Free The Cornish Guest House by Emma Burstall Page B

eye around. The old woman was still on the chair where Liz had left her and seemed to have attracted quite a gathering, including Audrey, who was kneeling beside her. Tony and Felipe were standing by the fireplace, still talking to Rick and his new girlfriend, and Tony beckoned to Liz to come over. Tabitha, meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen.
    ‘Darling, you look gorgeous!’ Tony said, admiring the strapless black cocktail dress that Liz had bought for her honeymoon. She and Robert had had a glorious long weekend in Paris after the wedding.
    Felipe, it seemed, had been telling them about his art club and the strange chap who’d dropped by to talk to them. An artist himself, he lived in a cottage on the Polgarry Castle estate with his young son. Liz knew that his paintings sold rather well in London and elsewhere, but he rarely ventured into Tremarnock and had little to do with local affairs. The castle, high up above the village, had been empty since its eccentric owner had died. It must have been pretty lonely up there.
    ‘I do not know how he survives,’ Felipe said, shuddering. ‘So cold, so gloomy. I think he must be, how do you say, loco?’ He put a finger to his temple and twisted it round, as you would a screw.
    ‘Mad,’ Tony said pleasantly, ‘bonkers. But we don’t know that, darling. Maybe he and his son like the solitude.’
    Felipe shook his head. ‘Poor little boy. I definitely would be bonking if I lived there.’
    Liz stifled a giggle.
    ‘Bonk ers .’ Tony sounded very patient.
    ‘That eez what I said.’
    Rick’s white-blonde girlfriend, who was called Sylvia, piped up that she, too, had an interest in art and Liz noticed that Rick now had his hand on her bottom.
    ‘My ex used to paint in his spare time. I used to model for him.’
    ‘With or without clothes?’ Tony roared with laughter at his own joke.
    ‘Without,’ she replied, unembarrassed.
    Tony clapped his hands. ‘Excellent! You should do some life modelling for Tremarnock Art Club, shouldn’t she, Felipe?’
    The younger man looked perplexed.
    ‘Life drawing,’ Tony explained. ‘Painting naked ladies. You’d enjoy that, wouldn’t you, darling?’
    Felipe looked aghast. ‘Oh, no, we do only landscapes and flowers. And fruit in bowls. No one naked.’ He shook his head vigorously. ‘No, no.’
    Their drinks were topped up once more; the waiters really were most assiduous. Tony, who was enjoying himself immensely and was even more of a gossip than Pat, whispered theatrically, ‘Luke’s a very good-looking man.’ He winked at Liz. ‘I’ve noticed all the ladies flirting with him. Tabitha had better watch out.’
    ‘She’s a very rude woman.’
    Liz turned to find Esme right behind her, raising her sharp chin haughtily and staring down her pointed nose. Tony stopped in his tracks.
    ‘She was unkind to Pat and she hasn’t been out of the kitchen for hours. Haven’t you noticed? She’s hardly spoken to anyone. She’s left it all to her poor husband.’
    Liz shuffled miserably. However peculiar Tabitha was, she didn’t want to openly criticise someone whose house she was in and whose wine and food she’d been enjoying, and besides, she’d seen that look on her hostess’s face. She was about to suggest that she walk Pat home, resolving to call Robert and tell him that she’d had enough and wouldn’t be returning, when she heard a volley of knocks and Luke’s loud voice in the hall.
    Glancing at her watch, she realised that it was almost midnight already. Where had the time gone? Pat must be shattered, she thought, feeling guilty. She’d meant to drop her home after a couple of hours. There again, she must have been having a good time or she’d surely have asked to leave.
    All at once, numbers in the room seemed to double as Jesse and the other staff from A Winkle in Time walked in, followed by Luke, with an arm round Robert’s shoulder. They were soon joined by Loveday and the group from next door, laughing