“This is the tenant who believes his shop to be haunted by poltergeists?” Uncle Lawrence demanded.
“Same one. There was a small fire in his shop last night that the man claims was caused by supernatural forces.”
“A fire?” her grandmother asked in concern.
“It was nothing. The alarms picked it up. I went downstairs and Klaus put it out.”
“Ah, Klaus was with you last night,” Marie observed.
“We were sitting in my library having a glass of wine after coming back from a late supper when the alarm went off if that was any of your concern,” Edwina said pointedly.
“In your library, in front of the fire, with the lights dimmed. A very romantic setting, Winnie…” Marie said quietly with a smile on her face. “I can see it now.”
Edwina smiled. “You always did have an active imagination.”
“It runs in the family,” Marie said pointedly.
“Your tenant’s unstable. It’s time to get him some help,” Uncle Lawrence said, “Before he hurts himself or someone else. I’ll draft the complaint. You will need to sign it to get him put under thirty days psychiatric observation. Your liability insurance will handle any repercussions from signing the complaint.”
“I’m not quite convinced that this is anything except an elaborate attempt at extortion,” Edwina replied. “He told me that he wanted me to pay to relocate his shop into a major mall and to pay his first quarter’s rent.”
“So, what did you tell him?” Uncle Lawrence demanded.
“I told him that it wasn’t my responsibility to set him up in another retail location. Then I repeated my offer to have the shop, the whole building in fact, blessed in an effort to chase away the supposed spirits. He called that superstitious nonsense, and then tried to hit me. That’s when the bodyguard intervened. If the bodyguard, Hans, had stayed out of this, I would have handled it myself.”
Marie laughed. “I’ve seen you ‘handle’ situations. I never understood why Aunt Anne and Uncle Vernon made you take all those years of martial arts classes until that evening in Paris fourteen years ago when we were accosted…”
Uncle James looked at his daughter in open concern, “I don’t believe I’ve heard this story.”
“It’s nothing. There was no harm done, Uncle,” Edwina dismissed sharply. Why Marie had brought that up now was beyond Edwina’s understanding.
“Except to the men,” Marie added, mischief in her eyes. “Winnie left them both in a heap on the street, in too much pain to continue to bother us any further. I wasn’t scared until each of them pulled a big wicked-looking knife. But Winnie handled them with moves that I hadn’t seen except in martial arts films.”
“Need I remind you, Cousin, that it was your idea not to worry the parents with this particular story?” Edwina asked quietly. “And now you bring that story to their attention?”
“It’s ancient history,” Marie countered.
“Not to us, it isn’t,” Uncle James said firmly. “What exactly happened?”
Edwina sighed. “Not much. Marie and I were out for the evening. We went to a disco. A couple of weird guys followed us out onto the street without invitation. Marie and I were never in much danger.”
“Knives tend to mean that there is plenty of danger, Edwina,” Uncle James corrected.
“Neither of the boys had any skill with a knife, Uncle. Anyone with any skill with a knife would have handled the cutlery differently. They were half-inebriated and uncoordinated. The intent was merely to frighten. There was really truly little danger.”
“Any danger is too much,” Uncle James stated flatly. “And I suspect the intention was to frighten to the point of gaining submission to their advances.”
Edwina sighed. “Probably…But like I said, they were just drunk enough to lose their inhibitions. It made them a little reckless. There wasn’t really much danger there. My only concern was how much pain I was going to have to inflict on them before they began to see it as a deterrent. They were fairly well anaesthetized with drink as it was.”
“Not much danger?” Uncle James demanded.
“Life is a matter of a certain amount of danger,” Edwina replied. “It can’t be helped. The only way to totally avoid danger is never to interact with people in any way, shape, or form. And that’s too high a price to pay for a little safety.”
“Just how much damage did you finally do to the men in order to defend yourself and Marie?” her uncle demanded.
Edwina sighed. “I didn’t stick around to do a full physical examination. But I know that one of them ended up with a broken knee. I think I merely dislocated both knees of the other one. Neither of them was in any shape to chase us. And Marie and I got out of there rather quickly.”
“I see,” her uncle replied.
“I shall have to thank Herr von Bruner for his thoughtfulness in looking after my granddaughter by providing her with bodyguards,” Grandmother said, quietly, changing the subject. “And I will let him know that my granddaughter is well capable of caring for herself.”
“Where are these bodyguards now?”
“Outside. I saw them following me here.”
Uncle Lawrence rose from the table without comment. He walked out of the house, closing the door behind him.
Edwina sighed. “I do wish he hadn’t done that.”
“Your family loves you, Granddaughter.”
“I know.”
Uncle Lawrence came back in. He resumed his place at the table. “Two men?” he asked Edwina.
“Yes, Uncle. Now, can we, please, drop the subject of my guards?” Edwina asked. “Marie, have you designed any outrageous fashions lately?”
“Of course,” Marie agreed.
“Good. I want to see the portfolio. I need a few new things for evenings.”
“If you are seeing a man like Klaus von Bruner, Winnie, I would say so. The man is as rich as they come. He’s been known to squire about any number of beautiful women, including some of my models,” Marie agreed.
