by Tom Barry
“Sure, Gina, let me take up a seat.” He pulled up wooden chairs for both of them.
“I think, Signor, this is not a good time? Perhaps your mind is still on the meeting with Signor Mancini?” she asked, her face full of interest and compassion.
“Yes,” he admitted, “but what better way to take my mind off it than sitting here with you. And going through the guest list, of course.” He gave her one of his broadest smiles, and moved his chair around to her side of the table. Today he would live like a free man. “Gina, the dinner you mentioned, is that offer still available?” he asked, his hand inches from hers.
“But of course, Signor Jay, but I thought perhaps you were too busy?”
“Hmm, yes, I do have a lot going on, and I need to get back to England later this week. And next week is going to be very difficult too,” he remembered aloud as he ran his fingers through his hair.
He looked into her dark brown eyes, looking back at him so familiarly, so openly, so ready to give him everything that they could have been Lucy’s. An idea struck him like lightning and lit up his whole countenance. “But it so happens, Gina, if it is not too short notice, I have no commitments this evening. And I can think of nothing better than dinner with a stunning young lady. Will this evening work for you?”
She nodded automatically and he covered her smooth, tapered fingers with his hand, his wedding ring cool against her warm skin.Twenty-six
The phone call that Isobel received over dinner in Lucca was neither a declaration of love nor a frank admission of sexual desire; it was a short and business-like message. Jay informed her warmly but otherwise without emotion that a decision might have been made on the Visconti suite, and issued a polite invitation that she come to Castello di Capadelli to find out.
The conflicting possibilities of secrecy or rejection battled in her mind, trampling across her brain and marauding through her heart. Maria’s judgement favoured secrecy, convinced that he was simply exercising caution, and it was with her forceful urgency that Isobel was driven to Castello di Capadelli.
A smiling Gina met them at reception, her eyes jet black with birdlike limpidity. “Good afternoon, Signora Roberts, Signor Brooke has asked me to greet you and to show your friend around if she wishes it,” she acknowledged Maria with a quick and unyielding smile, “as he is currently with a client.”
“I think a long cool drink is what I need right now,” said Maria, determined to meet the mysterious Jay and see for herself the chemistry between him and her friend.
“As you wish, Signora.”
They followed her to the wine bar in the inner courtyard as she led them to a table spotlighted by the sun and called for some sparkling water, bidding them goodbye as the bottles arrived with a smiling waiter.
“Just one thing, Gina,” said Isobel, as the girl turned away. “Maria and I would like to go horse riding tomorrow afternoon. Is that something you can arrange for us?”
Gina twirled back to meet her gaze.
“Yes, I think I can arrange that, Signora. Is there anything special you need?”
“Maria is able to lend me everything, except the riding boots. Would it be possible for you to find a pair for me, size thirtynine?”
Gina nodded in acquiescence. “That, Signora, is also my size. If you are happy to use my boots, it will be my pleasure.”
“Thank you, Gina, you are very kind.” The girl smiled and walked away, her movement poised and delicate.
The two friends basked in the sun and the silence as her footsteps faded, Isobel closing her eyes like a cat whilst Maria looked around in interest at the place that had captured so sensible a heart.
“Do you like it then?” Isobel asked, her eyes still shut, her eyelids faint blue in the sunlight.
“I can see why you like it,” Maria said, wrinkling her perfect skislope nose. “The views are stunning, the staff are obliging, and the whole place glows with money.”
“B-u-u-t?” said Isobel, opening one eye in cheeky acknowledgement of Maria’s notoriously candid opinions.
“But,” Maria grinned, “it’s not quite the same as having your own place. For me and for Angelo, we like to swim and to lie naked by the pool. They probably have a rule here against that sort of thing.”
“Splashing in the pool naked is not quite mine and Peter’s thing,” she replied with a laugh. “The last time we were in a spa we were the only people wearing anything. It was in Austria and someone asked Peter to close the door to the sauna when we went in. The woman spoke English in a German accent, and Peter couldn’t understand how she knew our nationality.”
