It wouldn't do to let his guardian know that for the past three hours or more she hadn't even given Barry a thought, much less missed him.
'Naturally,' Neil drawled with a somewhat tight smile. He draped down leisurely in his seat, started the car and drove back to the villa in silence.
Barry's tangerine sports car came squealing to a stop on the terrace, minutes after Tessa had reached her room. She waved down from her balcony with a smile. In her opinion he had been greatly daring in going off to see Elaine on his own, but he had managed it, and no harm had been done, so, she shrugged, why not leave it at that?
She slipped dutifully back into the role he had asked her to play, believing that he had had his fling and was content to keep things as they were, and then a few nights later he jolted her by droppings the news that he was going out on his own again.
His daring this time was probably prompted by his grandmother, who announced excitedly after dinner that she would have to hurry off as she was making a trip to the theatre with friends. Before the words had left her lips, Barry came in on them and said with a fidgety grin that he expected to be out all evening himself, and then almost knocked his chair over in rising. Avoiding Tessa's gaze, he went out whistling tunelessly and leapt ahead of her up the stairs. She didn't bother following him along to his room. That far-away smile in his eyes had told her that it wouldn't do any good, and as far as appearances were concerned she didn't suppose there was anything too odd in him going off on his own occasionally.
Wandering in the muted glow of the table lamp in her room, she heard him drive off. Later Madame Devereux departed in her chauffeur-driven car. In the silence that dropped over the house Tessa wondered what would be the best way to spend her own evening. She could go downstairs and sit in the beautiful old room at the front, but the air was close and the outdoors appealed to her more. There were comfortable sun-beds on the terrace and a small radio within arm's reach. The idea of dreaming under the stars listening to velvet-toned music, French style, seemed the best idea of all.
Lying back among the cushions breathing in the sweet green of the garden, some time later, she couldn't help but sigh her silent thanks for this unexpected break. The night, the stillness and the peace—it was all a heavenly change from tagging around endlessly after Barry and Elaine. She wanted to just lie here and bask in every moment as it came. The motionless palms and feathery-leaved trees seemed to agree entirely with her mood.
Neil's desk fronted the open windows in the room across the hall. She had seen him working there often of an evening; the wide shoulders hunched over crisp crackling papers, the golden light accentuating the tanned craggy features and dark hair. He was working there now. She couldn't see him from her place at the other side of the doorway, but the terrace was aglow with the light from the window, and sometimes a scarf of blue cigarette smoke floated out into the night.
She had taken care to tune in the radio to the merest whispering tones, so she ought to have heard the occasional businesslike rustle of papers, but there was no sound tonight. Nothing in the house stirred. The only movements outside were the frequent curling wisps of smoke drifting through the open window. In the stillness she could almost hear the pulse of the world, and then a footstep sounded across the hall.
Neil came out and lit up another cigarette, then moved off into the shadows. From her place at the door she could make out his dark bulk against the skyline, see the bright glow of the cigarette every now and then, as he drew on it deeply. He strolled at first. She could hear his footsteps above the soft throb of the music. And then as she lay silently absorbing the beauties of the night, the footsteps took to pacing. The cigarette glowed incessantly. When he moved towards the doorway she thought it was to go back inside, but instead he came to tower over her, and grinding the cigarette under his heel he drawled casually, 'Fancy a run into Cannes?'
Tessa blinked. It wasn't Saturday. Shouldn't he be working at his papers? Above the acceleration of her heart she had time to realise that Barry was down there somewhere with Elaine. As though not terribly overwhelmed at the idea she smiled, 'I think I know the place inside out by this time.'
'Okay, we'll go somewhere else.' Neil thrust his hands into his pockets. 'Miramar up the coast has a good hotel. Fountain in the garden, all glass bar and open-air dancing. Very elegant,' he grinned.
Tessa couldn't keep a hold on her racing heart now, but she met his gaze to say simply, 'I haven't got anything to wear to a place like that.'
'Put that flimsy green thing on,' he put a hand out and pulled her to her feet and guiding her inside tacked on firmly, 'and don't take all night.'
