The Titan Drowns: Time Travel Romance - Nhys Glover (ebooks that read to you txt) 📗

‘Yes, my hat did cause me to digress. You asked me about the content of The Women’s Weekly. You are right, of course; we are not a suffragette magazine. In fact, we cater to the ordinary woman. However, these women are the ones most often affected by the inequalities in the law. So, where possible, in the gentlest fashion, we try to educate our readers about their rights. Too many of them still consider a heavy hand on the part of their husband an acceptable part of married life.’

‘Yes, you are absolutely right. And, unfortunately, the women who are most at risk are those who have few choices. They cannot support themselves, as they are caring for children and so must rely on their husbands for the roof over their heads. We are making some moves to provide for these women, but we still have a long way to go on the issue.’

‘Why have you been willing to take such a controversial stand? As a Conservative, it is rather risky for your political aspirations, would you not say?’

He smiled broadly and gave a little chuckle. ‘Not all Conservatives are conservative, Miss O’Toole.’

‘Please, I know this is also inappropriate, but could you perhaps call me Eilish? Miss O’Toole seems so formal and stuffy, don’t you think?’

Surprised by her suggestion, he nevertheless nodded and gracefully agreed. ‘Certainly, if it suits you better Mi… er, Eilish. It is an unusual name. Please feel free to call me Max.’

‘Thank you, Max. My name is rare. It is derived from Elizabeth, so I am led to believe. In my case, it was a family name. It was my grandmother’s.’

‘It is lovely, and suits you well.’ Again, he caught himself uttering flirtatious compliments. What on earth was wrong with him? The young woman was here to interview him, not to be romanced by an older, married man.

‘Thank you again. Could I ask, do you know William Thomas Stead by any chance?’

‘Stead, the publisher? I have met the man on occasion. He was a strong advocate of female rights for many years.’

‘Indeed. I hear he is travelling to New York for a peace conference at Carnegie Hall next month on the maiden voyage of the Titanic.’ Eilish spoke as if the information was of little importance, and yet there was something in her tone that warned him that this was more than just an idle statement.

‘Really? I have heard that the voyage had been postponed because of the damage to her sister ship the Olympic.’

‘Yes, but she will be ready to sail by the tenth of next month. I have it on good authority.’

‘It will be an historic occasion; I am sure.’ He felt as if they were feeling their way down a dark corridor, each of them tentative and uncertain where to go next.

‘Have you considered such a journey?’ she asked.

‘Ah, my wife is determined to throw us both into the social whirl that is the Season, which, as you probably know, starts directly after Easter. So, even if I wanted to take such a journey and my calendar gave me space for time off, I doubt she would forgive me for leaving her at such an important time.’

He felt reluctant to talk about Agnes to this woman. Absurdly, he wanted her to think him single and available. And yet, she would already know of his marital status. It would be in his background information along with his political interests.

‘The Season does not interest you?’ she asked curiously.

‘No,’ he replied with a little laugh. ‘But it is good for my career so I suffer through it. What about you, Mi… Eilish, do you have an interest in the Season?’

At that moment, the door opened and Jones entered carrying a large silver tray containing a silver tea service and two plates of hot crumpets. He distributed the crumpets and then poured the tea. During the minutes he was busy, Max made the most of the opportunity to study the girl more closely. He kept thinking of her as a girl rather than a woman, even though it was apparent she was closer to thirty than twenty. Even so, it was her bright-eyed enthusiasm that made her appear younger than her years. Next to her, he felt like a very tired and dusty, old reprobate.

As she nibbled on her crumpet and sipped on her milky tea, she looked around his office with interest. It was a room that pleased his aesthetic as well as his business sense. On one wall was a bookshelf that extended from ceiling to floor and contained his legal tomes. On the far wall was a pair of landscapes by a little-known French artist he’d discovered when in Paris several years earlier. They looked colourful and bright against the dark panelled wood behind them.

Many of the fixtures in the room were elegant and natural in the Art Nouveau style, and the flowing lines soothed him and contrasted with the sharp angles of the bookshelf and desk. It was a statement of his nature: straight thinking, softened by a gentle heart.

Suddenly Eilish put down her plate and stood up. With utter astonishment, she hurried over to the paintings and studied them more closely.

‘Heavens, these are… they cannot possibly be. Monet? Claude Monet?’ She turned back to stare at him in wonder. ‘You own two Monet’s? Originals?’

‘Yes, I think that is the artist’s name. I bought them at a small gallery in Paris some years ago. You seem to know the artist. Is he a family friend, acquaintance?’

Eilish laughed loudly, and then covered her mouth to curtail the unladylike volume. ‘I am sorry, that must seem very rude to you. No, no I do not know the artist myself. I only know his work. To see his paintings outside of a Knowledge… um, an Art Gallery, is extraordinary. Do you admire his work?’

