‘Oh, please, Nina. You have to say yes. The stables apartment is so lovely. You could even have your studio in the stables themselves. I’d help you sweep it out. We wouldn’t charge much rent, no more than you pay here, and you would help us out of our financial difficulties and you would have a nice place to live.’
‘Gracie, it’s such a kind offer, really, but I have to think about it some more.’
‘But you’ll say yes then, won’t you? Tom would love it, and I’d love it, you’d be our real neighbour then. And it would be so handy when you help us with the weekend tours.’
‘When I what?’
Gracie blushed. ‘It’s just we’re down a guide now Audrey’s decided never to speak again. Well, down two guides really, counting Charlotte. I was wondering whether you’d like to dress up and show people around with me? Tom too, if he wanted, but it mightn’t be a good idea to put him and Spencer together. They bring out the worst in each other.’
‘They do? What have they been doing?’
‘Nothing,’ Gracie said quickly. If Nina hadn’t heard about Tom and Spencer spending all their time on the Hall roof smoking cigarettes, it wasn’t for Gracie to tell. ‘Please, Nina, come and live in the apartment and be a guide. You’d enjoy it. I know you would.’
Nina started to laugh then. ‘Gracie, I’ll think about it. About renting the apartment, that is. Not the tour guiding. I can tell you now I definitely won’t be doing that.’
Four days later, Nina stood at the foot of the stairs at Templeton Hall as Gracie fixed her bonnet under her chin and pulled at her long skirt until it draped nicely around her ankles.
‘It really suits you, Nina,’ Gracie said, stepping back and admiring her work. ‘And if you forget any of your lines, just call out for me and I’ll come and help.’
‘We really do owe you, Nina. Thank you so much,’ Henry said with a warm smile, sweeping past them in the entrance hall and opening the front door.
Nina saw there was already a small group of visitors waiting outside in the morning sunshine. Her stomach flipped. She suddenly wished she’d also got the flu bug that had confined not just Audrey and Hope to their bedrooms, but Eleanor and Spencer as well. Nina hadn’t been able to say no when Gracie had turned up at her house and pleaded again, on her knees this time, for Nina to help them out.
So much for keeping her life separate from the Templetons. Since she’d made the decision to try and keep her distance, she’d never had more to do with them. She’d also wanted to dismiss the idea of renting their stables apartment out of hand, but Eleanor, and then Henry, had been very persuasive.
‘Come and at least see it first,’ they’d said. ‘Think of it as a short-term solution. You’ve been so good to us. Let us help you for once.’
Even Hilary thought Nina should at least see the apartment before making up her mind.
It was further away from the Hall than Nina expected, reached by a separate entrance, at the end of a large section of the garden, the stone stables building hidden from sight of the Hall by a small orchard of apple and plum trees. The apartment was completely self-contained and very attractive, with open brick walls and wooden floors, a living room, a small kitchen, and two small bedrooms in a kind of mezzanine area. The people who’d leased the Hall before Henry inherited it had done all the renovations, Eleanor believed, as an extra space for guests. ‘Gracie’s right. You could even use the stables as your studio. Please, Nina, think about it. You’d be quite independent from us, I promise you.’
The property was certainly big enough for two families, Nina thought. The rent they were asking was also very low, much less than she’d been paying for the farmhouse. Even if she only did it short-term until something else came up in the area, it could be a great help financially. And it would cost next to nothing to move …
Nina rang her sister with the news the moment the agreement was reached. If Hilary was pleased about the apartment, she was even more amused to hear that Nina had also agreed to step in as an emergency guide.
‘You’ll send me photos, won’t you?’ Hilary said. ‘Not of the apartment. It’s you dressed in colonial costume I want to see.’
‘As soon as I’ve come out of hiding, sure.’ Nina was so glad to hear her sister sounding brighter again, she exaggerated the guiding role even more.
