The Carlswick Affair (The Carlswick Mysteries Book 1) Read online

  “Thought you might need a top up, after all that dancing,” he murmured.

  “Thanks,” Stephanie said smiling at him. So he’d not only noticed her dancing but he had taken note of what she was ordering at the bar earlier!

  “So – what’s your verdict?” he asked looking down at her with a half-smile on his face. He was down to just the t-shirt and jeans, and she could see the hard curve of muscle on his upper arms. His t-shirt had the words Guitarists do it better emblazoned across the front.

  “Actually, not bad for a village band,” Stephanie replied, pretending to be thoughtful. “You might even go places, eh. Rye for instance,” she said, naming a town near theirs.

  James threw back his head and laughed. “You’re unbelievable,” he said. “I’m used to a little more respect than this.”

  She laughed. “Respect? Really, old man?”

  He opened his mouth to retort, but was interrupted by Jack beating out a march on the drums.

  “That’s my cue. See ya.” He turned and made his way back towards the stage. Only he didn’t have to push through the crowd, it somehow magically parted for him. Stephanie watched him walk away. When she turned back to Matt’s group, she found a number of them looking at her open mouthed.

  “What?” she said quietly to Michael. “Do I have something on my face?” She put her hand self-consciously to her cheek.

  “No one talks to the wonderful James Knox like that, Steph,” Matt said sarcastically. “You do know that they are The Fury, not just some garage band?”

  “Yeah, of course. I was just having a bit of fun. He knew that I was kidding….I think.” Stephanie looked up at the stage where James had slung a guitar across his body and winked at her.

  Oh yeah, he knew, liked it and came back for more, she thought, her heart racing a little.

  She glanced around the bar. Victoria was standing off to one side with a group of older guys and several of her look-alike girlfriends. She looked over at Stephanie as if she were something that she had trodden in.

  Stephanie sighed. Oh great, I should have known you’d be here.

  The second set was even more energetic than the first, with James and Liam leaping and jumping and Dave performing somersaults and cartwheels across the stage. After the gig ended, the crowds began to disperse, some still singing the band’s final number enthusiastically as they left the pub. Stephanie watched James rack his guitar and look over to her. He held her gaze with such intensity that she blushed and looked away.

  Matt had one arm around Fiona and threw his other arm around Stephanie’s shoulders and turned her away from the direction of the stage, shooting a dirty look over his shoulder at James as he did.

  James swore under his breath and took a step towards them, but was intercepted by Victoria, who took his hand and said loudly, “Where to now, baby?”

  Stephanie turned at her voice and saw them standing close together, James’ hand in Victoria’s. She dropped her eyes, her face hot. How could you be so stupid to think that he would be seriously interested in you? she angrily told herself. She did say that he is way out of your league. She allowed herself to be propelled to the door by Matt, with Michael trailing along behind.

  James pulled his hand out of Victoria’s, having just caught the look that flashed across Stephanie’s face as she turned away. He started after them, but Victoria grabbed his arm stopping him, “Now, now Jamie. Don’t go getting all hot over her. She’s a Wakefield and you know what we think of them,” she said.

  James shook his head with a look of distain. “For God’s sake Vic, that’s ancient history,” he said.

  “Try telling that to your grandfather or your brother for that matter,” she nodded towards the door, where James’ brother Alex stood laughing with a group of people.

  “Whatever, Vickie,” he said, emphasising the nickname that he knew she hated. He pulled his arm out of her grasp and strode towards the door. Victoria stood with her hands on her hips glaring at his retreating back.

  Matt was holding the back passenger door of his car open for Stephanie, when James caught up with them in the car park.

  “Hey, are you guys coming to the café?” he asked trying to catch Stephanie’s eye. She kept her head down. She felt really stupid for letting herself so publicly flirt with him, when everyone else obviously knew he was with Victoria.

  “I don’t think so Knox.” Matt slammed his door and started the car and backed out of his parking space, looking protectively at Stephanie in the rear view mirror who was staring at her hands.