Maria snorted with laughter. “Well, let’s just hope your new friend doesn’t want to do things with the lights on. Have you thought about that, Isobel? And talking of new friends, is that hunk coming towards us Jay?”
It was, and he strode across the courtyard like a king, tall and magnificent, imbued with strength by his kingdom. Isobel stood to greet him, filled with a sense of pride at his powerful presence, and introduced Maria who, with typical disregard for inhibition, launched into conversation.
“An interesting spot you have here, a hideaway on top of the hill,” she said with a smile.
“Thank you. Yes, it was quite a find,” he said, turning to Isobel, seemingly to escape Maria’s eyes. “Isobel mentioned she is staying with you in Lucca?”
“Just outside Lucca, a converted farmhouse. We love it there,” said Maria.
“So how much time are you able to spend here?” he asked.
“As much as I can, at least in the summer, it depends of course on when my boyfriend can join me.”
Jay nodded, his eyes resting on her wedding ring. Her openness did not surprise him; everything in her manner seemed an infidelity. Seeing Isobel next to her, innocent and contained, made him doubt everything he had supposed.
“And I hope that we will be seeing you here often, Isobel?” he asked, seeking answers in her face. “Everyone who met you yesterday was quite struck by you, particularly the Italians. It’s quite rare for our English clients to speak such fluent Italian and, Gina tells me, with almost no trace of an accent. You must have spent quite some time in Italy?”
She smiled, her face alight from the compliment. “Thank you, but I’m a little rusty. Though getting my Italian back up to speed is something I’m looking forward to.”
He agreed with enthusiasm, trying not to watch her with too much intensity.
“You said you might have an update from Andy Skinner?” she asked, unable to read him.
“Yes, I spoke with Andy again earlier. He isn’t quite decided I’m afraid; he has to talk things over with his wife Kate. But I should be able to let you know in the next few days.” He crinkled his eyes in apology and changed the subject, turning the conversation to their plans for the next few days.
“Tomorrow we thought it might be nice to spend a couple of hours in the morning by the sea. And then maybe to come horse riding here,” said Isobel, buoyed by his interest.
“Yes, Gina told me about your visit to the paddock yesterday. Do you think you might use the local facility? Gina says the old boy there took quite a shine to you.” He looked at her as if waiting for a reason to like her more.
“I don’t know about that, I think he was just a very sweet man. But, yes, we hope we can go back there. Gina is seeing what she can sort out for us.” Her words trailed off, she was unsure what else to say and happy to end the subject, which she thought was probably a boring one for a man with so much.
Maria, however, was unrelenting in her curiosity.
“Is horse-riding something you have done much of, Jay?”
“The last time I was on a horse was on a beach in Thailand. It was quite a few years ago. I thought I did ok...” He ruffled his hair in thought.
“Well, perhaps you can join us tomorrow. Isobel is an excellent horsewoman, much more experienced than me, so I am sure you will be in safe hands.”
Jay murmured in thought before replying
. “That sounds fun, and tomorrow I have a quiet day. But I wouldn’t want to slow you down.”
“But that is exactly what I need tomorrow,” Maria exclaimed, “someone to slow Isobel down, so she doesn’t race ahead as if she is at Aintree. I think it’s a super idea, if you are able to join us.”
“And you promise you won’t laugh when I make a fool of myself?”
“Of course we will, that is half the fun of having you along,” said Maria, as Isobel looked on in awe.
“I would hate to disappoint you,” he said with a grin. His laugh was deep and genuine as he pledged his agreement and he watched Maria in admiration as the two women walked back to the car.
“Maria, that was somewhat forward of you, don’t you think?” whispered Isobel as they walked away.
“Maybe yes, but once you mentioned horse-riding, I think your man Jay was playing for the invitation to join us.”
