A Winter Affair (32 page)

The living room door was still shut, but this time she could hear the buzz of conversation behind the door and her imagination, fired up by her guilt at upsetting Debra, sprung to life with lurid pictures of lawyers juggling vast sums of money to hit Lawrence with. She hurried past.

If only she could somehow be transported to the Great Wall and join her children, get far away from the trouble her meddling might have caused.

Theo and Vera were in the kitchen when she went in, Theo eating a large slab of Christmas cake and Vera setting a tray of cutlery and glasses needed to lay the table for dinner when the door was opened and she could get in there.

‘Hi, Eloise. What did you do today?' Theo asked her.

Sign Jacaranda's death warrant, came to mind, but she said, ‘Saskia and I went down to Martigny, saw the exhibition, had lunch. Did you have a good day?' She wondered if he'd seen Jerry and Gaby and what he thought of him siding with Debra over the avalanche.

‘Skied with a couple of friends, though not Jerry and Gaby,' he said, his face grave. He pulled off a chunk of icing and marzipan.

Eloise felt a burn of anger; Theo had gone out of his way to entertain them and instead of standing up for him, or even just telling the truth, Jerry had been easily swayed by his aunt to hold him to blame for leading them into an avalanche.

‘I'm sorry he's not telling it as it was,' she said, ‘but if it comes to it I'll stick up for you.' She squeezed his arm as she passed him, not bearing to think how much he could lose over this show of Debra's self- righteousness.

Theo finished his mouthful. ‘Thanks,' he said, giving her a brave smile before leaving the room, but he was back in a moment. ‘Lawrence wants a word, can you go to him when you have a minute.' He trundled back down the passage. At the same moment they heard the living room door open and the occupants go upstairs and Vera picked up her tray and scurried down the passage to lay the table before they came down again, leaving Eloise alone.

This was it. She felt as if an icy hand had grabbed her stomach, digging in its nails. Lawrence was going to be furious with her, anguished to think that she'd made things worse, upset Debra even more. She should have left well alone. Jacaranda's fate was nothing to do with her. Just because she loved this place, felt happy and at home here, there was no excuse. Jacaranda belonged to Lawrence and it was not her business to interfere, she was only ‘the cook' after all.

She took off her apron sporting the ‘vulgar' message and went slowly down to Lawrence's office. The door was ajar and she could see him sitting at his desk, she pushed down an urge to run and went in.

‘You wanted to see me, Lawrence?'

‘Yes, Eloise, come in.' He sprang up and shut the door behind her; his face was radiant, smiling at her. She couldn't understand it.

‘What's happened?' She sat down gingerly on the chair by the window. Having geared herself up for his anger, she wasn't sure how to cope with his exuberance. Aurelia! That was it, they'd decided to go into business together and that would minimize any fallout from Debra's case. Though what about Theo? His reputation would still be on the line.

‘I've just seen Saskia in the village and she told me you spoke to Debra in no uncertain terms this morning and…'

‘Yes I did,' she interrupted him, desperate to apologize, ‘and I‘m sorry, I know I should have left well alone, it's none of my business after all. But we were alone together in the car and I couldn't stop myself. I'm sorry if I've made things worse, it's the last thing I meant to do.' She sat up straighter, she'd confessed it now, admitted she was guilty and he must do his worst, though why was he still smiling at her?

‘But Eloise, you made her see sense. Showed her that Jacaranda means more to us than just being a business, a way of making money. I've just spoken to her… I felt I should, after what Saskia told me.' He looked slightly contrite. ‘I was about to apologize for your speaking out, but she said she'd talked it over with Ken and perhaps she had been hasty. Poor woman, she told me she didn't know what a happy family and happy memories were. She's had some since she married, but making money's been her saviour. She was afraid Jerry might have some sort of delayed reaction and not be able to work or would make costly mistakes to the businesses they have.'

‘She told me she is terrified of being back where she started with nothing,' Eloise said now, remembering the anguish on Debra's face. ‘But I made her cry. I made
Debra
cry. I must have hurt her dreadfully and I was so afraid she'd punish me by being even more determined to get some form of compensation.' She struggled to believe Debra had changed her mind.

