A Slippery Slope (25 page)

‘Do
you remember that story I told you about Noah, darling?’

‘Of
course I remember.’ Verity poured them both a large glass of wine.

‘And
you remember that I said Noah looked at me in a certain way? A way that Tony
has never looked at you?’

Verity
nodded and took several gulps of wine. ‘I remember.’

‘Well,
on the day you left Meribel, Josh looked at you like that. I saw it with my own
eyes and I’ve been trying to tell you ever since. I even thought about texting
you but I suspect Tony would have seen it. Did Lucy tell you that she saw him
check your phone?’

‘Check
my phone? Tony? Where? When?’

‘In
Meribel, of course. The day before you left. She asked him what he was doing
and he said that he’d got the phones mixed up and thought it was his. But as
your phone is bright purple and his is black, I doubt that very much.’

‘But
why would he be checking my phone?’

‘For
the same reason he’s now following you around like some demented version of a
love sick puppy! He obviously realised – clearly before I had, that Josh Calder
has fallen in love with you. Why do you think he wanted to get you home in such
a hurry? He didn’t want to give Josh a chance to realise it for himself and ask
you to stay.’

‘Mum!
This is so far-fetched that it could form the basis of a fantasy novel!’

‘All
novels have some truth in them, darling. Answer me one thing. And answer me
honestly. Why didn’t you want to stay in Meribel?’

‘Because
... because ... I was confused, and frightened, and I knew I had to get away
from Josh before he broke my heart too. It was just a matter of time. I saw him
– the day we left – laughing and joking with another woman as if he’d forgotten
I even existed. She had her arm through his and she kissed him on the cheek.
They were happy and very much together.’

‘Now
who’s living in a fantasy novel? Good heavens, darling. What has come over you?
Men and women can be very good friends without being lovers – despite what
everyone says – and lovers can love, deeply, passionately and completely but it
doesn’t mean they’ll never smile at someone else or laugh with someone else or
enjoy someone else’s company. That sort of thing has never bothered you before.
Why does it now? Unless of course, you are so eaten up with jealously because
you love Josh with every ounce of your body.’

‘No!
I ...’ But even as she said it, she knew that it was true and she refilled her
glass, swallowing back the contents in several gulps. She placed the empty glass
down on the table and looked into her mother’s eyes. ‘I have to leave Tony,
don’t I? Regardless of whether or not Josh loves me? May I come and live with
you for a while. Just until I can sort out the house ... and everything?’

Laura
gave a long, loud sigh of relief. ‘At last! Thank God for that! Of course you
may, darling. By the way, the woman you saw Josh with that day is called Marie.
She’s the wife of a very good friend of his. She and her husband live in Val
Thorens ... and she’s an architect. Did you know that Josh was having a new
chalet built? Lucy knows all about it. And if you want my advice, darling,
you’ll find yourself a job. There’s still a vacancy for a chalet girl in
Meribel. Lucy told me so last night when I called to ask her.’

***

‘Hello,
Tony,’ Verity said when he came to collect her from her mother’s. ‘Will you
come in for a minute please? We need to talk.’

Tony
looked anxious. ‘Why? What about? Can’t we talk at home darling?’

She
shook her head. ‘No. We need to do it here. And ... I’m not coming home. Well,
not to stay at least.’

‘What
are you talking about? Of course, you’re coming home! Verity, darling! We’ve
started a new life together. Please don’t let your mother poison you against me
with her nastiness and lies.’

‘She
hasn’t, Tony. I thought I could forgive you for sleeping with Daniella, but I
was wrong. I thought I still loved you enough to forgive you, but I don’t. I’m
sorry, but I’ve only just realised this. I’m in love with someone else and–’

‘Josh!
I knew it! Has he called you? Has he asked you to go back to him?’

Verity
was taken aback by the anger in Tony’s eyes. ‘No, Tony, he hasn’t. Please come
in. I’d rather not do this on the doorstep.’

‘Well,
I’d rather not come in. Come home. Right now. We’ll discuss it there.’

