Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Flora
Get to know one another. That’s what he’d said and that was my cue to leave, and quickly. Or it should have been.
He looked at me, taking in my silence and waited. Presumably he wanted a clue or indication of whether I wanted him to open the bottle of wine or not.
I did. Absolutely, yet I had no clue if the wine was simply an invitation to enjoy a drink and a chat, or if it was more. Like kissing more. Touching more. Sex more.
He stepped closer. “Flora, wine?”
I was like a rabbit caught in headlights.
With another step towards me, my breathing hitched as I inhaled his scent . . . the aroma of fading aftershave, washing powder and a unique smell that I thought might be all him. I didn’t need alcohol. I was already getting drunk.
“Or tea?”
I thought he was as aware of my giddy state as I was.
Tea was safe, wasn’t it? Clearly, I thought so. “Yes, tea would be nice.”
“Go into the lounge and I’ll bring it through.”
He smiled at me, seeming genuinely happy that I had agreed to have tea with him.
A few minutes passed before he appeared with two cups, me on the sofa while he took a chair.
“You got your car okay?” He immediately continued. “I saw it outside.”
I was immediately irritated by him bringing this up in such a way when he clearly knew that there couldn’t have been an issue collecting my car as he had paid for it. “Presumably, you’d have known if I hadn’t got it okay, considering you picked up the tab.”
He looked confused. “I told you the bill was sorted.”
“And I thought the mechanic was doing a cheap deal, not that you were paying regardless.”
“Oh. Sorry. I thought, when we discussed it, what I meant was clear and you’d looked concerned at the cost, so I wanted to help.”
My annoyance began to lift slightly. “I will pay you back–”
He cut me off. “There’s no need.”
“There’s every need. So, you can either take it directly from my pay or I will arrange to transfer it to you.”
I had no clue what the cost would be, so my offer was potentially bold.
“Of course. I can take it from your pay, maybe over a few months?”
I was grateful for the offer. “Thank you.”
He offered a single nod of his head and although it was accompanied by a half-smile, he looked irked, but I had no intention of taking money from him that I hadn’t earned.
“The children went off to bed okay?” That was a welcome change of topic.
“Yes, no problem. They’re incredibly well behaved.”
He laughed and the area around his eyes crinkled, but even that was attractive.
I gave myself an internal nudge to focus on the conversation.
“Give it time and I am sure you’ll be privy to a meltdown or twenty.”
I shrugged. “Perhaps that’s part of their charm.”
“Perhaps it is. What made you want to work with children?”
I recalled that question being asked in my interview but presumably he wanted the personal answer rather than the standard one.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do for a while.
I was a little lost I suppose.” Why had I said that?
It was true but he didn’t need to know that.
I noticed a quirk of his brows and a tilt of his head but rushed on, brushing over it.
“I worked in admin and retail, all sorts and then one day, I was sitting in the park feeling a little disillusioned with life when I got chatting to a little girl who was there with her mum. The mum had a baby in a sling and this little girl was desperate to play and chat. I played and chatted, and for the first time in a long time I felt as if I was contributing something and I was happy. The mum, it turned out was looking for a nanny for when she returned to work and kind of offered me a job. I enrolled in evening school and trained while I worked for the family. I loved it. I don’t know that I ever chose being a nanny, it chose me I think. ”
Looking across at Maurizio, he was beaming as I enthused about my introduction to the world of nannying. “A vocation. Did you stay with them long, the family?”
“About four years. They moved away, although they offered me the chance to join them in America, but I chose to stay at home.” Before he probed into the reason for that, I moved on.
“I worked for a couple of other families and then went to work in a nursery, which was different, but a good experience.”
“You prefer working with families?”
I laughed as I imagined saying no. I was tempted to do just that to see what his reaction would be.
“Absolutely not fishing for compliments here.”
I laughed again but answered his question. “I do. It’s more personal and I enjoy the familiarity of a family and a home.”