‘Very much. I would have bought more but my budget for such luxuries is limited. I am pleased you are impressed. I am told I have an eye…’

‘Oh yes, most definitely. The Impressionist movement revolutionised how we perceive the world and Monet was one of its most accomplished leaders.’

Max studied her vibrant face more closely. This was not just interest in his artwork; this was fascination, and he was transfixed by it.

‘I have heard the term, but I am not well versed in the new movements.’

‘And yet you possess two such beautiful examples. I am impressed!’

He grinned at her enthusiasm and suddenly felt like a teenager again. He wanted to put on a boater, take a punt and drift languidly down a river with her, much as he’d done at Cambridge so long ago.

He shook himself and tried to get his thoughts back in order. He looked at his pocket watch and realised, with disappointment, that time was no longer on his side. His next appointment would arrive shortly.

Impetuously he made a decision. ‘Mis… Eilish… I have no more time today and I know you cannot have gained the material you require for this story of yours. Would you care to join me for dinner tonight at my club? It will allow us plenty of time to explore all areas of interest.’

For a moment, Eilish looked rather taken back by the idea. Then, as if flattered, she nodded her head and smiled. ‘I would enjoy that very much. May I meet you there?’

‘Certainly, if you like. I will give you the address.’ He scrambled for a piece of paper and pen and wrote hastily. ‘Shall we say eight o’clock?’

‘Eight it is. Thank you for being so generous with your time. I will look forward to tonight.’

‘So will I, Eilish, so will I.’

After the door closed behind her, Max let out a soft whoop of joy. It had happened. For the first and only time in his life, he was passionately and ridiculously attracted to a woman. The desire pulsed through his body like a drug and it scared him a little. However, beyond the fear, was a euphoric sense of destiny, of connection.

This vibrant, bright flame of womanhood was everything he had ever looked for in a woman, even though he had never been aware of it before today. Instead of being some bloodless, asexual being as he had always seen himself to be, he was now something else entirely. He felt like a hot-blooded male.

Thank heavens his brother did not meet her. He would have spoiled everything with his salacious comments. What Phillip would make of Max’s thoughts of her lushness was anyone’s guess. He would probably turn it into something dirty, as his parents would have done.

Huh! How interesting. His brother had not escaped the influence of that parental imprinting after all. No, he simply embraced what he saw as filth, delighting in its indecency, where Max had always been repelled by it. But what he felt for Eilish O’Toole was not indecent or dirty. It was warm, vibrant and beautiful in the way that his Monet’s were warm, vibrant and beautiful.

And now that he had met her, there was nothing that would stand in the way of him claiming her as his own. He would divorce Agnes; he would throw away his political aspiration; he would cripple himself financially, if that were what it took. But he would be free to claim her, because nothing in his life had ever felt so right.

Chapter Four

Eilish

She rushed into the sitting room of their suite at Claridges, dizzy with excitement. Quickly scanning the shared sitting room for any sign of Luke, Eilish was pleased to see she had the space to herself. They had moved into the outrageously priced hotel in Mayfair yesterday after a whirlwind shopping spree. The opulence of the private rooms was still hard to get used to. Thank god money wasn’t an issue for them.

Kicking off her uncomfortable, pointy shoes and with hat in hand, she began to dance around the expansive room, singing softly to herself as she went. When the adjacent door opened and she saw Luke standing there staring groggily at her in astonishment, she stopped long enough to grin at him like a loon.

‘Who is he?’

That wiped the smile off her face. For a moment, she was too stunned to react.

‘The man you’ve met. I know that look. Who is he?’

Eilish burst into light, high-spirited laughter. ‘Is this how Faith looked after she met you?’

‘No, Maggie. Faith looked like a deer caught in headlights.’

‘Maggie Tasmania? Oh yes, that’s right. You were with her when she met Travis. Now that is a beautiful man! Have you seen his performance art?’

‘Faith tried to drag me there once but it ain’t my cuppa tea. I let her go on her own to ogle his tight arse.’

‘Jealous, Luke? I would think you would feel pretty safe where Faith is concerned. Everyone knows she thinks the sun shines out of every pore on your body.’

‘Don’t change the subject. Who’ve you met? And it better not get in the way of the mission.'

Eilish frowned as she considered his words. Would it interfere with the mission? It was against Protocol to get involved with a Target but there were precedents for it – Faith and Luke, for instance. Even though, technically, he wasn’t her Target. She’d Retrieved him to save his life after he was mortally wounded saving hers from the Nazis.

‘I do not know if there is anything there yet, but I felt something. My god, for the first time in my very long life I felt something. And I think he felt it too. I cannot believe how fast this feeling has hit me. One minute I am sexless. The next I am so sexually charged I am out of control.’

‘That's the