Читать книгу A Summer to Remember - Виктория Коннелли, Victoria Connelly - Страница 12

Nina handed the keys to her flat to a bemused Mr Briggs, who said he’d have to keep her bond because she hadn’t served out her period of notice. But she didn’t care about that. She was free – free of her job and free of her flat. Free to start again. After the last few dark weeks, she felt as if she was on the edge of a great adventure and, right there and then, she made a promise to herself – to steer clear of men. The recent months with Matt had left her scarred and scared, and she felt that it would be a long time indeed before she would even want to think about entering into another relationship.

No, Nina thought, she was going to focus solely on herself for a while.

She arrived at The Old Mill House at ten o’clock the very next day, as agreed, and Olivia was ready to greet her.

‘Nina! I was so worried in case you’d changed your mind,’ she said, ushering her into the hall. ‘I’m glad you didn’t,’ she added with a smile. ‘Gracious – is that all you’ve brought with you?’ Olivia said as she saw Nina’s modest suitcase and her portable radio.

‘It’s all I need,’ Nina smiled, thinking of the humble wardrobe and miniature library of books she’d packed.

‘Oh, do be quiet, Ziggy!’ Olivia said, addressing her command to the closed kitchen door, which was being pounded from the other side. Then, turning to Nina, she said, ‘Do you remember where your old room is?’

‘Oh, yes.’ Nina nodded enthusiastically, looking up the stairs, dying to see the little room again.

‘Then I’ll leave you to get your things organised,’ Olivia clenched her hands together, as if not quite knowing what to do next. ‘Just give me a call when you’re ready and we’ll have a cuppa before you face the study.’ She bit her lip, then hurried down the hall.

Nina started up the two flights of stairs. She looked down at the oatmeal carpet, which was immaculate now that Olivia employed Marie to clean, but which had always been covered in domestic tumbleweed whilst the boys had been growing up and money had been tighter. Now, it appeared that every surface in the house was dusted and polished until it gleamed, and that carpets were vacuumed to cotton-wool cleanness. Apart from the study, it would seem.

Nina felt that, with each stair, she was stepping back into her own past. Reaching the top, she turned left and saw that the door of her old bedroom was open. She smiled as she saw the little cast-iron bed freshly dressed in a quilt of blue roses on a white background and, on the bedside table, a small jam jar exploded with handpicked flowers from the fields surrounding the mill.

There was a small dressing table by the window, and Nina walked over to it before looking out onto the river. She remembered falling asleep to the sound of it when she’d been lucky enough to escape her own home and stay at the mill overnight. It would lull her into the most delicious of sleeps, and then be the first thing she’d hear in the morning – well, if the boys didn’t wake her up first.

The room was just as she remembered, with the neat little hand-painted bookcase in the corner filled with rows of orange Penguin novels, their slender spines making them look like a row of literary supermodels.

The old wardrobe at the other side of the room, like an extra from a C. S. Lewis novel, seemed to smile a welcome at her, the light bouncing off the polished wood.

After her hateful flat, the room was like a five-star hotel. The snow-white carpet was soft, the furniture unbroken and the wallpaper complete, and there wasn’t a damp patch in sight.

The window had been left open and she breathed in a couple of lungfuls of fresh air before unzipping her suitcase and putting her clothes out on the bed. She’d hang them up later. Now, however, it was time to start work.

‘Oh my God!’ Nina started, as she looked up from the bed. A tall figure was standing in the doorway. ‘Dominic!’ she gasped, ‘I didn’t hear you. You gave me such a shock.’

‘Didn’t mean to,’ he said, daring to venture into the room a little. ‘I wanted to have this waiting for you – to cheer the room up a bit.’

‘Oh?’ Nina watched as he produced a small watercolour from behind his back, framed in palest gilt. ‘Oh Dominic, that’s lovely!’ She took the picture from him and looked at the sunset view over the river and across the meadows, in pale pinks and deepest blues. ‘You’re so talented. I bet you’re going to be in all the big London galleries before long.’

‘Well, I don’t know about that. I’ve got a show in Tombland at the end of August though.’

‘Really?’

Dominic nodded. ‘It’s a start,’ he said.

‘And I’m sure it’ll be a really good start, too.’ She smiled at him. Little Dommie – all grown-up and making his way in the world.

‘Anyway, I hope you like it,’ he said, nervously watching for her response.

‘I do! I love it. Thank you.’

‘Only the room was so bare.’

‘Not at all – with a view like this,’ Nina said, ‘and I already have half of the meadow by my bedside,’ she added, nodding to the flowers. ‘Aren’t they lovely?’

‘I’m glad you like them.’

Nina looked at Dominic. Had he picked them? She’d just assumed that Olivia had collected them for her. Suddenly, she felt embarrassed.

‘Anyway, I was just going to go downstairs and make a start on your father’s study,’ she told him, deciding it best to be businesslike.

‘Yes,’ Dominic said, his eyes straying towards the bed where Nina’s clothes were spilled out across the quilt. Nina saw where he was looking and realised that several pairs of lacy knickers and bras were on display and that Dominic had turned quite red.

‘I saw your other paintings in the hallway,’ she said quickly, trying to divert attention away from her exhibition of underwear. ‘They’re amazing. I don’t know how you do it.’

‘Well, I’m not very good at anything else,’ he said, his dark eyes flickering over her face for an instant.

‘Oh, I’m sure that’s not true. Anyway, you should be proud. I wish I was artistic.’

