What Happens at the Beach... (26 page)

‘You said you won this champagne. What was that, a marathon or a triathlon?'

He shook his head. ‘Nothing so athletic. It was one of those awful charity dinners. You know, a thousand pounds a ticket and a red carpet outside. There was a raffle, and I ended up winning a dozen bottles of pretty good champagne. I got them sent down here, seeing as I go back to London more and more infrequently these days.'

‘Have you still got a place in London?'

He nodded. ‘Yes, an apartment, but like I say, I haven't been back for a couple of months now, and it's just sitting there empty.'

‘So are you going to make this your home now?'

He gave her a smile. ‘My accountants tell me I should take up residence in Monte Carlo or some of the more exotic Caribbean islands, but I don't know. I like being in a place that has four seasons, not just boiling hot all year round. Besides, this is just such a wonderful place and there's something else. Nobody knows I'm here. Well, very few people anyway. After all the publicity and glare of the divorce last year, it's been a wonderful place to hide out.' He handed her a glass of champagne and raised his towards her. ‘Now, we said we'd drink a toast to your big sister, didn't we?' He clinked his glass against hers. ‘To Colette. She was a lovely person.'

Natalie took a sip of wine and repeated the toast, her thoughts with her beloved grandmother. She couldn't help herself. She found the tears running down her cheeks once more, only stopping a minute later as the front half of the dog appeared on her lap, his back legs scrabbling, trying to pull the rest of him up as well. He was making little whining noises, clearly upset that she was unhappy. She wiped her eyes, persuaded Barney to return to the floor and glanced across at Mark. He had diplomatically busied himself with the crisps and nuts, and was opening the packets, pouring them onto the plate, giving her space and time to herself. Finally, he took a seat at the table and scratched Barney's big hairy head, as the dog left Natalie and sat down beside him, nose trained on the plate full of crisps on the table above. Natalie took another mouthful of wine and then came to sit down on the other side of the dog who immediately turned towards her and rested his nose on her thigh. She tousled his ears affectionately. After a while, she felt ready to pick up the conversation again.

‘I'm sorry about that, Mark.'

‘Sorry? Don't be sorry. You loved your gran and it's the most natural thing in the world.'

Natalie nodded. ‘Now that Gran's died, I have a feeling I'm going to have to sell her house to pay all the taxes. I gather they're pretty draconian here in France.' Once more she felt a sense of deep remorse that this would end her connection with this lovely place and, more importantly, would sever the last physical link with her family.

‘So I've heard. If you like, I could get my accountants on to that for you. See if we can reduce what needs to be paid?'

Natalie shook her head. ‘That's all right. I'll manage. I got a fair bit of experience of these things when my parents died.' It turned out this was something she and Mark had in common. His voice dropped to little more than a whisper.

‘My dad died years ago when I was only twelve, and my mum raised me and my brother. She died very suddenly three years ago and I'll never forget how terrible I felt when I got the news.' He drained his glass and refilled it, topping hers up at the same time. ‘My big brother, Joe, and I aren't that close. He's been living in South Africa for years, and we only really see each other at best once a year. Mum, on the other hand, I used to see every week.' He looked across and caught her eye. ‘I made a point of it. So many kids desert their parents once they grow up and leave the nest. Considering everything she'd done for me, I thought it was the least I could do. So, when she died, I felt terribly alone.'

‘Raising two boys on her own can't have been easy.' Natalie stared out across the treetops to the open sea. The sun was dropping towards the horizon now and the water was coloured pink by its rays. ‘And I know just what you mean about feeling alone. I was an only child, and now that I've lost Gran as well, it's just me against the world.' In spite of her resolve, she had to reach for her handkerchief and wipe her eyes.

