Heir to Glengyle

by Miriam Macgregor

  The glance Lola flashed from Cathie to Amy held barely concealed resentment which plainly told them they were de trop, then she turned again to Baird. ‘Those were not the main subjects I wanted to talk about,’ she said plaintively. ‘There’s a much more important issue to be discussed, especially with your mother due to arrive soon. She’ll have questions.’ She looked at him pleadingly. ‘Perhaps we could be alone after dinner?’

  He sent her a fleeting smile, then yawned as he said, ‘After dinner I have but a single ambition, and that is to unpack my suitcase and go to bed. In fact I’ll probably leave the case until the morning.’

  ‘Your case—’ Lola’s eyes darted to the brooch and earrings that gleamed on Cathie’s lapel and twinkled on the lobes of her ears. ‘I think you have something for me in your case,’ she said slowly and in a knowing tone, then she went on in a coy matter, ‘Something such as a nice pressie—perhaps a flower without perfume? You see—I can be very good at guessing.’

  Baird’s face remained unscrutable as he said, ‘Actually, I did bring a gift for you. I’ll fetch it.’

  He left the table and during his absence the three women sat in silence. Lola had a smile of satisfaction playing about her lips, but Cathie suspected it would not remain there for long. Nor did she fail to recognise the square shape of the tissue-wrapped object that Baird placed on the table before Lola.

  The blonde girl’s fingers felt it in an exploratory manner, then her eyes questioned Baird as she said, ‘It’s a strange shape for a box containing a—a flower—’

  ‘Open it,’ he cut in curtly.

  When the wrapping was removed she sat back to stare at the vivid colours that flashed and changed with movement. ‘It’s—it’s a paperweight!’ she exclaimed with ill-concealed disappointment.

  Amy leaned closer to peer at it. ‘It’s really beautiful—and it looks as if it’s quite heavy.’ she remarked.

  Lola’s voice was plaintive. ‘Yes, it is heavy—and I must say I was expecting something entirely different.’ Again her eyes rested upon Cathie’s gold orchid brooch before she said in a cool tone that failed to echo the slightest hint of pleasure or appreciation, ‘Thank you, Baird. Thank you for struggling home with a ton weight when you could’ve carried something quite—light.’

  Baird shrugged. ‘If you don’t like it, or have no wish to keep it, just leave it on the mantelpiece,’ he said in a sardonic tone.

  Cathie hardly heard his words. Her mind back in Crieff, she just sat looking at the paperweight while recalling those moments of sitting in the car in the factory’s parking area. She remembered being drawn towards the colourful object in the display room, and later she had felt its shape before removing the tissue paper. And then she had refused to accept it. How could she have been such a dolt—such a stupid nincompoop?

  Baird’s voice came softly. ‘Is something troubling you, Cathie?’

  Startled, she turned to find him regarding her intently. Had her expression betrayed her thoughts? It was more than possible that he had guessed where they’d been, therefore she decided to be frank and, sending him a rueful smile, she said, ‘I was recalling the time when I made an idiotic mistake.’

  He flicked a glance towards the paperweight. ‘You mean when—?’

  She nodded.

  ‘Thank you for admitting that much,’ he said gravely.

  Had he been hurt by Lola’s lack of enthusiasm over the gift? Cathie wondered. Had he realised that Lola had been hoping for a brooch and earring set similar to the one he’d purchased for herself? Flowers without perfume, she’d said, thereby giving a direct hint of her expectations—so how could he have missed that particular point?

  Lola then caught everyone’s attention. She heaved a great sigh as she began to rewrap the paperweight in its tissue paper, then she left the table and placed the gift on the dining room mantelpiece as Baird had suggested. Turning to face him, she said, ‘I’m ready to go home now—if you’ll see me through the darkness to my door.’

  ‘Yes, sure—I’ll find a torch.’ He stood up and left the room.

  Lola followed him without a backward glance at either Cathie or Amy, or even at the rejected gift on the mantelpiece.

  ‘I think she’s awful,’ Amy hissed in a low voice that was tense with indignation. ‘She should have accepted it gracefully, whether or not she liked it.’

