Villa of Sun and Secrets

by Jennifer Bohnet

  ‘Lots of families have shaky foundations,’ Joel said quietly. ‘These days it’s almost impossible to find a family that doesn’t have its black sheep, or its share of rows, fallouts and petty jealousies.’

  ‘I suppose you’re right. All part of life’s rich tapestry as someone famous once said. No idea who though. You sure you don’t want a drink while supper cooks?’

  ‘No thanks. Are you going to meet Mario?’

  Carla shrugged. ‘I suppose so. He hasn’t been told about me yet. Josette says it’s up to me when – if, she tells him. Right now I can’t stand the thought of all the complications it’s going to cause. But she has to tell him – the same as I’ll have to tell the twins and David. I can just see David’s superior reaction to the news now – because, of course, there’s never been any scandal in his family.’ She glanced up from the tin of plum tomatoes she was opening to add to the sauce. ‘Talking of David, why did you tell him you were the gardener rather than a friend?’

  ‘I didn’t want him making any crass remarks about me living here and jumping to conclusions about us and upsetting you, but he managed to do that anyway.’

  ‘I was cross on your behalf actually,’ Carla said. ‘Not mine. I didn’t want him upsetting you.’

  Joel smiled at her. ‘He didn’t.’

  41

  Five thirty the next morning found Carla creeping out of the house so as not to disturb Joel and making for the pool. The night had been hot and sticky and she’d barely slept. She was hoping a few lengths of the pool would banish her niggling headache and clear her mind. Méteo-France had been promising an orage for days now, but while she could hear the thunder rumbling away in the mountains behind Antibes, nothing had yet arrived down on the coast. Carefully, she stepped into the shallow end and waded into the water until it was deep enough for her to start swimming a slow breaststroke.

  Tossing and turning during the night, phrases from Amelia’s vindictive letter had kept popping into her mind. What kind of woman set out to try and inflict the kind of pain felt when a child dies on another woman? A twin sister you’d once been close to. Amelia, knowing the truth for years, had cruelly decided to keep it hidden from her husband, her sister and Carla, intent on causing maximum pain to Josette when the truth was known. If it had been a recent decision, then one could perhaps be charitable and say she was losing her mind and didn’t know what she was doing. Only she clearly did.

  All those years when she’d barely been able to look at Carla, let alone treat her like a beloved daughter, made more sense now. As did the way Robert had tried to make up for her mother’s indifference to her. Her bond with him had held fast. As hard as it was, she was glad he’d died before Amelia and missed this explosive exposé of the truth. It would have destroyed him. At least she had happy memories of her dad. Because he had been her dad in all the ways that mattered. Nobody could take his place in her heart.

  She didn’t believe for one minute that Josette had connived to ruin Amelia’s life to preserve her own reputation. If she’d known Mario was the father of her baby, she’d surely have fought to keep the child and marry Mario rather than obey her father and hand the baby over to Amelia and Robert. Her grandfather had a lot to answer for. From the little Josette had said, he’d forced her to give up her baby and then imposed so many conditions if she wanted to return home, he’d driven her into virtual exile.

  Turning onto her back and floating, Carla though about Josette and Mario. How different her life would have been as their daughter. Would she have become the same person she was, living in a different environment? Instead of growing up in England she’d have grown up in France – or possibly Italy – enjoyed a Mediterranean lifestyle full of sunshine. With Italians being renowned for their love of family, she’d probably have had a couple of siblings too. English would have been her second language, she wouldn’t have married David and the twins wouldn’t exist. The twins.

  Carla sighed. How were they going to react to this latest bombshell? They’d taken the news about Amelia not being their real grandmother well and had started to form a friendly, rather than grandmotherly, bond with Josette. Maddy had admitted to finding her easier to get along with than Amelia. At least they were all grown up, could discuss things rationally and keep things in perspective, even if they were shaken to the core like she was by this latest development.

  Josette herself was the big worry. Fifty years ago she’d done what she thought was the right thing, had learnt to live with the sorrow it had caused her, only to discover, half a century later, that it had been an empty gesture. She had lost everything she held dear unnecessarily. Would she follow in Amelia’s footsteps and become bitter and vindictive?

