The Mistress of His Manor

by Catherine George

  ‘Molly in the back?’

  ‘As always.’ Angelo kissed her on both cheeks. ‘You are very beautiful today, Joanna.’

  ‘Thank you, Angelo. So are you.’

  He grinned and kissed his fingers to her as she went through to the spotless kitchen, where Molly Carter was directing her minions through preparations for the evening’s menu like a general readying troops for battle. She looked up with a broad smile.

  ‘Hi! So who are you bringing here tonight, then, love? Is it a celebration? Don’t tell me you’re marrying one of the twins!’

  Jo shook her head, grinning. ‘I’d have to marry both of them, and I don’t think that’s allowed. It’s not a celebration tonight. Just dinner for two.’

  ‘I know that!’ said Molly impatiently. ‘But is your date a man?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Good. Do I know him?’

  ‘I shouldn’t think so. I don’t know him that well myself.’

  Molly checked the stock one of her crew was making, then looked up at Jo, her eyes narrowed. ‘Nice?’

  ‘Very. So I want something special. What have you got?’

  ‘All my food is special,’ retorted Molly. ‘But the sea bass is exceptional, and the saddle of lamb had such a good slug of gin in the marinade the meat will melt in the mouth.’ She frowned. ‘Why don’t you cook a meal for him yourself? Lord knows I taught you well enough.’

  ‘I did that last week. Beef Wellington.’

  ‘Showy, but reliable. Did he like it?’

  ‘He certainly ate a lot of it.’ Jo hesitated. ‘The thing is, Moll, he thinks my name is Sutton, and for now I want him to keep thinking that. So has Angelo booked me down as Logan?’

  Molly eyed her quizzically. ‘What are you playing at, my girl?’

  ‘I’d just rather my date didn’t know I was Jack’s daughter—for a while, anyway.’

  ‘Ah! You want to be loved for yourself, not Daddy’s cash. All right. I’ll brief Angelo and ask him to reserve one of the parking spaces outside. Now, tell me, how’s Kate?’

  By the time the doorbell rang that evening, prompt to the minute at seven, Jo had changed her dress once, her earrings twice, and persuaded herself that she would be happy in the redsoled black shoes which added five inches to her height and a touch of glamour to last year’s little black dress. She took in a deep breath, then opened it to smile at March, who was even browner of face than before, but with hair newly trimmed, and impressive in a formal dark suit.

  ‘Good evening, Miss Sutton.’ He gave her a comprehensive look from head to toe and bent to kiss her on both cheeks. ‘You look delectable.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she said, and closed the door. ‘I really must thank you again for the flowers. They were very extravagant, but I won’t scold you this time.’

  He frowned as he followed her into the parlour. ‘You don’t like flowers?’

  ‘Of course I do, but you shouldn’t have gone to such expense. A text to say thank you would have been quite enough.’

  He looked down his nose at her with hauteur, which was not, she saw with dismay, meant as a joke. ‘Enough for you, possibly, but not for me. I was simply expressing my appreciation.’

  ‘Oh, dear, I’ve offended you again.’

  ‘Yes.’ He moved closer, the hauteur heating to a predatory gleam. ‘So what are you going to do about it?’

  She backed away. ‘If I kiss you better I’ll ruin all my hard work!’

  ‘Which would be a shame.’ He ran a finger down her cheek. ‘Apply the necessary balm later. When I bring you home.’

  ‘I’ll consider it. Would you like a drink?’

  He shook his head. ‘I’ll save myself for a glass of wine over dinner. Does your friend Molly keep a good cellar?’

  ‘Her front-of-house man sees to that side of the business. The restaurant has quite a name for its wine list.’

  ‘Then, if my lady is ready, shall we?’ March smiled at her, and Jo smiled back, amazed, now, that she had even thought of cancelling their evening.

  Outside, March handed Jo into an E-type Jaguar so far from its first youth it was almost a museum piece.

  ‘You’ve had this a long time?’ she commented as they headed for town.

  ‘Since I was old enough to drive.’ He patted the steering wheel. ‘Temperamental sometimes, but I love her just the same. Now, give me directions, please.’

