In the Name of Love (33 page)

It was Thursday night. Earlier on Charlie had tipped off a paparazzo about where she was going and who she was going to be seeing. It seemed the paps had their uses after all. She felt sullied after the call, as if she was turning her private life into a sideshow, but she couldn’t see any other course of action. Now all that remained was to get ready. Smoky eyes check, black body-con dress check, her highest leopard-print heels check – all in all, the look that her ex had loved. Her make-up was perfect, her body had never been in better
shape,
but as she looked in the mirror Charlie wanted to cry.

Tonight she was meeting Aaron for dinner. God, she must remember to call him that and not TFB. She had it all planned out. When Felipe confronted her about it – as he would once the story had broken in the press – she would tell him that she couldn’t help it, that she was in love with Aaron and always had been.

They were meeting at Nobu, a favourite haunt of celebrities and, because of that, the paps. Charlie felt sick with anxiety on the taxi ride over to Mayfair; the closer they got to their destination, the more she longed to tell to the driver to turn round and take her home. How could she go through with this? But then she thought of Felipe, having to keep the most important thing in his life to himself because she couldn’t share it, and her resolve strengthened. If she could do this then he would be free from her.

Aaron was already sitting in the stylish restaurant when she walked in. He stood up as soon as Charlie approached the table and all she could think of was that he didn’t compare to Felipe. True, he was very good-looking, with his perfectly styled short brown hair and deep blue eyes, but his looks seemed so boyish compared to Felipe’s strong handsome features. But there was no going back now.

‘Charlie, it’s been too long,’ he murmured as he kissed her. ‘I love you in that dress.’

‘I thought you would,’ she replied, somehow managing to smile though she knew it didn’t reach her eyes. They sat down opposite each other. It felt so wrong to be
here.
The waiter poured her a glass of champagne and Charlie took a long sip. Usually she adored champagne, now it tasted bitter and acidic in her mouth. Aaron leant forward and treated her to one of his intense, sincere gazes, his
you’re the only girl in the world for me
look. It used to work on Charlie. It didn’t any more. She thought he looked cheesily insincere.

‘I can’t believe you’re here, after all this time. I’ve missed you so much, babe. And I’m sorry about what happened. I was a total dick.’

He’d got that right. ‘Yep, you were.’

He gave a cheeky grin. ‘That’s the Charlie I remember. Never afraid to speak your mind. That’s why I liked you so much.’ He paused. ‘That’s why I still like you so much.’

Another pause. Maybe Aaron was expecting her to say that she still had feelings for him. She couldn’t do that. Instead she replied, ‘I know. Greg told me.’

‘I haven’t been in touch because I thought you were seeing that Spanish guy. I read about it. It seemed serious. So what happened?’

Charlie shrugged. ‘We broke up. It was only ever a holiday romance. It passed its sell-by date.’

When she had tried something like this before with Kyle, she had ended up bursting into tears, but this time Charlie was not going to give the game away. It helped that she barely touched any alcohol, and with iron determination managed to smile and flirt her way through the rest of dinner.

Aaron had drunk the best part of a bottle of champagne and was now having a brandy. He was becoming
more
emotional, though whether it was the alcohol loosening his tongue or his true feelings, it was hard to tell. He reached out for her hand. Charlie looked down at his fingers around her own, instantly comparing them unfavourably with Felipe’s elegant strong hands. Aaron hadn’t kicked his childhood habit of biting his fingernails and his nails looked ragged and short, making his fingers look stubby. She wanted to yank her hand away, but forced herself to leave it there.

‘We had some good times, Charlie, didn’t we? Until I blew it.’

She was racking her brains to think what those good times might have been. The way he had cheated on her with the lap dancer had effectively blanked out any positive memories.

‘I swear I’d never cheat on you again. Not ever. I know what’s important now.’

Charlie just stopped herself from saying,
Is that a real promise, or a footballer’s promise?

‘It’s a big
if
, Aaron,’ was the best reply she could come up with. ‘I really need to see how it goes.’