The past month had been a difficult time for Hilary, the sadness of her miscarriage made worse by the fact her husband had been away in South America on a longed-for work exchange trip. In the days that followed Nina’s sudden flight to Cairns, she had barely left Hilary’s side, reassuring her many times that she would get pregnant again, she just needed to give herself time. She’d spoken to Hilary’s husband every day too. He’d been as upset to be away, insisting he would fly back, only for Hilary to be equally insistent he finish his project. Nina hadn’t left Hilary until Alex returned home.
‘You’re sure you’re feeling better?’ she asked Hilary now. ‘I’ll come back up again if you want me to.’
‘We’ll be fine. And it will happen again for us, I know it. In the meantime, go and hop into your Templeton Hall time machine and save up every ludicrous thing you have to do or say. And ring me as soon as you get back.’
‘You think this is funny, don’t you?’
‘Funny?’ Nina could hear the smile in Hilary’s voice. ‘No, I think it’s hilarious.’
By eleven o’clock on Saturday morning, Nina wished she was already home ringing Hilary. It wasn’t funny any more. She’d never felt so ridiculous in her life. Her bonnet kept slipping. She kept tripping over her dress. She couldn’t remember any of the facts about the paintings or the furniture or even the goldrush itself. The people in her groups weren’t listening to her anyway. They all seemed much more interested in talking about their next meal stop or leaving greasy finger marks on the priceless vases and lamps.
Six long hours later, only seconds after the final visitor had left the Hall, Nina sank down onto the staircase and pulled off her bonnet, wincing as she pulled at a lock of hair.
Gracie was there immediately. ‘You were fantastic, Nina! Like a duck to water.’
‘A lame duck, you mean. Sorry, Gracie. Never again.’
‘Never again?’ It was Henry, loosening his cravat and coming to sit two stairs down from her. He smiled up at her, his real smile. ‘But Gracie is right, Nina. You were a natural. So easy with our visitors, so knowledgeable. A little creative with the facts, certainly, but you managed beautifully.’
Nina started to laugh. ‘Are you often asked about pig-breeding practices in the 1860s?’
‘Oh, yes, believe me,’ Henry said, laughing too. ‘We get asked about everything from pig breeding to cooking with pomegranates to Hawthorn’s chances in the Premiership.’
Gracie nodded eagerly. ‘Next time just do what we do, Nina. Smile, be polite and move swiftly on. Isn’t that right, Dad?’
Next time? Nina chose to ignore that. She’d take the rest of Gracie’s advice, though. She stood up, smiled politely and moved as fast as her pinched feet would let her to the guests’ bathroom where her own clothes were waiting.
She’d told Henry and Eleanor she would give them her decision about the apartment today. As she changed back into her own clothes, she knew what her answer would be. No. The day as a guide had helped her decide. She and Tom were far too mixed up in the Templetons’ lives as it was. It wasn’t good for any of them. They’d be completely on top of each other, in more ways than one, if she and Tom moved in. She’d just have to hope another more suitable house would come up for rent in the area as soon as possible.
She rehearsed her answer as she gathered her belongings. When she came back to the foyer, Henry and Gracie were waiting for her. Nina tried to ignore Gracie’s happy, expectant expression, or Henry’s warm gaze.
‘So then, Nina,’ Henry said, smiling at her. ‘Have you decided about the apartment?’
‘I have, Henry,’ Nina said firmly.
An hour later she was
back home and on the phone to her sister in Cairns.
‘So let me get this straight,’ Hilary laughed. ‘You’re doing the guide thing again tomorrow and you and Tom are moving into their apartment next week? Nina Donovan, you just can’t say no to that family, can you?’
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
It was quick and easy to move their furniture and belongings from the farmhouse to the apartment. Nina’s bright curtains, painted furniture and colourful rugs looked even cheerier in their new home. It also seemed like a good omen when she got a commission to paint a series of designs for greeting cards the day before they moved.
She started work in her new studio the next afternoon and yes, the light there was good, and there was something very inspiring about painting with the door wide open, looking out across the paddocks and gum trees, without the tank and shed that had blocked her view back in the farmhouse.
