A Summer to Remember

by Victoria Connelly

  ‘I’m ready now,’ Dominic said.

  ‘Oh. Right.’

  Nina smiled, chewing her lip to stop herself from giggling, her ears filling with blissful silence for the first time in two hours.

  When Edna’s allotted time had ended, Nina showed her out, closing the door behind her before stretching her arms high above her head and yawning loudly. She bounced back up the stairs and into the studio.

  ‘Thank goodness that’s over!’

  ‘One down, two to go,’ Dominic said with a sigh.

  ‘But she seemed pleased with the portrait so far.’

  Dominic nodded. ‘If only she’d shut up for a few minutes. She could talk the legs off a millipede, never mind a donkey.’

  Nina giggled. ‘Can I have a look?’ Nina moved to where Dominic had taken up residence for his morning’s work.

  He coughed nervously. ‘I don’t really like people seeing work that isn’t—’

  ‘Wow!’

  ‘—finished.’

  Nina was too quick for him and was stood before the canvas before Dominic had time to persuade her otherwise.

  ‘It’s wonderful!’ she looked at him, mouth agape. ‘I mean, wonderful.’

  ‘You think so?’ his voice rasped, as if all the moisture in his mouth and throat had suddenly evaporated.

  ‘Yes, of course! I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I mean,’ Nina tutted at herself, ‘most portraits I’ve seen have been so – wrong! Do you know what I mean? It’s probably not the right word. But you can almost hear her talking! It’s amazing.’ Nina paused and looked at the image of Edna Bowridge. There was such life, such vivacity, and yet it was so simple.

  Dominic took a step closer and looked at the portrait as if he was seeing it for the first time; as if he didn’t quite believe Nina.

  ‘And you shouldn’t be so shy about it. You should be proud. God, if I could paint like this, I’d shout it from the rooftops.’ She turned to face him and, for a moment, saw herself reflected in Dominic’s eyes: smile in full beam and eyes dancing with light.

  ‘I talk too much,’ she said quickly, casting her glance down to the floor.

  ‘No. You don’t,’ Dominic said quietly. ‘And it wouldn’t matter if you did because I like to listen.’

  ‘No, I shouldn’t have pried,’ she said, shaking her head. Not if you don’t like people looking at your work in progress.’

  ‘It’s all right. I really don’t mind.’

  ‘Because I liked it?’ Nina teased with a grin.

  ‘I’m not that vain,’ Dominic said with a laugh. ‘I wouldn’t mind if you didn’t like it.’

  ‘Really?’ Nina looked at him, his dark eyes half-hidden by thick lashes. ‘You really wouldn’t care if I said I didn’t like your painting?’ she asked.

  There was a moment’s silence, as if Nina’s question warranted some thought before answering.

  ‘I only want you to be honest,’ Dominic said at last, his voice calm but still rather grainy, as if he were on the verge of a sore throat.

  ‘Then I love it,’ Nina said, looking back at the picture. ‘I can’t be more honest than that.’ She turned back to Dominic. He was still staring at her. ‘What?’ Nina squinted at him.

  ‘Love. If you love it …’ his voice all but disappeared, ‘the portrait – you’ll have to let me paint one of you some time.’

  ‘Oh?’ Nina was taken aback by the suggestion.

  ‘Would you?’ he croaked.

  ‘I don’t think I’d make a very good model,’ Nina confessed. ‘I fidget too much. I’m like a jack-in-the-box. You know? I get bored.’

  ‘I see.’

  ‘Yes,’ she said, thinking it would be a very bad idea indeed to be alone in a room with Dominic with them both just staring at each other for hours on end. It was too intimate, too personal. She had to nip this in the bud once and for all. Dominic was meant to be with Faye – that much was clear to her. So, every overture he made towards her had to be stopped in its tracks.

  They stood in silence and Nina wished that Edna was back in the room to fill it with her idle chatter again.

  ‘Can I get you a sandwich? We’ve got just under an hour before Felicity Makepeace arrives,’ Nina said, walking quickly to the windowledge and looking at the schedule she’d left there.

  ‘Yes, please,’ Dominic said, his voice returning to normal.

  ‘Good,’ she said somewhat hurriedly and left the room, her heart beating a little faster than normal at the embarrassment of Dominic’s suggestion that he should paint her.

