Follow Your Star (19 page)

‘A sandwich from room service would be fine.’

After her shower Vanessa curled up on the double bed to eat her supper revelling in the air-conditioned coolness of the room. She’d forgotten during the last few months in the jungle what it was like to be comfortable and not continually damp with perspiration.

Ralph returned with frustrating news. ‘I’m sorry, Vanessa, I know you’re desperate to get home to the twins, but there are no direct flights available. We’ve got to go via the States. And even then we can’t fly for forty-eight hours.’

Vanessa hid her disappointment. ‘Can’t be helped. Hopefully I’ll get to speak to them tomorrow.’ She glanced at Ralph, hot and sticky from his foray to the airport.

‘Why don’t you have a shower and then come to bed? It’s far more comfy than the hammocks we’ve been using recently.’

The next morning they were up early intent on getting down to the docks to look for a shipper exporter willing to discuss handling the Fruits of the Forest produce. Vanessa also wanted to explore the Mercado Adolpho Lisboa, the city’s oldest market place.

Their search around the docks for a shipping company proved fruitless. Nobody even had the time to speak to them,
let alone discuss exporting Fruits of the Forest produce.

‘Let’s give up,’ Vanessa said. ‘I’ve a feeling it’s going to be easier to organize it through a third party from the UK.’

Before returning to the hotel they wandered through the vast ancient market thronging with locals buying their produce from the traditional stalls. The outside streets were packed with more stalls and souvenir sellers. Vanessa was delighted to find a stall selling the locally made woven bags and ponchos.

‘Nanette will adore one of the bags,’ she said. ‘And I’ll get a couple of ponchos for the twins.’

Back in their hotel room Vanessa booked a call to Monaco. Standing, receiver in hand, she listened to the ringing tone before shaking her head at Ralph.

‘Still no reply. I don’t understand it. Oh … hello Jean-Claude? Where is everyone? I was just about to hang up.’

Vanessa was silent as she listened to Jean-Claude for several minutes.

‘OK. Will you tell Nanette I’ll ring her tomorrow then with our plans? Yes, we’ve had a great time. Hope to see you soon. Goodbye.’ Vanessa slowly replaced the receiver before turning to look at Ralph.

‘That was weird. Neither Mathieu nor Nanette were in the apartment. Jean-Claude wouldn’t tell me where they were although he assured me the twins are fine. I’m worried now. Something is going on back there.’

Dawn was breaking over a sleeping Monaco as
Pole Position
sailed towards the harbour entrance. Nanette, standing in the cockpit, felt an overwhelming sense of relief sweep through her body. Another half-hour and she would be back on dry land.

A tense Zac had insisted they spent the entire return journey up on deck and now Nanette watched the shore lights getting closer with unconcealed pleasure.

As Phil carefully positioned the yacht to motor slowly into her allocated berth and the crew tied the large navy fenders in place, Zac turned to her.

‘I guess you and I are all washed up now. No chance of even remaining friends?’

‘We were all washed up, as you put it, when you decided to lie about the accident,’ Nanette said, watching Phil press the button to lower the gangplank. ‘I can never forgive you for that.’

Zac suddenly turned her to face him, gripping both her arms tightly.

‘Stop it, Zac, you’re hurting me.’

The pressure increased on her arms as Zac ignored her words and squeezed harder. Nanette closed her eyes, willing him to stop inflicting pain, and waiting for him to release her.

‘You think this hurts? Be warned, Nanette – it’s nothing to what could happen. Other people don’t have my scruples – or share a past with you. Do one last thing for me: walk away from whatever you think is going on.’

The grip on her arms lessened and Nanette opened her eyes to see Zac staring at her intently.

‘Goodbye, Zac,’ she said. Trembling, she moved away from him towards the gangplank desperate to put as much space between her and Zac Ewart as possible.

Blinded by the tears that had started to run down her cheeks, she didn’t see Jean-Claude standing on the quay with Mathieu until it was too late and she’d run into him.

‘
Doucement, ma chérie
,’ he said, gently enveloping her in his
arms. ‘
Doucement
. I’m here now to take care of you.’

The gentle kiss he placed on her forehead wasn’t enough for Nanette. She turned and looked at him before hesitantly kissing him deliberately on the lips. As she surrendered herself to Jean-Claude’s passionate embrace, she was conscious of a statue-like Zac watching them with an unfathomable look on his face.

