A Winter Affair (25 page)

She knew no one here but Saskia, Quinn and the Jacaranda people, but she found everyone very friendly. The guests at this party were fascinated to hear that she was the latest chef at Jacaranda, the locals having heard of Denise flying off with a pudgy millionaire. ‘Love is indeed blind if it comes with a fortune,' one said with a laugh.

Eloise began to enjoy herself. Quinn's son and his girlfriend appeared and were as warm and friendly as he was. The wine was delicious and the cheese perfect, a large brie with a layer of truffles through the middle, laid out with loaves of fresh baguette, the wine changed to complement the cheese, and there were tiny tangerines and chocolates to finish.

She was filled with the warmth of being among convivial people, everyone shared the love of the mountains, and even those who no longer skied still went up to walk or did cross-country skiing. They told her of the summer when the mountains were green and scattered with wild flowers. She had never been here then, and when she was asked if she was staying indefinitely at Jacaranda, she wished that she were. She felt she belonged here, instead of going home to a new house – the week after next – was it really as soon as that? A house, which would seem lonely without the twins giving it life.

It was painful to accept that her days out here were numbered, though she didn't say that to anyone who asked. She didn't want to provoke talk and perhaps questions to Lawrence.

Lawrence and Pascal were among the group she was talking to, discussing the summer sports here, when she became aware that people had become distracted and were turning towards the door. And there was Aurelia in her polar bear outfit, her eyes skimming the room to see who was here.

The joy ran out of Eloise like sand in a timer and she searched frantically for Harvey among the chattering crowd, but she couldn't see him.

Lawrence, watching her, said quietly, ‘Are you afraid she's brought your ex?'

‘Yes, but I can't stop him from being here.' She tried to smile as if it were no consequence that her ex-husband was gallivanting about the place where she felt happy, with at least one other woman, forgetting the life and love they had once shared together.

Lawrence moved a step closer to her. ‘She's come alone. She always makes a late entrance, and if she brings someone she leads them in like a trophy.' Lawrence smiled and touched her arm, ‘Forget her, Eloise, and just enjoy yourself.'

But before she could answer, Aurelia spotted them and came towards them like a ship in full sail. ‘Lawrence,' she breathed, kissing him on his cheek, her hand on his shoulder as if she was claiming possession of him. ‘Just who I wanted to see, I've so much to tell you.' Ignoring Eloise and Pascal, she slipped her arm through Lawrence's and made to lead him away.

But Lawrence stood his ground. ‘Good to see you, Aurelia, we were just talking about the summer season here, what do you think of it?'

She looked round at the rest of the group haughtily. ‘You're missing a trick there, Lawrence. If you took some of my ideas on board for Jacaranda, it would be thriving summer and winter. You could make money, real money, and save Jacaranda from ruin.'

‘I have plenty of ideas of my own, thank you, Aurelia,' he said, walking away.

Eloise and Theo met up with Gaby and Jerry at the Cabane du Mont Fort for lunch, an Alpine hut made of grey stone perched high on the mountain. It was too cold at this time of year to sit on the terrace so they stayed cosy inside, eating raclette and drinking wine.

Eloise was thrilled to be able to take time off to ski, it was cold but sunny and the conditions were good. She was also pleased to see Gaby, feeling as responsible for her as she would for her own children, and to check she was all right.

They'd chosen to meet here because Ken and Travis – if they did ski today – would not come this far, preferring to stay on the lower, more accessible slopes. They were not concerned about Pippa and Radley finding them if they should stop off here as they could trust them not to sneak on their whereabouts.

‘I don't know exactly what they are planning to do about our adventure on Christmas Day, but I think they might try and make trouble,' Theo said, his young face taut with despair.

Eloise was afraid that Debra and Ken might make much of Jerry being led into possible danger, having never been to Verbier before and therefore reliant on Theo to keep him safe. If they did take some sort of action, Eloise would stand up for him. Theo had warned them to wait awhile after the snowboarders had gone down, but Jerry had not listened and shot off. Any adverse action would generate bad publicity for Jacaranda and, whatever the outcome, any legal dealings would cost Lawrence a fortune.

