouds (The Osprey Series Book 2) Read online

  ‘Bus is here,’ announced the captain, walking towards their group, retrieving his case from the untidy collection of them and leading the way out of the door.

  ‘Thank you,’ Susan said to the bellman who was holding the door open, looking back over her shoulder to check that Tony was still watching her, pleased to see that he was.

  Susan Kennedy landed in London the next morning, home now for the week. As she switched on her phone a message from Jeff popped up on the screen.

  Welcome home, we missed you.

  That’s nice, she thought, dropping her phone back into her bag and taking out a small black pouch. From inside she retrieved two rings, sliding them back onto her wedding finger and admiring the sparkle of the diamonds for a moment. Susan Kennedy was home.

  Chapter 4

  ‘Mum, I missed you!’ Lewis cried as he hugged her unashamedly in the playground.

  ‘I missed you too, honey,’ she said, hugging him tightly back.

  ‘Hi, Mum.’ Sophia walked up behind them and gave her mum a much more understated and quicker hug. Susan missed her little girl, who didn’t care about what the others thought, but she remembered being ten once, and trying to be one of the cool kids. No one wanted to be one of the nerds after all, although she wondered if Lewis would ever actually care.

  ‘Shall we go out for tea?’ She knew the answer already.

  ‘Yes,’ they both said eagerly.

  She didn’t feel like cooking tonight, and she knew that Jeff wouldn’t mind if she brought him home something nice from Chimichangas, the kids’ favourite place for dinner.

  As they drove home from the restaurant later, Lewis chatted excitedly to her about his upcoming drama play, in which he had the main part. Sophia was much quieter, taking selfies on her phone in the quest for the perfect Instagram picture. She wished her daughter would stop growing up, just for a moment, and make the most of her last few years of childhood. The little girl was still in there, there were glimpses of her sometimes, but they were getting fewer and further between.

  She turned her car into their road and pressed the control to open the gates. As she drove slowly up their driveway she noticed that Luke, the gardener, must have been, as the trees were sculpted to perfection on either side. Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw him across the lawn tending to some plants, and she lost concentration for a moment as she admired his fine physique, borne of hard work. She shook her head, regaining her composure. Not here, not in this life, Susan Kennedy was good.

  Jeff had heard them coming and was standing at the large oak door. Milo and Jack, the family’s two black Labradors, came bounding out to greet them and the children giggled as they licked their faces.

  ‘Down, you two,’ Jeff called firmly, walking over to relieve Susan of her case. ‘Welcome home, my love.’ He kissed her warmly on the lips, and she smiled at him. New York was gone now, and Susan Kennedy was happy to be home, with her family.

  She followed him up the steps into the house and looked around the generous entrance hall. The house was immaculate as always, and she thanked her lucky stars every day that Jeff had given her a cleaner so that she didn’t need to worry about such things. Goodness knew it was hard enough doing all the other things that she did in her role of the perfect wife and mother, without having to clean a house of this size. Not that she would ever complain about its size, of course. With its five suite-sized bedrooms and four bathrooms it was a beautiful and imposing home, and she was very lucky to have it.

  ‘Champagne?’ Jeff called from the kitchen. The children had both disappeared already, off to their rooms, their own little kingdoms.

  ‘Of course,’ she replied, in a tone that said he needn’t have asked. She took off her uniform jacket and hung it on the back of one of the barstools that sat at the large, quartz-topped island which stood central to the huge kitchen. ‘You know me too well, my dear.’

  He handed her a glass, which she took gratefully. Jeff didn’t really drink himself, but he never minded that she did, personally buying her the best champagne and making sure it was always chilled and ready should she want a glass or four.

  ‘How was your flight?’ he asked eagerly, obviously pleased to have her back and wanting to listen to anything she had to tell him.

