‘Why do you say that? You’re not feeling nervous about the future, are you?’ he asked anxiously.
‘Perhaps, just a little; it’s a big step we’re taking, you know,’ Christabel told him thoughtfully.
He squeezed her hand reassuringly. ‘You’re not regretting it, are you, my dear?’
‘Of course not!’ She smiled brightly. ‘It’s simply that I’m worried in case everything doesn’t go smoothly.’
‘Stop worrying, then, Christabel. You are such a perfectionist. What does it matter if someone fluffs their words or knocks over a glass of wine?’
She nodded in agreement but remained silent as the waiter approached and began to fill their wine glasses.
‘To us!’ Mark raised his glass and waited for her to do the same, then touched her glass with his before he took a sip. ‘To us and our future,’ he said firmly.
‘May it always be as wonderful as this evening,’ Christabel murmured earnestly.
The serious moment passed. The food was excellent and, because the dishes were all her favourites, she enjoyed every minute of their evening together.
‘An early night? Is that what the doctor orders?’ She smiled.
As they reached her front door she could hear the phone ringing as she preceded him inside. ‘Now, I wonder who this can be?’ she murmured as she picked up the receiver from the hall table.
‘Some last-minute well-wisher, I imagine; they’ve probably been trying to reach you all evening,’ Mark told her.
She smiled as she spoke into the phone, then the expression on her face changed. She drew in a sharp breath and looked at Mark with wide-eyed distress written all over her face.
‘Who was it?’ he asked anxiously as she replaced the receiver.
‘It was Marlene,’ she said in a shaky voice. ‘Lilian collapsed and died earlier this evening.’
They stared at each other in dismay. A thousand and one questions surged through Christabel’s mind. She realised it probably meant that all their wedding plans would have to be changed but at that moment she couldn’t think clearly what was involved.
Mark was more practical. ‘You’ve had a shock, you need a brandy,’ he said. Taking her arm he guided her towards the sitting room and sat her down in an armchair. ‘Sit still while I pour you one.’
‘You need one as well,’ she said shakily.
Mark said nothing, but concentrated on pouring out their drinks. He handed one of the glasses of brandy to her then sat down in the armchair opposite her.
‘Does it have to do that?’ he asked quietly.
She stared at him blankly. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Does it have to change all our plans?’
‘Mark! We can’t possibly go ahead with our wedding when Lilian has just died,’ Christabel said in a horrified voice.
‘No, you’re probably right,’ he murmured as he sipped his drink thoughtfully.
She stared at him bemused. ‘I suppose we could, if you really wanted us to do so,’ she murmured tentatively.
‘What would the rest of your family think if we did?’
Christabel shook her head and took a sip of her brandy. ‘Marlene probably wouldn’t like it and even Kay might think it heartless,’ she said thoughtfully. ‘I don’t know what Stuart and Bill would think. Jill wouldn’t understand – at least, I don’t think so. Oh, dear, she’s going to be so unhappy if it all goes wrong again. She’s so looking forward to getting dressed up in her pretty new dress and being our flower girl.’
‘She’s too young to understand so that’s the least of our problems,’ Mark said decisively.
‘What about Neil and Colin? What would they think if we went ahead?’ Christabel probed.
Mark ran a hand through his hair, ‘I honestly don’t know. They’ve never met your sister, so possibly it wouldn’t worry them too much, but they might think it was rather unfeeling on our part.’
‘Do you think Marlene has let Kay know? If so, I wonder if she will be coming to Liverpool this weekend? It’s pointless them travelling all this way if there’s not going to be a wedding.’
She put down her glass and stood up. ‘Perhaps I’d better go and telephone her.’
‘Hold on.’ Mark laid a detaining hand on her arm. ‘Let’s think this thing through first. She won’t be leaving until tomorrow so you have time to consider what’s the best thing to do.’
‘I don’t suppose it will be any clearer in my mind whether I phone her now or first thing tomorrow,’ Christabel sighed.
