Steele Romance

Part 2

by Nancy Eddy

Laura saw him the moment she got off the plane. He was holding a single red rose, and smiling - she doubted she'd ever see another smile like that in her entire life. Certainly not one that made her heart skip a beat as it was doing now. At last they stood there, facing each other. "Hello there," he said, holding out the flower. "This is for you."
"Thank you. You shouldn't have."
"I wanted to," he said quietly, standing mere inches away from her, the very model of indecision.
A young man wearing a leather jacket and jeans passed them. "Go on an' kiss 'er, mate," he suggested with a sly grin, then moved on.
Harry seemed to realize that they were drawing curious stares, and held out his arm to her. "Let's get your luggage." Laura took his arm. "How was the flight?"
"Not bad. I've never flown first class before," she admitted.
"Really?" They stopped at the baggage claim area, and Laura quickly found her two cases, which Harry gave to a porter to carry. Then he took her carry on from her other hand and they continued out to the car.
Laura looked at the black Mercedes with surprise. Apparently being a con man and jewel thief was very lucrative, if he could afford something like this. "Is this your car?" she asked, running a hand over the shiny finish.
"Belongs to Daniel," he explained, opening her door for her. "I would have brought mine, but I wasn't sure how much luggage you might bring, and the boot's rather small-"
"Daniel?" she asked when he came around to get behind the wheel on the right hand side.
"My best friend. You'll like him. Actually, he's the one who suggested I ask you to come to London."
"Really?"
"I've been such a bear all week -"
"You too?" Laura asked. "Bernice and Murphy were ready to force me to go out and have a good time, I think."
"Were they very upset by your decision to come?"
"Bernice thought it was terribly romantic."
"And Murphy?"
"Let's just say he was less than enthusiastic. I think he's convinced that you're an axe murderer or something." They both laughed, and Harry reached out to take her hand in his. Her attention was caught by the sight of Big Ben, and Harry spent the rest of the drive holding Laura's hand and playing tour guide.
"I thought we could take in the sights tomorrow after you've rested a bit. Daniel's planning dinner at the house -"
"You live with Daniel?" Laura questioned, suddenly uncertain.
"I usually stay with him when I'm in town. It's easier than keeping my own place here. I hate living out of hotels." For some reason, he found himself continuing. "Daniel found me living on the streets when I was twelve, maybe. Or thirteen, Not really sure. Took me in, cleaned me up a bit, taught me how to -"
"Work a con?" she guessed. He had too much finesse to be merely a jewel thief, Laura thought.
"Among other things. I suppose you could call him my mentor. Along with teacher, and best friend."
They were in an area of large houses with high, gated fences, and Laura was surprised when Harry turned the car through one of those gates and down a tree shaded drive that led to a Tudor style mansion. "You live HERE?" she asked.
"It's one of Daniel's houses. He's got a villa near Cannes, and a chalet in the Swiss Alps."
"And he still runs cons?"
"It's what he does. Some men are bankers, others are grocers. Daniel's a con man."
"A very successful con man, by the look of it," Laura commented dryly, her brown eyes surveying the house as she spoke.
"He's one of the best I've ever known. And he invests most of what he comes by. Come on." He came around to open her door. "I'll see to your cases later. Let's go inside."
"Is that a stable?"
"Daniel keeps a few horses for guests. Do you ride?"
"It's been awhile.-"
"Maybe we can work in a ride tomorrow morning."
The door opened at the top of the steps, and Laura found herself on the receiving end of a dark, measuring look before the man smiled. "So this is your Miss Holt, Harry," he said, taking her hands as Harry handed the flower to a maid who was passing by, telling her to put it into some water. "She's even lovelier than you said she was."
Laura felt herself blushing at to his flattery as Harry said, "Laura, Daniel Chalmers."
Daniel released one of her hands to bow over the other. "At your service." He retained her hand to lead her into the drawing room. "How was your flight, Miss Holt?"
"Uneventful," Laura told him. The house was filled with paintings and antiques that had to be worth a fortune. She'd never suspected that Harry was doing this well. She'd always imagined con men as living on the run, never staying in one place very long. "This is a lovely place you have here, Mr. Chalmers. I never expected-"
"Thank you. I've been attempting to convince Harry that investing instead of throwing everything away is a good idea. To plan for one's future, as it were. I'm sure you understand, Miss Holt. Or, may I call you Laura?"