  ‘Oh, it was brilliant, I went to a gorgeous rooftop bar with the crew in the evening, such a lovely place. It had the most amazing views of the Empire State Building.’ She had to be careful, had to make her trips sound like this. If she was to say she had done nothing and just slept then he would question why she wouldn’t leave, it was certainly not like she needed to work after all. She had already been in the job before she met him though, and so he couldn’t force her to leave something she loved this much, not that he hadn’t tried.

  ‘Sounds lovely, maybe we should go there together one day, you could show me around.’

  ‘Yes, maybe we should,’ she agreed, knowing that it would, and could, never happen.

  ‘So, Andy and Evelyn are coming tomorrow night at seven, is that okay?’

  Susan drank the last of the champagne in her glass before looking up with her smile fixed.

  ‘Absolutely, I’m really looking forward to it. Any ideas what you would like for dinner?’

  ‘No, surprise me, you always pull something extraordinary together.’ He topped up her glass and kissed her head. She knew what tonight was bringing and she hoped that the champagne would help.

  As Jeff wrapped her in his arms after he had made love to her she knew she had done her job well, he was happy. She tried to ignore the repulsion that she was starting to feel as she watched his waistline growing, his stomach pressing against her back now. She wondered if perhaps she needed to encourage him to get back into exercise and stop eating those big lunches in the city when he was at work. Surely ageing didn’t need to be unattractive?

  Chapter 5

  The next morning Susan took the children to school and drove straight to the M&S food hall. She glided around the aisles with her shopping trolley, selecting the food she would need for their dinner that evening. She would spend the day preparing a banquet, and Susan Kennedy was never happier than when she was at home in the kitchen creating something spectacular.

  Three hours later the kitchen was in turmoil, every pan used, and she was relieved when her loyal cleaner, Lucy, set about restoring order. Middle-aged and plain looking, Lucy had been a godsend to Susan these past five years.

  ‘Would you mind picking the kids up for me, Lucy, so that I can get ready?’ Susan asked when she noticed that it was nearly time for them to finish school. Lucy was much more than a cleaner to her, she was a driver, a PA, an enabler; the one who enabled her to be as great a wife as she was. If she’d had to go out now she would never have got the desserts finished, or herself ready in time.

  ‘No problem,’ Lucy replied, taking the keys for the Range Rover from the side. Susan suspected that she was quite happy to get out of the house for a bit, and to drive the car that she could probably only dream of driving in her own life, and she was happy to give her the opportunity. She hadn’t forgotten that she didn’t come from this kind of life herself, not everyone was as lucky as her.

  That evening, as she sat at the table making small talk with Evelyn, the men droned on about business. They were both the same age as Jeff, and Susan struggled to talk to Evelyn as a peer, and not feel like she was talking to her mother. Of course, Evelyn would never have guessed that she was struggling, Susan was too good to let her true feelings show. Years of flying had given her the skill of making conversation with almost anyone, no matter how little they had in common.

  ‘I just need to check on the children,’ she excused herself. She hadn’t seen them since she had fed them pizza at five o’clock and bribed them with a day out tomorrow if they were good tonight. Like children from a bygone age, they were to be seen and not heard.

  Lewis was absorbed in his game when she snuck in behind him. ‘Behind you,’ he cried to someo
ne through his headset. On the screen in front of him figures in battle clothes ran around shooting each other. Susan wasn’t sure he should be playing the game at his age, but all of his friends were so she couldn’t make him the odd one out. He turned and gave her a quick wave and one of his huge smiles, turning back around quickly and pressing the buttons on his controller furiously. She stood in the doorway for a moment, watched her little boy in his little world, and felt her heart swell with the love that she felt for him. He really did light up her life with his big smile and happy ways.

  Along the hallway Sophia was lying on her king-sized bed, headphones in, fairy lights twinkling around the vast room. She was such a lucky girl, Susan would have loved a room like this at her age, with its ensuite bathroom, walk-in wardrobe and sofa. What other little girls had space for a sofa in their bedroom? She wondered if Sophia really appreciated it though, if she told her often enough how lucky she was? These were just things to her, things that she was used to. She sat on the bed and her daughter turned around and gave her a smile that melted her, not removing her headphones though, and turning back to her laptop. Her firstborn was a kind and sensitive thing, and she was growing into a formidable young lady. Susan was looking forward to the day when her daughter grew up into her best friend.

