Bundle of Brides

by Kay Thorpe

‘You don’t seem too enthused,’ Ross observed in the silence that followed her departure.

  Gina summoned a smile, a light rejoinder. ‘I’m not all that bothered about meeting a load of people we’re never likely to see again.’

  ‘We’ve had a week on our own,’ he said. ‘I’d have thought you’d be ready for some company.’

  ‘Meaning, you are?’ she asked.

  ‘I guess I am, yes,’ he said. ‘For a few hours, at any rate.’

  She kept the smile going. ‘That’s fine, then.’

  The subject wasn’t mentioned for the rest of the afternoon. They took a boat out and spent an enjoyable three hours touring the coastline. Gina had meant it when she’d said she could live there herself. Compared with LA, the island was an oasis of peace and laid-back tranquillity.

  It was late when they got back to the villa. There was just time to grab a bite to eat before dressing for the evening affair. With Samantha close to Ross in age, Gina chose to emphasise her comparative youth with a bias-cut dress designed to show off her figure to its best advantage. Fitted to mid-thigh from a wide, boat-shaped neckline that left her shoulders almost bare and offered a tantalising glimpse of softer flesh, it flared just enough to draw attention to the length of leg left exposed. A pair of spindle-heeled sandals made the latter look even longer.

  Not bad, she thought critically, viewing her reflection. On impulse, she swept her hair up, leaving little tendrils to curl into her nape and about her face. Smoothed with just a hint of shadow, lashes darkened by mascara, her eyes were vivid against her tanned skin.

  Emerging from the en suite bathroom, the briefest of towels slung about lean hips, Ross gave a low whistle. ‘That,’ he exclaimed, ‘is a sight to perk any man up!’

  ‘I didn’t realise you needed perking up,’ she said.

  He laughed. ‘A figure of speech, I think you’d call it. You look fantastic, anyway!’

  There was a moment when he seemed about to make some other observation, then he moved to the bed, where his clothes for the evening were ready laid out, and began to dress.

  Gina had hoped he was going to suggest they stayed home instead of going to this party. She would willingly have sacrificed all the effort she’d put into her appearance. As it obviously wasn’t to be, she just had to make the best of it.

  Striking himself in dark brown trousers and shirt, along with a cream jacket, Ross kept a casual conversation going as they headed along the coast. Gina made every effort to respond in the same vein, hauling herself over the coals for allowing herself to be dragged down again. So what if he and Samantha had had something going in the past? It wasn’t to say he still harboured a desire for her.

  She was clutching at straws, and she knew it. The way the two of them had been looking at one another when she first saw them together, there was certainly something there.

  The house at the romantically named Cobblers Cove was about the same size as the Harlow residence. Built to a similar, open-plan design, and superbly furnished, it was already teeming with people when they got there. So much for the ‘bit of a soirée’, Gina thought drily.

  Eye-catching in gold, Samantha greeted the pair of them like guests of honour. It was obvious from the start that most people there knew who they were. Obvious, too, that it was a moneyed crowd. Samantha must be doing very well indeed to move in such circles, Gina reflected.

  She certainly lost little time in separating the two of them, leaving her in the company of an older, distinguished-looking man called Adrian, while she dragged Ross off to meet someone who was in the hotel business there on the island, and looking to sell. Gina could have claimed that it was as much of interest to her to meet this person, considering her shares in the company, but Ross made no attempt to say it, and she wasn’t about to kick him in the teeth in front of everyone.

  ‘I’m surprised Ross would be willing to share you, looking the way you do,’ Adrian declared. ‘I certainly wouldn’t!’

  ‘Have you known Samantha long?’ Gina asked, taking the gambit no more seriously than it was meant.

  ‘Just over a year,’ he said. ‘We live together.’ He read the unspoken question in her swift glance, his smile untroubled. ‘I’m forty-six. Not that much more than the difference between you and your husband, I’d say. What’s in a few years, anyway?’

  What indeed? she thought, relieved that Samantha had a man of her own in tow. A ridiculous reaction, she had to admit.

  ‘Is the house yours?’ she asked.