  James sucked in a curse, and lip curled stomped back inside to pack up his gear.

  Chapter 5

  Stephanie woke the next morning with her father delivering her a cup of coffee.

  “Hey, sleepyhead. Late night?”

  Stephanie groaned and sat up, accepting the coffee gratefully. “Went to see a band at the pub,” she replied sleepily running her hand through her sleep tousled hair.

  “Now, why doesn’t that surprise me?” Max smiled indulgently at his daughter. Max Cooper was a handsome forty-something, with slightly greying dark hair, who had the confident air of a successful man. Rather than his usual business attire, today he was wearing jeans and an open-necked pale blue shirt. He looked very relaxed.

  “I’ve come down from London for lunch and I’m told we need some fresh bread. Why don’t you get up and come for a drive with me into the village? Give us a chance to catch up,” he suggested.

  Half an hour later, Stephanie and Max drove down the long driveway of Wakefield House and turned into the lane leading into Carlswick. It was a bright, sunny late summer morning, with clear blue skies dotted with the occasional white fluffy cloud. The lane, lined on either side by hedgerows, sloped gently down towards the village.

  Stephanie and her father chatted easily. Gone were the days when she felt a slight resentment towards him for abandoning her. Whilst Max had always been part of Stephanie’s life, the distance between England and New Zealand meant that their relationship had developed into more that of a big brother and little sister, than of a parent and child. However, it was obvious that Max was now feeling the responsibility of having his only child, albeit an 18 year old one, living near. Stephanie sincerely hoped that he wouldn’t start trying to ‘parent’ her, just when she hoped to have a more adult relationship with him.

  “Let’s park at the top end by the church and walk down to the bakery,” Max suggested. “It’s been quite a while since I’ve had a stroll through the old village.”

  “I’m sure not much has changed in the last hundred years or so since you were a kid, Dad,” Stephanie replied cheekily.

  Max feigned hurt feelings by clutching his chest. Stephanie laughed and hooked her arm through his. “You must show me this new café that you are working at,” he said.

  They returned to the car a while later, still chatting and laughing, carrying two loaves of warm fresh bread, as the doors of the church swung open and the congregation poured out, organ music heralding their departure.

  The church looked as old as the village itself. Nestled on the side of the hill, it’s austere grey brickwork augmented by the wildflowers that grew all around it in a riot of colour.

  Stephanie felt her father bristle beside her. She glanced at him and followed the line of his narrowed gaze.

  There on a trajectory to intercept them was a very upright elderly gentleman with a shock of white hair and at his side a much younger tall, dark haired man with sunglasses shading his eyes.

  “Cooper,” the older man spat disdainfully, coming to a stop in front of them.

  “Oh god. The tone of the village has just been lowered,” his companion added in a condescending tone.

  “With you still living here, I didn’t realise it could go any lower,” Max retorted, his voice tightly controlled.

  The elderly man glared at Max and shook his head. They pushed roughly between Max and Stephanie.

  “Who was that Dad?” Stepha
nie whispered, her eyes wide as she watched them getting into a silver Mercedes and drive away.

  Max’s gaze followed the retreating vehicle, a frown marring his features. “No one that you need to concern yourself with. Come on, let’s get home,” he said in a tone that very definitely signalled the end of the conversation.

  * * *

  Stephanie deliberated over her ‘work’ outfit on Sunday night. She still hadn’t quite worked out what passed for casual among the teens of Carlswick and she didn’t want to appear overdressed. Dark blue jeans and a black v necked t-shirt looked simple enough. Satisfied, she pulled on a pair of purple peep-toe ankle boots. She scraped her hair back into a high ponytail and applied a small amount of makeup – mascara, eyeliner and lipstick. She stared closely at herself in the mirror searching her skin for any early signs of a break out. All clear for now.

  Her grandmother had been bemused when she announced that she had a job.

  “But didn’t you work hard all year to earn money in New Zealand?” she had enquired.