Her main worry, that she’d be under the Templetons’ feet and scrutiny, proved unfounded. The design of the apartment and its position at the eastern back corner of the Hall meant they actually had great privacy. As well as that, the gate that joined their gardens creaked, and the gravel on the path crunched loudly, so she had plenty of warning that Gracie – and it usually was Gracie – was on her way for a visit.
‘Mum said I have to limit myself to one visit a day, but I could come in the morning and stay all day, Nina, couldn’t I? And technically that would only be one visit.’
‘Technically, yes, but, Gracie, I really do need to get some work done.’
‘I’ll be quiet as a mouse. You won’t even notice I’m here.’
As kindly and firmly as possible, Nina asked Gracie to please leave her alone to work until three each day. ‘After that, I’d be delighted to see you.’
‘But not until three? What if something major happens and I’m bursting to tell you?’
‘If it’s really major, that will count as special circumstances, but otherwise, please, Gracie, I need to settle in, establish some kind of working routine.’
‘I’ll try,’ Gracie said, solemnly.
Over the next fortnight, life was almost idyllic for Nina. Gracie kept to her rules, mostly. Nina worked steadily on her paintings. Thankfully, Eleanor and Spencer recovered from their flu and Nina’s services as a guide hadn’t been required again. Audrey still wasn’t speaking and had refused to go back to boarding school, but Gracie happily shared the news that her sister was joining her and Spencer for home-school classes. ‘I heard Mum ring the school principal about her, too,’ Gracie told her. ‘This non-speaking is a rebellious adolescent phase, apparently. We’re not to worry too much. She’ll talk when she’s good and ready.’ As for Hope, Nina hadn’t seen or heard anything of her since she’d moved to the Hall. ‘She’s busy drinking again,’ Gracie had informed her, matter-of-factly. ‘None of us see much of her when that’s happening.’
Tom had settled into his new surroundings very well, Nina was glad to see. His cricket practice had also increased from three nights a week to five, as the state competition neared. Spencer wasn’t pleased about it.
‘You have to go to practice again?’ he’d whined, when he called over one night just as Nina and Tom were about to drive away. ‘I never see you any more.’
Tom told her every day how much he liked their new apartment. ‘It’s the perfect arrangement, isn’t it? For everyone, us and the Templetons.’
Outwardly, Nina agreed. Inside, she hoped he was right.
In the Hall, Gracie’s worries were beginning to build again. It was wonderful to have Nina and Tom so close by, but in her own family things weren’t good at all. It had nothing to do with Audrey and Hope this time, either. It was her parents again. They were fighting non-stop, either shouting or giving each other the silent treatment.
Gracie wondered if she was the only one noticing all the tension. Spencer seemed oblivious. He was too busy on the project he and Tom were working on, whenever Tom wasn’t busy playing cricket, at least. She’d been to the dam and seen it under construction – the raft they’d been talking about for months. It was huge, three times the size of her parents’ bed. She’d dared to suggest that perhaps it was just a little bit too big for such a small dam, but Spencer had just said, ‘What would you know? You’re only a girl.’ Tom hadn’t mocked her, though. He’d been lovely, explaining to her how they were building it. From what she could see, it involved strapping about two kilometres of rope around some rusty sheets of iron. He also promised to let her have a go on it once it was built. ‘Not until we’ve had the first shot,’ Spencer had shouted across. Tom just smiled at Gracie and sort of rolled his eyes in Spencer’s direction and she’d got that warm feeling inside her again.
At least Audrey was coming out of her room more often, but she still wasn’t talking to anyone. As for Hope, Gracie didn’t really want to know how she was. The more her aunt stayed in her room, the happier Gracie was. She’d heard some clanking from Spencer on the stairs one afternoon, but decided to ignore it. Just because it sounded like he was smuggling bottles under his jacket didn’t mean he was, did it?
