First Love, Last Love

‘No,’ Laurence Daniels seemed to go grey again. ‘No, I won’t, will I?’

‘You weren’t expecting that, were you? It wasn’t the way you had things planned at all.’

‘I didn’t plan anything, Alex. And I certainly didn’t expect to be able to come back here as if I’d never been away. But now I have a bonus I didn’t even know about. I don’t mean to let that pass me by.’

‘You can’t honestly tell me that you didn’t know?’ Alex’s disbelief bordered on sarcasm.

‘Do you think if I had that things would have been as they were?’ Laurence demanded fiercely. ‘I may be a fool, but I’m not a masochist.’

Lauri sat on the back seat trying to ignore their heated conversation—or argument, to give it its proper definition. That Alex was to blame for it she had no doubt, and it was really too bad of him to act like this in front of her.

When the Rolls drew up outside her house she got out with unconcealed haste, taking her leave of a smiling Laurence Daniels and a rigid-faced Alex. He was like a stranger, a cold silent stranger who suddenly seemed to hate her.

‘I’ll okay things with Carly,’ he bit out. ‘About this afternoon,’ he explained.

She frowned her puzzlement over his behaviour to her. ‘It doesn’t matter, I’ll talk to her myself. Goodbye, Mr Daniels, it was nice meeting you.’

‘I’m sure we’ll meet again, my dear.’ He got out of the car to stand on the pavement beside her, looking up at the house she had called home all of her life.

‘Not with me you won’t,’ Alex put in grimly.

‘Nevertheless, I’m sure Lauri and I will meet again,’ Laurence Daniels said firmly. He looked back at the house. ‘Did your mother live here too?’

Lauri frowned. ‘Yes. Did you—did you know my mother?’

He gave a rather sad smile. ‘I believe I did, yes.’

‘My father too?’

‘I—er—I may have done.’

‘Can we go now, Laurence?’ Alex interrupted tersely. ‘I do have other commitments. I’m meeting Connie in half an hour, and she isn’t a lady who likes to be kept waiting.’

‘Connie?’ Laurence frowned, looking at Lauri. ‘But I thought …’

Lauri forced a rather strained smile, sure that Alex had made that remark about Connie Mears as a deliberate ploy to hurt her. ‘Alex and I are only friends, Mr Daniels,’ not even that now! ‘I already have a boy-friend.’

‘You do?

‘Oh yes,’ she nodded, smiling brightly.

‘I didn’t realise that.’

‘There was no reason why you should. Goodbye, Mr Daniels—Alex.’ She almost ran into the house, anxious to escape from the kind query she could see in the older man’s face.

She had hardly had time to close the front door before Jane came rushing out into the hallway, a strangely ruffled Jane who looked more than slightly agitated.

‘Where have you been?’ she demanded without preamble.

‘Where have I been—?’ Lauri frowned. ‘Where do you think I’ve been?’

‘Well, you haven’t been at work, I know that,’ Jane said impatiently.

‘How do you know that?’ Lauri delayed.

‘What does it matter how I know!’

‘Well, I—’