‘Right, then leave it until the morning,’ Mark advised. ‘It’s almost eleven o’clock and, for all you know, Kay might already be in bed,’ he added as if to prove his point.
‘Yes, you’re right.’ Christabel sat back in her chair and picked up her drink and took a sip. ‘If Kay already knows about Lilian, then well and good. If not, then tomorrow morning will be time enough. She’s bound to be upset so it might be better if it is tomorrow, otherwise she might lie awake half the night worrying about it.’
‘What exactly did Marlene say?’ Mark asked.
‘Not very much, but then she was terribly upset. She simply said that her mother had died earlier this evening.’
‘Did she say what had happened?’ Mark frowned.
‘Only that she’d had a heart attack. Apparently she hasn’t been feeling too well ever since she got home. It might have been the long car journey. Then again, she said she wasn’t feeling all that well even before they left here and she was complaining that it was going to be a long journey.’
‘Yes, well, it would be. She’s hardly been out of the house since her stroke. Probably the journey was very stressful for her; that and all the excitement about our coming wedding.’
‘I don’t think that would have had anything to do with it,’ Christabel said dismissively.
‘She did say that she would like to stay on here until after the wedding.’ He frowned.
‘That was only to save her having to travel all the way back here again a few weeks later.’
‘Which means that she was probably worrying about the journey. The trouble was,’ Mark commended dryly, ‘Lilian complained so much about everything that we both had a tendency not to take too much notice of what she was saying.’
‘I know.’ Christabel sighed. ‘It makes me feel so guilty that I don’t know what to do for the best.’
‘I think we are going to have to postpone our wedding for the time being.’
‘You mean until after Lilian’s funeral?’ Christabel shivered.
‘That’s right.’ Mark nodded.
‘How much longer do you think we ought to wait afterwards?’ Christabel questioned.
They looked at each other blankly; neither of them seemed capable of deciding.
‘It will have to be for at least a month, I suppose,’ Mark said thoughtfully. ‘It means cancelling the reception and all the hotel bookings for the family as well as our own going-away plans.’
‘Possibly we will have to postpone it for longer than that. It very much depends on how Marlene reacts. It’s a terrible shock for her. Lilian was her mother, remember.’
Mark stood up and paced the room. ‘I’ve already told Neil he can move in, I’ll have to talk to him and see if he will let me stay on there, I suppose. I’ll be like a lodger in my own home,’ he muttered.
‘You don’t have to do that, you can always go and live in our new house,’ Christabel said quickly.
‘I’m not sure I want to do that on my own,’ he protested. ‘How about you move in with me?’
‘Mark!’ Christabel didn’t know whether to appear startled or amused by his suggestion. ‘Now that would give everyone something to be shocked about,’ she said wryly.
‘What difference do a couple of signatures on a piece of paper make? We’re planning to be living together for the rest of our lives, so what does it matter if we jump the gun?’
Christabel shook her head. ‘I don’t know what to think, Mark. I think tha
t is another decision that is best left until tomorrow, don’t you?’
‘Whatever you think best.’ He picked up his glass and drained it. ‘I should probably go . . .’
‘Mark, you’re not leaving, are you?’ Christabel exclaimed in alarm. ‘I don’t think I want to be on my own; can’t you stay here with me?’
He hesitated as she stood up and moved towards him, tears streaming down her face. His arms went round her, holding her close. ‘I didn’t realise you were quite so upset by the news,’ he murmured, stroking her hair as he tried to comfort her.
‘No, neither did I,’ she sniffed, ‘but I suddenly feel so frightened and alone. I think the reality of what has happened has only just sunk in. Lilian was my sister and younger than me, and it is such a shock that she has died.’
‘I know, my darling. I do understand.’ He held her closer, kissing her gently on the brow.
‘So will you stay? Please, Mark. I don’t want to be here on my own.’ She shivered.
‘Of course I’ll stay if you want me to, and for as long as you feel you need me to be here.’
‘All night?’ She hesitated. ‘Will you come to bed with me, Mark, and hold me in your arms all night?’ she asked in a whisper.