Harry cleared his throat. "Daniel," he said in a low tone that sounded to Laura like a warning.
"Forgive me. You came here to see Harry and here I am monopolizing what little time you have this weekend. Why don't you show Laura up to her room, Harry? I'm certain she could use a brief rest before dinner."
"It was a long flight," Laura agreed. "I'm still on Los Angeles time, I think."
"Then you should rest, my dear." He bowed over he hand again as Harry shook his head. "Until later."
Harry placed a hand at her elbow to guide her up the stairs. "Is he always like that?" Laura asked once they were out of earshot.
"Like what?"
"So- "She searched for a word. "Effusive." She was afraid she'd said the wrong thing until she heard him laugh softly.
"And I was worried about your falling for his charm."
"Oh, he IS charming -" Laura agreed quickly, laughing as well, "but a bit too much-"she paused again, looking for a word to describe what she meant, only to have Harry finish for her.
"Over the top," Harry nodded, opening a door. "This is your room. I'll bring your cases up."
Laura entered the room, surveying the ornate four poster bed and deep blue satin coverings, noting as she looked around that the room didn't appeared to be used by anyone else. "And where is- your room?"
He pointed across the hall. "There." He reached out to touch her cheek. "Don't worry, Laura. I didn't ask you here with the intention of taking you to bed - well, that might not be entirely true, but- only if it's what you want as well."
She smiled at him. "I'll sort that out when I've gotten some rest, Harry."
He leaned closer,and was about to kiss her when there was a noise behind them. Harry turned, frowning, only to find one of the maids- in fact, the one that he had so terrified by losing his temper- carrying Laura's cases. "I'll take those, Beth," he told her. "You shouldn't have carried them upstairs by yourself."
"It wasn't a problem," she told him, handing him the cases, her eyes wary. "Excuse me." She turned and fled the area.
Harry carried the cases into the room as Laura remained in the doorway. "She seemed a bit nervous of you."
"Nearly took her head off the other day for no reason," he told her, then grinned at her reaction. "I told you I'd been a bear this week." He returned to the door. "Sleep well, Laura." She leaned toward him as he leaned toward her, only to have a noise downstairs end their attempt to kiss once again. "Bloody hell," Harry muttered. "I'll see you later. And in case you're wondering, we dress for dinner-"
"I think I brought something appropriate. At least I hope I did."
"I'm sure whatever you brought will do. Later." He brought her hand to his lips, a smile lighting those blue eyes, then closed the door behind him on his way out.
Laura went to the window to find a view of the stable and field beyond. Wondering how much property Daniel Chalmers owned, she turned toward the bed. She WAS tired, she decided. And it was liable to be a long evening. She slept easily, but her dreams were filled with laughing blue eyes and a smile that took her breath away.

"Well, what did you think of her?" Harry asked over tea.
"She seems quite charming," Daniel confirmed. "And intelligent."
"Intelligent enough to see past that charm of yours," Harry informed him, watching Daniel's eyes widen. "Laying it on a bit thick, weren't you?"
"I just wanted her to feel welcome, that's all. I saw Beth with the cases -"
"She's still skittish of me, I'm afraid. Couldn't get away fast enough."
"You're lucky she's still here at all."
"I know. And I tried to apologize - "
"I'll speak to her," Daniel promised. "I have an appointment. I'll be back in an hour or so."
"All right." He frowned. This was the third time this week that Daniel had suddenly remembered an appointment and taken off. He hoped Daniel wasn't running a con while Laura was here. The last thing he needed was to involve her in something like that.

Laura woke to a light tapping on her door. "Who is it?" she asked, slowly recalling where she was as the unfamiliar room came into focus.
"Me," Harry said, opening the door to look inside.
"Harry. What time is it?"
"Nearly nine."
"That late?" she asked, getting out of the bed quickly.
"Relax. We don't usually eat until ten. You have plenty of time."
"I didn't intend to sleep for so long. I'm sorry."
"Don't be. Takes awhile to adjust to the time difference.And the flight itself is tiring sometimes." He was still by the door. "I'll go now so you can get dressed. The bath is through that door over there."
"Thank you, Harry."
He smiled, then left again, closing the door softly, then went to his room to change as well.