‘Well you did the opposite, we could say it is you who has saved Jacaranda.' His smile sent a glow through her and yet still she waited for him to tell her that he was joining up with Aurelia and Jacaranda would be turned it into a hideous complex. ‘So aren't you pleased? You don't look it.' He seemed disappointed.

‘Of course I am,' she struggled to rally her spirits. ‘I can't really believe it. I've stressed all day thinking you'd be upset with me, even send me packing.'

‘Oh, Eloise, how could you think that?' he retorted. ‘I don't think Theo, or Vera for that matter, would let me send you home. Theo says you've turned Jacaranda into a home, just like Maddy did.'

And what do you think?
she thought but did not say. ‘Oh, well… I'm glad,' she said instead. ‘But you've got a new chef, a real one this time, coming out soon, so unless you keep me on as a kitchen maid,' she hoped she sounded jokey, ‘I'll be going home soon anyway.'

He leant back in his chair watching her. ‘I meant to ask… but as you know, everything's been so manic. Paddy who was coming to take over from you has been offered a far better position, something that he'd be mad to turn down if he wants to further his career. He's given me the name of someone else, but I don't know her and Theo insisted I ask you first, if you could stay on for a while longer. I'll understand if you can't do it, or don't want to do it and have plans back home.'

Had she heard him correctly? Was he really asking her to stay on?

He got up and came over to her and took her hand. ‘Please say yes,' he said softly

There was a brief knock on the door and Theo came in, ‘The beeper is going on the oven,' he said, ‘thought I ought to say in case it all burns.'

Lawrence let go of her hand and Eloise stood up.

‘Thanks Theo, it means the oven is the right temperature to put in the meat.'

Lawrence moved aside to let her go. She went past him to the open door, wondering what would have happened if they had not been disturbed. She'd be foolish, she scolded herself, if she thought his touch meant anything more than extreme gratitude. She'd no idea her words had made Debra think, understand that there were some things in life that could not be bought and yet were more precious than anything.

‘So, Eloise, before you go, can you stay on or must I contact this other person and tell her to come?' Lawrence called after her.

‘You must stay.' Theo stood aside to let her pass.

‘Yes, no… I don't know. I'll let you know after I've cooked the dinner,' she said, running up the stairs to the kitchen, knowing that the meat could wait a while longer to be put in the oven. She was running away from the emotions Lawrence had stirred up in her.

‘I told you Eloise was a gold mine,' Desmond said when Lawrence rang to tell him the conclusion of Debra and the suing saga. He wouldn't have told him anything about it in the first place if his father had not contacted him to tell him he was delighted to receive a picture with an email from Eloise of the Christmas tree decorated with Maddy's beautiful jewelled eggs, but hearing his father's voice weakened his resolve to keep the news from him. He'd talk sense and understand his fears and Lawrence had needed to share them with someone, someone who knew and loved Jacaranda and would understand his agony. Theo was too young and inexperienced to really take on board the magnitude of Debra's action and he was the centre of the whole drama. And though Quinn was a good sounding board, there was no better person than his father to offer advice.

Desmond, having listened to the whole story, swore, saying what a pest Debra was and how he abhorred this modern fashion for threatening to take action over every mishap. He was highly relieved then when Lawrence telephoned him later to tell him Eloise had come to the rescue and persuaded Debra to drop the suit.

‘I think it's time I visit the old place again,' Desmond said, surprising him. ‘I hope Eloise will still be there. What about Easter, will there be room for me then?'

‘Of course, how marvellous, I never thought we'd lure you back,' Lawrence said, ‘but I don't know if Eloise will still be here then.'

‘Try and persuade her. She's a great girl, she married a rotter.' Desmond went on, ‘She was wasted on him, but the children are great kids, grown-up now, but at least she has them.'

