London Loves - Book 3 - Love's Great Adventure Series Read online

  London Loves

  by

  Theresa Troutman

  Copyright © 2014 Theresa Troutman

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to every reader who took this journey with me and joined Sebastian and Tess on their adventure. May your lives be filled with love, loyalty and laughter!

  Thank you for taking time to read the books in the Love's Great Adventure Series. If you enjoyed them, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author’s best friend and much appreciated.

  * D P G R O U P . O R G *

  Summer 1991

  Chapter 1 - Something So Strong

  Tess walked into the condo to the smell of chicken roasting in the oven. She found Sebastian sitting on the sofa with Mattie, reading a children’s book. “Hey, you two,” she greeted, dropping her briefcase on the floor.

  “Mummy!” Mattie exclaimed, jumping off the couch and running to hug her mom.

  Kneeling down to Mattie’s eye level, she asked, “How was your day?”

  “Great! Daddy is teaching me to read.”

  “I hope he’s starting you out with something good.”

  Sebastian walked over and kissed Tess on the cheek. “Just something light—War and Peace.”

  Tess laughed aloud while Mattie cocked her head and gave her a confused look. “What’s so funny?”

  “Daddy made a joke.”

  “It wasn’t funny,” Mattie replied. She ran back to the sofa and grabbed her book, picking it up to show Tess the cover. It was Dr. Seuss’ One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.

  “You’re starting her off with poetry?”

  “Well, it’s not Keats.”

  “She’s four years old, Bas. Cut her some slack,” Tess chided.

  “Ah, this from the valedictorian of St. Alexander’s High School and graduate of NYU with honors.”

  “I’m going to change,” Tess said, ignoring his comment.

  “Dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes.” Sebastian turned to his daughter. “Mattie, go wash your hands before we eat.”

  After dinner, they tucked Mattie into bed and Sebastian read her a bedtime story: A Bear Called Paddington. At least he tried to read her the story, but Mattie kept interrupting.

  “Do bears really like marmalade?” she asked.

  “I don’t see why not. The next time I run into one, I’ll ask him.”

  Mattie giggled. “Daddy, where are you going to run into a bear in New York?”

  “The Central Park Zoo.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Mattie agreed, nodding her head.

  “Your daddy used to live in London a long time ago,” Tess added.

  “Have you been to Paddington Station?” Mattie asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

  “Yes, I have.”

  “I want to go! Maybe we can find Paddington Bear there.”

  Sebastian glanced over at Tess with a look that said see what you started? Tess simply smiled and took a seat in Sebastian’s lap. “I want to go, too,” she chimed in.

  “Enough for tonight—time for bed.” He closed the book and set it on Mattie’s bedside table. Then he leaned over and kissed his little girl. “Love you, darling.”

  “’Night, Mattie,” Tess said, also giving her daughter a kiss.

  Sebastian turned off the light. He and Tess left the room before he closed the bedroom door.

  It was blissfully quiet once Mattie fell to sleep. Sebastian and Tess curled up on the couch together, enjoying some time alone. Since graduating NYU, Tess had gotten a job with the Associated Press. Sebastian continued working at Fiona Ashford Gallery in Chelsea on a part-time basis while raising Mattie. They had settled into a happy, calm existence. It was a welcome change of pace for the couple. The first few years living together had certainly been bumpy, but they’d survived and become stronger people for it. Now they both had everything they’d ever wanted.

  “Sooooo…I have some big news,” Tess announced, looking up at her husband.

  “What?”

  “The AP offered me a position in London!” Tess said, bursting with excitement.

  “Really? So soon? You’ve only worked there for a few years.”

  “I know, but I was talking with my boss. I told him that you’re English and you keep up on the current news trends going on over there. He thought I’d be the perfect person for the position.”

  “Because you have an ‘in’ with me?” Sebastian chuckled. “See, I told you it’s always who you know that matters in life. I just never thought I’d be talking about myself.”

  “I don’t care if you were the one that tipped the job in my favor, I want to do it. What do you think? Can we move to London?”

  Sebastian held Tess in his arms and pondered what she had just asked of him. He knew it was a dream of his wife’s to travel the world and work as a journalist. He couldn’t deny her the opportunity. He was just surprised that it was London and not some other European city. Sebastian did miss his homeland, and he thought of all the fun he could have showing his daughter around town. “I say we do it.”

  Tess gave him a big, toothy grin. “Thank you! I love you!”

  “When do they want you to move?”

  “In a month. I told them I would need to make a trip over to find a place to live first. I had a video conference with the London office and they said they’d help us set everything up. Just imagine—we’ll be able to see Penny and Sigourney more often.” Sigourney had moved back to London for a position in the London Symphony Orchestra, and Sebastian did miss being able to see her.

  “Then I’ll book the tickets. Mattie’s going to love this!”

  Sebastian walked into the Fiona Ashford Gallery the next day, excited about his family’s upcoming move overseas. Fiona waved as she finished up business on the phone.

