Unexpected Blessings Read online

  BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD

  _______________________________

  Unexpected

  Blessings

  For my husband, Robert Bradford,

  to whom I owe so much,

  with all my love

  CONTENTS

  The Three Clans

  PART ONE

  The Stormy Petrels: Summer 2001

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  PART TWO

  Emma and Glynnis: Summer 1950

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  PART THREE

  Angels Singing: Winter 2001

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  About the Author

  By the same author:

  Copyright

  About the Publisher

  THE THREE CLANS

  The Hartes shown in line of descent

  Emma Harte: Matriarch: Founder of the dynasty and business empire

  HER CHILDREN

  Edwina, Dowager Countess of Dunvale. Emma’s daughter by Edwin Fairley. (Illegitimate). First born

  Christopher ‘Kit’ Lowther. Emma’s son by her first husband Joe Lowther. Second born

  Robin Ainsley. Emma’s son by her second husband Arthur Ainsley. Third born

  Elizabeth Ainsley Deboyne. Emma’s daughter by her second husband Arthur Ainsley. Robin’s twin. Third born

  Daisy Ainsley. Emma’s daughter by Paul McGill (illegitimate). Fourth born

  HER GRANDCHILDREN

  Shown in line of descent

  Anthony Standish, Earl of Dunvale. Son of Edwina and Jeremy Standish, Earl and Countess of Dunvale

  Sarah Lowther Pascal. Daughter of Kit and June Lowther

  Jonathan Ainsley. Son of Robin and Valerie Ainsley

  Paula McGill Harte Amory Fairley O’Neill. Daughter of Daisy and David Amory

  Philip McGill Harte Amory. Son of Daisy and David Amory. Brother of Paula

  Emily Barkstone Harte. Daughter of Elizabeth Ainsley and Tony Barkstone. Half-sister of Amanda and Francesca

  Amanda Linde. Daughter of Elizabeth and her second husband Derek Linde. Twin of Francesca, half-sister of Emily

  Francesca Linde Weston. Daughter of Elizabeth and her second husband, Derek Linde. Twin of Amanda, half-sister of Emily

  EMMA’S GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN

  Tessa Fairley Longden. Daughter of Paula and Jim Fairley (Paula’s first husband)

  Lorne Fairley. Son of Paula and Jim Fairley. Twin of Tessa

  Lord Jeremy Standish. Son of Anthony and Sally Standish, Earl and Countess of Dunvale. Brother of Giles and India

  Toby Harte. Son of Emily and Winston Harte II. Brother of Gideon and Natalie

  Gideon Harte. Son of Emily and Winston Harte II. Brother of Toby and Natalie

  Natalie Harte. Daughter of Emily and Winston Harte II. Sister of Toby and Gideon

  Hon. Giles Standish. Son of Anthony and Sally Standish, Earl and Countess of Dunvale. Brother of Jeremy and India

  Lady India Standish. Daughter of Anthony Standish and Sally Harte, Earl and Countess of Dunvale. Sister of Jeremy and Giles

  Patrick O’Neill. Son of Paula and Shane O’Neill. Brother of Linnet, Emsie and Desmond. (Deceased)

  Linnet O’Neill. Daughter of Paula and Shane O’Neill (Paula’s second husband). Half-sister of Tessa and Lorne. Sister of Emsie and Desmond

  Chloe Pascal. Daughter of Sarah Lowther Pascal and Yves Pascal

  Fiona McGill Amory. Daughter of Philip McGill Amory and Madelana O’Shea Amory. (Deceased)

  Emsie O’Neill. Daughter of Paula and Shane O’Neill. Sister of Linnet and Desmond.

  Desmond O’Neill. Son of Paula and Shane O’Neill. Brother of Linnet and Emsie.

