Mistress by Mistake

‘No! I wouldn’t tell anyone about that, Uncle Drew.’

CHAPTER THREE

A BLAST of warm air hit Eve as she entered the scullery. She was physically tired, but happy. At times like this she was conscious of how few people enjoyed their work as much as she did, and she felt very fortunate as the weary glow of well-being enfolded her.

To her surprise a somewhat breathless daughter of the house appeared in the doorway so swiftly it was obvious she must have been hovering close by. Her face fell ludicrously when she saw Eve.

‘Oh, I thought…I thought you were someone else.’ The glossy blonde hair surrounding her flower-like face swung like a silky bell as she shook her head self-consciously.

Someone important enough to make this beautiful, sophisticated woman behave like a breathless teenager must be quite someone, Eve reflected as she rubbed her frozen fingertips together. They began to tingle as her sluggish circulation hotted up.

‘Your mother asked me to stop by for a cup of tea when I’d finished, Mrs Hall,’ Eve explained apologetically. Beyond the adjoining door to the kitchen she could hear sounds of activity.

‘I did indeed.’ Mrs Atkinson, dressed with impeccable elegance in a soft grey creˆpe two-piece, entered the room behind her daughter. ‘Take a seat, Eve, my dear. You know Charlotte, don’t you.’

Eve nodded politely. As she hadn’t been invited into the kitchen she didn’t bother removing her boots. She’d been briefly introduced to the elegant woman when Charlotte had arrived from the airport the previous evening, her slender body encased in a floor-length silver fur coat almost exactly the same shade as her hair.

Eve had exchanged the customary pleasantries and departed inclined to give the other woman the benefit of the doubt where the fur was concerned; it probably wasn’t real. Eve had been left with an impression of style, gloss and cut-glass beauty. She doubted if she’d left any impression at all on the other woman.

Right now Charlotte Hall seemed on edge and brittle, but the edge of vulnerability didn’t detract from her fragile, classically perfect beauty.

‘Mummy tells me you’ve been restoring the knot garden. It must be a bit cold at the moment to be working outdoors.’ She glanced out of the window at the frost-covered garden and shuddered.

She reminded Eve of a delicate hothouse orchid that would shrivel in the Arctic conditions that were sweeping the country, making this the coldest January in living memory.

‘Charlotte’s been living in California; she’s forgotten what a proper winter is like. Don’t you fret. Eve here is very sturdy, but actually she’s been doing some work in the greenhouses for us today.’

Eve tried and failed to look on ‘sturdy’ as a compliment. Compared with the diminutive creature dressed entirely in black, which did marvellous things for her translucent complexion, she felt like an ungainly giant.

‘California. That sounds exciting. Will you be visiting for long?’ Eve asked, receiving her steaming mug with a smile of thanks.

Charlotte glanced at her mother quickly and lowered her eyes, a mysterious smile playing about her lovely lips. ‘Possibly,’ she said enigmatically. ‘Will you excuse…?’ She drifted ethereally from the room.

‘She’s a bit on edge,’ Mrs Atkinson confided. ‘I’ve arranged a little luncheon party.’

‘I was just going,’ Eve said, taking the hint.

‘No, there’s no need for you to hurry.’

Eve settled back down, even though her schedule was tight. Mrs Atkinson was a woman with a lot of time on her hands, who liked to chat, and Eve, a good listener, usually obliged.

‘Actually, it’s rather awkward. Charlotte used to be engaged to the young man we’re expecting. It was a couple of years ago now, but she’s not actually seen him since…well, actually…she walked out at the last minute, just before the wedding.’

‘You mean she jilted him?’ Eve gasped, goggle-eyed. ‘I mean, I’m sure she had her reasons,’ she added hastily as she saw the maternal hackles visibly rise.

Mrs Atkinson looked mollified. ‘Actually…’ She gave a rueful sigh. ‘She didn’t actually tell us why, but everyone knew it must have been something very bad to make her act so out of character. They’d been a couple on and off since schooldays, you see—inseparable. She ran off to America and married Rufus Hall eventually; he’s very rich, of course,’ she added.