This morning Travis had asked to speak to Lawrence, and the two of them had been cosseted in his office for some time. Eloise, putting on her boots in the hall, had seen Ken prowling round the living room while Debra sat at the desk, mesmerized with her laptop. Lawrence, perhaps suspecting that Debra would make a thing of it, had told Theo and Eloise they could ski until after lunch and if Ken and Travis wanted to go out he could drop them down later at Medran. Eloise guessed he wanted them both out of the way while he heard what Debra and Ken planned to do. Neither she nor Theo had mentioned they were meeting up with Jerry and Gaby.

‘They can't make a case if I don't agree to it,' Jerry said now. ‘It is just one of the hazards of skiing. As far as I know, we didn't cross any barriers, and other people were skiing there. We're alive, uninjured.' He lifted his arms as if to prove it.

Gaby, who was still subdued, stayed silent, but the glance she gave Eloise said it all. It wasn't going to be as easy as that. These people worked their guts out to make money and took advantage of every chance that came their way to make even more.

Vera had been the most strident in her condemnation of them. ‘I know this sort,' she said, her mouth twisting as if it was tainted with something sour. ‘They spend a lot of money to come here and they can't get the chalet they want, so if they sue they get the money back, have a holiday for free.'

‘But if it hadn't happened they wouldn't have had anything to make trouble over,' Eloise argued and then said no more as Theo appeared, hungry as always, for a snack.

Eloise roused herself now as their meal came, raclette, warm and filling on such a cold day.

‘But they don't know where you are,' Theo said to Jerry, ‘and they might start something about the avalanche without talking to you first.'

‘I'll contact them.' Jerry leant over and took one of Gaby's hands, smiling at her. ‘Debra wanted to send Gaby back home, she doesn't approve of our relationship, thinks Gaby too young.' He smiled at her as if he obviously thought it a joke. ‘So we escaped; we need a bit of time together, alone. But I will get in touch with them, tell them I'll have no part in trying to make something of it; they weren't there, they don't know what happened.'

Eloise felt a little comforted by this, but she could not help noticing how withdrawn Gaby was. Her hand lay like a trapped bird in Jerry's. Perhaps she had been severely traumatized by the avalanche, but would she not then have wanted to go home away from such dangers?

They finished their lunch; Gaby ate well, so perhaps she was just tired and hungry. Eloise and Theo had to get back to the chalet and she managed to snatch a brief moment with Gaby while the men were studying a map of the ski routes pinned on the wall.

‘Are you all right, Gaby, you seem to be very quiet,' Eloise asked.

Gaby smiled weakly, ‘I suppose I deserve it, but I feel I'm trapped with Jerry. After the avalanche and realizing that I couldn't carry on with him, I thought I'd back off, finish it, stop taking his money, but he won't listen. He says he loves me and it's only because I'm younger than him and involved with my studies that I don't feel ready to get too serious and settle down.' She bit her lip. ‘He says he understands that. He wants to help me get my degree and he thinks I'll come to love him more as I mature. I'll always care for him but not as he wants. I know I should have gone home, only Mum and the boys are with Roger and I hate it there and don't want to be home on my own. Anyway,' she gave a little laugh, ‘I do love skiing and I haven't been for ages.'

‘Oh, Gaby.' Eloise squeezed her hand. She'd changed her mind about her opinion of Jerry. Her first impression was of him being a man overpowered by his aunt – Debra was what her father called a ‘ball breaker', a woman who emasculated men – but he seemed different when he got away from her and could joke around with Theo. Perhaps he simply needed Gaby, wanted someone kind who depended on him. The avalanche had scared them all, thrust them into the cold, stark reality of life and death and perhaps made him more determined to hang on to Gaby, who he was obviously besotted with. But Gaby, being so much younger, understandably felt trapped and even guilty.

‘He's twelve years older than me, and although I enjoy being with him, I don't want to be with him all the time, I want to hang out with my own friends.' She looked anguished. ‘I don't know what to do.'

Theo and Jerry were now returning to the table.

