Twice Upon a Time (24 page)

Gus rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, pulling her behind a tree. ‘Just wait,’ he said.

His face was so close to her hair and he closed his eyes a little, breathing in her scent. He sensed tension in her shoulders. Was he deluding himself, or did she feel something between them too?

He heard her gasp and he opened his eyes. She was staring ahead at the clearing, where three wild deer were grazing, occasionally looking up nervously.

‘Oh my god, they’re magnificent,’ she breathed.

He nodded, afraid to speak.

‘I want one for a pet,’ she whispered.

He thought about Perrette, who only liked deer to shoot. Gus hated shooting, and avoided going whenever he could. Ludo loved it, but then again Ludo loved anything outdoorsy and sporting.

Cinda’s body was leaning against his and he tried to concentrate on the deer, not on the curve of her body or the feel of her shoulders under his hands.

He wanted to turn her around and push her against the tree and kiss her until they were both breathless. He wanted to catch a deer for her to keep as a pet; he wanted to give her the entire world. But more than anything, he wanted to be extraordinary for her.

With a clap of his hands, the shot-like sound rang out in the woods and the deer scattered in a heartbeat, melting into the shadows of the woods.

‘Why did you do that?’ snapped Lucinda, spinning around to face him, her face dark.

‘Because it’s time to go back. It’s getting dark and dinner will be ready.’ He turned and began to walk back towards the house.

Cinda followed. ‘Great, I’m starving. What’s for dinner?’ she asked.

‘Venison pie,’ he said expressionlessly.

Cinda gasped. ‘You can’t be serious. I can’t eat that, not after you just did a David Attenborough on me.’

Gus turned and flashed her a wicked smile.

Cinda’s shocked expression disappeared, replaced by one of mock-annoyance. ‘You’re a prick sometimes,’ she said, hitting him playfully. Then she walked past him and marched towards the house.

As he watched her, he suddenly had a flash of Ludo doing his time in Africa, while Gus was there fantasising about Cinda.

She was right; he was being a prick. To Ludo, to Perrette, and most of all to her. But he had a horrible feeling it was too late. Cinda had aimed an arrow straight through his heart and now he was hers, whether he liked it or not.

28

‘Will you sit still, for god’s sake,’ Cinda said, frowning at Gus squirming in the armchair.

‘I can’t get comfortable,’ he complained, shifting yet again.

Cinda put down her paintbrush. ‘You’re really annoying me,’ she said with her hands on her hips.

‘I think my right buttock has gone to sleep,’ he said, standing up and rubbing it fiercely.

Cinda shook her head. ‘Let me know when you’ve finished rubbing your bum and then we can get back to it.’ She checked her phone and quickly texted Jonas back.

‘Who are you texting?’ asked Gus, sitting down again.

‘Noneya,’ she said.

‘Who’s Noneya?’ He titled his head in confusion.

‘Noneya Business,’ said Cinda with smile.

Gus nodded stiffly. ‘Of course. It was rude of me to pry.’

‘Relax, I was teasing,’ she said. ‘You’re so serious all the time. It was Jonas.’

Gus sat still, and Cinda picked up her paintbrush again.

‘How is he?’ Gus asked.

‘Who?’ Cinda was trying to concentrate on getting his feet right on the canvas.

‘Jonas,’ said Gus, remaining very still.

‘Oh, he’s great. He’s in love.’ She smiled.

‘That’s nice. Love is good for you,’ he said.

Cinda smiled. Gus had such a funny way of saying things.

‘How are things with Perrette?’ she asked from behind the canvas.

Gus was quiet for a moment and Cinda wondered if she had been inappropriate and should apologise. She kept quiet to see what his response would be.

At first she thought Perrette was perfect for Gus, but now that she was getting to know him she wondered what he saw in the bossy, uptight girl.

‘She’s fine. I haven’t seen much of her lately,’ he said.

Cinda wondered why that was. Maybe they had broken up? She put her brush down and put her head around the side of the canvas. ‘Okay, we’re finished for today, I think,’ she said.

‘Thank the pope,’ said Gus, jumping up.

‘Gee, way to make a girl feel special,’ she said, flicking the cloth that she used to clean her brushes at him.

Gus jumped backwards and ran from the room as she flicked at him again.

Cinda laughed and went back to cleaning her brushes.

Gus stuck his head around the door. ‘Hey, do you want to come on a road trip and see a few of the other Loire chateaus? None of them are as wonderful as Avignon but they’re still impressive. We could get a picnic packed up and eat with the deer somewhere.’ Gus leant against the doorframe.

Cinda was about to answer him when she heard her phone vibrating. She looked at the screen
. Ludo.
She paused with the phone in her hand, looked up at Gus, then back at the phone.

‘Are you going to answer that?’ he asked.

Cinda rejected the call and shoved the phone in her pocket. ‘It’s only Jonas, he can wait,’ she said. She walked over to Gus, smiling. ‘Your plan sounds wonderful.’ They were close enough for her to see the tiny freckle on his cheekbone and she reached up and touched it lightly with her finger.

‘Remind me not to put this in the picture,’ she said.

Their eyes met and Gus nodded.

Cinda pulled away. ‘Let me go upstairs and change into something that doesn’t smell of paint,’ she said, knowing she was blushing.

‘I like that smell,’ said Gus in a low voice.

‘That’s because you’re probably getting high on it,’ she teased.

Gus leant down and inhaled against her neck. ‘And now I’m high on Lucinda,’ he said.

Cinda rolled her eyes and walked up the stairs. ‘Not one of your best lines,’ she said over her shoulder.

‘I can do better,’ he called after her.

