* * *
‘Hi...Anna?’
Anna, who was on the point of leaving, turned and saw the beautiful brunette who had been with Cesare Urquart standing in the doorway of the hotel room she had been forced to take for the night. This morning the brunette was wearing jeans tucked into a pair of knee-high boots and a short fur-collared leather jacket, her river-straight, silky, waist-length jet-black hair secured in a ponytail at the nape of her neck. Even if Anna hadn’t been having a bad hair day, and she really was, the woman would have made her feel hopelessly inadequate.
‘I don’t think your boyfriend will like it if you’re seen talking to me.’
Angel scowled. ‘I don’t care much what Cesare likes.’
Her brother had not reacted well to her suggestion over breakfast that his attitude to this woman was coloured by their own mother, and even less well when she had said that just because someone saved your life it didn’t mean they were a saint. And when she’d mentioned her totally brilliant idea he had suggested she had lost her mind.
‘And he’s not my boyfriend, he’s my brother.’
Anna’s chin dropped from the defiant angle as her eyes widened. ‘Brother!’ Were the whole family this stunning?
Anna’s shocked exclamation drew a grin.
‘I’d like to say he got the looks and I got the brains but I’d be lying.’ Her expression sobered. ‘But brainy or not, Cesare can be pretty stupid sometimes and he’s pathologically loyal to his friends even the ones who haven’t...’ She broke off, giving the impression of someone biting their tongue. ‘And, of course, sorry doesn’t come easy to him.’
Anna gave an unamused snort. The idea of that hateful man wanting to apologise was a joke. None of this was his sister’s fault so she forced a faint smile, but was unable to bite back her bitter retort. ‘Especially as he’s always right.’
The willowy brunette winced. ‘Ouch! So you are heading back to...London?’
Anna glanced at her watch. The information she’d received advised that passengers should only travel if their journey was strictly necessary because there were still flood warnings, and though some trains were running today there were numerous delays. The likelihood was her journey would take a lot longer than normal. At best, according to her enquiries, the trains were running on average three hours behind schedule.
‘I haven’t much reason to hang around.’
‘I suppose you have plans for your summer break.’
The seemingly casual remark drew a sigh from Anna. Break? Her summer break might end up being longer than she would have liked. Still, she’d done stints of supply teaching before and she could again.
‘Is there something I can help you with, Miss Urquart?’
‘It’s Angel and, yes, there is. When is your train due? Do you have time for a coffee? The place on the corner is actually pretty good.’
Her last phone call to the help line had suggested she had time for a three-course banquet but she shook her head in a negative motion. Despite her refusal she was actually rather intrigued by this woman’s appearance.
‘Sorry.’
‘You’re probably wondering what I want?’
‘I’m curious,’ Anna admitted.
‘I have a daughter.’ She waved her ring hand at Anna. ‘And, no, I’m not married.’
Half the children in her class of thirty in the inner-city school where Anna had worked had come from single-parent backgrounds.
‘And I never have been. Jas...Jasmine is a great kid. I just wish I could spend more time with her. It’s hard juggling.’ The frown on her brow smoothed as she added, ‘I’m luckier than most because my work is more flexible. Normally I keep the holidays free and, of course, Cesare is great but obviously he can’t be here all the time. He’s a victim of his own success.’ She looked at Anna and, after receiving a blank look back, loosed an incredulous laugh. ‘You’ve no idea who he is, do you?’
‘I know what he is...’ Anna gave a shamed grimace and grunted. ‘Sorry, he’s your brother.’
Angel looked amused. ‘Oh, don’t hold back on my account. Cesare can look after himself.’
‘I know your family owns the estate and castle. I suppose that makes him pretty important.’ In his own eyes at least, she thought viciously. ‘Locally.’
‘Sure, the Urquarts have been here for ever, but the estate barely breaks even. It’ll be years before it does despite the money he’s poured in over the last five years. Dad, bless him, was pretty resistant to change and Mum, before she packed her bags, was terribly expensive. Her divorce settlement was pretty extreme. Anyway, I digress. You don’t want to know about the family,’