Page 36 of Mornings By the Linden Tree
Dammit.
“I’m sorry, child, but this nose isnotbig. I spent a bloody fortune to have it pared down to this delightful little button, and I refuse to let you slander it,” Percy snapped, his tenderness about his nose spiking his cutting tongue into action.
Valeria began to cry. I huffed loudly at Percy. Lennon appeared out of my bedroom, looking a tad wrinkled to gape at the soaking wet Brit in the exemplary raincoat and wet loafers. It was rather telling what kind of taste I had in men seeing the two of them in the same foyer. Same heights, same builds, blond-haired and blue-eyed.
“Is there a reason a child is making that noise?” Percy asked as he shrugged out of his raincoat and held it to out to Lennon, who glowered at the coat, then picked up Valeria to calm her.
Yes, well, it seemed physical traits were the only similarity between my two…friends? No lovers? Well, no, I didn’t have lovers or hadn’t. I’d had gentlemen callers. The two men. There.
“Why don’t we all catch our breaths?” I asked and got a sour look from everyone else in the foyer. For a man who professed not to like emotional scenes, Percy was certainly acting out a fine pique.
“I’m not quite sure what is going on, Wesley. I made a grand gesture to get here in foul weather. I’d like to know exactly who this mewling child is and what sort of arrangement you have with this fellow?” Percy stood there with his coat dripping on the floor, glaring at me.
Dammit.
“This child is my niece, Valeria, and the man is only the nanny.”
As soon as the words left my mouth, I didn’t need to hear Lennon inhale sharply. I knew they were wrong.
Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.
“Niece? I assumed she had been given to social services. What is she doing here? Why on earth are we still here in soggy clothes when surely there must be a teapot in the kitchen that the nanny can put on?”
I wanted to slap him. Hard. Percy was a snob. Yes, I knew that. I was, too, to some degree, but I was not this bad. Was I? It was not a pleasant thought.
“I’ll put the kettle on for his highness,” Lennon snarled, spun, and stalked off with Valeria in his arms.
“Would you hang up that damn coat?!” I barked at Percy.
“Do you not have a maid?” I shook my head. “Housekeeper?” Another shake of my head. “Surely, the nanny can—” I ripped the raincoat from his hand and flung it to the floor. His mouth fell open. “You rude bastard. I’ll have you know I bought that last winter for the trip to Scotland I tried to get you to go on, but you refused, citing you didn’t do mutual vacations. Then I tried to get you to go to Norway. Again a flat no. You said you don’t do getaways with other men as it led to ‘unnecessary emotionalentanglements.’ Yet here I find you in Nantucket, dreadful name for an island if you ask me, with a man who is clearly more than a lowly nanny, given how put out he was when he saw me here.”
“Percy, right now, I have more pressing matters than your wet coat. Pick it up or leave it lying on the floor.” I turned from him to go find Lennon and hopefully explain myself.
“Well, the cheek,” I heard him grumbling as I stalked off, my head spinning. I found Lennon and Valeria in the kitchen, sharing a glass of milk and some butter cookies.
“Uncle Wes, is that man with the big nose still here?” Valeria asked around a mouthful of cookies. I shot a look at Lennon, who was, to put it mildly, very displeased with me, given the icy shoulder I was now being served. A justified shoulder, to be sure.
“He is, but he’s going to go to my room to dry off so I can talk to him,” I said loudly enough I could have been heard at the Purple Egret.
The heavy footfalls of a very unhappy Brit preceded the slamming of a door. Right. One angry man tucked away for the moment. Now to see if I could—
“My boss called to ask me to do a party for his sister tomorrow night. Everyone else is busy or off because of the holiday. It’s a huge party at twice the rate, so I can’t afford to turn it down. I’m going to fly home in the morning.” Lennon dunked a cookie into the shared glass of milk with such attitude, the cookie was at the bottom of the tumbler and falling into crumbs as it drowned. Was the cookie a stand-in for me? Probably.
“No, no, Lennon, don’t leave us with the big nose man!” Valeria screamed. Percy said something, but what it was muffled. For the best, I was sure.
“I’m sorry you have to leave early, but I do understand when your job requires you to make sacrifices. If you could give me ten minutes to locate a bed and breakfast for Percy for the night, I’d like to talk with you about my gaffe.”
“Send him away! To a bed breakfast for big nose men!” Valeria demanded at the top of her lungs. Percy was steadily muttering at the top of his lungs. The only quiet ones were Lennon and me and that was because I was hanging on tenterhooks and he was mulling.
“Is he someone important to you?” Lennon softly asked.
“No, he is just a past gentleman caller,” I replied.
“What is a gentle band collar?” my niece asked. I was not even going to go there.
“An old friend,” I said and got a nod of her head as she shoved another cookie into her mouth. She was now at chipmunk cheek expansion limit. “He’s an old friend who I met for dinner and discussions. I’ve not spoken to him since the night Aida passed. Truly, there is nothing between us other than a few meals.” More or less. The sex was, in truth, much like eating a mediocre meal at an eatery that had peaked two years ago. Nothing like I imagined sleeping with Lennon would be like, given our brief moments of passion.
“Okay,” Lennon answered and took another cookie from the package. “Find him a room somewhere, and then we’ll talk. I’ll get her teeth brushed and read a story while you help your old friend.”
