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Nick’s mouth compressed as he bit back his rising impatience. Mrs. Busby looked like she was about to faint with apprehension. But it wasn’t her fault he hadn’t been told. “I’ll speak to my sister.”
Relief softened Mrs. Busby’s round features. “That would be best. What can I make you to eat, Mr. Valentine?”
Nick waved a dismissive hand as he headed for the double doors leading to the lobby. “I ate on the plane.” At her crestfallen expression, he relented. “Maybe one of your special omelets, Mrs. Busby. But first get me the nanny’s number. I’ll be in the sitting room.”
The nanny’s cell phone must be off, Nick decided after reaching a crisp, recorded message for the second time. Impatiently, he scrolled through his phone’s contacts list for his sister’s number.
“Why didn’t you let me know Jennie was ill? What happened?” Nick demanded as soon as Alison answered. He paused his pacing in front of the tall glass doors that folded back to reveal the pool deck, and stared unseeingly out over the expanse of water.
Silence hummed across the telephone line. “How about ‘Good evening. How are you, Alison?’”
He ignored the sarcasm and started to pace again. “What’s wrong with her?”
“An ear infection. I took her to the doctor, we watched it very carefully—I didn’t want to disturb you…” Her voice trailed away.
“She’s my daughter.” He said it with more conviction than he felt. “You should’ve given me the choice.”
“Nicky, she’s fine.”
“So Mrs. Busby told me.” He switched the phone to his other ear. “Do you know how it made me feel to hear from my housekeeper that Jennie had been ill and I didn’t know anything about it?”
“I’m sorry, Nicky.” His sister sounded subdued. “I should’ve let you know. Even Richard said so. But I thought you had your hands full—”
He cut her off. “Richard was right.” Sometimes Nick pitied his long-suffering brother-in-law.
“I heard on the news that the unrest is over in Indonesia. I’ve been so worried—you might have let me know.”
“Your Valentine’s stock is safe. And I’ve managed to source the eco-friendly furniture and statuettes we need for the garden centers.”
“That’s not what I’ve been worried about. Though I should tell you we’ve had an offer on our stock.”
“An offer?”
Nick was too tired to follow as his sister leapfrogged from one topic to the next. Yet that one phrase stuck out.
He knew how desperately Alison and Richard needed to liquidate their Valentine’s stock to shore up the losses their chain of appliance stores had taken during the recent recession. Out of loyalty to Nick, they’d held off selling to give him an opportunity to buy their Valentine’s stock—an impossibility until his usurious debt to his father-in-law, Desmond Perry, had been settled. And now the end was in sight. Tomorrow he would pay Perry every last cent that he owed—it would give Nick more satisfaction than anything in his life to throw the final check down on his former father-in-law’s desk.
Of course, that would leave him with no liquid funds, but if Alison and Richard could hang on for a few months more, he’d be able to acquire their Valentine’s stock outright.
With people going out less and spending more time at home, his business was expanding aggressively. To Nick’s satisfaction every sizable town in New Zealand’s North Island now boasted a Valentine’s Garden Center—just as he’d dreamed of when he first started out. People were flocking to his centers in ever-increasing droves, seeking the leisurely family lifestyle that the red heart of the Valentine’s logo had come to promise.
Landscaping advice. Tranquil water features. Outdoor furnishings and art. Every plant under the sun. Customers could find it all at a Valentine’s Garden Center. He had plans to carry the expansion into South Island and then farther afield into Australia. While the land the centers stood on and the business assets were worth millions, making Nick wealthy beyond his wildest dreams, the rapid expansion had left him short of cash. The repayments to his father-in-law had only made the situation tougher.
Nick knew the end was in sight. But Alison’s mention of an offer for their stock had caused a frisson of unease.
“When was the offer made?” he asked.
“A few days ago.” His sister sounded suspiciously vague.
“Alison…” he said warningly.
“Nicky, I was much more worried about Jennie’s ear…and you.” After recent riots in the capital, Alison hadn’t been too keen on his trip to Indonesia. “Tell me you are okay.”