Isobel nodded in defeat. “Well, I suppose I’d better stop at reception and let Gina know we need three horses now.”
Maria held her gaze for a split second, the knowledge of all womankind behind her eyes.
“Don’t worry, Isobel. You will only need the two horses.”Twenty-seven
Jay walked to Gina’s place in Capadelli, a bottle of the finest red wine he could lay his hands on in the cellar of Il Paradiso under his arm. The evening was cool and refreshing, the sky pink and blue with endless stars that pierced the colours like pinpricks. Her apartment teetered on the fourth floor of a great square building, dyed honey orange by the dust and the heat with its stucco flaking away like wafers.
He had not known whether to come, his mind and body near ripped him apart as they pulled for command of his fate. To entangle himself with Gina would be an additional complication, another fine line in the web he was weaving around himself. Isobel played heavily on his consciousness, stirring within him desires that not even Lucy awoke in him. Yet how could any man resist Gina? Innocent and fresh, her beauty was undeniable and she seemed to offer herself to him, how could he not take it? Nothing, no logic or sense, could stop him from doing so.
As he stepped into the apartment any doubt of her intentions vaporised into the candle-lit air. The room was bathed in a reddish glow, tables and corners illuminated by flame-like shrines, and mellow music played in the background. It looked quite magical in its own way and when Gina stood there in the doorway, the softness of her curves traced in the darkness, Jay wafted in, a slave to his senses. They shared a delicious dinner, the air between them thick and aromatic, full of satisfaction and dissatisfaction.
After they had eaten, Gina suggested they watch a film on the sofa, and so they lounged with a half-body of space between them whilst Audrey Hepburn ran around Rome, the black and white of the screen projecting strange shapes into the darkness of the room. Jay shifted his position to make himself more comfortable, inching closer as he sunk into the cushions. Gina echoed his movements like a marionette, leaning towards him as he put an arm round her shoulder and pulled his legs up onto the sofa. She mimicked him again, her lissom form melting into his firm bulk as they lay together like sculptures.
“You are comfortable in this position, Jay?” she asked, looking into his eyes, as the film became mere noise and light.
He shifted again to pull her closer, pressing his hardness against her in silent answer.
“Are you happy with my work?” she asked, stroking his chest with the slightness and vulnerability of a child.
“Very happy,” he replied, his bemusement lost to her in the dark.
“Then perhaps you will now allow me to help you in your work; I have many skills and I fear I do not use these skills, and I would so much like to be closer to you…in your work.” The words came out in a torrent of repressed hopefulness and she pushed herself closer until even the tremble of her breathing gave him pleasure.
“We are not looking for additional staff right now. What do you have in mind?” Jay asked.
“Well, you have your meeting soon, no?” She ran her hand up his chest like electricity. “And I can translate and type and even take dictation.”
He shifted beneath her again and she fell between his body and the sofa.
“Please, Jay, it would mean a lot for me to do these things for you at the meeting.” He shifted again until she was beneath him, stroking his neck in submission. He pondered the suggestion as she caressed him. A striking girl like Gina in the room would be a distraction to Andy and her presence would help to keep tempers from flaring if things became difficult.
“It might be possible, Gina, but I will need to speak to Andy. He’s very stressed at the moment—”
“I could smile at him and tell him how handsome and virile a man he is,” she interrupted with a mischievous grin.
Jay imagined her tempting Andy, who held such power over him; dangling herself teasingly before him to never be had, after he, Jay, had owned her with his body.
“Then you must dress in your best outfit, Gina, to show Andy how important he is,” he declared, his arousal now almost unbearable. She radiated pleasure at his words and pushed herself yet closer, fitting into every contour of his body.
“I think, Jay, that you must have been with many women in your life, no?” Damp and hot against him, she nuzzled at his neck.
“Not so many. I have a wife and a girlfriend,” he admitted, stroking her hair, “but I do not love either of them. My wife knows this and we are together for convenience but the girl…” he hesitated, “it has been very difficult to break with the girl. Although I do not love her, I do not want to hurt her.”