Upstairs in her room Tessa slipped into the green chiffon, and sought the side zip which would seal the figure-hugging bodice, with slightly trembling fingers. She well remembered the last time she had worn this dress, but better not think about that now. Ignoring the glowing violet eyes and tremulous mouth, she made up lightly and brushed the waving hair until it shone. Instead of her own toilet water, she experimented with a dab of Devereux perfume, liked it and went on to touch her wrists and ear-lobes, then changing into slim-heeled shoes, and clutching her handbag to her, she hurried back downstairs.
Neil was waiting for her on the terrace. He had changed into deep blue dinner jacket and black trousers. She saw his darkened green gaze lower over her as she came out. When it came back to linger on her bare shoulders she jerked shyly, 'I don't possess such a thing as a stole, I'm afraid, but perhaps I ought to have got…'
'I'll provide the accessories tonight.' With the gleam of a lazy smile he led her to the car and reached in to the dashboard shelf. She didn't somehow see herself wearing his scarf, but evidently she had no choice in the matter. He draped the strip of patterned silk about her shoulders and tied it loosely at the front like a shawl. Looking down at the effect to hide her pink cheeks, and then up again, she laughed, 'I feel like a flower girl!'
'Is that bad?' He crooked a dark eyebrow over her as he moved in to open the door. Tessa took her seat, keeping her smile as a reply. She was never quite sure which way to take Neil's remarks. She dropped back, watching him start the car. The lean hands looked browner than ever against brilliant white cuffs. A neat wrist-watch gleamed expensively as he swung the wheel.
The car moved forward and then the tyres were whispering over the terrace and along the drive. When they were cruising down the winding road, Neil flicked a button on the dashboard, and the same mellow music that had been drifting out over the terrace from the small radio came pulsating softly on the night air. He dropped her a bent smile and shrugged, 'Might as well pick up where you left off.'
Tessa couldn't resist breathing a deep sigh of satisfaction. It was all so perfect—the villa gardens, the music, and the sea, a strip of molten silver in the distance. Neil kept to the same road almost down into Cannes and then took another one that turned off up the coast. As this was in the opposite direction to Juan-les-Pins, the drive for Tessa was entirely new. With the warm breeze plucking at her hair, she saw sleepy villages and thick wooded countryside, and sometimes a dramatic peak would rise up darkly against the star-strewn sky. Neil kept a relaxed hold on the wheel, spinning it lazily this way and that to take the bends in the road. Tessa lay back dreamily. There was no need for conversation. The music, the hum of the tyres, and the velvet night said all there was to say.
Miramar was an elegant resort set back in a small bay. Its softly lit boulevards and avenues rose gently up the slopes of the hills around and the gardens were dark with luxuriant vegetation. The Hotel Rimbaud was everything Neil had said it was and more. The decor was dark-toned and rich and out beyond a blue flowing fountain, glossy couples moved around a crowded dance terrace that was flanked entirely down one side by a gleaming glass bar. The rest of the space was taken up with lamplit tables and chairs arranged beneath low leafy trees.
Drinks were ordered and lingered over at one of the tables, where Tessa gazed around her with interest, and then she found hers
elf being guided on to the dimly lit floor. There wasn't much room for dancing, but no one seemed to mind, least of all Neil; he drew her close and moved with the crowd. Only her small steps following his seemed important to him.
It must have been quite a few dances later when he stirred himself to ask in deep tones, gazing down at her, 'Glad you came?'
She met his gaze, not caring that there might be stars in her eyes, to reply softly, 'What do you think?'
His arms gripped her tightly. There was a peculiar light in the green eyes as he drew her close against him. They moved as one with the music. Sometimes she thought she could feel his hps brushing her hair. As the night slipped by under the stars, people laughed and clinked glasses and swayed in each other's arms, but Tessa was conscious only of the wide shoulder against her cheek, the dark head leaning into hers. She had dreamily decided to stay like this for the rest of her life, when the arms holding her relaxed and Neil said deeply, 'Time to go.'
