by Megan Cole
Brad sat down opposite her and smiled. Sapphire dragged herself out of her daydream, flushing slightly as she remembered lying to him about feeling tired last night. Brad looked like a proper Italian gent with a fresh white shirt and a cashmere jumper tied over his shoulders.
‘How are you feeling, Sapphire? You still look a bit tired.’
She flashed a smile back. ‘Oh, I’m OK. I’ll probably just take it easy today.’ She was looking forward to a day by the pool, dreaming about Cam. She couldn’t wait until she saw him again.
‘Actually, I’ve decided to take the yacht out today,’ he said. ‘I was wondering if you girls would like to join me.’
‘That would be awesome!’ Madison said. Simonetta nodded and smiled. ‘Si, Brad.’ He looked at Sapphire. It was the last thing she felt like doing, but it would look rude if she said no. Besides, Madison had been slightly more bearable lately. She forced a smile. ‘Count me in.’
An hour later, the Spirito Libero was gliding through the deep, blue waters of the Mediterranean. All four of them were on the sun deck, drinking freshly squeezed mango juice that had been brought out to them by the staff. Sapphire was pleased to see Tito on board; she hadn’t seen his smiling face for ages. He was busy in the galley kitchen, helping the chef prepare what would no doubt be another mouth-watering lunch.
‘Well, this is nice isn’t it?’ Brad said. He looked round at them. ‘So what have you all been up to?’
For once, Sapphire was grateful of Madison jumping in first and monopolising the conversation.
‘Oh, like, really cool stuff!’ She stretched out a brown arm. ‘I think I’m more tan than ever.’
Brad stifled a smile. In her own funny way, Madison did make him laugh. She was also brighter than people assumed, her sharp eyes roaming everywhere, missing nothing.
‘How about you, Simonetta?’ In contrast to Madison’s bubbliness, he thought Simonetta looked rather drawn and washed-out. As she shrugged he saw the sharp jut of her collar bone.
‘Oh, this and that.’ She eyed him keenly. ‘Have you had a chance to look through the proposal I gave you?’ To Simonetta’s satisfaction, Madison looked confused and then annoyed at the realisation she’d been excluded from something.
‘I have, actually, and there’s some really good stuff in there,’ he told her. ‘We’ll talk later.’
Simonetta smiled; she knew it would score points against the other two. Not, she noticed, that Sapphire even seemed part of the conversation, as she stared out to sea with a faraway look on her face. Brad followed Simonetta’s eyes.
‘Earth to Sapphire.’ Brad waved a hand in front of her face. She jumped. ‘You still with us?’ he asked with a smile.
She flushed. ‘Sorry, I was just thinking what a nice day it is.’ I’m getting quite good at this lying thing, she thought.
Brad looked round at them all expectantly. ‘I have some rather exciting news. How do you fancy spending some time at my mansion in the Florida Keys?’
They all sat up. ‘That would be so cool!’ squealed Madison. She was literally dying for a Yogiberry frozen yogurt.
Simonetta felt similarly pleased. The further away she was from Italy at the moment, the better.
‘When are we going?’ Madison asked.
Brad smiled. ‘In a few days, once we can get everything tied up.’
A few days! Sapphire’s heart sunk like a stone. America was thousands of miles from here, and more importantly, Cam. ‘Can I ask the reason?’ she said, trying not to sound too gutted.
Brad grinned. ‘We’ve had some rather exciting developments here. Cam has got on so well with his song writing that he’s ready to record his debut album. I thought it would be good for all of us to go to Florida, where my recording studio is. I’d like to show you girls another part of my life while Cam is working.’
In a matter of seconds Sapphire’s spirits had gone from zero to off the scale. ‘Oh, wow!’ she exclaimed. ‘That would be amazing!’ At the same time she realised that she and Raphael wouldn’t be able to practise any more and her face fell slightly. They’d been coming along so well together.
Brad seemed to read her mind. ‘I thought it would be good for you, Sapphire, to come in and see how the recording process works. Cam’s got some talented people working with him, the best in the business.’
