‘I’m Rose Taylor,’ Rose introduced herself. Cool grey eyes swept over her and this time Rose could tell Lord Cavendish’s guest was taking in her clothes, her haircut, assessing the cost and then wondering what on earth she was doing with the son of a lord.
‘I work with Jonathan. I’m his nurse.’ Now, why had she said that? It was none of this woman’s business.
The grey eyes narrowed and she nodded to herself as if something had been cleared up.
‘How do you do, Miss Taylor?’ The voice was as cool as the eyes and Rose noticed she didn’t bother to introduce herself. ‘Did cook manage to rustle up some dandelion tea? She certainly had enough time.’
Hadn’t this woman taken in a thing Rose had said? For the first time in her life she found herself detesting someone on sight.
‘I’m afraid Mary isn’t feeling well,’ she said stiffly. ‘Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll leave you to your tea.’
She found Jonathan and his father deep in conversation. Rose could sense the strained atmosphere between father and son.
‘Mary needs to rest, Father. For at least a week, possibly longer.’
‘And I’ve tried to tell her that on more than one occasion, but she won’t listen to me.’
‘When did you tell her? You’ve hardly been here over the last six months,’ Jonathan said sharply. The two men noticed Rose and stopped their conversation abruptly.
‘Father, can I introduce Rose Taylor? Rose, this is my father, Lord Cavendish.’ Rose suppressed the inane desire to curtsy.
‘I apologise for my lack of manners upstairs,’ he said. ‘I was anxious to check on Mary myself and to see my son. Who…’ he shot a look in Jonathan’s direction ‘…hasn’t seen fit to visit for quite some time.’
‘Now is not the time or place, Father,’ Jonathan said warningly. It was the first time Rose had seen him look so grim. Something was clearly badly wrong between father and son.
‘You are quite right, Jonathan. Now, if you’ll both excuse me, I’d better find Mrs Hammond and see what can be done to find someone to fill in for Mary while she’s resting.’
As soon as he had left, Rose turned to Jonathan. His normal open and cheerful expression was tight. ‘How is she?’
‘I think she has mild ischaemic heart disease. I want to arrange to have her admitted to hospital for proper tests, but she’s not keen. But I’ve threatened to call an ambulance if she doesn’t agree. Father’s right. I should have called in here more often, especially when he’s away.’
‘Look, why don’t you make some calls, and I’ll go and check on Mary? Add my voice to yours if you think it would make a difference.’
‘I’m sorry to have got you mixed up in this.’ He grinned ruefully. ‘So much for me trying to give you a relaxing day out away from work.’
He looked so regretful Rose’s heart went out to him.
‘I don’t mind being mixed up in this, as you put it. Isn’t that what friends are for? To help each other?’
Jonathan looked perplexed. ‘Is it?’ he said thoughtfully. ‘I wouldn’t know. I can’t say I’ve ever had to rely on my friends before. They’re always there when I need to let off steam and that’s all I ever expected from them.’ He smiled down at her. ‘You’re a good person, Rose Taylor. You know that, don’t you?’
Ah, well, Rose thought dismally. It was good that Jonathan knew she was his friend—even if he didn’t want her as his lover.
She found Mary right at the top of the house, several flights up. The older woman was sitting at the window, looking out at the garden. She folded her arms across her chest and glared at Rose.
‘If you have come up here to try and persuade me to go into hospital, you’re wasting your time. And you can tell Master Jonathan that from me.’ She pursed her lips.
‘You will probably only have to go in for a night, two at the most. Just while they do some tests. Then you can come back here, although I’m going to suggest that you move to a room that doesn’t require quite as many stairs.’
‘There’s nowt wrong with this room. I’ve been in here since the day I started work thirty years ago and I see no reason to move now.’ She blinked furiously, but she couldn’t quite disguise the moisture in her eyes.
‘What is it, Mary? What’s truly worrying you? Come on, you can tell me.’
‘If I leave here, I’ll never come back. That woman down there with Lord Cavendish will persuade him to employ someone younger. I know she will. She’s only been here a couple of days and already I can see that’s she’s imagining herself as the next Lady Cavendish.’
