Jane gave a wicked giggle.

"I'm going to make him powder his hair but he doesn't know it yet! If it wasn't for the fact that we're being invited by one of Ralph's most important clients, I might be looking forward to it a little bit more."

"You'll enjoy it when we're there," Sarah consoled her sister and then, changing the subject, invited, "Now tell me about my niece and nephews... " Come on. Auntie Sarah, wake up. "

Stubby fingers touched her eyelids, giggles erupting somewhere in the direction of her left ear. Someone was trying to tickle her ribs, and entering into the spirit of the game, she pretended she was still asleep, waiting until her three tormentors had given up trying to wake her before suddenly sitting up and grasping the nearest cuddly bundle and subjecting its ribs to the same torment so recently inflicted on her own.

The bundle in question just happened to be her niece, her helpless giggles and shrieks almost splitting Sarah's ears. The two boys, of course, had to join in the game, the three children only Subdued when Jane marched into the bedroom carrying a mug of tea which she placed beside Sarah, at the same time, sternly telling her trio of offspring to take themselves off to their own rooms and get dressed.

"Little horrors, " she commented balefully when the triplets had finally departed, but Sarah wasn't deceived.

"And don't you just love them," she agreed with a grin.

"Does it show that much? I suppose having had to wait so long for them...1 must admit I'd just about given up hope." She sighed and shook her head.

"Still there are some days when I do genuinely wonder why I ever bothered, and Louise is worse than the two boys put together. She can twist them and her father round her little finger."

She sat down on the edge of Sarah's bed and said.

"What do you fancy doing this morning? I've done all the food shopping. The Vicar's wife is going to take charge of the kids tonight. Ralph will look after them while we're out this afternoon."

"Well, since I'm feeling rather lazy this morning, how about my taking my niece and nephews for a short walk?"

"Great idea, if you're sure you don't mind," Jane enthused.

"It will give me time to whip round with the vacuum before lunch. But be warned, don't let them persuade you to take them into the village, or you'll end up in the post office buying them sweets.

"Oh, by the way, Haughton House has been sold," she added idly.

"I'm not sure who to ... but I thought you'd like to know. You've always had a thing about the old place, haven't you?"

It was true, Sarah reflected half an hour later as she set off with a nephew firmly attached to either hand and her niece clinging firmly to the hand of one of her brothers. She had always been drawn to the beautiful Elizabethan manor house just outside the village.

It had been empty now for several months since the death of the last owner, and Sarah turned automatically in the direction of the footpath that led from the river, through a small wood, and then into the private grounds that went with the house.

At the boundary wall which separated the public footpath from the private, Sarah paused. The trees were not yet in full leaf and so she was able to see the house from where she stood. The sharp March sunlight turned the ancient brickwork to rose-gold, glinting here and there on mullioned windows. Apart from a couple of what appeared to be tradesmen's vans parked outside, there were no signs of activity.

Sighing faintly she responded to Jeremy's impatient tug on her left hand, and knew that as she obediently turned away from the house and back in the direction from which they had come that she had just said goodbye to a childhood dream.

As a teenager she had often come to this spot. There was a venerable oak tree several yards away, conveniently growing just by the boundary wall and in earlier years she had often hidden in its leafy branches simply daydreaming away a lazy summer's afternoon, imagining that she owned the house. In those far off days she had played many roles as chat elaine of the house;

sometimes an Elizabethan maid of honour, hidden away down here from the Queen's wrath because she had caught the eye of one of her handsome courtiers; sometimes a secret Jacobite supporter, recklessly hiding one of the doomed Prince Charlie's wounded supporters; sometimes a be-muslined Regency girl waiting in trepidation to hand over her childhood home to the distant cousin who had inherited it from her father-whatever the setting for her daydreams might have been, they had always had the same conclusion; the male playing opposite her leading role as chat elaine inevitably fell in love with her and they lived happily ever after with the house as their home.

Sarah grimaced faintly. How long ago those days seemed now.

"Look, Auntie Sarah!" Paul tugged importantly on her right hand, speaking in a hushed whisper.

"There's a rabbit."

Sure enough he was right, and all four of them paused for a second to admire the attractive little creature before he caught their scent and bolted for cover.

CHAPTER TWO.

'okay, are we ready? "

"As we're ever likely to be," Sarah told her sister affectionately, as they hurried out to Jane's small Metro.

Her sister was a competent driver, and it didn't take them long to reach the nearby market town Jane used for most of her day-to-day shopping "We'll go to the station first to collect the outfits and then get everything else."

She parked neatly in the small station car park and Sarah went with her towards the tiny redbrick building.

The stationmaster greeted them with a smile, handing over the bulky parcels.

"Them'll be for that ball everyone's going to tonight," he commented knowingly as Sarah took charge of them.

"A fine do it'll be, by all accounts. They say that the new owner of Haughton House will be there as well. A fine lot of work he's having done up at the place.. there's a new swimming pool being put in--indoors, too-that'll cost him a fair penny."

"Don't ever have any skeletons in your cupboard if you intend living in the country," Jane groaned as she and Sarah stacked the boxes in the back of her car.

"What else do you need?" Sarah asked her as she tugged on her seat-belt.

"Nothing much, some nice biscuits for Mrs. Arbuckle--I daredn't buy any before, the kids would have sneaked the lot. Some flowers for the house. I always like to have fresh ones for Sunday lunch."

"Really?" Sarah kept her face straight as she teased.

"That's odd.. I always thought Ralph was quite definitely a meat and two veg man!"

"Oh, for goodness sake you're as bad as the kids," Jane complained but she was grinning, too, as they drove out of the car park.

As it was Sat.u.r.day a small market was in progress and although they had some problems in parking, once they had done so, it didn't take them long to buy the bits and pieces Jane wanted.

"Fancy a cup of coffee before we go back?" She glanced at her watch.

"We've just about got time, and there's a rather nice new place that specialises in traditional afternoon teas."

"Sounds good."

The cafe was situated just off the small town square and had been attractively decorated in soft peach and grey. The cane chairs were painted white with peach seat covers, and despite the obvious bustle they were lucky enough to find an empty table, in the window.

"Mmm ... this is nice," Jane murmured as she sat down.

"I daren't come in here with the brats, they'd cause too much chaos."

They gave their order to a smiling waitress, and while Jane deliberated over a cream cake or a scone with jam and cream, complaining about the calorie intake of both, Sarah looked out of the window on to the busy street and the square.

A man walked across the road and into the square, his face in profile to her, his thick, black hair ruffled by the cool breeze. His skin looked tanned, his body tall and lean, with just a hint of breadth about the shoulders. Sarah's breath caught in her throat as he turned to check the traffic and she saw the intense sapphire blue of his eyes.

As she looked she could almost see him as her Elizabethan gallant; her romantic Jacobite rebel; her reckless Regency rake. She blinked and swallowed hard and both the man and her inner visions of him were gone.