‘Right,’ Cherry said, locking the front door. ‘You boys hop in the back with The Man and I’ll sit with Izzy in the front. Come on, darling,’ she said patting Izzy on the shoulder. ‘We’re going to be late if we don’t get a move on.’
After a short drive they came to the client’s house and Izzy waited by the van while Alex and Ed carried the sculpture inside. She realized they were near to the Priory Inn where they’d find Devil’s Hole. This was a large pond with a creepy statue of the devil rising out of it. She hadn’t been here for years and wondered if Ed would be interested in going to see the statue and taking the walk past it to the large blowhole eroded from the cliffs that so many tourists had enjoyed visiting over the decades.
‘Mum’s having coffee and discussing figures,’ Alex said as he and Ed came back outside. ‘I hope she isn’t too long, I’ve got a new student coming to the beach for a surfing lesson in an hour.’
Ed spoke to her for the first time. ‘I’m surprised to see you here so early, I thought …’ He stopped suddenly as if something had occurred to him.
‘What did you think?’ she asked, intrigued.
He looked away from her.
‘What?’ she asked.
‘No, it was nothing really,’ he said.
She was beginning to think he’d gone a little mad when she spotted Alex chewing the side of his thumbnail. ‘What have you said to him?’
He looked aghast. ‘Me? Why would you think I’ve said anything?’
She narrowed her eyes. ‘Because I know when you’re being shifty, now spill. What have you said to Ed?’
Alex couldn’t catch her eye. ‘I might have told Ed about you having breakfast with the best man this morning.’
Izzy’s heart sank. She was fully aware that her brother would have hinted that the breakfast could have involved far more than a fry up. She focused her attention on Ed. ‘And did he happen to insinuate that this breakfast possibly followed a lengthy night of the athletic-in-the-bedroom kind?’
Ed laughed. ‘He might have.’
‘Bloody hell, Ed, shut it.’ Alex threw Ed a thunderous look.
Izzy punched her brother hard in his right shoulder. ‘That’s for being a little shit-stirrer and meddling.’
He scowled at her rubbing his shoulder. ‘That hurt.’
‘Good. I want to know why you felt the need to tell him that.’
‘I thought he should know.’
‘Why?’
‘Because,’ he scowled at her.
‘But that’s not how it was, Alex.’ She was sick of the way Ed made her feel. One minute she was sure he liked her, the next she suspected him of still having feelings for Marie.
She pointed at the pathway leading to Devil’s Hole. ‘Right, you come with me,’ she said to Ed, then looking at her brother, added. ‘You stay here with the van and wait for Mum. When she comes back, give me a call.’
She turned away and began walking. Ed immediately fell into step next to her.
They reached the green pond where the metal statue of the devil stood, rising out of the middle of the water.
‘I’ve always hated that thing,’ she said. ‘Look at his hairy legs, and those horns.’ She shivered. ‘Alex used to say he’d come to get me in the middle of the night if I didn’t share my sweets with him.’
‘That wasn’t very nice of him,’ Ed said, amused. ‘My brothers used to terrorize me with similar things. I think he’s impressive,’ he said, stopping to look at the menacing statue before walking on. ‘Where did he come from, do you think?’
Izzy recalled her dad telling her something when she was small. ‘I think the original devil was washed up about a hundred and fifty years ago after a shipwreck. Dad said that the figurehead was dumped by the sea in the actual hole in the cliffs,’ she pointed along the pathway. ‘Down there where we’re going now. He said the hole was a hundred feet across and almost two hundred feet deep, but I’m not sure if it is that big because I’ve never looked down properly.’
‘Sounds interesting,’ he said quickening his step. ‘We’d better hurry if we want to get there and back before your mum finishes her chat.’
Izzy walked faster to keep up with him. ‘It’s too dangerous to go to the bottom of the blow hole, but we can look down from a viewing platform the National Trust for Jersey have set up. They’ve done a lot of work down here in the past few years,’ she said.
‘So is it called Devil’s Hole after the hole or the figurehead shaped like the devil that was washed up?’