Laura smoothed her hair into place, then looked once again in the mirror at her reflection. She hoped she looked all right. There was another knock on the door. This time, she opened it to find Harry standing there in a dinner jacket. He stepped back, looking at her. "Well?" she asked.
"You'll do, Laura. You'll do." He leaned closer as another door opened down the hall and Daniel appeared, checking his cuffs. "This is impossible," he told her, but there was laughter in his eyes, and Laura smiled at him as Daniel approached the stairs from the other direction, smiling approvingly at Laura.
"We've just time for a drink before dinner, Harry," he announced. "I'd offer to escort Laura downstairs, but-"
Harry held out his arm toward Laura. "Sorry, old man. Already beaten you to it," he said, winking at Laura, who smiled in return.
Daniel followed them down, thinking that they made a good looking couple. "Ah, well. Slowing down in my old age, I suppose."
"The day that you get old, Daniel, will be the day the sun goes dark."
"Wish that were true, my boy," Daniel said. Something in his tone made Laura turn to look at him, and she caught a glimmer of sadness before he saw her watching him and put on that smiling mask that he habitually wore. He went to the bar, looking at her. "What will you have, Laura?"
"Whatever you and Harry are having will be fine," she told him, sitting on the sofa.
Daniel poured three glasses of scotch. "Tell me, Laura, whatever led you to decide to become a private detective? It's not quite the normal occupation for someone like yourself -"
Harry rolled his eyes. "Ignore him, Laura. He knows the story."
"I'm serious, Harry. I'd like to hear Laura herself tell me the reason."
Laura sat back, eyes watching Daniel as she spoke. "Excitement, I suppose would be the first reason."
"But you could have found excitement in other fields -"
"Such as yours?" she asked.
Harry lifted his glass. "Touche, Daniel."
"I've always wanted to do what I'm doing, Mr. Chalmers. Even when I was little, I would find missing toys and things for my friends and family - I just seemed to have a natural talent for it."
"But you must have known that it would be difficult- a woman, trying to break into a profession normally reserved for men."
"It was a challenge," she told him.
"And I have the feeling that you enjoy challenges almost as much as Harry here does. Am I right?"
Laura favored him with a brilliant smile. "You are."
"Excellent." Another maid appeared in the doorway.and Daniel tossed back the rest of his scotch. "I believe dinner is ready."
Harry offered Laura his arm - and this time, so did Daniel. Smiling and shaking her head, Laura slipped between them, a laugh escaping her lips as she put a hand on each arm, refusing to choose between them. "Shall we, gentlemen?"

Over dinner, Daniel regaled Laura with his stories of having been in the Royal Hussars, stories that Harry had heard countless times before. At last, as they returned to the drawing room for coffee, Laura asked, "You asked me why I chose to do what I do, Daniel. Turn about's fair play. Why would someone as intelligent and charming as you are choose to become a con man when he could probably have done almost anything he wanted to do?"
Daniel lifted his shoulders. "Survival. The only way out of what would have otherwise been a short, dead end existence. Perhaps it was the easy way out, but it was the quickest and fastest why I knew - so I took it."
"No regrets?"
Daniel's eyes flickered to Harry, then back to the young woman who sat beside him. "A few. I don't think any one can get through their life without them. The idea is to make the best of what you've got when you've got it. Because Lady Luck is a very fickle creature. Likely to turn on you in a heartbeat and leave you with less than you had, leaving you to start all over again."
Suddenly Laura understood. All of this, the house, the cars, the nice clothes- meant precious little to Daniel Chalmers. If those things were to be gone tomorrow, he'd simply pull himself up by his bootstraps and start all over again. And Harry was the same way. They enjoyed the good life, but both could survive whatever the circumstances - because they'd done it before with far less.
Daniel smiled. "Well, I'm off to bed. I'm glad you're here, Laura. If for no other reason than seeing that light in Harry's eyes. Good night."
"Thank you, Daniel. Good night."
"G'night, Harry," Daniel said, flipping the light switch as he went through the door.
"Night." The room was bathed in the glow of the fire, and Laura could feel Harry looking at her as she emptied her cup.
"You've gotten awfully quiet all of a sudden," she said.
"Just enjoying the view," he told her, taking her cup and saucer from her hands to place the china beside his on the silver tray. "I think Daniel likes you."
