The Bennett Case (A Markham Sisters Cozy Mystery Book 2) (3 page)

“Well, that’s
something good today anyway,” Janet muttered as Joan let herself out of the
room.
 

While Joan
headed back downstairs to start preparing dinner, Janet had a sudden
thought.
 
What if Edward actually knew
that Maggie had died and he’d come looking for the letters he’d written to
her?
 
Maybe she needed to talk to
Joan about the letters after all.

An hour later,
when Joan knocked on the door to tell her dinner was ready, Janet still hadn’t
figured out what she wanted to do about the letters.
 
She followed Joan down the stairs and
then frowned when she saw Edward already sitting at the small kitchen table.

“I’m sure you
don’t mind that I invited Edward to join us for dinner,” Joan said.
 
“It’s just cottage pie with veggies and
I always make too much for just the two of us.”

Janet forced
herself to smile.
 
It’s fine,” she
muttered, taking the seat opposite the man who was, at least as far as she was
concerned, an unwelcome guest.
 

Joan
frowned.
 
“That isn’t your usual
place,” she said as she began to serve.

“Nothing wrong
with a bit of variety,” Janet told her sister.

“I’m sorry,”
Edward said.
 
“I didn’t mean to
cause trouble between you two.
 
Clearly I’m intruding where I’m not wanted.
 
I can leave, if that’s what Janet
wants.”

The man looked
at Janet and then reached across the table and took her hand.
 
He stared intently into her eyes.
 
“I’m not such a bad person, once you get
to know me,” he said softly.
 
“Please, give me a chance.”

Janet breathed
in slowly, trying to think as she felt herself getting lost in the man’s
gorgeous eyes.
 
He tightened his
grip on her hand and Janet felt her heart skip a beat.

“You can throw
me out after dinner if you still want to,” he said.
 
“But for now, please let me eat.
 
Everything smells so good.”

Janet pulled
her hand away and then took a large drink of water.
 
The man was too charming and too
sophisticated for her.
 
She looked
over at Joan, who was glowing as Edward kept up a steady stream of compliments
on her cooking.
 

After a
moment, Janet began to feel ignored as Edward and Joan chatted lightly about
nothing much.
 
For the first time in
a long time, Janet didn’t really feel hungry.
 
She ate a few bites of the cottage pie,
which was, as always, expertly prepared, but she felt slightly unwell.

“Are you
okay?” Joan asked her, pulling Janet back from her wandering thoughts.

“I’m fine,”
Janet
said a bit too loudly.
 
“I think I’m just a little bit
overtired.
 
We’ve been so busy
lately, getting the house ready and everything.”

“Yes, well,
maybe you should have an early night,” Joan suggested.
 

“Do you have a
date?” Janet asked.
 
She felt as if
Joan had almost been flirting with their guest, which annoyed her.

“Michael said
he might stop over to watch a bit of
telly
with us
later,” Joan said, her eyes moving from Janet to Edward and back again.

“Don’t tell me
you’re dating Michael Donaldson from across the road?” Edward asked with a bark
of laughter.
 
“You’re much too good
for him.”

Joan
flushed.
 
“We’ve gone out a few
times,” she muttered.
 
“He’s a nice
man.”

“Oh, he is at
that,” Edward agreed.
 
“And I’m sure
he’ll treat you well. He has to know you could do much better if you wanted
to.”

“Michael’s
smart and funny and he treats Joan like a princess,” Janet said tartly.
 
“I don’t think she’d be able to find a
kinder or more understanding man.”

Edward smiled
at Joan.
 
“I guess if you get tired
of Michael, your sister wouldn’t mind dating him herself.”

Janet turned
bright red.
 
“Not at all,” she said
hotly.
 
“He isn’t my type, but he’s
perfect for Joan and you shouldn’t be rude about him, that’s all.”

“I didn’t
think I was being rude about him as much as complimenting your sister, but
let’s not argue.
 
I’m still hoping
you won’t want to throw me out after pudding,” Edward said in a teasing tone.

“Are you
staying for pudding?” Janet shot back.

“Janet!” Joan
said sharply.
 