'So soon!' Tessa looked up disbelievingly.
'It's almost twelve-thirty,' Neil grinned, guiding her off the floor.
Tessa didn't own a dance purse. Her handbag, the only one she possessed was clumsy and more for daytime use, and while she had danced she had left it safely down by the leg of their table. She went to collect it now, and then turned to go through the hotel, but Neil took her arm and nodded towards the trees, saying lazily, 'We can get to the car this way.'
The path they took was of smooth beaten earth, but there were knuckles of rock erupting here and there to fox the night stroller. As Tessa trod warily, Neil turned an arm about her waist to assist. With every step she felt herself drawn closer to him. Sometimes he had to stoop beneath the low slung boughs of the trees, and when he did, she could feel his warm breath on her cheek.
The lights from the terrace gradually fell back behind; the voices and the music faded into the distance. In the silence now with only the black branches of the trees showing against a pale sky, Tessa felt another kind of commotion going on in her heart. The noisy pounding there was something she had never known before. She stumbled more than she should have done and the slope of Neil's smile as he caught her close didn't help. When they came out at last to a grassy clearing where a low wall looked down on the dark strip of road below, she took advantage of the picturesque setting to slip away from the arm that held her.
An old stone well was silhouetted against sea and sky, like a black picture cut-out. Its bucket was suspended on a chain from a wrought iron bower, and the end of the chain caught like a cleverly draped ribbon on a hook at the side.
Tessa went to circle the well, her pulses still flying, and then leaned over the wide brim to gaze into its depths. 'What will happen if I drop a coin in?' she asked with a shaky laugh.
'It will pollute the water that someone might have to drink,' Neil said drily, coming up behind her.
'Who drinks well water these days?' she prattled breathlessly. 'And I bet there's hundreds of coins down there. Besides,' she kept her gaze down, 'it's a good way to find out how deep it is.'
In her panic to give herself something to do, she swung round too quickly and knocked her handbag from where she had placed it on the rim of the well beside her. It fell to the ground, scattering its contents as though happy to unload itself. Neil bent to gather everything up. 'Two inches the other way,' he drawled, 'and more than one coin would have gone down there.' There was a pause and then he added, 'A great deal more.' He came up holding the two rolls of notes in his hand and asked, 'What's this?'
'Money that Barry gave me,' Tessa said truthfully.
'Still intact, by the look of it,' he looked at the flat neatly banded rolls and then at her. She knew what was going through his mind. The scarf he had lent her to take the place of a stole tonight. The sunglasses she had done without so long. All the material things she was so sadly lacking in this new life and could have bought with the money, but hadn't. Thoughtfully he put the rolls back into her bag and handed it to her without comment. Tessa knew a foolish relief.
The incident had done nothing to make the air more breatheable at his nearness, so she groped for a coin and dropped it in the well. She knew the green gaze was still on her, but she listened nevertheless for the tiny splash of sound. When it came, she gave a low laugh of satisfaction. Close beside her Neil laughed softly too. In the silence that followed he said in low tones, 'You're a funny kid.'
'I'm not a kid.' She turned on him with spirited humour, believing those palpitating, dangerous moments to be past. They weren't, as she learned too late, but only just upon them. As they came face to face, her laughter caught in her throat at the look she saw in his eyes. It held her rooted and drained the strength from her as she had known it would. Unable to do anything but finish what she had been going to say, she twinkled weakly, 'If I'm old enough to drink and dance I'm old enough to be called a woman.'
'I'll buy that.' Neil pulled her against him and trailed his lips in her hair.
Strained close to him, his mouth brushing her throat, Tessa wanted his kiss more than anything she had ever wanted in her life. But something held her back.
The handbag and money incident still lingered in the corners of her mind. As she thought of it now a certain wariness crept over her. A wariness that put her instantly on her guard.