Sapphire felt like all her Christmases had come at once. Two of her favourite things: Cam and music. This must have been the thing Cam couldn’t tell her about. The thought of spending time with him and watching him work made her fizz with joy.
‘Count me in!’ she said excitedly.
Brad grinned. ‘Excellent! I’ll be sorry to leave Casa Eleganza but there is work to be done. I think you girls will have a lot of fun out there.’
After a blissful afternoon on board the yacht, they returned to the villa. Sapphire was dying to phone her mum. She knew Leonie would be over the moon; Sapphire had never been to America before. She bade a hasty farewell to the others and was the first to run up the path towards the house. Of course, there was another reason Sapphire wanted to call her mum. To tell her about Cam. Not everything of course. One part of her had wanted him to go further last night, but in the cold light of day Sapphire was glad they hadn’t. She knew Cam respected her for it and besides, this was just the beginning.
She practically bounced into her room and went to get her phone from her bag. After a quick rummage around, she realised it wasn’t there. Sapphire frowned. Had she used it after getting the text from Cam? A quick look around the room revealed it wasn’t there either.
‘Bollocks!’ she cursed aloud. She hated mislaying her phone. Think. When did you have it last? A thought occurred to her — maybe it was by the pool. After sticking her head under the bed one final time, she went to have a look.
The phone wasn’t by the pool either. Sapphire sighed. It had to be somewhere. Maybe she’d left it in the house. She decided to go back and have another look. Maggie would know if someone had handed it in.
As Sapphire headed back to the house, she was surprised to see Simonetta coming down the path from Raphael’s place. She stopped and stepped behind a bush, not wanting to be seen. She watched as Simonetta looked left and right, before sashaying towards the house.
Sapphire stood, wondering. Why would Simonetta be going to Raphael’s? She had already said he was too young for her. Sapphire was surprised to feel a little stab of jealously. What she and Raphael had was a complete breath of fresh air, away from all the rivalry and bitchiness here. She didn’t want Simonetta muscling in and ruining it.
Then again, what did it matter? They would be leaving here soon to go to Florida. Sapphire sighed and continued her journey back to the house to find Maggie.
Chapter thirty-eight
Maggie handed the mobile to her. ‘Looking for this, young lady?’
Sapphire took it gratefully. ‘Thanks, Maggie. I’ve been tearing my hair out. Where did you find it?’
‘One of the gardeners found it by the terrace.’ Maggie’s eyes twinkled. ‘Sometimes I think you’d forget your head if it wasn’t screwed on.’
Sapphire smiled ruefully. ‘I must be going mad. I don’t even remember going in the garden with it in the first place.’ She stopped and looked at the housekeeper. ‘I suppose you know about us going to Florida?’
Maggie nodded. ‘You must be very excited, my dear. What with Cam recording his album and everything.’
Sapphire looked at her suspiciously, but Maggie’s face gave nothing away. Did she know about them? Maggie seemed to have eyes in the back of her head. With her kind, wrinkled face and fussing manner she was like the grandmother Sapphire had never had. Her mum’s own parents had died when she was young.
‘I’ll miss you, Maggie,’ she said.
‘Oh, away with you,’ the housekeeper replied, but her eyes looked sad. She put on a mock stern face. ‘I’ll still be keeping my eye on you from here!’
‘I’m sure you will,’ Sapphire laughed
.
Simonetta was in her bedroom getting ready for the pool when there was a knock at the door. She went to answer it. Clara, one of the housekeeping girls, stood there.
‘Signorina Simonetta? Your mother is on the phone. She says it is urgent.’
Simonetta’s eyebrows shot up in shock. Her mother? But why would she call her? How did she know how to get hold of her?
‘You can take the call on your bedroom phone,’ the maid told her.
‘Grazie,’ Simonetta said curtly and shut the door. She went and picked up the phone by her bed. ‘Mamma?’
‘Simonetta!’ Her mother sounded panicked. ‘I have had people calling, asking after you! They say you owe them money!’
