Apple of my eye (Redmond, Patrick)(2003, paperback)

Ronnie Sidney is a perfect child. The illegitimate by-product of a wartime romance, he gives his mother unconditional love when all she has known is rejection and contempt. In her eyes he is faultless: a ray of sunshine in the grey of her existence. But as the cracks grow in his facade of youthful charm, a very different character starts to be glimpsed.

For Susan Ramsey, life is easy. Cherished by her parents, she knows nothing of hardship or misery. Until a sudden tragedy thrusts her into a dark and deeply disturbing world. 

When Susan and Ronnie meet, the attraction is instant. Each recognises in the other a long-awaited soulmate. At last Ronnie feels able to remove his mask of perfection - with consequences more dreadful than either could have foreseen....