Chapter 17

It was a silent journey home. Becca realised that she had overdone things. She had known all along that Stephen was not going to reciprocate the kind of love that she felt for him. "Silly, silly, silly," she thought.

"Oh, Lord!" Steven was thinking. "I do love her and I would take her into my bed like a flash but I mustn't. I can't. She's sixteen years younger than me. I really could be her uncle. I must not succumb. This has to be a teenage crush as far as she's concerned. I'm the only male who's shown her affection without groping her, apart from Tom, and I sense that she merely views him as a friend. In any case being a cousin is going to dent any ardour."

There was no time for any discussion when they got home. The police were due to take statements at any moment. Nevertheless, such was their love for each other that they hugged silently in the hall.

"Becca, darling, we need to talk later."

Becca nodded and then, with a sob, clutched him.

"I do love you, Uncle Steven," she said, "and, whatever you say later, I shall go on loving you."

"Yes, sweetheart. It's the sort of love we need to talk about."

"I know," she said sadly. "I know. I know. I know."

She ran to her room.

The police arrived promptly at half past four. Jean Robbins was one of them. The other was called Rob Garthwaite. Neither Steven nor Becca had met him before.

Steven went to his office and Becca took Jean to the sitting room. They were both finished in half an hour. Becca found Jean to be a warm, understanding person and liked her. She offered both police officers a cup of tea afterwards but they declined and left.

Steven led Becca to the sitting room. He sat in a chair. She sat, looking rather small, on the sofa.

"Becca, before we start, let me make it clear that I do love you. It's not as though we've known each other that long but I started to really like you very soon after you arrived and now I love you. It is a strong love and there is nothing within my power that I would not do for you but it is the love of a father for his daughter, not that of a man for a woman."

Becca looked at him steadily but said nothing.

"It can't be anything more," Steven ploughed on. "I'm nearly old enough to be your father."

"So?"

"Becca, I'm the only man you've got to know who loves you and has treated you properly. It's hardly surprising that you have strong feelings for me but you have no experience of other decent men to judge me against."

"So why can't I love you until I find someone better, if I ever do?"

"Don't you think that might be a bit unfair on me? It might be a bit unfair on you too in that you might feel you could not just cast me aside and decide you'd got to stick with me even though you had become bored stiff with me. That would be pretty miserable for both of us."

"Don't you find me attractive then?"

Steven smiled sadly. "That's half the problem. I do find you very, very attractive but it would be totally wrong for us to have a physical relationship and not get married."

"What's to stop us getting married?"

"Our age difference and your lack of experience of men. In any case, sixteen is too young to take a step as big as that."

"I couldn't care less about the age difference. I don't think you're a boring old fogy. I enjoy talking about things with you. You make me laugh. We've had fun doing things together. I'd keep you young and I don't think it would be long before you'd forgotten about the age difference."

"We might be fine ourselves but I'm not sure other people would. A lot of them would refer to you as Steven's child bride or that little tart or little gold-digger (she's only after his money) and look down on you."

"Stuff 'em. I'd just not have anything to do with them."

"It might not be as easy as that."

"Why not?"

"Nudge, nudge, wink, wink from people in shops or restaurants? They'd also have a go at me: silly old fool, dirty old man, child molester."

"Only until they get over the novelty. I think my lack of experience is much more important. I do need to meet more people and go out with a few men my own age."

"That's sensible."

"But it's not going to stop me loving you in the meanwhile. You can't deny me my feelings but I promise to behave myself." She could not help herself and grinned. "Oh dear, no diaphanous nighties or running to the bathroom in only a towel."

Steven laughed too.

"I'm not going to stop hugging and kissing you though or snuggling up to you on the sofa when we're watching TV. OK. It's going to nearly kill me and, if after I've met some more men and don't particularly go for them, I'll be back for you and I won't be talked out of it unless you're out of love with me by then."

"Fair enough."

Becca crossed over to him, sat on his knee and put her arms round his neck. She leant her forehead against his. "I love you," she said, "and I'll bet nothing's changed in two years' time."

"I hope not too," he whispered, "but now is too soon."

"I must go and do something about supper."

Becca left him alone. "Well," he thought, "we didn't have a row. We haven't decided we need to go our separate ways. Actually, she took over the whole thing. I wonder if she really is going to behave herself. We'll see."

The following morning the girls realised what a mammoth task they had taken on. There were a lot of rooms at the home and some of them were very large such as the dining room. They had no idea how long it would take to paint each room nor had they thought about estimating the amount of paint they would need for each room. In the end Steven intervened.

"Why don't you start with a little used room and see how long it takes. You'll need to do that several times as I've no doubt you'll speed up as you get more practice."

Martha Olney thought. "There is a vacant staff bedroom," she said.

They all trooped off to look at it. Steven produced a tape measure and measured it jotting the results in a notebook.

"Colours?" he asked winking at Martha. There was protracted discussion but in the end it was decided that the ceiling would be white, the walls eggshell lilac and the woodwork white gloss.

"Now," said Steven to Martha, "have you any old sheets to stop drips on the floor and have you any ladders?"

"Sheets yes but I've no idea about ladders. We'd better go and look out at the back."

They found two stepladders and an adjustable ladder. These were carried upstairs along with an eight foot wooden plank that they found. Steven was not that happy with the basic equipment but kept quiet. He wanted the girls to work things out and then come back to him and reason for their further requirements. He had little doubt that Becca would come up with sensible ones. He mused proudly over the fact that she had taken the lead in all this and was still the dominant personality. The other girls were pleasant enough but his Becca was head and shoulders above them.