She felt his hand land on hers. ‘It doesn't have to be just you, you know. At times like this you'd be surprised how many friends will rally round.' He gave her hand the lightest of squeezes before removing his again and changing to a brighter tone. ‘Now, take a deep breath and look around you. You're sitting in a little bit of paradise and we're very, very lucky people. You need to remind yourself of that. I do, from time to time. Look at the sea; it's almost rose-pink now. And the coast as it curls away down into Spain. We can see for miles and miles.' He paused for a moment as she took a deep breath as instructed. ‘Now take a good big swig of this lovely champagne and turn round. Look back inland and you've got the full majesty of the Pyrenees behind you. It's a lovely, lovely view and we're very fortunate people to be able to enjoy it. Natalie, it's a very good time to be alive. Remember that.'

He reached across and clinked his glass against hers. She dropped her eyes from the scenery to her host. He was smiling gently and she couldn't help smiling in her turn. She took a sip of wine and cleared her throat. ‘You're right, Mark, and thank you for reminding me. And thank you for bringing me up here and for all your support today. I don't know what I would've done without you.'

‘You'd have coped just fine, Natalie. You're strong. You've been through some very tough times, but you've dealt with everything life's thrown at you. Here, have some more wine and tell me about all the job interviews you've got coming up. Life goes on and this is a really exciting time for you. Come on, drink up. Your grandma wouldn't have wanted you to grieve.'

Natalie did as instructed, taking a big mouthful of wine. Her gran had always been such a positive, cheery person in spite of the crushing blows she, too, had suffered. She wouldn't want her to be too dejected. She looked across at Mark as he refilled the glasses and replaced the bottle in the bucket. This lovely, kind, strong, generous man was right. Life did indeed go on and Natalie realised, if she hadn't known it before, that she would really like her life from now on to include him in whatever category he chose. No sooner did she think it, however, than she found herself reflecting that this was, in its way, almost exactly how her relationship with David had started. She had turned to him for support as she was grieving the loss of her parents. Now here she was, letting her feelings take over once more as far as Mark was concerned. Was her friendship with him also destined to fizzle out? She remembered the other thing her gran had said to her, less than twenty-four hours earlier. What she needed to do was concentrate on her career. She was stronger now than way back then. She didn't need support. She needed a job and then, maybe, down the line, there would be love.

She smiled as he caught her eye. ‘I can't help feeling sad that she's gone, but I'll try not to grieve too much. You're right; she wouldn't have wanted that. Gran would have been so pleased to know that I've now got no fewer than three job interviews arranged for next week.'

She went on to tell him all about the different jobs. When she mentioned Canada, she saw his eyes widen and wondered, for a moment, what he might be thinking about the prospect of her moving across the Atlantic. Certainly, from her point of view, she knew it would be a massive step. The job sounded really good, but it would be a leap into the unknown. If, she reminded herself,
if
they offered it to her – and she had an interview to undergo first. There would be time to investigate the implications of a move to Canada if she got the job.

When the sun finally dipped below the horizon, they made their way back downstairs again. They sat down to eat in the kitchen, accompanying the food with a bottle of the local red. Madame Lenoir had obviously had a lot of experience at making paella because hers was excellent; full of prawns, shellfish, fish, chorizo and chicken and the rice moist, not dry. Natalie discovered that she was suddenly very hungry after a day without food and she helped Mark eat most, though not quite all, of it. The little that remained was given to the Labrador who vacuumed it up in a matter of seconds.

‘Coffee?'

Natalie had already refused any more wine and she shook her head at the offer of coffee. ‘No, thanks, Mark. I couldn't eat or drink another thing.' She glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. It was only just after ten, but it felt like two o'clock in the morning. She could feel her eyes closing. She straightened up and wiped her mouth with her napkin. ‘I'd better get off home.'

As she spoke, she realised how daunting that prospect was. The idea of sleeping all alone in the house where her grandmother had died only a few hours earlier was rather scary.

‘I was wondering about that. Why don't you stay here with me?'

‘Here, with you?' She looked up and he must have seen something in her expression, because he hastened to qualify what he was offering.

