Chapter 22
Sandy was on edge Saturday morning as she went downstairs for breakfast and to prepare for the usual daily informal session. Romain’s ten o’clock appointment with the bank was weighing heavily on her mind and she struggled to push it to one side as everyone drifted down.
It was mid-morning, as she was helping herself to yet another coffee after everyone had wandered away to do their own thing, when Romain rang.
‘So, good news or bad news?’ she said as she answered the call.
‘He’s said he’d be happy to consider giving us a business mortgage based on a good deposit, our four-year figures and our business plan, when we find a property.
He thought the business plan was really well worked out and diversifying into different things, like photography, art and yoga with qualified instructors, was the way to go,’ Romain said.
‘He’s going to send us a letter next week, basically outlining how big a mortgage the bank would be prepared to offer us.
He’s also going to get the property agency linked to the bank to send us details of properties in our price range. ’
‘Well, that’s something positive, I suppose,’ Sandy said. ‘Did his idea of the price range coincide with ours?’
‘Sort of. He’s going to put details in the letter.’
Sandy sighed. ‘Well, I’m just not going to think about it at all until this retreat has finished and I’m back home. I’ll write and cancel the June retreat and offer refunds then.’
Finishing the call with Romain, Sandy picked up her laptop and went out into the garden, where the other five were all beavering away.
* * *
Liz wore one of her new dresses for the aperitif walk into town and for dinner that evening, telling herself she wasn’t dressing up for her ‘date’ later but acknowledging inwardly to that she was probably lying to herself.
‘Pretty dress, new?’ Isobel asked as Liz joined her in the hall.
‘Yes. It’s one of the two I bought with the swimming costume,’ Liz said. ‘No point in leaving them in the bag,’ she added defensively.
‘True,’ Isobel said. ‘Nice eyeshadow. You sure you haven’t got a date later?’
Liz sighed. Should she tell Isobel about Guy’s invitation? Get some reassurance she was doing the right thing? She hadn’t told Isobel about the drink in the secret garden cafe. So that would have to be told too.
‘I think it’s being down here – something about the Riviera air makes me want to look my best, and I haven’t felt like that in a long time,’ Liz added quietly.
‘I agree. The Riviera is so vibrant and alive, it definitely makes one feel good,’ Isobel said, smiling. ‘Maybe it’s all the vitamin D from the sunshine.’
Liz knew that Isobel was about to say something else when a mobile began to ring.
‘That’s my phone,’ Helena said, reaching into her bag. ‘I can’t think who would be ringing me here. Oh, it’s my brother. I hope my mum’s all right, excuse me.’ And she moved away a little. ‘Hi, Leon. What’s up?’
The others stopped walking and watched silently, waiting for her reaction, in case it was bad news.
When Helena gave a loud happy squeal – ‘You’re coming to Antibes?
That’s brilliant. I need to talk to you.
No, it will keep until I see you’ – everyone relaxed and turned their attention away from her.
‘Leon is her brother,’ Mandy told them quietly. ‘Sounds like good news anyway.’
Helena finished her call and returned to the others with a big smile on her face. ‘My brother is going to be in Antibes for both our birthdays. I’m so excited. I wish Mum could be here. We’ll have to FaceTime her together. Oh, I’m so excited.’
‘Do you share a birthday with your brother?’ Isobel asked.
‘No, his is the day after mine. He’s only three years older than me and we always try to celebrate together. I can’t wait for next Wednesday. Come on. I need to find a bar and celebrate. I haven’t seen my brother for months.’
‘Does this mean I finally get to meet your brother?’ Mandy said.
‘Yes. I’ll introduce him to everyone, but to you especially.’
‘Are you going to mention you and Teddy to him?’ Mandy asked quietly.
‘I’m definitely going to call him out on what he said to Teddy. Not sure yet whether I’m going to tell him about us being together despite his sabotage.’
* * *
After dinner that evening, everyone stayed around the table chatting for some time until Helena suggested they all went for a moonlit paddle. The idea was greeted with enthusiasm by Mandy and Lorraine. Even Sandy said, ‘Why not. It’s barely ten o’clock and a lovely evening. Isobel? Liz?’
As Isobel agreed to a walk along the beach in the moonlit, saying she’d probably forsake the paddle though, Liz stood up quickly. Nearly ten o’clock? She hadn’t realised it was that time. Guy hadn’t said a time to arrive, but if she left it too late, he would think she wasn’t coming.
‘Actually, I won’t if you don’t mind. I think I’m going to do some late-night brainstorming on my book.
You all have fun. I’ll join you another night.
’ Liz quickly escaped, feeling her cheeks flush and hoped that nobody had noticed as she told the little lie about working on her book, or if they did, they would put it down to the half glass of red wine from dinner.
At least if they were all out they wouldn’t see her knocking on the door marked private and making her way upstairs to the roof terrace.
