Chapter 35
35
‘So, you renovated pretty much from scratch?’ Charlotte said in appreciation as Tristan showed her the two beautifully appointed and proportioned downstairs rooms, one a cosy sitting room and the other, presumably once the dining room but now a study complete with a leather-topped mahogany desk against one wall.
‘Yes, it was in a really bad state when I bought it,’ Tristan replied. ‘It took a while, but being in the housebuilding business, I had a fair few contacts I could call on for advice and quotes for the trickier bits.’
Charlotte was absorbed in looking at the other features of the study, which included the inevitable shelves of books and, hanging discreetly just off to one side of the bay window that looked out into the front garden, a framed picture of a smiling family. With a pang, Charlotte immediately recognised it as the same shot she’d seen on one of Lorelai’s sideboards at Nightshade Cottage. Having recently found the snapshot of Laura and Martin from just before their twins were born, it was interesting to see the photo of the young family again – they looked a little older, now that they’d become parents of twins, but Laura’s smile was the same as she beamed out from the photo. The twins, both with the same shade of light brown hair and the same blue-green eyes, seemed happy and relaxed too. Martin, standing alongside Laura, looked extremely proud of his wife and children.
‘That’s a beautiful picture,’ she said softly as Tristan clocked her looking at it.
Tristan smiled. ‘It was the last one taken of us all together.’
Charlotte’s heart ached at the carefully neutral tone in his voice. She knew he struggled to talk about things so she replied quietly, ‘I’m so sorry, Tristan.’
‘I know you are.’ Tristan gave her a smile. ‘But I didn’t invite you here to go over old ground. You’re supposed to be getting away from history for a few hours, remember?’ He took her hand. ‘Come and have a look upstairs, and then I’d better get the rest of lunch on the go.’
They moved towards the staircase, and Charlotte noticed Tristan had put brass stair rods on a burgundy-toned Axminster carpet and painted the exposed pieces of board on each step a crisp white. She liked the nod to the heritage of the house. As they ascended the stairs, she spotted three doors leading off the landing and wondered which was Tristan’s room. Her heart sped up at the thought.
‘Just a quick glance,’ Tristan teased. ‘I wouldn’t want you to think I was suggesting anything.’
Charlotte grinned. ‘You don’t seem the type to put a woman under pressure,’ she replied. ‘But I appreciate the clarification.’
Both bedrooms were neat and tidy, and the front room, obviously Tristan’s, benefitted from the light and airy advantage of another bay window, through which the afternoon sun was pouring. A brass bedstead dominated the room, which was decorated in different tones of green, including an exquisite emerald flocked wallpaper. Charlotte was surprised at the opulence. She’d have had Tristan for a minimalist every day of the week.
‘It’s a lovely room,’ she said. ‘You’ve got a great career as an interior designer if you ever get bored of working on building sites!’
Tristan shook his head. ‘Thea claims I was channelling my inner Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen in this room, but I like it.’ He led her to the back of the house where there was a smaller bedroom. This one was more simply decorated and had twin beds in it. ‘For when Cora and Dylan come to stay,’ he said.
‘Do they come round a lot?’ Charlotte asked, curious to find out more about Tristan’s family.
‘Not so much now, but when they were younger, I used to take them off Thea’s hands for a night or two. She needed the break, and I liked having them here.’
Charlotte couldn’t quite imagine children in this beautifully decorated and well-kept house, but it was lovely to think of a side of Tristan who’d bond with his niece and nephew and have fun with them.
Just as she was about to ask him more, the oven timer sounded, and Tristan turned back to the stairs. ‘I’ll just do the last bits and bobs, and then we can eat, if you’re ready?’
‘Definitely,’ Charlotte replied. ‘I’m actually getting really hungry now.’
They headed back downstairs and in a little more time were tucking into chicken parmigiana, green beans and baby new potatoes. Charlotte had a top up of the Chablis and was definitely feeling more relaxed by the time they’d finished lunch.
‘That was great,’ she said, leaning back in her chair. ‘Thank you for suggesting this.’
‘My pleasure,’ Tristan said as he whipped the plates away and put everything in the dishwasher. ‘How’s your dress?’
‘A bit tight after all that food,’ Charlotte giggled, and then blushed when she realised Tristan was asking whether or not it was still damp from the water spillage. She held out the hem of her skirt. ‘And very nearly dry, too.’
‘Glad to hear it.’ Tristan had come back to the table and was standing in front of Charlotte, his legs almost touching hers. She looked up at him, and his expression was a mixture of anticipation and a rather adorable uncertainty. ‘Do you, er, want to go into the living room and watch a film, or we could go for a walk?’
Charlotte, who knew a walk would be more sensible, but on a couple of glasses of Chablis was feeling rather too mellow to do more than mooch to the living-room sofa, smiled up at him. ‘A film sounds like a great idea for a Sunday afternoon. What would you suggest?’
Tristan took hold of her hands and pulled her gently into his arms. ‘Well, I’m usually a classic movies kind of guy, except when Cora and Dylan commandeer my Netflix, but I’m in your hands this afternoon. Whatever you’d like to watch, my account is all yours.’
‘Now that’s chivalry for you!’ Charlotte quipped. ‘How are you with horror films?’
Tristan looked sheepish. ‘Not great with anything too gory,’ he admitted. ‘But I don’t mind them when it’s more cheese than torture.’
‘Noted,’ Charlotte replied. She wondered for a moment what might fit the bill. She felt the warmth of Tristan’s hand in hers, and for a few heartbeats all she wanted to do was wrap her arms around him and bugger the film idea, but she paced herself. She’d had some wine, and she didn’t want to rush things because of it. So, settling just for one long, lingering kiss, she allowed him to lead her to the living room, and got to searching through the Netflix catalogue for something they could both enjoy.