“He hasn’t been in touch has he?” Dan asks softly.
How did he know that? Is he a mind reader? I shake my head. “Not really. Just a short text to say he’d arrived in LA and was straight off to work. But you know what he’s like. He’ll be burying himself in work as usual.”
“Yeah. I know. I can be as bad. I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon. Anyway, when are we going to start these ski lessons with me then? The sooner the better, then you can get on with sweet-talking Tom Williamson.”
“Working undercover is harder than I’d thought,” I say. “Everything is so much more complicated and takes so much longer.”
“I know but we’ll get there. Amelia invited me to dinner at the chalet tonight with my architect hat on. We have a few hours until we need to show up. How about we hit the slopes for a bit and start your one to one lessons?”
I peer out of the window. “I’m not sure my bruised and battered body can cope without a soak in the bath first.”
“Aren’t you signed in for another lesson with Tom tomorrow morning though? You’ll want to impress him with your speedy transition from absolute beginner to competent improver.”
I pull a face of incredulity. “Even you couldn’t pull off such a change in me that quickly.”
“You’d be surprised what I can achieve,” he says with a confident smile. “Tell you what. Why don’t you head home and have a soak in the bath to ease your aches and pains. I’ll come over to the chalet for dinner and afterwards we’ll hit the slopes for an hour of some serious one-on-one tuition.”
“It’ll be dark by then.”
“The cabin lift runs until late because of the bar and diner at the top of the mountain and the glacier skiing is floodlit.”
“No excuses then,” I mutter.
He nods and grins. “No excuses.”
Up in my room I check my phone. Still nothing from Charlie.
Great.
Scrolling down I select Debs’ number. She answers straight away.
“Hi, how’re things?” I ask, wandering across to the window. Outside Amelia is returning from what I presume to be a trip to see Ty. He should be released soon so that’s good news.
“Still boring as ever,” Debs replies. “How about you?”
“A few changes. Charlie got called to work on a case in Los Angeles. They’ve sent Dan to finish the case with me in France. Oh, and I’m soon to have a floodlit ski lesson on top of a glacier on top of a mountain.”
“Whoa! So Charlie’s left?”
“Yes. Yesterday. And, other than a brief text message to say he’d arrived OK and was straight down to work on the case, I haven’t heard a thing from him. I’ve left a few messages but he hasn’t got back to me. I’m getting a bit worried. I don’t know anything about the case he’s been sent to work on. Something might have…” I can barely say the words, “happened to him.”
“He’ll be fine, just working all hours knowing Charlie. And with the huge time difference as well it must be tricky to keep in touch. I mean, he must be what eight or nine hours behind your time zone in France?”
“Yeah, hopefully you’re right and he’s OK, just working.”
“I’m sure of it. Now, this Dan you mentioned. Is that the same Dangerous Dan you met at the film premiere?”
“Yep, that’s him.”
There’s silence for a moment.
“Debs?”
“Sorry,” she laughs. “I was just wondering if there was any way I could get out to France and assist you in this case. From what you said before Dan is gorgeous. I’d quite like to meet this sexy special agent spy. How about it?”
“Sorry, Debs, I don’t think the agency will go for that somehow.”
She sighs. “Spoilsport! How are you getting on working with him? Hasn’t he got a bit of a reputation?”
“Yes. He isn’t known for playing by the rules when it comes to conducting investigations.”
“I wasn’t meaning a reputation in that sense. I meant with the ladies.”
“Oh, yeah, he’s got that too. He’s a bit of a flirt.”
“Listen, if you find out he’s not involved with anyone at the moment can you bring him home with you after the job’s finished and introduce me to him?”
“That would be a bit tricky to do but maybe we can sort something out,” I laugh.
“Excellent! In the meantime I’ll go back to serving cakes in the local tea shop and waiting for my knight in shining armour to turn up.”
“What still no progress with you and Handsome Harry from the pub then?”
“Sadly no,” she replies. “I’ve done a bit of not-so-discreet asking around and he definitely hasn’t got a girlfriend so maybe I’m just not his type. I might have to cast my net more widely instead. I’m thinking of joining a few of the girls on a trip they’re planning into Manchester for a posh night out. Somewhere fancy they said.”