  THE HARTES CONTINUED:

  Winston Harte. Emma’s older brother and business partner

  Randolph Harte. Son of Winston and Charlotte Harte

  Winston Harte II. Son of Randolph and Georgina Harte

  Sally Harte Standish, Countess of Dunvale. Daughter of Randolph and Georgina Harte. Sister of Winston Harte II and Vivienne

  Vivienne Harte Leslie. Daughter of Randolph and Georgina. Sister of Winston Harte II and Sally Harte Standish Toby

  Harte. Son of Winston Harte II and Emily Harte. Brother of Gideon and Natalie

  Gideon Harte. Son of Winston Harte II and Emily Harte. Brother of Toby and Natalie

  Natalie Harte. Daughter of Winston Harte II and Emily Harte. Sister of Toby and Gideon

  Frank Harte. Emma’s younger brother

  Rosamunde Harte. Daughter of Frank and Natalie Harte

  Simon Harte. Son of Frank and Natalie Harte. Brother of Rosamunde

  THE O’NEILLS

  Shane Patrick Desmond ‘Blackie’ O’Neill. Founding father of the dynasty and business empire

  Bryan O’Neill. Son of Blackie and Laura Spencer O’Neill

  Shane O’Neill. Son of Bryan and Geraldine O’Neill

  Miranda O’Neill James. Daughter of Bryan and Geraldine O’Neill. Sister of Shane and Laura

  Laura O’Neill Nettleton. Daughter of Bryan and Geraldine O’Neill. Sister of Shane and Miranda

  Patrick O’Neill. Son of Shane and Paula O’Neill. (Deceased)

  Linnet O’Neill. Daughter of Shane and Paula O’Neill. Sister of Emsie and Desmond

  Emsie O’Neill. Daughter of Shane and Paula O’Neill. Sister of Desmond and Linnet

  Desmond O’Neill. Son of Shane and Paula O’Neill. Brother of Linnet and Emsie

  THE KALLINSKIS

  David Kallinski. Founding father of the dynasty and business empire

  Sir Ronald Kallinski. Son of David and Rebecca Kallinski

  Michael Kallinski. Son of Ronald and Helen ‘Posy’ Kallinski

  Mark Kallinski. Son of Ronald and Helen ‘Posy’ Kallinski. Brother of Michael

  Julian Kallinski. Son of Michael Kallinski and his former wife, Valentine Kallinski

  Arielle Kallinski. Daughter of Michael Kallinski and his former wife, Valentine Kallinski. Sister of Julian

  Jessica Kallinski. Daughter of Michael Kallinski and his former wife, Valentine Kallinski. Sister of Julian and Arielle

  PART ONE

  The Stormy Petrels

  Summer 2001

  The name ‘petrel’ is said to be a diminutive of Peter: when feeding the bird flits and hovers just above the water, often with feet pattering on the surface, appearing to ‘walk on water’ as St Peter did in the Bible story.

  Field Guide to the BIRDS OF BRITAIN

  CHAPTER ONE

  Evan Hughes stood in the middle of the fashion floor of Harte’s department store in London’s Knightsbridge. It was seven o’clock in the morning and nothing stirred. All was silent at this hour. By eight the cleaners would be moving around this vast space, and by nine a few of the
dedicated sales staff would be arriving to prepare for the store doors opening at ten. Now, though, she was totally alone.

  She loved this store and this floor in particular. It was her domain. And hers alone. Last week she had been made head of fashion, a very big promotion which had thrilled her.

  As Evan moved slowly across the floor, making for the new haute couture fashion displays, she couldn’t help thinking about the first day she had walked into Harte’s. January 2001. Eight months ago now. She had been very lucky that day. Quite by chance she had met the man of her dreams and had found the job of her dreams. She had never thought her dreams would come true that day. But they had.

  Pausing for a moment, Evan glanced around, her light grey-blue eyes devouring everything: the fashion displays under bright lights, the elegance of the whole floor–such an important one in this prestigious department store, considered the greatest in the world.

  Harte’s of Knightsbridge had been founded by one of the most famous merchant princes ever known: Emma Harte. She had been dead now for thirty years and the store was run by Emma’s granddaughter, Paula O’Neill. Paula, an elegant woman in her mid-fifties, had inherited her grandmother’s great skills and brilliance as a retailer, and her two daughters Tessa and Linnet were following in her footsteps. Both of them worked at the store; Tessa was in charge of the first three floors which sold cosmetics, perfumes, leisurewear, lingerie and active sports clothes. Linnet, Tessa’s half-sister, was in charge of the fashion floors and also worked with Paula on public relations.

  It was Linnet O’Neill who had hired Evan to be one of her assistants, and for the first few months she had helped Linnet to put together a retrospective of fashion which had been a huge success and pulled many new customers into the store.

  As a reward for all of her hard work and dedication, Linnet had given her this promotion…and Evan was in her element.

  Evan stood in front of the couture fashion displays which had been finished late last night, looking at them for a few minutes. They were great, she decided. The display staff had done a good job with the clothes she had selected.

