The Made Marriage (12 page)

Her skin gleamed like shadowed porcelain and a frock of rose and vermilion printed voile outlined the curves of her rounded figure. The twins had relapsed into a sulky silence as though her very presence extinguished all their frivolity.

However, it was Kate on whom her attention was fixed. She looked faintly disapproving as she said with formal dignity, ‘I am surprised to see you at Ballyfeeny. Do you not know that Mrs. Fitzpatrick objects to your staying on at Laragh
?
’ She sounded coldly outraged—as though she were the mistress of the house ejecting an undesirable guest, Kate thought, and her initial feeling of embarrassment disappeared as she felt growing anger at Doretta’s assumption of authority.

‘I’m not staying long,’ she said stiffly, ‘I’ve simply come to fetch Mrs. Lawlor’s pillow: she left it behind last time she stayed here.’

‘She is a tiresome old creature and I hope it is a long time before she stays again at Ballyfeeny; she is for ever poking and prying and for ever asking questions that don’t concern her.’

Kate, however, had no intention of discussing Florrie’s vagaries with this girl who was showing her such undisguised animosity. ‘If you’ll fetch the pillow, I’ll go immediately,’ she stated.

Doretta arched her brows, as though offended by the demand. ‘I’m afraid I’ve no idea
w
here it is, and even if I did know it is not included in my duties to go searching for pillows.’ She turned to the twins and her face darkened angrily as she surveyed their torn shirts and general air of dilapidation. ‘You have been fighting again; you are a pair of little savages. It is too bad that I should be expected to live under the same roof as two such guttersnipes! Go to your room and change your shirts immediately, and on the way back fetch the pillow.’

‘But you haven’t mended our other ones yet, Doretta,’ Eamonn pointed out with an air of reasonableness. ‘You’ve been hours sewing your new dress.’

Doretta’s voice rose angrily and colour touched the pallor of her cheeks. ‘Do not be insolent! It is not my business to be for ever sewing your tattered clothes: do you take me for a servant to attend on you hand and foot? Now off you go and do as I tell you or I shall box your ears.’

In spite of this threat the twins showed a marked reluctance to depart; they shuffled their feet and gazed at each other uncomfortably.

‘Go, go, go!’ Losing all pretence of patience, Doretta advanced on them threateningly and Sean said in a small voice, ‘I’m afraid we had a pillow fight last week—’

‘And the feathers were scattered to the four winds,’ Eamonn intoned. ‘And anyway,’ he added, as though recollecting a grievance, ‘you told Mother that you would get us tea, but you stayed up in your room sewing that silly old frock of yours. And it’s not as if Cousin Owen will notice what you wear. Sure he won’t, Sean
?
’

‘That’s right,’ Sean agreed. ‘Even if you wore nothing, he wouldn’t notice. Would he; Eamonn
?
’

‘Oh no, he’d never notice,’ Eamonn replied solemnly.

‘Fiends!’ Doretta screeched, advancing on them and dealing each of them a resounding blow. In a moment the hall was echoing to a spate of shrill Italian abuse with mingled howls of protest from the outraged twins.

When at last the boys had departed Doretta made an effort to control the anger that had contorted her face and banished all its classic beauty. She shrugged and pursed her mouth ruefully.
‘
You see what a handful I have in those two demon children, yet their mother seems to think I should keep them as neat as what you call pins on paper. If I had known that there was no proper staff here I should not have come in the first place, but I was deceived. At home I am not expected to do any housework. We have many servants. However, I do not intend to stay here much longer
:
I shall make other plans,’ she added significantly.

No doubt her realisation that Nicky was, after all, not heir to Ballyfeeny had more than a little to do with Doretta’s intentions, Kate thought. She had not even hinted at going back to Italy. Was Owen Lawlor perhaps involved in her plans?

An overwhelming curiosity to know made her ask tentatively, ‘You will be taking up another position, then?’

Doretta glanced at her with sudden awareness and a slow secretive smile touched her lips. ‘You are anxious to know, aren’t you, because you are in love with Owen Lawlor, but I shall not tell you. As the saying goes, all is fair in love and war.’