  Nina looked longingly out of the landing window at the perfect blue summer sky, trying to calculate how long another two sittings would take. She thought that it would be well into the evening before she could venture outdoors. Still, she’d said she’d help Dominic, and she couldn’t let him down, no matter how claustrophobic she felt with the situation now.

  As she walked down the hall, she could hear someone whistling in the kitchen. It was a kind of happy, tuneless whistle that didn’t seem to be going anywhere in particular, and Nina just knew it belonged to Alex.

  Entering the kitchen, she saw him sat on a stool, with one leg casually crossed over the other as he waited for the kettle to boil.

  ‘Hello there, Nina,’ he said cheerily as she walked in.

  ‘Hello,’ she said, feeling as if she’d left one awkward situation only to find herself slap bang in the middle of another one.

  ‘What you now doin’?’ he said in a thick Norfolk accent that made her giggle.

  ‘I’ve been helping Dominic out with his old ladies,’ she told him.

  ‘Good grief! I always knew he had a thing about older women. How many does he have, then?’

  ‘Well, there’s three today and, if you must know – he’s painting them!’

  ‘Oh, painting them, is he? What colour’s he painting them?’ he asked, eyebrows raised in amusement at his own joke.

  Nina pulled a silly face at him by way of a reprimand. ‘He’s very good. You should be proud of your little brother.’

  ‘Yeah? Has he painted you yet?’

  ‘No,’ Nina said, somewhat taken aback.

  ‘Why not? You’d make a perfect model.’

  Nina quickly busied herself with a loaf of bread and a chunk of cheese.

  ‘I’d paint you,’ Alex said, ‘if I could paint, that is. But seeing as I can’t, you’ll just have to settle with me driving you out to the coast instead.’

  ‘What?’ Nina said as she looked up from the cheddar.

  ‘I was thinking of going out to the Burnhams. It’s a great day, and you owe me a swim. Or a paddle at least. How about it?’

  Nina turned to look at him. ‘Are you serious?’

  ‘I’m always serious.’

  Nina looked at the lopsided grin. He really was very charming and had the unnerving ability to always catch her off guard. ‘But I’ve promised to help Dominic out today.’

  ‘Well, unpromise! He can cope with a few old ladies by himself, can’t he? Just look outside at that sky and tell me you’d rather sit indoors smelling turps than be strolling along the sand with the sea breeze in your hair.’

  ‘That was rather poetical,’ Nina said.

  ‘I know. But has it worked?’ he asked with a grin.

  Nina sighed. There was no doubt that she longed to be out of doors and she’d become increasingly uncomfortable since Dominic had asked if he could paint her – but what exactly would she say to him?

  ‘Come on. You know you want to!’ Alex beamed at her. ‘Just think of the warm sun on your body and the cool sea to swim in.’

  Nina was thinking about it. She was also thinking about how good it would be to escape from Dominic and from any more inappropriate suggestions he might come up with in-between portraits.

  ‘Do you want me to tell Dominic?’ Alex pressed her after a silence that had dragged on much too long for his liking.

  ‘No!’ Nina said. ‘I’ll tell him. I don’t want you to cau
se a scene.’

  ‘Great! So you’re coming?’

  Nina slapped a couple of slices of cheese in the sandwiches and let her eyes drift out into the garden. ‘I guess I am,’ she said. ‘Just give me a few minutes.’

  Nina returned upstairs with sandwiches and drinks on a tray and cautiously entered the studio.

  ‘Oh, thanks,’ Dominic said. ‘You needn’t have brought them up here.’

  ‘It’s no problem,’ she said, guilt flooding through her at the news she had to impart.

  ‘I thought we might sit outside. Get some air before the next old dear arrives,’ Dominic said, taking a bite into the soft brown bread.

  ‘Dominic,’ Nina began, deciding to leave her sandwich until after her betrayal, ‘I was thinking of going out soon.’

  ‘Good idea,’ he said between mouthfuls.

  ‘Yes, I thought so.’ Nina paused, wondering how she was going to phrase this. ‘Would it be okay if I left you to it this afternoon? You’re coping so well and I don’t think you really need me cramping your style.’

