Will He Ask Her to be His Bride?: The Millionaire's Convenient Bride / The Millionaire's Proposal / Texas Ranger Takes a Bride

CHAPTER TWO

‘I’VE been pronounced fit to take care of Connah Carey Jones’s ewe lamb, but not to drive her anywhere myself, nor to be trusted with a key to the house,’ Hester announced when she got home. ‘Security is a religion with the man. If that’s what it means to have loads of money, I’ll pass.’

‘You can’t blame him for wanting to keep his child safe,’ said her mother, and shook her head in wonder. ‘I’m still amazed that he’s the man who turned up on our doorstep in the snow all those years ago. You were very taken with him at the time!’

‘You must have been too, to volunteer full board for a few days,’ Hester retorted.

‘I liked him, yes,’ said Moira, and smiled wickedly. ‘But I wasn’t moonstruck like you, darling.’

‘I’ve been reading up on him,’ said Robert, the peacemaker. ‘He’s one of the new hedge fund breed. He made a packet with an asset management firm he set up with a partner, but eventually sold off his share in the firm to “pursue other interests”, but these weren’t specified.’

Hester nodded. ‘I heard that much from Angus Duff, my journalist chum. Of course I didn’t know if the CC Jones he researched was our man, but I somehow had this gut feeling that he might be.’

Moira eyed her narrowly. ‘Was that why you were so keen to apply?’

‘Of course not. I replied to a box number. It was only when John Austin told me the name of his employer that I had this wild idea that Mr CC Jones might just possibly be our mystery man. But even then my only reason for applying was to earn some extra money before I go to the Rutherfords in October.’ Hester smiled in satisfaction. ‘While I’m living in Albany Square I’ll spend very little, which will do wonders for my rainy day fund.’

‘How about time off?’ asked Robert.

‘Every Sunday, the occasional Saturday, and some evenings when the big white chief is at home.’

‘You sound as though you’re not so enamoured with him this time round,’ said her mother.

‘His looks still pack the same punch for me, I admit, but I was rather put off when I found he wasn’t willing to trust me with a key to the house,’ said Hester tartly. ‘He also got a bit personal about my social life.’

‘Understandable, with someone as attractive as you,’ said Robert.

She smiled at him affectionately. ‘But I assured him there would be no gentleman callers—’

‘Surely you didn’t say that!’ exclaimed Moira, rolling her eyes. ‘You’re not an Edwardian parlourmaid, girl!’

‘For a moment he made me feel like one,’ admitted Hester, eyes kindling.

‘What’s he like?’ asked Robert curiously.

‘Tall, dark and formidable, with hard black eyes that pin you down.’

‘Are you sure you want to work for him?’ demanded Moira.

‘Don’t worry, Mother, I’m sure I can play Jane Eyre to his Rochester for six weeks, whether I like him or not,’ Hester assured her, then grinned. ‘And I know he doesn’t have a mad wife in the attic because that’s where I sleep.’

Robert drove Hester to the house in Albany Square just before eight thirty on her first day and not only insisted on carrying her luggage up the steps to the front door, but on waiting with her until Sam Cooper appeared.

‘Good morning, Sam,’ said Hester, smiling. ‘This is my stepfather, Robert Marshall.’

Sam held out a hand to Robert. ‘Sam Cooper, sir.’

Robert gave him a straight look as he took it, then smiled, obviously satisfied with what he saw. ‘Glad to meet you. I’m sure I leave Hester in good hands.’ He kissed her, reminded her to ring her mother later, and went back down to the car, waving as he drove off.

‘Your stepdad’s obviously fond of you,’ commented Sam as he took the suitcases inside.

‘He is, luckily for me,’ said Hester affectionately. ‘He’s never had children of his own and tends to be protective where I’m concerned.’

Sam nodded in approval. ‘Sounds like a good relationship. I’ll just take this lot up to your room. Connah and Lowri stayed with Connah’s mother over the weekend and they’re not back yet, so you’ve got time to settle in before they arrive for lunch.’