It was the swish of the curtains that woke Nanette and she blinked as sunlight flooded the bedroom. Jean-Claude had entered the room quietly and placed a tray of coffee and croissants on the bedside table before crossing to the window to open the curtains.

Nanette smiled sleepily to herself as she watched him. He’d been insistent she go to bed after he’d brought her back to the apartment early that morning.

‘I’ll take the twins to school if Mathieu hasn’t returned. You get some sleep. Afterwards you can explain exactly why you went alone to the yacht,’ he’d said.

Nanette had done as she was told and gone to bed. To her surprise within minutes she’d fallen into a deep dreamless sleep.

‘What’s the time?’ she asked, sitting up as Jean-Claude placed the tray on her lap.

‘One o’clock. How do you feel?’

‘Fine.’

‘Are you ready to tell me why you went alone to
Pole Position
?’

Nanette, about to answer flippantly ‘It seemed a good idea at the time’, looked at his concerned expression and said quietly, ‘I’m sorry, Jean-Claude.’

She stretched out a hand to gently touch his face.

‘At least he didn’t push me overboard as I thought he might do at one stage,’ she said quietly.

Jean-Claude looked at her horrified. ‘
Mon Dieu
. I would kill him if he hurt you.’

‘Any hurt Zac inflicted on me is now in the past. I have no intention of going anywhere near him in the future,’ Nanette said, tiredly. ‘I’ll tell you all about last night but first I must get up. Give me ten minutes to shower and dress.’

‘I’ll wait for you in the sitting-room,’ Jean-Claude said, kissing her gently on the cheek as he took the tray. ‘Take your time.’

Half an hour later, Nanette joined him on the balcony where he was reading a newspaper.

‘The charges against Takyanov are getting longer by the day,’ he said folding the newspaper. ‘And more people are being drawn into the net.’

‘Is Mathieu around?’ Nanette asked.

‘No,’ Jean-Claude shook his head. ‘No idea where he’s gone. Vanessa phoned while you were sleeping. She and Ralph arrive back in the UK next week. She wants you to take the twins over. She said something about her and Ralph taking them on holiday. Anyway, she’s going to phone you this evening to discuss it.’

Nanette looked at Jean-Claude in dismay. She’d forgotten Vanessa’s return would signal the end of her stay in Monaco. ‘Next week?’

Jean-Claude caught hold of her hands. ‘You leave the twins with Vanessa and come back to me, yes? You will have some holiday due?’

‘Patsy’s baby is due soon. If I’m in England I’ll have to be
there for that. Maybe afterwards? But where would I stay? Mathieu won’t want me in the apartment without the twins.’

‘At the villa, no question. My housekeeper will prepare the guest suite, and look after us.’ Jean-Claude took her in his arms. ‘It will be wonderful,
chérie
. Just you and me. Getting to know each other properly. We’ll swim, relax, go to Italy.’

Nanette smiled at him. ‘Sounds wonderful. Maybe by the time I get back all this business with Mathieu and Takyanov will be resolved. Has Mathieu accepted your offer of help?’

Jean-Claude gave a shrug. ‘Apparently there is not a lot I can do – simply wait in the shadows and be ready to make a move when he asks –
if
he asks.’

‘Maybe that’s for the best,’ Nanette said. ‘He’s always said you must trust him; he knows what he’s doing.’

‘Which is more than you did last night,’ Jean-Claude said. ‘I couldn’t believe it when Mathieu rang to say that Zac had told him you were spending the night with him.’

‘I couldn’t sleep and it seemed like an ideal opportunity to get rid of the package,’ Nanette said. ‘If I’d known Zac was on board I certainly wouldn’t have gone.’

Hesitantly she began to tell Jean-Claude about the previous night’s events. She glossed over her terror when she realized they had put to sea. Jean-Claude she knew would be furiously protective on her behalf.

‘At least Zac has finally acknowledged the truth about the accident,’ she said. ‘He was driving the night of the accident. He lied to the
pompiers
and the
gendarmes
. My loss of memory for so long was very convenient for him.’ Nanette took a deep breath.

‘I told him I was going to the authorities to clear my name. Although he reckons I’d be wasting my time because people
wouldn’t believe me.’ She bit her lip. ‘Until last night I hadn’t realized how deep the scars were – how much the past was damaging my present. But I’ve decided not to try and clear my name. I will walk away from it. I need to relegate it to the past and forget it. Move on with my life.’

Lovingly Jean-Claude took her in his arms.

‘I can never forgive him for what he did, but it’s not worth dragging it all up again,’ Nanette said, as he bent his head to kiss her. ‘You know the truth and that’s all that really matters to me now.’