‘I suppose it’s after the figurehead. I’m not sure, but I think it was carved into the shape of a devil.’
Ed whistled, impressed. ‘So, why is it now standing in the pond?’
Izzy liked being able to tell him something he didn’t already know. Ed seemed to be so knowledgeable and this made a nice change. ‘The one in the pond is a metal replica. I think there’ve been a few over the years.’
Ed laughed.
‘I have to admit to being jealous of this best man,’ he said eventually. ‘I hated to think of you spending the night with another man.’
‘Oh.’ She didn’t know what else to say, and didn’t look at him but began walking again so that he couldn’t see the ridiculously wide smile on her face. For once she was actually pleased with her brother’s meddling. ‘Come on,’ she said, breaking into a run. ‘We need to hurry up and see the hole before Alex calls us back to the van.’
The pathway went on around the cliff face for far longer than she remembered. ‘I can’t believe you’ve never been here before.’
‘Neither can I, especially now that I’ve been here and seen what a lovely spot this is.’ He stopped walking and stared out to the channel. ‘It’s going to be another glorious day, don’t you think?’
‘Yes,’ she said stopping next to him and following his gaze. ‘We’re lucky living here.’
He was silent.
Izzy looked up at him to try and gauge what he was thinking. ‘Is something wrong?’
He turned and taking both her hands in his, said. ‘Izzy, I meant what I said before. I hated thinking of you with anyone else.’ He shrugged. ‘I know I’ve got no right to say that, but it’s true.’
‘So, what’s wrong with that?’ she asked, confused.
He took a deep breath. ‘I’d like nothing more than to spend time with you, properly getting to know each other.’
She liked the idea too, very much. ‘And that’s a problem because?’
‘I have to return to France. To the château. My father is soon to have major surgery on his back and my brothers have their work commitments in Paris. I need to go and run the château for my mother.’
‘Oh,’ she said, clearing her throat and forcing a smile onto her face. ‘You have to be there for your family, I understand that.’ She might understand it, she thought, but she didn’t have to like the idea.
He bent down to kiss her, slowly at first, but as soon as she reacted to his kiss, he took her in his arms. The thought of not kissing him again like this hit her like a punch to the stomach. Eventually he pulled away. ‘I really like you, Izzy. I wanted you to know that but at the same time thought I should tell you I’d be leaving soon.’
She took hold of his hand and they began walking. They really wouldn’t have much time to see the cavern if they didn’t keep going. ‘It’s fine,’ she lied. ‘I understand and I’m glad you told me.’
They walked the rest of the way in silence. Izzy’s mind whirled. She wondered what Ed was thinking. She knew he loved his family home, but he did seem genuinely upset to be leaving Jersey.
‘Do you know how long you’ll be gone for?’ she asked. ‘No. I suppose for as long as it takes my father to recover from his surgery.’ They reached the railings at the top of the cavernous space. ‘There’s a risk that he could be paralysed, so it could be for good.’
She looked up at him and touching his right cheek with her palm stood on tiptoes and kissed him. ‘I’m sorry. You must b
e very worried about him.’
‘We are,’ he said, exhaling sharply. ‘Now. We must make the most of this.’ He bent forward to try and see as far down past the grassy, craggy sides into the deep crevasse as possible. ‘That is deep.’
She stepped back. ‘I hate heights, she said turning away from the deep hole eroded into the ground in front of them and focusing on the sea views behind her. ‘I’m not going to look into there.’
Her phone tinkled, and Izzy took her hand from the warmth of Ed’s and answered. ‘Oh, fine. We’re on our way.’
Chapter Seventeen
Having dropped her mother and the men off at Cherry’s cottage, Izzy raced home to wake Jess. While her friend was in the shower she cleaned out the inside of the van and then began loading the hampers of linens and crockery.
They drove up to the manor and noticed Ed sitting on a ride-on mower, leaving perfect lines on the vast lawn in front of the manor where the marquee was going to be erected.
Izzy checked her watch. ‘The marquee guys should be here in the next few minutes.’