Ever since her arrival at the villa Neil had been watching her like a hawk. She knew his opinion of her only too well. So…? What was she doing here? What was she doing here like this when in his mind she belonged to someone else? The question flickered rapidly along her thoughts like a flame travelling towards explosive and suddenly the truth burst on her. The awful truth why his lips were searching for hers now.
He knew she didn't love Barry and he was out to prove it tonight beyond all doubt. To prove to himself and to her that she was staying at the villa under false pretences. Oh why, oh, why hadn't she seen it earlier? The trap he had been laying for her. The soft music and the romantic drive. The dancing in close embrace, and the walk in the starlight beneath the trees. She could see it now all too clearly. His one aim in life was to be rid of her for Barry's sake and he was working on it. Oh, he was working on it!
Angry with him and herself, she took refuge in her loyalty to the boy she had promised to help, and straining away as his mouth found hers she gasped, 'For heaven's sake, Neil! I'm practically engaged to Barry!'
She stumbled from him and went to regain some of her strength against the low wall. It was a long moment before Neil followed her. When he did she saw the green eyes looked darker in the paleness of his face. He twisted a smile to say in unsteady tones, 'So you're sticking with it?'
She forced herself to sound playfully incredulous. 'Did you think I was going to let go?' She thought the grey-lined face looked suddenly older, but it felt good to be hitting back at him and she added with a harsh laugh, 'Barry's got everything I want, thank you !'
'And we both know what that is.' Neil flung a look down at her, then let his gaze rest on her handbag to sneer, 'How do you count your love? In thousand- or million-franc notes?'
Tessa swayed. It was no use pretending she didn't smart under the sting of his words. She said quiveringly, 'I think we should be getting back.'
'Like hell we should be getting back!' He grabbed her wrist and jerked her into his arms, holding her against him while he watched her with blazing eyes. Tessa saw the move as another demonstration of his contempt. She fought wildly as his lips came down to hers, and choked pleadingly, 'Neil! Please!'
His grip tightened like a band of steel about her, and then suddenly when she could fight no more it slackened and his arms dropped to his side as though weighted. He pulled in a savage breath and then gave her a sour smile to drawl, 'As you were saying, it's time we were moving.' He took her elbow impersonally and led her towards a steep flight of stone steps that dropped down to the road.
Back in the car Tessa sat small and shattered while Neil prepared to move out. The air was cooler now and she was thankful
when he pressed a button that brought the top up. He found the scarf on the seat and flung it across her shoulders with a clipped 'Put it on.' When she shrank from it, he pulled her roughly towards him and tied it at the front, saying with a thin smile, 'I wouldn't want you to catch pneumonia before you get the mink.'
Tessa drew away from him blinking back the tears. It was no good letting him see that she wanted his touch so much. He would only take advantage of it as he had done everything tonight. And he didn't know it, but he had won his battle anyway.
Watching him take the car back along the road in tight- lipped anger, she knew that nothing could keep her at the Villa Valrose now. Long before they reached it she was mentally throwing her things into her case and climbing down by the balcony if necessary. It was one thing taking sides with someone against a wicked guardian, but entirely another when you found yourself in love with said wicked guardian.
CHAPTER SEVEN
The sky was silvered with the first light of dawn when Tessa crept wearily into bed in her room at the villa. Her case was packed and her mind was made up, but in her panic to get away, she hadn't given a thought to Barry. She would have to tell him she was going, and she couldn't just walk out on Madame Devereux without some form of goodbye.
She lay under the mosquito net that Neil had had fitted to her bed, trying not to think of those green eyes, dark and close to her own; the grip of his arms as he had held her against him. His face had been a pale mask when he had opened the car door for her on their arrival back at the villa. She didn't know what hers had looked like, but she had made sure that nothing of the ache in her heart was there. She would rather have died than let that show.
It was Nicolette's firm knock on the door that woke her up from a fitful sleep. After a half-hearted look at the breakfast tray she rose and dressed and started to pace. She wanted to tell Barry quickly of her decision to leave, but there was no sign of him on the balconies farther up from hers. If only he would get up at a reasonable hour for once!
Roumelia Lane - The Scented Hills Page 13