  Contented and feeling renewed by the brief time with her babies, Susan went back to the dinner table, ready to continue the façade, to entertain them all. It was a just a small part of her full-time job as his wife, and it paid very well. If all she had to do was this to give her and her children their wonderful life, she would do it forever, it wasn’t that hard. The evening turned out to not be that bad too, enough wine blurred the differences between them, and animated the boring.

  As she and Jeff waved their guests off at the front door, he put his arm around her and held her close. Maybe the passion for him had gone, but she did love him, he was a good husband and a good father, that was undeniable. She looked up and accepted his kiss and his gratitude for her work this evening, going back into their beautiful home together, man and wife.

  Chapter 6

  The following Saturday morning Susan packed her case ready for her flight to Miami. She had enjoyed the week, had looked after her family, been to the school play, taken the kids to the theme park, helped them with their homework, tended to Jeff.... the list went on and she needed a bit of ‘me time’ now. Jeff’s parents were coming to stay and she was secretly pleased to be going away, finding them even a little too much for her acting ability; their snootiness had lost any filters as they both approached eighty.

  ‘I’m off,’ she called loudly from the hall as Jeff carried her small case down the stairs. She heard the footsteps thundering along the landing as one of the kids came running to say goodbye. Sophia ran to her and this time, with no friends around, gave her the biggest hug she’d had from her for a long time.

  ‘Love you, darling, help Daddy with your grandparents.’ She looked down at her daughter, who rolled her eyes and grimaced. She was a good girl though and knew how to behave. Just like her mum, she would put on the smile and say the right things, Susan had never knowingly taught her these skills but perhaps she was even more astute than she gave her credit for. Lewis appeared at the top of the stairs, headset on and controller in hand, still in his pyjamas.

  ‘Bye, Mum,’ he called, blowing her a kiss, obviously desperate to get back to his game. She blew him kisses back.

  ‘Make sure he’s not on that all day,’ she said to Jeff, knowing that her husband would happily let them stay on their devices all day long if it meant peace and quiet for him.

  ‘Well you could stay home with us and do something nice together.’ He looked at her, raising his eyebrows.

  ‘Jeff!’ Every bloody time.

  ‘Sorry.’ He always said sorry, but he never stopped trying. She kissed him goodbye and turned to the door.

  Anyway, he could say what he liked, she thought as she drove her car through the gates, it would take far more than little digs here and there to make her leave her job. She hadn’t been to Miami for weeks and couldn’t wait to be on South Beach with a cocktail.

  Susan Harrison giggled with the other girls in the galley. The huge American football players that were squeezed into the business class seats were making the plane so much more attractive than usual. Even the manager, Julie, who must have been fifty but was extremely glamorous still, was reapplying her lipstick before going out to do drinks. With so many crew at Osprey Aviation it was rare to fly with many crew you knew, but Susan knew Julie Margot, and there was no way she would be going out on a drinks round if the plane was not full of fitties.

  ‘Right, I’m ready,’ grinned Julie, pushing out her ample chest. ‘Who’s coming with me?’

  Susan stepped out of the way to let one of the younger girls jump on the end of Julie’s cart; she didn’t need the attention today. Twenty minutes later they returned to the galley triumphant, Julie waving a piece of paper in the air.

  ‘Right, I hope you girls have packed some nice clothes because tonight we are going out!’

  ‘Oh my God, really, where are we going?’ exclaimed Steph, who had stayed in the galley with Susan.

  ‘Some club on South Beach.’ Julie was still waving the piece of paper. ‘Guest list, drinks, the works, it’s their team night out, lucky us!’

