A Slippery Slope (16 page)

Jo chortled. ‘As often as possible, babe. Which reminds me, is
your Mum there? Wish her a Merry Christmas for me will you? And say I’ve
forgiven her for telling Uncle Josh I called him a miserable git. Thanks for
the heads-up on that by the way. Not that he’s even mentioned it, but anyway,
you should see the present he bought me! And Mum says he’s cheered up a bit,
lately. We both reckon it’s because he’s got the hots for your mum. Tell her,
if she screws him I’ll be her friend forever. He could do with the sex. It’s
been ages since he’s had any – according to Mum.’

‘Jo! Yuk. Does he discuss his sex life with his sister? I’m not
sure I’d like that if I screwed him. Not that I ever would, of course but ...
Eew! That’s gross! Has he actually told your mum he fancies my mum, then? It’s
obvious he does and I told you about
that kiss
but nothing’s happened
since then, so Mum says.’

‘Not in so many words, and he doesn’t exactly discuss it with her
but you know what my mum’s like. She could wheedle out secrets from a secret
agent.’

‘And she tells you?’

‘Don’t be stupid! My mum’s not as cool as yours. She tells Dad. I
just eavesdrop. I heard her say that she was really surprised because she didn’t
think he’d even take a second look at another chalet girl after what happened
with the last one and–’

‘What do you mean, “what happened with the last one”? Tell me what
you know. And make it quick because I can see Etienne and Josh’s cars pulling
up so I’ll have to go in a second.’

‘Oh! Well the quick version is Uncle Josh was screwing her. She
got serious. He dumped her. She went mad and smashed up
Chalet Marianne
.’

‘What?’

‘You said you wanted the quick version. It’s a long story.’

‘Bloody hell! Okay, I’ll call you back later for the full version.
I need details.’

‘I’m out bonking Rich tonight, babe, so it’ll have to be
tomorrow.’

‘Sod it! All right. Call me the minute you get up. Oh, hold on.
Just tell me one thing. I know he’s your uncle and everything but ... does he
sleep with many of his chalet girls?’

‘No idea. But I do know she wasn’t the first. Why? Oh, you’re
worried your mum might get hurt again. Maybe a quick screw would do her good.’

‘Maybe. But I don’t think Mum is the ‘quick screw’ type. I’ve got
to go. Call me tomorrow with the full story.’

‘Okay. And I want to hear the latest on the Etienne saga. It’s
about time you said yes and had a bit of rampant sex yourself. I know he’s
thirty but it’s not that old and men hit their sexual prime around that age,
don’t they? Hot sex with a hunky ski guide. I’m almost jealous. Get to it,
girl. Love you!’

Lucy rang off and dashed into the bedroom to check her make-up,
almost bumping into Verity in the doorway.

‘They’re here!’ Lucy said a little breathlessly.

‘I know. I heard the cars. Are you okay?’

Lucy nodded. ‘Fine. I’ll be back in a mo.’

Seconds later, Josh and Etienne strolled into the kitchen.

‘What a coincidence that we arrived at the same time,’ Etienne
said.

‘Yes, isn’t it? Merry Christmas, Etienne.’ Verity had the distinct
impression they had planned it. Safety in numbers, she assumed.

‘Sorry it’s so late but we’re not staying long. I just wanted to
say thank you for this lovely scarf,’ Josh said, pointing to the scarf around
his neck. ‘And for this equally lovely T-shirt.’ He undid his jacket and lifted
his sweater to reveal what he was wearing. ‘I’m a little disappointed to see
you’re not wearing yours.’ He grinned mischievously.

 Verity grinned back. ‘I’m saving mine for later. Thank you so
much for the wonderful presents but you shouldn’t have done it and ... well, I
need to have a little chat with you sometime, please.’

Josh frowned. ‘That sounds ominous. You haven’t found another dog
you want me to adopt have you because I’m not sure I could manage a second
one?’

Verity giggled. ‘No. No dogs. And it’s nothing serious. How did it
go in Val Thorens? All okay, I hope.’ 

‘Yep. Disaster averted. One of the bathroom taps wouldn’t turn
off, that’s all, but it’s virtually impossible to get a plumber in Val Thorens
on Christmas Day so I had to go and fix it before it got any worse.’

