Beloved Intruder

by Patricia Wilson

  She fled from the room and raced upstairs to her bedroom, furiously angry and disappointed. She had been glad to see him, actually glad! He was hateful! He was like a monstrous Victorian older brother! There was not one spark of kindness in his whole body.

  Gaetan came in without knocking as she stood staring out of the window, her eyes so filled with tears that she saw nothing.

  'I am sorry, Beth,' he said quietly when he saw how upset she was. 'I have a very bad temper, and although it is not an excuse for my rudeness, please believe that I was horrified at the idea that you had been in any danger.'

  'I believe you,' she sniffed, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand and not turning. 'Now will you please go away.'

  'No.' He was right behind her without her knowing and he turned her unwilling body to face him. 'I will not go and leave you so unhappy.'

  'I'm not unhappy. I'm angry!' she said with an attempt at defiance that did not fool him at all.

  He cupped her chin with his hand, his other arm tightening around her.

  'My poor little Beth,' he murmured softly. 'I am a brute, forgive me.' His dark eyes were intent on her face as she opened her eyes unwillingly to look at him, startled by the warmth of his voice.

  'I haven't been seeing Alain,' she assured him quietly, her voice rising in protest as she added, 'I couldn't stay in for two whole weeks by myself. You— you weren't there!'

  'I am here now,' he said softly. 'I gave up my trip to Madrid.'

  'Why?' she whispered, her eyes wide and a little worried.

  'You were alone. I did not want that. I came back.'

  He watched her silently, his eyes on her trembling lips, and all her unhappiness began to ease away.

  'If you will allow me, mademoiselle,' he said with a smile, 'I would be honoured to take you out to lunch.'

  'Now?' She looked at him in a happy daze, her eyes still wet with tears.

  'It is lunch time,' he assured her quietly. 'You may change or come as you are, if you will consent to accompany me.'

  She was suddenly so happy, so secure that she threw her arms around his waist and hugged him.

  'Oh! I would love to, Gaetan!'

  He carefully extricated himself and for a second she thought that he was annoyed. He smiled down at her, though, as he moved away.

  'Ah! I have not forgotten that you have disobeyed me, little minx,' he said quietly. 'You will not wind me around your little finger. I will be ready in fifteen minutes,' he added as he walked from the room.

  Beth watched him with a kind of breathless wonder inside her. She had no doubts at all that she could not wind him around her finger but he seemed to be able to do that to her.

  The luncheon date lasted all day, as it turned out. With the protective cloak of Gaetan's kindness once more around her she was relaxed with him, and he seemed happy to talk to her about his trip, telling her about Rome and Milan, places she had never visited, so that it was a very lengthy luncheon.

  Afterwards, they roamed through the unfashionable parts of the city, Beth's hand tucked into Gaetan's arm as she drank in the life and movement, the vivacity of the Parisians. They watched the lights on the river, leaning over bridges to see the boats go by, and then wandered into unexpected little squares and up endless flights of steps that lifted them to see the city from a different angle.

  It was quite late when they stopped for dinner at a small cafe and Beth felt more contented than she had ever before felt in her life, quite prepared to sit in the peace of the sudden silence that had come over Gaetan.

  'I do not wish to spoil our beautiful evening, Beth,' he said quietly, making her colour flare when she heard that he too had thought it beautiful, 'but there is something that we really must discuss if today's angry scene is not to be repeated.' He sat looking at her steadily, his coffee cradled in his long fingers as he chose his words with care. 'I do not wish to cut you off from the rest of the world, but even if you are almost twenty, you are very young because of your life, because of the way you have been forced to live. It is useless to tell me that other people are in the same position and are on their own in the world; I cannot seek them out and correct the world for them. You, though, are my responsibility; I must and I do care for you.'

  'I'm sorry that I worried you,' she began but he put his cup down and covered her hand with his.

