Whispers of Love (28 page)

Their friendship had blossomed into a deep companionship that suited them both and which they both enjoyed. Over dinner the previous night Mark had asked her if she would marry him and she had accepted.

Christabel wondered if she should tell the rest of the family about their future plans when they all came to Liverpool for the service to commemorate Alex's life. She wasn't at all sure that Mark would think it was the right time to do so and wondered if he would even want to be there with them.

He mightn't want to intrude on such a sensitive family affair as the disposal of Alex's ashes. Yet, on the other hand, since they were shortly
to be married he might consider himself to be part of the family already, she mused.

Mark was very family orientated and always so considerate and careful to do what he thought was the right thing. She remembered how, when they had realised that they meant so much to each other, he had insisted that she must meet his two sons.

She'd been very nervous about doing so because from what Mark had told her they had both been very close to their mother and had taken her death rather badly. Christabel had been afraid that they might resent her close friendship with their father in case she tried to take their mother's place. They were both so charming and so courteous towards her, however, that she'd felt quite overwhelmed.

Since then she'd grown to know them both extremely well and she now felt a genuine interest in them and was almost as concerned for their welfare as Mark was.

 

‘It always seems to be weddings and funerals that bring about family reunions,' Kay commented as she passed the letter, which had arrived that morning, across the breakfast table to Stuart.

‘It's not Aunt Christabel getting married, is it?' He grinned as he took it from her.

‘No, I think she's far too set in her ways to do anything as reckless as that.' Kay smiled.

‘We really should go and see her this weekend.
She hasn't seen Jill for a couple of months now and you know how much she enjoys spending time with her.'

‘I know, but we seem to have been so busy lately. I have written to her most weeks and sent her the latest snapshots we've taken of Jill.'

‘That's not quite the same as visiting her, and you know it isn't!' Stuart remonstrated. He looked again at the letter Kay had passed across to him from her cousin Marlene to say that her father had died in America, and that her mother was bringing his ashes back to England:

 

It's Mum's idea, she wants them to be interred in the family grave in Liverpool. I very much hope you will come because I'm counting on your support.

We will be staying over in Wallasey with Aunt Christabel, of course, so it will be a good opportunity for us all to meet up as a family. You barely know Bill, and I have only met Stuart a few times. You've not seen either of my children any more than I have seen your little poppet.

 

‘Marlene says she's relying on you being there, so when do you want to travel to Merseyside?' Stuart asked, passing the letter back to Kay.

‘She'll have her husband and Aunt Lilian so she doesn't really need me there for moral support,' Kay demurred. ‘It might all be too
much for Aunt Chrissy. I know she has the room to put us up, but I don't think she can afford to cater for so many visitors and you know she's too proud to let us pay for anything.'

Stuart looked at his watch. ‘I'm running late, we'll talk about it when I get home tonight, OK?' He stood up, kissed her goodbye and made for the door.

For the rest of the day Kay worried about what to do. She certainly wanted to see Marlene and her family, even Aunt Lilian, but staying with Aunt Chrissy at a time like this could be awkward.

Aunt Lilian was bound to talk about Uncle Alex's will and that would be the opening for Aunt Chrissy to get on to the subject of Lewis's will and there was so much involved that Kay felt this wasn't the right time to deal with it.

Aunt Chrissy had mentioned the will several times before but Kay had always managed to avoid the issue, mainly because she was pretty sure that Aunt Christabel wanted to talk about what was to be done with the house in Rolleston Drive and was waiting for her to say what she wanted to do about it. She knew there would have to be a decision eventually but knowing that it would affect them both, she didn't know what was to be done because selling the house would mean turning Aunt Christabel out of what had been her home for so many years.

Kay knew she ought to talk to Stuart about
it and tell him exactly what was involved and ask his advice, but she kept putting it off mainly because she still had feelings of guilt for having behaved so unfeelingly towards Aunt Christabel immediately after her father had died.