Reaching her bedroom, she went in and closed the door, leaning against it and letting out the breath she’d been holding since she left him.

That had definitely been flirting. But was it just her, or Gus too?

When he leant in close to her, she’d felt her body wanting to hurl itself at him.

It’s only because he looks so much like Ludo
, she told herself as she pulled on her boots. She picked up a long red cashmere cardigan that Jonas had sent her that was flung over the back of a chair. She slipped her arms into the velvety soft fabric and eyed herself critically in the mirror.

Pulling her hair down, she brushed it lightly and sprayed on a little perfume. Then she applied a dab of red lipstick and grabbed her sunglasses.

As she headed for the door, she took her phone out of her pocket and threw it on the bed.

She wasn’t the only one who could be made to wait. Now it was Ludo’s turn for a while.

The car drove through the picturesque roads and laneways. Gus played music loudly, occasionally turning it down to tell Cinda about a particular chateau or some fact about the area they were driving through.

They turned and drove up a long driveway and stopped at the top of the hill. Cinda looked down across the woods to an extraordinary sight.

Below her was a chateau built on several archways, spanning the river. It was like someone had taken a beautiful stone bridge and built a castle on it. Behind the chateau on the banks of the river were acres of gardens.

‘Wow,’ said Cinda, wishing she had something better to say. ‘I mean, that’s amazing.’

‘It’s called Château de Chenonceau but many refer to it as the Ladies’ Chateau,’ said Gus.

‘How come?’ asked Cinda, watching a small boat sailing along the river towards the chateau.

‘Many women have lived here and influenced the design of the place. Mary Queen of Scots lived here for a while, and Catherine de’ Medici.’

Cinda turned to him. ‘Medici? My mum reckons she has Medici blood in her.’ She laughed. ‘She would freak if she thought her ancestors lived in this place.’

Gus’s eyes widened. ‘You’re a Medici? How wonderful. Do you have your full family tree?’

Cinda snorted. ‘I’m pretty sure I’m not a Medici, don’t worry. It’s just my mother’s grandiose way of making herself feel better about her life.’

‘But don’t you want to find out if it’s true?’ he asked, looking very serious.

‘What will it change?’ asked Cinda, shaking her head. ‘It won’t give me a chateau or hand me a private jet. None of it really matters.’

Gus stared ahead at the chateau. ‘I suppose you’re right,’ he said, turning the car around. They drove for a while in silence.

Gus cleared his throat. ‘Shall we find somewhere to eat lunch?’ he asked.

‘Sure,’ said Cinda, as he continued to drive and then turned off down a gravel road lined with trees.

After a while he pulled over and stopped the car under a large tree.

‘Here?’ he asked.

Cinda looked at the green grass below it and nodded. ‘Lovely,’ she said, and they got out of the car. Gus pulled the picnic basket from the backseat and handed Cinda a blanket.

She spread it out as a black car pulled over on the other side of the road.

‘Do the goon squad have something for lunch?’ she asked.

‘Yes, they’ll eat in the car, I imagine,’ said Gus. ‘Though I prefer to call them security.’ He sat down on the blanket and opened the basket.

‘Ludo’s annoyed by them,’ said Cinda, sitting down next to him.

It felt odd to be talking about Ludo to Gus in such a romantic setting.

‘That’s because Ludo has never had his life threatened,’ said Gus simply as he unpacked some olives and cheese and put them on the blanket.

‘No way, has someone tried to kill you?’ she asked, eyes wide.

‘There are weekly threats, some of them more serious than others. I try not to think about it too much – that’s what I pay them for,’ he said, nodding across the road.

‘Now I feel nervous,’ she said, looking around as if there might be a sniper in the trees.

‘Don’t be,’ said Gus, putting his hand on hers. ‘You’re perfectly safe with me.’

Cinda paused for a moment, feeling her heart thumping unnaturally hard in her chest. She pulled her hand away and opened a container of cold, cooked pieces of chicken.

‘Are you a leg man or a breast man?’ she asked offering him the container and blushing at the smutty joke.

No Gus
, she wanted to say.
I am not safe with you. I’m not even
safe from myself.

29

Cinda lay on the sofa, trying to read a book about the French masters, but her thoughts were wandering to Gus.

She hadn’t seen him all morning. His secretary had arrived from Paris and swept him into one of the suites that served as an office. Neither had emerged since.

She wondered if there was a problem. Was it Ludo? She checked her phone, feeling guilty for not taking his call the day before. What if he was in trouble?

Unable to sit still any longer, she went upstairs and tiptoed past the door to Gus’s suite to see if she could hear any of their conversation.

Then she heard footsteps and Gus opened the door, almost smacking into her.

‘Lucinda? Christ, you scared me. What are you doing?’ he asked, looking confused.

Cinda paused. ‘Eavesdropping,’ she admitted, unable to think up a credible lie on the spot. She cringed, waiting for the lecture from Gus. To her amazement, he just laughed.

‘You don’t have to eavesdrop, you know. You can ask me anything. I’ll be honest with you,’ he said.

Cinda felt herself blush. ‘Okay. Is everything all right?’ she asked.

Gus looked at her, his face serious. ‘I have to attend a dinner tonight. My mother was supposed to go but she has a cold.’

‘Okay,’ said Cinda casually. ‘I’ll be fine here.’

‘The thing is, I need to take a partner,’ he said nervously.

Cinda frowned. ‘Won’t you take Perrette, then?’

Gus swallowed. ‘She can’t make it,’ he said. ‘It’s a dinner with a sheikh, who is bringing his three wives. I need to bring someone as well.’

‘What about Alex?’ she asked, knowing what was coming.