“That’s enough.
 
Edward is our guest.
 
Our paying guest at
that.
 
If this is how you’re
going to treat paying guests, perhaps we need to rethink our plans to reopen
the guest house.”

“As they’re
your plans, not mine, I don’t suppose it much matters what I think.
 
I’ll be in my room.
 
I’m not feeling well.”
 
Janet got up from the table and headed
for the stairs.

“I made apple
crumble,” Joan called after her.

Janet’s steps
faltered.
 
Apple crumble was her
absolute
favourite
pudding, and Joan didn’t make it
nearly often enough.

“Apple crumble
is my
favourite
,” Edward said.

That was all
Janet needed to hear.
 
She stomped
up the stairs and carefully and quietly opened and closed her bedroom
door.
 
She wasn’t going to give the
man the satisfaction of hearing her slam it like she wanted to.
 
Falling onto her bed, she waited for the
tears to come.
 

After a
moment, when they failed to
materialise
, she sat back
up.
 
She knew she was behaving badly
and out of character, but she wasn’t quite sure why.
 
The handsome and worldly Edward Bennett
was the cause of her disquiet, she knew that, but she couldn’t begin to
understand why he bothered her so much.
 
Maybe it was time to read through all of the letters that Edward had
written to Maggie, she decided.

Chapter
Three

Doveby
House was quiet just after midnight.
 
Janet lay in bed, trying not to think
about apple crumble.
 
Joan had come
up to check on her around nine.

“Are you
okay?” Joan had asked, looking concerned.

“I’m
fine.
 
I think I might be brewing
something, that’s all,” Janet replied.

“Well, you
were very rude to Edward,” Joan scolded.
 
“I hope you’ll make an effort to be nicer to him tomorrow.”

“Did Michael
come over?” Janet changed the subject.

“He did.
 
He and Edward and I watched some
telly
and had biscuits.
 
It was a very pleasant evening.
 
Tomorrow night you should join us.”

“I might,” was
as far as Janet was willing to concede.
 
“I’ll either be feeling better or definitely ill by then.”

Now, three
hours later, the only thing she was feeling was hungry.
 
She could almost hear the apple crumble
calling to her softly from the kitchen.
 
No doubt it was feeling rejected after she’d turned her back on it
earlier.
 

She rolled
over and punched her pillow into shape.
 
After a moment she pushed back the top layer of covers and rolled to her
other side.
 
Several minutes later
she gave up.
 
There was no way she
was going to get any sleep until she’d had her share of the apple crumble.
 
Muttering darkly about unwelcome guests
causing unnecessary inconveniences, she pulled on her bathrobe and tucked her
feet into her slippers before exiting her room.
 
She locked her door behind her and then
slipped the key ring into her pocket.
 

Living for the
past month in
Doveby
House had taught her how to get
down the stairs without making noise.
 
As the house had been built in the seventeenth century, there were many
creaky steps and floorboards throughout it.
 
Experience had taught Janet that her
sister could sleep through just about anything, but she’d still taken the time
to learn where to step as she went up and down the stairs, so that when they had
paying guests she wouldn’t have to worry about disturbing them if she wanted a
midnight snack.
 
Tonight she was
glad she’d done so.

In the
kitchen, she quickly pulled the remains of the apple crumble out of the
refrigerator.
 
She frowned when she
saw how little was left.
 
Clearly
Edward had enjoyed more than his fair share, she thought.
 
Not wanting to make any noise, she
didn’t bother to heat it, simply spooning a large portion onto a plate.
 
She added a dollop of custard and then
sat down at the table and dug in.

A few minutes
later she was feeling much better.
 
She put her plate and utensils in the sink, sticking her tongue out at
her sister in advance.
 
There was no
doubt that Joan would complain about it in the morning.
 
Janet headed for the stairs, but paused
before she got there.
 
Since she was
up anyway, maybe she ought to have a look at those letters now, she
thought.
 

She pulled the
keys from her pocket.
 
In addition
to the key to her room, Joan had included a master key that opened all of the doors
in the house.
 