CHAPTER SEVEN

WITH a
c
hange of mood that Kate found bewildering, Doretta asked brightly, ‘And now would you like to come up to my room and see the dress I am making for the day I go to Blarney? It is a blue, the colour of the sea: it is a colour that becomes me very well.’

For the rest of Kate’s visit, Doretta chatted amicably, displaying her wardrobe and discussing her possessions. Was it simply her Latin blood that made Doretta so uninhibited, Kate wondered, or was it a subtle attempt to convince Kate how fruitless it would be to consider herself as a possible rival should she set her sights on Owen Lawlor?

When at last she departed, she found the twins waiting for her: they were sitting on the iron railings that bordered the avenue and hailed her appearance with enthusiasm. ‘We’ve just thought up the most terrific way for you to get even with Doretta.’

‘But I don’t want to get even with Doretta,’
She
said firmly, as she prepared to mount her bicycle. ‘Why on earth should I?’

‘We mean about going to Blarney.’ Sean’s eyes snapped with excitement. It’s a shame you should be left behind,’ he added piously.

‘But someone must take care of things, and that’s my job, isn’t it?’

‘It’s supposed to be Doretta’s too, but we could starve to death for all she cares.’

‘
The pair of you look remarkably healthy to me,’ Kate
said, laughing, ‘and now, off you go. If I don’t leave now it will be dark before I get home.’

It was at this moment that her voice was drowned by the sound of Nicky’s car roaring up the avenue and drawing up with a shower of gravel. He was immediately hailed enthusiastically by his admiring brothers.

When he had disentangled himself from their boisterous greetings he walked towards Kate, his dark eyes dancing with the mischievous gleam that always made her uneasy.

‘And what is the virtuous Kate doing on villainous Fitzpatrick territory?’ he asked mockingly. ‘Or is it that the Fitzpatricks no longer seem so outrageous in comparison to the goings-on at Laragh
?
’

‘There are no goings-on at Laragh,’ she said coldly.

‘No? You surprise me. I’m sure you’d be shocked to hear all the nasty things that are being said locally about the set-up—or have you considered that aspect of the matter?’

‘I’m not interested in what people say,’ she protested, but the colour that flooded her cheeks belied her words. She could, only too clearly, imagine the ribald laughter in the local pubs as the farmers and labourers drank their beloved Guinness and discussed in detail the scandalous tit-bits that gave colour and interest to the monotonous life of the small villages.

‘Ah-ha, so you do care! Well, in that case, why don’t you let Owen make an honest woman of you? After all, a lonely bachelor like Owen should be a walkover
!’

He was in one of his wicked taunting moods, she realised, and she was determined not to give him the satisfaction of knowing how keenly his words had struck home. ‘I should imagine that if Owen intends to marry anyone it will be Doretta.’

It was an attempt at defence and she saw his smile stiffen.

‘Yes, our Latin beauty is knocking around with him, I hear. And to think that until fairly recently I was her white-headed boy! There’s a fickle female for you!’ He spoke lightly, but Kate got the impression that Doretta’s change of allegiance had pricked his vanity bad
l
y.

The twins, who had been listening avidly, now pulled excitedly at their brother’s arm. ‘That’s just what we were talking about before you came,’ Sean told him. ‘Eamonn and I thought up the most terrific plan for getting even with Doretta and putting a spoke in her wheel.’

Nicky did not answer immediately. Taking the bicycle from Kate, he leaned it against the fence, then linking her arm he led her around the side of the house, followed closely by the twins. ‘We shall discuss this wonderful scheme while strolling in the lime walk,’ he declared. ‘It was planted in the good old days when people had plenty of leisure for perambulating between the trees and breathing in the fragrance of the blossoms. A perfect place for lovers, don’t you think? Why can’t you and I be friends, Kate? If Doretta is really out for Owen’s scalp, she’ll very probably get him, for I know enough about her to know she’s a very determined girl when she’s pursuing her quarry. That will leave you and me at loose ends, won’t it? Now is there any reason on earth why we shouldn’t enjoy ourselves in our own way?’

‘You mean in your own way, don’t you?’ Kate said dryly, and tried to pull her arm from his possessive clutch. But he merely tightened his grip.