  ‘I’m afraid it was jealousy and anger because he hadn’t brought her an orchid brooch,’ Cathie said, still recalling her own rejection of the paperweight. But those circumstances had been different. At the time she had looked upon it as a bribe to do whatever he had in mind.

  She stood up and began to clear the dishes from the table, placing them on a trolley which she pushed out to the kitchen. They were rinsed at the sink, then stacked into the dishwasher, and as she busied herself with this task her thoughts were with Baird and Lola. And with each passing minute the thoughts became more painful.

  Out in the darkness—was he promising to send for the brooch set at once? Were their differences being wiped away while he held her against him and covered her face with kisses? Was she clinging to him in an ecstasy of joy? At any moment Cathie expected the door to be flung open while Lola rushed in to retrieve the paperweight.

  Carried away by her imagination, she was surprised when the door opened sooner than she had expected and Baird stepped into the room. She stared at his face, which was pale and drawn with weariness from jet-lag and lack of sleep, then she asked, ‘There was trouble?’

  He nodded. ‘If stamping and weeping can be looked upon as trouble, then yes, there was a spot of bother.’ His mouth tightened as he came nearer to stare down into her face. ‘I’m surprised that you would deliberately tell her I gave you those baubles.’

  Her fingers went to the brooch. ‘They are not baubles—and I didn’t tell her you gave them to me,’ she protested.

  ‘Then how did she know?’ His voice had become hard.

  ‘You can ask Amy. She was here at the time.’ Cathie turned with an appeal to the older woman who had entered the room in time to hear Baird’s accusation.

  Amy gave a short laugh. ‘It was easy for Lola to guess, Baird. She demanded to know if you had given the brooch to Cathie, and I asked if there was any reason why you shouldn’t have done so. It was as simple as that. Nobody actually told her you had.’

  ‘Thank you, Amy.’ Cathie shot a reproachful glance at Baird, then turned to put the detergent in the dishwasher. She switched the machine into action, then faced him again. ‘And thank you for thinking so badly of me at the flick of that woman’s tongue. Can’t you see she was madly jealous? Why don’t you marry her and put her out of her green-eyed misery?’

  Amy’s stick tapped the floor impatiently. ‘Don’t be silly, Cathie. Baird knows that to marry Lola would be to make the mistake of his life. She is not suitable for him.’

  Baird laughed. ‘Dear Amy—I’ll rely on you to convey that message to my mother, if it’s at all possible.’

  ‘I’ll do my best,’ she returned quietly. ‘By the way, you’ll find a call to Levin on your phone bill. I rang Cathie’s mother, and tomorrow she will bring my sister to see me. They’ll be here for lunch. I hope that’s all right?’

  ‘Of course it’s all right—but is there suitable food in the house? We’re sure to need more milk.’

  Cathie said, ‘I noticed a corner minimarket that’s not too far away. I’ll visit it in the morning.’

  ‘I’ll drive you,’ Baird promised. ‘You’re certain to buy more than you can carry.’

  She looked at him gratefully. ‘Thank you. In that case I’ll be able to buy fresh vegetables for coleslaw and potato salad, as well as bacon, eggs and milk for the quiche.’

  ‘And cheese,’ Amy added, sounding satisfied. ‘Now if you’ll excuse me I’ll be away to my bed. No, there’s no need for you to come with me, I can manage,’ she said to Cathie as she left them.

  ‘If you need me, bang with your stick,’ Cathie called
after the older woman as she went up the stairs.

  Amy’s voice floated back, ‘Thank you, dear—I’ll do that.’

  Baird said grimly, ‘I well remember the last time she banged on the wall with her stick. We were about to make love—or have you wiped the incident from your mind?’

  ‘What makes you so sure I’d have agreed?’ she demanded, making a vain effort to snatch at her dignity.

  He gripped her shoulders and stared down into her face, his brown eyes seeming to burn with an inner fire. ‘The fact that you were ready and willing to be loved. You wanted me as much as I wanted you. It’s useless to deny it, because your longing spoke louder than anything you could say.’