‘Talking of lunch, will you put this in the refrigerator for me?’ Hester handed him a package. ‘Or am I required to cook something hot?’

‘Just soup and sandwiches, and Connah told me to stock you up for a cold meal tonight for supper.’ Sam grinned. ‘No need for a frontal assault on the cooker until tomorrow.’

‘That’s a relief! I brought a cold roast chicken just in case, but I can use some of that for sandwiches. After I’ve unpacked will you show me where everything’s kept?’

‘I’ll give you a guided tour through the cupboards later,’ promised Sam, and took her luggage upstairs.

Hester followed him, relieved that Sam Cooper seemed to like her. She unpacked rapidly and put her belongings away, then went downstairs to the kitchen. With Sam’s guidance, she explored the cupboards and found them well stocked with everything she could possibly need.

‘Has Connah lived here long?’ she asked.

‘No. The house was only finished properly a few weeks before we moved in. There was a hell of a lot to do. It dates from about eighteen-hundred and because it’s a listed building it couldn’t be hurried. Connah’s main place is a penthouse flat in London but he’s got business interests in this area, so when this house came on the market he snapped it up. Tomato is Lowri’s favourite,’ he added, as Hester surveyed the ranks of soup tins.

‘Thank you. By the way, were there many other applicants for my job?’

‘Three.’

But Connah had chosen her.

Sam answered her question before she asked it. ‘Apparently the others were older and obviously set in their ways. Connah wanted a companion for Lowri, not a starchy, no-nonsense nanny.’

Hester began making sandwiches with the speed and efficiency of long practice. ‘But officially I’m a housekeeper, not a nanny, remember.’

‘Lowri will be glad of someone your age for company, whatever the job description,’ Sam assured her. ‘Normally she spends the holidays with her grandma at Bryn Derwen, but now Alice is married it’s lonely there for her.’ He munched appreciatively. ‘These are first class.’

‘I hope I haven’t made them too soon.’

He shook his head. ‘Connah said midday, so that’s when he’ll be here—’ He broke off as his phone rang. ‘Told you,’ he said, checking the caller ID. ‘Yes, Boss.’ After a brief exchange, he disconnected. ‘ETA twelve noon, Hester, and Lowri wants lunch in the garden. I’ll help you take it out.’

Feeling far more nervous than before her interview with Connah, Hester put the soup to heat and prepared a tray.

‘Lay for three,’ said Sam. ‘Connah expects you to join them for lunch.’

‘Oh, right.’ Hester hastily added a third setting. ‘What does Lowri drink?’

‘Fizzy stuff if allowed, milk or juice if not.’

‘There wasn’t time to make a pudding. Will ice cream do? Or fruit, maybe?’

Sam smiled reassuringly. ‘Ask when you see her. Don’t worry, Hester. She’s a nice kid.’

Lowri’s resemblance to her father was only slight. She showed promise of height like Connah’s and her mouth was a smaller version of his, but her long straight hair was shades lighter and her eyes a striking cornflower blue.

‘Hello,’ she said, holding out her hand politely.

Hester took the hand. ‘Nice to meet you.’

The bright eyes regarded Hester with frank curiosity. ‘Daddy says you’re going to look after us during the holidays. I thought you’d be like Mrs Powell, Grandma’s housekeeper, but you’re really young.’

Connah gave his daughter a warning look. ‘Mind your manners, young lady. Remember what Grandma said. We must make Hester’s stay here as pleasant as possible.’

‘And I have to behave myself,’ said Lowri, resigned, and gave him a smile so brimming with mischief that he laughed and gave her a hug.

‘Hard work, I know, but you can do it.’

‘Of course I can,’ she said loftily, and beamed at Sam as he came into the kitchen. ‘Did you bring my rucksack from the car?’

‘It’s in your room with the rest of your stuff.’

‘Thanks, Sam.’ She looked at Hester hopefully. ‘I’m starving. Is it time for lunch soon?’

‘Right away. Sam’s already taken the tray into the garden, so if you go ahead I’ll bring the food out.’

