‘Do stop scowling, Luke,’ Rachel added teasingly. ‘It will give you lines!’
He drew in a harsh breath. ‘Rachel, try all the delaying tactics you like, but be warned I am not going to wait for ever for an explanation!”
‘Such a loving, well-behaved little boy,’ Rachel murmured, shaking her head ruefully. ‘All right, Luke.’ She smiled as he looked ready to explode at this totally unrelated reminiscing. ‘I’ve had some slight chest pains, that’s all, and Michael thought it best if I came in here for a few days. For tests and things,’ she added uninterestedly.
Luke’s eyes narrowed. ‘What sort of “tests and things"?’
‘Oh, just the usual, I expect,’ his mother dismissed. ‘I wonder if you could telephone Janet and ask her—?’
‘Rachel!’ Luke did explode this time, his expression thunderous. ‘What, exactly, is wrong with you?’
‘Well, I expect I’ve had a slight heart attack, darling,’ Rachel began lightly.
‘You “expect"—’ Luke broke off, releasing Rachel’s hand to stand up with barely suppressed violence, glaring down at his mother with narrowed eyes. ‘And have you had any of these “slight heart attacks” before?’ he questioned astutely.
‘Actually, no,’ Rachel answered him mildly, obviously not in the least perturbed by his anger.
Although she did give Leonie’s hand a reassuring squeeze.
But was it reassuring, Leonie suddenly wondered, or a plea for help in handling this delicate situation? Looking at the fine sheen of perspiration that had broken out on the other woman’s brow, her increased pallor, obvious signs that this meeting with Luke was having more of an effect on Rachel than she cared to admit, Leonie had a feeling it was the latter.
‘Luke,’ Leonie began softly, ‘I think perhaps we should leave your mother to rest now.’
If anything his expression darkened even more. ‘I—’
‘Michael did say we weren’t to stay too long and tire Rachel,’ she reminded gently, knowing she had been right in her conjecture as she felt Rachel’s fingers squeeze hers in gratitude for this timely intervention.
Luke looked down intently at his mother. ‘Fine,’ he finally bit out tersely, obviously not at all happy about leaving, but also seeming to become aware of how much frailer Rachel looked now than when they had arrived a few minutes ago. ‘But don’t think you’ve got away with this quite that easily,’ he added warningly to his mother. ‘I’m coming back later this evening—’
‘If Michael will let you,’ his mother teased.
‘I’ll be back,’ Luke assured her grimly. ‘And when I do I’ll expect a full explanation from you.’
Rachel gave a tired laugh. ‘I never expected anything else,’ she answered affectionately. ‘Did the two of you have a lovely weekend?’ she added interestedly.
Leonie couldn’t help it, her fingers tightened convulsively about the older woman’s, and she received a searching look from Rachel at this involuntary response to her casually put question.
One thing Leonie had realised by seeing Rachel weakened like this: it was going to be some time before she dared risk asking the other woman about Luke’s father…
‘Very nice,’ Leonie answered stiltedly, releasing Rachel’s hand to stand up. ‘I hope you feel better soon,’ she added inadequately.
‘I’m sure I shall,’ Rachel answered her distractedly, seeming aware that Leonie was avoiding meeting her searching gaze. ‘I’ll see you later, darling.’ She gently touched Luke’s cheek as he bent down to kiss her. ‘Don’t give Michael too hard a time, hmm?’ she added lightly.
Luke’s mouth twisted ruefully at these words of advice. ‘I’m sure he’s more than capable of dealing with anything I might have to say to him!’
‘I’m sure that he is.’ Rachel laughed huskily. ’Leonie…?’ she called softly as Leonie would have preceded Luke out of the room.
Leonie turned back reluctantly. ‘Yes?’ She kept her voice deliberately neutral.
Rachel sat up higher against the pillows. ‘Could you come back here for a moment?’
‘I won’t be long,’ Leonie assured Luke as he scowled darkly, turning to walk back to the bedside.
Rachel looked up at her intently. ‘Did something happen this weekend that I should know about?’ She kept her voice low enough so that Luke, standing in the doorway, shouldn’t hear what she said.
‘To Luke?’ Leonie kept her voice equally low. ‘No,’ she assured the other woman.