  'I am not wanting apologies,' he said quietly, 'only understanding. I do not wish to deny you the realisation of the sweetness and the bitterness of life, it is this that makes us as we are, but I must protect you. Give up this idea of work, Beth. Consider the university. Spend your time studying and then enjoying yourself in safety, and by the time the September intake of students is due, you may feel very differently. I will not deny you your freedom. I only wish that you temper it with caution.'

  When he spoke like that, she would do anything for him, she realised, and she also knew the heavy burden of responsibility that he bore.

  'Can I agree without actually making a promise?' she enquired with such caution that he laughed, his white teeth gleaming against his tanned face.

  'Yes. We have a bargain?' he enquired. 'A trial period?'

  'All right!' She looked up and smiled at him enchantingly and his face clouded a little.

  'Oh, Beth!' he said softly as if it really hurt. 'You are so heartbreakingly young.'

  'I age really fast when you shout at me,' she assured him with a little grin and he smiled again, his moment of sadness passing.

  'Perhaps,' he said thoughtfully, 'you should after all consider the possibility of allowing Alain to escort you from time to time.'

  'I'd rather be with you!' Beth said quickly, speaking without thinking. She had a sudden feeling of loss, a quick flicker of fear in the pit of her stomach that was nothing to do with his original warnings when she had met Alain.

  'Alain is quite safe to be with,' he said quietly. 'If I were not absolutely sure of that, then I would not have suggested it.'

  'But you said…'

  'I remember. It was a general warning only and also,' he paused, looking a little rueful, 'also your appearance as a young woman instead of an angry teenager quite startled me. Alain's immediate reaction to you also made me a little too protective, perhaps.'

  'Do you want me to go out with Alain, then?' she murmured in a dull voice, and his hand covered hers again.

  'I said, perhaps we should consider it, notice the word—perhaps.'

  'You want me to be safe,' she reminded him in a hurried voice. 'I'll be safest with you.'

  'I am a man too, Beth,' he said softly, his eyes on her delicate and beautiful face. 'It is my duty, my pleasure and my good fortune to be also your protector. Let us leave the subject, shall we? Tomorrow I will take you to see the place where I work.'

  In the morning she was once more with Gaetan, sitting beside him in his fast red sports car as it slid in and out of the alarming traffic, on her way for the first time to see where he worked.

  Madeleine had already told her that designers normally called their place of work a warehouse, so she had a vague idea of what to expect. Even if she had not, Gaetan was particularly silent this morning, so she knew that there would be little information coming from him. In fact she was really surprised that he had brought her at all. He seemed to be in a mood.

  The building was three-storeyed, surrounded by a security fence that would have done justice to any secret defence project, and at her mention of this, Gaetan assured her that security was a very necessary part of their everyday life.

  'There are three collections a year,' he told her seriously. 'A preview of them would be worth a fortune to our competitors. You will have to realise that anything you see here is not to be spoken of outside the house or the works.'

  'I don't have anyone to speak to,' Beth said, meaning it to be a light remark. 'There is you, Madame Benoir and Louis and then there is Madeleine. Since they are obviously to be trusted, who else is there?'

  'I realise that there
is little in your life at the moment,' he said, a trifle sharply, 'but if you can be patient you will find that things will happen. A new life cannot be built within a few days.'

  It was unfair, especially as she had not been complaining at all, but she knew that he was in a mood for some reason so she kept quiet, making no attempt to explain.

  'I see no reason for you to be miserable and depressed about things!' he said sharply as he heard her deep sigh. 'I am not keeping you a prisoner,- nor am I about to sell you into slavery!' The gates opened at his imperious blast on the horn and he drove into a courtyard at the back of the building.

  Beth wasn't listening any more. Her eyes had been scanning the high building and her heartbeats had quickened at the sight of the sheer wall that fell to the cobbled courtyard. Set high in the wall were huge loading-doors, a relic of the place's history. They were now closed, but they were there, and her active imagination visualised the drop from those huge doors to the cobbled yard beneath. She could see in her mind's eye men leaning from there in the days when this building had really been a warehouse, and the nearby river had been used to transport the goods that had been stored here long ago. She closed her eyes in fear, a fear that she never spoke of, turning her suddenly white face away so that Gaetan would not see her reaction to this height.