‘
Dear me, how you’ve changed since you used to pen those enchanting letters of yours! I remember one in particular: it struck me at the time as being quite poetic; let’s see, how did it go?’ He wrinkled his brow in a pretence of searching his memory, then intoned, ‘I imagine your little cottage with golden-tinted thatch, set in green meadows and purple ploughed fields.’

Kate’s eyes smarted with tears of mortification. What had possessed her to write such self-revealing words to a perfect stranger?

The twins, who were now dancing alongside, gave loud whoops of merriment. ‘Did you really write that, Kate?’ Sean gurgled.

‘You two clear off.’ Nicky made threatening motions with his fist. ‘You’re not wanted.’

‘But we haven’t told you our plan about Doretta,’ they chorused indignantly.

Kate, however, was no longer listening. Ahead lay two parallel lines of lime trees, starred with blossom, their delicious scent borne towards her with every eddy of the warm air. The broad walk of brilliant green turf was strewn with fallen petals. How wonderful to wander here with the one you loved, she thought, then immediately reminded herself sternly that it was just such romantic day-dreams that had landed her in the pickle she was in.

In spite of her reluctance to accompany Nicky, he determinedly marched her towards the towering trees and commanded the twins to reveal their plan. ‘Though, if it’s anything like your usual brainwaves, it will be utterly ridiculous!’

‘It’s not,’ Sean said indignantly. ‘It’s quite simple really. We just thought Owen and Doretta would be frightfully annoyed, if you and Kate should happen to reach Blarney before them. It would rather spoil things for them if you were walking close behind them, like the oyster.’

Nicky paused and regarded his brothers with an abstracted air. ‘Do you know, for the first time in your short careers, you’ve come up with something really practical, and its beauty lies in its complete simplicity.’

The twins gazed at each other in triumph. To gain their adored elder brother’s approval was evidently their main ambition in life.

‘And now, you two, clear off,’ commanded Nicky.

They hesitated for a moment or two longer, then, recognising the command in their brother’s tone, scuttled away.

‘And after all,’ Nicky continued musingly when they had disappeared from view, ‘why
s
hould we not go to Blarney if we want to? It’s not the exclusive preserve of Mr. Owen Lawlor, is it?’ His eyes were bright with mischief. ‘I can just see us, quite wrapped up in our own business, but somehow always in their vicinity. And if they stop for a meal, just happening to decide on the same hotel—with a table within hearing distance. Yes, it’s distinctly the sort of outing that would appeal to me.’

‘I don’t doubt it,’ Kate said coldly,
‘
however, it doesn’t particularly appeal to me, so you can count me out.’

‘But why? Don’t you want to kiss the Blarney stone?’

‘Yes, I do,’
She
admitted.

‘Then why hesitate? You’ve as much right to go as Doretta.’

‘Yes, I suppose so,’ she said doubtfully.

‘Think what a fool you’ll feel when you go back to England and have to confess that you didn’t kiss the Blarney stone when you had the opportunity
!’

In spite of herself, Kate smiled. Nicky could be extremely persuasive when he wanted to. Besides, honesty forced her to admit that she rather longed to show Owen Lawlor that she was quite capable of making her own arrangements. Not that she would neglect her duties, she told herself virtuously. Aunt Florrie would, she felt sure, take over the running of Laragh for the day.

‘So you’ve decided to come,’ said Nicky, who had been watching her closely. ‘You and I will have a marvellous time. In a way we’re both in the same position
:
Doretta has given me the push and you’re the unwanted onlooker.’

His words stung her. But was it not true? Owen had never made a secret of the fact that he considered her presence an embarrassment. Her lips tightened stubbornly. Well, for once, Mr. Owen Lawlor wouldn’t have things all his own way. If he found her presence and that of Nicky embarrassing it was no more than he deserved!

The afternoon was well advanced before she left Ballyfeeny and as she pedalled down the country roads on her return journey she noticed how deserted and silent the country was. The sun was setting behind the barren mountains silhouetted darkly against the sky. A little cold breeze had sprung up and Kate shivered as she got off the old bicycle and pushed it up a steep incline, regretting that she hadn’t accepted Nicky’s offer to drive her home. Ahead the road stretched between fields and patches of bog land that were dotted with dark deep holes that from the distance appeared to be filled with black ink.