"I like him. He's - different."
"Daniel's one of kind," Harry agreed. He lifted her hand to his lips. "Why are we discussing Daniel when we could be talking about other things?"
Laura looked at him at last. "Such as?"
"Such as the way you look with the firelight shimmering over your hair, shining in your eyes -"
Laura laughed nervously. "And I thought Daniel was a shameless flatterer -"
Harry grinned. "Would you prefer I stop?" he asked.
She shook her head, unable to speak upon seeing the look in those eyes.
"Good. Because I don't want to." He slid an arm around her shoulders as his eyes met hers. "I thought I'd only imagined how lovely you are. But I didn't." He moved slowly, inexorably nearer. "It's a good thing that you invented your Remington Steele, Laura, because I couldn't possibly have invented someone as lovely as you."
Laura had stopped breathing. Her lungs refused to function normally. If he didn't kiss her, she was liable to go totally insane. She could feel his warm breath on her face, feel the beat of his heart against hers. She lifted her face, and groaned at the same time he did as the light came on.
"What the-" he turned to find the maid, Beth, standing in the doorway, her eyes wide with fear.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know- I'm sorry-" She turned and ran from the room.
Harry sighed as he felt Laura begin to shake. Suddenly she laughing- and so was he. <What the hell,> he thought, pulling her against him again. This time, he was going to kiss her come hell or high water. The Queen herself could walk though that door and she couldn't stop him. Laura's laughter stilled, catching in her throat, then she moved the final millimeter to meet him.
She felt as if she were shattering into a million tiny pieces, only to be picked up gently by strong hands and put back together even better than she'd been before. His lips moved over hers, caressing, teasing, as his hands moved over her back.
Harry thought he never wanted to let her go. She was something he'd been searching for forever, it seemed. She completed him in a way nothing or no one else ever had- or could. Lifting his head at last, he looked down at her, willing her to open her eyes. "Laura?"
"Don't disturb my dream," she whispered.
"It's not a dream," he told her.
"It has to be," she said, opening her eyes to gaze into his blue ones.
"Why?" he asked with a slight smile, his lips moving to caress her brow before he settled them back onto the sofa, with Laura resting her head against his shoulder.
"Because nothing could have been that perfect."
"Shall we try again? See if it's still as perfect?"
He saw her dimples appear. "Would you mind? For purely scientific reasons, of course."
"Oh, of course." He lifted her chin and bent to her lips again. "Well?" he asked at last.
"I could become used to this," she told him.
"Good. Because I already am," he said, kissing her once more. When the kiss ended, he settled her against his side, his arm around her.
"This isn't going to be easy, is it?" Laura commented.
"What do you mean?"
"You living here, in London, me living in Los Angeles -"
Harry lifted her chin. "Let's not talk about that right now, hmm? Why don't we use these next two days to get to know each other. No talk about the future. Not yet, anyway."
Laura looked uncertain, but she relaxed against him once more. "Alright. What should we talk about, then?
"Tell me about your family."
"There's not much to tell," she said. "Mother and Frances live in Boston."
"You weren't raised in Boston. Don't have the accent."
"No. Born and raised in Los Angeles," Laura confirmed. "Mother's from Boston. Once Frances got married and I left for college, she went back there. And then Frances' husband Donald was offered a partnership at a dentist's office there -"
"What about your father?" Harry asked softly. "You didn't mention him." She was quiet for a long moment, and Harry wondered if she was going to answer his question. "Laura?"
"Sorry. Daddy left when I was sixteen," she told him in a small voice. "I haven't seen or heard from him since then."
"You've no idea where he is?"
"No. And I don't really care. He made his choice." He could hear the hurt in her, the still fresh pain of her father's desertion.
"You and he were close, weren't you?"
"Mother always says I'm more like him than Frances is. What about you? Any family? I mean REAL family, not Daniel."
"None that I'm aware of," Harry said, getting up to turn the light off again as he spoke. This time, he closed and turned the lock on the door before returning to sit beside her.
"An orphan?"
Harry didn't usually talk about his past. Tended to bring too much false sympathy his way, to reopen old wounds that he thought best kept closed. He was trying to find a way out of this conversation when he looked up and saw Laura watching him. He could trust her. Something in him began to uncoil. "I believe that my mother died shortly after my birth. I was raised in foster homes, sometimes by people who weren't very suited to the task."