  He was, as usual, too quick for her and his hand came to her face at once, turning her back to him.

  'What is the matter?' he asked, looking at her intently. 'Are you afraid to meet the people here? There is nothing to be afraid of. You are with me.'

  'I am not afraid, monsieur,' she said stiffly, fighting down her real fear. 'If I don't like them I can always ignore them.'

  'You were not at all indifferent to Alain when he called at the house,' he said with narrowed eyes. 'He will be here today, so there is one person at least that you will like.'

  'I was merely being polite,' she said, trying to hang her head and failing miserably because of his restraining hand. 'Anyway, you were there.'

  'And what is that supposed to mean?' he asked impatiently.

  'I—well—I feel safe with you,' she explained, greatly subdued by his harsh voice and the determined hand on her face. She risked a look at him and found that he was smiling, a very mocking smile that worried her.

  'There are plenty of people who would not share your trust in me,' he murmured, his eyes touching her face and hair with slashing intensity. 'It assures me of your extreme youth.'

  'You—you're not old, so why do you speak like that?' she said softly, a little shaky now.

  'I am old enough to know better,' he said with a sardonic smile. 'I keep remembering that and, one word of warning, do not do anything to get Alain into trouble. He is scared of me as it is.'

  'I know how he feels,' Beth muttered and his dark brow lifted arrogantly.

  'Indeed? I do not recall giving you reason to be afraid of me. You are often ready to fight me, and you have little control over your sharp tongue.'

  'You've deliberately picked a quarrel with me!' said Beth with a great deal of reproof in her voice. 'You've done it so that I'll be too scared to talk to Alain!'

  'You have a wild imagination,' he said bitingly, getting out of the car and coming to help her out. 'However, perhaps you could manage to give the impression when we are here among strangers that you are happy in my company. You may shiver when we are alone.'

  He was towering over her as he helped her out, and suddenly he was smiling.

  'Courage, ma petite,' he advised softly, his hand on the nape of her neck soothing, melting her inside. 'Tout va bien.'

  'It is not!' she said accusingly. 'Not when you're angry for nothing at all.'

  'But I am not angry, ma chère! Come!' He took her hand and led her to the building, merely smiling at her rather tragic sigh. He was very often quite impossible, she decided.

  The impression of wealth and elegance was there as soon as they entered the building. The ground floor was very clearly occupied by offices and showrooms where clients would be welcomed graciously, but Gaetan merely strode through to the stairs, ignoring the lift, nodding casually to people who sprang to their feet at the sight of him, people who tried hard not to look too closely at the delicately beautiful girl who appeared to be clinging to his hand. In actual fact, it was Gaetan who held Beth fast, almost racing her along.

  As they progressed upwards Beth looked round her with interest. There was activity in every room, huge drawing-boards on tables, people carrying fabulous rolls of cloth. There was noise, activity, a driving energy and bewildering movement, and time after time Gaetan was stopped and asked for advice. Sometimes he would be called across the huge rooms and then Beth was left standing by the door, her eyes taking in all the activity and avoiding the admiring glances that came her way.

  Their progress was slow now, but always he watched her. Whatever happened, she could be assured that, looking up, she would find Gaetan's eyes on her every few minutes, their dark depths all-seeing, noticing her growing interest and not missing either the looks that came her way.

  By the time they came to the top floor, Beth had the distinct feeling that she was being led to some sort of sacrifice, and her hand tightened involuntarily in his, making him glance at her quickly and murmur in amusement, 'Stop worrying. I guarantee that when we leave here, you will be with me.'

  'Are you going to force me on to Alain, monsieur?' she enquired, huskily suspicious.

  'Ma foil I am not! I said that we would consider him, but I also said perhaps—and that in the distant future!'

  'I remember that you were pleased when I refused to go out with him,' she said looking up into his dark face with shimmering grey eyes. 'Now you seem to have changed your mind.'

