Secrets of the Heart by Jenny Lane Read Free Book Online

any light on the problems you've been encountering. But something that Ross said got me thinking. It's not much to go on, I'll admit, but I just wondered . . . '
    `What?' Sally reached for an éclair.
    `Ross was asking whose idea it had been to go into the wedding business and I suddenly realised that perhaps this was at the root of things. It made me wonder whether 'Something Borrowed, Something Blue' maybe isn't popular with everyone at Heathercote Mill. It is rather a female-orientated business, after all.'
    Sally frowned as she finished off the éclair and selected a rum truffle.
    `I'm not sure what you're driving at, Annis. 'Something Borrowed, Some-thing Blue' might not have been Ross and Tristan's choice, but they weren't around when it started up, were they? And it was Uncle Bryn's idea initially, if you remember. Anyway, Andrew was certainly keen on it, as you know. No, I'm afraid I don't go along with that.'
    `Well, it's just a theory.' Annis stared unseeingly at the lake. 'But I got to thinking that perhaps there might be other plans for the mill that don't include the wedding business and that's why you've been getting pushed out. I mean, all this expansion, exactly who was involved in that?'
    `Well, all of us, I suppose. You would have been informed yourself as a shareholder. Andrew and Stella certainly both thought it was an excellent idea. I still can't see where you're coming from.'
    `Probably because you're too close to things. Has it occurred to you that there could be other — potentially more profitable — business schemes than the wedding business?' Annis swept her arms about her. 'There's a lot of ground here and I'm wondering if someone might have earmarked all this for something else.'
    Sally stared at her in amazement. `Such as?' she queried.
    Annis shook her head. 'Oh, I don't know. But if Bryn were persuaded to sell up or diversify, use the land for houses, perhaps, or a superstore . . . Look, I've probably got it all wrong . . . '
    Sally shook the crumbs from her lap. `Let's hope so. I'm beginning to think I shouldn't have involved you. After all, you haven't shown much interest in the place in recent years, have you?'
    Annis was taken aback by her friend's reproachful tone. 'Come on! You know the reason for that!'
    But then she thought about what Sally had said.
    `OK, I suppose I deserved that. But tell me, Sal, who else apart from you and Bryn knows that I've got shares in the company?'
    `As far as I'm aware, no-one else.' Sally shrugged. 'Not even John. Mind you, everyone knows there are several anonymous minority shareholders. Why?'
    `Oh, I just think it's better if the others don't know, that's all. They might think I've got an ulterior motive in coming back here. OK, I'll admit I was tempted to sell my shares a while back. There must be any number of people in the locality willing to invest in the Mill, but my parents persuaded me to hang on to them. After all, they were a gift from Bryn and Arnold.'
    `Thank goodness for that, Annis — if you decided to sell out, I'd feel even more isolated.' The relief on Sally's face was obvious.
    Annis looked at her friend sympathetically. There had always been an empathy between the two young women and she felt a pang of guilt for distancing herself for so long.
    `I'm so sorry, Sally. I'm afraid I've been so preoccupied with my own problems these past years that I've neglected you.'
    `Well, that's understandable, but I have missed you.'
    `I've missed you, too,' Annis assured her. 'And you're right. I have been kept up to date with everything, but my father's been dealing with all my financial affairs on my behalf, and to be honest, apart from signing any necessary papers, I just couldn't be bothered with it. Of course, when Bryn was so ill, I suppose he could have confided in someone about the other shareholders.'
    `No, he still uses the same financial consultant that he's always had — a trustworthy friend who handled his affairs with complete