‘Ssh, Mamma!’ Simonetta hissed. ‘Wait until the maid has put the phone down.’ Moments later, there was a click. Simonetta strode over to the window and pulled it open. She was in sudden need of fresh air.
‘What is going on?’ her mother demanded. ‘I’ve had debt collection companies threatening me. What kind of trouble are you in?’
Simonetta cursed inwardly; they must have got her family’s telephone number from her references. ‘How did you get this number, Mamma?’ she asked angrily. She didn’t want her mother ringing her, panicking and blabbing her mouth. The last thing she needed was Brad thinking she was bad with money.
Her mother hesitated. ‘Brad’s secretary called after you left to give me this number. She said Brad wanted to make sure I knew where you were staying, in case of an emergency. This is an emergency, Simonetta! These people, they frighten me, and we cannot repay your debts.’
‘Have you told Papa?’
‘Of course not! What, do you think I want to bring shame on the family? Oh, Simonetta, I knew this was a bad idea. You should never have left for Rome in the first place!’
Anger surged through Simonetta, brought on by days of stress and worry. ‘What, Mamma, so I could stay at home and get old and fat like you? To spend my days working myself into the ground just to keep that hovel? I needed that money, if I was going to have any proper chance in life. If it’s anyone’s fault I’m in debt, it’s yours!’
Her mother went quiet and Simonetta knew she’d gone too far. When she eventually spoke again, her voice was flat and hurt. ‘We always tried to do our best by you.’
Simonetta sighed. ‘Mamma, I didn’t mean it like that.’
‘I am going now, Simonetta. Why do you always do this to me?’
‘Mamma!’
She was met by a dialling tone. ‘Merda!’ she said and threw the phone across the room. Simonetta raked her hands through her long black hair. She had to be chosen as Brad’s heir before her life was destroyed, taking her family along with it.
Next door, eavesdropping by Simonetta’s window, Madison smiled. So, snooty Simonetta was up to her stupid, kohl-rimmed eyeballs in debt. This was a turn-up for the books. Madison was sure she could turn it to her advantage. Gleefully, she admired her reflection in the dressing-table mirror. First Sapphire and then Simonetta. Honestly, if they insisted on offering themselves on a plate to her, what could she do but take them up on it?
To Sapphire’s disappointment, she hadn’t been alone with Cam since that night on the beach. His whole management team seemed to have descended on Casa Eleganza, getting him ready to start recording. Cam’s manager, a sinister-looking man who wore all black and had a mobile phone clamped to his ear constantly, never let him out of sight. They had exchanged a few texts, but that was about it. Sapphire literally felt like she was having withdrawal symptoms from him. Seeing Cam and his entourage across the courtyard one morning, she grabbed the opportunity to speak to him.
‘Cam!’
He turned round, smiling when he saw her walking towards him. ‘Hey, Sapphire! How are you doing? You look really pretty,’ he added softly, as she got up to him and no one else could hear.
‘I’m good. I just wondered if we could hook up soon.’ Cam raised an amused eyebrow. ‘Hook up?’ Sapphire blushed as she remembered that hooking up to Americans meant the same as getting off with someone.
‘Oh! You know what I mean.’ She blushed even deeper. ‘That’s not to say I wouldn’t want to hook up again.’
Cam looked into her eyes and smiled. ‘Me too, my little English rose. Sorry I haven’t seen much of you, things are crazy.’ He looked at his manager, who tapped his watch pointedly.
‘We need to get going, Cam!’
‘I see what you mean,’ she said with a sympathetic smile. He looked so gorgeous that Sapphire wanted to throw her arms round him and start kissing. It was agony being this close and not even being able to touch him.
Cam grimaced. ‘Yeah, my manager is kinda overprotective. I guess he doesn’t want my image to come undone.’
Sapphire felt her stomach turn over unpleasantly. ‘You don’t want to disappoint all those female fans,’ she tried to joke.
Cam sighed. ‘I don’t know. It kinda gets frustrating being told what to do the whole time. I’m not a kid.’ He looked at Sapphire meaningfully. ‘I do want to spend more time with you.’
