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do no good to irritate him. In fact, it might be much to her benefit to get on Mr. Tattersall's good side, so she added, "Would you like some coffee?" |
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"Yes, I would." He smiled. "Ring for Gertrude." |
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Linda laughed. "In my position you don't ring for the maid. I'll go to the kitchen." Linda found Gertrude making preparations for the evening meal, but the maid readily agreed to boil some water and bring the coffee apparatus. |
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"About my aunt," Peter burst out, almost before Linda had got through the door. |
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His chair slid back, rucking up the rug as he rose, and Linda's lips twitched. It was very hard not to think of him as an earnest but clumsy teenager. The tousled hair and serious grey eyes added to the effect, even though there were lines on his forehead and around his mouth that told Linda he must be several years older than she was. There could be no reply to his remark, so Linda simply sat down. |
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"I thought I'd better warn you about certain things." |
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Linda felt startled and must have looked it. "Please don't," she protested. |
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"Don't be an idiot!" Peter exclaimed. "Do you think I'd tell an employee of two days standing anything I shouldn't about my only living relative? Of whom, incidentally, I'm very fond." |
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"Sorry," Linda said, her fine skin coloring faintly. She noticed Peter blink, as if something had surprised him, and she paused. But he didn't |
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