‘No,
Tony! It’s here or nowhere at all. I am not coming back to you. It’s over
between us. I suspect the truth is that it was over between us years ago. I was
just too foolish to see it. I want a divorce, Tony. I think we both need to
start new lives. You’re right about that. But not together.’

‘Does
Lucy know about this? Don’t you care if you break your daughter’s heart?’

‘I
care more than you did when you screwed your waitress and told us you were
leaving! Yes, Lucy knows. And she’s given me her blessing. It turns out that my
happiness is far more important to her than us being a family. She said that
she did miss you – and us as a family – but seeing me so happy in Meribel made
her realise that I wasn’t really happy here with you. Only problem was neither
she nor I knew that at the time.’

‘You
weren’t the only one who was unhappy! I was too. My restaurant was struggling
but did you care?’

‘That’s
not fair! I tried to talk to you about it and the extra hours you were working.
Instead of sharing your problems, you told me that I didn’t understand how hard
you had to work to keep the place going, and that you were thinking of selling
up. You refused to discuss it further. You said that you had everything under
control, so don’t blame me for that!’

‘But
you didn’t tell me that you had several thousand pounds stashed away in a
secret account, did you? That money could have changed everything for me.’

Verity
gasped in surprise. ‘It’s not my money, Tony. It’s my mother’s. Yes, it’s in an
account with my name on and yes, I’ll admit that perhaps I should have told you
but she asked me not to. She opened it because she thought you’d up and leave
me and she wanted me to be secure, financially at least.’

‘Well,
I’m not the one leaving now, am I? And you’ll definitely be secure,
financially, what with that and your
big redundancy
payout? When were you going to mention that?’

‘How do you know about that? It ... it was confidential.’

‘Yes, well I know someone who works in HR at that bank and when
you told me you’d left your job, I wondered if you’d been made redundant.
You’ve been there for almost twenty years so I knew you’d get a big payout. I
don’t know how much but I do know you got more than everyone else. A lot more
in fact. Why was that?’

‘It’s confidential, and I’m not having this discussion with you.’

‘Well, you’ll be having it with my lawyers because I’m entitled to
half of everything you have and that includes the money in the account that
witch of a mother of yours opened, and your big redundancy cheque!’

‘Actually, Tony,’ Laura said, marching towards the door. ‘You’ll
find it may not be as easy as you think to get your hands on my money – or
Verity’s redundancy money for that matter. My lawyers are far better than yours
and I’ll pay them my last penny to stop you if you try to get even a pound from
either accounts.’

‘Mum, that’s enough. I never thought it would come to this, Tony,’
Verity said. ‘I wouldn’t try to cheat you out of anything but it does seem to
me that you have a rather sudden and unhealthy interest in money. Is ... is
that why you asked me to come back to you? Because you found out about my
redundancy? Good God!’

‘No! I missed you, Verity and I do ... love you, but the
restaurant is struggling and money’s very tight. It would certainly help–’

‘I thought you were going to sell it. Oh, Tony, you can have the
house. I’ll transfer my share to you as part of the divorce. The mortgage isn’t
large and the house is worth a fortune now. As much as my payout, I should
think. But that’s it. You’re not getting anything else. Let’s not forget that
if you hadn’t cheated on me, we’d have still been together. This is your fault,
not mine and there’s a price to pay for our mistakes. I don’t want Lucy to see
us fighting though, so I sincerely hope you’ll accept my offer and agree to end
things amicably.’

Verity couldn’t believe what she was saying. How could her life
change so much in such a short time?  How could she change so much?

‘Fine!’ Tony said. ‘But I want that in writing. And I’m keeping my
restaurant.’

‘You’re welcome to it. I never want to set foot in there again as
long as I live.’

‘I’ll have my lawyers draw up the paperwork,’ Laura said.
‘Goodbye, Tony. You don’t know what a relief it is for me to be able to say
that to you for the very last time.’

CHAPTER THIRTY

Verity
stood on the doorstep of Josh’s home and took a long, deep breath. She knew he
was home because she’d stopped at
Chalet Marianne
to see Lucy who had
called him on some pretext, to check.

