The Legacy: Trouble Comes Disguised As Family (Unspoken Book 2) by T. Belshaw (the best books to read .txt) 📗

seats and suddenly remembered what Alice and Godfrey had got up to in the car all those years ago. The day Alice had got dressed in such a hurry that she forgot to put on her underwear. She quickly turned her head to the front, but the vision in her mind wouldn’t go away. She could feel herself beginning to flush.

‘Are you all right?’ said Bradley taking a sideways glance. ‘You look a bit hot. I’m afraid there’s no air con.’

‘I’m fine,’ said Jess, reaching to her right and winding down the window. ‘I was in a bit of a rush, that’s all.’

They drove through the winding back lanes of the town until they hit what used to be one of the main routes to Gravesend. They followed that for a few miles before turning off again and pulling up at a riverside pub in a pretty little village with picture postcard thatched cottages and a Norman church.

The Lobster Pot had a beer garden and boasted a mainly seafood menu, although, thankfully for Jess, who was struggling to become a vegetarian, the pub provided a sparse vegan menu as well.

Jess found Bradley refreshingly interesting after the narrow mindedness of Calvin. He genuinely seemed to be sympathetic to her views. He listened intently as she told him about her life at Uni and some of the scrapes she had got herself into on the anti this, and that, marches.

She looked across the table at him as he ate during a short lull in the conversation. He was handsome, there was no getting away from it. He had an easy manner about him, and refreshingly, unlike Calvin, he seemed willing to discuss subjects that he wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about. Calvin was only interested in promoting himself or his own ideas and frequently talked over Jess when they were out with friends. Bradley had hardly mentioned his own life and seemed much more interested in finding out more about her.

As she was studying him, she suddenly heard Alice’s voice in her head.

‘Beware men who never talk about themselves, Jessica. You will invariably find that they have something to hide.’

She put the thought to one side. While she didn’t know Bradley very well, he had been honest enough to offer up the information about his previous, short lived marriage, and Alice liked him enough to trust him with her financial and legal affairs, much like she had with his great grandfather, Godfrey, though ‘affair’ had other connotations as far as he was concerned.

Bradley looked up from his plate as if he had heard Alice’s words. He noticed that Jess had been studying him with corners of her lips turned up in a soft smile.

‘What?’ he said, smiling himself.

‘Oh, nothing,’ Jess replied. ‘I was just thinking of something that Nana had said.’

‘I liked Alice. Want to share?’

Jess shook her head. ‘No, it was a private thing. Just one of her little pearls of wisdom.’

Bradley grinned showing off his perfect, white teeth.

‘I’m sure she had many of those to impart. I hope you listened.’

‘Always,’ replied Jess. ‘Especially when she talked about men.’ She smiled mischievously and looked away from him.

After lunch, they took a walk along the river, stopping to watch a pair of swans swimming side by side at the edge of the reed bed.

‘Aren’t they beautiful,’ said Jess. ‘I think it’s lovely that they pair for life. They don’t fall out or treat each other badly like human couples.’

As if listening to their conversation, one of the swans looked towards them and floated a few yards closer.

Bradley pointed to it. ‘You don’t know what she’s thinking though do you. She might still be brooding about him having a late night in the reed beds.’

Jess punched him lightly on the arm and laughed. ‘Or she might be thinking. What a handsome chap my partner is. I can’t wait for mating season.’

Bradley faked shock. ‘Jessica Griffiths!’

‘I’m like my Nana,’ she said. ‘Her best friend used to call her Alice Hussy.’

Bradley laughed again and turned back to the path.

‘You know, Ms Hussy. You really are very good company. I could get used to this.’

He smiled warmly at her then began to walk at a slow pace. Jessica took two quick strides to catch up with him and slipped her arm through his.

‘You’re not bad company yourself,’ she said.

After the riverside walk, they returned to the Alvis and Bradley drove back towards home via the many narrow country lanes and B roads. After a while, Jess remembered about the kitchen quote. She dipped into her bag to pull it out.

‘I’ve taken the liberty of getting a quote for a new kitchen. Make sure you’re sitting down when you read it.’

‘It will be fine, whatever the cost,’ replied Bradley. ‘Maintenance is covered within the trust terms.’

‘Also… I erm… I could do with a bit of my annual allowance if that’s okay? I had to buy a new bed, get the broadband fitted, then there was the sofa and…’

‘I’ll get on to it on Monday morning.’ Bradley flashed her a quick glance then focussed on the road again.

Jess cleared her throat. ‘I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but I’m under pressure from my relatives. They all seem to think there’s a way around the trust terms and conditions. They think I can magic up money from thin air.’

‘There’s no way around it. Regarding pay-outs at least.’

‘What about property,’ said Jess, eagerly. ‘My mother is living in a proper dump; okay, she has her problems, but she deserves better than that. It’s damp, it smells and it costs a fortune to heat.’

‘What do you mean by property? Are you looking for somewhere for her to rent?’

‘Not exactly, rent… She can’t afford a lot. I was hoping to help her.’

‘There are properties in Spinton and one in Gillingham. I can check the leases… hang on… I know for a fact that one of your tenants is leaving in January. She’s an elderly lady and she’s going into a nursing home after Christmas.