A Rich Man's Touch. Anne Mather

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ expression was scornful. ‘Do you really expect me to believe that you didn’t know what he thought about Hannah?’ she demanded. ‘When you freely admit that you keep tabs on the women in his life?’

      ‘Believe it or not, no one saw the need to inform me that the child was disabled,’ he replied, his dark eyes intent and compelling. ‘After all, the affair with Andrew was soon over.’ His lips twisted. ‘As his affairs usually are, I have to admit.’

      Rachel held up her head. ‘Hannah isn’t disabled,’ she declared stiffly. ‘She’s a perfectly normal little girl who happens to be—temporarily—confined to a wheelchair.’

      ‘Temporarily?’

      ‘We believe so, yes,’ insisted Rachel, crossing her fingers behind her back. ‘Her doctor seems to think there’s nothing physically wrong with her. She just doesn’t—want to walk.’

      Or get into a car with a man, or talk about the accident, Rachel added to herself. But that was no concern of his.

      Gabriel frowned. ‘Who gave you that prognosis?’

      ‘Does it matter?’ Rachel disliked the knowledge that she wanted to confide in him. ‘Now, I really must get on…’

      ‘Of course.’

      This time he accepted her assertion and Rachel turned quickly away. For a moment she’d half expected him to argue with her, and as she made her way back to the service area she realised with a pang that she had not only said more than she’d intended, but she was sorry their conversation was over.

      ‘Well, that looked fairly painless,’ remarked Stephanie drily when Rachel returned to installing plastic-wrapped packs of sandwiches into the refrigerated display. ‘I gather the two of you found you had something in common, after all. Let me guess: Andrew!’

      ‘You’re wrong.’ Rachel gave her friend a defensive stare. ‘He was asking about Hannah, if you must know.’

      ‘Hannah?’ Stephanie was surprised. ‘How does he know about Hannah?’

      ‘How do you think?’ Rachel refused to tell Stephanie that Gabriel Webb had had her investigated. In fact, the more she thought about that aspect of the situation the less she liked it, and she chided herself for allowing him to manipulate her as he had. Unknowingly, her fingers crushed the egg and mayo sandwich she was holding. ‘Dammit, how much longer is Patsy going to be?’

      ‘Too long to stop you from mangling that sandwich anyway,’ observed Stephanie, taking the plastic container from her. ‘Don’t worry, I’m not going to say anything. The way you choose to deal with your affairs is nothing to do with me.’

      Rachel’s shoulders sagged. ‘I’m sorry, Steph. I’m being bitchy again, aren’t I?’ She grimaced. ‘It’s that man! He brings out the worst in me. If he comes in here again, you’ll have to serve him. Or Patsy. If she ever gets back from the bank.’

      Stephanie pulled a wry face. ‘He hasn’t left yet,’ she pointed out ruefully. ‘And, judging by the way he was watching you as you walked back here, he’ll be back.’

      Rachel made sure she was in the kitchen when Gabriel came to pay his bill. But although she assured herself that she didn’t care what he said, she found herself straining to hear his exchange with Patsy, and her nerves tightened when she heard the younger girl laugh at something he said.

      Which was ridiculous, she knew, but that didn’t make a blind bit of difference to the way she felt. Somehow, some way, Gabriel Webb had got under her skin, and if she was totally honest with herself she’d admit that she’d found challenging him an exhilarating experience.

      After what Stephanie had said, Rachel half expected Gabriel to return to the café the next morning. But he didn’t. An overcast sky heralded a change in the weather, and by late afternoon it was raining quite heavily. Rachel was relieved when her mother and Hannah came into the café at a quarter to five, shaking the dampness from their umbrella. It signified that the working day was almost over.

      ‘I want a banana split,’ announced Hannah, almost as soon as her grandmother had pushed her though the door, and although there were few patrons still left in the café, Rachel gave her a reproving stare.

      ‘I want never gets,’ she said, quoting one of her mother’s favourite sayings. Then, transferring her attention to the older woman, she asked, ‘How did she behave today?’

      ‘I was good, I was good,’ cried Hannah, but her mother waited for Mrs Redfern to confirm that the weekly visit to the physiotherapist had been a success.

      ‘She—worked quite hard,’ admitted the child’s grandmother dubiously. And then, in an aside to her daughter, ‘I just wish we didn’t have to deal with that woman. She’s so—unsympathetic. I sometimes think Hannah would do much better with someone else.’

      Rachel sighed. She’d heard this complaint before. ‘What can we do?’ she asked. ‘Dr Williams arranged for Hannah to see her. And Mrs Stone is supposed to be one of the best physiotherapists around.’

      ‘Who said that?’ Mrs Redfern wasn’t convinced. ‘Stone by name and Stone by nature, if you ask me. Not to mention the fact that she makes me feel like I’m an unnecessary encumbrance.’

      ‘Oh, Mum, you’re exaggerating!’

      ‘What is Grandma ’xaggerating?’ asked Hannah, getting impatient. Then tugging on her mother’s skirt, she pleaded, ‘Can I have a banana split, please? Can I? I promise I’ll eat all my supper.’

      ‘May I?’ corrected Rachel automatically. ‘I don’t know how many times I’ve told you that.’ She sighed again. ‘Oh, I suppose so. But I’ll have to get it myself. Steph’s already gone home.’

      ‘So early?’ murmured Mrs Redfern, waiting until the last two customers had left the café before wheeling Hannah’s chair across to the counter.

      ‘She had some shopping to do,’ said Rachel levelly, not rising to the bait. Her mother considered that Stephanie didn’t pull her weight in the café. And it was true that the other woman was inclined to take advantage of the fact that she and Rachel were friends.

      ‘Shopping!’ Mrs Redfern snorted, but, seeing that her daughter was not in the mood to bite, she changed the subject to one Rachel liked even less. ‘By the way, you’ll never guess what I heard this morning: there’s a rumour that the reason Gabriel Webb is living at Copleys now is because he’s seeing a consultant neurologist at a hospital in Oxford.’

      Rachel was stunned at her reaction to this news. Anxiety blossomed in her stomach, and she didn’t know how she controlled the urge to demand that her mother tell her where she had heard such a thing. God, she thought, turning away to take the ice cream out of the freezer, giving herself time to recover. Was that why he looked so pale and drawn? Because he was ill? Dear Lord, what was wrong with him?

      ‘Can I have some of the fluffy cream that comes out of a can as well?’ Hannah’s request was sobering. She had wheeled herself round to the other side of the counter and had dipped her finger into the sauce her mother had poured over the fruit. ‘Ooh, that’s lovely, Mummy. You make the bestest banana split ever!’

      ‘You’d better not let Stephanie СКАЧАТЬ