‘Verity!’
His blue-grey eyes opened wide with surprise and happiness. ‘You’re back!’

‘Hello,
Josh.’ She smiled up at him. ‘Yes, I’m back.’

‘You
... you read my note?’

‘Note?
What note?’

‘The
note I put inside the cook book the day you left.’ He glanced down at her
oversized handbag and frowned. ‘Isn’t ... isn’t that why you’re here?’

She
shook her head. ‘No, I didn’t see a note. There wasn’t anything inside the cook
book. I’ve been reading it so I’d have seen it if there was. What ... what did
it say?’ She was suddenly nervous. What had it said? And why hadn’t she seen
it?

He
ran a hand through his hair. ‘It said that if you ever need a job, just come
and see me – amongst other things.’

‘That’s
what you said when I left.’

He
nodded, his eyes locked firmly with hers. ‘And I meant it.’

‘That’s
good because I do need a job as it happens. Er ... May I come in, please. It’s
very cold out here.’

They
both grinned, remembering the last time she’d stood on his doorstep and uttered
those words. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her inside but just like
last time, he let her go immediately and they stood and stared at one another.

‘I
... I’ve had a few cooking lessons. Not many, you understand. I’ve only been
gone for two weeks. But a few.’

‘Is
that all it’s been? It feels like a lot longer.’ He ran a hand through his hair
again. ‘The job’s yours anyway. You’ve obviously spoken to Lucy and you know
that Jo doesn’t want to come out and work. She’s madly in love with some
builder.’

‘Rich,’
Verity said.

He
gave her an odd look. ‘I have no idea whether he’s rich or poor. Rich I would
guess, knowing my niece but–’

‘No.
I meant his name is Rich.’

‘Oh!
Anyway, you can pick up where you left off. Er ... I do have a few new rules
though,’ he said, grinning at her. He coughed, looked serious and his hand went
through his hair yet again. ‘What ... what’s happened with you and Tony? Is it
over between you or are you just ... taking time out?’

‘It’s
over. We’re getting a divorce as soon as possible. I’ve been staying at Mum’s
to sort things out. One of her friends is the person who’s been giving me
cooking lessons. She’s a brilliant home cook. I can now make crème brûlée,
you’ll be very pleased to hear.’

‘I’m
ecstatic,’ he said, ‘but not because you can make crème brûlée.’

‘You
... you don’t look ecstatic.’ She cocked her head to one side. ‘Aren’t you
pleased to see me? I rather hoped you would be.’ She turned away from him,
unsure now whether she’d been right to come back. He wasn’t acting in the way
she’d hoped. He seemed a little distant. Friendly, but distant.

‘Verity!’

There was something in his tone, which gave her hope. She turned
back to him and smiled provocatively. ‘Yes, Josh.’

His mouth twitched into a half smile.
‘I seem to
remember we’ve done this before,’ he said. ‘When I said just now that you can
pick up where you left off, I didn’t just mean the chalet girl job.’

‘No?’
Her heart fluttered with hope.

‘No.
So let me be abundantly clear. The job is yours and you can start whenever you
want but if you stay here any longer,
you can’t hold
me responsible for the consequences
. Unless you want a relationship with
me, I suggest you leave right now.’

‘Ah,’
she said, smiling mischievously. ‘Are we doing the “kitchen means I just want
the chalet girl job. Sitting room means I want more – much, much more,”
scenario?’

He
nodded slowly but his gaze never left her face.

She spun round on the spot, walked into the sitting room and
popped her head back around the door, smiling seductively. ‘S
itting room!
Without any shadow of a doubt.’

S
he raised her eyebrows in a questioning look and seconds
later, she was in his arms and he was kissing her, deeply, longingly and
lovingly.

He half walked her, half carried her to the sofa and as he eased
her down onto the cushions, her foot brushed against a pile of papers, knocking
them to the floor. Mistral, who was curled up in front of the fire, barked,
jumped up and nudged Josh with her nose.

‘This isn’t going to work,’ he said, just like last time. ‘Excuse
me.’ He got to his feet and called Mistral to him. ‘I’ll be back in a second.
Don’t move.’