  Her cheeks became rosy as she tried to turn her head away, but his strong fingers beneath her chin brought it back to face him. And then his lips covered her own, causing the blood to leap in her veins and her nerves to tingle as his fingers kneaded their way down her spine.

  As the kiss ended he drew a deep breath, then murmured in her ears, ‘A man becomes hungry for love—’

  She was more than aware of his arousal, which had kindled wild sensations near the pit of her stomach, but she forced herself to speak calmly as she said, ‘Well, you’re home now. There’s no need to fear further starvation.’

  He gazed at her intently, his eyes narrowing slightly while trying to fathom her meaning. ‘What are you saying? Are you telling me that you’ll—that you’ll—?’

  She smiled, shaking her head. ‘Oh, no—I don’t mean me. I mean Lola next door. You’ll be able to continue your twice or thrice-a-week session, or whatever happens to be your—er—special need.’

  He gaped at her in a slightly dumbfounded manner before gritting furiously, ‘Heaven give me strength! For your information, I have not yet made love with Lola. Do you imagine I’m half-witted enough to give her that sort of stranglehold on me? She’d declare herself pregnant and the noose would be round my neck.’

  Cathie said sweetly, ‘Your mother would be delighted.’

  ‘Mother doesn’t really know the true Lola,’ he said with a yawn.

  She regarded him critically. ‘You should go to bed. You’re almost asleep on your feet.’

  ‘How about coming with me?’

  ‘What? With your girlfriend crying her eyes out over the fence? Not likely—thank you.’

  ‘Now hear this. She is not my girlfriend. If Lola meant anything to me I wouldn’t be kissing you like this—’ His arms went about her again and for the next few moments the world seemed to stand motionless. But suddenly he released her and strode from the room in an abrupt manner.

  * * *

  Next morning Baird drove Cathie to the corner minimarket, and as he pulled a shining trolley from the row near the entrance he said, ‘Noel Robson, who owns this place, is an old mate of mine. We were at school together. I’ll say hello to him while you choose what you need.’ Then, leaving her, he strode towards the office.

  She went to the vegetable area, where she selected young cabbage, celery, carrots, onions and radishes for the coleslaw she intended to make, and then she turned her attention to other commodities on her list. At this early hour there were few people in the shop, therefore she was surprised to turn a corner and see Lola.

  The blonde woman stood in a secluded area where makeup was displayed. Her back was turned towards Cathie while examining a small article in her hand, and even as Cathie pondered whether to go forward or retrace her steps she saw Lola glance rapidly from left to right and then slip the item into the pocket of her jacket.

  The action shocked her. Lola was shoplifting? Should she report the incident to the owner of the shop? And then doubts began to nag at her. Had the item been from the display—or had it been something already belonging to Lola? A fine fool she’d look if the latter were the case.

  She completed her purchases then found Baird waiting for her near the checkout. He was with Lola, who gazed up into his face while chatting with animation, and as though the unpleasantness of the previous evening had never occurred. Cathie spoke to her politely, but found herself completely ignored.

  This deliberate rudeness annoyed Cathie to the extent of forcing her to say, ‘I saw you at the makeup corner, Lola, but apparently you failed to see me.’

  The grey eyes widened a fraction as Lola caught her breath. ‘What do you mean?’ she demanded coldly.

  ‘I mean what I say. I saw you—and what you did.’

  Lola’s face became red. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about—but whatever it is it’s sure to be lies. Goodbye, Baird—it’s time I went home.’ She began to walk away.

  He called after her, ‘Lola, can I give you a lift?’

  She stopped and shouted at him, ‘Not with her in the car, thank you very much.’ Then she hastened on again.

  Cathie followed Baird to where the car was parked. She noticed the tightness of his jaw, and she knew that he was not only puzzled by the exchange that had passed between Lola and herself, but also annoyed by Lola’s refusal to accept a ride home. Instinct warned that questions were to come. Nor was she mistaken.

  They got into the car but before switching on the ignition he turned to her abruptly. ‘Well—what was all that about?’

  She tried to look and sound innocent. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘You know jolly well what I mean. You upset Lola. You caused her to take off like a startled rabbit.’

  ‘Lola upset me. She snubbed me, or didn’t you notice?’

