Dusky Rose (14 page)

She tried to remove her hands to leave, but she felt David's grip tighten once more, preventing her escape. His eyes were soft and the arrogant fire had left them as they stared into hers. Laura felt the spring of love well within her heart as she sat there, intoxicated by the nearness of him. She knew that his hatred for her would flare anew once he was fully awake, but now, still under the languid spell of sleep, he looked at her with a warm compassion she could not resist.

"Don't go yet. Just stay here with me for awhile. I'm too tired to think about anything or to fight with you and I find your presence very relaxing. You don't have to talk or do anything, just stay near me, please."

Laura sat quietly at the edge of the sofa until David dozed off again. Finally, his grip on her hand relaxed and she realized he had fallen into a deep sleep. She rose and shut off the lights before leaving the room. Then she went to the kitchen and sat down to drink her warm milk. She would never understand David. He could be so warm at times, yet on other occasions he frightened her with his frosty arrogance. If only she could cut through the cold exterior and convince him that she hadn't married him for his money and was not the gold digger he thought she was. But that was probably an impossible expectation, and she could never risk intensifying his contempt by letting him know how much she really loved him.

She looked in on David when she passed the library on her way back to her bedroom and found that he was still asleep. Silently, she closed the door and continued on to her bedroom. After tossing and turning fitfully for what seemed like an eternity, she finally fell asleep.

She awoke the next morning to the incessant ringing of the telephone. Laura reached for her bedside extension and answered it sleepily. It was Miss Wentworth, David's alterego.

"Mr. Lattimer asked me to call and remind you that the household help is off duty today. Please manage breakfast as best you can and he'll see you in the evening. If you have any difficulty, please call me and I'll see what I can do to help."

"Thank you, Miss Wentworth, but I'm perfectly capable of caring for myself without the aid of a houseful of servants. I'm sure I'll have no trouble managing today."

"I'm sure you won't, Mrs. Lattimer. I am just following Mr. Lattimer's orders."

Laura hung up the telephone and got out of bed. She showered and dressed in a bright red pant outfit with a striped red and white overblouse. Then she walked into the kitchen to make herself some breakfast. She enjoyed the quiet coziness of the room as she made some coffee and toast. She doubted that she would ever feel truly comfortable in the presence of servants, a condition David had taken for granted all his life.

When she finished her breakfast, she rinsed her dishes and placed them in the dishwasher. Then she returned to her room, put her new house key in her new cowhide shoulder bag and prepared to leave the apartment. She realized that if she left by the front entrance she might run into Dan Smithers; she didn't know if it was his day off as well, so she left by the back door and took the delivery elevator to the main floor.

After bolting out the back door under the surprised eyes of the security man, she ran down to the corner and hailed a taxi which took her to Union Square and the store where she always bought her jeans. She bought three new pairs of jeans and some colorful T-shirts. Then she had the shopkeeper wrap up her red pant outfit and left the store wearing a pair of her new jeans. After all, there was no sense in being uncomfortable when David wasn't around to chastise her. Then she caught a cab and took it to the plant shop. Midge looked up from her flower arrangement when Laura entered the shop.

"Laura, where have you been all day? We've been trying to reach you. And what's happened to your beautiful clothes? Why are you wearing jeans again?"

"Wait a minute, Midge.
Who
has been trying to reach me?"

"Well, David called home to speak with you and when you weren't there, he thought you might be here. He was really concerned about you. I really think he cares about you more than you think. You'd better call him and let him know you're all right."

"Not just now; and I'm not going to argue about his feelings with you. I went down to Union Square today and bought myself some jeans and T-shirts. Now I've come here to help you with the plants. I've got my regular outfit with me, so I can change before David ever gets to see me. Right now, I just want to forget myself with the plants."

As she spoke, the telephone rang and Midge went to answer it. "Yes, she's here, Miss Wentworth. She just walked in. Yes, I'll be sure to tell her." Midge hung up the phone and looked at Laura. "I declare, Laura, I don't know what's wrong with you. You've been acting really strange lately."