At least Charlotte was happy in Chicago. Deliriously so, she told Gracie when they spoke each week. Mr Giles’s apartment – ‘it’s called a condo here’ – was enormous, apparently. It had a wonderful view of Lake Michigan. ‘It’s more like the ocean than a lake, it’s so huge.’ She’d been shopping for clothes and books on Magnificent Mile. ‘It’s what they call a section of North Michigan Avenue, Gracie, and you should see the shops. I’ve never seen so many big names and I don’t even care about fashion! Mr Giles has even given me my own credit card!’ Best of all, Charlotte told her, Ethan hadn’t turned into an evil troll now he was back on home turf. ‘It’s the world’s easiest job,’ she said. ‘I take him to school or baseball or to visit his friends, pick him up afterwards and then we spend the rest of the time playing computer games or watching movies on TV. It’s like having a best friend sleeping over except he’s eight and a boy. And I’m being paid. As Ethan would say, it’s awesome.’
The main person worrying Gracie at the moment was her father. When he wasn’t fighting with her mother, he was spending nearly all his time in his office, opening and shutting his filing cabinet a lot, swearing under his breath and talking on the phone at strange hours of the day. Her most recent overheard conversation bothered her the most.
‘The timing couldn’t be better. Three months’ work at least, do you think, between the cataloguing and the valuing? Perfect, perfect. Yes, I’ll come first, and the rest of the family will follow. Or perhaps all of us together. I’ll let you know once it’s decided.’
Once what was decided? And what did ‘all of us together’ mean?
Gracie didn’t have to wait long to find out. Two days later, she was summoned into the kitchen by her parents. Audrey, Spencer and even Hope were already there waiting. Everyone looked very serious.
‘Take a seat, Gracie, would you?’ her mother said. ‘And please don’t interrupt.’
Her father did all the talking. He’d barely finished breaking the news before Gracie stood up, pushed back her chair and started running, down the hallway, out across the back garden and through the gate. It wasn’t three o’clock. It didn’t matter.
‘Nina, Nina!’
Nina’s head emerged from her studio. ‘Gracie, what is it?’
Gracie burst into tears. ‘We’re leaving, Nina. All of us. Leaving!’
‘Just like that?’ On the phone that night, Hilary was as surprised as Nina.
‘Just like that,’ Nina said. ‘Henry and Eleanor told the kids and Hope today. They fly out a week on Saturday, straight back to London.’
‘But what about the Hall? The groups? The tours?’
‘They’re putting a sign up at the gate. “Closed for renovations until further notice”, or something like that. Henry’s ringing the local paper too.’
‘But why? What’s happened? Why so suddenly?’
Nina had asked first Gracie
and then Eleanor exactly the same questions herself. Gracie had been too tearful to tell her. When Eleanor had followed her daughter out to the stables, Nina hadn’t been able to read the other woman’s face. She had seemed calm, matter-of-fact about the sudden news, but surely it must have been a shock to her as well?
Nina told Hilary all she’d managed to find out. ‘They’ve been called back to England for family reasons, apparently.’
‘Apparently?’
‘It doesn’t make sense to me. Gracie told me they don’t have any close family left in England. And it just seems so strange, to suddenly decide to go back for three months, to close the whole Hall up. And it seems even stranger that they’d invite me to rent the apartment and then announce only a fortnight later that they’re moving.’
‘So where does it leave you?’
‘I’ll just have to start packing again, I guess. I’ll ring the real estate people tomorrow, look for a house in town after all.’
‘There must be more to it. You can’t even get the truth out of Gracie?’
‘Not a word. The poor little thing hasn’t stopped crying since she found out.’
Over the next few days, Gracie was a constant visitor to the apartment, but anything Nina said to try to console her just sparked more sobbing.
‘There’s nothing good about any of this, Nina. It doesn’t matter what you say. I won’t be able to be your neighbour. We won’t get to see Tom play cricket again. I won’t get to pick the flowers I helped plant. It’s a disaster.’
‘Do you have to go?’
A slow, unhappy nod. ‘We have to. We just have to. It’s just the way it is.’
‘She’s obviously been told not to tell you anything,’ Hilary suggested after Nina related that conversation. ‘And they’re all going? Even the drunk one? The mute one?’
‘Hilary!’
‘I can’t say I envy poor Eleanor. Presumably she’s the one doing all the packing and organising? If I was her, I’d want to just run away and leave them all to it, wouldn’t you?’
At Home with the Templetons Page 23