‘If that is what you want me to do.’ He frowned. ‘Does Marlene know that I am here? If so, and she tells the rest of your family, won’t that give them something to disapprove of?’ He said, raising his eyebrows.
‘I don’t think I mentioned that you were here, but does it matter?’ Christabel sighed. ‘I need you and, as you said earlier, what difference do a couple of signatures on a piece of paper make?’
Chapter Thirty-Two
Christabel was roused from a deep sleep the next morning by loud banging on the front door.
As she struggled to open her eyes she was startled to discover that Mark was in bed beside her. Her sudden movements disturbed him and as he opened his eyes he looked equally surprised then, with a sigh of pleasure, he pulled her towards him and his lips found hers.
Christabel returned his kiss then pulled away as the knocking on the front door was repeated. ‘What are we going to do?’ she whispered.
‘Leave it. Pretend we’re not here and they’ll go away.’
‘No, they won’t; your car is outside in the driveway.’
Mark sat up, running a hand through his hair as the knocking was repeated. ‘I’ll go and see who it is,’ he volunteered.
‘You’d better slip my dressing gown on, then,’ Christabel gasped as he threw back the bed-covers. ‘It’s hanging up on the door.’
Mark surveyed the pink and white satin garment with raised eyebrows. Then he snatched up the counterpane and wrapped himself in that as he headed for the stairs.
As she heard the front door open and thought that she recognised Kay’s voice, Christabel slipped the satin dressing gown on and went out on to the landing.
Stuart and Kay were already in the hallway and Jill was staring up at her in astonishment. ‘What on earth is going on, Aunt Christabel?’ Kay asked. ‘Don’t tell me we’ve arrived too late for the wedding.’
‘No, no, you haven’t done that,’ Christabel assured her. ‘Mark stayed the night . . .’
‘Yes, we can see that,’ Kay said, raising her eyebrows.
Pausing halfway down the stairs Christabel smiled uncomfortably. ‘Give me a minute to pop some clothes on and I’ll come down and explain.’
‘Shall I put the kettle on?’ Mark asked, bunching up the counterpane so that he could move more easily.
Christabel hesitated. ‘Why don’t you all go into the sitting room and make yourselves comfortable while we both go and get dressed,’ she suggested. ‘We’ll only be a minute.’
‘Take your time; we’ll go into the kitchen and I’ll put the kettle on and make a pot of tea,’ Kay told them. ‘We’ll certainly want an explanation about what’s going on, though,’ she added with a laugh.
Ten minutes later all of them were sitting down round the table enjoying a cup of tea while little Jill had a glass of milk. Kay had made a mountain of toast and scrambled egg for them all.
‘I was under the impression that the bridegroom-to-be wasn’t supposed to see the prospective bride in that state until their wedding day,’ Kay observed with mock severity.
‘We’re not too sure when there is going to be a wedding,’ Christabel sighed. ‘Obviously Marlene didn’t telephone either of you yesterday telling you the news.’
‘News? What news?’
‘About Lilian; she died yesterday,’ Christabel said very quietly, hoping that Jill couldn’t hear. ‘It means, of course, that we will have to postpone our wedding.’
‘Oh, Aunt Christabel, that’s terrible. It’s sad about Aunt Lilian, of course,’ Kay added quickly, ‘but you must feel devastated. Why ever didn’t you let us know and then we would have postponed our visit?’
‘Marlene didn’t let us know until almost midnight. We’d been out for a quiet meal and the phone was ringing when we reached home. I thought she’d probably already told you but, to be honest, I was so overcome by the news that I wasn’t thinking too clearly. Mark stayed the night because I was so upset,’ she added by way of explanation for his presence.
‘So what do we do now?’ Kay asked, looking at Stuart.
‘Go back home again, I suppose; after we’ve been in touch with Marlene to see if she needs our help.’
‘Can I phone her now?’ Kay asked.