So that was what was worrying the old woman. Somehow Rose knew that Jonathan would never let that happen.
‘This place is as much my home as anyone’s. I don’t have anywhere else to go. The only way I want to leave here is in a box.’
‘How long have you been hiding your symptoms, Mary?’
‘A month, maybe two. I thought it was indigestion at first. Then the pain started to get worse whenever I had to climb the stairs, so I knew it must be my heart.’
‘Why didn’t you call Jonathan? You must have known he’d be concerned enough to come and see you straight away.’
‘Oh, he’s got enough on his plate without me bothering him with my little problems. Anyway…’ she leaned across and dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. ‘I can’t make myself believe he’s actually a doctor. Not the boy I’ve watched grow up. It doesn’t seem right somehow.’
Rose pulled up a seat and sat down.
‘You seem very fond of him,’ she said.
‘The poor mite was only little when his mother died. I’m probably the nearest, most constant person he had in his life as a child. Whenever he was home from school, he’d spend more time at the kitchen table with me than upstairs. When he wasn’t running around outside, that was.’
‘What about Lord Cavendish?’
‘He was distraught when Jonathan’s mother died. But his way of dealing with it was to throw himself into work. He couldn’t see that Jonathan needed him more than ever. Then six months after Jonathan’s mother died, Lord Cavendish returned from an overseas trip married to the second Lady Cavendish. That didn’t last too long. He divorced the third wife a year or so ago, and now it looks as if he’s preparing to marry again.’
‘His fourth marriage?’ Rose couldn’t keep the shock from her voice. ‘Surely that’s a little excessive?’
‘Ah, well. He always did have an eye for the women.’ She moved her gaze back to the window and her eyes glistened. ‘I don’t think he’s ever got over the first Lady Cavendish. Now, she was a real lady. Not in the sense of being from aristocracy, you understand, her own background was quite humble, but in terms of knowing how to treat people.’ She pointed a gnarled finger to the floor. ‘That woman will never compete in a hundred years.’
There was a tap at the door and Jonathan walked into the room. With a guilty start, Rose realised she had been gossiping.
‘How’s my favourite girl, then?’ Jonathan said. ‘Has Rose managed to talk you into going to the hospital?’
Before Mary had a chance to protest, Rose interrupted smoothly. ‘I think Mary will agree to go to the hospital. She’s just a wee bit worried that your father will replace her while she’s away.’
It looked as if a thundercloud had descended on Jonathan’s face. ‘Whatever gave you that idea? I agree you could do with more help, but no one is thinking of replacing you. This house would fall down without you to look after it—and us. You’ve been here as long as I can remember. It’s your home, Mary. Don’t ever forget that.’
Mary looked relieved but then her mouth puckered. ‘But it’s not just to do with you, Master Jonathan, is it? At least, not for some time. Right now your father makes the decisions, and if he marries again, it’ll be the new Lady Cavendish’s wishes that take precedence.’
‘My father might have his faults, Mary, Lord knows, but he’ll never agree to replacing you.’ His eyes narro
wed. ‘I had no idea he was planning to marry again.’
‘Now, don’t you go saying anything,’ Mary protested. ‘It’s not official yet. At least, he’s not said as much. It’s just I heard his guest speaking on the phone. She was telling them not to make plans for the summer because she was planning a big party.’
Jonathan’s lips thinned. ‘You leave my father to me, Mary. Come on, I’m going to drive you to the hospital. They’re expecting us. If you want to get a few things together, I’ll let my father know what’s happening.’ He turned to Rose. ‘I can’t apologise enough, but there’s only room in my car for Mary and I. If I ask my father to take you to the railway station, would you manage to find your own way home from there?’
‘Of course. Really, it’s no problem.’ She smiled. ‘It’s far more important that Mary gets investigated, and the sooner the better.’ She got to her feet. ‘We’ll leave you alone to pack your things, Mary. Take your time. There’s no rush.’
Jonathan still looked livid when they left Mary. ‘I need to go and find my father. It shouldn’t take too long. Would you like to wait downstairs?’
