Family Secrets (4 page)

“Quite
right,” Tim said approvingly. “You don’t want to rush in too quickly.”

Rhianna
noticed Lawrence was keeping very quiet and suspected he probably knew what had happened all those years ago. She couldn’t help wondering if it had anything to do with Anna Soames.

The
conversation moved on to more general topics. Presently, Myra collected up the plates and brought in a delectable looking apple pie and ice cream.

“So
what have you been up to since we saw you last, Laurie? Letitia says you’ve been working abroad.”

Rhianna, all ears, was amused that Myra asked such direct questions.

“Oh,
I had a year in the States and then I decided to go freelance when I returned to England. I enjoy working for myself. It means I can get some painting done in between contracts.”

“Lawrence
took a look at Rhianna’s gallery near St Alban’s,” Tim told his wife.

Myra’s
eyes widened. “You’ve got your own gallery! How impressive is that! Well, you and Lawrence should get on well. How about that, Tim? We’ve got two artists in our midst. I’m sure we can use your expertise in some way.”

Lawrence laughed. “Same old Myra – always got your eye to the main chance. She won’t let us escape, you know, Rhia. So what do you want us to do?”

Myra
joined in the laughter. “Oh, I’ll think of something – a talk, a workshop, an exhibition. Something to raise money for the church roof fund.”

Tim
patted his wife’s arm. “I’m afraid she never gives up. You have to admire her tenacity. Give them a break, Myra. They haven’t had time to catch their breath yet…By the way, I didn’t show you where your grandfather and other ancestors were buried, did I, Rhianna? We’ll have to take another look at the churchyard some time.”

“Didn’t
you even know your father was born in Kent?” Myra asked now.

“Well,
I suppose he might have mentioned it at some time, but I can’t say I took too much notice. I expect Letitia will fill me in at some point.”

“Oh,
Tish will have lots of things to share with you, I’m certain of that,” Lawrence assured her.

“Such
a dear little name,
Tish
, it always makes me want to say, bless you,” Myra observed.

Rhianna
caught Lawrence’s gaze. There was a definite twinkle in his eyes and she couldn’t help laughing at Myra’s comment.

Over dessert, Tim and Myra regaled them with anecdotes from their years on the mission field in Africa.

The evening passed quickly and pleasantly and Rhianna realised what a delightful couple they were. She was relieved that no more was said about Letitia Delroy. There were masses of things she needed to know. Questions kept coming into her mind but, for that day, she had reached saturation point.

They
were about to leave when Myra asked, “Are the pair of you around tomorrow evening? It almost slipped my mind. We’ve got a concert in the village hall. It’s very varied – the choir from the school are singing and the church choristers as well as some talented individuals. It promises to be a good evening. We wondered if we’d need to postpone it with all that’s happened, but the police haven’t raised any objections.”

“Perhaps
Letitia would like to come,” Lawrence said. “Do we need to get the tickets beforehand?”

He
purchased three. Rhianna realised that he was a generous person, unlike Marcus, who had always seemed reluctant to put his hand in his pocket. She was determined to pay her way.

“Absolutely
not,” Lawrence told her. “It’s my treat - so forget it.”

As they entered the bar, someone called out to them, “Come and join us for a drink.”

Rhianna
suddenly couldn’t face any more cross questioning, besides, she wanted to phone Fiona to see how things were progressing at the gallery and so she pleaded tiredness and went upstairs.

Fiona
was waiting to catch up with her news, especially in regards to Laurence.

“Wow,”
she said, “so do you think he’s trustworthy?”

“I’d
like to think so. He’s an interesting character and he seems to be sincere.” She decided not to mention the incident earlier that evening. Fiona would never let her live it down. Instead she told her about her visit to Letitia and what she’d learnt about the Soames family. She was subjected to a barrage of questions about Letitia.

“I
can’t believe you call your grandmother,
Letitia
?”

“Well,
I somehow can’t bring myself to call her
Grandmother
, yet. After all, everything’s happened so quickly. I didn’t even know I had a grandmother until a short time ago.”

“Well,
it must be just as strange for her,” Fiona said. “I’d make the most of her if I were you. I’d give anything to have my grandparents still around. She sounds a nice lady.”