The girls are some of Debs’ old school friends. I’ve joined Debs on trips out with them in the past. They always select somewhere special to go to. Once we went to the theatre to see one of the top West End shows when it was touring the country and it was amazing. But that was before I met Charlie and my life turned upside down when I joined the CCIA. Sometimes I miss how things used to be. Life was less complicated then. At the same time though I do love my new life and the man I share it with.
“I’m so jealous,” I reply.
Debs’ guffaws with laughter. “You’re kidding right? You get to live this glam, exciting life with a sexy spy man and you’re jealous of me?”
I fiddle with the edge of my sleeve. “Grass is always greener, Debs. Grass is always greener.”
“Yeah, I guess it is,” she replies thoughtfully. “You do enjoy your work don’t you?”
“Most of the time but all of the travel means I miss home, that’s all. I know I’m so lucky to do what I do.”
“And to get to do it with Charlie!” she says with a cheeky snigger.
“Yes, that too,” I reply, wishing Charlie was here right now. “Anyway, I suppose I’d better go. Dinner and then skiing lessons await.”
“Keep in touch,” Debs says. “I miss you and our little chats.”
“Me too. Take care, Debs.”
The temperature has dropped since dinner and I’m glad I’ve pulled on several extra layers before I head out to meet Dan at the ski lift. Not only will they help to keep me warm but they’ll also cushion my bruises.
He’s waiting, bundled up in a red ski jacket and black jeans, and waves as I approach.
The darkness means I don’t have to shut my eyes this time to avoid the views as the lift climbs to the top of the mountain.
“You’re scared of heights?” Dan asks. He’s standing, weight evenly balanced, not gripping the handrails or straps of the ski lift cabin.
“A little,” I admit.
He leans close. “The best thing to do when you’re scared of something is to face up to it remember? Don’t let things control you. Especially in this line of work. You’ll need to conquer your fears if you’re going to be one of us.”
I lower my voice. “I’m not planning to be one of you.” We have quite a few fellow passengers. Some off for a spot of skiing, others, judging by what they’re wearing, heading for the après ski bar on the mountain.
He raises an eyebrow of surprise. “Why not? From what I’ve heard you’ve got great potential. I can identify with your, shall we say, less conventional way of going about things. I’m thinking of the cave incident in particular.”
“I’m a support officer and I’m happy with that.” Without knowing why I add, “For now.”
Dan shrugs. “Just don’t let people, and by people I mean Charlie, hold you back.”
“Why would Charlie hold me back?” I frown. “He’s the one who encouraged me to do this job in the first place.”
“Yeah but that was before you two got hot and heavy wasn’t it?”
Actually it wasn’t but I’m not about to
reveal that snippet of information to Dan.
“Now he’s the one taking over, doing the driving because you think you’re not very good at it. He’s cosseting you,” he continues.
“I suppose some things change when you’re in a relationship,” I reply indignantly. “You look out for each other. That’s all it is.”
“Just be careful he doesn’t hold you back,” he says as the lift reaches its destination. “Because that would be a real shame.”
Much later I can see that working with Dan is indeed going to be a major challenge. Clearly he doesn’t do anything by halves and he encourages those around him to adopt the same attitude.
I am exhausted from our skiing lesson but have to admit Dan has worked miracles. I’ve fallen over a lot and probably have bruises on top of my bruises and my body aches like crazy, but I can actually now ski.
Well, sort of.
As the lesson progresses I’m managing to spend more time upright than sprawled on the ground and I’ve even got the hang of snowplough turns. The methods Dan used to achieve this transformation involved some pretty hands-on teaching techniques and some close body contact, but they did work. I can’t believe he’s taken me from useless to passable on the slopes in such a short space of time.
“Again,” he instructs as he stands, hands on hips, at the bottom of a gently sloping area we’ve been using for my one-to-one session.
“Seriously?” He’s an even harder task master than Charlie. I didn’t think that was possible.