  March was impressed when he saw the reserved sign in a parking place right outside the restaurant.

  ‘So you’ll be able to keep an eye on her all evening,’ teased Jo as March helped her out.

  ‘Certainly not. I shall be keeping my eye—both eyes—on you,’ he assured her as they entered to a warm welcome from Angelo.

  ‘Joanna, cara!’ He gave her his usual double kiss.

  ‘Hi, Angelo, this is March Aubrey.’

  ‘Good to meet you,’ said March, holding out his hand.

  ‘Piacere,’ said Angelo, shaking it enthusiastically. ‘Welcome.’ He led them to one of the twin bay windows, and seated Joanna with a flourish at the last unoccupied table in the buzzing restaurant.

  ‘I shall send someone to give you menus, but do not order drinks. Champagne waits ready chilled for you. On the house, with Molly’s compliments,’ he added.

  ‘How lovely—do thank her for us,’ said Joanna.

  ‘VIP treatment,’ commented March, impressed, as Angelo went off to summon a waiter.

  ‘Partly because I used to work here,’ Jo informed him. ‘And partly to impress the first-time customer who’s paying tonight.’

  ‘Is that still worrying you, Joanna?’

  ‘No. So stop looking down your nose at me.’

  He grinned and sat back as a waitress put a carafe of water on the table, slid menus in front of them and then gave way to a waiter bearing champagne in an ice bucket. March looked on with approval as the man held the cork and twisted the bottle, and achieved a perfect wisp of smoke instead of a loud pop.

  ‘What do you recommend, Joanna?’ asked March, when they were left to study the menus.

  ‘I’ve never eaten any meal here that was less than delicious,’ she told him, fervently hoping that tonight would be no exception.

  Eventually they both chose crab soufflé tarts to start, followed by the gin-tenderised lamb, and as they sat back to enjoy their champagne Angelo appeared with an amuse bouche—a liqueur glass of iced tomato consommé.

  ‘Enjoy your meal,’ he said, and retreated to his post to keep an expert eye on the crowded room.

  ‘That packed quite a punch,’ remarked March, eying the empty glass with respect. ‘A hint of vodka?’

  Jo nodded. ‘And a pinch of cayenne—maybe even chilli.’

  ‘Augurs well for the rest of the meal.’ March raised his champagne glass in toast. ‘What shall we drink to?’

  ‘Friendship,’ she said firmly.

  He smiled and touched his glass to hers. ‘Close friendship.’

  To Jo’s relief the meal was everything she had hoped for. When Molly joined them at the end of it, bearing petit fours to accompany their coffee, March rose to thank her for the champagne, and said, with complete sincerity, that the only meal he’d enjoyed as much in recent memory had been Joanna’s Beef Wellington.

  ‘Why, thank you,’ said Molly, her face flushed with pleasure. ‘I taught her well, didn’t I?’

  Molly stayed chatting for a while, then left to talk with the other diners on her way back to her domain.

  ‘You see now why I refused pudding,’ said Joanna, eyeing the selection of petits fours.

  ‘She’s quite a surprise,’ said March, watching Molly’s progress.

  ‘Because she’s small and blonde?’

  ‘No, because she’s so young.’

  ‘Molly must be thirty-three or so now. But she’s always had tunnel vision about owning her own restaurant.’ Joanna smiled. ‘Her success was never in doubt, according to Jack.’

  ‘He was right. Is a full house t
he norm here for a Saturday night?’

  ‘It’s the norm most nights—and Christmas is frantic. Molly does a sideline in seasonal corporate parties and so on, but she would never let me help out at those.’ Jo pulled a face. ‘She kept me firmly in the kitchen, so I refined my cooking skills instead of getting my bottom pinched. Though things rarely get out of hand. Molly’s a terror if anyone hits on one of her girls—or boys, if it comes to that.’

  March smiled. ‘And what role does Angelo play?’

  ‘Peace-keeper. He’s the arch-soother of ruffled feathers—including hers. And don’t be fooled by the movie star looks. He’s got a great head for business, plus an encyclopaedic knowledge of wine. He’s also her partner in private.’

  “And that works?’