  “It’s more about meeting people than earning money Grandma,” Stephanie explained.

  “Yes – but does one really need a job to do that?” Ellie had shaken her head in one of those ‘not in my day’ shakes.

  Stephanie pulled into The Café’s car park at ten to seven, and walked around to the front entrance. It didn’t look busy yet, but she noticed The Fury members gathered around one of the leather sofas by the makeshift stage, deep in conversation.

  “Hey Steph,” Andy jumped up to greet her as she walked through the door.

  She smiled at him and said, “Hey Andy. Great gig last night, I really enjoyed it.” She nodded to James who looked up from tuning his guitar. His gaze lingered on her for a few seconds. She shuffled uncomfortably and looked across at Jack sprawled full length across one of the sofas tossing and catching his drum sticks.

  “Ah, it’s the Kiwi. G’day mate,” he said putting on an accent.

  Stephanie raised her eyebrows at him. “You sound like an Australian, Jack.”

  “There’s a difference?” he teased. Everyone knew that New Zealanders insisted on being recognised separately from their geographical neighbours.

  Stephanie glared at him, before breaking into a grin.

  Dave waved at her from his seat beside James and the fifth member of the band spun around on a bar stool and stood up.

  “Liam,” he said introducing himself. Stephanie recognised him as the lead singer. He was dressed in tight black jeans with a baggy grey shirt and several colourful scarves around his neck. His blond hair was tipped with red and stood straight out all over his head. He carried himself very confidently. Having seen him in action on the stage, she knew that he was an extremely charismatic character and a great singer.

  “It’s good to finally meet you. You’ve certainly made your mark in a few days,” he said looking her over.

  “Really?” Stephanie replied evenly. God – what’s been said? Stephanie felt her heart sink.

  “Yeah - Victoria tells me that you two are gonna be best buds,” he answered slyly, gauging her reaction.

  Stephanie tilted her head and frowned slightly as she studied him. “So you’re a smart arse, as well as a singer?” she said lightly.

  Liam looked slightly taken a back, but quickly recovered, “Wow – I think you just managed to squash every vowel in that sentence,” he said.

  Stephanie opened her mouth to retort, when Andy took her arm and rescued her. “This way – I should probably give you the formal induction,” he said. With a sweep of his hand he indicated behind the counter. “This is where we make the coffee.” She laughed, relieved to be out of the spotlight. When she glanced back at Liam, he was watching her with a ‘don’t take me on’ expression on his face.

  Bring it on, she thought, smiling sweetly at him.

  It was a hectic night, but Stephanie thoroughly enjoyed herself. She was too busy to worry about Victoria and Liam and what people had been saying about her. The band played a couple of acoustic sets and the café was crowded. Andy was right, she thought. This is the hottest venue in the village – although, there probably isn’t anything else on in Carlswick on a Sunday night.

  Michael arrived around 8 o’clock and started clearing tables for Stephanie and then sat at the counter chatting to her as she made coffee and served thick slices of cake. Andy had enlisted one of the local ladies to bake for the café and the result was fantastic chocolate brownies, gourmet cupcakes and thick carrot and banana cakes, dripping with icing.

  Matt and Fiona stopped by early on, with a group of friends.

  “Steph,” he boomed over the music. “I heard you were working here. Whatever for? I thought you were here for a holiday before Uni starts.”

  “Just for fun, Matt,” she said. “Can I get you guys a coffee?”

  “Hot chocolate would be good,” he said as he slid onto a bar stool in front of her. “Are you ok? I was worried about you last night – did something happen at the end?”

  Stephanie shook her head. “Oh no, just tired – still a bit jet-lagged – I guess it caught up with me. Thanks again for taking me though,” she smiled brightly at him.

  “Any time cousin,” he said, sounding unconvinced as she started making their drinks, and added, “Steph - Knox is an arse – you don’t want to waste your time on him.”

  Stephanie held her too bright smile. “Don’t worry I’m not,” she said. “Tell me, is Liam always a dickhead?”