After a quick dash into her room to freshen up a little, Liz grabbed her pashmina in case it was cold up on the terrace and, quietly closing her bedroom door, walked down the corridor towards the door with its ‘Private’ sign leading to Guy’s apartment.
The door was ajar and Liz pulled it open, calling out softly, ‘Guy, it’s me. Okay to come on up?’
Guy appeared at the top of the stairs. ‘Of course. Just pull the door closed behind you.’
Liz did as he requested and started to climb the stairs.
‘Welcome to my favourite place in the villa,’ Guy said as she reached the top and the door to the sitting room, ‘Come on through,’ and he led her through the sitting room to the open French doors.
‘Oh wow,’ Liz said as she stepped onto the terrace. ‘I can see why you love it up here.’
Guy took her by the hand and led her over to the far wall with its clear safety glass shield on the top. ‘The best view is from here.’
Guy poured two glasses of champagne from the bottle he’d placed in an ice bucket on a small table and handed her one.
‘A special drink for a special new friend,’ he said, clinking his glass against hers, his intense gaze holding hers.
‘Special friends,’ Liz echoed, before taking a sip of the delicious bubbly pink drink.
Standing there next to Guy looking out over the Riviera coastline, listening to soft jazz coming from the carefully placed speakers, Liz felt completely relaxed and happy.
Ralph and her difficult divorce of the past year were over and done with.
Life right now felt good, as though it had finally taken a turn for the better after all the months of drama and trauma.
Later, sitting on the comfortable cane settee with its heap of cushions, quietly chatting and getting to know each other, Liz ventured a question. ‘Do you think you will open the restaurant again?’
Guy exhaled a deep breath. ‘Jacqueline was really the driving force behind the restaurant with rooms, said it made the place stand out in a way that a small hotel with a good restaurant couldn’t.
She was brilliant with both creating the right ambiance and dealing with people.
I, on the other hand, whilst I love cooking do not truly like everything that goes with running an establishment like Villa Celestia on the French Riviera.
My original dream was always to open a small, intimate restaurant in a village somewhere, maybe France, maybe England.
Maybe it’s time to do that. I know my dad would love to see me living back on the other side of the Channel and it would be good to be closer as he gets older.
Anyway, it’s a decision for another day.
’ He topped up both their champagne glasses.
‘How about you? Now you’ve got your writing mojo back – you have, haven’t you? ’ he asked with a quick glance at her.
‘Yes, thank goodness. Villa Celestia has worked its magic for me. I can understand what you’re saying about smaller, intimate restaurants.
Ralph liked to entertain but didn’t like paying fancy restaurant prices.
He knew I loved cooking, so one Christmas he gifted me a cookery course with one of the top chefs in England.
’ Liz sipped her champagne. ‘I loved it, but silly me didn’t realise it was part of a master plan.
From then on, we never entertained his friends at restaurants – we had dinner parties at home with me doing all the cooking.
When I stopped resenting Ralph for forcing me into doing elaborate dishes, I came to love it.
I became an expert with certain dishes and I loved making desserts.
Now I live alone,’ she shrugged, ‘I make small amounts of everyday food, but my guilty pleasure is making myself a tiramisu.’
A sudden loud bang made them both jump, and they watched as the sky to the right became full of sparkling fireworks.
‘I’d forgotten all about the fireworks,’ Liz said. ‘That’s so pretty.’
For the next twenty minutes or so, they were mesmerised by the bangs and showers of countless fireworks lighting up the sky as sparkling palm trees, hearts, golden showers, silver showers, so many different designs, so many colours burst briefly across the night sky.
‘That was some display,’ Liz said as the noise finally died away.
She couldn’t tell Guy that the whole extravaganza had taken on a surreal feeling for her.
She’d never dreamt that she would ever be standing on a rooftop terrace on the French Riviera watching an amazing firework display with a man she already felt she had a connection to.
And yet here she was. ‘Thank you so much for asking me to watch it with you.’
Guy picked up the champagne bottle. ‘Shall we finish the last little drop?’
‘Why not? Be a shame to waste it.’ Liz smiled as she held out her glass.
* * *
Half an hour later, Liz stood up. ‘Time for me to go.’
‘Come on, I’ll walk you home,’ Guy said with a serious look on his face before they both laughed.
Once downstairs, Guy leant in and gave her a fleeting kiss on the cheek.
‘Goodnight, thank you for a lovely evening. See you later today.’ And the door closed behind him as he disappeared back up the stairs.
As she got ready for bed, Liz smiled to herself.
The freedom to live life on her own terms was a major bonus of being unexpectedly single at her age.
Giving her the chance to make special friends, even to form a new relationship with someone special.
But, she reminded herself, however special she felt Guy could be, she’d be leaving Villa Celestia in a week’s time and going home.