by T A Williams
* * *
Alice was woken by her phone at seven o’clock next morning. As she picked it up, she was surprised to see it was Layla, presumably back in LA, where it was late at night.
‘Hi, Layla, all well?’
‘Hi, Alice, I hope I didn’t wake you too early. I’m fine, thanks, but I wanted to let you know what’s been happening. Millie’s been telling me about the way your David just took off for Hollywood and I’m appalled. What a way to behave! And to you of all people!’
‘It’s okay, I’m over it. In fact, he probably did me a favour. But has something happened?’
‘Nothing bad, but I’ve just had dinner with Millie and while we were sitting there, David appeared. I hadn’t seen him since getting back to LA, but he’d obviously been keeping tabs on me.’
‘What? Stalking you?’
‘Maybe not quite as sinister as that, but he’d been asking around to find out where I would be.’
‘And what did he want?’
‘It was all a bit weird, really. He just pitched up and hung about by our table, presumably waiting for an invitation to join us and when it didn’t come – Millie and I were in the middle of some personal stuff – he just stood there like a lemon and mooched about until I sent him packing.’
‘And he didn’t say what he wanted?’
She heard a momentary hesitation on the part of Layla. ‘According to Millie, he might have been after me.’
With Millie’s help, Alice had already worked this out for herself, but she was delighted to hear that Layla didn’t reciprocate his feelings. She gave an annoyed hiss. ‘What a prat.’
‘Quite… Anyway, look Alice, I wouldn’t want you to think I’ve been responsible in any way for encouraging him – apart from giving him the names of a few agents and TV execs, while we were still at the villa, to help with his career. The last I saw of him was at the airport, when I texted you about it. I was in first class and he was at the rear of the aircraft, so I didn’t even see him when we got to LAX. If I was in any way responsible for raising his hopes, I’m truly sorry – not to him, but to you. My friendship with you is far too precious to risk for the sake of some man. Please believe me that there isn’t anything, there never was anything, and there certainly won’t be anything between David and me at any time in the future.’
Alice thanked her warmly and did her best to reassure her that she didn’t blame her in the slightest. After chatting a bit longer, Alice rang off and lay back in bed as she digested this information. On the one hand, she was pleased – and relieved – to know that her friend Layla hadn’t behaved unscrupulously, but it also just confirmed what a moron her supposedly intelligent boyfriend had become. They had had no contact since the note he had left on her pillow, and that was fine by her. The shock of his sudden departure had gradually worn off and she knew she wanted nothing more to do with him. Besides, now there was Matt… hopefully.
Half an hour later she threw some clothes into the washing machine and sat down to check her messages over breakfast. There were two of them and her eyes were immediately drawn to the first. It was an email from Matt.
Hi Alice. Feel like a (longish) walk? I’ve just come back from a couple of days in London and I need some fresh air. Matt
She replied immediately and they arranged to meet at ten. Feeling buoyed by the prospect of seeing him again, she then checked a text message that must have come in while she was in the shower and saw that it was from Millie, back in Hollywood. It repeated the events at the restaurant that Layla had outlined and ended with the words:
It was awfully embarrassing and I just wanted you to know that it’s quite clear Layla had nothing to do with making David decide to come over to the States. She said she’d give you a call to apologise but, as far as I can see, she has nothing to apologise for. Hope you’ve hooked up with your mystery man. I want all the juicy details.
Mil
xx
Alice sent her a cheerful, friendly reply, but didn’t go into too much detail as to how things were going with Matt – mainly because she didn’t know herself.
Chapter 21
At ten o’clock, after spending far too long in the bathroom getting ready for what might be just a walk in the country, she put on shorts and trainers and drove up to Matt’s house, doing her best to dominate the rising sense of excitement at the thought of seeing him again. She had toyed with the idea of going up on foot but, seeing as there was a long walk ahead of her, she opted for the car. Her heart leapt as she saw him waiting for her with his faithful hound at his side. Guinness charged over to give her his usual boisterous welcome and Matt welcomed her with the lightest of kisses on her cheeks, which nevertheless sent sparks coursing throughout her whole body. She checked him out surreptitiously and wondered if that might even be just a hint of nervousness on his face. Was he maybe feeling similarly excited at the prospect of a day together?
‘Hi, Matt.’ She was delighted to hear her voice sounding more confident than she felt.
‘Hi, Alice. So good to see you. I’ve been thinking of you a lot while I’ve been away.’
That sounded extremely promising.
‘I’ve been thinking about you an awful lot, too.’
‘If you can handle a four-hour walk – two hours each way – I thought we could go up to the old monastery at the end of the valley. I’ve put together a picnic, so we won’t starve, and I’ve brought loads to drink. It’s a gorgeous spot, and Guinness and I often walk there. It’s very quiet and for somebody like you, with a love of history, it should be interesting. It was founded in the twelfth century by the Cistercians.’
In spite of her love of history, Alice knew that today she was less interested in the ancient monks than in her companion, but it sounded good, not least as it looked like they would have a full day out alone together.
