wonderful face again.
‘Mr Andrew, you are very welcome.’ The owner of the restaurant, André, shook Andrew’s hand while smiling at Charlotte. ‘And this lovely lady is the sister you were telling me about? How lucky you are to have such a charming sister, but why have you been hiding her?’
The accent was as attractive as the man, and Charlotte was delighted. ‘My brother has been keeping you a secret until now, which was very naughty of him.’
‘I can’t agree with you in his presence, for he is one of my valued customers. But you are welcome here any time, as long as you ring first. Now let me show you to your table, and Alphonso will relieve you of your coats.’
When they were seated, Charlotte voiced her pleasure.‘This is a charming place, Andrew. Why have you not mentioned it before?’
‘I can answer your question with one of my own. Why have you never been to my office before? There was no reason for me to mention a restaurant to you when I didn’t think you would ever be down in this neck of the woods.’
A waiter came to the table then, and sister and brother took their time to choose from a menu where each dish sounded mouth-watering. ‘Oh, I can’t make up my mind,’ Charlotte said, ‘What are you having?’
‘I don’t eat much at lunch time,’ her brother told her. ‘If I did I wouldn’t be able to eat three courses again at home. I will skip the hors d’oeuvre, and the dessert, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have what you like. Everything will be excellent, so whatever your heart desires.’
Charlotte closed the heavily embossed menu. ‘I’ll have whatever you’re having. Frances would be upset if we were to refuse our dinners, and Jane too!’
Andrew handed the menus to the waiter. ‘Two fillet steak, medium rare, with all the trimmings. And would you ask the wine waiter for a bottle of his best red wine, please?’
While they were waiting, Charlotte asked, ‘Will you be telling Mother and Father about the unfortunate incident with that very pretty girl? Or would you rather put it behind you?’
Andrew took a few seconds to consider. ‘Oh, I think I should tell them. They’ll probably tell me the same as the young lady, that I should look where I’m going. But my shoulders are broad. I can take a ticking off.’ And as he spoke, that unforgettable face appeared in his mind’s eye, and his heart flipped.
Chapter Four
As Andrew was describing the events of the morning to his parents in their comfortable drawing room, the encounter was also the topic of conversation in another house on the opposite side of the city, far removed from the luxury of the Wilkie-Brooks’ mansion.
Poppy Meadows was standing in the middle of the living room, while her mother eyed the damage done to the back of her raincoat.
‘The dirt will wash out, that’s no problem. But the tear is jagged and won’t be easy to repair.’ Eva Meadows put her hand to her chin and let out a sigh. ‘I’ll have a go, Poppy, and do my best.’
Her twenty-year-old son, David, was looking on. A handsome man, he was eighteen months older than his sister. He was very proud of her, and also very protective. ‘Why should Poppy suffer because some stupid bloke doesn’t look where he’s going and knocks her flying? He should fork out to pay for the damage he’s caused.’
‘He did offer,’ Poppy told him. ‘To be fair to the man, he did offer to buy me a new coat.’
‘You should have taken him up on it,’ David said. ‘It would teach him to be more careful in future. He could have seriously hurt you.’
‘Well, he didn’t hurt me. Except I’ve probably got a bruise on me bottom, but no one is going to see that. And me pride was hurt. I must have looked so stupid lying flat out on the ground, with me belongings strewn all over the pavement. The post I was carrying was in a right mess, but the clients were very nice about it and said accidents couldn’t be helped. In fact one client wanted
‘Mr Andrew, you are very welcome.’ The owner of the restaurant, André, shook Andrew’s hand while smiling at Charlotte. ‘And this lovely lady is the sister you were telling me about? How lucky you are to have such a charming sister, but why have you been hiding her?’
The accent was as attractive as the man, and Charlotte was delighted. ‘My brother has been keeping you a secret until now, which was very naughty of him.’
‘I can’t agree with you in his presence, for he is one of my valued customers. But you are welcome here any time, as long as you ring first. Now let me show you to your table, and Alphonso will relieve you of your coats.’
When they were seated, Charlotte voiced her pleasure.‘This is a charming place, Andrew. Why have you not mentioned it before?’
‘I can answer your question with one of my own. Why have you never been to my office before? There was no reason for me to mention a restaurant to you when I didn’t think you would ever be down in this neck of the woods.’
A waiter came to the table then, and sister and brother took their time to choose from a menu where each dish sounded mouth-watering. ‘Oh, I can’t make up my mind,’ Charlotte said, ‘What are you having?’
‘I don’t eat much at lunch time,’ her brother told her. ‘If I did I wouldn’t be able to eat three courses again at home. I will skip the hors d’oeuvre, and the dessert, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have what you like. Everything will be excellent, so whatever your heart desires.’
Charlotte closed the heavily embossed menu. ‘I’ll have whatever you’re having. Frances would be upset if we were to refuse our dinners, and Jane too!’
Andrew handed the menus to the waiter. ‘Two fillet steak, medium rare, with all the trimmings. And would you ask the wine waiter for a bottle of his best red wine, please?’
While they were waiting, Charlotte asked, ‘Will you be telling Mother and Father about the unfortunate incident with that very pretty girl? Or would you rather put it behind you?’
Andrew took a few seconds to consider. ‘Oh, I think I should tell them. They’ll probably tell me the same as the young lady, that I should look where I’m going. But my shoulders are broad. I can take a ticking off.’ And as he spoke, that unforgettable face appeared in his mind’s eye, and his heart flipped.
Chapter Four
As Andrew was describing the events of the morning to his parents in their comfortable drawing room, the encounter was also the topic of conversation in another house on the opposite side of the city, far removed from the luxury of the Wilkie-Brooks’ mansion.
Poppy Meadows was standing in the middle of the living room, while her mother eyed the damage done to the back of her raincoat.
‘The dirt will wash out, that’s no problem. But the tear is jagged and won’t be easy to repair.’ Eva Meadows put her hand to her chin and let out a sigh. ‘I’ll have a go, Poppy, and do my best.’
Her twenty-year-old son, David, was looking on. A handsome man, he was eighteen months older than his sister. He was very proud of her, and also very protective. ‘Why should Poppy suffer because some stupid bloke doesn’t look where he’s going and knocks her flying? He should fork out to pay for the damage he’s caused.’
‘He did offer,’ Poppy told him. ‘To be fair to the man, he did offer to buy me a new coat.’
‘You should have taken him up on it,’ David said. ‘It would teach him to be more careful in future. He could have seriously hurt you.’
‘Well, he didn’t hurt me. Except I’ve probably got a bruise on me bottom, but no one is going to see that. And me pride was hurt. I must have looked so stupid lying flat out on the ground, with me belongings strewn all over the pavement. The post I was carrying was in a right mess, but the clients were very nice about it and said accidents couldn’t be helped. In fact one client wanted
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