Verity laughed and watched him go. She bent down and picked up the
papers, putting them back on the coffee table. She noticed they were
architect’s drawings. And she also noticed a name. She took a closer look.

‘Now,’ Josh said on his return, ‘Where were we?’

She glanced up at him. ‘Josh?’ She was holding the drawings in her
hand.
‘Chalet
Vérité? You’re ... you’re naming your new chalet after me?’ She couldn’t
believe it.

‘Er.
Yes.’ He ran his hand through his hair and smiled sheepishly. ‘I had to call it
something and …’ The smile widened. ‘I thought I could run a chalet girl
cookery school there!’

He
beamed at her and she knew then just how much he loved her.

‘Josh?
What else did the note say? The one you put in the cook book. You said it was
the job ... amongst other things.’

‘Does
it matter now?’

‘Yes,
I’d like to know.’

He
sat beside her and took her hands in his, looking deeply into her eyes. ‘It
said: ‘I want you to be happy, but if you ever change your mind, come back to
me. I love you more than I thought possible. And I’ll be here for you. Always.’

She
gave a little gasp. ‘Oh, Josh!’ Tears welled up in her eyes. ‘Why didn’t you
just tell me that?’

‘Because
I didn’t know it myself until you were leaving! I know this sounds ridiculous
but the moment I saw you I ... I felt as if we were connected in some way. I
couldn’t stop thinking about you – and believe me, I tried. My last
relationship ended badly. I’ll tell you about that later. But as hard as I
tried, I just fell deeper and deeper in love with you, even though I didn’t
realise it was love. I thought it was just ... lust, I suppose. The image of
you in that T-shirt is still with me even now. Verity, please don’t cry!’ He
searched his pockets. ‘I can’t find a handkerchief. Hold on, I’ll get some
tissues.’

She
sniffed. ‘I’ve got some tissues in my handbag.’

He
passed her her bag and she rummaged around in it for some time before tipping
the contents onto the coffee table, in frustration. The packet of tissues
flopped onto the floor as her belongings tumbled out – and so did a piece of
folded paper.

‘The
note!’ They said in unison.

Verity
picked it up and read it; it said everything Josh said it did.

‘I
really
must
get a smaller handbag!’ She was laughing and crying at the
same time as she wiped her eyes. ‘I ... I love you too, Josh. And I felt the
same as you did when I saw you but I didn’t realise it was love, either – until
I’d left.’

He
kissed her deeply and when he let her go, he grabbed her hand and led her
towards the door. She was rather disappointed that he headed for the front door
and not his bedroom.

‘Oh!
Where are we going, Josh? I was rather hoping that ...’ She nodded towards the
stairs.

He
grinned. ‘And we will, but there’s plenty of time for that later. We’ve got to
get to the shops before they close.’

‘The
shops? Why? What shops?’

‘The
handbag shop, for one. To get you a smaller bag.’

Verity
chuckled. ‘Oh! Okay. But can’t that wait? I’d rather have passionate sex with
you than buy a new handbag.’

He
raised his eyebrows and turned to face her, pulling her back into his arms. ‘I
bet that’s a sentence that men the world over long to hear. And as much as I’d
love to do the same, the handbag shop isn’t the only place we’re going.’

‘Oh?’

‘We’re
going to the jewellers to look for a ring. I know it’s sudden. I know you’re
still married. But I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. I love
you, Verity Lawton. With all my heart. And I want the world to know it. I want
the world to know that this chalet girl is here to stay.’

‘Josh!
I love you so much!’ She was overcome with happiness and kissed him
passionately to prove it. Several minutes later she looked into his eyes and
said: ‘But ... don’t you think you should
ask
me?’

‘No.
I’m your boss and you’ll do as I say.’ He ran a hand through his hair. ‘If ...
if you want to, that is. You do want to ... don’t you?’

The
look he gave her was so desperate, so worried, and so full of love. Even though
this
was
rather sudden, she knew she wanted it too.

‘More
than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life!’ She pulled him towards her so that
she could kiss him again. ‘Although a smaller handbag would be nice.’

***THE END***

***