‘Ah.’ Rachel’s breath left her in an understanding sigh. ‘But something did happen…?’
‘Yes,’ she confirmed huskily; what was the point in pretending otherwise? Rachel, she knew, despite being ill, was far too astute to be deceived by any prevarication she might make.
Rachel nodded, her gaze unwavering on Leonie’s face. ‘You know, don’t you?’ she murmured ruefully.
She swallowed hard, very aware of Luke standing a short distance away, unable to hear their conversation, but more than capable of asking her for an explanation for it once they were outside. ‘I know,’ she confirmed softly.
‘And you would like to talk to me about it,’ Rachel accepted gruffly.
‘It can wait,’ Leonie assured her, able to feel Luke’s impatience rising as he stood glowering behind her in the doorway. Besides, even this brief conversation with Rachel was enough to tell Leonie that her worst suspicions were correct…!
’As it’s already waited thirty-eight years, I suppose that it can,’ Rachel acknowledged heavily. ‘Come back and see me tomorrow, hmm? Without Luke,’ she added unnecessarily.
‘If Michael says I may.’ Leonie nodded. ‘There really is no hurry, Rachel.’ She briefly squeezed the other woman’s hand.
‘I think there is,’ Rachel murmured huskily, sudden tears swimming in those dark green eyes.
Leonie looked at her concernedly, a sudden heaviness in her own chest at the unspoken message she read in Rachel’s expressive green eyes.
She drew her breath in sharply. ‘I’ll come back tomorrow,’ she promised Rachel softly. ‘Alone.’
‘Good.’ Rachel smiled, relaxing back on her pillows with obvious relief. ‘And don’t worry, Leonie; things are never quite as black—or white—as they appear to be.’
Leonie wasn’t so sure about that as she silently limped out of the hospital room ahead of Luke. What she had read just now in Rachel’s eyes—
‘What did my mother say to you?’ Luke predictably demanded to know once they were outside in the carpeted corridor.
Leonie thought quickly. ‘She asked if I would telephone Janet and ask her to bring some of Rachel’s things in for her,’ she improvised abruptly. ‘I think it was less embarrassing to ask me,’ she added.
‘I see,’ Luke dismissed uninterestedly, obviously accepting the explanation. ‘I think it’s time I found Michael,’ he muttered grimly.
‘Of course.’ Leonie nodded. ‘I’m sure you would rather talk to him alone so I’ll—’
‘Stay with me, Leonie,’ Luke rasped, his hand suddenly painful on her arm as he turned her to face him, his face darkly pleading.
She looked at him, could clearly see the strain he was under, deep lines grooved beside his eyes and mouth, that nerve once again pulsing in his clenched jaw. She swallowed hard, nodding wordlessly.
‘Thank you.’ Luke’s arms moved about her as he held her against the warmth of his chest.
Leonie was aware of his heart beating erratically, of the slight tremor of his arms as he held her against him, easily recognising that beneath his outward anger he was desperately upset and worried about his mother.
If what Leonie had read in the other woman’s eyes a few minutes ago was what she had thought it was, then she knew Luke had every right to be upset and worried…
CHAPTER 12
‘THIS is very kind of you.’ Luke smiled at her gratefully as she placed the plate of omelette and salad in front of him on her dining-table.
As she had known she
was to be away for most of the weekend Leonie hadn’t bothered to get any fresh food in; omelette and tomato salad was the best she had been able to come up with after inviting Luke to stop and have dinner with her at her apartment before he went back to the clinic this evening to visit his mother.
Although, as she sat down beside Luke with her own meal, and watched him pick half-heartedly at the food, she knew he was still too worried about Rachel to be able to eat very much, anyway.
Leonie had insisted on waiting in the car while Luke went to talk to Michael, and apart from a few muttered comments when he’d rejoined her, such as, ‘Michael insists it was a mild attack, whatever that might be!’ she had no idea what conversation had taken place between the two men. But, remembering the look that had passed between Rachel and herself earlier, Leonie would hazard a guess that Michael still hadn’t told Luke everything…
‘I’m sorry.’ Luke gave a rueful grimace now. ‘I’m afraid I’m not very good company today.’
‘No one is expecting you to be,’ Leonie assured him. ‘It’s all been a bit of a shock for you.’
