‘....you do think it was alright...don’t you...I’m mean, it really creeped me out and everything at first but he sort of explained it all and he was ever so embarrassed’

‘And he just happened to tell you, you were beautiful’ Ingrid brushes Rosalyn’s hair away from her face as she teases her.

‘Well...not directly’ Rosalyn pouts slightly and lowers her eyes ‘ ...and if I’d really thought he was a perv , it wouldn’t have made any difference  even if he had’ a frown creases her forehead ‘...but I don’t think he is...do you?’ she asks, anxiously looking up. ‘You haven’t said what you think yet’

‘I think...’ Ingrid says with an amused smile ‘That he won’t be doing it again in a hurry’

‘But do you think he’s a perv!’ Rosalyn insists, annoyed when her mother turns away.

‘Jonathan?’ Ingrid picks up her cigarette packet and leans back against the sink unit ‘I doubt that very much but if you’re not sure, don’t see him. It’s a simple as that’. Her lighter clicks and she brings it to her mouth.

‘It’s not that simple at all! What about when he comes round here? You’ll still be his friend won’t you....and even if I don’t go round his house again or have anything to do with him, I’ll still have to see him when you do’

‘Being creeped out didn’t stop you staying there until after midnight’ the teasing goes on.

‘We got talking, alright?’ Rosalyn reacts defensively ‘He showed me round and then we got talking about furniture  and decorating and if he should have it all looking old like he’s got already or do the rooms he hasn’t done yet a bit more modern’

‘You wouldn’t’ve seen your bum for dust if you’d really been worried about him being a...perv’ Ingrid blows a plume of smoke upwards ‘Knowing you, you’d have kicked him in the goolies and run’

‘It’s nothing to laugh at! You didn’t walk into a room and see hundreds of faces looking back and they were all you!’

‘That’s a bit of an exaggeration’

‘Okay...but you didn’t see it’

Ingrid folds one arm across her chest and rests the elbow of her other arm against her hand. She takes a thoughtful puff of her cigarette before replying. ‘If he was any sort of closet weirdo, he would never have invited you round without taking those pictures down first and hiding them, would he?’

‘He wasn’t about to show me that room, I just went in there’

‘Does it have a lock?’

‘Well, I don’t know, do I?’ Rosalyn snaps, irritated her mother is treating the whole thing as amusing.

‘Ros...Leave it with me’ Ingrid says in a more sympathetic tone and turns to feel the belly of the teapot before refilling her mug ‘...I’ll talk to him, okay?’

‘You can’t do that!’

‘So what the hell do you want me to do then? I’m not blanking him on the off chance he’s got some sort of fixation problem. If you want me to double check he didn’t mean anything by it, I don’t see what else I can do’

The Red House,

Barleyfield Way

Chapter Forty

Tawny House, Manor Road

From the window Harriet watches Oliver Woodman’s progress along the drive and turns to Jeannie when she comes back into the room. ‘Well!’ she splutters ‘Far be it for me to criticise anyone’s entrepreneurial ambition but that jolly well takes the biscuit!’ She flops into her chair and slaps her hands on the arms. ‘I am not sure if I should be amused or offended’

‘I dinna think the man meant tae offend ye’ Jeannie says, straightening the cushions on the sofa where Oliver had been sitting. ‘He’s an eye fae such things’

‘So he has but to say that Edward’s beloved Bentley could be put to better use as a hire car’ Harriet blinks slowly and shakes her head ‘Did the man honestly expect to persuade me to sell?’ she says indignantly.

‘There’s many a bride be glad tae ride in it’

‘That car was Edward’s pride and joy, the one thing he allowed me spoil him with! You know how down to earth he was, not one for the trappings of wealth at all, but that was my gift to him after Christopher was born’

Hearing the break in Harriet’s voice, Jeannie goes to stand next to her. ‘Nae body’s  takin’ it awa’ she says firmly, giving her shoulder a comforting squeeze. ‘Nae body wi’oot ye say so’

‘I doubt very much if Emma knows of Oliver’s intention to start a car hire business’ Harriet gains strength from Jeannie’s reassurance ‘Collecting them is one thing, she will tolerate that, but another business and the responsibilities that would bring? She would not be pleased at all. It is pure folly after having a heart attack, mild though it may have been’

‘That wis a wee while ago noo’ Jeannie remarks as she restores the curtain behind Harriet’s chair to its earlier neat folds ‘nae doubt the man’s fit enough’

‘He has more than enough motor cars to start a business already, if he is so inclined, I fail to see why he should want mine. If anyone is to benefit from having use of the car at all, it should be your husband’

‘Ma Duncan?’

‘Oliver’s proposition may have overstepped the bounds of our acquaintance but if Mister Brown cares to make use of the vehicle in the same way....’  Harriet lifts her eyebrows and her smile is shrewd.

‘Dae weddings an’ the like, ye mean?’ Jeannie snorts at the idea.

‘By his own admission he does not have enough to do around here to keep him fully occupied. When a man has worked as hard as your husband, being unemployed can be a dreadful shock to the system and self worth. I am simply offering the opportunity to start a little business of his own if he wishes to take it’

‘Och, he likes tae drive well enough but I’m nae sae sure he’s cut oot fae such a thing’

‘It does not have to be weddings, there are many occasions where the use of a chauffeur driven car is preferable to a taxi cab’

‘Aye’ Jeannie looks thoughtful and less dismissive ‘an’ wi’ the hotel along the way there...’

‘Now you are seeing my point’ Harriet beams and folds her hands in her lap. ‘With conferences and corporate entertaining, I imagine there could very well be a call for such a business. Foreign delegates for instance, may need meeting from the airport. The important ones, of course’

‘Mebbe’

‘Oliver may have ruffled my feathers but he has given me a jolly good idea, has he not?’ her eyebrows lift again, this time expecting agreement.

‘I dinna think it’s as easy as that, hen. He’ll need tae be licensed an’ then there’s the insurance. There’ll be all manner a things tae sort oot. I dinna think he’d be too keen after all’

‘Will you talk to him about it or shall I?’