A Star Looks Down
Page 18
and encountered a smile to charm the heart out of her,
"Mar tina agrees with me.
' "It's very kind of you," she paused to steady her breath, 'but I'm
quite happy with the children, you know.
' "You would rather not come out with me?
' asked the profess or unfairly, seeing that his sister was listening
to every word.
"Nothing of the sort," she assured him, her colour a little high, 'only
it seemed to me that it wouldn't be a very restful day for you-you
looked tired when you arrived this mo ming; surely a day doing nothing
would do you much more good?
' He was amused behind his placid face.
"What sharp eyes you have.
Miss Partridge-no one else saw that.
Perhaps you might change your mind if I tell you that I can think of no
pleas anter way of spending my day than showing you my home.
' He smiled again.
"Ten o'clock?
' he suggested.
Short of saying no, which would have sounded ungracious and very rude,
she could do nothing else but accept gracefully.
It was a splendid opportunity to wear the new dress and Beth, surveying
herself in the mirror the next morning, thought, quite erroneously,
that its demure grey was most suitable; the type of dress which would
pass unnoticed without being dowdy.
In fact it emphasized her remarkable eyes to a degree which would have
satisfied any girl with an ounce of conceit; but conceit was something
Beth had never had; her stepbrother had seen to that.
It took a little while to explain her dressed-up person to the children
at breakfast, a meal taken in the playroom; she had barely finished
reassuring Alberdina and Hubert that she really would be coming back
that day when a cheerful bellow from the profess or sent her down to
the hall where he and his sister were waiting.
"That's a pretty dress," observed the profess or, and added: "Good
morning, Elizabeth.
' She wished them both a good day, replied suitably to Mevrouw Thor
becke's observance that it was a lovely morning, and accompanied the
profess or out to his car, with the children swarming around them, the
little girls to kiss her good-bye just once more and the boys to stare
at the magnificence of the Aston Martin and start on a spate of
questions, cut short by their uncle with a: "We're off--out of the way,
my dears--tot ziens.
' They went down the short drive to the accompaniment of shouted
good-byes and a forest of waving arms.
"A royal sendoff," commented the profess or.
"Anyone might think that we were off on our honeymoon.
' Unanswerable.
"A lovely day," Beth observed, wishing that they were.
"So Mar tina has already said, though she was referring to the weather;
I hope you mean something different, little Partridge.
' "It's very nice to be going out," said Beth woodenly, and added, in a
praiseworthy attempt at normal conversation: "I'm not sure where you
live--is it in Utrecht?
' "No, I work there most of the time, I told you that, I believe.
My home is in a very small village indeed, much smaller than Caundle
Bubb, and that's small enough, isn't it?
It's six miles from Utrecht and is called Dwaarstein.
We go over the Moerdijk to get to it.
.
.
' He talked on, mainly about the country they were passing through, so
that presently Beth relaxed and began to enjoy herself.
They stopped in Dordrecht for coffee, at a pleasant restaurant in the
centre of the town, and although her companion offered to spend a
little time there if she wished, she sensed that he wanted to get on;
and so did she; she wanted to see his home very badly, and still more,
she wanted to know more about him although she was sensible enough to
know that this was a foolish wish; the less she knew about him the
better.
But common sense was eclipsed for the moment.
She sat beside him, obediently looking at anything he pointed out to
her, and peeping, from time to time, at him.
When he wasn't looking, of course.
They were tearing along the motorway again, going through pleasant,
flat country, prettily wooded here and there, and from discussing the
scenery, the profess or had turned the conversation, almost unnoticed,
to more personal matters.
It was only after Beth had told him her rather vague plans for the
future that she realized that she was gabbling about herself, and
stopped so abruptly that he gave her a quick glance, slowed the car,
and asked: "A new bee in your bonnet, Beth?
' "What do you mean--a new bee?
' "Well, I have already discovered several, you know.
You have one about your quite charming face, have you not?
and one about seeing that William gets his chance in life, even at the
cost of your own wishes--I wonder how many new dresses you have forgone
in order to keep up his supply of waistcoats?
And you have one, a very large one, about the unsuitability of an
English nurse falling in love with a Dutch profess or.
' He ignored her gasp.
"And now, unless I am very much mistaken, I am faced with yet
another--a mistaken idea that I must be told nothing of your plans for
the future.
I can't think why.
' He sighed.
"Pride, I daresay.
' "Don't be ridiculous!
' she snapped, taking refuge in bad temper.
"And I thought that we were never going to mention.
' "Ah, yes--my lamentable memory.
' "But you said you had a very retentive brain.
.
' "True, but only when I want it to be.
' He swung the car off the motorway and under a fly over and emerged on
to the other side, on a much narrower country road.
"We're almost there--Utrecht is away to our right, about twelve miles
away.
I can reach it from Dwaarstein by another road.
' He turned off again, down a pretty, tree lined avenue, curving this
way and that for no reason but to allow for several charming villas to
be set in its curves.
Half-way down it the profess or turned once more, this time through an
open gateway with pillars on either side of it, running more slowly
now, between the trees and shrubs of a small wood.
It wasn't until they were almost at its end that Beth could see the
house, set a little to one side of a gravel sweep.
It was large and square, with rows of large windows and a wide door
reached by double steps.
The profess or drew up, got out and came round to open her door with an
economy of movement which drew her admiration.
So many men fussed around, kicking tyres and trying door handles, going
back to peer inside; he was one of the few men she had met who just got
into a car and drove away, and when he arrived, he got out again
without loss of time and no fuss at all.
He was an excellent driver, but he was excellent at everything.
.
She dragged her thoughts back to the present and looked about her.
"Well?
> ' asked her companion with a touch of impatience.
"It's beautiful," she told him, and meant it.
