because he was too fat to be vicious. So Tommy went on living alone, except for Catch, who was all he had to love.
''Then Tommy died suddenly, and left a will, saying everything he had was mine, if I'd look after Catch. So I took him home, put him on a diet, and he lived another three years. But here's the incredible thing. It turned out Tommy owned the place where he lived. He'd bought it fifty years ago before prices had shot through the roof, and I'm not sure he ever realized what it was worth.
'That was when the daughter reappeared, screaming blue murder, saying how I'd influenced the old man and stolen her inheritance.''
''What did you do?'' Pippa asked, genuinely curious to know how Luke's sweet temper would have dealt with this one.
'I'd have cheerfully fought her to the end. She was mean to Tommy, and everyone knew it, but she was miserable and lonely, and I reckoned money was all she was ever going to have, so I offered her a third and her lawyer advised her to settle.
'When the house was sold, that still left me enough to get started. I found a place that was already a restaurant but not doing as well as it should. Tommy's money paid just over half the purchase price, and a bank loan covered the rest including the cost of making it over how I wanted.'
'And it was a huge success, and soon you had enough for the second restaurant,' Pippa said triumphantly.
''Not quite. It was a success, but the money came in slowly, and banks are cautious. There was a moment when I just knew it was right to expand. There was a place for sale exactly where I wanted it, and the price was reasonable. I had one day to clinch it. Would the bank listen? No way.'
'Tightwads!'
'Right. If it wasn't for Claudia, I'd be sunk.'
'Who's Claudia?'
'Oil heiress. She owns a house a couple of hours from here, in Montecito, and she spends a month there every year. When she was in Los Angeles she would eat at Luke's Place, and we got to know each other. To make a long story short, she gave me the loan for Luke's Other Place, or I couldn't have bought it. Soon after that I got the TV spot, and now I'm well on the way to paying her back, with interest.'
Pippa chuckled. 'If there was one thing about you that used to get up my nose, it was the way you always fell on your feet.'
'That's true,' he reflected. 'The cavalry always came galloping to the rescue, like you today, turning up just when Dominique was getting heavy.' He became awkward suddenly. 'About Dominique-'
'Luke, you don't owe me any explanations. We went our separate ways years ago. You put the picture in a drawer and took it out when it was useful.'
Hearing it put that way, he winced. But there was no blame in Pippa's eyes. She knew him from way back and accepted him for what he was. He was the one who suddenly didn't like it.
'It was fate,' he said. 'Fate knew you were coming at just the moment I needed you. Come to think of it, that's true.'
'Yes, what would you have done without us?' she asked, amused. 'You'd be halfway up the aisle by now.'
He shuddered. 'Please don't say things like that. It makes me feel queasy. From now on that picture's staying there all the time. And while you're here I'm going to take plenty more.'
'That's nice.'
'Just what did bring you here suddenly? And why didn't you let me know you were coming?'
'You know I always did crazy things on the spur of the moment,' Pippa said with a shrug. 'The guest house is doing well and I took on an assistant. Susan's bright enough to be left in charge. One of my boarders can get cheap airline tickets, and 1 thought-why not?'
She was quite pleased with the speech. It had just the right air of daft spontaneity, and who would guess how long she'd rehearsed it?
'Besides,' she went on with her other prepared speech, 'I needed a break. I've been having a load of minor ailments recently. I get migraines, and sometimes asthma, and the doctor says I've got a touch of anemia.''
'That's terrible,' he said, taking her hand. 'You were always so full of beans.'
'Well, I still am, basically. I just live on iron pills, and I'm better than I was. It's only little things, Not life threatening.'
Not life threatening. Not like the heart condition that she ought to be at home being treated for this minute.
'But I get a bit short of energy,' she finished cheerfully, 'so sometimes it'll be just you and Josie doing things without me.''
'Whatever you say. You do exactly what you want to.'
'Well, I thought a holiday would do me good. So here we are.'
'And I'm going to love having you, but you were crazy not to warn me. Suppose I hadn't been at home? I'd have missed you.'
'No, we'll be here for about a week, and I know your show goes out twice a week, so we were bound to overlap.'
'But we weren't. I record those shows six at a time. In between I can be away for as much as ten days.'
'I never thought of that,' she said, horrified. 'I wouldn't have wanted to miss Josie for anything. We're already on the same wavelength.'
'She's the perfect age to appreciate you,' Pippa agreed.
'Is that your way of telling me I have the mental age of a ten year old?'
'What do you think?'
'I think I'll fetch some wine,' he said hastily, and vanished back into the kitchen.
The sun was setting over the ocean, a vast, magnificent sight that made her go to the window and stand, almost breathless with the beauty of it. 'I can see why you bought a house in just this spot,' she said, hearing Luke enter behind her. 'Imagine having this, all the time.'
'All the time,' he agreed, coming up behind her and putting his hands on her shoulders. 'I'm so glad I had the chance to show it to you. And I've got you both for a whole week. I'm going to make this the best vacation you've ever had.'
'As long as Josie enjoys herself, and you and she get to know each other.'
'What about you and me?'
'We already do know each other,' she said with a smile.
'That was then. This is now.'
Still standing behind her, he slipped his arms right around her, crossing them in front, and gave her a friendly little hug. It was the kind of thing Luke did easily without it meaning anything. She could see the two of them reflected in the dark window, their faces side by side.
You're weakening, said the warning voice. Any moment you're going to succumb to his charm. And you promised yourself not to.
She moved, turning in the circle of his arms just enough to make him break his hold. 'Can I have some more of that wine?'
'Sure. Sit down,' he said cheerfully.
He filled her glass and asked, 'How are things back home, your family and so on?''
'My father died five years ago. We hadn't seen much of each other. I took Josie to see him but it wasn't a success, and he and I had nothing to say to each other. Clarice remarried fairly soon after his death. What about your parents?''
'They're going strong, still living in Manhattan. Like Tommy, they bought their house before the property prices shot through the roof. My brother Zak and sister Becky are both earning more than Dad ever did, but they can't afford to buy around here so they're still living at home. What about Frank and Elly? Did they have that crowd of kids they wanted?'
'Not even one, I'm afraid. And they haven't had any luck adopting. The highlight of their lives is when I take Josie to visit.'