‘You can try, but she may not be at home. Lilian had a heart attack so she may have been in hospital at the end. Marlene might have had to go back there this morning to sort things out.’
‘Have you cancelled all the arrangements to do with the wedding? The register office and so on, Aunt Christabel?’
‘No, not yet.’ Christabel shook her head. ‘It was too late last night for us to do anything and, as you know, we weren’t even awake when you arrived this morning.’
‘Then probably the best thing we can do is to phone Marlene and find out exactly what is happening. It may be best if you wait until we know when the funeral will be before you start changing all your arrangements,’ Stuart stated. ‘Would you like me to do it?’ he asked, standing up and putting his cup and saucer on the table.
Marlene could tell them nothing; she was far too involved in dealing with things at the hospital concerning her mother. Stuart and Mark took it upon themselves to phone around and cancel all the arrangements that had been made for the wedding and to handle the many complaints because it had been left to the very last minute to do so.
It was late afternoon before everything had been dealt with, far too late for Kay and her family to go back to Cookham.
‘You must stay here overnight,’ Christabel insisted. ‘I’d like you to stay on longer, if you feel like it,’ she added quickly.
‘No, we’d better get back. We’ll probably have to take time off next week for Lilian’s funeral,’ Stuart pointed out.
Mark insisted on taking them all out for dinner that night, even though Kay protested that it would mean a very late night for Jill as they would have to take her with them.
‘I think she would rather enjoy it and she can sleep on the journey home,’ Stuart pointed out.
It was a rather sombre evening; talk was mostly about Lilian and tentative suggestions about when the wedding could now take place.
‘We seem to have had so many misfortunes when it comes to arranging it that I think a very quiet ceremony is the answer,’ Mark commented. ‘That’s, of course, if Christabel will be happy with that.’
They smiled at each other across the table; after the previous night both of them knew that the wedding was a mere formality as far as they were concerned. The many things that had gone wrong only seemed to prove that the solidarity of their love for each other was stronger than ever.
Christabel wondered how she would have coped with everything if Mark hadn’t been there to give her support in every way.
At breakfas
t the next morning, Christabel brought up the matter of the house with Kay.
‘I’ve mentioned so many times that we need to get together and discuss it,’ she reminded her. ‘Now that Stuart is here as well, then perhaps it is a good time to do so.’
‘Yes, I know, you have mentioned it before, but I had some idea that it was partly mine and I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable about living here,’ she explained. ‘I know you must have given up your own home to stay and look after me. I also remember that I wasn’t very cooperative and treated you rather badly,’ she added apologetically.
‘So you were trying to make it up to me by pretending you didn’t know that you were a joint owner of the house, were you?’ Christabel smiled. ‘Nevertheless, my dear, when Mark and I do eventually get married and move into our own place in Formby then we will have to decide what we want to do with it, Kay.’
Kay looked startled. ‘I’ve always thought of the house as yours, Aunt Christabel,’ Kay protested. ‘If you are not going to live here, then you should sell it or rent it out. Do you want Stuart to handle all the negotiations for you? I’m sure he has contacts with estate agents in this area and can get you the best possible deal.’
‘You don’t understand, Kay; I obviously haven’t made myself clear. If you had read his Will like I asked you to do time and time again, then you’d understand. The house is yours; your father left it to you. The stipulation in his Will was that I should live here for as long as I needed a home and then it would pass to you.
‘There will be certain legal details to be sorted out and that is why you must go through your father’s papers and then contact his solicitor.’
‘What do you want to do? Do you want to sell it, Kay?’ Stuart asked.
‘I rather hope that since it is the house you grew up in, Kay, you might like to move back here,’ Christabel suggested.
‘Move back? How on earth can we do that when Stuart’s estate agency business is in Berkshire?’ Kay gasped. ‘He can hardly be expected to commute,’ she added with a laugh.
‘I know that, but I thought he might like a change; he could sell his business in Cookham and open a new business somewhere round here. Or, for that matter, open another estate agency in this area and leave his father to run the existing one.’
Whispers of Love Page 27