Laura easily read between the lines. "It must have been terrible for you."
"I survived," he told her. "And that's what matters."
"What about your father?" Laura asked, and immediately regretted the question. Harry's jaw tightened in suppressed anger.
"I've never met the man. Nor do I want to."
"Why not?"
"He had no use for me when I needed him, Laura. I've no use for him now." He was sitting forward, arms resting on his knees, hands clasped between them. "If he were to come through that door, I'd probably beat him to a bloody pulp."
Laura rubbed his back slowly, trying to ease some the tension in those firm muscles. "At least it gives us something in common," she told him.
Harry looked around at her, then turned to pull her into his arms. "Oh, Laura. I think I'd given up on ever finding someone like you. Why hasn't some man in Los Angeles grabbed you up already? They can't all be blind fools over there."
"Not at all. Maintaining a relationship isn't easy when you're in the business I'm in. Most men don't understand when you have to pursue a case by being on midnight stake outs, or meeting with a client a two in the morning because you've gotten an important break in the case."
"Then you've never come close to finding Mr. Right?"
"You sound a little like my mother. She's forever trying to convince me that I should be married and settled down into a split level suburban house raising a family instead of out chasing bad guys."
"But that's not what YOU want, is it?"
"I want both. Mother doesn't understand that. She doesn't understand me. Never has."
"Wanting both's not so terrible. Women do it all the time, I believe."
"Tell that to Wilson." She sucked in her lower lip, biting down on it. "Damn."
Harry bent his head to look at her. "Who is Wilson?"
"I don't know why I mentioned him. Just- someone I - dated a - few times."
"A few times?"
"A year."
"A year? How long ago was this?"
"Right after college. He was a banker - or wanted to be a banker. Investments. A friend introduced us - and before I knew it, I was-"
"In love with him?"
"You're not interested in hearing this," Laura said, rising to her feet, only to be pulled back to Harry's side.
"I'm interested in everything about you, Laura Holt. But if you don't feel ready to talk about it, then I won't force you to."
She smiled. "Thank you."
Harry took a deep breath. "Where do you want to go tomorrow?"
Laura considered telling him that she hadn't really come to London to see anything except him. But she didn't. "I don't know- why don't you decide?"
Harry sat there, watching her face for several moments, then seemed to make a decision. "Are you tired?"
She shook her head. "My internal clock still thinks I'm in Los Angeles," she told him with a smile.
Standing, he held out his hand to her. "Then let's go. I have something I want to show you."
Laura put her hand in his and he led her out of the house and to the garage in the rear where he opened the door on the small sports car. "Don't tell me: THIS is yours," she said, looking over the convertible.
He grinned. "Don't you like it?"
"You'll never believe what my car is," she told him, shaking her head as she got inside the red Aston Martin.
Harry paused before starting the engine. "Couldn't begin to."
"A white, Volkswagon Rabbit convertible," she confessed.
Harry shook his head, joining her laughter. "Well, at least they're both convertibles," he told her, turning the key to send the engine racing. "I can put the top up if you'd like-"
"No. Leave it down."
Harry took the direct route to his destination, keeping Laura talking about her work, the flight, anything so she wouldn't see his surprise too quickly. At last he parked the car and came around to open her door. "We'll walk from here," he told her. "It's not far."
When they finally came upon it, Laura stopped in her tracks. "It's- like a fairyland," she said, feeling Harry's arm go around her waist to pull her back against him.
He gazed over the scene with her. "It's one of the first things I remember clearly after I came to London. Piccadilly at night is nothing short of awesome."
Laura could still hear that frightened, lost little boy, could hear his awe and wonder at the myriad lights before him. "Where did you live before you came to London?"
"Ireland."
"That explains the lilt," she said.
His cheek was on her hair and she felt him smile. "It's the only thing Daniel couldn't force me to lose. But he tried. Although not as hard as he might have. I've always felt he had a bit of feeling for the old sod."
"But Daniel's not Irish-"
"No. Not really sure where he's from originally. He doesn't talk much about his life before he and I joined up."
Laura twisted to look up at him. "Thank you, Harry."