  Turning away, she walked down the floor, making for her office. Tall, slender and dark-haired, she was good-looking, elegant. Back at her desk she glanced at the photograph of Gideon Harte…the man of her dreams. She had fallen in love with him, and he with her, that first day when he had bumped into her in the corridor. She had been looking for the management offices, and he had led her there, all the while firing questions at her. And it was Gideon who had told his cousin Linnet about her; Linnet had subsequently interviewed her and given her a job.

  Sitting back in her chair, Evan thought about the past eight months, and all that had happened.

  She had never expected to find a second family in England. Only a year ago the only family she knew were her mother and father, and her two adopted sisters who lived in Connecticut. But all that had changed because of her grandmother, Glynnis Hughes. On her deathbed her grandmother had told her to go to England to find Emma Harte, saying that Emma was the key to her future. And Evan had done exactly that, only to discover Emma was dead. But she had fallen in love with the store, and decided to get a job there.

  And now here she was, working at Harte’s, involved with Gideon, planning a future with him, and struggling to adapt herself to a whole new family. Because she herself was actually a Harte. It was Paula who had discovered that Evan was another great-granddaughter of Emma Harte’s, because Evan’s grandmother Glynnis had given birth to a son fathered by one of Emma’s sons. And that child was Evan’s father.

  They had welcomed her, treated her kindly, with enormous understanding, but at times things had been difficult for Evan. So many things to unravel, so much to accept, so many people to get to know. Sometimes it seemed endless to her, and problematical. She worried a lot, dwelled on all this for hours.

  Most troubling of all was the knowledge she had about her father’s biological father…facts she had been afraid to relay to him. Would her father Owen Hughes welcome the information? Would he really want to know that the man who had brought him up was not his father after all? She didn’t know, and she continued to wrestle with these questions.

  Evan knew she had to come to a decision. Her mother and father were coming to London in a week or so, to see her, spend time with her, and have a vacation.

  Could she look her father in the eye and not tell him the truth? Could she keep it a secret? And should she? Nobody could advise her really. Gideon had told her to do what she thought best, and everyone else had been noncommital.

  The ball was back in her court.

  And then there was Robin Ainsley, her new grandfather, the man who had been her grandmother’s lover during the Second World War. He had been a pilot in the Royal Air Force, a Battle of Britain pilot, and her grandmother, Glynnis Jenkins then, had been a young woman from Wales who worked as Emma Harte’s secretary, here in this very store.

  She liked Robin; her feelings were even stronger than that. And she knew only too well that he longed to meet his son, Owen Hughes. But would her father want to meet this stranger–a stranger who was his real father? His mother’s lover. Ob God.

  Evan turned on her computer, and after a few moments started to work on it, but within an hour the troubling thoughts about Robin, Glynnis, and her father’s imminent arrival began to intrude. Turning the computer off, she made a snap decision. She would take Linnet’s advice and go to Yorkshire after all for a week’s rest. And she would go to see Robin Ainsley, still needing to know about his relationship with her grandmother, and most of all to understand why Robin and Glynnis had never married.

  ‘She was beautiful and glamorous: the most sexually potent woman I’ve ever known. But I realized we would be disastrous together in the long run. We would’ve ended up killing each other,’ Robin Ainsley finished with a small sigh, and sat back in the wingchair, his eyes on Evan Hughes.

  Evan was silent for a moment, digesting his words, and then she said slowly, ‘Because you were so volatile together, is that what you mean?’

  ‘Exactly. We never had a peaceful moment.’

  ‘You weren’t compatible?’

  ‘Not in any way, except in bed. But one cannot build a lasting, lifetime relationship on sex alone.’

  Evan nodded, and eyed him carefully, then confided, ‘Gran was always pounding it into me that compatibility between a man and a woman was the most important thing of all. And I know for a fact that she was compatible with my grandfather, I mean Richard Hughes.’

  ‘Please don’t correct yourself, Evan,’ Robin said in a quiet voice, shaking his head. ‘Richard Hughes was your grandfather, just as he was your father’s father. Glynnis was a wonderful young woman when I knew her, but put very simply, she wasn’t suitable for me, nor I for her, not on a normal, everyday level. We were far too explosive. It was my fault as much as hers.’

  ‘Is that why you finally broke up with her?’

  ‘It is. At that time our dreadful quarrels were increasing, alarmingly so. Life with her was hell.’