Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
SO MUCH FOR MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
On the top deck, guests were gathered around the rails, staring out at the Nile as the Esna Lock came into view.
Ahead, two riverboats had slowed and already begun to queue.
Gerald explained to Hattie that the lock was built to manage the different water levels created by the Esna Barrage, a low dam with multiple gates.
Hattie looked around and spotted Peter by the rail.
He was hopping from one foot to the other, with his phone clamped to his ear.
From the intensity of his expression, she wondered if he thought that the fate of Western Civilisation rested on his shoulders as he stared towards the looming lock gates.
Edging a little closer, she heard him mutter, ‘Yes . . . we’re in position.’
Hattie thought Peter might be pretending to be part of a covert operation at a hostile frontier rather than in a queue of tourist cruise boats about to enter the Esna Lock, and – suppressing a smile – she moved back to Gerald’s side.
If the Nile ever needed saving, she had no doubt that Peter would be ready and the first imaginary agent on the case.
The SS Nefertari now entered the lock, and with barely inches to spare, the captain skilfully negotiated the boat in a slow choreography.
The engines idled, and ropes were tossed as deckhands balanced on railings to reach out and move rubber fenders out of the way.
Hattie looked around at the high, weathered walls and felt as though they’d entered a stone coffin.
‘In a moment you’ll feel the water level shift,’ Gerald told Hattie as huge metal gates clanged shut.
As the boat slowly began to rise, vendors called down from the edge of the lock, children waved, and Hattie breathed in the scent of sun-baked concrete and diesel.
When they surfaced, and the gates opened, sunlight flooded in, and the boat began to glide forward again.
Guests nodded to each other in appreciation of the crew’s expertise, and one or two applauded.
‘Time for a light lunch?’ Gerald suggested. ‘There’s a buffet by the bar.’
Hattie hesitated.
The last thing she wanted was to antagonise Anouska by being seen with Gerald. But she’d just watched Anouska lean in close to Peter, wrapping an arm around his shoulder to whisper in his ear. Straightening with importance, Peter nodded, and the two of them disappeared from the top deck.
Hattie slipped her arm through Gerald’s. ‘Lunch sounds perfect,’ she said.
Ezra was in the pool, stretched out on his back, his eyes staring at the sky.
He drifted lazily, swishing about as the boat eased into the lock and concrete walls closed in.
A dark shadow fell across the water, and for a moment, he floated in almost blackness.
Then, as they slowly began to rise, the sky widened, and sunlight spilled back over the rim of the lock, and they surfaced into the light of day.
In that suspended moment, between the shadows and the sun, something in Ezra shifted.
Like the narrow walls he’d felt hemmed him in for years and now they’d fallen away, and his sexuality no longer felt threatening.
He’d been reborn! Rising from the blackness and into the light, as though he’d been baptised, casting away his fears.
Last night had been the most wonderful few hours of his life.
Those moments with Nazeem hadn’t been furtive or shameful, as he once feared, but felt so tender and real.
Floating here, he no longer felt afraid of the word that described him, nor of the life he would lead, and the thought of telling his family didn’t tighten his chest any longer.
As guests moved away from the railings, one or two slipped into the pool; Ezra smiled in greeting, then swam to the steps and climbed out. He snatched up his towel, looped it around his neck and strolled over to Sylvie, droplets still clinging to his skin.
‘Hi, Mom,’ he said, playfully flicking a scatter of water in her direction.
‘Honey, you’ll soak my book.’ Sylvie looked up and smiled. ‘I thought you’d be resting after all that dancing last night. You were so late coming back to our room.’
‘I slept in and caught up,’ he said easily, ‘but yep, last night’s given me an appetite, and I’m heading to the buffet. Can I bring you anything?’
‘No, sweetheart. I’ll finish this chapter and perhaps join you in a bit.’
‘Deal.’
As he strolled across the deck, Ezra felt ten feet tall. When he spotted Hattie dining with Gerald, he lifted a hand in a cheerful salute. Ezra realised with a thrill that he was no longer pretending to be someone else. His curse was finally over.
From now on, he would own up and be the man he always wanted to be.
Sylvie watched her son move away and thought he seemed lighter, happier, as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
Thank goodness she’d bought him on this holiday.
The break from the diner’s routine had done Ezra good, and a change of surroundings was certainly lifting his mood.
Sunshine, new faces, it was exactly what he’d needed.