  “Fiona, how are you?”

  “Fine, how are you? You’re not scheduled today.”

  “Can we talk?”

  “I don’t like tone of your voice,” Fiona said as she sat on the leather sofa.

  “Tess was offered a job in London. I was hoping you’d let me transfer to the gallery over there.”

  Fiona sighed with relief. “Thank goodness, I thought you were going to quit. I would love for you take a position in the London gallery. Your connections with the art world over there should get the gallery off the ground. Honestly, it’s been exhausting for me to fly back and forth all the time. I’ll even bump up your salary.”

  “That’s a very generous offer, Fiona. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m happy that you’re going, but I’m certainly going to miss you.”

  “You should invest in computers: the World Wide Web and email is the wave of the future. It will make it so much easier to stay in touch,” Sebastian explained.

  “Yes, you’re right. I’ve been putting it off, but I suppose you can’t stop progress. Will you help me pick something out before you go?”

  “Absolutely!”

  When Sebastian arrived home, Alice and Mattie were watching cartoons on TV. He thanked her for keeping an eye on Mattie. Alice, in tur
n, relayed the message that Tess would be home late from work.

  “Daddy, what’s for dinner tonight?” Mattie asked, while looking at the TV.

  “I don’t know, Mattie, I just walked through the front door. Mummy’s coming home late. It’s just you and me tonight, darling.”

  Mattie turned around on the sofa and swung her arms over the back to face her daddy. “Let’s go out to eat.”

  Sebastian looked down at his Rolex. It was four thirty in the afternoon. “Okay, but first I have a make a phone call. Give me a half an hour and then I’ll take you to McDonald’s for a Happy Meal.”

  “Yay!” Mattie exclaimed, jumping on the sofa.

  Sebastian walked over to his daughter. “Don’t jump on the sofa. You’ll fall and break your arm. Oh, and don’t tell Mummy about McDonald’s, either, got it?”

  “But Daddy, she loves McDonald’s!”

  “Yes, but this is our little secret,” Sebastian warned, placing his index finger over his lips to quiet Mattie.

  “You got it, Dude!” Mattie agreed and sat back down on the sofa to resume watching TV.

  Sebastian shook his head in dismay. “You watch too many episodes of Full House, Mattie.”

  Sebastian called the airline and made arrangements for his family’s flight that next week. Mattie would be so excited when he told her the news—hell, he was excited, too. When he hung up the phone, he fetched their coats and they walked a few blocks over to McDonald’s.

  They sat at a table near the window. Mattie had a hamburger Happy Meal with milk. Sebastian would stop at the Chinese take-away as they headed back home to pick up dinner for himself and Tess.

  “Did you have a good day, Daddy?” Mattie asked after taking a sip of milk through her straw.

  “I had a very good day.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I went to the gallery to talk with Fiona. Guess what?”

  His daughter looked at him, eager to learn the answer to his question. “What?”

  “Mummy and I got new jobs in London. We’re going to move. What do you think about that?”

  “Where Paddington Bear lives?”

  Sebastian chuckled. “Yes, among other things. Are you excited?”

  Mattie stood up from her chair and rushed over to Sebastian, throwing her little arms around his waist. “Awesome!”

  Tess arrived home around eight thirty, tired but happy. Sebastian kissed her. “I have Chinese from Ming’s I can warm up for you.”

  “Did you the get the vegetable spring rolls I love?”

  “And the duck sauce,” he confirmed with a wink of his eye.

  “You are the best,” Tess replied, throwing her arms around his waist and giving him a hug.

  Tess changed out of her work clothes while Sebastian heated their dinner.

  Sitting at the table, Sebastian said, “I booked the plane tickets and spoke with the real estate agent today. We’re all set to go.”

  “I hope we can find a place as nice as this.”

  “I’ll warn you now, places in London are much smaller than here in America—and more expensive.”

  “Should we sell the condo? Will we have enough money to buy in London? Maybe we should rent.”

  “The condo is paid for. I think we should keep it. What if you need to fly back to the AP office here in New York, or we come home to visit your mom, or me to check in with Fiona at the gallery?”

  “Henry and Alice will be here to keep an eye on things,” Tess agreed. “You’re right, we should keep the condo.” She reached over for his hand and squeezed it. “Oh, Bas, I just feel like everything is falling into place for us. I’m so excited about this chapter of our lives.”

  Sebastian gazed at his beautiful, happy wife. “I can’t wait either.”

  Chapter 2 - London Calling

  They caught the British Airways flight out of JFK Airport Sunday afternoon. Sebastian had opted to stay with Penelope Stanton at her townhouse in Kensington rather than take Sigourney up on her offer to stay with her in Mayfair. The last thing Sebastian needed was an unexpected run-in with Lily. She probably didn’t even know he had a child and he was very happy to keep it that way.

  Once his family had cleared customs, they hailed a black cab into the city, arriving at Penny’s home shortly after nine in the evening. Penny opened the red door of her home with a smile on her face. “Welcome to London.”