  Slowly turning onto her front, Carla swam to the shallow end of the pool and climbed out. Amelia had been unbelievably cruel in her actions. It was time to try and make amends. There was no way she was going to react with hate the way Amelia had wanted. Josette had made a monumental mistake but she hadn’t deserved the hatred Amelia had harboured against her. She’d been lied to and her life manipulated in much the same way as Carla’s by the woman with whom they should both have had a loving relationship. Wrapping herself in her towel, Carla decided she’d go and see Josette and talk to her. Reassure her that she and the twins were her family and nobody could take that away even if they wanted to. Adjusting to their different roles in each other’s lives would be difficult but not impossible.

  Carla pushed away the thought about Mario Grimaud’s reaction when Josette told him the truth. That was another question all together. And not one she relished finding the answer to.

  There was no reply when Carla knocked on the cottage door later that morning and she stood there undecided as to what she should do. Part of her feared that Josette was in there and deliberately not answering. Another part worried that she’d fallen over and was lying injured in need of help. Mentally, Carla shook herself. There would be a perfectly rational explanation, like Josette had gone out with Gordon. That would be it. Gordon would be looking after her. Carla rapped her knuckles on the door one last time just in case, before turning and coming face to face with Josette.

  ‘Thank goodness. I was worried you were in there, injured or something,’ she said.

  ‘I stayed with Gordon last night,’ Josette said, unlocking the door. ‘He didn’t want me to be on my own.’

  ‘That was thoughtful of him. Can I come in?’ Carla asked. ‘I’d like to talk to you.’

  Josette nodded and pushed the door open. The two of them walked through to the courtyard where Josette looked at Carla and waited for her to speak.

  ‘Can I give you a hug?’ Carla asked softly, moving towards Josette. When a surprised Josette nodded, Carla wrapped her arms around her and held her tight. ‘I can’t begin to imagine the hell you’ve been through in your life. I’m sorry my coming to France triggered such distressing revelations for you.’ Hugging her, Carla realised how thin Josette was. She’d been slim at the beginning of the year, but now she was so thin Carla could feel her bones. ‘There’s nothing of you,’ she said, concerned. ‘Are you eating properly?’

  Josette shrugged. ‘Gordon insists on feeding me breakfast and I eat again in the evening, but I haven’t felt much like eating anything recently, I admit.’ She looked at Carla. ‘What did you want to talk about?’

  ‘Us. Family. And how to hold it all altogether,’ Carla hesitated. ‘What Amelia did to you, to us, was undeniably cruel. As for that vindictive letter.’ She bit her lip. ‘The fact that I was the person who delivered it to you just makes it worse. I wish I’d thrown it away unopened.’

  ‘I was going to burn it rather than open it,’ Josette admitted. ‘But I guessed your original birth certificate was in it and I knew I couldn’t destroy that.’

  ‘Learning you were my mother was a shock, but I’m so glad I had time to get used to the news before yesterday’s revelation,’ Carla said.

  Josette closed her eyes and took a deep breath. ‘I’
m still struggling to come to terms with Mario’s reappearance in my life let alone that particular bit of news.’

  ‘Can I ask why I have such an Italian-sounding name?’ Carla asked. The question was one of the many that had been floating around in her head for hours. ‘It seems a strange coincidence.’

  ‘Amelia and Robert agreed I could name you and I’ve always loved the name.’

  Carla looked at her, hoping what she was about to say, the questions she was about to voice, wouldn’t distress Josette further, but she had to ask. ‘You didn’t subconsciously suspect that you were pregnant with Mario’s baby not Robert’s? Did yesterday’s news simply confirm something you’d suspected deep down fifty years ago?’

  Josette stared at her. ‘Mon dieu, non. You can’t think that. If I’d had the slightest suspicion you were Mario’s, I would never have given you up. Jamais, never, never. You have to believe that.’ She clutched Carla’s hand. ‘You have to.’

  Carla nodded. ‘I do.’