"It looks so solid and safe and although it's large it looks like a
home.
.
.
' She had forgotten him for a moment.
"In the winter, with lights in all the windows and children running
about.
.
.
' She stopped, feeling silly.
"I'm sorry, I was just daydreaming.
' He took her arm.
"I do the same thing myself," he assured her cheerfully.
"Come inside.
' There was an elderly man to open the door for them, and he reminded
her of someone.
"This is Silver," said the profess or,
"Mrs.
Silver's brother.
He married a Dutch girl and settled down here--he andRia run the place
for me.
I don't know what I should do without them.
' Silver smiled benignly, acknowledged Beth's greeting with a dignified
inclination of his balding head and ushered them into the hall, where
they were instantly set upon by the two dogs.
Gem and Mini, uttering little barks of pleasure while they allowed Bern
to rub their ears and stroke their well-groomed coats before
accompanying them across the hall, a roomy place, carpeted in crimson
and housing a selection of fine antique furniture under a massive
crystal chandelier, to a pair of doors which Silver flung open with
something of a flourish, to reveal a room of great magnificence,
furnished in muted colours which served to highlight the rose velvet
curtains draping the floor-length windows and with an immense hooded
fireplace with a tiled surround.
The walls were hung with painted leather and the carpet on the parquet
floor was an enormous Aubusson reflecting the rose colour of the
curtains; its furniture was a cunning mixture of comfort and
antiques.
"Oh," said Beth, 'how very grand--I mean, I didn't expect it, you
know.
I thought you would have a nice house, because the houses in England
are quite beautiful--but this house is different.
' "Old.
' The profess or spoke briefly.
"It's been in the family for a very long time, and of course we don't
see anything very unusual about it.
I was born here and I've lived here, on and off, all my life.
It's home to me.
' She blinked her pansy eyes at him.
"Oh, I know--don't think I don't like it, I think it's absolutely
super--what I meant was that you don't look like a person who lives so
grandly.
' She caught his eyes and smiled doubtfully.
"Have I made you angry?
I explained clumsily.
' He burst out laughing.
"Why should I be angry, dear girl?
That's the very last feeling you engender in me.
' He turned his head as the door opened and a tall, thin woman came
in.
"Ah, Ria, there you are.
Beth, this is Silver's wife, Ria.
She will take you upstairs.
I'll be here when you come down.
' She followed the housekeeper up the carved oak staircase which opened
out on to a long gallery andRia opened one of the doors in it and
smilingly invited her to enter.
The room was large too, probably all the rooms were, thought Beth,
going to look out of the window which looked out on to a well-tended
garden of some size, glowing with spring flowers and thickly fringed by
trees.
The two dogs ran across the grass as she looked, and there was a tabby
cat curled up on a garden seat.
She sighed unconsciously and took a look at herself in the great oval
mirror above the bow-fronted table and in one corner of the room, and,
dissatisfied with what she saw, pinned her hair back even more severely
and resumed her inspection of the room.
It was furnished daintily with a canopied bed, a tall-boy of rosewood,
some comfortable chairs and a table or two, and the curtains and
hangings were a pleasing combination of pale silks and chintz.
There was a very modern bathroom too, concealed behind a little door in
one wall, and yet another door led back into the gallery.
Beth picked up her handbag and went downstairs, walking slowly,
trailing a hand on the polished rail as she went.
The profess or was where she had left him, contemplating the garden.
He turned to look at her as she went in.
"You've been at your hair again," he said at once.
"Why do you drag it back so cruelly?
Such lovely hair too.
' She looked at him helplessly.
"T.
' she began, not knowing in the least what she was going to say.
She had armed herself against his charm, or so she had thought.
She had determined to forget the regrettable episode on the stairs, she
had made up her mind to get through the next week or so without
allowing herself the luxury of thinking of him in any way but as
someone she liked and wasn't likely to meet again, and here she was,
within ten minutes of being in his house, tongue tied.
If only he wouldn't be so kind!
She had no wish to be pitied; it was bad enough that he had guessed her
feelings for him before she had discovered them for herself.
She frowned quite fiercely and looked away from him.
"Did anyone tell you that your face betrays every thought in that head
of yours?
' he wanted to know, and crossed the room.
"Or is it that I can read them so well?
' "I expect," said Beth carefully, 'that you get very clever at that
being a surgeon.
' "I'm a man as well," he reminded her, and to make that quite clear,
bent to kiss her.
She kissed him back; as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb, and
just for a minute he held her close, looking down into her face.
"Why, I do believe you've got rid of the bees," he declared softly.
"Not really--I--I just got carried away.
' It was ridiculous how she could say such things to him and feel no
awkwardness at all; it was like talking to herself and far more
satisfactory.
"It's a funny thing," she went on thoughtfully,
"I should feel awful talking to you like this, shouldn't I, and I
don't.
I think I have no pride after all.
' He loosed her and took her arm and started walking towards the
door.
"Oh, but you have: "Trust thou thy love; if she be proud, is she not
sweet?"
That's your Rusk in describing you to a T. ' Beth had the sensation of
running downhill very fast.
She didn't look at him.
"I don't understand.
.
.
' "You are very sweet, Beth--you're proud too.
' He opened the door.
"Shall we look round the garden before we have lunch?
' It was silly to feel so disappointed, for what in heaven's name had
she expected him to say?
That was the worst of daydreaming, it made one foolish.
She swallowed her mortified feelings and said: "I should like that very
much," and ste
pped out into the sunshine with him.
The gardens were lovely; they wandered up and down the paths, stopping
to admire and examine and discuss the magnificent show of spring
flowers.
Beth was surprised when her companion admitted to a liking for
pottering amongst his flower beds.
"It's restful," he explained, 'and when I want to have a quiet think I
do it better out of doors.