  ‘It is. Had it built last year. The interior decor’s all down to Sam though. She’s a clever lady.’ The pause was brief. ‘She tells me she and your husband are old friends. I sense a bit more than that.’

  Gina steeled herself to show no emotion. ‘Would you be bothered if there had been more?’

  His shrug was philosophical. ‘What happened before we met isn’t important. All I ask is faithfulness while we’re together. I dare say you feel the same way.’

  She might feel it, she could have told him, there was a fat chance of it happening. ‘I hadn’t really thought about it,’ she prevaricated. ‘I suppose I just take it for granted.’

  ‘Take nothing for granted,’ he warned. ‘There is a lot of temptation out there. I’m not immune to it myself—especially right now.’ The last with a smile that robbed the words of any ulterior motive. ‘You’re a very lovely young woman, Gina. A man would have to be insensible not to be aware of it.

  ‘Having said that, it’s maybe the wrong moment to ask if you’d like to see the gardens,’ he added on a humorous note. ‘I’m in need of a breath of fresh air after all this conditioned stuff.’

  There was no sign of Ross and Samantha in the immediate vicinity. Gina forced herself to concentrate on the man in front of her. ‘I’d love to see the gardens. I could do with a breather myself.’

  People had already spilled out onto the spacious stone-paved patio, some dancing on an oval floor which appeared to be covering a pool below, music provided by a trio. Gina caught a glimpse of the sea through the trees backing the patio, shining silver in the moonlight.

  The gardens lay to either side and the front of the house. Subtly lit, they were the best Gina had ever seen. Myriad scents assailed her nostrils.

  ‘It’s wonderful,’ she told Adrian with sincerity. ‘I’d love a garden like this, only we have an apartment.’

  ‘So move to a house,’ he said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. ‘Or have one built to your own specification. An apartment’s no place to have children. Assuming you plan to have children.’

  ‘Of course.’ Gina kept the smile going with an effort. ‘Not just yet though. I’m still getting used to being married.’

  ‘I wouldn’t wait too long,’ he advised. ‘My wife and I might still be together if we’d started a family.’

  If a marriage had to rely on children to keep it going, it wasn’t worth much to start with, she thought.

  They returned to the patio via a path that brought them out to the rear, just in time to see Samantha and Ross emerge from another path leading into the trees.

  There was nothing to be read from either face. Samantha was the first to speak, her tone blithe.

  ‘I’ve been showing Ross the new boat. He thinks he may go for one himself if he decides to keep the house on. Where did you two get to?’

  ‘I’ve been showing Gina the gardens.’ Adrian sounded easy enough on the surface, though Gina thought she detected a certain wariness. The two of them had been missing nearly an hour. Time enough for anything.

  ‘How did the meeting go?’ she asked with some deliberation. ‘Is the hotel a viable proposition?’

  ‘Not for Harlows,’ Ross answered smoothly. ‘Why don’t we have a dance as we’re out here?’

  A curt refusal trembled on her lips, bitten back with some difficulty. She accompanied him onto the floor in silence, unable to stop herself from stiffening when he put his arms about her.

  ‘Something bothering yo
u?’ he asked.

  ‘What makes you think anything is bothering me?’ she countered.

  ‘Because I may as well be holding a stick of celery. I realise you weren’t too keen on coming, but you looked happy enough a few minutes ago with Adrian.’

  ‘I was,’ she said. ‘He’s a very nice man. Attractive too, for his age. Samantha’s done well for herself.’

  ‘Yes, she has. So has he. They make a good pair.’

  ‘Better than the two of you did?’ The words were out before she could stop them this time, instantly regretted.

  It was a moment or two before Ross answered. When he did speak it was with measured tones. ‘Is this what I can expect every time you meet a woman I’m already acquainted with?’

  ‘No, of course not.’ She did her best to achieve the right note. ‘We’re both of us completely free agents. So, are you really considering keeping the villa on?’

  An indefinable expression crossed the lean features. ‘Maybe. I haven’t decided yet.’ He drew her closer, nuzzling his lips to her cheek. ‘I want you!’

