A Pearl for Love (4 page)

‘
I
’
ll take you over to Housesteads next Sunday. You
’
ll see some marvellous old Roman ruins, and we can have a look at such places as Hexham, a lovely old town, not so far away.
’

‘
Oh, but won
’
t you
...
?
’
She stopped. She had been about to ask if he had no girl-friend to whom he was committed, then remembered that she risked another snub.
‘
Be busy?
’
she finished lamely.

He grinned at her again, as though he were infuriatingly reading her mind.

‘
Of course I will. I
’
ll be busy with you, won
’
t I?
’

Then his eyes grew serious.

‘
How do you really feel about coming here, Kate
?’
he asked abruptly.
‘
Did you
want
to come, or was it the lesser of two evils?
’

She felt taken aback.

‘
Of course I wanted to come!
’

He was silent as he led her over to a flat stone dyke, where he began to open up their haversack.

‘
And you had nothing better in mind? Better for yourself, I mean.
’

‘
I hardly had much choice,
’
she said dryly.
‘
I
’
m untrained for a career, and my bank balance isn
’
t exactly enormous. The only thing I know about at all is gem stones, thanks to Daddy.
’

John was looking at her curiously.

‘
But you have assets, or one asset which is worth having.
’

‘
Such as?
’

Again his eyes were searching, then they dissolved into laughter.

‘
More than one, maybe. You
’
re very beautiful, Catherine. That
’
s why ... I feel reservations about your coming here. I wonder if it was wise, for you, for all of us.
’

Her brows wrinkled.

‘
That can soon be remedied,
’
she said stiffly,
‘
if your parents feel the same way
...’

‘
They don
’
t, and don
’
t go flying off the handle. Believe me, I
’
m thinking about you, and your future happiness, my dear.
’

There was no doubting his sincerity.

‘
You speak in riddles, John,
’
she told him, rather tiredly, and he was immediately contrite.

‘
Box my thick ear, Kate,
’
he told her, re-packing the haversack.
‘
I
’
m a clumsy fool. I
’
ve brought you too far, and tired you out.
’

‘
No, I
’
m not really tired. At least, my body isn
’
t. A walk like this should do me good.
’

John took her hand as they made their way home rather more slowly.

‘
Forget all my nonsense,
’
he told her.
‘
We all of us have problems, some more than most. Only I
’
ll be looking out for you, Kate. Remember that.
’

She felt strangely warmed as she went upstairs again to change. Had she found a real friend in John Sheridan? Yet ought she to take him seriously? And what did he mean by wondering if she had done the right thing coming here? Who could spoil her happiness? Or, come to that, whose happiness could she spoil?

In spite of herself, Catherine shivered a little, and put on an extra sweater. Sometimes it wasn
’
t always so cosy at Balgower.

Catherine asked John to postpone her outing to Housesteads until a later date when Elizabeth came home with the news that Miss P
r
yce had to go home, feeling ill.

She had a tooth removed and it
’
s become infected, poor old girl,
’
she told her mother.
‘
Her jaw is badly swollen and she feels really off colour, so she must stay at home till she
’
s better.

‘
Poor woman,
’
sympathised Lucille.
‘
You
’
ll be missing her, Elizabeth.
’

‘
Yes. That
’
s why
...
where
’
s Catherine?
’

‘
Helping with some special sort of sweet for dinner. She
’
s good at that sort of thing.
’

‘
Well, I hope she
’
ll be good at selling pearls, because I
’
m wondering if she
’
s well enough to cope. Getting reasonably good staff is difficult at the moment.
’

Catherine was only too happy to oblige. After a week at Balgower, she felt quite rested enough to want to spread her wings a little. There wasn
’
t enough challenge in this well-planned house, which already ran on oiled wheels, to keep her busy all day, and she felt lonely when the family were out at business all day. When Aunt Lucille was at home, Catherine felt, rather guiltily, that the older woman was inclined to get on her nerves. Perhaps they got on each other
’
s nerves, she thought, trying to be fair.

‘
Are you sure you
’
re fit enough?
’
Elizabeth asked bluntly.
‘
Even a large spacious shop like ours can be very tiring, and some customers are infuriating. One must keep one
’
s temper. They spend hours choosing something, then a month or so later they bring it back and ask to swap it for something else. I often wonder if they do the same thing with their furnishings, or clothes, and what reception they get if they do
!
’

Catherine wondered what reception they got from Elizabeth! She had begun to admire the other girl, even if she never felt close to her. There was no merging of their minds, and sometimes Catherine felt that the other girl was still viewing her dispassionately, that she kept standing back and having a good look at her, as though making up her mind about something. She did not feel wholly comfortable with Elizabeth.

