CHAPTER 6

Cherry noticed that the house was fully air-conditioned, and she was very happy to find a roof over her head. Stuart asked Annie whether the room was ready, to which she nodded "Yes." He told Annie, that he would guide them to the room, which Cherry found very surprising. She hoped that he would not again give her a lecture that, he would not support them. She wondered if she had done the right thing by coming to this place. She had only wanted that Stuart and Andrew could know each other.

Cherry and Andrew followed Stuart down the hall, and then upstairs, but they didn't appear to be main stairs, they were side stairs, and opened up to a hall lined with photographs of horses with tall and graceful women besides the horse, accompanying it. Cherry had seen this woman a couple of times when she had gone to gatherings with Henry. Cherry very well knew that she was Lucy Mayfair, the proud owner of Mayfair Estates and Stables. She prayed that she would never come face-to-face with her employer though. She thought, how the women would react to the news, that Henry Thorpe's widow was living amongst them. She could not ask Stuart to not mention this to her employer and to cover her up, for having been married to a criminal. He would scorn her, she was sure.

There were two bedrooms upstairs, with a shared bathroom between them. The corner room was Cherry's, and the other room was allocated to Andrew. Stuart told her that fresh towels were there in the bathroom, and food would be served to them, in the dining hall for staff, attached to the kitchens, and she could ask Annie for anything else she needed. Stuart then indicated that he wanted to talk to her alone, so Cherry asked Andrew to go and have a bath first, as they had such a hot trip. Andrew agreed and went off towards the bathroom. Stuart went ahead to his study and asked her to follow him.

Cherry agreed to Stuart, without arguing. She was admiring him from behind, his long legs and those broad shoulders, she had not forgotten, after all once upon a time they had been lovers. She thought he was looking so secure, yet he was looking cold, distant, and very serious. But she had not thought that he was serious, when he was doing his majors in History, and wanted to travel and to write, whilst he didn't have a flair for writing. And all of a sudden one day he asked her to marry him. Cherry at that time had found him to be immature, and unready for marriage. She had thus refused his proposal and broke up with him. She then soon met Henry Thorpe. A whirlwind of courtship followed, and then Henry had proposed marriage. At that time Cherry believed that he was a legitimate businessman and not a criminal. She had thus accepted his proposal, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Stuart's study was very large, very well maintained, there was a desktop computer, and next to it was a framed photograph of Stuart and his sister Melanie. Cherry went ahead to examine the photograph from near. She still remembered Melanie, how well dressed she was. She knew about his sister Melanie when she had been Stuart's girlfriend and knew that the girl had an affluent upbringing. Cherry, enquired about her, as to how was she? Stuart replied she is great, she's met a nice man, a detective police officer to be precise, with a 14 yr old daughter. Stuart then went up to the sidebar to get drinks, he then asked her whether she would like to have a drink?

Cherry was hesitant, she wouldn't like to accept a glass of water from him, forget a drink. After all that he had told her, about her being a gold digger, but she definitely needed a drink, so she agreed. He asked her would she like 'Cognac' so she agreed. She still remembered when she had been with Stuart, and he had offered her cognac when they were out, so she had refused it, saying it was out of her budget, to which he had told her to get used to expensive things. But after Henry had come into her life, a rich billionaire, though an older man but Cherry was attracted to this suitor, who filled the gap of her father, who was dead before her birth.

Stuart handed over her drinks, to which she thanked him. He then raised his glass and said, people here drink to their horses, So let us raise a toast to Lucy's hopeful horse "An Invincible Spirit" for its participation in the Melbourne Cup. They both then had their drinks. Stuart then again questioned Cherry, "Why are you here?" She glanced at him, he was still very attractive, but he was completely changed. Once upon a time, he had been madly in love with her but was heartbroken when she had given him the news that she was marrying Henry. He had walked out of the coffee shop where Cherry worked. She had been very worried for him then, fearing he should not harm himself. Her inner conscience had been pricking her then, whether she was not making a mistake by rejecting Stuart, and getting married to Henry. She was thinking now, what an irony, that Stuart was asking her why had she come back. She thought it was the right moment to tell him that Andrew was his son. But he was so rich and powerful, while she had nothing. What if he took Andrew away from her, she thought. She had come here thinking to meet the old Stuart who was gentle and loving, not this changed Stuart. She would never be able to defend herself in court if the need arose.

Cherry replied calmly, that she had come here for the job. Stuart asked her "You knew I was here?" She replied in an affirmative. She said she wanted a job, as the government had frozen all accounts of Henry, whilst she had to support her son Andrew.

Cherry knew that he would never believe her, but she could not help it. She finished her drink quickly not wanting to argue with him.