A Compromising Affair (The Harringtons) by Forster Gwynne

Author:Forster, Gwynne [Forster, Gwynne]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises
Published: 2011-11-30T16:00:00+00:00

Fog and drizzle the next morning meant that he and Denise couldn’t go fishing. He phoned her. “Too bad,” she said. “Well, at least I can sleep another hour.”

He walked down to Harrington House and, as he’d hoped, Henry answered the door. “Good morning, Henry. You’re the man I want to see.”

“Well, yer lookin’ at me. Come on in and peel the fruit while I make the biscuits. You can make biscuits, can’t ya?”

“I’ve never tried. I was going to ask if I could borrow your fishing gear tomorrow morning so I can take Denise fishing. We wanted to fish this morning, but you see what the weather’s like.”

“Yer welcome to borrow me fishing gear, but there wasn’t no use going fishing this morning anyway, ’cause they ain’t biting.”

“How do you know that, Henry?”

Henry looked toward the ceiling as if having to suffer ignorance weighed heavily on him. “’Cause I been fishing sixty-five of me seventy-one years. It’s the first of the full moon, and they’re busy laying eggs. You want some coffee?”

“You bet I do. What do you want me to peel?”

“A couple of oranges. Tara’s going to gorge herself on it.” He shook his head from side to side, and a smile crawled over his face. “She’s the apple of me eye.”

“I know what you mean. If I can have just one child with her manners, intelligence and self-confidence by the time she’s eight—or is it nine?—I’ll thank God, her mother and everybody else who contributed to it.”

“Humph. You start by getting the right woman to be her mother. Tara had Alexis, all three of me boys and me. Her own daddy ain’t worth the saliva in his mouth. Tara took Tel for her daddy from the minute she saw him, and it’s the answer to me prayers that he was finally able to adopt her.”

Scott rested the knife on the table and stared at Henry. “You’re telling me that Tara’s birth father is alive, and that he gave Telford permission to adopt that beautiful little girl? What’s wrong with him?”

“He never wanted any children. Besides, he’s a colossal ass, and he ain’t worth the breath I’m spending on him.”

“I should say not.”

Scott looked at the clock and decided to phone Denise. “Hi. I’m at Harrington House. Henry said the fish aren’t biting. But he’s glad to lend me the fishing gear tomorrow morning if all we want is to sit on the edge of the river and hold the rods. Let’s cancel. We can fish another time. We could drive into Frederick for lunch.”

“Thanks, but Pamela said the partying will start early afternoon. We can walk in the woods, though.”

He put his hand over the mouthpiece. “Henry, do you need help with the preparations?”

“All I can get.”

“I think I’d like to help Henry. Want to join me?”

“That would be great. I’ll be there around ten.”

“Good. See you then.” He hung up and turned to Henry. “Denise and I will help you. I’m pretty good in the kitchen.”

“Thanks. I’d be surprised if Denise can cook, but she can help Alexis with other things.

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