and I are invited to a ball in a very swanky hotel. And you’ll need to bring something spectacular to wear. When I say swanky, I mean swanky. But I’ll need to get an invite for Scott.’
‘No, no need; he’ll head off on Christmas Eve to see his family. Now, tell me all about the ball, the swanky hotel and your sugar daddy.’
Holly told her about her lunch with Howard Redgrave. Julia was suitably impressed. ‘You seem to have a knack of finding the rich ones. So, should I be thinking about dumping Scott and trying to seduce this Howard person on Christmas Eve?’
‘I’ll give you my verdict after I’ve met Scott. So when’re you seeing him next?’
‘Tonight. At his place. He’s getting a takeaway and I’m the dessert.’
Despite having decided not to eat anything after the huge lunch she had had, Holly found she was feeling quite hungry after the walk. She opened the fridge and was trying to decide whether to have some cheese or some salad when the doorbell rang. Stirling got up and trotted over to the door, tail wagging. It was Jack.
‘Evening, Jack.’ She gave him a big smile, realising that she was really very pleased to see him; in fact, remarkably pleased to see him. She wondered about holding out her arms for a kiss, but decided against it.
He gave her a smile in return and walked in, reaching out to catch the dog’s paws as he reared up on his hind legs to greet him. ‘Hello, Stirling, old pal, old buddy. You’re looking good.’ He was carrying a bottle of Meursault. ‘As are you, Holly. I wondered if you felt like drinking some of that amazing wine you gave me. I opened this a few minutes ago and tasted it and I just had to share it with you.’ He set the bottle down on the table along with a small package wrapped in brown paper. ‘And, if you’ve nothing better to do and if you haven’t eaten yet, I brought some fresh goat’s cheese from a place I know down on the southern edge of the moor.’
‘I’ve been drinking all day. I really shouldn’t, but, seeing as it’s open…’ Holly went over to get two glasses, feeling very pleased to see Jack. He was wearing a baggy old fisherman’s jumper that badly needed darning around the wrists and his same faded jeans, but he still looked very good; very good indeed. He was clean shaven tonight and it made him appear five years younger. ‘Jack, tell me you were joking when you said you were thirty-eight.’
He looked up with a smile. ‘Nope. My birthday’s next week so, in little over a year’s time, I’ll be forty. For what it’s worth, you still look thirty-three.’ He grinned at her.
‘Thanks a lot. I know who not to ask next time I want a compliment.’
‘You don’t need compliments. You’re gorgeous and you know it. Now, do I put the cheese in the fridge or do you want to try it?’
Holly did her best to ignore the unexpected compliment. ‘Well, I was just thinking about having a little snack, and your cheese would be great. Thanks a lot for bringing it, by the way. If you’re happy with cold stuff, do stay and eat with me. I’d like the company. I’ve got some good bread, some olives and some duck pâté. That should go well with the cheese.’
He raised a finger to his lips. ‘Shh, we don’t want Mr Mallard out there to hear that we’re eating one of his relatives.’ After washing his hands at the sink, he came over and took a seat at the table, opposite her.
He filled the two glasses and passed one across to her. The wine was very good indeed. She caught his eye. ‘I’ve had an exciting day. I was invited for lunch today by a man called Howard Redgrave.’ She immediately saw that he knew the old man. ‘We were drinking unbelievably expensive wines, but this one stands up to comparison very well.’ She smiled. ‘And I’m not just saying that because I bought it.’
‘Did you get a ride in the Roller?’
‘All 7.7 litres of her. Phenomenal.’
‘Howard’s a lovely old chap. He and your father were very close. I often got invited for meals with them and some of the wines they put on the table were out of this world.’
Holly got up and busied herself with cutting bread and getting cutlery and plates. She also filled a jug with water from the tap and set it down on the table along with another couple of glasses. Any more wine and she really would fall over. She made sure that he helped himself to food and poured glasses of water for them both before picking up a piece of bread and pâté. She nibbled it as they chatted amicably. Holly found she managed to eat more than she had expected, but she soon started to flag. Finally, she lifted her napkin off her lap and sat back. Jack was still chewing his way through some bread and cheese.
‘Jack, did you know my dad married again?’ She wasn’t totally sure why she asked him. Maybe it was just because she felt remarkably relaxed in his company. He looked up in surprise, swallowed, and wiped his mouth with his napkin.
‘Yes I did. I wasn’t sure if you did, though, so I’ve rather kept off the subject.’
Holly nodded. ‘I only found out this morning. I was checking his firm out on the internet and there was a photo of him with her.’ She looked up into his amazing eyes. They were more green than blue today and she found herself comparing them with Justin’s warm brown eyes. She could happily have kept that thought going, but she returned to the matter in hand. ‘Do you know what I realised? She looks very much like my mum. I’ve been thinking about that. Did he tell you he and Lynda knew each other as kids?’ Jack nodded. ‘When they were separated, when she went off to Australia, he then either consciously or subconsciously chose another woman who looked like her.’ She was still looking into his eyes. ‘My mum didn’t stand a chance, really, did she? As far as my dad was concerned, she was the next best thing.’ She felt the emotion building and struggled to stay objective.
‘It can’t have been easy for her – the break-up.’ Jack took another sip of wine. ‘Especially with a little child.’
Holly nodded, taking a few deep breaths. ‘To be totally honest, over this last fortnight, since I heard about my dad’s death and then coming here and starting to get to know him better, I’ve been feeling more and more bitter towards my mum for keeping me away from him. But, now that I know the truth about what happened, I find myself torn. On the one hand, I sympathise with my dad for having had to choose between two women he loved and, on the other hand, I now realise the depth of the trauma my mum must have gone through. I’m not sure I wouldn’t have done the same as her. In her mind, any man who could treat her and her child so callously, must have been a complete and utter bastard, and she must have felt she was protecting me by keeping us apart.’ She wiped a hand over her eyes and picked up her wine.
Jack reached across the table and took her hand. The fact that he was touching her only served to further stir her emotions. ‘I never met your mum, Holly, but she must have been quite some lady. Keeping it all together after a blow like that took guts, and bringing you up, all on her own, must have been tough.’ He gave her hand a little squeeze and smiled at her. ‘And she did a really good job on you.’
Then he released her hand and concentrated on finishing his cheese while Holly got herself under control again. She reached for a tissue and blew her nose. After a few minutes, she took a few big mouthfuls from her water glass and changed the subject. Maybe now was the moment to get him to open up a bit more about himself. She looked across the table at him.
‘Tell me, Jack, what is it you do apart from hauling logs and reading history books?’ She saw him hesitate and then, after a pause, he told her.
‘I’m a writer.’ She waited for more, but got nothing. She gave it a few more moments and then did a bit of digging.
‘So, what sort of writer are you? Books, magazine articles, comics, undiscovered, bestseller or what?’
‘None of the above, really. I write screenplays.’
‘Really? Anything I might have seen?’
‘Depends how often you go to the cinema, but maybe.’
‘Go