“Mmm,
I think she is, but, remember, I’ve only seen her for just over an hour. It’s very early days yet, but I’m sure we’re going to get on.” Rhianna sniffed. “She’s a lot like my father, Fi. It’s making me feel very emotional… Anyway, can we leave it for now? Tell me about the gallery.”

“You’ve
only been gone a couple of days, Rhia! Actually, you’ll be pleased to learn I’ve sold another painting. That customer who came in this morning wanted a present for his sister’s birthday. He raved about those landscapes.”

“Great
– Matt will be pleased and the commission will come in handy. Keep up the good work.”

“So
when are you coming back?” Fiona wanted to know.

“Oh,
it’s hard to say – not until after the weekend at any rate. Actually, I’ve just been invited to a concert with Laurie.”

“Oh,
so it’s Laurie now, is it?” Fiona teased. “Well enjoy yourself whilst I’m slaving away,” she added good-naturedly.

“For
your information, my friend, I’ve spent the afternoon doing some photographs for another exhibition and I’m going to do some painting from them so it’s not all socialising,” Rhianna said.

“If
you say so. Well, keep me informed. I want to know more about this mysterious Christina Soames.”

So
do I, Rhianna told herself as she prepared for bed. It still hadn’t sunk in that Lawrence had been engaged to Tina. She wondered why they had split up. There were still so many unanswered questions.

*

Rhianna spent an interesting morning with Letitia Delroy.

The
elderly lady had unearthed some old photograph albums and they sat side by side on the sofa. Rhianna realised there was so much she didn’t know about her father.

“Did
you know my mother too?”

Letitia
shook her white head. “Sadly, no. She sounded a very nice lady. Where did he meet her?”

“Oh,
at an art exhibition up in London, I believe. Neither of them said much about their early lives. They had many friends in the art world.”

“How
interesting. Of course your father inherited his love of art from his father. Reg tried to discourage him - said there was no money in it, unless you were a genius. I’ve still got a few of Reg’s paintings dotted about the place but we sold a number over the years.”

“So
the painting of
Anna
Soames
, was that painted by my father?”

Letitia
shook her white head. “No, dear – not your father … Now, how about some coffee? I must put the casserole on too or we’ll never get any lunch.”

Rhianna
got the distinct impression that Letitia was changing the subject and wondered why. There was definitely something she didn’t understand about all this and she was convinced that it was to do with the painting.

Chapter Four

After coffee, Letitia took Rhianna on a tour of the downstairs rooms with Tansy trotting along beside them. It was a gracious house which had an air of shabby grandeur.

“This
place is far too big for me nowadays, but I really don’t want to move until I have to,” Letitia said sadly.

Rhianna
thought that the upkeep of the place must be horrendous.

“Did
Laurie tell you that at one time him and Tina…” Letitia trailed off, obviously wondering if she’d said too much.

“He
told me they were engaged for a short while, yes,” Rhianna said.

Her
grandmother looked relieved. “Oh, I’m glad he filled you in. It makes it less awkward all round. He would have been so good for her but it wasn’t to be. If that had happened they would have lived here at
Wisteria
Lodge
and I expect I would have moved into the cottage.”

“The
cottage?” Rhianna queried, wondering if this was something else Letitia thought she knew.

“Yes,
I own a cottage in the village. It’s where Laurie used to live a few years back. It’s an idyllic spot but it’s rented out at the moment.”

Before
Rhianna had time to ask her any questions Letitia said, “Now I’m sure you’d like to see some of your grandfather’s paintings and then we might just have time to take a look at your father’s old room before Laurie arrives. There’s a lot of his stuff in it still. I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it.”

Rhianna
followed her grandmother into the dining-room and stood looking at the oil paintings adorning the walls. Her grandfather had certainly been artistically talented, but she found his subject matter rather dull – still lives and bleak landscapes. It lacked the vivacity of her father’s work and she felt a sense of disappointment.”

“They’re
not his best,” Letitia said, as if she sensed Rhianna’s thoughts. “We sold most of those. He was quite a popular artist in his day, believe it or not. He used to get commissions. What did your father do?”

“Oh,
he had commissions too mainly for offices and libraries and council buildings, but it wasn’t enough to live on so he worked in a gallery up in London until he retired. He set up exhibitions, lectured, that sort of thing.”

Letitia’s
face was full of interest.

