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Authors: Alison Roberts
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break up the family.’
Margaret’s frown looked puzzled. ‘I would have thought that would be the last thing Luke, of all people, would want to do.’
‘Why do you say that?’ And why had she described Luke Harrington as ‘lonely’? The word was echoing in Amy’s head.
Lonely people needed comforting.
They needed love.
‘If I tell you something, will you promise it won’t go any further?’
Amy nodded and Margaret lowered her voice. ‘I grew up in Harrington Village,’ she said.
‘Oh-h-h!’ Amy could feel her eyes widening. ‘Where the manor house is? And Mr Harrington’s incredibly rich family?’
‘You know about that?’
‘I kind of guessed. It’s why he’s inherited the house. Uncle Vanni’s wife was a Harrington. She died in a horrible car accident.’
‘I heard that both Luke’s parents were killed in a car crash.’
‘It’s obviously what they wanted people to think. Maybe Uncle Vanni wasn’t considered good enough to be part of the Harrington clan.’
That was a possible explanation, wasn’t it? That Uncle Vanni had said his son was dead because he’d been too mortified to confess he’d been deemed unacceptable?
Margaret was frowning. ‘I don’t know about that. What I do know is that my son went to school with Luke. He went to visit the manor house a few times. He said it was really scary.’
‘Ghosts?’ Amy was enthralled. She could picture a vast, old gloomy house with pictures of Luke’s ancestors glowering down from within ornate gilt frames. A house that was hundreds of years older than the one she lived in and one that could have been the scene of feuds and scandals and possibly even murders….
But Margaret was shaking her head. ‘Luke’s grandmother.’
Amy blinked. OK, her nonna could be fierce and she had been known to poke an errant child with a knobbly finger or even her walking stick, but she was family . Family shouldn’t be scary.
‘She’s a wonderful woman,’ Margaret continued. ‘She must be nearly ninety now but she’s the guardian of just about every charitable trust in the district. I didn’t exactly move in the same circles but I often saw her and she’s the ultimate lady , you know what I mean?’
Amy thought of Luke. The way he chose his words and spoke so clearly. The way he dressed and his reputation as a surgeon with unparalleled skill and attention to detail.
Margaret lowered her voice to a whisper and there was a definite twinkle in her eyes. ‘I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Lady Harrington still wore corsets!’
Amy nodded slowly but her smile was distracted. She was beginning to understand. Luke had been brought up in an alien world and taught that everything had to be perfect. Lady Harrington wouldn’t have considered there was space in that world for a foreigner. Especially an Italian with that reputation of volatility and exuberance the nationality carried.
Was it possible that Luke had been brought up to believe his father was dead? If that was the case, it would explain why no contact had ever been made. It would also mean that Luke would have been shocked to learn of his inheritance. Quite apart from a justified anger at a parent who had apparently chosen not to raise him, he was being left a dwelling in a state that was far from the perfection he’d been raised to expect.
No wonder his first reaction had been to consider demolishing it.
He’d never had a real family so he had no means to understand that it was what was within the walls of a dwelling that really mattered.
Maybe Luke was the one who was wearing a corset. An emotional one.
Amy got to her feet. ‘I’m going to check on everybody on my list,’ she announced. ‘By the time I’ve done that, hopefully there’ll be a pool nurse here and I can go home.’
She wanted to get home as soon as possible.
She knew how to fix this. There was a shining light at the end of what had been shaping up to be a very dark tunnel. The shadowy shape
Margaret’s frown looked puzzled. ‘I would have thought that would be the last thing Luke, of all people, would want to do.’
‘Why do you say that?’ And why had she described Luke Harrington as ‘lonely’? The word was echoing in Amy’s head.
Lonely people needed comforting.
They needed love.
‘If I tell you something, will you promise it won’t go any further?’
Amy nodded and Margaret lowered her voice. ‘I grew up in Harrington Village,’ she said.
‘Oh-h-h!’ Amy could feel her eyes widening. ‘Where the manor house is? And Mr Harrington’s incredibly rich family?’
‘You know about that?’
‘I kind of guessed. It’s why he’s inherited the house. Uncle Vanni’s wife was a Harrington. She died in a horrible car accident.’
‘I heard that both Luke’s parents were killed in a car crash.’
‘It’s obviously what they wanted people to think. Maybe Uncle Vanni wasn’t considered good enough to be part of the Harrington clan.’
That was a possible explanation, wasn’t it? That Uncle Vanni had said his son was dead because he’d been too mortified to confess he’d been deemed unacceptable?
Margaret was frowning. ‘I don’t know about that. What I do know is that my son went to school with Luke. He went to visit the manor house a few times. He said it was really scary.’
‘Ghosts?’ Amy was enthralled. She could picture a vast, old gloomy house with pictures of Luke’s ancestors glowering down from within ornate gilt frames. A house that was hundreds of years older than the one she lived in and one that could have been the scene of feuds and scandals and possibly even murders….
But Margaret was shaking her head. ‘Luke’s grandmother.’
Amy blinked. OK, her nonna could be fierce and she had been known to poke an errant child with a knobbly finger or even her walking stick, but she was family . Family shouldn’t be scary.
‘She’s a wonderful woman,’ Margaret continued. ‘She must be nearly ninety now but she’s the guardian of just about every charitable trust in the district. I didn’t exactly move in the same circles but I often saw her and she’s the ultimate lady , you know what I mean?’
Amy thought of Luke. The way he chose his words and spoke so clearly. The way he dressed and his reputation as a surgeon with unparalleled skill and attention to detail.
Margaret lowered her voice to a whisper and there was a definite twinkle in her eyes. ‘I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Lady Harrington still wore corsets!’
Amy nodded slowly but her smile was distracted. She was beginning to understand. Luke had been brought up in an alien world and taught that everything had to be perfect. Lady Harrington wouldn’t have considered there was space in that world for a foreigner. Especially an Italian with that reputation of volatility and exuberance the nationality carried.
Was it possible that Luke had been brought up to believe his father was dead? If that was the case, it would explain why no contact had ever been made. It would also mean that Luke would have been shocked to learn of his inheritance. Quite apart from a justified anger at a parent who had apparently chosen not to raise him, he was being left a dwelling in a state that was far from the perfection he’d been raised to expect.
No wonder his first reaction had been to consider demolishing it.
He’d never had a real family so he had no means to understand that it was what was within the walls of a dwelling that really mattered.
Maybe Luke was the one who was wearing a corset. An emotional one.
Amy got to her feet. ‘I’m going to check on everybody on my list,’ she announced. ‘By the time I’ve done that, hopefully there’ll be a pool nurse here and I can go home.’
She wanted to get home as soon as possible.
She knew how to fix this. There was a shining light at the end of what had been shaping up to be a very dark tunnel. The shadowy shape
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