‘Impressive.’
‘Not really, it is hard work though.’
After finishing their meal, Sebastian suggested they go for a walk to help their food digest. ‘I’m glad you’ve enjoyed yourself today, Paige. I was hoping you’d like Capri as much as I do.’
She wasn’t sure why he would be so pleased, but assumed that he must be one of those people who enjoyed introducing the places he loved to those who had yet to encounter them. ‘It’s glorious here, I’m so happy I’ve taken the time to visit. Let’s go this way and see what we can discover.’
She relished the peace of the long winding roads as they meandered in between elaborate private homes partially hidden by their white-walled gardens, sheltered by pine and lemon trees against the sun. Paige pointed down to the sea. ‘We’re higher than I thought.’
Sebastian raised his eyebrows. ‘Stunning though, don’t you think?’ He checked his watch. ‘Damn, we’d better get to the funicular if we want to catch the last ferry back to Sorrento.
‘The what?’ she asked, not enjoying the change of mood, and his new sense of urgency.
‘I’ll explain as we walk. I think we have about twenty minutes and I’m not certain we’re going to make it,’ he took hold of her hand. ‘We’d better hurry.’
He groaned when they reached the back of the queue as the crowds jostled impatiently to get on board. ‘Too late,’ he said, watching the carriage starting to move down into the mountain.
Paige followed Sebastian to the viewing platform. ‘No wonder they were in such a rush,’ she said, seeing the holidaymakers hurriedly stepping onto the last ferry. Then, aware that she wasn’t as disappointed as she probably should have been, added, ‘We’ll never make it, will we?’
‘’Fraid not.’ Sebastian turned to her. ‘Don’t look so worried.’
She didn’t like to admit that the prospect of an evening in Capri didn’t bother her, especially as he looked so concerned.
‘We’ll ask at the nearest hotel for a couple of rooms and I can book us in for the night,’ Sebastian said. ‘We can go back to Sorrento tomorrow morning.’
Having tried three hotels, only to discover that all were fully booked, Paige’s earlier nonchalance was slipping. She was beginning to dread having to sleep outside somewhere.
‘It’s mid-season,’ Sebastian said, reporting back to her about his latest attempt to find somewhere. ‘But the girl on reception is phoning her brother. He owns a small guesthouse at the other side of the old town and she thinks he may be able to put us up for one night.’
Paige waited while Sebastian returned to the reception. She could hear him chatting away in Italian to the pretty receptionist. She couldn’t help thinking how melodious his deep voice sounded as he spoke the lilting language.
He waved her over. ‘They only have one room.’
‘Only one?’ Paige didn’t like the idea of having to share a room with any man right now, even one who looked like Sebastian.
‘Just the one, but don’t worry, I can sleep on Carlo’s sofa and we can meet up again in the morning. Shall I say we’ll take it, or do you want to keep looking for something elsewhere?’
Paige shrugged. ‘That’s fine, if you don’t mind?’ She turned to the receptionist. ‘Do you have Wi-Fi?’ She didn’t want Olly trying to contact her back in Sorrento and panicking if he didn’t find her.
The Wi-Fi sorted, the receptionist gave Paige her key and instructions to find her way to the guest house.
‘I’ll go and speak to Carlo and give you a chance to check your emails,’ Sebastian said. ‘Maybe we could go for something to eat a little later?’
‘Perfect.’ Paige said. ‘I’ll meet you out the front in one hour.’ She left through the large glass doors at the back of the reception and followed the pathway until she came across a couple of tiny buildings. Checking the number on her large key, she unlocked her room and entered the plain, white-washed room and sat on the bed. She longed for a cool shower, so quickly discarded her clothes and stepped into the en-suite bathroom.
Feeling much better, Paige dried herself off and dressed. Running her hands through her hair, she applied a little lip gloss and returned to the reception to use the old computer on a makeshift desk in the corner of the room. After sending Olly a quick message telling him she’d contact him the following day, and satisfied that she’d done all she could to ensure he didn’t panic, Paige went outside and sat down on a weathered bench. Leaning back and closing her eyes, she let her mind wander as she soaked up the sunrays.
‘All OK?’ Sebastian said, making her jump. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to give you a fright.’
She stood up and smiled. ‘Did you speak to Carlo?’
‘Yes, he’s excited that I’ll be staying with him tonight. He insists we open a few bottles of his favourite wine and spend the night catching up. I was wondering if you’d like to join us?’
‘Maybe for one or two, but I wouldn’t want to get in the way and ruin Carlo’s plans. He obviously doesn’t get to see you very often and must be looking forward to having you to himself.’
Sebastian shook his head and began walking. ‘He’s a great guy, but I know he’s going to want to cover old ground that I’d rather not discuss just yet.’