  Sebastian ushered his family into the vestibule. Tess and Penny hugged each other. Sebastian kissed Penny on the cheek, while Mattie looked up with great fascination.

  “Penny, this is our daughter, Martha,” Sebastian introduced.

  “You can call me Mattie,” the rambunctious four-year-old said, extending her hand in greeting.

  “I’m very pleased to meet you, Mattie,” Penny said as she knelt down to greet her.

  “Daddy said we could search for Paddington Bear at the train station tomorrow. Would you like to come along?”

  “I’ve seen him about that part of town. I would happy to escort you, Mattie.”

  The child looked up at her father, her eyes dancing with excitement.

  “It’s late, you need to go to bed, so we can wake early and start our search.”

  “Where am I sleeping tonight?” Mattie asked.

  “Follow me, I’ll show you your rooms,” Penny announced.

  After they had Mattie changed into her pajamas and tucked into bed, the adults sat in the parlor, enjoying a drink. “I’m so glad you took me up on my offer to stay here. I hardly ever get any company.” Penny said, sipping her scotch.

  “I’m sorry it was so last minute,” Tess apologized. “The offer for the job came out of nowhere and we don’t have much time to find a place to live. I’m so grateful you could put us up here. I’d hate to drag Mattie to a hotel.”

  “Have you seen Lily while making the rounds?” Sebastian inquired with hesitation.

  “I heard she was at Ascot, but I didn’t see her. We usually bump into one another at Wimbledon, but that’s not until next month,” Penny replied.

  “Are you worried about bumping into her?” Tess asked him with concern as she took his hand.

  “A little,” he admitted. “I don’t want her to know about Mattie.”

  “Sebastian, London is a big town. I’m sure you’re worrying for naught.” Penny commented.

  “I suppose you’re right. We don’t travel in the same social circles anymore. We should be safe.”

  “I did see your brother, Maxwell, at a charity event last month. He’s making quite the name for himself since your grandfather died and he became Earl of Sutton,” Penny said rather impressed.

  “Maybe he’ll settle down and marry soon. I’m sure Lily won’t let up until an heir is born,” Sebastian smirked.

  “Yes, he’s quite the eligible bachelor at the moment.”

  “You should marry him—then you’d be my sister-in-law,” Tess chimed in.

  “Oh, I don’t think Lily will approve of me,” Penny laughed.

  “You dated a prince, why wouldn’t you be good enough for an earl?” Tess inquired, somewhat confused by the whole conversation.

  “Let’s just say, I’m not a big of Lady Lily Irons, either.”

  “Glad we all agree on that,” Sebastian muttered, finishing off his scotch. “We’ve got a full day tomorrow. Tess, we should head off to bed.”

  “Goodnight, you two,” Penny said. “I’ll have breakfast ready at eight thirty.”

  “Thanks, Pen.” Sebastian leaned down and kissed her cheek before taking his wife’s hand and heading to the guest room.

  The four of them sat around the dining table, eating breakfast.

  “Daddy, when can we go to the train station?”

  “Mattie, we have to meet with the real estate agent today to find our new home. We can’t stay with Aunt Penny forever.”

  “I like it here! There are pretty pink flowers on by bed.”

  “I’ll buy you a blanket with pink flowers for your n
ew bed when we find our home.”

  Mattie placed the spoon in her cereal bowl and pouted. Sebastian gave her a warning glance.

  Penny couldn’t contain her laughter. “Let me take her for the day. This way you and Tess can focus on the house hunt without interruption.”

  “Where will you take her?” Tess asked.

  “We can go to Hamley’s, have tea at Harrods…”

  “And visit Paddington Station?” Mattie asked, sliding to the edge of her seat.

  “Yes, we can even visit Paddington Station.”

  Sebastian looked to Tess, who nodded her head in approval. “Pen, have you ever watched a four-year-old before?”

  “No, how hard could it be? She’s perfectly behaved. Let her spend the day with Auntie Pen.”

  Now Sebastian and Tess chuckled in unison. “Fine. Have a lovely day.”

  “Are you sure about leaving Mattie with Pen?” Sebastian asked as they sat in the back of the black cab on the way to the real estate office.

  “She couldn’t do any worse than I did when I first started out,” Tess reassured.

  “Mattie was a baby. She couldn’t talk back then.”

  “Exactly—and now she can. Her vocabulary skills are off the chart, thanks to being raised by you. I’m sure they’ll get into some very in-depth conversations today. I only hope they hit it off so we have a babysitter when you and I need a night out.”

  “I like how you’re thinking, Mrs. Irons,” Sebastian agreed before kissing her on the lips.

  Since they had talked with the agent prior to their arrival, he knew what type of home they needed and had selected some to fit their criteria. They really didn’t have a lot of time to fret over a decision; they needed to procure living arrangements quickly and start packing to have everything shipped over from the States. Tess and Sebastian visited six properties. The London housing market was brisk and the agent advised they take the night to talk it over and get back to him first thing in the morning.