‘Oh. You’re a plumber too? How useful.’

‘I’m no plumber, but when you own several chalets you have to
become a bit of a Jack of all trades. I do employ a handyman but he’s away for
Christmas.’

‘Josh is very good with his hands, I believe,’ Etienne said,
grinning broadly and winking at Verity. ‘Hello Lucy. Have you had a good day?’

‘Not bad thanks, but exhausting,’ she said, collapsing
dramatically for effect onto one of the kitchen chairs.

‘Er ... perhaps now would be a good time for that little chat,
Verity,’ Josh said, nodding his head towards the dining room.

‘Um. Yes. You don’t mind do you, darling?’ She squeezed Lucy’s
hand.

Lucy shook her head. ‘No. Not at all. I’d like a little chat with
Etienne, as it happens.’

Verity was surprised by the eager look on Lucy’s face and wondered
for just a second whether her daughter had suddenly changed her mind about
Etienne’s proposal. He was an incredibly good-looking man and this evening, for
some reason, he looked even more handsome than usual.

‘What did you want to have a chat about?’ Josh said, closing the
dining room door behind them.

‘Your presents. I loved the T-shirt and the book was very amusing.
Do you want that back by the way?’

Josh raised his eyebrows. ‘Your need is greater than mine, I
believe. You can keep it. There’s even a recipe for crème brûlée, if I remember
correctly,’ he said with a cheeky grin.

‘Thanks. But I’ll leave that dish to Lucy. The thing is, Josh ...
the bracelet is gorgeous and I do love it but ... I can’t accept such a
personal gift, or such an expensive one.’

‘Well I wish you would. I didn’t think a bracelet was that
personal. I think perfume or bath products are more personal than that and I did
think about buying you those, but I didn’t know what you like so I didn’t. I
was getting Joanna a present in the jeweller’s and when I saw that bracelet, I
just thought of you. I don’t know why. I suppose it’s the snowflake charm and
the fact that the little hearts are the same shape as the ones in the balcony
balustrades here. It ... just seemed appropriate. As for it being expensive –
it wasn’t – and besides, you and Lucy have been great, and I wanted to get you
both something nice. You can change the bracelet if you don’t like it.’

‘No! I do like it. Very much but ...’ Verity couldn’t think of
anything else to say.

‘That’s settled then. I’m very pleased you like it. But I must
insist that you wear the T-shirt the next time I see you,’ he said with a grin.
He nodded his head towards the kitchen. ‘I think Etienne is giving Lucy the
same speech that I gave you. The “I’ll leave you alone if you want me to” one,
so I think we may need to give them a while.’

‘Oh!’ Verity wasn’t sure how Lucy would react to that. ‘We’d
better stay here then.’

He grinned at her again. ‘Yes. What shall we do to keep ourselves
occupied? I can show you a few other things I can do with my hands besides mend
taps, if you like.’ His eyes were almost dancing with delight.

Verity gave a little gasp but quickly replied: ‘You could make
yourself useful and throw some more logs on the fire.’

He cocked his head to one side. ‘I thought that’s what I was
doing,’ he said, his grin widening even further.

‘Are you ready, Josh?’ Etienne said, opening the dining room door,
a broad smile on his face. ‘Louis is expecting us at seven. Sorry we have to
rush, Verity. I’ve left your present with Lucy and I’ll see you both later
tonight.’

Josh gave Verity a look as if to say, “That was quick”. ‘Yes, I’m
ready. Er …will we see you later, Verity? I thought you both wanted an early
night?’

‘So did I.’

‘Apparently not,’ Etienne said. ‘Lucy wants to ask me something
and I’m in a bit of a rush now so she’s coming to the house when you finish
here. She said you’d both be coming.’

‘Well then, I suppose we shall. Will Louis mind, Etienne?’

‘Not in the least. He’s cool about that sort of stuff. Did I
mention that he’s my dad, by the way? I can’t remember. I just assume everyone
knows but I forget that because I call him Louis, some people may not realise
I’m his son.’

Verity wondered for a second if this was a test to see if Lucy had
told her.