“I’m glad he made something of himself. I never stopped thinking about him you know - wondering how he was getting on. You can’t imagine how I feel now that you’re here. It means the earth to me.”

Rhianna
was about to pluck up courage, ask her again what it was that had been so terrible that it had led to a lifetime separation when the doorbell chimed.

“That’ll
be Laurie. Can you let him in, dear? How lovely - both of you together under my roof! It’s more than I could ever have dreamed of. You’ve made an old woman very happy.”

*

To Rhianna’s delight, Letitia agreed to accompany them to the concert that evening.

“But
there’s one condition – that you allow me to tell everyone you’re my granddaughter!”

Rhianna
agreed and, that evening, found herself sitting between Lawrence and Letitia in the village hall. It was an excellent amateur event. The children from the local school were an absolute delight and the applause brought the house down.

During the interval, Lawrence valiantly fought his way to the refreshments and returned bearing coffee and biscuits.

Irene
Blake came across to talk to them. “Mavis is very much better. She’s being discharged soon and is going to stay with her son and family.”

“Oh,
that is good news. Such a dreadful thing to happen. What’s happening about the post office?” Letitia enquired.

“Oh, it’s reopening next week. They’ve got a retired postmaster coming to take charge of things for the time-being. Lizzie is well enough to go back to work too.”

“Any
news of arrests?” Lawrence asked.

Irene
shook her head. “ ‘fraid not. They’ll get clever once too often.” She looked curiously at Rhianna. “Are you planning to stay long?”

“For
another few days but I’ll be returning.”

Letitia
put an arm about Rhianna’s shoulder. “What you won’t know, Irene, is that Rhianna here is my granddaughter,” she announced triumphantly.

Irene
stared at her open-mouthed. “But I thought your name was
Soames
.”

“That’s
what we decided to let people think - just until we were sure - but I’m actually Rhianna
Delroy
.”

There
wasn’t time for any more conversation, because, just then, Tim announced the second half of the programme.

Rhianna felt a sudden wave of happiness shoot through her. A few weeks back, she had believed she was all alone in the world and now she had a grandmother. Letitia Delroy was proving to be a delightful lady. And now there was Lawrence. She couldn’t believe how things were changing for her.

As
the concert neared a close, the audience were invited to join in a medley of songs from popular musicals. Rhianna decided it would be an evening to remember. Lawrence’s tenor voice matched her sweet soprano.

At
one point, she stole a look at him and he smiled and, reaching out, put his hand over hers. His fingers were warm and firm and made hers tingle. She reminded herself sternly that she didn’t intend to let another man walk over her as Marcus had done. Besides, what did she know about him and why had he broken off his engagement with Christina Soames?

After
the concert had ended to tumultuous applause, Tim came across to speak to them.

“It’s
great to see the three of you here tonight. Have you enjoyed it?”

They
assured him that they had. “Myra will give you a lift to church tomorrow morning - if you want to come, Letitia.”

“Oh,
that’s OK, I’ll be more than happy to fetch my grandmother,” Rhianna told him. I’m not here for much longer and want to make the most of being in her company.”

As
they dropped Letitia off at
Wisteria
Lodge
, Lawrence said, “Perhaps I could join you for church tomorrow and then the three of us could go out for lunch. I know a good pub a few miles away.”

Letitia’s
face lit up. “That would be wonderful, Laurie. I’ve had such a lovely evening.”

*

“So what do you think - now, you’ve had a chance to get to know Letitia a bit more?” Lawrence asked Rhianna carefully, as they drove back to the
White
Unicorn
.

“She’s
a lovely lady, I can’t imagine what caused my father to fall out with my grandmother but, in a way, I don’t want to know. It’s time to move on and it’s no good dwelling in the past, is it?”

“No,”
Lawrence agreed, but there was a thoughtful expression on his face masked by the darkness. He was all too aware that whatever had happened between Reg Delroy and his son had been extremely serious. Tina had tried very hard to find out what had caused the falling out, but had never succeeded in discovering the truth, as far as Lawrence was aware. He just hoped it would stay that way. There had been too much heartache for one lifetime.

As
they pulled up outside the pub, Lawrence took Rhianna’s hands between his.

“Thanks
for this evening, Rhia. I hope that we can continue to be friends.” Leaning across he kissed her gently on the cheek.

