A Perfect Proposal by LIZ FIELDING & Liz Fielding

Author:LIZ FIELDING & Liz Fielding
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mills & Boon Series Special Releases
Published: 2017-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

MARK put his head around the nursery door. ‘Jane, I’ve got an early meeting with the project team, so I’ll get off now. I should be home by seven.’

Jane, who’d discovered that dressing a wriggling three-year-old who would much rather play took a lot longer than she’d anticipated, leapt to her feet. ‘But what about breakfast?’ The whole essential coffee, fresh orange juice, cereals and egg thing that every perfect wife provided for her man. That her mother had provided for her family without apparent effort every morning of her life. ‘It’s the most important meal of the day.’

Mark just grinned, picked up his daughter and kissed her. The dungarees fell off. ‘I’m used to getting my own breakfast. And Shuli’s too.’ He turned to her, still holding his little girl. ‘This morning has been a piece of cake.’ For a moment she thought he was going to kiss her, too, but then he put Shuli down and said, ‘If I’m going to be late I’ll ring you. Bye, Shuli. Be good.’

‘Be good,’ Shuli called back.

‘Take care,’ Jane whispered. Then, when the sound of Mark’s car had faded into the distance, she picked up the little pair of dungarees and started again.

Breakfast took an age. And then, on the dot of nine, two ladies arrived in a bright yellow van and set about dusting and polishing the house with frightening efficiency. They seemed to be everywhere, and Jane didn’t need much tempting to leave the call to her mother for a quieter moment.

Besides, a walk would clear her head, give her time to think through exactly what she’d say. Fastening Shuli into her buggy, she set off to explore the village.

Patsy put her head around the drawing office door. ‘Mark, there’s a personal call for you. Shall I put it through to you here?’

‘Sure.’ Anticipating Jane’s voice, he tucked the phone against his shoulder and carried on hatching in an area to be detailed by a draughtsman. ‘What’s the problem?’ he asked.

‘I don’t know, Mr Hilliard,’ a woman’s voice replied briskly. ‘That’s why I’m calling you. To get some answers.’

‘Sorry?’ He straightened. ‘Who is this?’

‘Jennifer Carmichael. Your mother-in-law?’ she prompted.

The pencil point snapped as Mark pressed down too hard. ‘Jane rang you.’

‘No, Mr Hilliard, she did not. And since I have no way of contacting her to confirm the astonishing news that my youngest daughter was married yesterday, I’m calling you.’

‘Mrs Carmichael—’

‘Is it true?’

‘Well, yes, but I really think—’ He really thought she should be having this conversation with Jane, but Mrs Carmichael was not in the mood to listen to his thoughts.

‘Is she pregnant?’

That at least he could answer. ‘No…’ Realising that twenty pairs of ears, having caught the name, were straining to hear what he had to say, he cut short the sentence. ‘No,’ he repeated firmly.

‘Then maybe you can offer some other explanation as to why she chose to marry in what appears to be unseemly haste and without a single member of her family present?’

‘She was going to call you this morning,’ he hedged, wondering what on earth had happened to stop her.

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