They set off on foot, passing through Matt’s meticulously maintained olive groves, before leaving his land and heading along a good track that wound around the contours of the hillside high above the river. A lone cuckoo called from a tree behind them and swallows whizzed to and fro overhead, their cries producing just about the only sounds, apart from the bees. It was enchanting, and even the sight of a large brown-and-yellow snake slithering across the track in front of them didn’t lessen her enjoyment. Matt told her it was a harmless grass snake and she took his word for it, although reptiles were far from her favourite animals. The further they walked, the more the valley floor gradually rose up to meet them, until they finally found themselves level with the river. Although it was now little more than a trickle, there was still some water among the stones, and the Labrador wasted no time in leaping in and splashing happily about.
They sat down in the shade of a magnificent old willow and threw sticks into the water for Guinness to retrieve and drop at their feet, barking until they were thrown once more. It was a delightful day in delightful company, and Alice couldn’t have been happier. Well, she told herself, a kiss would have been rather nice… She was just debating whether to throw caution to the winds and kiss him, when he stood up.
‘On we go, okay?’
Reluctantly, she stood up, too.
As he had predicted, it took almost two hours for them to get to the ruins of the surprisingly large old monastery. It was in a state of considerable decay – barely more than four walls with some empty window openings and rounded arches where doors had once stood – and they appeared to be the only visitors. Matt explained that there wasn’t a proper road leading here so, in spite of its antiquity, it had remained off the tourist trail.
‘Guinness and I happened upon it pretty much by chance a year ago and I’ve been back numerous times, not least as there’s a decent pool in the river. I presume it might have been something to do with the old watermill and it’s deep enough for him to have a real swim, even at the height of summer.’ He grinned at her. ‘To be honest, I swim here myself sometimes.’
A tantalising image of skinny-dipping in the po
ol with Matt flashed before her eyes, but it was dashed as they heard the sound of approaching voices. A group of what were unmistakably Boy Scouts came hiking past with their leader, and Alice realised that this place maybe wasn’t quite as secluded as she had thought. Instead of going skinny-dipping, they found a spot in the shade where they could sit by the water and have their lunch. He had made ham-and-cheese sandwiches, accompanied by little cherry tomatoes, and followed by fresh nectarines and the same strawberry tarts from the local shop that she already knew well. This was all accompanied by mineral water and rosé wine that he set in the stream to cool – he had even brought plastic wine glasses. Unsurprisingly, the prospect of some titbits for lunch caused the Labrador to forsake the river and concentrate on food. Clearly, he had his priorities. So did Alice. She made sure she was sitting on the bone-dry grass alongside Matt, close enough to feel the warmth of his skin next to her shoulder. It just felt right, somehow.
At the end of her food, she lay back and closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she heard the dog splash back into the water again and then a movement, as Matt stretched out beside her. She was just trying to summon up the courage to roll over towards him, when she felt his hand grip hers and give it a gentle squeeze.
‘This is wonderful.’ There was a dreamy note to his voice and she felt a wave of affection sweep over her. She turned her head towards him and opened her eyes. His face was barely a few inches from hers.
‘It really is, Matt. I can’t imagine a better way to spend the day – or a better person to spend it with.’
A little smile spread across his face and he leant towards her. She was just closing her eyes in delicious anticipation, when it felt as if somebody emptied a bucket of water over the two of them. Just as she was catching her breath after the cold shower, a heavy object landed on top of her, before ricocheting across to Matt.
‘Guinness! Get off, you little bugger! I’m soaked.’ Matt’s voice was more frustrated than angry. She knew how he felt.
Alice raised herself onto her elbows and took stock. She looked as if she had just taken part in a Miss Wet T-shirt competition, she was emanating an unappealing odour of Labrador, and there were dirty paw prints across her tummy. Alongside her, a very happy dog was wrestling with his master, who looked even more bedraggled than she did. In spite of the unwelcome interruption to what had had all the makings of a defining moment in their budding relationship, she felt a wave of mirth rise up inside her and she burst out laughing. A second or two later she caught Matt’s eye and he, too, erupted into a fit of laughter. The Labrador, clearly puzzled by this bizarre behaviour by the two humans, finally relinquished his master, sat down on the straggly grass and occupied himself with burrowing for an itch somewhere under his armpit.
‘I’m really sorry about that, Alice. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Guinness has absolutely no manners.’ She saw his eyes run across her body and felt another thrill. ‘Are you all right?’
In answer she leant across, took his face between her palms and kissed him softly on the lips. ‘I’m just fine. And you?’ It didn’t just feel good, it really did feel right, and she almost purred.
His eyes were barely a couple of inches from hers. ‘Never better. And it’s all down to you.’ He leant in and kissed her again, before suddenly drawing back. ‘Great! That’s all we need: Baden bloody Powell and his band.’
She followed the direction of his gaze and saw that the Scout troop had returned and were in the process of pulling towels and costumes out of their backpacks, clearly about to leap into the pool. She and Matt got to their feet, and she rearranged her clothing as best she could – but not before spotting a gangly lad in his teens with his eyes glued to her chest. As they made eye contact, the boy blushed and looked away.
She glanced across at Matt. ‘I think we should maybe consider moving camp.’