"Oh, Midge, there's so much you don't know. David thinks I tricked him into marriage because I want his money, and there's just no way I can convince him otherwise. He only stays married to me to punish me, and because he doesn't want to hurt his mother. When we're alone, he barely tolerates me. I wish he did love me as much as you think he does, but believe me, he doesn't care about me at all; he just wants things to look good. That's the only reason he even acts like he cares."

"I think you're mistaken, Laura. He couldn't worry about you the way he does if he didn't love you. In any case, he said that he would pick you up here, later today. So we have the whole day to spend together."

Laura and Midge spent the afternoon discussing Midge's wedding, which was now less than a week away. Midge told Laura that she had decided to sell the plant shop since it was now apparent that neither of them would be in a position to care for it properly. All too aware of her own situation, Laura could not voice any objections. Much as she longed to keep the shop, she was in no position to meet the demands it would place upon her time. The thought of its sale saddened the remainder of the day for Laura.

At five o'clock, David walked in. His dark, piercing eyes stared out above his carefully tailored dark blue suit and arrested Laura as she stood. He seemed startled by her appearance. "Don't tell me that's part of the wardrobe Miss Wentworth chose for you?"

"No, don't go losing faith in dear Miss Wentworth. I bought these jeans today, all on my own. I just didn't feel comfortable working in those fancy clothes Miss Wentworth bought for me."

David grimaced and went to greet Midge. "How are you, Midge? All ready for the big event?"

Midge started telling him about her wedding plans and soon they were talking like two old friends. David asked how Steven was getting on at work and repeated his intention to meet him one day for lunch. Then Midge mentioned that the wedding was taking place that Saturday and asked David if he would be able to attend. David replied that he placed great importance on family matters and wouldn't miss the wedding for anything in the world. He asked Midge to be sure to call on him if there was anything he could do to help with the arrangements. Laura listened to this display of concerned affection with a strong desire to wring David's neck—or cry. It wasn't enough that he had made her his prisoner, now he was going to deprive her of her family's friendship as well. He seemed to like and get along with everyone he knew—except her. David had apparently completed his conversation with Midge, because he kissed her lightly on the cheek and sent his regards to Steven. Turning quickly, he grasped Laura's arm under the elbow and steered her toward the door.

Laura was surprised to see the small green Porsche parked by the curb. Then she remembered that Miss Wentworth had said the household help was off duty today.
That apparently included Dan
, she thought, so her escape that morning hadn't been necessary after all. David opened the door and waited for Laura to settle herself in the low seat of the small sports car. He flung the package containing her clothing into the back and went around to settle himself behind the wheel. Placing the key in the ignition, he turned to face Laura. "I thought we might go out to dinner tonight, since Mrs. Thompson won't have prepared anything. However, I didn't expect to find you dressed like this; I'm at a loss for a place to go. Your attire is hardly suitable for any of San Francisco's better restaurants."

"I'm sorry if my clothing displeases you but I had no idea we were dining out this evening. I can go home and change if you like. If that idea doesn't appeal to you, you can always dine out by yourself. I hate to be such a burden to you, but I'm a burden you can rid yourself of whenever you choose."

David winced as he moved the car away from the curb. "I'm beginning to be sorry I even considered dining with you this evening. I seem to recall a display of warm affection late last night, but I must have been dreaming. You still believe you can goad me into giving you a divorce. There's no way you can ever be anything but a heartless little gold digger, except, of course, when it suits your purpose to be agreeable. However, I have no intention of terminating this marriage to suit your convenience or to satisfy your financial demands, So just forget any nasty ideas that might come into your head; you'll stay married to me until I'm ready to let you go. And believe me, I'll demand suitable payment for any money you get from me."

David wheeled the car around through California Street and into the narrow winding streets of Chinatown. Then he parked in front of a small cafe with Chinese lettering above the door.