  ‘That’s so cool, I can’t wait,’ said Steph excitedly.

  ‘She was so good out there, a proper pro,’ said the girl who had gone out with her. Susan still hadn’t got everyone’s names yet.

  As they all swapped room numbers in the hotel lobby the girls were obviously excited about the night out. Only the two male flight deck were not going, and Susan.

  ‘I can’t believe you’re not coming out,’ Julie said as she passed her on her way to the lift.

  ‘I’m sorry, I just feel a little under the weather so I’m going to try and sleep it off.’

  ‘Okay, love, but if you change your mind we are meeting in my room in an hour,’ and she was gone, leaving a waft of expensive perfume behind her.

  Susan Harrison knew she looked good, even amongst the glamorous crowds on South Beach. The sound of the sea lapping against the expanse of white sand was slowly being drowned out by the music from the neon lit bars up ahead. She walked purposefully, enjoying the way the ocean breeze blew her short dress against her body, and her hair flowed behind her.

  Arriving at The Clevelanders she climbed up the stone steps. The lights reflected on the pool that was between her and the hotel behind, the cocktail bar sitting on the front of the property next to the beach. He was sitting at the bar with his back to her; she would recognise those broad muscular shoulders anywhere. She slowed her pace as she approached him, in case he heard her, and placed her hands teasingly over his eyes.

  Mario turned and gave her his broadest, sexiest smile, grabbing her around the waist with his huge hands. She felt tiny when she was with him.

  ‘I missed you, baby,’ he said in his sexy American accent. Susan put both of her arms around his neck and kissed him. She wouldn’t say that she missed him back, that would mean there were feelings outside of this agreement, but she was definitely pleased to see him.

  Chapter 7

  Mario was as dreamy as she remembered, she hadn’t seen him for so long. She had met him on a flight several years ago now, and just like today’s flight, he had invited all of the girls out to his nightclub. It seemed that he had only had eyes for Susan though, and she had accepted his attentions willingly. Now, whenever she came to Miami, he would be waiting for her, always at The Clevelanders, always with that beautiful smile of his. Somewhere in his family he had a Hispanic heritage, and it showed in his gorgeous black eyes and tanned skin. But she had never seen a Mexican of his size, with such muscles before. The rules were the same, this was just a fling that would last as long as they both wanted it to. She was sure that one day she would message him to say she was coming to Miami and he would tell her that he had a g
irlfriend, but he hadn’t yet so here they were, again.

  The cocktails flowed and so did the intensity, it was as if they were the only two in the bar.

  ‘I’ll be back in a minute,’ he excused himself with a hungry kiss. She didn’t ask where he was going, Mario always knew someone, had to make a call, or maybe he just needed the bathroom. She was a little relieved at having a few minutes to compose herself though, to take a deep breath and just enjoy the setting without the undercurrent of energy. Perhaps too, if he hadn’t got up then she wouldn’t have heard the wails of the crew laughing as they strolled along the beach in front of the bar. Susan ducked, hoping that they wouldn’t see her.

  ‘Right, just one in here and then we’ll go to the club.’

  She heard Julie’s voice giving the girls their orders, and the giggles getting closer. She grabbed her drink, and without turning around walked quickly towards the restrooms on the far side. She was sure that no one would have recognised her from the back; it was hard enough from the front sometimes, they all looked so different out of uniform.

  She watched, amused, from her safe spot behind a palm tree as Julie passed them all shots, making sure that they were all loosened up and ready to perform once they were at the club. The flight home was going to be a challenge with a full crew hungover!

  Mario appeared from a door on her right, hanging up a call on his phone. She waved to him, trying to look casual as she hid behind the tree, and a look of amused confusion flashed across his face.

  ‘What’s up?’ he smiled as she grabbed his arm and pulled him away.

  ‘Nothing, I just can’t wait to get you back to yours.’

  He didn’t argue, walking around the corner and hailing a cab to take them to his penthouse apartment overlooking the marina.