For so many years, she reflected, they'd been almost like mother and daughter but after Lewis had died, Aunt Christabel had started putting the pressure on, determined to make her go to university, and that was when she'd rebelled.

She was quite sure that Aunt Christabel had forgiven her and accepted that was all in the past. They would never be as close as they'd been when she was a child, but they were still very fond of each other and affectionate towards one another.

At the moment, Kay reflected, everything was so harmonious that she didn't want to do anything to upset things – especially the almost-perfect life that she and Stuart were living now that he was working with his father. For many years Stuart's mother had been in poor health due to a heart condition, and when she died a few months after Stuart and Kay married, Stuart's father, who was an estate agent in the picturesque Thames Valley village of Cookham, had suggested that it might be a good idea if Stuart joined him as a business partner.

‘You've worked in the housing market ever
since you left college,' he pointed out, ‘so you have a fair grounding of business matters and you might enjoy the change.'

‘It's an interesting idea but I've no spare money to put into a business, Dad,' Stuart protested.

‘I'm not asking you to do that. I'll remain as a sleeping partner, but it will be your business, and you'll be responsible for the day-to-day running of it. I'm not completely useless, so you can draw on my services when you're busy, or if you want to go on holiday, or if you simply want the odd day off.'

It had worked exceptionally well. Kay liked Harvey Blakemore, and he liked her. In so many ways he was an older version of Stuart. He had the same robust build, the same grey eyes and square jaw. The main difference was his paunch and his grey hair.

Kay and Stuart found a house only a few streets away from his father's bungalow and were settled in well before Jill was born. Left to run her own life, look after Stuart, and bring up Jill had boosted Kay's self-confidence. In many ways they'd been the happiest years of her life.

Occasionally she would feel guilty about not seeing her aunt as often as she'd done before Jill had been born, but she knew that Christabel was working at the same practice as Mark and had a very busy life herself these days.

Marlene's letter niggled in the back of her mind for the rest of the day, and by the time
Stuart came home that evening she was feeling on edge and apprehensive. She knew he thought they ought to go and was at a loss to understand her reluctance.

Kay waited until Jill was in bed, and they were sitting down to their meal, before she said anything. When Stuart didn't mention it she forced herself to do so.

‘We'll go to Wallasey next Thursday, if that's all right with you,' she said abruptly.

‘Good! I'll ask my father to cover for me. Do you want to make it a day trip?'

She looked startled, her blue eyes wide with surprise. ‘I hadn't really thought that far ahead,' she admitted.

‘Well, we could stay in a hotel at New Brighton for a few days, if you think it would be too crowded at Christabel's place. That would make it more enjoyable for us.'

‘I hardly think you should count on it being a holiday,' she said tartly.

‘No, but it could be a pleasant break. Our Jill might enjoy meeting her little cousins.'

‘Well, yes, I suppose you're right,' Kay agreed thoughtfully. ‘Tommy must be about two and Tracy almost four now.

‘So they're about the same age as Jill and that means they should all play together quite well while you and Marlene catch up on what's been happening in your lives.'

‘And what are you going to do, spend time with Bill?'

‘You'll have to wait and see, won't you?' Stuart grinned. ‘I know one thing; we won't manage to get a word in once you and Marlene meet up.'

‘We mightn't have anything in common after all this time.' Kay grimaced.

 

Arriving in Liverpool and driving through the Mersey Tunnel knowing that she was going to meet Marlene and her Aunt Lilian was like turning back the clock, Kay thought as they emerged in Wallasey and made their way to Rolleston Drive.

As Stuart brought the car to a stop in the driveway, the front door opened and Aunt Christabel was there to welcome them. Christabel ushered them all inside and as she made drinks and plied them with biscuits, Jill followed her around, chattering happily.

‘It really is like being in a time warp,' Kay murmured to Stuart. ‘I remember when I was little I behaved exactly the same as Jill is doing now; it's almost as if she's attached to her by an invisible cord!'