  'Perhaps then I did not realise how…' He stopped in the darkened hallway before the doors of the last room at the top of the building. 'Anything at all that I do for you will be for your own good, Beth,' he said firmly. 'Please try to co-operate.'

  'Just how far will I be expected to co-operate when I finally go out with Alain?' she said pertly, determined for some reason to shake him out of his aloof mood.

  'Do not try your hand at living dangerously, petite,' he said threateningly, his voice deadly soft. 'Not with me! I would not wish any man who escorts you to have too much enjoyment, not if he wishes to survive the experience!'

  She blushed at the obvious innuendo and dropped her eyes, regretting her rash remarks, but her face was tilted upwards at once and his dark eyes roamed over her hot cheeks.

  'Be good,' he advised. 'And do not call me monsieur!' He bent swiftly and dropped a kiss on her startled lips, a curious kiss that seemed to taste her, and she was being led inside before she could even begin to recover from the shock of it.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  The place was a beehive of activity, obviously the hub of everything, and though the heavy swing doors cut it off from the stairs Beth could see that the whole of the top floor was one huge room. Gaetan motioned her ahead of him, releasing her hand now and taking her arm in a firm grip that was both comforting and threatening, and she was not sure where her breathlessness came from. Perhaps she was too scared to breathe deeply, but somehow she thought that it was the kiss that had left her feeling so weak.

  It had been a mere brush of his lips on hers, but the effect had been frightening in the intensity of feeling that had shot through her so unexpectedly, and she was left feeling quite incapable of facing strangers, dreading the time when Gaetan would be called away from her side and his hand would no longer be holding her arm.

  She need not have worried, because he did not appear to have the slightest intention of letting her go, and here everyone seemed too involved in their work even to notice her.

  'Gaetan! What a time to arrive! We've been waiting! Everything is held up!' The accusing voice had Beth looking round as a slim, dark-haired woman bore down on them. She was attractive and she wore the most enormous spectacles that Beth had ever seen, Beth waited for Gaetan to g
rowl at her for the angry tone. He did not, however.

  'You know that I have other duties now,' he said quite mildly. 'There is Beth to look after. Being a guardian is a little time-consuming.'

  Beth cringed at the tone. She might have been no more than ten years old the way he spoke of her, and her face tightened perceptibly as she glared at him.

  'The collection is nowhere near finished!' the woman said worriedly. 'I can't promise anything if you don't appear when I expect you to be there.'

  'If the boss can't take time off, who can?' Gaetan murmured in amusement, getting a dragon-like snort from his accuser. 'Meet Beth. You'll be seeing plenty of her and she is my excuse.'

  'She's beautiful.' The angry face dissolved into an attractive smile and Beth found her hand being shaken with genuine pleasure. 'She's no excuse, though. She's a grown woman and well able to take care of herself, so don't go looking for a way out there.'

  'Perhaps I had better tell you, Beth, this is Marie-Annette who runs everything and attempts to bully me.' Gaetan looked down at Beth and smiled wickedly. 'As you are a woman you can protect me from her.' He looked very doubtful, and Beth wasn't sure either if she liked the gleaming amusement in his dark eyes as he looked at her mockingly. To him she was not in any way a woman.

  There was no chance to reply, however, because another woman had come from the end of the room and threw herself into his arms, almost knocking Beth off her feet.

  'Gaetan! I expected to see you yesterday. I've been so worried. You know that I should have been with you as usual!'

  'It was not necessary,' Gaetan replied, a sort of amused indulgence on his face. Beth thought that he probably did not like this display of affection in front of everyone here, but he did not stiffen up as far as Beth could tell. He gently disengaged himself from the clinging arms that seemed to wish to choke him but he smiled down at the woman.

  'All that I have to know again I have taped for you, Gabrielle. You can get it down in black and white this afternoon and that will be all that is necessary.'

  The girl seemed to notice Beth for the first time, but Beth was not in any way deceived. There was a whole lot of play-acting going on here, and the dark eyes that turned on her were gleaming with a barely hidden anger.