‘No, you didn’t. But it did occur to me last night when Josh said
you’d known Louis all your life. You told us at the airport that your father
lived in Meribel and I could see the resemblance. I meant to ask Lucy if she
knew but it completely slipped my mind.’

Etienne smiled. ‘She didn’t, but she does now. I thought I’d told
her last night but she can’t remember – and nor can I. Not that it’s a big
deal. Anyway, see you later.’

Josh grinned at her. ‘You don’t have to wear the T-shirt tonight.
I’ll let you off the hook on that.’

Etienne was already heading towards the door and Josh followed
him. He turned suddenly, ran a hand through his hair and smiled seductively,
his blue-grey eyes still twinkling in the glow from the fire.

‘I feel it’s only fair to warn you, Verity. If you wear anything
like that black dress you wore yesterday, I may start thinking of some pretence
to try to get you back to my place – unless you tell me to leave you alone.
Mistral should have read the info pack by now, so she won’t be returning your
shoes or any other discarded item for that matter.’

He winked and a frisson of excitement shot through her. He left
before she could think of a retort and she had a very definite feeling that
somehow, the dynamics of the entire situation had just changed.

‘Why the change of mind?’ she asked as she sauntered back into the
kitchen.

‘He was in a rush and I didn’t get a chance to say much more than
I’d said on the phone. That’s why I’d like to go tonight. I want to make it
clear that I don’t intend to settle down for a very long time. I’d like to be
his girlfriend and I don’t need to tell you that I’d
really
like to get
him into bed, but marriage – no way!’

‘I’m not sure that’s the sort of thing a mother wants to hear,’
Verity said with a chuckle.

‘It’s in the unwritten
Chalet Girl Rules
book, Mum. A
chalet girl’s gotta have fun.’

 Lucy winked at her and Verity found herself wondering what she
had brought with her that was anything like that black dress.

CHAPTER TWENTY

‘What
are you doing, Mum?’

Verity was standing in the bedroom in just her underwear and
rummaging through the pile of clothes on her bed for the umpteenth time.

‘I don’t know what to wear! I wore the black dress last night and
the other few I brought are boring. Other than those, it’s trousers and tops
and I ... I want to look nice as it’s Christmas Day.’

‘You want to look nice for Josh, don’t you mean? What about the
new navy blue dress then? I know you brought it with you because I insisted
that you did.’

Lucy stuck her head in Verity’s wardrobe and brought out the dress
in question. It was a last-minute purchase on that fateful shopping day and
Lucy had persuaded Verity to buy it for her fortieth birthday party. After
finding Tony in bed with Daniella, she hadn’t had any reason to wear it.

‘I couldn’t possibly wear that!’ Verity said, grabbing the dress
and hastily slipping it on.’

‘Bloody hell, Mum! It looks even better on you tonight than it did
in the shop.’

There was a full-length mirror on the inside of the open door of
the wardrobe and Verity twisted back and forth in front of it.

‘Are you sure it’s not too much?’

‘It’s perfect, Mum. And you look sensational. The only thing that
worries me is that Etienne may decide he’d rather have you instead of me!’

‘That’ll never happen. He’s crazy about you. I told you earlier,
even Josh knows that.

I do love this dress but ... isn’t it a bit revealing?’

‘As I told you in the store, you’ve got it, so flaunt it. You
always wear ‘safe’ things. That black dress is the only thing that looks sexy.
Even that comes down to your knees and the skirt is loose fitting. This ...
well, this one oozes sex in every thread. Trust me. And let’s put your hair up.
It’ll show off your shoulders.’

By the time Lucy had finished, Verity was stunned by her
reflection.

‘Wow! Even I’d find me attractive,’ she said.

‘Mum.’ Lucy looked troubled. ‘I ... think there’s something I
should tell you. I wasn’t going to until I knew the details and I had to ring
off before Jo could tell me. She’s out with Rich tonight so I can’t find out
and when I asked Etienne, he said it’s a long story – which is one of the
reasons I wanted to go to Louis’ this evening. I’m hoping he’ll tell me
tonight. And I don’t want to spoil things for you but–’

‘Lucy. Just tell me.’