They stood and watched Ed for a bit. ‘I can see why you’re attracted to him,’ Jess said. ‘Roman is a darker, shorter version, isn’t he?’
Izzy agreed.
‘Hey, girls,’ Marie shouted from the front door. ‘This way.’ She waved them over. ‘If you want to start bringing in your linen and crockery, I can help you. I thought we could store it in the old butler’s pantry until you need to set everything out.’
‘Brilliant, thanks,’ Izzy said, as they opened the back doors to the van. ‘We have everything we should need, so we’ll just traipse these hampers inside.’
The three of them made short work of the trips into the house and soon all the boxes were stored neatly.
They’d only just finished when the sound of a lorry hooting outside caught their attention.
‘That’s probably the marquee guys now,’ Jess said. ‘We’ll see you later, Marie, thanks for your help.’
‘No worries,’ she said, giving them a smile.
They walked outside to see Ed chatting to three men. He was pointing out exactly where the marquee needed to go and laughing with them about something. ‘Here they are now; Jess, Izzy?’
‘Hello again,’ Izzy said. ‘I can see you know where Ed wants everything; do you need us too?’
‘Can you let us know where you’ll want the entrance?’ he said. ‘I presume you want if facing that way, with the windowed side overlooking the lake?’
Izzy nodded. ‘Perfect. Would you like something to drink?’
They all asked for coffees and Jess and Izzy watched them start unloading the lorry.
‘I’ll soon be finished then I’ll come inside and join you,’ Ed said.
‘Great,’ Izzy replied. She helped Marie take drinks outside for the men and noticed Ed wasn’t anywhere to be seen. He must be putting the mower away. She followed the housekeeper back along the cool hallway to the kitchen and heard his deep laugh with Jess joining him.
‘Ahh, there they are,’ Jess said as they came in. ‘Ed thinks this is going to be the start of something positive for the manor.’
‘What’s that?’ Marie asked.
‘Weddings, parties, the sort of events Lapins de Lune put on. I think it’s just what this place needs, don’t you?’
Marie thought for a moment and smiled. ‘Yes, I think it’s a brilliant idea.’ She turned to the girls. ‘This place is wasted most of the time. It’s a shame not to make the most of it.’
‘But I thought the Seigneur was very private?’ Jess asked.
‘He is,’ Ed said. ‘But sometimes you have to think about the future and adapt to make sure it fits in with your lifestyle. He might be grateful for these events if he’d only think about it and give you the chance of putting them on.’
Izzy felt mean about the way she’d doubted Ed to her brother the day before. ‘We would certainly welcome being able to cover the events here; it’s magnificent both inside and out.’
‘Yes, it’s like something out of a fairy-tale,’ Jess said dreamily. ‘Although it’s not quite as dreamy as your parents’ château,’ she added.
Ed leaned back against the worktop and crossed one ankle over the other. ‘They’re very different to each other.’
‘But both are very beautiful,’ Marie said. ‘I love the château,’ she said to Jess. ‘We had many happy months there before coming here.’
‘We loved it too,’ Izzy said, honestly. ‘Neither of us had ever been to anywhere like it, let alone stayed there for a few days. It was wonderful.’
‘We were lucky to go on the trip at all,’ Izzy said. ‘If Catherine …’ She heard the unmistakeable sound of heels clipping down the tiled hallway and stopped talking.
‘If Catherine what?’ the lady herself asked, arms outstretched as if to announce her arrival.
‘If you hadn’t buggered off and left us in the lurch, we wouldn’t have been invited onto the yacht.’ Jess sneered.
Catherine acted as if Jess hadn’t spoken. She spotted the jug on the table and opening one of the nearby cupboards, took out a tall glass, and poured herself some juice. ‘Mmm, this is delicious.’
‘Thank you,’ Marie said. ‘It’s from a batch I made last year.’
Catherine stood still, her glass half-lowered as she gave Marie a withering look that Izzy was sure would flatten most people. ‘So you’re still here then?’ she said as if she’d only just noticed Marie sitting at the head of the table.
‘Don’t start,’ Ed said a distinct threat in his tone.