  A need initiated by another woman, she thought.

  ‘It’s early yet,’ she said lightly. ‘And we haven’t danced together for at least a week!’

  His laugh was low. ‘Not vertically, at any rate.’

  ‘You have a one-track mind,’ she accused, adopting the same bantering note.

  ‘So you keep telling me. I think we’ll call it a night all the same. Here, at any rate.’

  Gina was by no means loath to leave the place. She at least had the satisfaction of seeing Samantha look a little put out when they announced their departure, although the other covered it swiftly with a smile, and a hope to see them again before they returned to LA. Adrian was cordial in his farewells, but made no attempt to echo the sentiment, leaving Gina with the feeling that he might harbour some doubts of his own about that missing hour.

  The drive back down the coast in the scented night was pleasurable. She was going to miss all this when they went back, Gina acknowledged. It was doubtful if they’d be visiting the island again. She’d be well able to visit it herself in time to come, of course, but she probably wouldn’t. There were plenty of other places to go. Places with no memories to plague her.

  Elinor greeted the pair of them with unbridled happiness when they showed up there the day after landing back. She’d so missed having her around, she told Gina. The house had felt so empty.

  ‘I think I might look for something a little smaller, and closer to town,’ she said when the three of them were ensconced, as usual, on the terrace. ‘An apartment, maybe.’

  ‘I’ve got a better idea,’ Ross put in. ‘Why don’t you move into the apartment, and we’ll take over here? You’ll have Room Service on tap when you want it. Maid Service too.’

  His mother looked far from turned off by the suggestion, though a little tentative when she glanced Gina’s way. ‘How would you feel about it?’

  Perplexed, she could have told her. Why Ross would want a house the size of this one, she couldn’t begin to imagine.

  ‘I’d love it,’ she said, unable to see any other possible reply in the circumstances.

  ‘That’s settled, then,’ Ross declared. ‘I’ll get things started first thing Monday. I guess you’ll want a complete make-over before you move in,’ he added to Elinor. ‘You never did care for the decor.’

  ‘True enough. I’ll get my designer to look at it.’ She sounded really enthused. ‘You’ll want to change things here, too, Gina.’

  ‘I like it exactly the way it is,’ Gina answered truthfully, still reeling at the swiftness with which the whole matter was being arranged. ‘We have very similar tastes. Are you quite sure about it all?’ she felt bound to ask. ‘I mean, I know the apartment is big, but it doesn’t begin to compare with what you have here. What about the pool, for instance? You swim every morning.’

  ‘The Beverly Harlow has two pools. I’ll just make sure I get down there before breakfast.’ Elinor obviously had no doubts in mind. She got to her feet. ‘I’ll go and give Maurice a call. He’ll be snowed under as usual, but he’ll just have to squeeze me in somehow.’

  The pause stretched for several seconds after she’d gone. Ross was the first to speak. ‘Any objections?’

  ‘Why would I object?’ Gina asked shortly. ‘I’d just have appreciated some prior warning.’

  ‘The idea only came to me when my mother mentioned moving,’ he said. ‘I’d rather keep the place in the family. It will get Meryl and Jack off my back too. They’ve been on at me to move into the property market for years. I’m sure you’ll enjoy living up here better than the apartment.’

  She was forced to concede that much. Big as it was, the apartment still felt constrictive in comparison. Probably because the balcony was its only private outside space.

  ‘You really believe your mother will be happy there?’ she asked.

  ‘If she already had apartment-living in mind, then yes,’ he said. ‘She’ll transform it anyway. Or Maurice will. She’ll have meant what she said about this place too. She won’t mind if you want to change things.’

  Gina kept her tone steady. ‘I don’t see much point, considering I’ll only be here a few months, at the most.’

  The pause was lengthy. When he spoke again it was without particular expression. ‘Are you still planning on staying with the company after we finish? Taking an active part, I mean.’

  ‘I doubt it,’ she admitted. ‘I might go back home to England. Either way, you can have the fifty-one per cent.’