“That makes sense, although there must be times where the familial aspect is a double edged sword.”
“I suppose it is. My last family went through a separation and eventually a divorce and it was hard to almost be in the middle of it, trying to protect the children.” His face dropped and I panicked that I had somehow reminded him of his own children being stuck in the middle of their parents’ marital breakdown.
Quickly I tried to lighten things again.
“However, being in a family allows me to share in the magical moments too, like Craig getting caught short and weeing in the garden to the horror of Rosie.”
Maurizio laughed, a genuine booming sound. “When you’ve gotta go . . .”
“Indeed, but Rosie didn’t quite see it that way.”
He laughed again. “Yeah, no grey areas, it’s black or white for my girl.”
“Does she get that from you? You being a barrister, wrong and right, legal or illegal?”
“Trust me, the law is many things, none of them entirely black and white.”
“How was your day?” As I asked the question, it occurred to me that I’d never really thought about the details of his job, and we certainly hadn’t talked about it.
He crinkled his nose and furrowed his brow a little. “Long. Something, a case, came up late, but it was okay.”
“You enjoy your work?” I got the impression he did and his nod confirmed it.
“It wasn’t my first choice of career, but I do, and I’m pretty good at what I do.”
I was surprised by that. “What was your first choice?”
“Astronaut until I was about seven, then I wanted to be a magician and by the time I was thirteen, professional rugby player seemed like a good choice.”
I laughed at the astronaut and magician at least. The thought of Maurizio wearing a tight rugby shirt and those teeny tiny shorts made me feel many things, none of them were amusement. My cheeks heated and when I glanced across at him, I suspected he’d noticed.
“And finally law?”
“Indeed,” he replied with a smile. “I’ve always been pretty decent at debating and offering a persuasive argument, so maybe it was an obvious choice.”
“Can I ask something, about your work?” I felt slightly nervous in case my questions and thoughts somehow offended him.
“Of course, I’m happy to answer any questions you have.”
“You defend people.” I knew he did, both Bea and his mother had mentioned it. “What if someone is guilty and you help them avoid justice, prison, do you feel guilty?”
He sipped his tea and seemed to be studying me before a small smile curled his lips.
“That old chestnut.” He smiled but explained, “I am lucky that I can choose who I defend and who I don’t.
If someone is innocent, or I believe them to be, I will defend them to the best of my ability, regardless of the crime.
If I believe someone is possibly guilty, I would still defend them.
If I knew they were guilty and the crime was one I considered dangerous, I would be disinclined to take them on. ”
“That must be hard, to know if they’re telling the truth.”
He shrugged. “Not as hard as you might think. I have dealt with a lot of people and crimes, plus, professionally I can quickly spot a hole in an account of events.”
That made sense.
“The case I agreed to take on today is an allegation of rape.”
I stared at him, my mouth hanging loose in shock.
“I am satisfied he is innocent of that charge. His actions ultimately left him open to such allegations, but he didn’t rape anyone, of that, I am sure.”
“What if he did?”
“He didn’t,” Maurizio told me, his tone sounding slightly antsy.
“But if he did or if it goes to court, will you question the victim?” I could feel my anxiety rising at the thought of a rape victim being cross examined and having to prove themselves.
“As she would be the prosecution’s star witness, of course, but I should stress, again, she wasn’t raped.
” He looked at me intently and for a few seconds remained silent, as did I, unsure what to say.
“It must seem very odd to you, to imagine victims of crimes having their day in court and the defence trying to pick holes in their story and cast doubt on their account of things, but the thing you have to remember is that the onus is on the prosecution to prove guilt, and everyone has the right to be defended.”
I nodded and offered him a warm smile. His explanation made sense and reassured me that he really was a nice man and all round decent human being. “Innocent til proven guilty?”
“Exactly, but like I say, I choose who I defend and if someone is guilty or their crimes offend me, I wouldn’t defend them.”
“Really?” I was unsure if I believed that. Would he really turn down work? Would he be able to?