Lucy looked her in the eye. ‘You know we’ve been joking about the
last chalet girls who worked here? Well, I think something pretty serious happened
between Josh and one of them. Romantically, I mean.’

‘Oh? What makes you think that?’ Verity felt herself tense.

‘As I said, I don’t know the details. And I’m not saying he did
anything wrong. There’s nothing wrong with a holiday romance, or in this case,
a romance for the season. And he was the one who ultimately ‘suffered’ and
that’s why Jo’s mum was surprised that he “would even take a second look at
another chalet girl after what happened with the last one”.  I don’t really get
it.’

‘That makes two of us. Sorry darling, I’m not following you at
all. Was Jo’s mum talking about me when she said “another chalet girl”? And ...
are you saying that he had a fling with the last one? I thought you said it was
something serious. I’m confused.’

‘I said something serious happened. And it did. All Jo told me was
that Josh slept with her – the chalet girl not Jo, obviously – and that she got
serious. Josh dumped her and the girl went berserk and wrecked this chalet.’

‘What! I ... I don’t understand.’

‘Neither do I really. It’s obvious Josh fancies you – even to Jo’s
mum which is why she’s so surprised.’

‘Hold on. Jo’s mum thinks that Josh is interested in me? Has ...
he told her he is? Oh, I suppose you’ve told Jo about that kiss, haven’t you,
and she’s told her mum?’

‘Yes, I told Jo, but I don’t know if she told her mum. They don’t
talk like we do. And I don’t think Josh has said anything. She’s just convinced
he likes you. But after the last one, she’s surprised.’

‘I’m still confused. Why?’

‘Mum! I’ve just told you. Josh slept with the last chalet girl and
then dumped her. She was so upset that she smashed this place up. Jo’s mum
thinks it’s strange that he would risk getting involved with another chalet
girl after that but she’s convinced he likes you. We’re all convinced he likes
you. And you like him. And if you both want to ... have a bit of fun together.
Well, there’s nothing wrong with that and it might do you good. Only, I’m not
sure if this is something he does with all his chalet girls. And I don’t want
you to get hurt.’

‘Something he does with all his chalet girls!’ Verity dropped down
onto her bed. ‘Oh, I see,’ she said, feeling like a helium balloon with all the
air sucked out. ‘But just because he slept with one, it doesn’t mean ... Oh!
Are you saying there were others before her?’

Lucy sat beside Verity and wrapped an arm around her. ‘I’m only
telling you because ... well, after Dad, I don’t want you to get hurt again and
I do think Josh really likes you so as long as you both go into it with your eyes
open then it’s fine, isn’t it? But yes. Jo did say that this last girl wasn’t
the first chalet girl he’d slept with. She knows of five.’

‘Five! Oh shit! Trust me to fall for a bloody serial chalet girl
dater!’

‘I’m really sorry, Mum. I wasn’t sure whether to tell you or not.
The week we spent at Grandma’s was horrid and I was very worried about you.
Since we’ve been here, you’ve been happy! I ... I think he’s good for you but
... I just thought you should know, that’s all. Are you very upset?’ Was I wrong
to tell you?’

‘I’m ... a little hurt, yes. And surprised, to be honest. I didn’t
think he was that sort of man. But then I didn’t think your father was the sort
of man to do what he did, so what do I know?’ She smiled half-heartedly at
Lucy. ‘I’m glad you told me. At least now I won’t do anything tonight that I
might live to regret.’

‘Do you want to stay home? Or shall we just go and have a good
time, and I’ll see if I can get all the details out of Etienne. Or you could
just ask Josh. He’ll tell you anything you want to know when he sees you in
that dress! Although he might not tell you the truth.’

Verity stood up and caught her reflection in the mirror. She
really did look pretty good, she thought. She was sure Josh would like what he
saw. The deep navy colour of the strapless, satin crepe, fitted dressed really
suited her. It somehow made her blue eyes even bluer and her blonde hair, more
blonde. The little notch in the bodice showed just the right amount of
cleavage, and having her hair up made her neck appear longer and emphasized her
shoulders.

‘Let’s go and have some fun,’ Verity said, taking a deep breath.
‘I may show Josh just what he’s missing. And I may even teach him a little
lesson.’