‘You’ll join us, of course,’ said Connah courteously.

‘Thank you.’ Hester poured hot soup into a thermal jug, took the covered platter of sandwiches from the refrigerator and followed him into the garden.

Lowri polished off a bowl of soup with relish, despite the heat of the day, but Connah kept to sandwiches.

‘Excellent chicken,’ he commented. ‘From the local delicatessen?’

Hester shook her head. ‘I cooked it at home alongside my mother’s Sunday roast. I wasn’t sure what would be required for lunch today, so I made sure I had something ready.’

‘You must let me reimburse you,’ said Connah promptly.

‘If you wish.’ Hester smiled at Lowri. ‘I asked Sam what you liked, so I put cheese and crispy bacon bits in some and just plain old ham in others. You can tell me what else you like as we go along.’

Lowri nodded, downing a sandwich at top speed. ‘Yummy,’ she said indistinctly, then shot a sparkling look at Hester. ‘Though almost anything would be after school food.’

‘Try the chicken, cariad,’ advised Connah.

She made a face. ‘They do that a lot in school.’

‘Not like this,’ he assured her, and with a martyred look Lowri took a minuscule bite.

Hester felt absurdly gratified when the blue eyes lit up.

‘Wow! This is nothing like rubber school chicken. I love the stuffing.’

‘How is your grandma?’ asked Hester.

The blue eyes shadowed. ‘She was very tired.’

‘But getting stronger slowly,’ Connah assured her.

Lowri gave her father a worried look. ‘She doesn’t look stronger. I didn’t know she needed a nurse to look after her.’

‘I insisted on hiring one for a while. At Grandma’s age it takes time to get over surgery,’ he told her. ‘Don’t worry. She’ll soon pick up now she’s beginning to eat normally again.’

‘I hope so. Will she be well enough for us to have Christmas at Bryn Derwen?’

‘Good Lord, yes.’ He ruffled her hair. ‘There’s an entire term at school to get through before then.’

Lowri smiled as Sam approached with a coffee tray and a jug of orange juice. ‘Is that for me?’

‘Yes. Have you finished your lunch?’ he demanded.

She smiled smugly at the empty platter. ‘Every crumb.’

‘No sarnies left for me?’ he teased, then relented as she looked stricken. ‘Only joking, pet. I ate mine before you arrived.’

‘Did you have some with chicken?’ she asked eagerly.

‘I certainly did.’ Sam put the tray down and bowed in Hester’s direction. ‘Best I’ve ever tasted.’

Connah finished his coffee and got up to follow Sam into the house. ‘Thank you for lunch, Hester. Be good, Lowri; I’ll see you ladies at dinner.’

Lowri heaved a sigh as she watched him go. ‘Daddy’s always so busy,’ she said disconsolately. ‘And he’s got to go to London tomorrow. He said it’s urgent or he wouldn’t.’

‘We’ll have to think of things to do while he’s away,’ said Hester, pouring more juice.

‘Thank you.’ Lowri drank some of it, eyeing Hester over the glass. ‘But won’t you be too busy housekeeping?’

‘No,’ said Hester firmly. ‘With Sam’s help, it won’t take long. The rest of the time I’ll spend with you.’

Lowri gave her a very adult look. ‘Will you tell me the truth?’

Help, thought Hester. ‘I’ll try. What do you want to know?’

‘Are you really a housekeeper, and not some kind of nanny?’

‘Hey, do I look like Mary Poppins?’ Hester demanded, resorting to indignation to avoid a direct lie.

‘No. But you don’t look like a housekeeper either.’ Lowri giggled, then sighed gustily. ‘Anyway, Mary Poppins had two children to look after, and I’m only one. I’d just love to have a baby sister—even a baby brother would do.’

‘Maybe that will happen one day.’

‘I don’t think so,’ Lowri said forlornly, then brightened. ‘But I’ve made lots of friends in school.’

‘That’s good. Your father says you really like it there.’

‘I don’t like all the lessons, but otherwise it’s great. Some girls get homesick, but I don’t.’