‘I think I’ll take a stroll in the garden while I’m waiting. And if it’s inconvenient for your father to take me to the station, perhaps you can call me a taxi?’
‘He’ll take you,’ Jonathan responded grimly. ‘One thing you can say about my father is that his manners are impeccable.’
The grounds of the hall were as lavish as the inside. Rose kept close to the house in case she was needed. To her right, a small rose-coloured archway invited her to explore. She dipped her head and entered a small hidden garden. She gasped with pleasure. Someone had taken the time to make this little spot less formal than the rest of the gardens. It was a mass of flowers and the smell of rosemary, lavender and mint drifted up her nostrils. Seeing a bench with views out to the open hills off to one side, Rose took a seat and closed her eyes.
Something was badly wrong between Jonathan and his father. She wondered if he’d have taken her to the house, or even to the gatehouse, if he’d known his father was at home. Somehow she felt sure he wouldn’t have. How could someone not get on with their father? Especially when he was the only family member Jonathan had left. Rose couldn’t remember ever having cross words with her parents.
She was beginning to realise that Jonathan was a much more complex man than she had ever imagined and she knew that every moment she spent with him she was falling deeper and deeper in love. The realisation was not a welcome one.
Voices drifted from the open window behind her. She recognised Jonathan’s and his father’s. Both men sounded heated.
‘How can you think of marrying yet again?’ Jonathan’s voice was raised.
‘What I choose to do with my life is none of your goddamn business. And speaking of marriage, when are you going to stop seducing every woman on the planet and get into a real relationship? You can’t carry on the way you do for the rest of your life. At some point you’re going to accept you have responsibilities.’
‘That’s rich, coming from you.’
Rose got to her feet. The last thing she wanted was to overhear the argument between father and son. She started to edge away from the window.
‘What about that prissy little thing you brought with you? She looks like she has a sensible head. Why, for God’s sake, can’t you find someone like her to settle down with?’
Rose froze in mid-stride. This was so embarrassing. How dare Lord Cavendish refer to her as prissy? Even if she supposed there was an element of truth in the description. But she had to admit she was dying to know how Jonathan would respond.
‘Rose? As the future Lady Cavendish?’ Jonathan laughed harshly. ‘Now you mention it, she’d be a lot more suitable than the last two you chose to marry. At least she has brains and a kind heart under that prissy exterior, as you call it. I can tell you she’s worth a hundred of the women you married after Mother.’
Lord Cavendish dropped his voice and Rose could hear the sadness and regret in it. ‘Why are we always arguing, son? You know I need your help. I’m not getting any younger and running my businesses as well as this estate is getting too much.’
‘Are you all right? You’ve not being feeling ill, have you? When did you last have a check-up?’ This time it was Jonathan’s voice that was full of concern. Despite their earlier angry words, Rose could tell the two men cared about one another.
‘I’m fine. I promise. I’d feel a lot better if I knew that you were settling down. You can’t keep on living the way you do. God, man, your name is in the paper every other day. Always with a different woman. You need to get married—have children. I need to know before I die that there is going to be someone to carry on the family line.’
‘You’re a fine person to talk.’ The anger was back in Jonathan’s voice. ‘Is that why you married Mother? Just to provide an heir for the future? My God, didn’t you love her at all?’
‘Love her? Of course I loved her. She was the best thing that ever happened to me.’
‘Which is why you married again within six months of her death.’
Rose couldn’t bear to hear any more. She tiptoed away until she could no longer hear the voices and waited by the front door of the house. She was tingling as she recalled the words Jonathan had used to describe her. Kind and clever. Well, she hoped she was. But she would have liked to hear herself described as beautiful and sexy as well, even if it was untrue. This way she felt like Jonathan’s sister and that wasn’t how she wanted him to see her at all. She wanted someone to find her exciting and interesting. She wanted Jonathan to find her exciting and interesting. If she didn’t have a future, she wanted a here and now. And why not? Where had playing safe got her? She felt her blood heat her veins. Prissy. She’d give them prissy. She could be as exciting and interesting as the next woman and with a bit of help—possibly a lot of help—she could do sexy as well. It was as if she’d been sleeping up until the moment she’d realised her life could be snatched away at any time. Now she wanted to wake up and experience life before it was too late. And who better to show her that life than Jonathan Cavendish? After all, it wasn’t as if she could break his heart.