  ‘Like a charm. Even Molly admits he’s the one person who can handle her.’

  March glanced over to the bar, where Angelo was laughing with some departing customers. ‘You’re right about the looks.’

  ‘He’s also really loving and funny. They suit each other.’ Jo smiled at him. ‘Shall we have more coffee at home?’

  March rose with alacrity. ‘I’ll just settle up.’

  As she chatted to Angelo, Jo couldn’t help noticing that March paid the not inconsiderable amount, including a sizeable tip for the staff, in cash, instead of the usual credit card. Not that she would spoil things by mentioning it.

  On the way home she couldn’t help wondering if he meant to seize her the moment they were through her door, demanding balm for the wound she’d dealt to his pride earlier. But March merely took her key to unlock her door, then followed her to the kitchen to watch while she made coffee.

  ‘That was a superb meal,’ he commented. ‘Your friend Molly’s right up there with the best in chef terms. And yet you say she worked for your father before she struck out on her own?’

  ‘Yes. Jack took her on straight out of catering college. She says she honed her skills on him.’

  March hefted the tray to follow her to the parlour, but before he could start doing sums about Molly and her father Jo preempted him with a question of her own.

  ‘Do you have any siblings, March?’

  He took the coffee she offered him and sat down. ‘One sister a couple of years my junior, married to a film producer, and a brother several years younger,’ he added, sobering.

  ‘Is he a gardener, too?’

  ‘No.’

  Jo waited, but when he said nothing more she drank her coffee in silence, trying not to feel offended.

  ‘He was in a car accident when he was in college,’ said March at last.

  ‘Was he badly hurt?’

  ‘Severe concussion, broken jaw and a mangled leg. The driver got off with a few cuts and bruises, loss of licence and a charge of dangerous driving. He was lucky to get away with a heavy fine instead of a custodial sentence.’

  Jo eyed him with compassion. ‘That must have been terrible for you.’

  ‘I don’t want another phone call like the one I received that night,’ he agreed fervently. ‘When my father and I got to the hospital my brother was delirious, muttering wildly about some friend through the metal clamp holding his jaw together. The driver had been sedated, so I couldn’t check with him, but the police assured me that no one else had been in the car. By the time he was better Rufus had no recall of the accident at all, so I didn’t bring the subject up again.’

  ‘What happened afterwards?’ asked Jo, her heart thumping.

  ‘Rufus had been doing a Fine Art course, so the neurologist encouraged him to paint as therapy. It worked. When he was well enough my sister took him off to Italy to convalesce, and Rufus decided to resume his studies there instead of returning to Oxford. He’s very talented. But for him that entire night, the events that led up to it, and most of his stay in hospital still remain a complete blank.’ March thrust a hand through his hair, frowning as he saw the look on her face. ‘I’m sorry, Joanna. I didn’t mean to put a damper on our evening.’

  ‘Did you search for this friend you mentioned? Do you think he was to blame?’

  ‘No. I simply thought if I could set Rufus’ mind at rest about the friend it would help him recover.’

  She braced herself. ‘What was the name he kept repeating?’

  ‘Joe Logan.’

  Although she’d known, deep down, what his answer would be, the words struck her like a blow to the heart.

  March eyed her with concern. ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘I’m afraid that’s me.’ She met his eyes bravely. ‘I’m Jo Logan.’

  ‘What?’ March stared blankly.

  ‘I’m Jo Logan,’ she repeated unhappily.

  ‘You said your name was Sutton!’

  ‘No, I didn’t. You saw that in my school book. Sutton was the name of my adoptive parents. When I was thirteen they died, and I came to live with Kate. When she married Jack Logan I took his name.’

  March’s eyes suddenly hardened. ‘So you knew Charles Peel, the driver?’

  Jo nodded miserably. ‘Oh, yes, I knew Charlie. He was my boyfriend at the time. I was supposed to be in the car that night, too, but I wouldn’t set foot in it because Charlie was well over the limit. As usual. I did everything I could to make him see sense, even fought him physically for the keys, but we had such a blazing row he pushed me away and roared off in a rage to pick up a friend. I knew his friend as Red…’ Jo halted, biting her lip.