She felt a kick of happiness. ‘Me too, Cam.’
‘Cam!’ This time the manager looked really cross.
Cam looked at her. ‘I’m back tonight; I’ll try and catch up with you then.’ He smiled his slow, sexy grin. ‘Stay with me, Sapphire.’
She watched as Cam was bustled towards a waiting car by his manager.
Chapter thirty-nine
Sapphire was feeling restless. She still hadn’t heard from Cam so she decided to go and see Raphael instead. Maybe they could practise together. Picking up her guitar, she walked out of her bedroom and set off.
As she made her way outside, night had fallen and the little lights on the pathway had come on, casting a warm glow over the grass. The air was heavily scented with blossom and in the distance she could hear the waves lapping gently against the shore.
It is so gorgeous here, she thought. Despite the promise Florida held, she would be sorry to leave. She realised in a funny way that she would miss Raphael too. Not just because of how much he inspired her with the music, but because they were finally starting to get along. Raphael intrigued her, but now she would never really get to know him. It was a shame.
When she reached his little bungalow, however, it was in darkness. Disappointed, Sapphire looked around. She wondered where he could be. Brad hadn’t said he needed driving anywhere tonight. It was such a beautiful evening she had an inkling that he might be on the beach, so decided to try there instead.
As she climbed down the stone steps and stepped on to the sand, Sapphire could see some kind of bonfire in the distance. Taking her flips-flops off, guitar in the other hand, she started to make her way towards it. A lone figure was sitting cross-legged beside it. As she approached she could see it was Raphael, his own guitar at his side. He looked up and saw her, raising his hand briefly in welcome.
‘Hey there,’ she said. Raphael had built a circle of little stones around the fire, and was busy throwing driftwood into the flames. It brought welcome warmth to the cool night air. Sapphire settled herself down opposite him.
He nodded at her guitar. ‘You want to practise?’
‘In a minute,’ Sapphire said. ‘It’s such a beautiful night, I thought we could talk a bit first.’
Raphael glanced up, from where he had been gazing into the fire. In the shadows, his angular face looked even more carved than ever. He’s like a beautiful statue, she suddenly thought. ‘What is it you want to talk about?’
Sapphire shrugged. ‘I don’t know, just stuff.’ She didn’t want to bring up the subject of going to Florida because she wasn’t sure if Raphael was going. She had a sudden weird feeling, like they were running out of time together. It was like that they had unfinished business, but she didn’t know what. For some reason the thought made her feel panicky. What is wrong with me? she wondered.
Raphael’s green-gold eyes fixed on hers. ‘Let’s play first, talk second,
’ he announced. Strumming softly, he started the first line of ‘Jewel’. Sapphire picked up on the second line, following him.
‘The brightest star, the richest sunrise, is nothing compared to your glitter
Jewel
Colours fade away when you walk into a room, birds lose their chatter
Jewel
But amongst the brightness, you bring with you dark
Your raven hair, raven heart
Jewel…’
For some reason, the words had a whole new meaning tonight. As they sang and played their guitars together, Sapphire felt her whole body tingling, as if they’d discovered something really special. The words of the final verse sang out into the night:
‘Once where there was darkness, there is now light
Jewel
For all that glitters is not gold
Jewel.’
Raphael put his guitar down. ‘I think this is good. You should record it.’
‘But they’re your lyrics,’ Sapphire said.
Raphael shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter.’
Sapphire studied him over the flickering flames. ‘Can I ask you something? Who was Jewel? I mean, all the stuff about the darkness — she must have really hurt you.’
For a long time they sat in silence, the only sound the crackle and hiss from the burning driftwood.
Suddenly, Raphael got up and came to sit beside her. ‘Jewel was a girl I once knew. Actually, her real name was Jessica.’ He shot a glance at Sapphire. ‘She looked a lot like you.’ Raphael gave a twisted smile. ‘In fact, when I first laid eyes on you I thought the devil herself had come back to haunt me.’