  If he was gratified by the offer, it wasn’t noticeable. ‘What would you do back in England?’

  She shrugged. ‘Anything that took my fancy, I suppose. I might even travel. Apart from Spain and Italy, and here, of course, I haven’t been all that far. I always fancied taking the Trans-Siberian across Russia. Then there’s the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, the Valley of Kings.’

  ‘Sounds like a full world tour,’ Ross commented drily. ‘On your own?’

  ‘The best way to do it,’ she said. ‘Only myself to please. Anyway, it’s just a pipedream at present.’

  ‘It won’t be after tomorrow. All we have to do is complete the paperwork. If you’re serious about selling me the shares, I’ll need another six per cent. We can arrange that at the same time. You’ll still retain twenty-four per cent, with a right to draw dividends on it twice a year, whatever you decide to do with your life.’

  ‘Fine.’ Gina didn’t want to think about it. She’d been talking through her hat with all that guff about touring the world on her own. What kind of pleasure would there be in seeing the sights she had mentioned with no one to share the experience?

  The housekeeper came out bearing a round of drinks and some light refreshments on a tray. Her attitude was a little more congenial than it had been in the early days, but Gina still found her difficult to get along with.

  ‘What about staff?’ she asked when the woman had gone. ‘You’ll hardly have need of a chauffeur for a start, and Lydia has never been all that enamoured of me.’

  Ross lifted his shoulders. ‘Michael does other jobs, and Lydia keeps everything running smoothly. Unless you fancy taking it on yourself?’

  She cast a glance at him, disconcerted by his somewhat brusque tone. ‘I just thought—’

  ‘It’s your choice,’ he interposed. ‘If you want new people in, have them—if you can find any available. Good, trustworthy staff are like gold here. They can pick and choose jobs.’

  Implying that they were fortunate to have the pair at all, Gina took it. There was a possibility that they might decide a change was called for themselves, once it was realised what was to happen—maybe even taking the daily cleaning staff with them. If she didn’t want to be left without any help at all, she’d perhaps better start putting some effort into cultivating the relationship.

  It took that thought to bring home to her just how far she’d come from the person she’d been two months
ago. She’d sworn not to become blasé about her new lifestyle, but she was starting to take certain aspects of it for granted. That stopped right here!

  Ross extracted his mobile from a pocket, the expression crossing his face when he glanced at the display unreadable. He must have the set on vibration signal only, Gina thought as he put the instrument to his ear. She preferred an audible tone herself.

  ‘Hi,’ he said. ‘How are you?’ He listened for a moment, then added briefly, ‘Afraid I’m tied up right now. I’ll ring you later.’

  If it hadn’t been for the familiar greeting, Gina might have taken it that the call was from a business associate. Suspicion reared its head when he slid the phone back into his pocket without comment, though she did her best to smother it.

  Elinor returned looking a little uncertain. Maurice, it seemed, would only agree to tackle the apartment if work could begin right away.

  ‘No problem,’ Ross assured her. ‘We can move up tomorrow, and leave a clear field. Considering we don’t have any furnishings to transport, it shouldn’t be too difficult a job. Most of our personal stuff will go in the cars.’

  ‘I can send Michael down with the limo,’ his mother offered, carried away by enthusiasm again. ‘It’s good to know the house will be staying in the family! Oliver would like it too.’ She caught herself up as if in sudden recollection, her glance shifting to Gina. ‘Sorry, darling, I’m running away with it all. If you need more time…?’

  Gina shook her head smilingly, determined not to go for Ross in front of his mother. ‘The decision’s made. Why wait? We can use my old room for the time being.’

  ‘Oh, no, you’ll have the master suite, of course! I’ll have Lydia make a start right away.’

  Grey eyes met green, the latter smouldering. Ross lifted a quizzical eyebrow, whether genuinely unaware of the reason for her anger, or simply playing dumb, Gina wasn’t sure. If she was honest about it, being sidelined again was only a contributory factor. She was almost certain that the phone call had been from some woman.

  By the time they left the house at five, everything was arranged. The move would be made the next day, after they’d seen the lawyers.