Edwina sighed. “If Klaus is used to beautiful women like Marie’s models, what is he doing with me?” she asked herself only in her mind.
Marie must have misread the expression on her face, because she hurried into further explanation. “None of the girls have had any complaints about him. One or two even imagined herself in love with him. I can ask them about his personal life, if you would like. Just to make certain that he has no… unusual… preferences.”
Edwina found her face growing warm. “Marie. Thank you. I know that you mean well.”
“Yet you would just as soon find out about the man’s preferences yourself?” Marie said with a wicked smile on her face.
“I trust him,” Edwina said simply. And she was surprised that she did.
Marie looked at her and smiled. “I have five gowns in the Spring line that would be perfect on you. They’re understated and beautiful.”
Edwina sipped her water. “The last time you sent me an evening gown that you described that way, the neckline was a deep V that ended at my navel, there was a slit up the side that ended at my hip, and the back of the halter necked dress—if you can call it that—consisted of little more than the skirt. It showed my kidney dimples, for heaven’s sake. There was no way to wear anything under the gown.”
“It was lined. Nothing showed through. You looked extraordinarily lovely in it! Especially when you wore Aunt Anne’s emeralds with it,” Marie replied. “I never understood why you wouldn’t wear the gown in public.”
“Someone once described me as a ‘colorless lab rat’,” Edwina answered thoughtfully. “In many ways, that’s what I am.”
Marie cleared her throat pointedly. “Pah, if you are it is only because you’ve chosen to hide behind that terrible façade,” she said tightly.
Edwina shrugged. “Perhaps.”
“I’ll send the gowns to you by the end of the week, if I have to cut and sew them myself,” Marie promised.
“Thank
s.”
“Your measurements are still the same?”
“After lunch, you can retake them.”
It was almost three by the time that Edwina had left her grandmother’s house.
The car with the bodyguards followed her to the nursery. She went into the offices and changed clothes in the rest room, changing into a work jumpsuit, chore coat, and boots. She didn’t intend to do any real work, but she wanted to walk the acreage and look at the stock, check the green houses, and begin to get some inspiration for Klaus’ garden. She was prepared to tag any plant that appealed to her for possible inclusion in the garden.
Besides that, she enjoyed just being out where young things grew. It was peaceful here on Sunday afternoon. Starting the coming weekend, the nursery would be open on Sunday afternoon from noon until three to meet the needs of hobby gardeners. Edwina didn’t like letting the nursery be open on Sunday, but that was the way that this business was.
Hans, the bodyguard, was waiting for her when she came out of the offices. “Fraulein Doctor,” he began.
“Come along, since you’re coming. Just don’t get in my way.”
He smiled. “Danke.”
She stayed there on the nursery grounds until sunset, picking out plants and puttering in her greenhouses. Then she changed clothes. Hans drove her back to town. He insisted. The other car with the other driver followed them.
When she got back to the shop, she noticed that Klaus’ car was parked on the street.
“You’ve had a long day,” Klaus greeted her.
He was so handsome. Just looking at her took his breath away. He wore another of those immaculately tailored suits under his overcoat. Every inch of him proclaimed him to be a man of wealth and breeding. She wanted to think herself unimpressed by his obvious wealth. Yet, she wasn’t convinced of the truth of that.
“How did your conference call go?”
“I’ve had four of those today. They all went well enough.”
“I’m glad.”
“You’ve made your decision about us.”
“What makes you think I have done that?”
“Haven’t you?” Klaus asked carefully.
“No, I don’t believe I have.”
“Then I have the pleasure of attempting to convince you,” Klaus said with a smile.
Lord, how she loved his smile!
“Are you going to invite me inside?” he asked.
“I don’t believe that would be wise, given how we react to one another.”
“Then, will you come to dinner with me?”
“Yes. That I will do.”
“Shall we walk? Or would you rather go someplace other than one of the restaurants in this neighborhood?”
“Do you like Chinese food?”
He smiled. “Cantonese, Mandarin, or Szechwan?”
“Mandarin and Szechwan. There’s a good place a couple of blocks over. It’s a nice walk.”
“Then, by all means, let’s go. This time, no pretenses that this is anything except a date. You and I both know that we’re not going to be able to dance around this desire for very long.”
Edwina looked at him for a long moment. “Klaus, you’re rushing me and I’m not comfortable with it.”
“I would suggest that you get comfortable with it. I am not going away.”
She looked at him. “Klaus, I don’t know what to do with you.”
He laughed. “Would you like some suggestions?” he teased her mercilessly.
“Only if the first one is finding some dinner.”
Klaus held out his arm to her. “Come and walk with me. Show me where this restaurant is.”
The restaurant was not overly busy, but it was busy enough for a Sunday night well after the regular dinner rush. Klaus ordered in what sounded to Edwina like fluent Chinese. He and the waitress had a prolonged discussion in that language. But Edwina’s understanding of Chinese was limited to items from a menu.
What came when the food arrived was nothing like Edwina had ever had off the regular menu.
