tycoon, was childless, and she made it abundantly clear to him that her immense fortune would be at his disposal if they married. But David Cunningham was not the kind of man who could be influenced by money when it came to the serious business of marriage. In his lexicon this was the least of all considerations. Love and compatibility took precedence with him. Well, he did love Doris, and they were inordinately compatible. But…
The door of the book-lined library was open, and David heard Francesca’s quick light step in the hall. He hurried to the door and looked out. ‘Good morning, my dear.’ There was a lilt in his voice and his eyes instantly brightened.
‘Good morning, Daddy darling,’ she responded and, smiling, reached up to kiss his cheek.
The Earl hugged her to him, and then he stood back. ‘Feeling patriotic today, are you, Frankie?’
Francesca looked at her father nonplussed. He was regarding her with fondness, his eyes twinkling. ‘What do you mean?’ she asked with a slight frown.
‘The colour scheme you’ve adopted this morning.’ His glance swept over her again. ‘Borrowed from the Union Jack, wouldn’t you say?’
Francesca laughed, and swinging around she looked at herself in the mirror, her head on one side. She was wearing a new white cotton shirt, her best navy-blue Jaeger skirt and a navy-blue melton-cloth reefer jacket. ‘I think that’s a bit of an exaggeration,’ she retorted mildly, but nevertheless she unfastened the red-white-and-blue silk scarf tied around her neck and pushed it into her jacket pocket. She turned back to her father. ‘Is that better?’ she asked. Her father’s taste in women’s clothes ran to the subdued, even the dowdy at times, and she knew it was the vivid scarf to which he objected. ‘I just thought the dash of colour would cheer up my outfit,’ she said.
‘You don’t need anything to cheer up your clothes. Your face inevitably does that.’ His smile was tender as he went on, ‘And where are you off to at this hour?’
‘The British Museum.’
‘Ah, yes indeed. Gordon beckons, I’ve no doubt.’ The Earl half turned and stepped into the library. He said, ‘I’d like to talk to you, Frankie, if you can spare me a few minutes.’
‘Why yes, of course I can, Daddy.’
‘Then come in and close the door behind you. I think a little privacy is in order.’
Francesca did as he asked, her gaze resting on him, her face sobering. The seriousness of his tone alarmed her, and she thought: Oh God, there’s trouble brewing. Being extremely close to her father and attuned to his moods, she invariably anticipated him, and she was positive he could only want to talk to her about one of two things: Kim or money. Probably the latter, she said to herself, eyeing the bills and the chequebook on the desk. Suddenly she felt selfish and guilty. Here she was, probably wasting her time researching a book that might never get written, when she could be earning money. Maybe she ought to get a job to help out. But deciding this was not the time to suggest it, she said, ‘You seem awfully worried, Daddy. Is there something wrong? Is it money?’
‘That’s always a problem, my dear. But somehow we always seem to manage, don’t we?’ He did not wait for her response. ‘However, I didn’t bring you in here to talk about the monthly accounts. Actually, I wanted to discuss this new development with you.’
Francesca tensed and her eyes were watchful. ‘New development?’ she echoed. ‘I’m not sure I know what you mean.’
‘Come, come, Frankie, don’t hedge. You’re talking to me. You know perfectly well I’m referring to Kim and Katharine.’
She accepted the gentle reprimand in silence, playing for time. The silence grew, hung between them. The Earl studied his daughter keenly. Finally, he said, ‘I presume your lack of response is an acknowledgement of the facts. I also presume you know Kim is very serious about this girl.’
Realizing she could not remain mute indefinitely, Francesca thought the safest thing would be to repeat Kim’s words to her. ‘Well, Daddy, I’m not sure serious is the right word, but I do think he’s quite keen.’
The Earl laughed knowingly. ‘That’s undoubtedly the understatement of the year! Your brother is madly in love. Even a blind man would know that.’ He leaned forward over the desk. His cool grey eyes, which had narrowed perceptibly, were fixed unblinkingly on his daughter. He asked quietly, ‘And what is your opinion of Katharine, Frankie?’
Francesca’s face lit up at once. ‘I like her enormously! In fact, I took to her the instant I met her. I think she’s a super girl. And to tell you the truth, I thought you did, Daddy. On Monday evening you seemed … well, enchanted, if you don’t mind me saying so.’ Her words held a challenge, as did her gaze.
‘You’re absolutely correct, I was,’ the Earl conceded evenly. ‘Katharine has a variety of assets, all of them most apparent, so I won’t waste time enumerating them. And she is quite the lady – ‘
‘Well, then,’ Francesca interrupted swiftly, her brows lifting expressively, ‘why are you so perturbed?’
David ignored this pointed question by saying, ‘What do you actually know about her, my dear?’
Francesca was startled. ‘Haven’t you talked to Kim about Katharine? I think it’s his place to tell you about his new girl friend, not mine, don’t you?’
‘Indeed I do, darling. And I have spoken to him. Unfortunately he was extremely vague, even a little evasive. To be frank, I decided not to press him for the time being. I felt it would be wiser not to make too much of a fuss, since that would only give the matter tremendous importance in his mind. On the other hand, because I believe he has serious intentions, I do think I should know more about the girl he is apparently thinking of marrying. I intend to have a heart-to-heart talk with Kim when we get back to Langley, but, in the meantime, I thought you might be able to give me a few more facts.’ He waited, and then observing the expression on her face, he added gently, ‘You think I’m putting you in an awkward position, I know, but I’m not really. It was I who brought you up to have a sense of honour, to be loyal, so I would certainly never ask you to betray a confidence. Still, under the circumstances, I don’t think it would be disloyal to Kim if you repeat what he’s told you, or what Katharine has said about herself. I’m hardly asking you to divulge state secrets,’ he finished with a soft chuckle.
Francesca stared down at her hands. Everything her father said made sense. Surely there was no harm in telling him what she knew. It was then she realized, and with a little stab of dismay, that there was hardly anything to repeat. ‘Kim hasn’t confided in me, and neither has Katharine,’ she answered. ‘To tell you the truth, now that I think about it, she hasn’t said much about her life. Here or in America.’
‘I see,’ said David, masking his surprise. He looked at her clear and lovely face, the candid gaze, and he knew she was being her usual truthful self. Until this moment he had been convinced his daughter would be able to enlighten him. She and Kim were extremely close. Obviously she had been kept in the dark. Very curious indeed. Then he wondered why.
Francesca volunteered, ‘I understand from Kim that Katharine comes from Chicago, and that she’s an orphan, poor girl.’
‘Yes, he told me that too. He also mentioned she went to school here and afterwards attended RADA.’ The Earl shook his head in bemusement. ‘Not much to go on, is it?’
‘No,’