By the time they got home, with all his memories of the trip, he might have the confidence to join a club and meet some new people.
Perhaps even find someone who appreciated his kindness and handsome looks!
The thought warmed Sylvie, and she told herself to remember to tell Errol when she called him later. Her husband would be so happy to know that Ezra was enjoying himself.
Lowering her eyes back to her book, Sylvie was about to trace the words to find her place when Sue suddenly appeared by her side.
‘Hey, Sylvie, I have some very good news for you,’ Sue announced. ‘Your luggage has been found and will be delivered to the boat when we reach Luxor in a few hours’ time.’
For a moment, Sylvie blinked. ‘My case?’ she repeated. ‘You mean with all my holiday clothes in it?’
‘The very same.’
Sylvie let out a laugh and closed her book.
For the whole Nile cruise, she’d laundered her undies in the cabin sink like a student on a gap year. While all the time her carefully chosen dresses, evening sandals, trousers and the beautiful blouses she’d bought especially for the trip, had been travelling in Egypt without her.
‘And it’s been found,’ Sylvie said, ‘just in time for me to pack up and head home.’
Sue grinned apologetically. ‘But at least you have your things.’
‘Yes, you’re right, and if it hadn’t been for Hattie and her generosity, I’d have been wearing the same crumpled clothes all the time.’ Sylvie nodded. ‘She gave up most of her wardrobe, and I don’t know what I would have done without her.’
She paused thoughtfully.
‘It’s funny, isn’t it, I came away to see temples and tombs and be impressed by their magnificence, but it has been Hattie’s friendship and kindness that will leave the biggest mark on my holiday.’
Sue squeezed her shoulder. ‘That’s often how it happens.’
‘But if I have my case, I will have something quite special to wear tonight.’ Sylvie smiled.
‘I wanted to ask you about that,’ Sue said. ‘We’ve quite an evening planned . . .’
When Sue moved away, Sylvie watched the Nile slip past, the sparkling river reflecting yellow and gold in the lowering sun.
Ahead, in Luxor, she’d find her reclaimed luggage, then pack for the flight home to return to her day-to-day life.
But there was something she would always remember, and that was Hattie’s easy way with borrowed clothes, her generosity, and the simple comfort of being at ease with a female kindred spirit.
Their rapport, Sylvie thought, wouldn’t be diminished by distance and no matter how many miles would soon lie between them, she’d always treasure Hattie’s kindness.
The unexpected gift that this trip had given her.
Her holiday, Sylvie realised, as the boat sailed on, was not only her dream come true but a journey of friendship that she would never forget.
Below deck in the corridor leading to his cabin, Peter felt Anouska trail her hand sensuously around his waist. Her fingers hovered perilously close to the buckle on his belt, and any moment now, he was certain she’d release the catch.
‘Not easy to reach, it can be a tricky little devil,’ Peter said nervously, as he fiddled with a zipped pocket and dug deep for his keycard.
‘Don’t worry,’ Anouska whispered. ‘I’ll find the little devil soon enough and know how to coax him out.’
Her breath warmed the nape of his neck as his fingers fumbled uselessly in his pocket.
The double meaning was impossible for Peter to ignore, his manhood already rising to the occasion, and he hoped and prayed that after at least a decade of dormancy, it behaved itself when the door finally opened.
Almost falling into the room, Peter kicked over a pail of cleaning materials and, to his horror, realised that the housekeeping team was servicing his bathroom, and as he looked at the state of the unmade bed, they still had much to do.
‘We’ll wait outside!’ he called out and retreated to the corridor with Anouska following behind. ‘Shouldn’t be too long,’ he said and began to pace.
Anouska, meanwhile, placed her bag on the floor and bent to retrieve her phone.
Her transparent white chiffony wrap left little to the imagination, and her buttocks, barely covered by a thong bikini, swayed enticingly as she straightened.
The corridor’s muted lighting traced the curve of her hips, and the sensual way in which she moved.
Peter tried, unsuccessfully, not to stare. Running a hand through his hair, he fixed his eyes on the cabin door, willing it to open.
‘See something you like?’ Anouska teased.
Peter cleared his throat. ‘Let’s wait for housekeeping to finish.’
Anouska’s fingers brushed his arm. ‘Patience can make things far more exciting,’ she purred.
Peter swallowed and moved uncomfortably. If housekeeping didn’t finish soon, he wasn’t sure he’d have much patience left.