  ‘As for your name,’ Josette said. ‘I simply liked it – still do. Amelia and Robert did too. It was unusual in England at that time, which appealed to them.’

  ‘I know you think Mario will want to meet me and the twins when he hears, but maybe he doesn’t need to know straight away?’ Carla said. ‘I promise I’m not about to go and knock on his door and say “Hi Dad”’.

  Josette sighed. ‘As much as I dread telling him, I think he does need to be told the truth as soon as possible. The longer I leave it, the more it will gnaw away on my conscience. I never did write the letter I planned to send him and I certainly can’t tell him about you that way. I have to see him face to face. I’ll ring and arrange a meeting.’ Josette rubbed her forehead agitatedly. ‘Not a meeting I shall look forward to though.’

  ‘Ring him now and organise a day for next week,’ Carla said. ‘You’ll feel better knowing you’ve done something definite towards telling him.’

  Five minutes later, Josette turned to Carla. ‘Mario is thrilled I want to see him. Insists next week is too long to wait, so I’m having lunch with him in Ventimiglia the day after tomorrow. Thrilled is not the word to describe my feelings though. Sick and terrified would be nearer the mark.’

  ‘Would you like me to come with you for moral support?’ Even as the words left her mouth, Carla wondered what on earth had possessed her to offer. She didn’t relish the idea of meeting Mario face to face one little bit. Or seeing his reaction to the news that he had an unknown daughter.

  Josette nodded. ‘Are you sure? It’s not too soon for you? That would be wonderful.’

  ‘Like you said, the longer we leave it, the more difficult it will be when we do tell him,’ Carla said. But it wasn’t a meeting she was looking forward to – or felt at all prepared for.

  42

  The following evening, Carla and Joel were sitting on the terrace enjoying the balmy late summer evening.

  Carla sighed when she heard her mobile in the kitchen ringing. She got up reluctantly. ‘I’d better answer that. Might be Josette about tomorrow.’

  Glancing at the caller ID, she saw Bruno’s name, not Josette’s.

  ‘Are you free this Saturday?’ he asked. ‘I have tickets for a concert in Nice and I was hoping you could join me? If I pick you up at seven, we could have dinner first.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Bruno, I’m not free this Saturday,’ Carla said.

  ‘That’s a pity.’

  Carla heard the disappointment in Bruno’s voice.

  ‘Are you sure you can’t cancel whatever it is you’ve planned?’ he continued.

  ‘Quite sure,’ Carla said. ‘Besides, I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to see each other at the moment. I’m really sorry about… about everything,’ and she ended the call quickly before he could ask what she meant.

  After tomorrow he’d know the truth when his uncle Mario told him she was his daughter. A fact that made them close cousins, so there could never be anything other than friendship between them from now on. Once her relationship to Mario was out in the open though, perhaps she and Bruno could become friends.

  Joel looked at her quizzically as she sat down again. ‘Bruno?’

  Carla nodded. ‘Wanted me to go to a concert with him. Strange to think he and I are related.’

  ‘Did you tell him?’

  ‘No, of course not. Mario has to be the first to be told.’ She sighed. ‘This time tomorrow night, Bruno will know and understand why I couldn’t accept.’

  ‘If you hadn’t turned out to be related, would you have…?’

  ‘Had a relationship with him?’ Carla interrupted, she needed Joel to understand how she felt about Bruno – and him. ‘No. He’s fun. I like him as a friend and he’s taken me to a restaurant I could only dream about eating in, but I couldn’t live in his world full time.’ Leroy jumped on to her lap just then and she stroked him, glad of the diversion and the chance to hide her face from Joel.

  Even if it was far too soon after David to feel the way she had on her birthday when she and Joel danced, she knew that she was increasingly attracted to Joel and could only hope that given time he might begin to feel the same about her. She wanted to make quite sure he understood how things were between herself and Bruno.

  ‘Bruno and I were never going to be serious,’ she said. ‘He’s far too rich for me. But I do like him. I’m hoping once everything settles and life gets back onto an even keel, we can be friends as well as cousins.’

  Joel smiled at her. ‘Good plan. How d’you feel about tomorrow?’

