One Rainy Day Read Free

pleased if I arrived home in a state of intoxication.’
    George’s laugh was hearty, and turned a few heads. ‘You wouldn’t bear the brunt of your mother’s displeasure, my son, I would! But to make sure we both escape unscathed, claret you shall have.’ He lifted a hand to summon a waiter standingnearby. ‘One glass of your finest claret, John, and the usual whisky for me.’
    ‘If we’re going in for a meal, Father, we could take our drinks through with us.’ Andrew was feeling rather peckish, having eaten very little at breakfast time. Usually it didn’t matter what time he arrived at the office and he could breakfast at his leisure, but today was special and he had wanted to get in early to ensure that everything ran smoothly.
    George laid his cigar in the large, round, solid crystal ashtray before saying, ‘I’ll have John bring the drinks through.’ He put a hand on his son’s arm as they walked into the quiet, select dining room. ‘I’ve made enquiries about the menu, dear boy, and the poached salmon and asparagus was recommended.’
    Andrew rubbed his hands together. ‘That sounds very tempting, Father. I’ll join you. I won’t have the soup, though, delicious as it always is. I need to leave some room for the mountain of wonderful food Mother will have made especially for my birthday. After all her hard work, she’d be so disappointed if I refused to eat until there wasn’t a crumb left.’
    George chortled. ‘Andrew, my son, your mother will not have seen the food until it is all spread out on the tables. She may know the name of every dish and every cake, and every bottle of wine, but if you asked her to toast a piece of bread, she wouldn’t know how. It isn’t her fault, for she’s been shielded from reality since the day she was born. She doesn’t know any other sort of life. Pampered by her parents, and then by myself.’ He swirled his glass and watched the golden liquor lap the sides. ‘I love your mother dearly, but I am not blind to her lack of knowledge regarding what goes on outside our close-knit social circle.’
    Andrew took a deep breath before saying what had beenon his mind since the day he became aware of how the Wilkie-Brook family lived. ‘And Charlotte, Father? Are you not afraid she is being spoilt? My sister is a lovely girl, beautiful to look at and full of fun, and she has loads of friends. She’s a good daughter and a loving sister. But what about when she gets married, Father? Will her husband be prepared to pamper her as you and Mother do?’
    ‘Don’t think I haven’t given that a great deal of thought, my son.’ George was suddenly serious. ‘I keep telling myself to be more firm with her. To cut down on her ridiculously high allowance so she learns to appreciate money. But I’m a coward where Charlotte is concerned, and keep putting it off. I admit I’m putty in her hands.’
    ‘We all are, Father, and that’s where the danger lies. You have to be realistic, for Charlotte’s sake. What if she married someone who wasn’t prepared to put up with her idleness and her love of spending money? What if she married a bully? She’d be devastated, absolutely lost. No one has ever raised their voice to her, or told her there was something she couldn’t have. Wrapped in cotton wool since the day she was born, she is ill prepared for any knocks that might come her way. And this is not jealousy speaking, Father. I am not jealous of my sister, I love her. And I’m afraid for her. She is nineteen years of age and the day is not far off when some man will claim her. I believe she should be taught more about life outside the rich society circle.’
    ‘How long have these thoughts been in your head, my boy?’
    Andrew pulled a face. ‘The last couple of years, I suppose. When I first came home from university and joined the firm, I didn’t have time for anything but trying to take in all that was being taught me. Then gradually I noticed what an empty life