Catherine glanced at him. ‘I see you’re still hovering around her, Ed. Didn’t learn from being burned the first time then?’
Ed slammed down his glass on the side so hard, Izzy was stunned it didn’t break. She and Jess swapped glances and waited for him to retaliate.
‘You never know when to mind your own business, do you? As usual you’re making assumptions about Marie and me. If you’re going to be here for the foreseeable future, I think you should at least try to get along with everyone.’
Catherine placed her glass gently down on the table, making an obvious point, and said, ‘This is my home, Ed, not yours. I’ll act how I see fit here and,’ she looked at Marie, ‘if you don’t like it, you can leave.’ She raised her hands and smiled. ‘Marie, my father will be returning home this afternoon and I’ll be dining with him, so maybe you should think about what you’re going to prepare for us to eat later, say, eight o’clock?’
Without waiting for Marie to reply, Catherine turned on her skyscraper heels and walked out of the kitchen, leaving them all open-mouthed at her attitude.
‘Well,’ Jess said. ‘She doesn’t change, does she? Still a snooty cow.’
Izzy couldn’t agree more. ‘We only left her a couple of days ago, Jess, she’s not going to have gone through some sort of miraculous change of personality in that time.’
Jess looked at Marie. ‘Why does she hate you so much?’
Marie shrugged. She looked as if she couldn’t have cared less what Catherine thought of her. ‘Jealousy, I think.’
Jess laughed. ‘Why would she be jealous of you?’
Izzy, horrified at Jess’s words, nudged her sharply in the ribs. ‘That sounded dreadful!’
Jess mulled over what Izzy had said and her eyes widened. ‘Sorry! What I meant was, when she has everything anyone could want, why would she have such a problem with you? It doesn’t make sense.’
Marie nodded. ‘You’re right, it doesn’t. I’m sure she’s always had a soft spot for Ed.’
Izzy could understand Catherine feeling that way, although most people would surely try to hide their feelings.
Ed moved to leave. ‘I’d better get on. There’s still a lot to oversee in the grounds if you want everything to be perfect for Lacey’s day.’
Izzy looked at her watch, horrified to think they were wasting so much time when there was still a lot of preparation to do. ‘Come on, Jess. We n
eed to unpack all the linens.’ She looked at Marie. ‘They get creased very easily and look messy if we’re not careful.’
Marie collected their glasses and carried them over to the sink. ‘No problem. Call me if you need anything.’
Jess followed Izzy to the butler’s pantry and once they were inside, closed the door quietly behind them. ‘Marie is lovely, isn’t she?’
Izzy opened the first box. ‘Yes, she’s ever so nice.’
‘I’d couldn’t bear to work here with Catherine lording it over me, could you?’
Izzy shook her head. ‘We do have difficult people to deal with at some of our events, though,’ she reasoned.
‘Too right we do,’ Jess agreed, opening another box and carefully lifting out the linens to place them on a tissue-covered table. ‘I hope we don’t have any of those annoying guests this weekend.’
Izzy laughed. ‘Me too, although I’m more concerned about this ex of the groom. She sounds like a right nutter.’
‘I know, I’ve been worried about her making an appearance too.’
Izzy finished emptying a box and pushed it under the table. ‘Hey, I wonder when they last had a butler working here?’
‘Maybe Marie will know.’ Izzy unbuckled the worn leather straps on the top of the hamper and, raising the lid, carefully lifted out the first item of crockery. She unwrapped it from its paper covering and held up one of the chintzy vintage cups. ‘This is so pretty,’ she said. ‘I’d love to have more of this set at my wedding if I ever get married.’
‘Oh, Izzy,’ Jess frowned. ‘You’ll find someone you want to be with one day.’
‘I’m not so sure about that.’ She placed the cup down and unpacked the rest of the box. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in marriage, more that she didn’t believe she could find anyone else she could imagine spending the rest of her life with. A vision of Ed wormed into her mind and she pushed it away.
‘We’re going to need to ask Marie for some trays to carry these out to the marquee when we’ve got the trestle tables up in the correct places.’
The Jersey Scene series box set Page 81