Janet turned and
headed for the library.
 
As she
pushed open the door to the television room, she gasped.

“I hope the
telly
didn’t disturb you,” Edward said, looking up at her
from his seat on one of the comfortable sofas.
 
“Joan said I could stay up and watch as
long as I liked.”

“I didn’t know
you were here,” Janet replied.

“Came down for
your apple crumble?”

“I was
hungry.”
 
Janet was angry with
herself for feeling defensive.
 
This
was her house and she could do what she pleased.

Edward stood
up and switched off the television.
 
He crossed over to the doorway and stood facing Janet.
 
“We seem to have started off on the
wrong foot,” he said quietly.
 
“I’m
sorry if I did or said anything to upset you.
 
I know I can be rather demanding and
difficult, but I’m grateful to you and Joan for letting me stay.”

Janet
focussed
her eyes on the far wall of the room to avoid
meeting Edward’s eyes.
 
“It’s fine,”
she said after a moment.
 
“I hope
you enjoy your visit to Derbyshire.”

“I’m sure I
will,” Edward replied.
 
“Perhaps
you’d like to do some sightseeing with me?”

“Oh, I’m
afraid I’m rather busy at the moment,” Janet answered quickly.
 
Something about the man made her feel
uncomfortable and she wasn’t about to spend any more time with him than absolutely
necessary.

“Well, the
offer’s good if you change your mind,” Edward told her.
 
“I suppose I’ll say good night, then.”

“Good night,”
Janet muttered.
 
She began to turn
back towards the stairs, but Edward put his hand on her arm.
 
When she stopped and looked at him, he
smiled.

Before Janet
had time to think, Edward leaned towards her and kissed her very gently on the
lips.
 
By the time she’d registered
what had happened, he’d walked past her, heading for the stairs.
 
Janet stood and listened to his soft
footsteps as they faded behind her.
 
It wasn’t until later that she
realised
that
he’d climbed the stairs without a single creak.
 

Janet went
back to bed, all thoughts of reading Maggie’s letters gone from her head.
 
She was certain that she’d never manage
to sleep with her mind racing and her emotions raging, but she slept as soon as
her head touched the pillow, and she woke later than usual the next morning,
only when someone knocked on her door.

“Janet, it’s
breakfast time, what are you doing still in bed?” Joan demanded when Janet
pulled open her bedroom door.
 
“We
have a guest, remember?
 
You’re
meant to help with breakfast when we have guests.”

“Sorry,” Janet
muttered.
 
“I’ll just grab a quick
shower and I’ll be down.”

Joan
tutted
her disapproval, but Janet shut the door in her face
and rushed to her adjoining bathroom.
 
It had been a while since she’d woken up late and had to hurry through
her morning routine, but many years of practice meant she had it down to an
easy system.
 
She was showered,
dressed and ready to go in just fifteen minutes.
 
In the bathroom, she studied her
reflection for a moment.
 

She’d always
considered her blue eyes her best feature and her grey hair seemed to complement
them nicely.
 
She and Joan shared
their hair and eye
colour
and everyone who met them
seemed to think that they looked alike, but neither sister ever really
agreed.
 
Although they were both
around five feet, three inches, Joan was slender with pronounced cheekbones
where Janet was more generously padded.
 
Today she frowned at her curves, wondering for the first time what
Margaret Appleton had looked like.
  
They’d never seen a photograph of the woman, she
realised
.
 
Perhaps one of the
neighbours
had one they could show her.

In the
kitchen, Janet squeezed oranges into juice and put it in a pitcher,
then
she went out into the garden to cut some fresh flowers
for the kitchen table.
 
She arranged
them in a vase while Joan dashed about anxiously.

“He said he’d
be down for breakfast at eight,” she told Janet.
 
“I thought I’d fix him a full English
breakfast.
 
But what if he would
prefer something else?
 
Maybe you
should run to the store and get some more jam.
 
We only have strawberry and
raspberry.
 
What if he asks for
orange marmalade?
 
Do you remember
where I put that cookbook all about omelets?
 
What if he requests an omelet?
 
I can’t remember how to make them.”