“This girl, then she loves you, no?”
“Well, that’s the strange part,” he murmured, half to himself. “I don’t think she loves me. It’s more that she thinks she needs me. She has her own boyfriend, but she won’t let me go.”
“Then she must be very selfish.”
He stroked her in assent, silent for a moment with his thoughts.
“How about you, Gina? A girl like you, you must have every man around chasing after you?” She pushed herself up beneath him and held his gaze, her lips quivering with truth.
“At the moment I think of no one special, Jay, only perhaps you. I look out for you every day, but it seems that you do not notice me. You do not look at me.” He said nothing, just stared back as she continued. “Let us not talk any more about these things. I am sorry I asked you about your girlfriends. Now you have made me feel a little foolish.”
Jay shook his head, sliding a hand onto her chest as if to keep the words within her. But she interlocked her fingers in his, trapping him until she could find solace.
“I have another great worry, but you will think it silly.”
“Not at all, Gina, but I can assure you it’s not that big.” He laughed at his joke but it was lost on Gina, and she continued.
“But it is a big worry, for me. You do not learn our language, and it seems Castello di Capadelli is nearly finished. So perhaps you will be leaving here very soon?”
“Not at all, Gina,” he said, as if such a thought had never occurred to him.
But she persisted. “If you do wish to leave here, you will tell me first? For it would be terrible for me to hear it from others.”
Jay cupped her face in his hand and kissed her in answer, hoping that it would say everything she wanted it to. She let his tongue breach her lips in response, offering no resistance as he began to massage her breasts through her blouse, and kept her arms locked around his neck. He travelled his hand down to her waist but froze from the burst of tension in her body, running through her bones like ice until he moved his hand back up again.
Jay kissed her more ardently now, wanting to convince her of his sincerity, and slipped his hand beneath her blouse and over her warm satiny skin.
He was starting to ache for Gina to explore his own body; he pressed harder against her so that she could have no doubt of his excitement. But the most that he seemed to be encouraging was the m
ovement of Gina’s hands up and down his back in a panacean rhythm.
She gasped as he pushed his fingers into her mouth, but she licked them like a kitten and shuddered and murmured as they rubbed against her hard, erect nipple. He travelled his hand slowly southward again, hungry for her, but as it passed the waistline a swift motion from Gina’s hand intercepted it.
“I am sorry, Jay, tonight I am not ready. It is too early for me.” She stared up at him, afraid but resolute, her eyes swimming with a black that could not be pierced.
“It is me who should be sorry, Gina,” he sighed. “I did not mean to pressure you.”
“No, it is my fault. I should not have encouraged you. It was just that I was enjoying the evening with you so much and I did not want it to finish. And also I was enjoying what we were doing. But I just need a little more time. It is silly I know, but that is the way I am.” She sat up, refastened her blouse and pulled down her bra. “I think we have missed the end of the film. Should I rewind it?”
“We can finish it next time, Gina, it’s getting late anyway.” He stood up to leave, drained of everything and feeling strangely lost.
“Tomorrow you will not ignore me again, Jay? You will not punish me because I was without courage tonight? Because then I will be very sad.”
He cupped her chin in his hand and smiled, her words reminding him of his plans for the next day. “You have had a very busy weekend, Gina, and you must be tired.” She shook her head automatically. “But you worked this weekend, and the last weekend. When did you last have a day off work?”
“I cannot remember. It has been very busy. Maybe a month ago.” She cocked her head like a bird, her eyes questioning him.
“They are working you far too hard. Everybody else gets a break. Eamon and the boys pop home for a few days every month. I don’t think they are being very fair on you.”
“It is nice that you tell me that I work so much. Perhaps it’s for you that I do it—”
He cut her off, mercy and kindness held to his face like a mask.
“Well, tomorrow you must have the day off. You have earned it.”