He sighed heavily, putting down his knife and fork as he gave up any pretence of eating the meal she had prepared for him. ‘I suppose everyone expects their parents to go on for ever—until something like this happens and you realise it just isn’t so.’
It must be even worse for Luke; he had only ever had the one parent.
Until now…
Was that why—? Could that be the reason—? She really did have to talk to Rachel!
Leonie reached over and lightly touched Luke’s hand. ‘Rachel is a very strong personality; she’ll bounce back from this, you’ll see.’ She smiled encouragingly, hoping that she was speaking the truth. About the mild heart attack, at least…
‘I hope so.’ Luke nodded, but he didn’t look convinced. ‘Look, I’ve been thinking about yesterday evening, Leonie, and—’
‘Yesterday evening?’ she echoed sharply.
‘Hmm.’ Luke gave a grimace. ‘I’ve realised that perhaps I wasn’t exactly—tactful, last night. I shouldn’t have mentioned your adoption. I—’
‘Oh, that!’ Leonie said with some relief. ‘Don’t give it another thought, Luke.’ She shook her head. ‘It’s just been a taboo subject in my family for so long—my mother was furious with me when I put it in my grandfather’s biography!—I was surprised, that’s all,’ she dismissed.
She had thought for a moment that he was referring to something else about yesterday evening!
‘But you’ve been upset ever since.’ He shook his head. ‘I had no right—’
‘I’ve said it doesn’t matter, Luke,’ she told him firmly; this subdued, apologetic Luke was so unlike the man she was used to that she just wanted the other Luke back. Although, with his mother ill in hospital, she realised it might be some time before that happened.
He turned his hand over, his fingers tightly gripping hers, his gaze intense on her face as he looked at her searchingly. ‘Leonie—’ He broke off as the doorbell rang.
Leonie frowned at the sound, couldn’t imagine who her caller could be at six-thirty on a Sunday evening. But at the same time she was pleased at the interruption. There was still so much she didn’t know—so much she was sure Luke didn’t know!—that she didn’t consider it a good idea for the two of them to become any closer than they already were.
‘I’ll just get that.’ She released her hand as she stood up. ‘It’s probably someone trying to sell me something,’ she added.
‘On a Sunday evening?’ Luke murmured doubtfully.
‘An ideal time to find most people at home,’ she pointed out ruefully, moving out of the room and down the hallway to her front door. ‘Jeremy…?’ She stared at him as she found him standing on her doorstep for the second time in as many days.
He grinned unabashedly. ‘I was worried about you. Because of your ankle,’ he explained as Leonie looked puzzled. ‘So I thought I would come round and see how you were, and check if you need a lift into work in the morning?’
She hadn’t given her ankle much thought in the last few hours—in view of Rachel’s hospitalisation it seemed totally irrelevant. But what she was very aware of was Luke’s presence only a few feet away in her sitting-room!
‘You could have telephoned and asked me that,’ she answered without thinking, at once realising how ungrateful she sounded. ‘I’m sure I’m going to be able to drive in the morning,’ she added in what she hoped was a less caustic tone.
‘That’s good.’ Jeremy smiled. ‘I must say, you seem a lot better.’
‘I am.’ She nodded, wishing he would just go now she had told him what he wanted to know. But instead he just stood there looking at her. ‘I was actually just going to have a soak in the bath,’ she added pointedly.
‘That should help.’ He nodded.
Any second now, Leonie knew, Luke was going to come strolling out of her sitting-room, the two men were going to confront each other, and—
Too late! Even as she guessed what was going to happen next she heard a movement behind her, saw the way Jeremy’s eyes widened as his gaze moved past her down the hallway. It had to be Luke…
‘Everything okay, Leonie?’ he drawled hardly as he came to stand beside her, his gaze flinty with displeasure as he looked at the other man.
That was nothing to how Jeremy looked! Stunned probably best described that.
Oh, well, there was only one thing for her to do now. Well…two, actually, but turning tail and leaving the two men to it really wasn’t an option!
She stood to one side of the doorway so that the two men could see each other better. ‘Jeremy, this is Luke Richmond,’ she introduced lightly. ‘Luke, Jeremy Burnley.’ She deliberately didn’t give either man any more information than that—mainly because she wasn’t sure what either of them were in her life any more!
