The Unwilling Mistress

‘Dinner is at seven o’clock,’ May told him briskly as she walked to the door with him.

‘Stew and dumplings tonight, isn’t it, May?’ March put in with a deliberately mocking smile in Will’s direction.

She obviously didn’t see him as a man who normally ate such nourishingly basic fare, and in one way she was probably right; he lived alone, had a busy life, and things like home cooking were not a luxury he could afford. Although he didn’t think March would understand what he meant by that…

‘It sounds wonderful,’ he told May warmly.

‘Just like your old granny used to make?’ March put in tauntingly.

‘March!’ May winced laughingly.

‘Let’s hope so,’ Will answered March dryly. ‘My grandmother is a first-class cook!’ he added challengingly, rewarded with the satisfaction of seeing that superior smile wiped off March’s beautiful face!

‘So was ours, and she taught us all to cook,’ May assured him smilingly, lightly touching the sleeve of his coat in apology for March’s outspokenness.

Strange that it was their grandmother who had taught the three sisters to cook, and not their mother…?

‘There you are, March; something we have in common!’ He grinned across at her.

‘It’s probably the only thing,’ she muttered in reply.

Causing Will’s grin to widen appreciatively. This woman really did have an answer for everything!

‘Any chance of a home-made apple pie to go with the stew and dumplings?’ he prompted hopefully. ‘My grandmother makes the most mouth-watering pastry too,’ he added dryly.

‘Would you like us to get out the best silver and white table linen too?’ March came back impatiently.

He raised mocking blond brows. ‘Not unless it’s what you normally do, no.’

‘Hardly,’ she scorned.

‘It was only a suggestion about the pie.’ He shrugged, laughter gleaming in his eyes at March’s obvious disgust with the whole conversation. ‘Obviously if you can’t make mouth-watering pastry—’

‘Oh, but she can,’ May put in, laughter lurking in her own eyes now as she listened to the exchange with obvious enjoyment. ‘The art of making good pastry is having cold hands, I’m told,’ she added mischievously.

‘“Cold hands warm heart”?’ Will returned teasingly.

‘Let’s leave my heart out of it,’ March put in disgustedly.

Hmm, perhaps they had better, Will agreed with an inward frown. It was one thing to have a little fun at March Calendar’s expense—as she had done earlier with him!—quite another for him to actually become involved with any of the Calendar sisters.

From all accounts, with Max’s recent—surprising!—engagement to January Calendar, his friend had already fallen into that particular trap; he didn’t think Jude would appreciate having Will do it too!

CHAPTER THREE (#ulink_9f362a63-e035-5ce4-977b-70b993246337)

‘I CAN’T believe I’m actually doing this,’ March muttered as she rolled out the pastry for the apple pie.

May chuckled behind her as she laid the kitchen table for their evening meal.

‘Will Davenport had better eat this after I’ve gone to all this trouble!’ March added disgruntledly.

‘Why did you send him here if you don’t like him?’ May sounded puzzled. ‘Although, personally, I have to say I found him extremely charming.’

March continued to make the pie. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Will Davenport—she did, too much if the truth were told—but there was just something about him… Maybe she was imagining it, but she just had a feeling there was something he wasn’t telling them.

Which was pretty stupid, when she actually thought about it; considering they really knew very little about Will Davenport, not even the reason he was in the area on business, there was a lot they didn’t know about him!

‘I hope the studio is warmer now,’ May added worriedly, glancing out the kitchen window across to the garage/studio.

Will had arrived back at the farm over an hour ago, the lights on above the garage to show his occupancy, although they had seen nothing of the man himself.

Although that was soon going to change, March realized after a brief glance at the clock; in just over half an hour, Will was going to arrive for dinner.

‘Did he say anything to you about why he’s in the area?’ March prompted her sister casually as she cleared away her mess.

‘Just looking around,’ May answered distractedly, obviously still worried about the heating in the studio.

‘At what?’ March turned to her sister frowningly.

May shrugged. ‘He didn’t say.’

‘Why didn’t you ask?’ March sighed frustratedly. ‘I would have done.’

‘I know you would have done.’ Her sister gave a frustrated shake of her head. ‘You didn’t answer my question about why you don’t like him?’ she reminded shrewdly.

‘I don’t have to like the man in order to rent the studio to him,’ March snapped, totally avoiding meeting her sister’s probing gaze.

‘Mercenary.’ May laughed softly.

Not at all. But if she was going to manage to keep the farm at all then the studio would have to be let as much as possible to help pay the way. Which meant she couldn’t be too choosy about whom she let it to!

Until quite recently the three sisters had been unanimous in their determination to keep the farm. But all that had changed in the last few weeks. January had just become engaged to Max, and it was pretty obvious that they weren’t going to wait too long before getting married. And May, whose hobby was acting in the local amateur dramatic society, had recently been spotted by a film director who was interested in casting her in the film he was to make in the summer. Which left only March…

Maybe it didn’t make much sense, or maybe she was just being her normal stubborn self, but March didn’t want to sell the farm to this elusive Jude Marshall just so that he could include it in the neighbouring estate, which he had recently purchased, to make into an extensive health and country club! From the little she had been able to find out, the farm was to become part of the golf club he intended building on the complex. A golf club, for goodness’ sake—when her family had lived and worked on this farm for generations.

March turned from putting the pie in the oven, frowning slightly. ‘Talking about money—’

‘When aren’t we?’ May put in disgustedly.

March smiled in sympathy. ‘For once I wasn’t referring to our own lack of it.’ She grimaced. ‘There’s something going on at the agency that just doesn’t make sense to me. Well, it does. But—’ She broke off as a brief knock sounded on the kitchen door, rapidly followed by Will Davenport’s expected appearance. ‘Never mind,’ March told her sister dismissively. ‘I’ll talk to you about it some other time.’

‘Am I too early?’ Will hesitated in the doorway at March’s glare.

‘Of course not,’ May was the one to answer him welcomingly—cutting off March’s more blunt reply!—quickly pulling Will inside and shutting the door to keep out the cold.

Something March was grateful for, knowing herself overwhelmed by a sudden feeling of uncharacteristic shyness.

She hadn’t really thought that Will Davenport would actually want to rent the studio, had been, as he’d said earlier, just paying him back a little for his ungentlemanly behaviour of this morning. But now that he had decided to rent the studio, after all, she realized just how attracted she was to him.