Because you don’t have a mother, thought Hester with compassion. ‘Right, I must get these things indoors. Would you carry the jug, please?’

Once the kitchen was tidy, Hester said it was time to unpack.

Lowri made a face. ‘The trunk will be a mess. I’m rubbish at packing.’

‘Then let’s attack it right away. You can tell me where to put everything.’

‘I don’t really know. I’ve only been here once, and that wasn’t to sleep,’ said Lowri. ‘I usually go back to Grandma’s for school holidays, but last half-term I went to stay with Chloe Martin. It was brilliant. She’s got two brothers and a little sister and her mother’s very nice.’

‘Is her father nice too?’ asked Hester as they went upstairs together.

‘Oh, yes, but I didn’t see him much. He’s in the police. A deputy something.’

No wonder Lowri was allowed to stay there. ‘Deputy Chief Constable?’

‘That’s right.’ The child scowled at the trunk beside her bed. ‘I just hate this part.’ She looked guilty as Hester raised the lid. ‘I’ve got some clean things in my backpack, but it’s all got a bit jumbled in here.’ She sighed. ‘If you were Mary Poppins you could make everything fly into the drawers.’

‘Since I’m not, you can hang the things up from your backpack and I’ll take this lot down to be washed. Your blazer and skirt must go to the dry cleaners.’ Hester cast an assessing eye at the tall, slender child. ‘But I think you need new ones. You’ve grown out of these.’

‘Yes!’ Lowri punched the air in triumph. ‘How soon can we go shopping? I want new jeans, lots of tops, trainers, a miniskirt like Chloe’s—’

‘Hold on,’ said Hester, laughing. ‘I need a chat with your father first.’

Hester loaded the washing machine then suggested they take a stroll in Victoria Park, but, with Connah’s instructions fresh in her mind, she asked Sam to drive them there.

‘I’ll wait here, Hester,’ he said as he parked near the entrance gates. He took a paperback thriller from the glove compartment. ‘I’m well prepared.’

‘Are you sure about this, Sam?’ asked Hester.

‘If you mean is it OK with the boss, yes. Just press my button and I’ll come after you at the double if you need me. Not,’ he added, looking round the peaceful, sunlit park, ‘that I think you will.’

‘I don’t either.’ She smiled wryly. ‘But I’d rather not break any rules on my first day.’

Hester’s previous charges had all been toddlers with limited conversation and it was a refreshing change to listen to Lowri talk about her friends in school and the boy from the farm near her grandmother’s home.

‘I used to go there to buy eggs with Alice—she was my nanny when I was little. Owen’s twelve, but he’s only a bit taller than me,’ she said with satisfaction. ‘He’s nice. He helps on the farm after school and his father pays him wages. I just get pocket money.’ Lowri looked at Hester hopefully. ‘I’ve got some left. I could treat you to an ice cream from the park café. May I?’

‘I don’t see why not. I’ll have a vanilla cone, please.’

Lowri’s long legs covered the short distance to the café at top speed.

‘Thank you,’ said Hester, accepting her ice cream. ‘Do you want to walk or sit while we eat these?’

‘Walk, please!’ Lowri cast Hester a glance as she licked. ‘Do you live here in the town?’

‘When I’m not working in other people’s houses, yes. I have a flat all to myself at my stepfather’s home.’

‘One of my friends has a stepfather and she doesn’t like him.’

‘How sad for her! I’m lucky. Robert’s a darling. He had my flat redecorated just for me. If your father agrees,’ Hester added, ‘I could take you to see it one day, if you like.’

Lowri’s eyes widened. ‘Go to your house? Could I?’

‘We’ll ask your father this evening. If he gives permission, I’ll get my mother to make cakes. She’s a great cook.’

‘I hope Daddy says yes,’ said Lowri wistfully. ‘I never go to other people’s houses, except to play with Owen sometimes.’

‘You stayed with your friend Chloe,’ Hester reminded her.

‘Only because Grandma was too ill to have me for half-term.’