She supposed Jeremy could best be described as having been her boyfriend, but he wasn’t any more—even if she hadn’t told him that yet. Luke was the son of Rachel Richmond—but that wasn’t all he was any more, either…!
The two men shook hands stiltedly, eyeing each other warily. Like two stags at bay, Leonie thought crossly.
‘Well, if that was all, Jeremy—’
‘Richmond,’ he repeated slowly over the top of her dismissal. ‘Rachel Richmond’s son?’ he prompted interestedly.
‘And what if I am?’ Luke bit out harshly.
‘Nothing at all.’ Once again Jeremy grinned unabashedly. ‘It’s okay, Leonie has told me all about the biography she’s doing for your mother.’
Glacial silver-green eyes were suddenly turned on Leonie. ‘Indeed?’ Luke rasped coldly. Accusingly.
Leonie had given an inward groan of dismay at Jeremy’s claim. Although, in reality, she couldn’t exactly say it wasn’t true. After all, he obviously did know about the biography, and in the circumstances it was obvious only she could have told him about it.
‘Not all about it,’ she corrected sharply, her gaze beseeching as she sought Luke’s.
It was a plea that was met by glittering anger. Her heart sank at the realisation that he had taken Jeremy’s words literally, that he now believed she had lied to him yesterday when she’d claimed Jeremy knew none of the details of his mother’s biography.
She put out a hand. ‘Luke—’
‘If the two of you will excuse me—’ Luke cut coldly across what was to have been her protest of innocence, totally ignoring her outstretched hand ‘—I have to get back to the hospital,’ he bit out harshly.
Leonie let her hand fall back to her side, knowing there was no point in talking to him now, that with Jeremy here at the moment it would do no good, anyway.
‘I’ll talk to Janet about my mother’s things, Leonie,’ Luke rasped dismissively. ‘Burnley,’ he added scathingly as he passed the other man in the doorway, Leonie watching him as he took the steps back up to the pavement two at a time.
Leonie turned back to Jeremy, furiou
sly angry. She might not have known earlier how to handle where her future with Luke was going—or if it were going anywhere!—but she certainly hadn’t expected them to part under such bad terms!
‘Thank you very much!’ she snapped at Jeremy forcefully. ‘You’ve now given Luke the impression that I go about discussing his mother’s private business with every Tom, Dick or Harry!’ Her cheeks were flushed with anger, eyes a glittering grey.
‘Actually, it’s Jeremy,’ he said slowly, looking at her with puzzled eyes. ‘Exactly what was he doing here anyway?’ he prompted thoughtfully.
‘He—I—’ she broke off awkwardly, not quite knowing what to say next. ‘His mother is ill in hospital,’ she finally burst out.
‘That’s a shame,’ Jeremy said mildly.
‘Luke is naturally upset,’ Leonie continued irritably.
‘Naturally,’ Jeremy acknowledged softly. ‘That still doesn’t explain what he was doing here, in your apartment,’ he pointed out reasonably.
She drew in a sharp breath. ‘Jeremy, we may be friends, but that doesn’t give you the right to question other friendships in my life!’ she snapped disgustedly, able to hear Luke’s car now as he drove away.
Blond brows rose over guarded blue eyes. ‘It doesn’t…?’
‘Of course it doesn’t,’ she dismissed impatiently. ‘I don’t ask you if you’re meeting anyone else the evenings we don’t see each other, do I?’ She was breathing heavily in her agitation.
What must Luke think of her? She shook her head; yet another explanation that needed to be made. If Luke would let her make it, that was…
‘I suppose not,’ Jeremy conceded slowly. ‘Leonie, am I to take it, from your remarks just now, that you and Richmond are actually involved?’
‘No! I mean, yes! I don’t know!’ she cried, past caring now. Luke had left believing the worst of her, and she was in no mood to give Jeremy explanations for anything!
‘You “don’t know”,’ he repeated, mildly soft. ‘I see.’ His voice had hardened sharply now. ‘Leonie, I was under the impression that our—what did you call it just now? Friendship, I believe? Yes, friendship,’ he repeated the word with a derisive curl of his top lip. ‘I thought our friendship meant something to you. To both of us,’ he added pointedly.
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