‘I'm sorry, Natalie, that didn't come out quite right. What I was trying to say is that I've got seven bedrooms here and you'd be very welcome to stay the night, or longer if you want. I asked Madame Lenoir to prepare a room for you, so it's there if you want it.'

‘That's awfully kind.' She did her best to ignore the feelings his offer had ignited in her. ‘But I haven't got anything with me. At the very least I need to clean my teeth.' Although she was putting up obstacles, she knew that she would really like to sleep here, rather than on her own at her grandmother's house.

Mark took a mouthful of wine. ‘Our four-legged friend currently cleaning the floor with his tongue over there needs to go for a walk before he goes to bed for the night. If you like, he and I will walk down with you and wait while you collect your stuff. Then we can come back up here together.'

The walk down through the trees was as beautiful as any night Natalie had experienced since arriving here. The perfume of flowers and resin was almost overpowering and the fireflies lit the way as they went down the path. There was a sudden movement in front of them and she was briefly aware of a white shape flying past her head. Barney turned and charged off in futile pursuit while Mark caught her arm with his hand, stopping her.

‘An owl. Did you see that?' His voice was excited. He sounded like a little child, brimming over with glee, and it was all Natalie could do not to reach out and cuddle him as they went on down the path to her grandmother's house. Behind them, the dog came crashing back through the undergrowth after his unsuccessful attempt to catch the owl. When they reached the terrace, Mark hesitated. ‘Do you want me to come in with you?'

‘Thanks, but I'll be fine.' And she was, but the knowledge that he was waiting for her outside was very comforting. It didn't take her long to collect a few things and return to the terrace, locking the kitchen door behind her. Barney had been waiting and he jumped up with a little whine of delight as she emerged.

‘Got everything?'

‘Yes, thanks, Mark.'

‘Right, then let's go back up the hill to bed.'

Chapter 15

Next morning at breakfast, Natalie's head was still full of thoughts of the previous night. The bedroom where she had slept had been luxurious and immaculate. The bathroom had evidently been recently refurbished, and she had enjoyed an excellent shower before cleaning her teeth and getting into the big bed. The night was very warm and, although she'd started out with a T-shirt as a nightie, she soon stripped it off. So it was that she had been lying naked in a strange bed, barely covered by a sheet, just about to drift off to sleep, when she was disturbed by a creaking noise. The shutters and the windows were open and the starlight illuminated the scene. She sat upright in bed, feeling the sheet fall to her waist, as the door slowly opened. She drew in her breath and was reaching for the sheet to cover her nakedness when a figure appeared around the door. When she saw him, she released the sheet and let it fall back onto the bed, a smile forming on her lips.

Hesitantly, he came across to the bed until he was so close to her she could feel his breath on her bare arm. She looked down and addressed him sternly. ‘Barney, I really don't think you're supposed to be up here, you know.' She felt his cold wet nose nudge her bare thigh a couple of times as she debated what to do. What she should do, she was sure, was get up, get dressed and accompany the dog back downstairs to his bed in the kitchen, but she felt too lazy to go to all that bother. Doing it naked, and running the risk of being discovered by Mark, gave her a lovely shiver of naughty anticipation, but she discarded the idea. Instead, she contented herself with dissuading the dog from climbing onto the bed and then she closed her eyes and rolled over. A few seconds later she heard Barney slump to the floor with a thud and a heartfelt sigh. The dog's presence beside her was remarkably comforting and she felt a little smile form on her lips in spite of the events of the day. It wasn't long before her body finally gave in after all the sorrow and stress and she fell asleep

When she woke on Saturday morning after a hot, sweaty night, it was to find the dog no longer beside the bed. He had obviously made his exit at some time in the course of the night, pushing the bedroom door wide open as he did so. Seeing as she had woken up still naked and completely uncovered, she found herself wondering whether Mark had maybe walked past her door and glanced in.

She was late getting up, at least by her usual standards. It was almost eight o'clock when she came down to the kitchen to find the back door open and Madame Lenoir just finishing washing last night's dishes. There was no sign of Barney or his master.