But to his relief, the door swung open, and the young Egyptian housekeeper came out. ‘Mr Peter.’ He laughed. ‘You almost kicked the bucket!’
‘Ha, ha, not yet,’ Peter forced a thin laugh as he felt Anouska reach for his hand to pull him into the room.
The door had barely closed before she pushed him backwards and, caught off guard, Peter found himself falling back on the bed, the mattress dipping beneath his weight.
In seconds, Anouska swung herself astride him, and before he had time to prepare, she leaned down, her hair falling around them like a curtain.
His eyes widened as she reached behind and began unfastening the clasp of her bikini.
At the exact moment that the clasp fell away, his phone began to ring.
Peter jerked up in surprise, sending Anouska sprawling gracelessly to the floor, where she landed in an undignified heap.
Reaching into his pocket, Peter stared at the screen. ‘It’s my twin brother,’ he announced.
‘Prioritise, why don’t you?’ Anouska snapped.
Before Peter could greet Bob, there was a loud chorus of ‘Happy Birthday!’ and with Anouska momentarily forgotten, he switched the phone to speaker, grinning as he sank back onto the bed.
For the next half hour, he was passed from one family member to another. From little ones urging Uncle Peter to tell them a story, to Bob’s wife wanting photographs and Bob, as ever, requesting a full report. Where Peter had been, what he’d seen and who he’d met.
‘Er, yes, met a few people,’ Peter muttered, watching Anouska in the mirror, as she adjusted her wrap and tidied her hair. ‘No one particularly interesting,’ he added.
The look she shot him could have cracked the glass.
‘There’s a fancy-dress party tonight,’ Peter hurried on. ‘Some of the guests are celebrating my birthday with me.’
Bob laughed. ‘Fancy dress? Right up your street. Going as James Bond, are you?
Peter opened his mouth to reply, but a sharp knock interrupted him.
‘Maintenance,’ a voice called brightly. ‘Here to check your pipes!’
Peter froze. With the phone still in his hand and Bob on the line, he stared at Anouska and gave a helpless shrug. ‘Sorry!’ he mouthed, edging towards the door.
As he opened it, Anouska swept past him, and the maintenance man stepped in. At the threshold, she turned to linger, her fingers stroking Peter’s cheek.
‘I’ll give you your birthday present later tonight, big boy,’ she murmured.
Her hand drifted lower in a mischievous caress that left him flushed and momentarily speechless. Then, with a sway of her hips, she was gone.
‘Everything alright?’ Bob’s voice crackled from the phone.
‘Yes, er . . . fine,’ Peter replied, closing the door as the overalled man rattled his toolbox and disappeared into the bathroom.
Peter sat back on the bed and glanced heavenward.
So much for mission accomplished!
Anouska was livid as she swept along the corridor and mounted the stairs.
She had no idea that Peter had a twin. A twin!
And not just any twin. Bob was a wholesome, hearty family man, nothing like his brother.
Brother Bob could have been Captain von Trapp, whistle at the ready, commanding a regiment of obedient children.
At any moment, she’d half expected a chorus of ‘Doe a deer . . .’ to ring out in the room.
But Anouska was no Julie Andrews, and family meetups would be curtailed going forward.
Thank heavens Peter hadn’t produced any heirs, of that she felt certain.
The last thing she needed was menacing offspring like Judith, ready to plant their clumsy size sevens squarely into her carefully laid plans.
But those plans were currently unravelling, and she needed to get them back on track.
Tonight, she decided, she would look so devastatingly hot that Peter would be salivating at her feet before he had time to blow out his birthday candles.
Tonight, she would succeed in her mission to get him into bed, and after that, she would be home and dry.
Anouska had a smug expression on her face as she passed the gift shop. Pausing at the window, she saw Hattie and Sylvie inside. The pair had their heads together and were laughing like children as they held up wide, brightly coloured wraps.
‘Choosing outfits for the big occasion.’ Anouska shook her head and cast a withering glance at Hattie. ‘But you can’t turn lead into gold.’
Continuing to her room, Anouska hoped that Gerald wasn’t hogging the bathroom. He might have created separate sections of the suite, but she still had access to the lockable bathroom and intended to spend the next few hours preening herself to perfection.
Tonight, she vowed, she’d succeed in staking her place firmly in Peter’s world.
Operation Seduction was back on!