  ‘You’re not cramping my style! I love having you around,’ he said, giving her a smile.

  ‘Thanks,’ she said and, for a few moments, they sat and ate quietly together.

  ‘Where was it you wanted to go?’ Dominic asked at length.

  ‘Out to the coast,’ Nina said.

  ‘What – on your own? I didn’t know you had a car.’

  ‘I don’t. I’m going with Alex.’ She spoke the words quickly, as if they might pass by without him noticing.

  Dominic choked on the last of his sandwich. ‘Bloody hell, Nina! You don’t half know how to deliver a line.’

  ‘Sorry,’ she said.

  ‘Yeah – and you will be if you go with Alex.’ Dominic’s tone changed. ‘Have you any idea what he’s like with women?’

  ‘No, but I suppose I’m going to find out,’ she said provocatively.

  ‘You’re joking, aren’t you?’ Dominic’s eyes met hers, dark and serious.

  ‘No, I’m not. For goodness’ sake, Dominic, we’re only going to the beach. What’s the big deal?’

  ‘I don’t think Alex is going to see it quite like that. Are you so completely naive?’

  ‘I’m not naive,’ Nina almost shouted, not liking the idea of being reprimanded by somebody she used to babysit.

  ‘Good! Then someone really should tell you about Alex. He’s not right for you.’

  ‘Dommie! We’re just going to the beach – we’re not eloping!’

  ‘But I just think you should know what he’s like.’ Dominic ran a hand through his dark hair. ‘He likes women,’ he said. ‘A lot of women – usually at the same time.’

  Nina’s eyes narrowed in consternation at the implication of Dominic’s words.

  ‘That came out wrong,’ Dominic said. ‘I mean, he sees a lot of women – usually without telling them about the others he’s involved with. I think his personal record is five.’

  ‘Dommie, I don’t need to hear—’

  ‘I just don’t want you being taken in by him and getting hurt.’

  ‘Look, I appreciate your concern, but this is just an afternoon out, okay?’ She got up, grabbed her plate and crossed the room to the door. ‘And even if I did need to know the whole sordid truth about Alex, I think I could handle it.’

  ‘Well, if you think you can handle the truth then try this for size,’ Dominic shouted after her.

  Nina stopped. ‘What?’ She looked back at him sitting by his easel, his hair ruffled and his eyes narrowed in concentration.

  ‘I—’

  ‘What?’ she repeated, staring at him.

  ‘I – you – we …’ Dominic stammered, his words refusing to comply with his brain. ‘God, Nina!’ he finally managed. ‘Just go, will you?’

  Chapter Seventeen

  Nina stormed out of the room. She didn’t appreciate being told how to behave and, in particular, that she was naive, by someone seven years her junior. Just who did Dominic think he was? And she’d made such an effort to help him that morning, when she could have been outside having fun.

  She reached the kitchen and flung her plate into the sink, where it made a satisfying crash. She’d been working all week and had been pushed into helping Dominic against her will. Well, not quite against her will, but he should have remembered that it was out of the goodness of her heart that she’d offered to help him in her free time. Well, she was going out now and she was jolly well going to enjoy herself. This was the weekend, after all.

  She left the kitchen and ran up the stairs to her bedroom where she searched through her drawers for her denim shorts and her favourite lime-green T-shirt.

  Minutes later, she tied her hair back into a casual ponytail and slipped her feet into a pair of silver sandals. She was ready to hit the beach. For a moment, she wondered if she’d made the right decision in going to the beach with Alex. Hadn’t she just promised herself that she wasn’t going to jeopardise her position at the mill by getting involved with either of the brothers?

  She shook her head. A trip to the beach was just a trip to the beach and Dominic was wrong to make anything more of it than that. Alex was no more than a friend, although she had to admit that she found him attractive. Still, even if she was looking to leap into another relationship, it wouldn’t be with somebody like Alex. But she was quite determined to enjoy his company today. She only hoped that he didn’t expect any more from her than friendship.

  Who needed Malibu or Bondi Beach when the sun was shining down on the north Norfolk coast? It had been years since Nina had ventured out that way. Janey used to pester her father to take them there in the summer holidays when they were teenagers, but now that Janey had a regular dose of the Med via her father’s company, Gulliver’s Travels, she’d forgotten all about the beauty that lay on her own doorstep.