Chapter Seven
‘I CAN’T wait for it! Do you think there’ll be loads of celebrities there?’ Jenny was practically bouncing out of her chair with excitement. Jonathan had informed everyone that he was taking a table at the annual fundraising ball and they were all invited. It had been on the tip of Rose’s tongue to refuse, but instead she had found herself agreeing. What harm could it do? And it was one more thing to add to her list. Besides, it was another opportunity to be with Jonathan outside work and although she knew she was storing up heartache for the future, she couldn’t bring herself to deny herself a moment of him.
‘I get the feeling there will be one or two.’ Rose had to smile at Jenny’s enthusiasm.
‘We’ll have to go shopping for something to wear,’ Jenny said. ‘And you’ll have to go to the hairdresser.’ She pulled out her mobile. ‘You must go to mine. He’s fantastic. He’ll know exactly what to do with your hair.’
‘What’s wrong with my hair?’ Rose protested. She eyed her colleague doubtfully, recalling the spiky hairdo she usually sported outside her job. If Jenny thought she was going to go punk, she had another think coming.
Jenny looked at Rose thoughtfully. ‘I would die for hair like yours. It’s just a little old-fashioned, you know. It could do with an update. In fact, and I don’t mean to be rude or anything, the whole of you could do with an update.’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘That cardigan you’re so fond of wearing, for example. That has to go.’
‘Hey, there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s warm and comfortable,’ Rose protested.
‘And makes it seem as if you’re wearing a sack. Come on, Rose. You don’t want to look like someone’s maiden aunt. Not when all those glamorous people are going to be there.’ She held up her hand, cutting Rose’s protests off. ‘You will not
let the side down. I simply won’t allow it.’
Dowdy? Someone’s maiden aunt? Now she had two more derogatory adjectives to add to the steadily growing list. Up until recently nobody had ever complained about the way she looked. Or complimented her either, she had to admit. But she hadn’t minded. Hadn’t she always told herself that external appearances weren’t important? But this was the new Rose, she reminded herself. The one who was determined to break out of her shell. Hadn’t she promised herself to try different things? And if that included a new image, so be it.
By Saturday afternoon, Rose had been done to within an inch of her life. Jenny’s hairdresser had cut her hair into a sharp modern style while keeping it long. He had parted it to one side and now it fell over one side of her face. If she had to keep blowing out little puffs of hair so she could see what she was doing—as Jenny had said, what did it matter if she looked chic and alluring? But the hair over her eyes wasn’t the only thing obscuring her vision. Jenny had insisted that no way was she allowed to wear her glasses. She had marched her to the optician and Rose was now trying contact lenses. She finally managed to get them in and blinked furiously as water streamed from her eyes. She’d give them until she had to apply her make-up and if they hadn’t settled it was on with the glasses. The last thing she needed was to turn up looking like she had spent the day crying.
She and Jenny had been shopping for a dress and eventually, after what had seemed like hours of tramping around London, had settled on a silky, two-tone red number that shimmered as Rose walked.
‘Wow! I had no idea you had a figure like that underneath those dreadful clothes you insist on wearing,’ Jenny had said. ‘I could diet for a year and still not have a body like that. Why on earth do you cover it up?’
‘I’m too thin,’ Rose had said. ‘I hate the way my bones stick out all over the place. They used to call me pin legs when I was in school. Someone even accused me of being anorexic.’ The memory brought painful feelings flooding back. At school she had been teased for being too thin and she had never lost that gawky, unattractive feeling. Now all the worries and anxieties about the way she looked seemed so petty and pointless. And Jenny was right. The dress did amazing things to her figure. The way it hung, the way it moved when she moved. For the first time in her life, Rose felt glamorous.
Prince Charming of Harley Street / The Heart Doctor and the Baby Page 11