‘I’ll prove it to you,’ he replied, and gave her his best heartfelt look. She almost felt guilty for using him like this, but not enough to stop. And if she had to use someone, then it may as well be Aaron who had treated her, and no doubt scores of other women, so badly.

They left the restaurant together. Aaron draped his arm around her, holding her possessively close to him. Even that gesture made her feel suffocated. She didn’t know how she would manage the next thing she knew she had to do.

‘I’m so glad you called me,’ he told her, gazing into her eyes. ‘I just know we can be good together again.’

And as he saw her into the taxi Charlie kissed him on the lips … a lingering kiss that was captured by the lurking pap, ready and primed for the moment.

As the taxi sped away, Charlie sat back in a daze. There were so many conflicting emotions churning away inside her. She fumbled in her bag for her phone. There was a text from Felipe:
Miss you like crazy. Call me when you get in, it doesn’t matter how late
. With her eyes blurred with tears, Charlie deleted it.

Felipe picked up his phone yet again. There was no still reply from Charlie. It seemed strange that she hadn’t called him – usually she replied to his messages straight away, as he did to hers. He thought about texting Zoe, and then dismissed the idea; he didn’t want her to think he was keeping tabs on Charlie. God knows, he remembered what that was like from when he was seeing Paloma who had wanted to know where he was at all times, and exactly what he was doing.

But by midnight he was starting to feel on edge about Charlie’s lack of response, especially when he called her again and only reached her voice mail. This just wasn’t like her. It was frustrating being so far away! He left yet another message and then forced himself to go to bed – he had to be up at five for training. He slept badly and kept reaching out to check his phone. Still nothing from Charlie.

Usually he was the kind of early-morning riser who could leap straight out of bed and into the shower,
already
anticipating and relishing the prospect of working with his horses all day. But the following morning he felt jaded and worn out, especially when he realised that Charlie hadn’t called or texted him. He finally dragged himself out of bed at half-past five and was grumpy with his grooms when he arrived at the stables.

After an intensive jumping session with Valiente he was ready to snatch a quick breakfast and hopeful that he might finally be able to talk to Charlie. He left Daria in charge of exercising the horses in the walker – a huge contraption that looked exactly like a gigantic merry-go-round, which they would walk in for an hour. All of them had to be in the absolute peak of condition.

‘I’m sure she will have called you back by now,’ Daria called out to him. She knew Felipe well enough to realise what was up.

‘Concentrate on those horses!’ he shouted back, but his dark mood had lifted after the workout and he was convinced that he would speak to Charlie soon and there would be a perfectly rational explanation.

But there was still no message. He sat outside on the terrace with an espresso and decided to email her some of the photos his brother had sent him, taken when they were out on the yacht. Seeing them might prompt her to call him, he reflected. He smiled as he looked at the shot of them sitting with their arms around each other, leaning against the side of the boat, Charlie with her head on his shoulder. They looked as if they were meant to be together.

He heard the sound of the security gates swinging
open
and looked up to see a silver Alfa Romeo slowly approaching the house. It was his mother’s car. What the hell did she want? He had finally seen Vittoria the week before, but she hadn’t apologised for her comments to Charlie and Felipe was still furious with her, so it had been a somewhat frosty encounter. It was totally out of character for her to be making such an early visit; usually she didn’t get up before half-past ten. It was just after eight now. It must be something to do with his sister or his father, and she wanted to vent at him, though God knows why she couldn’t have picked up the phone.

Even at this time in the morning Vittoria was immaculately made up, and wearing an exquisitely cut white trouser suit.

‘Felipe, are you all right, my darling?’ she asked breathlessly, as soon as she reached the terrace. ‘I came as soon as I could.’

He had no idea what she was talking about – no doubt some drama of her own invention. He stood up and gave her the obligatory three kisses. ‘Why wouldn’t I be okay, Mama?’

‘Oh, my darling, you do not have to pretend to me. I am talking about the pictures of Charlie with that other man. I cannot believe that she would do this to you. It is so hurtful and cruel.’

‘What pictures are you talking about?’ he said warily. His mother was quite capable of blowing something out of all proportion.