  Matt straightened his shoulders and glared in Liam’s direction. “What did he say?” he growled.

  “Nothing Matt, I just wondered,” she replied quickly. The last thing I need is to have Matt fighting my battles for me.

  Andy wandered back and forth between playing his bass and helping behind the counter for the rest of the evening. He jokingly called ‘last orders’ at 9:45pm and shooed the remaining customers out at 10:15.

  The band continued jamming as Stephanie wiped down the tables and countertop for the last time and reset the tables and chairs. She loaded up the dishwasher with all the coffee making equipment and switched it on.

  Satisfied, she hung up her apron and retrieved her bag. She waved to Andy and mouthed, “See ya boss”, above the music.

  He stopped playing and called to her, “Stay for a drink Steph?” Dave had produced bottles of Heineken from one of Andy’s fridges and waved one at her. Liam stood swaying slightly leaning his arm over the microphone stand, and watched her. He was clearly already several beers down.

  “No thanks – gotta get home,” she declined quickly, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with all the attention.

  James looked up from where he was perched on an amp and caught her eye. After the humiliation she felt on Saturday night, letting herself think that he was actually interested in her, she was determined to not pay him any special attention.

  But now he jumped up, putting his guitar on a stand.

  “It’s dark out – I’ll walk you to your car,” he offered.

  “No it’s ok,” she replied hastily. Being alone with him was the last thing she wanted. What she really wanted was to get in her little car and go straight home to bed. In some ways it had been quite a stressful evening with all these egos bouncing around. She could feel her head beginning to pound.

  “Since when have you been so chivalrous?” Jack asked amused.

  James pulled a face at him.

  “Stephanie is immune to his charm, so she’s safe,” Andy added grinning at James.

  “I’d be more worried about his hands than his charm, if I were her,” offered Liam.

  Stephanie smiled at the light hearted banter and looking out into the dark night decided that maybe would be good to have someone with her until she was safely in her car. Perhaps I’ve been watching too many episodes of Midsomer Murders, where the most gruesome slayings seem to always happen in a little English village at night.

  “Ok, thanks,” she conceded. “But keep your hands wher
e I can see them,” she added in jest. The others laughed. James gave an insouciant shrug and held his hands up as if in defeat. He walked backwards in front of her to the door, once again giving her his trademark lazy smile.

  The door banged behind them and they walked into the dark night and around the side of the building to the car park.

  Stephanie glanced at him. “Hey, Andy’s café is going to be a great live venue, eh?” she said. “You guys sound good acoustically as well as, you know, the other night.” Shut up Steph. You are babbling, she told herself. She didn’t feel nearly as confident as she had the night before, teasing him at the pub. She unlocked the car and jumped in before he had the chance to say anything.

  “Well, see ya,” she called through the closed door, as she started the car and drove quickly out of the car park.

  “Bye,” he said to the back of her car, a bemused expression on his face.

  Stephanie let out a shaky breath. Stop it, she told herself firmly. He is with someone else.

  However, her heart betrayed her by thumping excited when she glanced in her rear view mirror and saw James standing with his hands shoved in his pockets, watching her drive away.

  Chapter 6

  Stephanie pulled her car into what seemed to be the only remaining empty parking space in the village, on Monday morning. She groaned inwardly as she glanced across and saw Victoria about to alight from her shiny new BMW.

  They both got out of their cars at the same time. Victoria gave Stephanie’s little Fiat a derogatory glance.

  “I hope my car doesn’t catch rust or something from your heap of junk,” she said grimacing.

  “Oh, I don’t know, yours could do with catching a bit of style,” Stephanie replied before she could stop herself. How dare she insult my car? she thought annoyed.

  Victoria scowled at her and with a toss of her head, stalked up the road.

  Stephanie started in the opposite direction. She had offered to do her grandmother’s shopping for her and Ellie had gratefully produced a list, which involved the Post Office, chemist, supermarket and newsagent.