Janet tried to
ignore her, but after twenty minutes of endless babble from her sister, she was
actually relieved to see Edward coming into the room.

“Full
English?” Joan greeted him with.
 
“Or would you prefer something else?”

“Full English
sounds wonderful,” the man said with a huge grin.
 
“I’ve been out of the country for so
long, I think I’ve quite forgotten what a full English breakfast is like.”

Joan smiled
and quickly got busy.
 

“Freshly
squeezed orange juice?” Janet asked as the man sat down at the table.

“Oh, yes,
please,” Edward smiled at her.

She filled a
glass and handed it to him.
 
He took
it and then quickly captured her hand.
 

“I hope you
slept well,” he said quietly.

“I did,
thanks,” Janet muttered.
 
“Did you?”

“I always
sleep well,” he replied with a chuckle.
 
“It’s supposed to be a sign of a clear conscience.”

Janet opened
her mouth and then snapped it closed.
 
She wasn’t sure what she’d been about to say, but something told her not
to say it.

“Janet, can
you fix the toast?” Joan asked without turning around.

Janet pulled
her hand away from Edward’s.
 
She
busied herself with the toast until Joan was finished with the rest of the
man’s breakfast.
 
As Joan delivered
a plate full of food to Edward, Janet dropped the toast rack next to it.

“You don’t
need us both watching you eat,” she said.
 
“I’m going to go and run a few errands.”

Joan
frowned.
 
“Don’t forget that we’re
having Michael over for lunch,” she told her sister.
 
“He’ll expect you to be here.”

Janet
nodded.
 
“I’ll be back.
 
I just need a few things from town.”

As Janet left
the room, she heard her sister talking to Edward.

“Of course,
you’re more than welcome to join us for lunch as well,” Joan was saying.
 

Janet made a
face and only just barely managed to not slam the front door as she left the
house.

In the
centre
of
Doveby
Dale, Janet
parked the car and wandered around the shops.
 
She didn’t actually need anything but to
get away from Edward Bennett, but now she felt she needed to buy something to
justify leaving her sister to deal with their guest.
 
By dawdling in every shop she entered,
Janet managed to fill the morning, finally heading back towards home just a
short time before lunch would be ready.
 

She parked her
car in the small car park outside the house and headed inside, certain that
Joan would be cross that she’d been gone so long.
 
As she opened the door, she made sure
she had all of the bags that contained the various bits and pieces she’d
purchased.
 
There was no one in the
small sitting room, so Janet headed up to her room to freshen up before she
hurried down to the kitchen to help her sister with lunch, carrying the new
vase that she’d decided they needed with her.

“Ah, there you
are,” Joan said testily.
 
“I didn’t
know you were planning to be gone all morning.
 
Another pair of hands would have been
useful around here.”

“Sorry,” Janet
replied quickly.
 
“I only went to
town for a few things, but I had trouble finding what I wanted.
 
You know what the shops are like in
Doveby
Dale.”

“I don’t
suppose you considered just leaving it for today?” Joan asked.
 
“Our guest is only here for a few
days.
 
There will be plenty of time
for shopping once he’s gone.”

“Sorry,” Janet
repeated herself.
 
“I’ll plan on
staying close to home from now on until Edward leaves.”

The knock on
the front door interrupted their discussion.
 

“You go and
let Michael in,” Janet told her sister.
 
“Just tell me what to do while you’re gone.”

“Everything’s
done,” Joan replied grumpily.
 
“You
can set the table, I suppose.”
 
She
swept out of the room.

Janet pulled
down three plates and three sets of cutlery.
 
Joan hadn’t told her whether Edward was
joining them or not, so she chose to assume he wasn’t.
 
If her assumption made him feel somewhat
unwelcome if he did join them, well, that was too bad.

She set the
table and then headed out into the garden to cut some flowers to put in the new
vase.
 
Back in the kitchen, she
arranged them carefully and added water to the container.
 
But what on earth was keeping Joan, she
wondered.
 
She was halfway to the
door, going to find out, when the door swung open.
 
Edward walked in and gave her a big
smile.