‘The pictures of Charlie with another man. They are all over the UK tabloids and on their websites. You can see for yourself.’ She gestured at the laptop.

A sick feeling of dread uncoiled in the pit of his stomach. Trying not to betray any emotion, Felipe logged on to the
Sun’s
website and was met with an image of Charlie kissing her ex-boyfriend. The sick feeling intensified.
Charlie Scores with Aaron!
screamed the headline, as if to hammer the message home. But even faced with the evidence, Felipe refused to believe there was anything more to it than a friendly kiss goodnight. There had to be a perfectly innocent explanation. And so what if she had met up with her ex? He saw Paloma and it didn’t mean anything. He was about to say as much to Vittoria when his mobile rang. Charlie at last! Grabbing his phone, he strode back into the house and away from his mother.

‘Charlie! I’ve left you so many messages, what’s going on?’

‘I’m sorry, I should have told you before now. I didn’t want it to come out like this.’

He was stunned, both by what she was saying and the cold, detached tone of her voice.

‘Didn’t want what to come out?’

‘I’ve been seeing Aaron.’ There was no emotion in her voice at all. But this had to be some kind of joke, didn’t it? She was teasing him – he’d annoyed her in some way and she was getting her own back with this charade. It didn’t sound plausible but Felipe was desperate for there to be an innocent explanation.

‘You are joking, aren’t you? Is it because I’ve been neglecting you? I know that I’ve been preoccupied with training, and I’m sorry. I can take some time out. We could go away somewhere.’ He was clutching at straws
here.
‘You’re just trying to make me jealous, like you did before with that other footballer.’

‘No, Felipe, it’s not like that time. I’m seeing Aaron.’ She definitely didn’t sound as if she was joking.

‘What are you talking about?’ he exclaimed passionately. ‘How can you be seeing him again? You told me you
never
wanted to see him again. What do you call him – that total fucking bastard!’

‘I was lying when I told you that. Please, Felipe, I don’t want a big row. We had a good time together but it’s over. I’m back with Aaron now.’

Felipe felt as if he had been catapulted into a nightmare. This simply could not be happening, and yet Charlie was calmly telling him it was all over between them. He still refused to accept it.

‘Charlie, I don’t know what’s going on but we can work this out. I’ll try and get a flight this afternoon. I have to see you … we have to talk.’

‘There is nothing to talk about, Felipe. I’m in love with Aaron, I always have been, I was just trying to pretend to myself that I wasn’t.’ She hesitated. ‘I guess I used you. The closer it got to the Olympics, I realised I couldn’t do that to you any more. I’m sorry.’

‘I don’t believe you!’ Felipe was shouting now. ‘You
can’t
love that man after what he did to you! And you can’t turn your back on what we have. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I love you!’ There, he had come out with it, the words he should have said ages ago, the words he’d known to be true within days of meeting her.

‘You can’t love me. I’m sorry, Felipe, I’ve got to go now.’

Was it his imagination or had there been a trace of hesitation in her voice then, and a touch of warmth which had previously been missing? But before he had the chance to say anything else, she hung up. And when he tried to call her back, Charlie had switched off her phone.

Felipe slumped on to the sofa, head in his hands. He could barely take in the enormity of what had just happened. It was so shocking, he felt as if he had been punched. Why hadn’t he told her he loved her before? He had wanted to but had held off, worried that it might be too much, too soon. And now this – the discovery that their entire relationship had been a lie. And yet, he still couldn’t believe that …

His mother walked cautiously into the living room. ‘Luis is on his way over, I thought you might want to talk to him.’

Felipe raised his head. ‘Did you have something to do with all this?’ he demanded aggressively. ‘It seems too much of a coincidence that this should happen mere weeks after you laid in to Charlie at the party.’

Vittoria looked taken aback. ‘Of course not, my darling! You know I had my reservations about her, but I would never do anything to hurt you.’ She approached him tentatively and seemed to want to comfort him.

She was probably telling the truth, but he didn’t want her around him.

‘Please go now, Mama,’ Felipe replied wearily, as if the fight had gone out of him. ‘I need to be on my own.’