As they strolled back to the car, Hester hoped she hadn’t raised hopes that Connah Carey Jones would dash. But he’d not only met her mother, he had good reason to be grateful to her. His daughter would come to no harm in the Marshall household.

As soon as they got back, Hester provided Lowri with milk and biscuits, then took a tea tray up to the study.

Connah looked up at her in surprise. ‘Hester! Sam could have done this.’

‘I’m supposed to be the housekeeper,’ she reminded him. ‘Lowri chose the biscuits, so please eat one or two.’

He stared down at the plate, bemused. ‘Oh. Right. Thank you.’

‘If you can spare a few minutes, I’d like to talk to you later,’ she informed him.

‘Problems?’ he said sharply.

‘None at all, so far. But I need instructions. You’re obviously busy right now, so perhaps you’ll let me know when it’s convenient.’ She smiled politely and went from the room, closing the door behind her.

She found Lowri glued to a cooking programme on the kitchen television, and Sam got up to go, eyeing Hester with something like diffidence. ‘I eat my dinner downstairs on my own in peace, by the way.’

‘Then I’ll make a plate up for you. Any dislikes?’

‘You serve it, I’ll eat it,’ he assured her. ‘Thanks, that would be great, Hester. Connah eats at seven when Lowri’s with him, so I’ll collect mine a few minutes beforehand, if that suits.’

‘Of course. I’ll ring down when it’s ready.’

Lowri tore her eyes away from the television when he’d gone. ‘This programme’s making me hungry.’

‘Then let’s see what’s on the menu for dinner,’ said Hester and went off to the giant refrigerator to find that Sam had ordered every conceivable kind of food necessary to serve a cold supper.

‘Can we have more of your chicken?’ said Lowri eagerly.

‘We certainly can. I’ll lay the dining room table.’

‘Can’t we eat here?’

Hester shook her head. ‘I’m sure your father would prefer the dining room.’ At least she hoped he would, then, like Sam, she could relax with her own meal in peace.

‘I’ll ask him!’ Lowri shot out of the room before Hester could stop her and went running from the kitchen to make for the study.

Hester thought about following her to apologise, then shrugged. If Connah disapproved he could tell her in private later. She collected some potatoes and had scraped several by the time Lowri came back, tongue between her teeth as she concentrated on the tray she was carrying.

‘Daddy said he only uses the dining room for visitors, and would you please put supper in here for the three of us.’

So that was another question answered. ‘Thank you, Lowri. And before we eat we must have a bath and change our clothes.’ Sometimes one just had to be nanny. ‘But first I’ll finish these potatoes, then wash some salad greens and boil some eggs. I’ll show you how to devil them, if you like.’

Lowri nodded eagerly. ‘Chloe’s mother let us help her in the kitchen and make scones and things, but Mrs Powell does Grandma’s cooking and she hates mess, so I don’t go in the kitchen much in Bryn Derwen.’

‘We’ll do some baking some time, if you like,’ offered Hester. ‘And if you make a mess, you clean it up. Deal?’

‘Deal!’ said Lowri, beaming.

Sam had departed, with grateful thanks for his appetising meal, and Hester was decanting buttered, herb-scattered potatoes into a serving dish when Connah came into the kitchen in jeans and open-necked shirt, his hair still damp from a shower. And looked so much more like the man who’d taken her breath ten years ago that Hester’s pulse went into overdrive as the scent of warm, clean male skin stood every hormone she possessed to attention.

‘You look nice, Daddy,’ said Lowri, running to him.

‘Thank you, cariad, so do you.’ He gave her a hug, smiling at Hester over the shining dark head of his child. ‘Good evening.’ He cast an eye over the dishes on the table. ‘Tempting display.’

Get a grip, she ordered herself fiercely. ‘Thank you. Lowri helped prepare it.’ She smiled as the child launched into the list of things she’d done for the meal, including laying the table and devilling the eggs.

‘You mash the yolks with butter and pepper sauce, Daddy,’ she informed him. ‘They’re yummy.’