‘Yes… she's been marvellous,' Lawrence said, trying to ignore the burst of desire he felt for her. It was as if he'd been floundering around in a sort of fog these past years, trying to make a success of Jacaranda, channelling his feelings into being charming to the people who came to stay even if they were rude and difficult, and somehow he'd lost sight of the finer feelings of romance and love. It shocked and to a smaller extent scared him as he admitted to himself that he'd fallen in love with Eloise. He'd desired other women and had women friends, some of whom were lovers, but he had not fallen in love for years, if ever really.

Georgia, Theo's mother, didn't really count. Their flash of ‘love' had not lasted, though he'd always care for her, not least for being the mother of his son. But he was being foolish, he could not be in love with Eloise, he was just grateful to her for making Jacaranda feel like a home again, producing meals that were imaginative and delicious and everyone seemed to enjoy, including him, and most important of all, she seemed to have saved Jacaranda and Theo, from Debra's troublemaking.

‘I'll turn up the week before Easter and stay a month or so, might even try to ski again if there's still snow and the old legs will let me,' Desmond laughed. ‘Hopefully I can enjoy Eloise's cooking then.'

‘I'm not sure of her plans, Desmond, but it will be so good to see you back here, Theo will be thrilled… and so will all your friends, they've been asking after you,' Lawrence said. He thought of Eloise. He had asked her if she would stay on, but she had not given him an answer. Perhaps she'd had enough of this cooking lark and, he had to admit, his often distant manner towards her, and indeed his anger with her over the whole Bert episode. Now it made him smile. He'd treated her the same way he had the other chefs. He was the boss; he paid them fairly, gave them enough time off and expected them to do their bit by producing great meals. They were not his best friend or indeed his lovers; it was solely a professional arrangement.

This job had been thrust on her out of the blue just when she was recovering from her divorce and, he'd learnt later, her children leaving for their gap year, and yet she'd kept her feelings to herself and pitched in and done her job, so he'd hardly be surprised if now she wanted to get out of here, go home to her friends and family. What a fool he'd look if he told her he'd fallen in love with her. She might even think it was a ploy to make her stay, or worse see it as a form of ridicule. No he would keep these feelings to himself. If she left he'd soon get over her, there were other women here he liked, he just hadn't made much effort lately in the love department.

But he still had business to attend to first; he had to confront Aurelia. He'd been so worried about the expense of a possible lawsuit that he had succumbed to her badgering him about how
together
they could turn Jacaranda into a money-spinner. He had agreed to meet her in Martigny, ‘out of the way of prying eyes', as she'd put it. He'd never been asked to her home, barely knew where it was, but she wanted to show him the plans she had drawn up to turn Jacaranda into a profitable business for both of them.

‘You won't have any more chefs running off and all the rest of it,' she'd said. ‘We'll have my food, make it on the premises so it will save time and money, and always be good quality,' she finished, leaving him feeling things were running away too fast, although he knew there weren't many options left if Debra went ahead with the case.

Aurelia could put money in straight away to refurbish Jacaranda and employ an architect she knew – who would charge her ‘mate's rates' – to design further buildings in the garden to rent out. Although he'd agreed to see her plans, he made it clear that he was just going to look at them; he was making no decisions until he saw how Debra's threat played out.

When he saw her plans he didn't like them. There was too much involved and most of her ideas would take away Jacaranda's unique feeling of being in its own space, surrounded by the majesty and beauty of the mountains. He tried to explain that he didn't want to crowd out the place with other buildings. However well designed, they would cut off the view and, to some extent, the light.

‘Get real, Lawrence, we're talking making
proper
money here, not limping along bringing in just enough so you and Theo can stay in your family chalet. In the far-off days when your father lived there money was money and went a long way. Today is different and you need to make Jacaranda pay for itself, earn its place in that agency,' she'd protested and he'd kept quiet, determined to try and find other ways to keep the chalet. Aurelia was too bossy and too controlling for him to become involved with.

Even with the fear of Debra suing him, he reasoned to himself that if they didn't spend a fortune splashing out on all these extra rooms and buildings, they might be able to limp on. True, he wanted enough money to live comfortably, but he could do without the expensive trappings of wealth. This week with Debra and her family had shown him the downside of being mega-rich, the sense of entitlement, the fear of losing it and the loneliness of not trusting the motives of people offering friendship.