“It’s
been good,” she told him genuinely. It took every ounce of self-control to behave normally. She had no intention of letting him know the effect that kiss had had on her.

*

Rhianna enjoyed the church service which was quite modern and included the children. She was surprised when Lawrence had come with them. Afterwards, she found herself the centre of attention yet again as Letitia introduced her to a number of her church friends. Rhianna was aware there were a number of surprised glances and wondered if anyone in the congregation knew the reason for her father cutting himself off from his parents. If they did, they were discreet and made no comment. A couple of people did ask after Tina, however, but Lawrence merely shrugged.

“Oh,
I’m afraid I’m not Tina’s keeper. We parted company over two years ago and our paths don’t cross anymore,” he said politely to a woman in an amazing hat.

When
she’d gone, Letitia told him, “Oh, you mustn’t mind Sylvia, Laurie, she’s got a heart of gold but she is one of the most inquisitive people I know.”

He
grinned and took her arm, “Besides, Myra, you mean!” and Letitia chuckled.

As
they came out of the church, Tim Holt turned to Rhianna.

“Don’t
forget I’ve promised to show you the most recent Delroy graves. It’s a bit too chilly for you to be wandering about the churchyard, isn’t it, Tish?”

She
nodded. “Perhaps we’d better leave it for another time, Tim. We’re going out to lunch at the
Drunken
Duck
and we’ve booked a table.”

“Well,
have a good time.”

“I
intend to,” she said cheerily and clung onto Lawrence’s arm as they made their way to the car. “They’ve all got enough gossip to last them for a week,” she commented, a twinkle in her eye, and Rhianna and Laurie laughed.

The
Drunken
Duck
was doing a roaring trade and it didn’t take Rhianna long to find out why. The food, a carvery, was excellent.

“So
Laurie, have you had a chance to take a look at any properties since you’ve been here?” Letitia asked over their meal.

“No,
I’m afraid not. I’ve been quite busy sorting out Ron’s new website. Hopefully, tomorrow, I’ll get an opportunity - although I’m not holding my breath.”

“It’s
a pity the cottage is occupied.”

He
shook his head. “I wouldn’t want to go back there, Tish, too many memories. No, I want to start afresh. If it means waiting for the right place to turn up then I’m just going to have to be patient.”

There
was something Rhianna wanted to know.

“So
where are you living at the moment?”

“Not
far from you in Buckinghamshire. I’m staying with my parents.”

Her
heart leapt, as she realised it was possible she might see him again in the near future. All her good resolutions had gone to the wind since she’d discovered Lawrence was not her enemy. Well, a girl was entitled to change her mind, wasn’t she?

“Tell
me some more about your gallery, Rhianna,” Letitia said.

“Well,
it’s in a cottage in the high street. It’s quite small, but there’s an upstairs which we use for storage and, when we’ve got sufficient funds, we’re going to expand. We hold workshops and do a few courses on decoupage - that sort of thing.”

“So
what have you got in mind for expansion?”

Rhianna
enthused about the ideas she and Fiona had had. How, at present, they couldn’t have any one exhibition for more than a month, due to the limited amount of space.

“We’ve
even thought about serving teas and coffee – perhaps cakes and scones.”

Rhianna
suddenly saw the stern expression on Lawrence’s face. Meeting his gaze, she encountered eyes as hard as granite. She turned hot and cold. Whatever had she said to make him react like this? And it suddenly dawned on her what it might be. Surely he couldn’t imagine for one minute that she was angling for some money to pay for the expansion?

She thought about the comments he had made about being protective towards Letitia. A wave of anger surged through her as she realised she was right. How dare he? She had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from challenging him there and then. Just because Christina Soames had fleeced her grandmother, he couldn’t put her, Rhianna, in the same category.

Rhianna
lowered her gaze so that she wouldn’t have to meet his. Up until then she had been enjoying the meal but now it tasted like sawdust in her mouth. She reached for her drink and took a large sip which made her choke.

“Are
you all right, dear,” Letitia asked in concern.

“Absolutely,”
she assured her, when she’d got her breath back. “It just went down the wrong way.” She reached for a tissue and wiped her streaming eyes.

Fortunately,
the conversation turned to village affairs and the concert the previous evening. As they sat over coffee Letitia said, “I was wondering. I would so much like to see Mavis Blackett. Would it be too much to ask for one of you to run me to the hospital?”