He nodded and glanced at his watch. ‘To be honest, I suppose we should make tracks. I’m afraid I’ve got to head off to Rome tonight. I’m driving down and it’s going to take about three hours, so this means I need to go back home, jump in the shower, change and get away as soon as possible.’
Doing her best to swallow her disappointment, Alice nodded. ‘I see. Is this a business thing?’
‘A bit of both. Mostly business, but my grandma lives just outside Rome and my mother told me she hasn’t been too well, so I thought I’d call in on her this evening.’
While Alice was impressed that he cared enough about his old grandmother to drop in and see her, she knew she would have preferred to spend the evening – if not the night – with him. Still, drawing upon her thespian background, she produced a big smile, reached up and gave him another kiss on the lips.
‘I look forward to picking up where we left off when you return – maybe without Guinness’s participation.’
On the way back to the tower they talked a lot and she felt she knew quite a bit more about him by the time they got there. However, there still remained the mystery over just what he did for a living or, at least, how he had made his money. After all, as her mum had pointed out, historic Tuscan towers didn’t come cheap. Mind you, she reminded herself, in fairness she still hadn’t told him about her acting career. It would no doubt all come out in due course, as their relationship progressed – and for the first time she truly believed it would. By now it was mid-afternoon and the temperature was surely well into the thirties. Although they hugged the limited shade on offer as far as possible, Alice was sticky with sweat and very conscious of the lingering aroma of Labrador on her body by the time they arrived back at his home. She told herself it was maybe just as well he was hurrying off, so she could go home and take a long shower.
As they reached her car, they stopped and stood facing each other. She did her best not to let her disappointment show. ‘Well, drive safely. When will you be back?’
‘I’ve got meetings tomorrow and the day after, so I should hopefully be back on Friday.’
Alice did her best to ignore the wave of frustration now that she knew she wouldn’t see him for several days. ‘Would you let me buy you dinner that night?’
He reached out and took her hands in his. ‘You don’t need to do that.’
‘I was wondering about cooking for you but I’m not the greatest cook in the world and I wouldn’t want to risk poisoning you. Seriously, let me take you out to Giovanni’s restaurant. I’d really like to and, besides, I’ve already sampled your hospitality.’
‘I still don’t think you should pay but, all right, if you insist, that would be great.’
‘Excellent. I’ll book a table.’ A sudden thought occurred to her. ‘What about Guinness? Is he going to Rome with you? Do you want me to look after him?’
‘That’s kind of you but it’s all arranged – I’ll leave him with Virgilio. Guinness often stays with them. They spoil him rotten and he loves them. He’ll be fine.’
Accepting the inevitable, Alice released his hands and opened the car door, but then had to take two steps back, as a blast of scorching air came belching out. The Fiat had been sitting in the sun all day and the door handle was almost too hot to touch. As she waited for the interior to cool down a bit, she felt his arms encircle her waist and his lips touch her ear. She leant back against him and sighed happily.
‘I’m really sorry I have to go.’ His voice was little more than a whisper.
‘So am I.’ She took a big breath and half-turned her head towards him. ‘At least we have Friday to look forward to.’
He kissed her and she felt herself melt but then, all too soon, he pulled back.
‘A venerdì.’
‘A venerdì. See you on Friday and hope it goes well.’
Then, mildly surprised that her knees were still working after the effect his lips had had upon her, she left him and his lovely dog, and drove back to the village.
When she got back home, she lost no time in jumping under a long, cool, refreshing shower. It had been a lovely, if hot, day
and she was now under no doubt that he liked her a lot, but she could still sense hesitation in him. Was something – or someone – holding him back? He hadn’t mentioned a girlfriend or relationships of any kind, but was it credible that a most desirable man like Matt – and no doubt a millionaire to boot – had really been living a celibate life, just like one of the old monks in the monastery in the valley back in the Middle Ages? Was the real reason for going to Rome even business? Maybe there was another woman…
With a snort of frustration – directed more at herself than at him – she pushed the shower control far over to the right and gasped as a stream of freezing water landed on her head. Apart from making her jump, this did at least achieve the desired result, and she managed to start thinking more logically as she stepped out of the shower and dried off. She made a mental note that it would be wise to try to avoid descending into paranoia. It had been a wonderful day and their relationship was blossoming. When she saw him on Friday, she would make a point of finding out just exactly who Mr Matthew Livingstone really was.
But so far so good.
Chapter 22
The following day proved to be far more eventful than Alice could possibly have expected. After yesterday’s long walk, she decided not to go for her usual run and instead she strolled across to the cafe for her morning cappuccino and a chat with Rita. It was another hot day, although there was a bit of hazy cloud building, and she wondered if that might indicate that much-needed rain was on the way. As they had walked through the fields yesterday, she could almost hear the parched earth and equally thirsty plants crying out for water. For her part, she couldn’t complain. She had been here in Tuscany now for three weeks and had only had a couple of rainy days. It occurred to her that she only had ten days left in the little house and she would soon have to decide what to do next. Of course, she knew full well that much of that decision rested upon what might or might not happen between her and Matt, and she wouldn’t see him again until the day after tomorrow.