‘
I
’
m fit enough, and I
’
ll rest all I can during my off-time. Will my plain dress do?
’
she asked.
‘
I suppose I ought to get a few more dresses suitable for business.
’

‘
It will be fine,
’
Elizabeth assured her, rather absently. Her eye ran over the other girl half enviously. There was no doubt that Catherine was a beauty, even if she still hadn
’
t learned to make the best of herself . If she did something about her hair, and bought clothes which suited her better, she would be really stunning. Yet perhaps she would lose her own peculiar look of innocence and freshness, which could even be her greatest asset. Elizabeth sighed, thinking how hard she herself had to work to achieve her own smart appearance.

She thought of Michael, who would be home in two days
’
time, and again her eyes swept over Catherine. How would Michael react to her? For a moment there was a bleak look in Elizabeth
’
s dark eyes, then it was gone. There was no use in crossing bridges. She knew Michael pretty well
...
perhaps better than he realised. He always knew what was best for himself.

‘
Your dark blue dress will be perfect,
’
she said to Catherine, in a gentler tone.
‘
You
’
ll have to be up early in the morning, so have an early night. I
’
ll take you with me in the Mini. Where
’
s John?
’

‘
Not home yet,
’
said Lucille.

‘
Well, we know where he
won
’
t
be,
’
said Elizabeth dryly, and there was sudden silence which made Catherine look at them both curiously. Where wouldn
’
t John be?

Catherine had already been shown round the lovely jeweller
’
s shop in the busy city centre, but somehow it seemed different in the early morning, viewed from the other side of the counter.

And even that was only a figure of speech. The old counters had now been replaced with lovely glass showcases, attractively displayed, besides which were placed comfortable chairs. Sheridan and Rodgers liked to encourage their customers to take their time, and to enjoy buying something which was meant to give pleasure for many years to come.

Uncle James and John spent some time taking the most valuable displays of diamonds out of the safes, and putting them into the window. Strict rules had long ago been laid down for security reasons, and were kept well up to date, as well as being rigidly followed.

It was Elizabeth who showed Catherine the lovely cultured pearl displays, and the costing of each one so that she was unlikely to make a mistake.

‘
Always check with me, if you aren
’
t sure,
’
she advised.

‘
They
’
re gorgeous,
’
said Catherine, looking at the milky white pearls, the more expensive ones having diamond clips, sometimes with other precious stones.
‘
But I wish you could see the freshwater pearls in Perth, Elizabeth.
’

The other girl
’
s interest was caught.

‘
Yes, I
’
d love to see those. Some time I must go and see them for myself.
’

‘
They
’
re fished out of the Scottish rivers, as you know. Daddy used to do that, of course.
’

‘
Yes, I know,
’
said Elizabeth abruptly.

‘
The colours are so unusual, some even pink and mauve besides cream, and the brooch designs are quite perfect, because they
’
re made up with backgrounds of bracken and heather ... in gold, of course
...
and floral arrangements like snowdrops and bluebells. The biggest of all is the Abe
rn
ethy pearl, about half an inch in diameter, I believe. I saw it once. It was really beautiful.
’

‘
But
...’

Elizabeth was looking at her curiously.

‘
Did you see some of the pearls your father found?
’

‘
Oh yes, but they were usually fairly small, but quite valuable. Nothing exciting, though.
’

Uncle James and John came over to speak to her as
Mrs.
Neal, the cleaning woman, was hurriedly giving a final polish to the showcases.

‘
Put the kettle on,
Mrs.
Neal,
’
said Uncle James, and she grinned. He was well known for needing
a cup of tea long before the usual
‘
elevenses
.’

‘
Yes, sir,
’
she assured him.

‘
Well, Catherine, my dear, are you quite happy? Not worried about anything
?’

‘
Not yet
!’
she laughed.
‘
It all seems quite straightforward.
’

‘
You can soon learn all you need to know for the moment, then we
’
ll gradually teach you more. You
’
re also going to learn about people, my dear. In a jeweller
’
s like this, one starts to learn about people very quickly, and go on learning, too. Because it doesn
’
t do to make quick judgements. I
’
ve had customers in who look as though they
’
re about to select a small charm for their granddaughter
’
s birthday, and they
’
ve gone out the proud possessors of my best brooch or necklace.
’