  Chapter Four

  ‘THAT was the name my brother went by at Oxford.’ March shook his head as though to clear it. ‘You, of all people, are Jo Logan? My God! It never occurred to me that the missing link was a girl.’ He took in a deep breath, his eyes suddenly arctic. ‘After the accident I went to see the driver. But Charles Peel categorically denied knowing any man called Joe Logan—which was true, of course. You are not a man.’

  ‘I don’t blame you for feeling angry,’ she said unhappily.

  ‘I’m not angry, exactly. I just wish it hadn’t been you,’ he said harshly. ‘In the end the police decided not to press charges, and young Peel was utterly frantic with anxiety about my brother, and so desperately guilt-ridden and penitent we felt he’d been punished enough.’

  Jo smiled cynically. ‘Charlie always did really great penitence.’

  March frowned as he resumed his place on the sofa. ‘That’s very cold.’

  ‘I speak from experience.’ She gave a mirthless little laugh. ‘If you’d tracked me down I would have given you a rather different take on the accident. I wondered why Charlie asked if anyone had been in touch with me. He tried to convince me that he’d turned over a new leaf. He even cried and swore he was on the wagon for keeps. But he’d done the dramatic penitent act before, so I didn’t believe him.’ Jo took in a deep breath. ‘I haunted the hospital for a while, for information on how Red—your brother—was doing. I knew I couldn’t get in to see him, but one of the girls on my staircase in college had a relation in Admissions there, who made enquiries for me and reported back. I was desperate to go home, but there was no way I could leave Oxford until I knew Red had been discharged.’ She paused to look at March. ‘Though I have no idea why he was muttering my name. I didn’t know him very well. We weren’t even in the same college.’

  He shrugged. ‘He seemed convinced you’d been in the car and injured, even killed. I suppose I should have asked later, but I was so damned relieved when he started getting better I couldn’t risk prodding his memory into life in case it put him back to square one. And of course I knew there’d been no one else in the car.’

  She shivered. ‘I suffered agonies of guilt afterwards because I’d failed to get Charlie’s keys away from him,’

  ‘Were you in love with him?’ asked March, surprising her.

  Jo thought it over. ‘It’s hard to believe now,’ she said wearily, ‘but I thought I was at the time.’ Her mouth turned down. ‘I was straight out of a girls’ school. Charlie was quite a bit older. If you met him you know he was rather good-l
ooking. My head was turned when he singled me out. At first I thought his drinking was the usual student stuff, but it soon became obvious that Charlie was well on the way to becoming an alcoholic.’

  ‘Were you lovers?’

  Jo flushed. ‘Not a word I would use. We did sleep together once or twice, but it was the first time for me and not—not very successful. All my fault, according to Charlie.’

  March mouth tightened. ‘The idiot’s drink problem was to blame, not you. What happened to him afterwards?’

  ‘I refused to return his calls after the accident, so he wrote to me eventually, saying he’d dried out in some clinic. He was starting work at Peel Plastics, a small company owned by his father. Charlie loathed the idea, but knew he had no hope of graduating after what had happened.’ Jo’s eyes dulled. ‘Neither had I. He’d put an end to all possibility of that for me as well as himself.’

  ‘And you wanted to graduate?’

  ‘Of course I did! It was what I’d worked so hard for at school, and Jack and Kate were so proud when I got to Oxford.’ Her mouth twisted in disgust. ‘But I blew the whole thing. Someone made of sterner stuff than me would have stopped blaming Charlie, I suppose, and knuckled down to get a degree. But the whole Oxford experience was ruined for me—academically and every other way.’

  March nodded slowly. ‘It’s dawned on me at last why you looked familiar the first time I spotted you. I must have seen you outside the hospital.’

  ‘Very probably. I was there often enough.’

  He frowned. ‘When I referred to you as Miss Sutton, why the hell didn’t you put me right there and then?’

  Jo’s colour rose. ‘I had my reasons.’

  He was silent for a while, eyeing her closely. ‘Your name is Logan and your father is Jack. Would he, by any chance, be the moving force behind Logan Development?’