Dominic grinned. ‘If you can restore any kind of order to Dad’s study, then you’ll deserve the Turner Prize.’

They smiled at each other and Nina placed his painting on her bedside table next to the flowers.

‘I suppose I’d better make a start,’ she said, but noticed that Dominic’s eyes had strayed to the bed again. Nina followed the pathway of his vision and saw what it was that had caught his eye.

It was her nightie – girlie pink with spaghetti straps and covered in tiny daisies.

Olivia was still clenching her hands together and looking decidedly agitated.

‘So, I’ve been making a list of things I’d love your help with for the party arrangements, but the most important thing really is for you to help Dudley. I’m not sure what he’ll need in terms of a research assistant – I’m sure he’ll let you know – but – well – I’m not quite sure where you want to start,’ she said, her eyes wide and apologetic. ‘It’s all such an awful muddle, isn’t it?’

‘Is Mr Milton at home today?’ Nina asked.

‘No – er – he’s still in London, at his brother’s – but he’ll be back tomorrow.’ Olivia looked around the room in horror. ‘Probably best if I leave you to it? I don’t want to get in your way.’

Nina nodded.

‘Well, good luck then.’ Olivia left the room and Nina turned back and looked at the tip that lay before her. It probably hadn’t been a good idea to wear white.

She reached into the pocket of her cotton trousers for a hair-band and tied her bob back into a short ponytail before rolling her sleeves up. It was time for battle to commence.

After two hours of hard work, which had mainly involved shifting things from one side of the room to the other, Nina was ready to start on the paperwork. She’d managed to clear one of the desks, the one she assumed was to be hers, and had even put her own personal stamp on it: her framed photo of her little dog, Bertie, which had been homeless since they’d both left the clutches of Hilary Jackson.

‘I’ve a feeling we’re going to like it here, Bertie,’ she said, smiling at the little silver frame and noticing how at home he looked on his new desk. Yes, everything was going to be just fine, she told herself.

There was only one thing that had bamboozled her that morning, and that was a little cupboard in the corner of the study behind Dudley’s desk. She could see a piece of paper had been trapped in its door but, when she’d tried to tidy it up, she’d realised that the door was locked and that the key was nowhere to be seen. She’d looked around for it for a few minutes, but soon realised that she probably wasn’t meant to be able to find it and so she left the cupboard alone, wondering what was hidden behind its secretive door.

After the briefest of lunch breaks, followed by another hour of tidying, Nina looked up from a sample of Dudley’s scribble on the top of a particularly large mound of papers. Something had caught her eye from beyond the patio doors and, looking closer, she noticed a young woman out in the garden with dark wavy hair and a pretty face.

Nina walked across to the doors, which she’d opened earlier in the hope of alleviating some of the mustiness of the room. The young woman was half hidden in one of the borders behind a plant with leaves the size of an elephant’s foot, and was wielding a large silver spade. However, she’d stopped her work and was watching something, her gaze unwavering. Nina followed the girl’s gaze and saw the object of her fascination: Dominic.

He was walking across the lawn, his head inclined towards the ground, completely unaware of his female audience. And the girl was mesmerized. Nina hadn’t seen anything like it outside of a movie. Her vision was one of perfect softness, as if she was looking at a divine painting; she wasn’t aware of anything else around her, least of all Nina.

As Nina watched, she felt a strange tickle in her nose. It wasn’t really surprising, with the amount of dust that had been trapped amongst the paperwork in Dudley’s study, and her nose twitched, her face stretching and contorting. She was going to sneeze.

‘Aaaachooooo!’

The dark-haired girl behind the plant almost left the ground in shock.

‘Good heavens!’ she cried from across the garden. ‘Who are you?’

‘I’m Nina Elliot, the new secretary,’ Nina said, sniffing loudly as she approached her across the lawn.

‘Oh,’ the girl said, swallowing hard.

‘And you are?’ Nina smiled gently as she reached for a tissue from her pocket.

‘Faye,’ the girl said, her voice a little croaky until she cleared her throat. ‘Darnley.’

‘Hello, Faye,’ Nina reached the border to shake hands and was offered a warm, dust-encrusted one.

‘I was just looking—’ Faye started, but bit her lip and didn’t finish her sentence.

‘I’m sorry I startled you,’ Nina said quickly.

Faye nodded. ‘It’s okay. I was miles away, that’s all – planning a new herbaceous border for Olivia.’

Nina nodded, not quite sure what that sort of work entailed. ‘Sounds interesting,’ she said.

‘Oh, it is,’ Faye said. ‘Olivia’s given me a very generous budget and it’s a dream being able to plant exactly what I want, but it’s quite a lot of pressure, too. This garden’s so beautiful and I want to do it justice.’

‘I’m sure you will,’ Nina said, noticing the beautiful green lawns, the neatly clipped hedges and the arch that led to the walled garden, which was smothered with a vigorous white rose, perfuming the air with its delicious scent. When she’d babysat, much of her time had been spent indoors and she hadn’t really got to know the gardens; a great shame, as they were so lovely. Perhaps she’d be able to explore them now though, she thought, imagining being able to take her tea breaks on a bench surrounded by lavender and birdsong.

‘New secretary, you say?’ the girl asked.

‘Yes.’

‘You must be brave to take Dudley on,’ Faye said, tucking a dark curl behind her ear and leaving a streak of dirt across her rosy cheek.

‘Oh, I don’t know about that. You should have seen my last boss,’ Nina grinned.