“Where did you learn Chinese?” Edwina asked between spicy bites.
“I do a fair amount of business with the People’s Republic and Taiwan. It’s only prudent to speak the language,” he dismissed.
“How many languages do you speak?”
“A few,” he dismissed.
“Klaus,” she asked in German, “which languages do you speak?”
“German, Dutch, English, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, and Korean,” he answered in German. “And I can muddle through Flemish, Norwegian, Danish, French, and Spanish when I have to. What languages do you speak?”
“English, German, Russian, Spanish, Greek, and French. I can muddle through Polish, Ukrainian, and Romanian, if I have to. I can read Italian but haven’t been around enough native speakers to have the spoken word be anywhere near fluent.”
“We could solve that easily enough. We could go live in Europe for a few years. I have a house in Northern Italy,” he offered in German. “It’s a beautiful place, out in the countryside, quite peaceful.”
“My grandmother says that one of her great-grandmother’s sisters, Regina, married into the von Bruner family from Bavaria,” she said in English, side-stepping that offer.
Klaus smiled slightly. “The Schloss is in Bavaria. It’s a beautiful place. But it belongs to another era. I’d have to check the family history. I do know that several of my ancestors married Englishwomen. I’m serious about the offer of marriage, Edwina. We could have a very good life together.”
“A Schloss. Then the ‘von’ actually denotes the rank of a Baron.”
Klaus sighed. “Yes, for whatever that means in the modern world. I prefer to be known for my own accomplishments, not for my ancestors. But, if the title means something to you, then I would be happy to call you Baroness.”
“We need to get to know one another a lot better than we do before I’d even consider marriage. And I’m far too American to be terribly impressed by titles of nobility.”
He smiled. “What would it take for you to be terribly impressed?”
“Ah, I don’t think that I’ll tell you that. It would give you an unfair advantage.”
“I’ll take any advantage I can get,” he said with a smile.
“Shame on you, Klaus. You haven’t struck me as a man who would take advantage of a defenseless woman.”
“There isn’t a defenseless woman sitting at this table.”
“And how would you know that?”
“Hans tells me that you are obviously well trained in martial arts. He said that you were about to hand your tenant his head in a hand basket this morning. Hans’ assessment is that you could handle anything short of an attack by firearms with ease.”
“I hope I never have to find out about that.”
“I hope not either. But it is good to know that I don’t have to worry about your ability to defend yourself in most situations.”
“Thanks.”
“I spoke with your Uncle Richard this afternoon.”
“You know Uncle Richard?”
“We’ve met.”
“And what did Uncle Richard have to say when he spoke to you?”
“Not nearly as much as your Uncles Lawrence, James, Thomas, Frederick, or Robert did.”
Edwina rolled her eyes. “Is there anyone in my family that you haven’t heard from today?”
“I received phone calls from six uncles, five aunts, and a grandmother. Is there anyone else I should have heard from?” Klaus replied with amusement in his voice.
“Oh, let’s see… there are my forty-five cousins.”
“You did say that you were from a large family,” Klaus replied in a bemused tone.
“It’s a mixed blessing at times.”
“Yes,” he replied with an edge of something indefinable in his voice. “We can discuss our respective families over dinner each evening this week.”
“The shop closes at nine.”
He
nodded. “Then I will be there promptly to take you to dinner, beginning tomorrow night.”
“Not tomorrow. It’s my grandmother’s birthday. There is a big surprise party for her at the country club where she’s been a member since it was organized. I do suspect that someone has disclosed it to her by now. But we’re all pretending that it’s a surprise.”
“You’re closing the shop?”
“No. I’ve got part time help come in to cover for me.”
“Yet you are unwilling to leave your shop in the hands of part time help on a regular basis,” Klaus said quietly.
“I’ve got the venture on a very tight budget right now. I have part time shop help for only thirty hours a week. More than that, I really can’t afford. And I only have that to allow me the ability to meet with clients and prospective clients during the hours that the shop is open.”
“And perhaps to give you some time to work on your own projects?” he offered.
“Perhaps,” she agreed.
Klaus nodded. “I’d like to read your business plan sometime, and run the numbers. Maybe we can find a way of letting you have more time off.”
“Trust me, I’ve run the figures until I’m sick of running them. I didn’t go into business blindly.”
“Knowing you, I didn’t think you did. How many years have you been plotting this venture of yours?”
“I started playing with the idea about seventeen years ago in a business class as an undergraduate.”
“So, this has been a long time goal of yours. It’s not just something you’ve used as an escape-valve after you found you didn’t like working in biotechnology.”
“I love biotechnology. But the world isn’t really ready to face the full ethical implications of the science.”
“You’re still working on the narcotic project, aren’t you?” he asked in rapid German.
“Klaus, I have no intention of discussing my work with you in any further detail. Especially not in public,” she answered in equally rapid German.
“This is dangerous, Edwina. You run risks.”
“Any risk is one that I willingly undertake, Klaus. Now, let’s speak in English and about only non-controversial subjects.”
Dream Lover Page 13