Read Online No Time For Love (Bantam Series No. 40) by Barbara Cartland - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Barbara Cartland
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stand!”
“I must not complain ... I must be brave,” Larina told herself. “I would want Papa to be proud of me.”
She sat down on the sofa and wondered what she should do. There were things that wanted mending and quite a lot of the furniture needed repairing.
But what was the point of doing it?
It was then that there came the sound of the front-door bell ringing in the basement. She could hear it quite clearly in the empty silence of the house.
‘Whoever can it be?’ she wondered then suddenly thought it might be a cable from Elvin.
She jumped to her feet and there was a light in her eyes that had not been there before as she ran down the stairs.
Hastily she pulled open the front-door, but it was not a telegraph-boy who stood there as she had expected, but a man, middle-aged, well-dressed and wearing a bowler hat.
He appeared to Larina to be a kind of superior clerk or perhaps someone in the Civil Service as a number of her father’s patients had been.
“Does Miss Larina Milton live here?” he asked.
“I am Miss Milton!”
She saw there was a faint look of surprise in his eyes as if he had not expected her to open the door.
Then because she felt it might seem strange to admit that she was alone in the house Larina added:
“I am afraid the maid is out!”
“May I speak with you, Miss Milton?” the man asked.
He had removed his bowler hat when she had appeared and she saw his hair was grey and she told herself he looked extremely respectable.
At the same time she did not like to let him into the house.
“What is it about?” she enquired.
As she spoke she wondered if in fact he had come to sell her something.
She was well aware it was often the most unlikely looking people who hawked insurance or expensive goods for sale from door to door.
“I have had a communication from Mr. Elvin Farren,” the man replied.
Her suspicions vanished.
“Oh, will you come in?” she asked quickly.
The man did as she asked, wiping his feet carefully on the mat. He was rather large and it was difficult for him to squeeze past her in the narrow Hall, but he managed it and waited while she closed the door.
“Will you come upstairs to the Drawing-Room?” she asked. “It is on the first floor.”
He put his hat down on a chair and waited at the bottom of the stairs for her to precede him.
Larina led the way.
As they entered the Drawing-Room, despite the faded curtains and the worn carpet it looked quite attractive in the late afternoon sunshine coming through the narrow windows.
“Will you sit down?” Larina asked politely.
“My name is Donaldson, Miss Milton,” the man said as he seated himself on the edge of the sofa while Larina took an arm-chair opposite him.
“You have heard from Mr. Farren?” she asked eagerly.
“Mr. Farren asked me to call on you,” Mr. Donaldson said. “I understand, Miss Milton, from what he said in his cable that you wish to see him.”
“Yes, I want to see him very much,” Larina answered and added, “... if it is possible.”
“Mr. Farren has suggested that you should meet in Sorrento.”
“In Sorrento?” Larina ejaculated. “In Italy?”
“Yes, Miss Milton, his family have a Villa there and Mr. Farren suggested that I arrange for you to go there immediately.”
Larina looked at him in astonishment.
“Did he suggest that I should travel... all that ... way to see him?”
“He will be coming a great deal further from America,” Mr. Donaldson said, “and I imagine that he thought it would not be too much to ask you to make the journey from here.”
“No, no, of course not!” Larina said. “It is not that it is too much to ask, it is just that it was such a surprise!”
“You know where Sorrento is, Miss Milton?”
“Yes, of course,” Larina answered. “It is near Naples. My father has often spoken to me of Naples. He was very interested in Pompeii and Herculaneum.”
“They have made some great discoveries there, I believe,” Mr.
“I must not complain ... I must be brave,” Larina told herself. “I would want Papa to be proud of me.”
She sat down on the sofa and wondered what she should do. There were things that wanted mending and quite a lot of the furniture needed repairing.
But what was the point of doing it?
It was then that there came the sound of the front-door bell ringing in the basement. She could hear it quite clearly in the empty silence of the house.
‘Whoever can it be?’ she wondered then suddenly thought it might be a cable from Elvin.
She jumped to her feet and there was a light in her eyes that had not been there before as she ran down the stairs.
Hastily she pulled open the front-door, but it was not a telegraph-boy who stood there as she had expected, but a man, middle-aged, well-dressed and wearing a bowler hat.
He appeared to Larina to be a kind of superior clerk or perhaps someone in the Civil Service as a number of her father’s patients had been.
“Does Miss Larina Milton live here?” he asked.
“I am Miss Milton!”
She saw there was a faint look of surprise in his eyes as if he had not expected her to open the door.
Then because she felt it might seem strange to admit that she was alone in the house Larina added:
“I am afraid the maid is out!”
“May I speak with you, Miss Milton?” the man asked.
He had removed his bowler hat when she had appeared and she saw his hair was grey and she told herself he looked extremely respectable.
At the same time she did not like to let him into the house.
“What is it about?” she enquired.
As she spoke she wondered if in fact he had come to sell her something.
She was well aware it was often the most unlikely looking people who hawked insurance or expensive goods for sale from door to door.
“I have had a communication from Mr. Elvin Farren,” the man replied.
Her suspicions vanished.
“Oh, will you come in?” she asked quickly.
The man did as she asked, wiping his feet carefully on the mat. He was rather large and it was difficult for him to squeeze past her in the narrow Hall, but he managed it and waited while she closed the door.
“Will you come upstairs to the Drawing-Room?” she asked. “It is on the first floor.”
He put his hat down on a chair and waited at the bottom of the stairs for her to precede him.
Larina led the way.
As they entered the Drawing-Room, despite the faded curtains and the worn carpet it looked quite attractive in the late afternoon sunshine coming through the narrow windows.
“Will you sit down?” Larina asked politely.
“My name is Donaldson, Miss Milton,” the man said as he seated himself on the edge of the sofa while Larina took an arm-chair opposite him.
“You have heard from Mr. Farren?” she asked eagerly.
“Mr. Farren asked me to call on you,” Mr. Donaldson said. “I understand, Miss Milton, from what he said in his cable that you wish to see him.”
“Yes, I want to see him very much,” Larina answered and added, “... if it is possible.”
“Mr. Farren has suggested that you should meet in Sorrento.”
“In Sorrento?” Larina ejaculated. “In Italy?”
“Yes, Miss Milton, his family have a Villa there and Mr. Farren suggested that I arrange for you to go there immediately.”
Larina looked at him in astonishment.
“Did he suggest that I should travel... all that ... way to see him?”
“He will be coming a great deal further from America,” Mr. Donaldson said, “and I imagine that he thought it would not be too much to ask you to make the journey from here.”
“No, no, of course not!” Larina said. “It is not that it is too much to ask, it is just that it was such a surprise!”
“You know where Sorrento is, Miss Milton?”
“Yes, of course,” Larina answered. “It is near Naples. My father has often spoken to me of Naples. He was very interested in Pompeii and Herculaneum.”
“They have made some great discoveries there, I believe,” Mr.
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