  ‘So you retaliated with a remark that irritated her.’ He frowned thoughtfully then admitted, ‘I’m unable to recall that you said anything that could have really annoyed her.’

  ‘Not unless it had a particular significance. I merely said, “I saw what you did.”’

  ‘That’s what upset her? So—what did you see?’

  ‘I saw her shoplifting,’ Cathie informed him quietly.

  He stared at her with shocked incredulity. ‘Lola—? Shoplifting—? I don’t believe it.’ The words came angrily.

  She shrugged but said nothing.

  He eyed her narrowly. ‘Why didn’t you report it to Noel Robson, or even to me?’

  ‘Because I wasn’t sufficiently certain that the object she put in her jacket pocket was from the makeup display—or something that had previously been in her pocket.’

  ‘Which is quite possible,’ he said in defence of Lola.

  ‘That’s right. But it was her rudeness that made me put her to the test by letting her know I’d observed her action. And you saw what happened,’ Cathie reminded him.

  ‘OK—so what did happen? I’m somewhat confused.’

  ‘Well, naturally, she feared I’d tell you, so she accused me of telling lies before I could even open my mouth to do so. Lies about what? you might ask. They could only be about what I’d seen.’

  He shook his head in a bewildered manner. ‘Lola—I’ve known her for so long—it’s impossible to believe she’d steal from Noel.’ Then he turned to glare at Cathie, rasping through tight lips, ‘I presume this is the truth, and not just a pack of lies as she suggested?’

  She stared at him aghast. ‘Why would I lie about it?’

  ‘Because you don’t like Lola, and I know you started off on the wrong foot as far as she’s concerned. But this accusation is serious.’

  She felt stung that he should think she’d stoop to such petty spite. It proved beyond all possible doubt that his faith in her integrity simply did not exist, and this caused a deep hurt because she was now admitting to herself that she liked him—and she wanted to know that he trusted her.

  Speaking in a low, tense voice, she said, ‘I know that you and Lola have been friends for a long time, and I can understand your reluctance to believe anything against her. But please remember that apart from telling you of my suspicions I have made no actual accusation, either to Lola or to anyone else.’

  ‘I should damn well hope you’ll keep your mouth shut about it,’ he snarled.

 
‘Very well—but perhaps you can tell me why the mere suggestion of having been observed sent her slithering away like a red-faced snake.’ The last words, coming with a rush, were an indication of her mounting anger, but the moment they were uttered she knew the simile had been an unfortunate one, because Baird made no secret of his wrath.

  ‘Lola is not a snake,’ he lashed at her. ‘As you say, we’ve been friends for a long time, therefore I’ll thank you to remember it. Do you understand?’

  ‘I’m sorry, Baird. I’ve only told you what I saw.’

  ‘Or think you saw,’ he snapped. ‘OK—you’ve had your say. I don’t want to hear any more because I don’t believe a word of it.’

  The car jerked forward and Cathie sat in miserable silence while Baird drove home at speed. When they reached the house he snatched up the bags of groceries and vegetables, hurried inside and dumped them on the bench.

  The action was an indication of the fury still simmering within him, and his expression was bleak as he said, ‘I doubt that I’ll be home for lunch.’ He then left the kitchen with a slam of the back door.

  Cathie hated to see him in this black mood, and in an effort to make amends she rushed after him, catching him as he was about to leave the garage. ‘Baird—’ she panted. ‘I’m sorry—I’m truly sorry. I’ll not say a word about what I saw to a single soul—not to Amy, or Mother, or Gran—’

  ‘You’d better not,’ he gritted, glaring at her icily. ‘Otherwise you’ll find yourself with a libel case on your hands. That’ll teach your imagination to run riot.’ He revved the Daimler, which hummed loudly as it swept down the drive with a spraying of small stones.

  Cathie was near to tears but was unable to indulge in the luxury of flinging herself on the bed to weep. Instead, she controlled her emotions by concentrating on the lunch to be prepared by one o’clock when her mother and grandmother were due to arrive.

  Amy joined her in the kitchen. ‘Is there anything I can do? Oh, dear—I feel so excited—it’s been so long—’