Paige couldn’t imagine what he meant, but didn’t push for him to elaborate. ‘I’m sure it’ll be fun,’ she said, always enjoying catching up with her friends when she hadn’t seen them for a while.
‘It’s going to be heavy,’ he arched an eyebrow. ‘There are quite a few years to cover. I can see a long evening ahead of me.’
Paige accompanied Sebastian to Carlo’s studio. He was already locking the front door. She noticed him quickly covering his disappointment to see her arriving with Sebastian.
‘I’m only going to join you for a bite to eat and one drink, then I’ll leave you guys to your evening,’ she said.
‘No, you must stay,’ Carlo said, politely.
Paige shook her head. ‘No, I’m tired and you two don’t want a relative stranger listening while you chat.’
‘Really, we’d love you to stay with us,’ Sebastian stepped in between her and Carlo, linking arms with them.
Paige laughed and suspected he meant what he was saying. She shook her head.
Carlo was funny. She could see that the two men had a close bond. The meal, in a secluded restaurant in one of the small backstreets, had been delicious. Paige waited for the musician to finish playing his mandolin and for everyone to finish applauding. ‘Right,’ she said, taking her napkin from her lap and placing it on the table before picking up her handbag. ‘I think I’m going to head off now.’
Sebastian and Carlo immediately stood up. ‘Already?’ Sebastian asked, looking unimpressed by her imminent departure.
‘Yes.’ She went to shake Carlo’s hand. He took hold of her elbow, leant forward, and kissed her on both cheeks. ‘It was lovely meeting you and seeing your wonderful paintings,’ she said, a little taken aback by his embrace.
‘I’ll walk you to the hotel,’ Sebastian said.
‘I’m fine. You stay and enjoy your evening and we can meet tomorrow morning.’
‘I wouldn’t hear of you going back alone.’ He turned to Carlo. ‘I won’t be long,’ he said, before accompanying her out onto the street.
‘Really, Sebastian,’ she said, not used to someone wanting to look after her. ‘I’m perfectly happy walking back alone, and I promise I won’t get lost.’
He narrowed his eyes. She could see he wasn’t happy with her insistence. After a brief hesitation, he sighed. ‘If you’re sure you’d rather go alone.’
‘I am.’ She smiled, not wanting him to feel bad. ‘Go back inside. I’ll meet you at the piazza at nine o’clock for breakfast, then we can catch the ferry back to Sorrento.’
Paige stood on tiptoes, kissing him on both cheeks as she had done with Carlo. ‘Good night,’ she said, before walking away.
Chapter Four
He sat back
in his chair and stretching his legs out to the side of the small wooden table, crossed them at the ankles and breathed in the warm sea air. It was hard to believe their trip to Capri had happened almost two weeks ago. He had extended his break for as long as he could, but his uncle was now insisting that he return to work. Today would be their last spent together. Why did the days seem to be rushing by so fast, he wondered? He spotted Paige hurrying down the unlevelled pavement and noticing she almost lost her footing, went to get up to see if she was OK. She righted herself by grabbing hold of a paint-flaked windowsill, glancing around to see if anyone was looking. Not wishing to add to her embarrassment, Sebastian sat down once again and concentrated on a fisherman repairing nets with his gnarled but surprisingly deft hands.
‘Well, that’s the last time I run in heels,’ she giggled.
Sebastian glanced up and stood to greet her. Her pretty face was flushed, and he couldn’t help thinking how exquisite she looked all flustered while trying to appear calm. ‘Good morning, I hope you slept well?’
She smiled, smoothing her hair down with one hand. ‘I must look a wreck. I woke up later than I’d hoped and had to rush to get here.’ He motioned for her to take the seat opposite him. ‘I’m supposed to be relaxing on holiday, but I’ll be going home with black circles under my eyes after all our late nights.’
‘Nonsense.’ He motioned towards the fisherman. ‘I bet he would disagree with you, too.’
She glanced at the old man and smiled. ‘Probably.’
‘It’s been fun though.’
‘It has, but I’m going to have to take a break from drinking wine when I get back,’ she said. ‘I’ve had much more than I’m used to on this trip.’
They stared at each other silently for a moment. ‘I was wondering what your plans were for today?’ he asked, pushing aside any thoughts of how few hours they had left together. He was going to miss her and wanted to make the most of being with her while he still could.
She took off her light jacket and placed it over the arm of the chair. ‘I’m not sure yet. You’re leaving later on, aren’t you?’ He nodded. ‘Where will you be flying to?’
‘Rome first, and then Gatwick,’ he replied, not relishing the thought of leaving her. ‘I’m going to my home in London for a few days to sort some things out. You?’
‘The same, then on to Jersey. That’s the only problem living on an island; I have to take an extra flight whenever I go anywhere.’