He turned her around in his arms as the faint sound of an orchestra reached them, playing an old, romantic ballad. Neither spoke as Harry and Laura began to move to the music, dancing on the empty pavement. When the music faded, the two figures stopped, moving closer, their lips finally touching. "Oh, Laura. I think you might have been right earlier."
"About what?" she asked as he took off his jacket and placed it around her shoulders to ward off the chill of the evening.
"About this being a dream. And if it is, I don't want to wake up."
Their steps turned back toward the car, Harry's arm around her shoulders, keeping her close to his side.
"Then neither do I," Laura admitted softly, causing Harry to turn and look down at her, dropping a light kiss onto her head. "Was Daniel's reason for doing what he does the reason you do it?" she asked as they continued toward the car.
"It's as good a reason as there is," he told her. "I had very few choices. Some worse than others. Becoming a pickpocket was a way out of that. If I hadn't, I would never had met Daniel, probably never have survived at all."
"What did being a pickpocket have to do with meeting Daniel? Was he recruiting someone to help him in a scam?"
"No. Daniel never -recruited children, Laura. He'd just pulled off a really big score. One of the best he'd ever had, according to him, and he was in Brixton, heading back to his flat, when I saw him. Thought he was just another fancy toff, saw the chance at a few quid, so I did a bump and grabbed his wallet. Being Daniel, he knew immediately what I'd been up to, and chased me down." Harry shook his head at the memory. "I must have been quite a handful- I thought he was going to turn me in - "
"But he didn't?"
"He asked my name, I told him Richie Blaine - and he said that I didn't look like Humphrey Bogart. So I used another- and he saw though it as well."
"Sounds as though Daniel has a fondness for old movies, too."
"He does. Not as much as I do, but then, Daniel didn't live over an old movie house for three years either."
"So Daniel dragged you back to his place," Laura said.
"First he bought me something to eat - and then offered me a place to stay for a few days - with the promise of more food."
"You couldn't have been a very trusting person back then-"
"Nor now," Harry commented dryly. "I've never known why I trusted Daniel as I did. And it didn't happen over night. I kept my little hideaway over the theatre to retreat to for a long time before I gave up and admitted that perhaps Daniel could help me find a way out of Brixton permanently."
"By teaching you to run cons and steal jewels," Laura said.
"And you disapprove of that."
"I'm sorry. It's hard to leave my profession behind sometimes." They were almost to the car. "Did you really live over a movie theatre?"
He closed her door, then nodded. "In return for sweeping the place up every morning, the owner gave me a few pence along with a place to stay." He started the car. "It's been a long time since I thought about that place. That old man made almost as big a difference in my life as Daniel has. Wonder if he's still alive?"
"There's only one way to find out, Harry," Laura said.
"Maybe tomorrow," he said, turning the car in the direction they had come.

Back at the house, Laura waited for Harry to lock the front door before they went upstairs, hand in hand. At her door, Laura returned to Harry's arms for a long kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow morning," she told him.
His blue eyes searched hers, and what he saw there reassured him, because he nodded. "Good night." She opened her bedroom door. "Laura -?" She turned to look at him. "I'm glad you came."
"So am I, Harry. Good night."
Harry stood in the empty hallway for a moment longer before turning to his own door and going inside.
Neither had seen the barely open door down the hall, or known that Daniel was standing in the darkness of his room, watching the couple wishing each other good night. After Harry entered his room, Daniel closed the door again. Another first for Harry. He'd never known the young man not to charm his way into the bed of a woman that he was attracted to and was attracted to him. It said volumes about Harry's feelings for Laura that he hadn't pressed his advantage. If Laura Holt was as smart as Daniel thought she was, she would have Harry following her back to Los Angeles in short order. Sighing, he returned to his bed, still hoping that he was doing the right thing. He'd fought Harry about Anna, insisting she wasn't right for him, and it had nearly cost him the younger man's friendship. There had been a space of six months in which the two men hadn't spoken or communicated at all. Then Harry had shown up on Daniel's doorstep one evening, alone, saying only that Anna was dead. It had taken another six months for Daniel to learn the details of that death, and Anna hadn't been mentioned since. Daniel seriously doubted that Harry had ever told ANYONE else about her. Laura Holt was as different from Anna Simpson as day was to night. And something told Daniel that the lady detective was more than a match for the man who's heart she had stolen so easily.