  Alex parked the car in a grassy enclosed car park and reached behind his seat, producing a battered bottle of sun cream.

  ‘How many ladies’ limbs have been covered in that?’ Nina asked with a wry smile, not really wanting to know the answer.

  ‘Pardon?’

  ‘Nothing,’ Nina shook her head, wishing she hadn’t said anything.

  ‘No – what did you say? Has Dom being saying something?’ Nina tried to avoid looking at Alex, but it was virtually impossible. ‘If he’s been colouring me black, I think I’ve a right to know.’

  Nina bit her lip. If she didn’t tell him, he’d probably start tickling her again, and she didn’t want that. No, she really didn’t want that, she told herself.

  ‘He just told me not to come here with you, that’s all, and he might have mentioned something about you having lots of girlfriends.’

  Alex nodded. ‘The trouble with Dominic is that he’s a little too serious for his own good. Don’t get me wrong, we’re the best of mates but, if there’s one thing we can’t agree on, it’s women. He thinks I’m a playboy and I think he’s a prude.’

  ‘And are you?’

  ‘What? A playboy?’ he asked and Nina nodded. ‘Depends how you define the word.’

  Nina rolled her eyes. ‘Well, have you had a lot of girlfriends?’

  Alex chuckled. ‘I’ve never been asked that before.’ His brown eyes glinted with mischief. ‘I suppose you could say that I like women. Let’s just leave it at that, shall we?’

  ‘But Dominic obviously thinks—’

  ‘Nina – Dominic lives in one of his paintings where the world is coloured and controlled by him and him alone. It’s bloody hard work getting through to him sometimes. Rather like digging a grave with a fork. He’s not in the real world, so there’s no point in talking about it with him.’

  Nina bit her lip. Wasn’t that just a little bit severe? It made poor Dominic sound quite uncompromising, and Nina felt sure that he wasn’t.

  ‘Come on. Are we going for this walk or what?’ Alex asked, opening the door.

  ‘Will the car be all right here?’

&nbs
p; ‘It’s insured.’

  ‘Nothing worries you very much, does it?’ Nina remarked.

  ‘There’s no fun in worrying,’ Alex shrugged his shoulders, ‘is there?’

  Burnham Overy Staithe was one of Nina’s favourite places. The miles of golden sand felt delicious, so Nina and Alex walked barefoot, feeling the hard, cold ridges of the sand under their toes as they approached a great pool of water in-shore.

  Nina shrieked as she dipped her toes into it, but was soon wading up to her knees. Alex followed her in, kicking the water as he walked and sending puddles flying through the air.

  ‘Hey! Watch it!’ she shouted.

  ‘What?’

  ‘You splashed me!’

  ‘Did not!’ he said indignantly.

  ‘Well, what do you call this then?’ Nina held out a piece of soaked lime green T-shirt for him to inspect.

  ‘You’ve got yourself wet. You should be more careful.’ His eyes seemed to wink at her.

  ‘I am being careful!’

  Alex just shook his head and Nina narrowed her eyes at him and continued to wade through the water.

  It wasn’t long before she felt another splash of water soaking into the thin material of her T-shirt.

  ‘Hey!’ she shrieked, noticing that Alex had taken his shirt off.

  ‘What!’ Alex grinned at her. ‘Well, seeing as you’re already wet, why not have a proper paddle?’ He waded to the other side of the pool and rolled his trousers up higher. Looking up, he saw her watching and grinned.

  ‘Last one in’s a coward,’ he shouted as he ran towards the sea. Nina followed, screaming excitedly as she ran over the cool sand.

  Alex was first in and began to splash his legs about in an attempt to acclimatise. Nina edged in a little more gently, laughing as her legs slowly disappeared into the icy water.

  ‘It’s cold. There’s no way I’m swimming in this!’ she cried.

  ‘It’s glorious.’ Alex cupped his hands and let water trickle through his fingers. ‘Want to get wet?’ he called.

  Before Nina knew what was happening, he’d dipped his hands into the water again and flung the droplets across at her.

  ‘Hey!’

  Moved into action, Nina bent down and scooped up as much water as her hands could hold and sent it showering over Alex’s head. His eyes blinked in shock and amazement.