‘That’s what my godfather always says.’ He smiled at her and, realising that they would soon be able to see each other again, added, ‘I’ll be there in about three weeks.’
She raised her eyebrows. ‘Really? Will you be coming to Jersey for work?’
Her enthusiasm at this news, however subtle, made leaving her a little easier. ‘Yes,’ he said. ‘I have the unenviable task of working on a takeover.’
‘It must be difficult having to break the news to the people that you’ll no longer need.’
He sighed. ‘Yes, I’m afraid it will.’ He wasn’t looking forward to his next project at all. He waved the waiter over to order coffees. As he watched the teenager ask Paige if she wanted something to eat and then walk away when she declined, his euphoria on seeing her again gradually began to be replaced by a sense of foreboding. He had spent all his time relishing getting to know her, but it dawned on him that Jersey was a small island and the shopping area in town only held one or two larger stores. His gut tightened in dread.
‘It sounds grim,’ she grimaced.
He struggled to hide his growing concern. ‘It isn’t any fun, that’s true, but someone has to do it.’
‘You hear about so many companies closing down and people being made redundant at the moment. I always feel sad whenever I read about it happening in the local gazette.’
‘I know what you mean, but it’s also not easy being the one to make the decision to shut a place down.’ He cleared his throat. ‘Where did you say your business was based?’
‘It’s a small concession in De Greys, King Street. Do you know it?’
He closed his eyes briefly as it dawned on him why her name seemed familiar. Why did she have to be Paige Bingham, one of the names on the list of tenants he’d fleetingly glanced through with the endless files of due diligence.’
‘Are you OK?’ she asked, frowning.
He shook his head and forced a smile. ‘I’m fine. Nothing a good breakfast won’t fix,’ he lied. ‘I know you’re probably not that hungry, but why don’t we make the most of being here in this charismatic little port and eat something with our coffees?’
Paige’s mouth pulled back into a wide smile. ‘OK, I’ll have scrambled egg on toast.’
‘I’ll just go and give in our order,’ he said needing a moment to gather his thoughts. He stood up and made for the kiosk. Why did her shop have to be one in De Greys, he wondered, resting his hands on the serving hatch.
He gave the boy his order and walked back slowly to join her. He needed to tell her the truth, especially now that she was going to be caught up in his next project. If only she hadn’t been so hurt by her fiancé’s cruelty when they’d first met, then he probably wouldn’t have been so careful with their topics of conversation. This might have come up before now and he could have told her then. He hadn’t even attempted to kiss her yet; he’d certainly wanted to. This changed everything though, he thought miserably. He might not have known her long, but he doubted she’d be happy to discover his intentions for De Greys. She’d been let down too recently for him to chance ruining this holiday by telling her. Now was not the right time, although he wasn’t sure when it would be.
He forced a smile and returning to join her, sat back down. ‘What would you like us to do today?’ He took her hand in his. ‘It’s your last day here and I want to make sure you enjoy every moment.’
‘I don’t want to think about it,’ she said miserably. ‘It’s gone far too quickly.’
‘I know.’ He stroked the back of her wrist with his thumb. ‘We haven’t discussed what happens next either, have we?’ He wanted her to feel about him the way he unexpectedly did about her. Maybe, if he gave her time to get to know him a bit better before admitting his true business in Jersey, she might give him the benefit of the doubt. It wasn’t much, he decided, but it was all he could hope for now he’d realized who she was.
Her eyes widened, but he could see she was anticipating him elaborating on his comment. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I want to see you again,’ he admitted. When she didn’t react, he added, ‘I thought if you wanted to, we could visit somewhere extra special, like Positano. Maybe have a long, lazy lunch together.’
‘Sounds perfect,’ she said thoughtfully. ‘It’s going to be strange going home to the same routine, but without having been married. It’s not what I’d imagined at all.’
‘Life does tend to throw the odd curveball at us when we least expect it to, doesn’t it?’ he said, thinking about his own wedding bombshell when Lucinda, his then-fiancée, had left him without warning.
She narrowed her eyes. ‘You seem a little pre-occupied.’
He shrugged. ‘I think that, like you, coming here has been a welcome change from the usual whirlwind of work and flying from place to place. I came here for a few meetings and planned to leave after seeing Carlo, but I’ve switched off, for once. I hadn’t expected to have a proper holiday.’
Paige smiled, and for the first time he noticed she had a dimple in her right cheek, it added to her fresh-faced prettiness and he couldn’t help smiling back at her. ‘You’ve made all the difference to this trip for me, Seb, and I’m grateful.’ She studied her fingers for a moment before addressing him again. ‘Do you believe that certain people come into your life at exactly the time you need them?’
The Jersey Scene series box set Page 36