"Harry Lee is a friend of mine," he said as he parked the car. "He won't balk at serving you, dressed as you are, if I explain the situation to him."

As it turned out, no explanation was needed. When David entered the restaurant, he was practically trampled by the people rushing forward to greet him. Everyone gushed over Laura when he introduced her as his wife, and once again she was shocked by the affection this man aroused in the people who actually knew him.

She toyed with the idea that the rumors she had heard about him might have come from people who had never even met him.
People like herself
, she thought wryly, as she remembered some of the things she had said about Mr. Lattimer. Harry Lee insisted on preparing a special menu for them and Laura was treated to Chinese delicacies whose existence she had been unaware of up until now. She was thankful that no wine was served and thoroughly enjoyed the chrysanthemum tea which accompanied the dinner. When the multicourse meal was finally finished, Laura realized that three hours had passed. Everything had been so pleasant that she could scarcely believe how much time had gone by. Harry told her that David had given him the financing to start the restaurant when he and his family had landed in San Francisco, arriving penniless from Hong Kong. He would be forever indebted to David, he said, and could not stop singing his praises.

When David asked for the bill, Harry became greatly insulted and claimed that David was a guest in his restaurant and that this was his wedding present to them. David thanked him warmly and promised to return again soon. Then he placed his hand on Laura's waist and firmly guided her to the door. The silence in the car, as they drove home, was a glaring contrast to the effervescent conversation which had accompanied their dinner.

Finally, Laura broke the silence. "I really enjoyed the dinner. I'm sorry I was dressed in jeans, but I was helping Midge at the plant shop and this seemed to be the most comfortable thing to wear. I would have worn something more suitable if I had known we were going out to dinner. I could even have changed into my other outfit at the store if you'd only told me your plans. Anyway, I'm glad we went to Harry Lee's restaurant; he's really nice. I hope we can go there again sometime."

David didn't answer, just continued to drive in silence. Laura felt rebuffed and sank down lower in her seat. She realized now that his opinion of her had not changed and that he had just been nice to her in the restaurant for the sake of propriety. She decided to remain silent for the rest of the ride home. Apparently David was deep in thought and was not going to involve himself in any sort of discussion with her.

When they reached the house, David gave the Porsche to the doorman and led Laura to the elevators. He reached into his pocket, drew out his key and unlocked the door. Then, telling Laura that he had work to do, he went directly to the library, leaving her standing alone in the entryway. She went to her room and slipped out of her clothes, changing into a white silk pajama set trimmed with beige lace. The outfit clung to her body, outlining each soft, sensuous curve.

She sat on the chaise watching the boats as they slowly drifted by on the water below her window; the magazine she had attempted to read lay unopened on her lap. Suddenly, there was a knock at her bedroom door and before she could answer David had swung it open and entered. He had changed into a deep wine colored velvet smoking jacket which was belted loosely about his waist. The open vee of the jacket revealed the softly curling hairs covering his muscular chest. Laura's breath caught in her throat as she looked up at him.

"I wanted to speak with you, for a minute, about Midge's wedding. I was wondering if you were planning on leaving for Carmel earlier in the week or will you be going with me on Saturday?" He walked into the room and settled himself in the easy chair opposite Laura.

"I don't know; I hadn't thought about it. I was going to discuss it with Midge. I wasn't even sure you were still planning on going. I know you're very busy with the demands of the company and I didn't think you could spare the time."

"I told Midge and Steven I would be there and you should know by now that I always keep my word. Whatever else you may have heard about me, I do try to honor my commitments. I don't give my word lightly and I don't break my promises easily. If you learn nothing else about me, you'd best learn that. It might make our stay together more pleasant for both of us."

Laura didn't answer him as he looked at her with his piercing dark eyes. She knew there was nothing she could do to make their marriage any happier, not while David still bore such vehement hatred for her. She could never tell him how she really felt because that would only put her deeper into his power and place her even more completely at his mercy.