  ‘Nervous, if I’m honest,’ Carla said. ‘For Josette rather than me. I don’t much care if Mario doesn’t want to acknowledge me, but Josette will be hurt if that’s his reaction and she so doesn’t deserve being punished any more. She’s terribly fragile at the moment.’

  ‘D’you think Mario is likely to refuse to accept you as his daughter?’

  Carla shrugged. ‘Who knows? From what Josette says, he seems very keen for them to be in each other’s life again, so hopefully he won’t upset her with a negative reaction to the news about me. Personally, I don’t care one little bit if after tomorrow I never see him again. I don’t need or want another father. And I’m sure the twins can live without a new, old, grandfather appearing in their lives.’

  43

  Josette didn’t appear to want to talk as the train travelled along the coast the next day towards Ventimiglia and Carla was happy to sit in silence enjoying the changing view as it flashed between the stations. Biot. Cagnes-sur-mer. St Laurent de Var. Nice. Èze. Villefranche-sur-mer. Monaco. Menton. Station names of places she had yet to visit that sounded exotic to her English ear. Every now and again she glanced across at Josette, concerned that she was stressing about Mario’s reaction, but she seemed relaxed, if deep in thought. Finally, the train pulled into Ventimiglia at the end of the line and everyone got off.

  The seaside town was busy and they struggled to make their way through the crowds to the coastal road and the restaurant Mario had suggested for lunch. Luckily, Josette had said she’d eaten there in the past and knew where it was.

  ‘At least we’ll get a good lunch,’ she said. Once inside, Josette gave Mario’s name to the maître d’ and they were led to a table on the balcony at the front of the restaurant. Not yet twelve o’clock, lunchtime had scarcely begun and only one or two tables had people sitting at them.

  Mario saw them as they approached, the smile on his face fading as he saw Josette was not alone. Carla shivered as she felt the intensity of his gaze on her face before he remembered his manners and moved across to welcome them.

  ‘Josette. I hope you are well? I didn’t realise you were bringing a friend.’ He held out his hand to Carla. ‘Nice to meet you, Josette’s friend. Please sit down. They will bring the aperitifs I ordered in a moment.’

  Numbly, Carla sat as the waiter deftly pulled out her chair. Shock waves were cruising through her body. She felt she already knew this man. He seemed so familiar to her.
How could that be possible? She glanced at Josette. Was she going to introduce her? Or keep up the pretence she was a friend? There was a short silence as Josette settled herself on a chair before looking directly at Mario.

  ‘Mario, this is more than a friend. This is Carla, my daughter,’ Josette said softly.

  Mario nodded. ‘I suspected you were more than a friend,’ he said finally, smiling at Carla and looking at her thoughtfully. ‘You have inherited your mother’s eyes, but you remind me of…’ he shook his head. ‘Someone I can’t quite place. Ah, here come our aperitifs.’

  Josette waited until the waiter had moved away before putting her hand on his arm. ‘I need to finish the introduction. Mario, she’s not only my daughter – she’s yours too. Perhaps it is yourself she reminds you of,’ she added quietly.

  Mario stilled. His body stiff. ‘It was only the other day you told me Robert was the father. Did you lie to me then?’ He stared at Josette, his gaze hard and unforgiving.

  Carla registered his hands gripping the edge of the table, his knuckles white, and prayed things weren’t going to get out of hand. Had it been a mistake to come with Josette today? Perhaps it would have been better for Josette to have been alone to break the news. For her to meet Mario at a later date.

  ‘No. I have never lied to you. I thought it was the truth – when I left you all those years ago and also last week when I finally confessed to you the reason I had to leave.’ Josette took a deep breath. ‘I’ve lived through the last fifty years believing Carla was Robert’s child. This week that belief was cruelly shattered. Amelia left me a letter and the results of a DNA test which show conclusively that Robert was not the father of my child. She kept it secret in order to punish me.’

  Mario looked at her silently for several seconds. ‘Not just you, Josie. She punished the three of us – as well as Robert. All four of us have been treated harshly and denied the lives that should have been ours.’