‘We're meeting Lilian and Marlene and her family at the church in Liverpool,' Aunt Christabel explained as soon as they'd finished their drinks. ‘I'll get my coat and then we'll be off. I understand that it's quite a pleasant little ceremony. Not very long, either, so the children won't be bored. Then we'll all come back here and have a meal. I've left everything ready.
The children can play out in the garden afterwards, if it keeps fine, or there's plenty for them to do in the house.'

‘She's planned it all down to the last detail,' Kay giggled as they made their way outside. ‘I bet she's even arranged for the sun to shine.'

Stuart laughed. ‘Like someone else I know who never leaves anything to chance,' he said mildly as he opened the rear door of the car and lifted Jill in.

‘I want Aunt Chrissy to sit in the back with me,' Jill insisted as he fastened her into her special safety seat.

‘I think Aunt Chrissy would sooner ride in front so that she can tell me which way to go,' Stuart told her.

‘No,' Jill told him stubbornly, ‘I want her in the back so that I can hold her hand.'

 

The few days they stayed in Wallasey seemed to pass in a flash and without any unpleasant incidents. The children played well together; they were much of an age. Tracy and Tommy were both rather precocious. Tracy was petite and plump like her mother. She also had curly hair like Marlene's, only it had a slight tinge of auburn in it; Tommy took after Bill and had the same thick brown hair; both of them had greyish-blue eyes like Marlene.

The next day Bill and Stuart took the children across to Liverpool on the ferry boat
leaving the four women to catch up with all their news about family, friends and children.

It was late on Sunday afternoon when Kay and Stuart set off for home with Jill. They'd promised Bill and Marlene that they would visit them in London. Lilian, they were told, would not be returning to America, but would be living with them until she found a place of her own.

‘Well, it wasn't so bad, was it?' Stuart commented as they left Liverpool behind.

‘Aunty Chrissy said she was missing me and we haven't been to see her for a long time so I asked her to come and stay with us,' Jill piped up from the back of the car.

Kay swivelled round in her seat. ‘You did what?'

‘I expect it is too far for her to travel all the way to Cookham,' Stuart said quickly, placing a warning hand on Kay's arm.

‘No, it's not,' Jill assured them. ‘She promised she would come.'

‘Yes, your daddy's right, dear, it is a long way. I don't know how she would manage the journey. We'll come back again and see her sometime soon.'

‘No, she said she would come and stay with us,' Jill repeated stubbornly, her blue eyes intense. ‘She said she would come in her car . . .'

‘Drive! Aunt Chrissy hasn't got a car,' Kay told her. ‘She can't afford one these days.'

‘Yes, she has, and it's a brand-new one,' Jill insisted.

‘Mark bought Christabel a new car,' Stuart whispered.

‘You're making it up!'

‘No, I'm not.'

 

In the days that followed Jill constantly asked when Aunt Chrissy would be arriving. Intrigued, Kay finally phoned to see if she really had meant what she'd said to Jill.

‘I'd love to come for a visit, Kay. I was waiting, though, for you to ask me. I didn't think I could simply turn up on little Jill's say-so,' she chuckled. ‘I remember all too clearly how you invited one of your teacher's to come to tea. You never said a word to me and when she turned up I was so surprised that I didn't know what to do. I had nothing special in, and we all ended up eating peanut butter sandwiches, ice cream and tinned fruit.'

Kay didn't recall the incident, but she found herself smiling. On a sudden impulse, she suggested that Christabel should come that weekend and bring Mark Murray with her so that he could share the driving and she could see Christabel's new car.

‘Good heavens, however did you know about that?'

‘Never tell Jill anything you don't want to hear repeated over and over again,' Kay warned her.

‘Dear me, like some other little girl I used to know. She never could keep a secret.'

‘I wonder if I should phone Marlene, and invite them as well,' Kay said later that evening when she was telling Stuart that her aunt and Mark were both coming for the weekend.

If they were all there as well, she reasoned to herself, Aunt Christabel wouldn't have a chance to bring up the subject of the will or press her for an answer.