at the table. ‘I take it you’d like some coffee?’
‘Thank you. How do you feel this morning? Any ill effects from yesterday’s episode?’
‘No.’ This time she was ultra-careful as she poured boiling water into the cafetière. ‘I’ll leave the coffee to mature a bit,’ she said, putting the tray on the table. ‘But I’ll get to the point right now. I accept your offer for End House. Your moral blackmail worked perfectly.’
The striking eyes narrowed as they met hers. ‘Blackmail?’
She smiled cynically. ‘You know exactly the right buttons to push, James Devereux. You knew I’d cave in once you brought Stacy and the baby into the equation.’
He made no attempt to deny it. ‘But Greg may not accept the job,’ he warned, ‘and even if he does, Stacy may not join forces with him.’
‘But my bank balance will look a lot healthier.’ She looked at him thoughtfully. ‘Why are you so keen to buy End House?’
‘If you sold to someone else it might not be maintained to Edenhurst standards. I approached your grandmother about it some time ago,’ he added, ‘but she told me to wait until the house was yours.’
Harriet nodded sadly. ‘She told me she was leaving it to me, but I couldn’t bear to talk about it. When did she tell you?’
‘I spotted your grandmother leaning against a farm gate at the entrance to Withy Lane one day when I was driving into the village. She accepted a ride with such relief I was worried. She was breathless and very pale, so I insisted on coming in the house with her. I wanted to call a doctor, but she wouldn’t hear of it. She put a pill under her tongue, and after fixing me with those big dark eyes you inherited, she admitted that she had a heart problem, but threatened to come back and haunt me if I told anyone about it.’
Harriet stared at him, arrested. ‘She knew she was ill as long ago as that?’
James nodded. ‘She had such a fright that day she took me into her confidence. I learned that your parents had died too young to make much provision for you, but at least End House and its contents would be yours to dispose of as you wished one day, along with enough funds to keep it going for six months to give you time to decide what to do with it.’
‘So you’ve known all along that the house would come to me,’ said Harriet quietly.
He nodded. ‘I knew the time was up about now, so once Tim told me you were spending the week here to make your decision I arranged the job interviews for the same time.’
‘I see. But if you’re in the middle of interviews how were you able to materialise at just the right moment yesterday?’
‘I was next door, checking on repairs needed to the roof. When I heard shouting and a baby crying, I barged through the hedge to see what was going on.’
‘So that’s why there’s a hole in it. I was going to report on that.’ She looked at him curiously. ‘Don’t you employ people to inspect your property?’
‘Of course I do. And in the others I leave the various estate managers to deal with it. It’s different here on my home territory. I prefer a hands-on approach at Edenhurst.’ James paused. ‘Has Tim ever shown you the apartment I converted from the stable block?’
‘No. On the rare occasions he’s come down here with me he won’t go near the house.’
James gave her a grim smile. ‘If he wouldn’t with you for company, he never will with me. I suppose I should be grateful he likes my flat in London.’
‘So much he could bore for Britain on the subject!’
‘You never come there with him, Harriet, no matter how often I invite you. I suppose I can guess why.’
She flushed. ‘Something else always seems to crop up.’
He smiled sardonically. ‘No need to fudge, Harriet. Tim told me you weren’t comfortable about coming to the ogre’s lair.’
‘He said that?’
‘No, the choice of phrase is mine.’ James gave her a straight look. ‘Now we’ve agreed to a truce, will you come with him next time I ask?’
‘All right.’ Harriet hesitated for a moment. ‘Look, James, if I ask you a question, will you tell me the truth, not just what you think I should know?’
‘If I can,’ he said warily.
‘Tim said you were here in Upcote when my grandmother died.’
‘Yes, I was.’
She looked at him in appeal. ‘I’ve never liked to ask you before, but do you know what actually happened? I was on holiday in Scotland. My flatmate’s parents own a cottage there. When I made it back here the vicar and his wife were very kind, but I had the feeling they were keeping something from me.’
His eyes softened. ‘Then I can set your mind at rest. I was next door with Alec Price, the estate manager, when I saw your grandmother in the garden and went out to talk over the hedge about her problem with moles. She was concerned about a cough I’d developed and told me to go home and take a hot toddy. She breathed in sharply mid-sentence, said she felt dizzy, and quietly fainted. Or so I thought. I vaulted over the hedge in my rush to get to her, and Alec called an ambulance. But when the paramedics arrived they couldn’t revive her. She’d gone.’ James reached for Harriet’s hand, his eyes warm with compassion. ‘She died in exactly the place she’d have chosen,’ he said gently. ‘One minute she was right here in the garden she loved, the next she was with the angels.’
‘Thank you,’ said Harriet gruffly, when she could trust her voice. ‘It’s a relief to know the truth.’
James looked at his watch and dropped her hand. ‘Damn. I’d better run.’
Harriet got up quickly. ‘Hang on a minute. What must I do to get the ball rolling about the sale?’
‘Come up to the house this evening. We can discuss it over dinner.’
She shook her head. ‘No, thanks. Could you just pop back here for a few minutes?’
His eyes frosted. ‘As you wish, Harriet, but it may be late.’
‘Whenever.’
Harriet felt a twinge of remorse after James left. She knew she’d offended him, but sheer vanity had prompted her refusal. For a formal place like the Edenhurst dining room she had nothing suitable to wear. Unless, she thought suddenly, he’d meant supper alone with him in the stable flat.
Harriet caught a bus to Cheltenham for lunch and window-shopping, bought a cuddly lion for Robert and, because her finances would be in good shape once James Devereux paid her for End House, had a look round the sales and bought a dress to put her in the mood for Dido’s party.
Tim rang when she got back.
‘Hi,’ said Harriet. ‘How’s gay Paree?’
‘Fabulous! After I sorted the business part with my artist we visited loads of galleries, including the Louvre, of course, and did tourist things together like the Eiffel Tower, and a boat trip along the Seine, and much wining and dining and so on. Anyway, enough about fascinating moi, how’s life in peaceful Upcote?’
‘Not all that peaceful.’ Harriet related her adventures with baby Robert and his parents, and surprised Tim by her description of James’ way of dealing with the situation.
‘Did he beat the bloke up?’ said Tim, dumbfounded.
‘Of course not. He just took him by the collar and frog-marched him outside.’
‘And how, my angel, did Jed just happen to be on hand to rescue you?’
‘He was next door and heard the noise. The boy was shouting and the baby was crying—’
‘Stop!