‘Perhaps suggest a few weeks' break from each other,' Eloise said quickly, ‘time apart sometimes puts things in perspective.' There was no chance to say any more but she hugged Gaby tightly, urging her to keep in touch. She worried how it all might turn out, but underneath it all she felt that Gaby was strong enough to make the right decisions in the end.

Time was marching on, so Theo and Eloise skied quickly down, not stopping to chat. Not until they were both in the jeep on their way back to Jacaranda did Theo say, ‘What will happen to Dad and Jacaranda if they do make a fuss? What if Debra makes Radley write something in one of his magazine that puts people off coming to us?'

‘Let's wait and see if it happens,' Eloise said, a knot tying itself tight inside her as she considered the possibility. But whatever happened, it was out of her control; she was going home herself very soon, when the next chef Lawrence had booked arrived to take over. The thought tightened the knot. She didn't want to leave, she wanted to stay here. Despite the real concern of avalanches, a lurking ex-husband and a scheming woman, she had felt happy and safe.

Only Vera was at the chalet when they got back.

‘They want to make trouble,' she greeted them darkly. ‘I didn't hear much, but that woman said she was very dissatisfied' – Vera shrugged – ‘though they still want to stay here… too lazy to move on, I suppose. If I had my way they'd be out in the snow with all their bags.'

‘What sort of trouble?' Theo looked anguished.

‘Bad I would think, knowing them, but Lawrence says can you make dinner as usual.'

‘Of course,' Eloise said, she'd half prepared it already, and was glad that she had as the last thing she was focused on now was cooking.

‘If I were you,' Vera said, ‘I'd make a very strong curry so they cannot leave the bathroom, keep them quiet.'

Eloise felt that even the hottest curry would not keep Debra quiet.

Despite having had a good lunch, Theo set himself the task of eating up all the leftovers while Eloise prepared dinner. She cut oranges in half and carefully took out the flesh, planning to fill the empty shells with orange, shrimps and avocado and a sauce for the starter. The breasts of duck were marinating, and the puddings – brown sugar meringue vacherins filled with cream and the sweet chestnut puree that Aurelia had been so rude about – were already made.

Theo begged her to make some more shortbread. ‘I'll miss it when you've gone home, please leave lots for us.'

Gone home. It hurt to think of it.

‘I'll tell you how to make it yourself,' she said, ‘I haven't time to make any now.'

‘I'll never make them as well as you do,' he moaned, but he listened to her instructions, writing them down, while she busied herself with the dinner.

Lawrence returned sometime later from wherever he'd been and found them both in the kitchen, Vera was laying the table for dinner in the living room.

‘Look, made them on my own,' Theo announced proudly, hovering round some rather misshapen biscuits cooling on a wire rack.

‘They look good, but you've made quite a mess.' Lawrence snitched one, managing to bypass a mixing bowl, an open jar of sugar, a couple of wooden spoons and a scattering of flour that lay all around them.

‘I'm about to clear it up,' Theo said, before lowering his voice and saying; ‘Is Debra and that lot back? Are they going to make trouble for us?'

Lawrence sighed, put his hand on his shoulder. ‘I don't know what will happen, Theo. We must wait and see.' He turned to Eloise, ‘Jerry rang and Debra is livid, having found out that you were both skiing with Gaby and Jerry today, she thought they'd gone back to the UK.'

‘Why shouldn't they stay where they like, they are not children,' Eloise retorted.

Theo said, ‘We met up this morning, they are staying at Nendaz. What's it to do with Debra anyway?'

Lawrence said gravely, ‘She doesn't like Gaby, thinks she's after Jerry's money and is annoyed she is still around, and worse, Jerry is with her. It upsets her that you and,' he turned his attention to Theo, ‘especially you, Theo, met up with them as if nothing has happened.'

‘But nothing has happened,' Theo said vehemently. ‘I don't know what Gaby and Jerry are up to, we just ski together.'

Eloise thought of Gaby's confession about how she wanted to escape the relationship. She would say nothing about it in front of Theo. It was Gaby's business.

Eloise turned to Lawrence. ‘I didn't tell you about meeting up with them today as it would have put you on the spot if Debra asked if you'd heard from them.'