Letter from a Stranger by Barbara Taylor Bradford

Author:Barbara Taylor Bradford
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Published: 2013-05-22T09:42:04.340000+00:00

Twenty-four

It was one o’clock in the morning when Michael and Justine were finally alone. The guests had left, the help had finished their work and disappeared, and Anita and Gabriele had gone to bed.

Now they were sitting on the seat overlooking the Bosphorus, relieved to be by themselves at last. They sat in silence, enjoying the peacefulness of the garden after the busy and hectic dinner party. Everyone had enjoyed it, and been delighted to meet Gabriele’s granddaughter, and Gabriele had been as proud as she’d ever been. And so had Anita. Both women had literally glowed all night.

It was Justine who spoke first, when she said, “Something’s wrong, Michael, isn’t it?”

“What makes you say that?” he asked swiftly, staring at her, taken aback by her astuteness and perception.

“Because I can tell. I knew during dinner that there was a problem.”

“I’m amazed how well you read me,” he murmured, still peering at her in the dusky evening light. “I thought I was being cool, even nonchalant.”

“You were, to a certain extent. Nevertheless, I saw behind that facade of yours.”

“How? I’d love to know how, Justine?”

“There was something about the expression in your eyes. I saw apprehension flickering there, or perhaps it was worry.”

“You’re very intuitive and observant, because I’m not that transparent. I’ve trained myself to keep a neutral face at all times. I learned to do that when I was a Secret Service agent.”

“You do, but I was looking at your eyes. Concern was reflected in them. And there’s something else, I’m involved with you, and conscious of you at all times. And I know you without the benefit of time. My grandmother made a comment earlier tonight. She said a woman can know a man for twenty years and never know him at all, and then again, she can meet a man and know who he really is instantly.”

There was a pause before she added, “When I met you, had only spent a few hours with you, I knew you, and what you are as a person. And naturally a man can experience exactly the same thing. That’s what we’re about, isn’t it? You and me, Michael?”

“Of course it is. We recognized each other the moment we met. We knew we were meant for each other, and we both immediately understood we had found our soul mate. I realized you were the woman I wanted to be with—” He stopped short, leaned back against the seat, staring out toward the sea, his eyes reflective. Fate. She might easily have arrived in Istanbul while he was back in New York. Or anywhere in the world. Destiny. It was their destiny to be together, wasn’t it?

Justine waited patiently, knowing he would tell her what was troubling him eventually, and she relaxed. The only reason she wanted to know was to help him, if she could.

It was not very long before Michael said slowly, “I had a call from one of my clients, when we were all having drinks in the garden earlier.

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