The Trouble with Trent!

‘Fault?’ she echoed.

‘My other guests rang from Paris. They flew over for the day,’ he explained. ‘Unfortunately, their plane is fog-bound, making it impossible for them to get back tonight.’ Flew over for the day! This was another world—but Alethea had no time to dwell on it; she was too busy coming to terms with the fact that, by the sound of it, she was Trent’s only guest! ‘I should have phoned you,’ he went on. ‘Forgive me that I didn’t,’ he apologised. ‘I was somehow certain you’d no intention of accepting my invitation.’

Was there a question in his voice? Alethea was too embarrassed to be able to tell for sure. ‘Hey-ho!’ She tried to make light of it, and, skirting round him, she mumbled, ‘I’ll—er—see you,’ and was at the door.

Trent de Havilland, however, was there before her. ‘You’re not going?’ he asked, making it sound as though he sincerely wanted her to stay a little while.

‘I—It’s gone eleven, and—and...’

‘And you don’t have to be up early for work in the morning,’ he teased, which reminded her of her mother—who on Tuesday had said the reverse of that—which in turn reminded her of her sister.

Oh, Lord! ‘That’s true,’ she agreed while she tried to sort out the conflict going on in her head. She must have had a brainstorm to think for a moment that she could get upright Trent de Havilland to give the order not to prosecute her brother-in-law! Yet, at the same time, what better opportunity to ask him than now? She didn’t even have to try and get him alone to have a quiet word with him. There was no one else there! Perhaps within the next few minutes...

‘You don’t sound very sure,’ Trent cut through her thoughts.