As the taxi pulled into the farmyard, the driver, a local man who knew Patsy and Nanette, nodded in the direction of a battered red Mini parked by the hay barn.

‘Reckon you’re an aunty,’ he said sagely. ‘That’s Dr Owen’s car.’

‘Reckon you could be right,’ Nanette said, fishing in her bag for the fare.

Helen came bustling out of the kitchen. ‘It’s a boy,’ she said, seeing Nanette. ‘I’ve got a grandson, imagine!’

‘Can I go up and see them?’ Nanette asked.

‘Doctor’s with Patsy at the moment. Come into the kitchen and I’ll make some tea. You can take a cup up to Patsy.’

It was half an hour before Nanette opened the bedroom door and peered round.

‘Hi, Mum! Congratulations.’

Patsy, cradling her new son, smiled at her sleepily. ‘Hi, Aunty. Didn’t you time your arrival well? Meet your nephew – all seven pounds two ounces of him.’ Patsy held out the tiny bundle and Nanette tentatively took the precious cargo into her arms.

Unexpectedly she found herself wondering, was this the closest she was going to get to having a baby of her own?

‘He’s gorgeous. So much hair,’ Nanette said. ‘Any names yet?’

Patsy shook her head. ‘Helen is all for Hew Trefor.’ She laughed at Nanette’s expression. ‘Apparently they’re very old family names – Bryan’s middle name is Hew. But I fancy Dylan Robert.’

‘The new granny is beside herself with joy,’ Nanette said. ‘I don’t suppose she’ll care what you call him so long as she’s allowed to spoil him. Dylan’s a nice name.’ Nanette smiled down at the baby boy.

‘Bryan and I are hoping you will be a godmother,’ Patsy said.

‘I’d love to.’

‘Good. Any ideas who you’d like to see in the godfather role?’ Patsy asked innocently.

Nanette laughed and shook her head before asking, ‘Shall I put Dylan in his cradle?’

‘Please. How long can you stay?’ Patsy asked, watching as Nanette gently placed a cover over the sleeping baby.

‘A few days. Vanessa and Ralph have taken the twins to Cornwall and I’m officially on holiday for the next fortnight.’

‘Why can’t you stay longer then?’

‘I’ve promised to return to Monaco and spend the time with Jean-Claude,’ Nanette said, blushing.

Patsy looked at her sister speculatively. ‘Are you going to tell me any more?’

Nanette shook her head. ‘Not right now. I’m sure you need your rest. I promise we’ll talk later when you’re up and about. I could do with some sisterly advice.’

Two days later, sitting companionably under the shade of the horse chestnut tree that dominated the side garden, sipping cold lemonade with Dylan asleep in his pram beside them, Nanette talked to Patsy about her worries for the future.

‘I’ve got to decide what I want to do. Vanessas’s come back fired up with enthusiasm for starting a Fruits of the Forest cooperative in Brazil. The twins are growing up and don’t need a nanny twenty-four hours a day now so she’s offering me the job of helping her organize it – getting sponsorship, outlets, all the legal bits and pieces, you know the sort of thing.’

‘Sounds like something you’d enjoy,’ Patsy said. ‘I’d guess there would be a few trips to Brazil too.’

‘The thing is, the whole business would be based in the UK and.…’ Nanette sighed.

‘Jean-Claude is in Monaco,’ Patsy finished the sentence for her. ‘Is it serious between you two?’

‘On Jean-Claude’s part for several weeks,’ Nanette admitted. ‘And now that my memory’s returned and the whole Zac Ewart business has been finished with, I feel free to return his love. You don’t think he’s too old for me?’ she asked her sister anxiously.

Before Patsy could answer, Dylan stirred in his pram and Nanette got up to check on her nephew. Picking him up and cradling him in her arms she sat back down in the shade.

‘From what I’ve seen of the two of you, you’re perfect together. He adores you and no, of course he’s not too old,’ Patsy said. ‘But it might be wise to check with him how he feels about babies, if you’re thinking of having a family with him. He might feel, been there, done that and just want you to himself.’

Nanette picked up a magazine and a paper from the newsagent in the departure lounge Monday afternoon and settled down to wait for her flight back to Nice.

She’d enjoyed her few days with Patsy and baby Dylan but had missed Jean-Claude desperately. She smiled happily to herself – a few more hours and they would be together with no responsibilities to worry about, just time to enjoy each other’s company.