“Yes, seriously,” he replies. “Do me five more mini runs and then, if they’re good enough, we can call it a night and I’ll treat you to a hot toddy in the bar as reward for all your hard work.”
I manage to keep my now jelly-like legs on track and perform five more small runs, even throwing some turns in for good measure. As I go into a snowplough to stop just in front of him I hear some kids shouting and messing around off to my right, throwing snowballs. I lose concentration and crash straight into him.
“Sorry!” I yelp, frantically trying to get up. My nose is pressed against his and I’m practically pinning him to the ground. I try to shuffle backwards in an attempt to get off him and end up sitting on his stomach. “So sorry.”
Eventually I manage to disentangle myself and collapse in a heap on the ice and snow next to him. “So sorry,” I puff again, trying to get my breath back.
He sits up and places a hand on my knee. “No worries. I actually quite enjoyed being pinned to the ground by you. We must do this again sometime. Perhaps we could try somewhere warmer and more comfortable next time.”
I meet his eyes but still aren’t sure if he’s being sarcastic or coming on to me.
“Come on, drinks time,” he says, hauling me to my feet. “You deserve it.”
The après ski bar is packed and extremely loud. Chatter combined with some Euro beat pop music makes my head thud. “See if you can grab us a table and I’ll get us some drinks,” Dan says. “What do you want? A beer? Wine? Hot toddy?”
“Red wine please,” I reply as I stand on tiptoe scanning the room for an empty table. I spot one tucked in the far corner that’s partly sectioned off behind a stone pillar and a waist-high screen.
I commandeer the table and sit down pulling off my coat and a couple of other layers. This place is hot, especially after the cool night air on the slopes.
“Here we go,” Dan says, putting a tray with four drinks on the table.
“Are we being joined by somebody?”
“No, just thought I may as well get us both a couple of drinks now rather than have to queue again in a minute.”
Dan got here with the drinks so quickly I can’t imagine he had to queue at all. He probably just flashed a thousand-kilowatt smile at one of the barmaids and jumped to the front of the queue.
He takes a sip of what looks like a double whisky and then leans back in his seat. “So, I think you did a great job tonight.”
“All thanks to you. I wouldn’t have believed I could improve so much and so fast.”
“Well you did, and tomorrow you’re going to impress this Tom guy and get chatting with him and get him to agree to either private lessons or a drink. Doesn’t matter which so long as you get the chance for some alone time with him and a decent chat.”
“I thought you said a drink with him was Plan B and not, and I quote, the best idea.”
“If we have to go to Plan B then we’ll go to Plan B,” he replies, his eyes slowly taking in the whole of the bar.
“I’ll try my best.” A glimpse of a familiar blue jacket catches my eye. Is that Tom over at the table near the bar? I squint and try to peer around the stone pillar.
“Something wrong?” Dan asks.
“No, I just thought I saw Tom that’s all.”
Suddenly Dan gets up, scoots around the table and comes to sit next to me. “Where?”
“In the blue jacket, three tables to the right of the bar.”
As we watch while trying to pretend not to, Tom, dressed in jeans and a jumper, settles himself in his chair, two drinks in front of him.
“Good looking fella,” Dan says. “I bet he’s in demand for extras from his female clients, on the slopes and in the chalet maintenance side of things as well.”
“Who is he here with? There are two drinks on the tray.”
Just then a woman walks over to his table and sits down. Frustratingly we can only see her from behind, plus she’s wearing a scarf around her head and shoulders in a Grace Kelly style. The two of them laugh and joke and lean in close to have a conversation thanks to the rowdy din from the bar’s clientele.
“I’m going to get us another drink,” Dan says, getting to his feet.
I’m about to protest that I still haven’t finished the first of the two he got for me when I realise he’s using getting more drinks as an excuse to go round to the other side of their table and see who Mystery Woman is.
A few minutes later he’s back.
“Well?” I ask, eager to find out who Tom is with.
“It’s Amelia,” he replies.
CHAPTER NINE
“What? But I thought she said she was having a quiet night in after dinner. She said she was exhausted with all the stuff going on and the visits back and forth to see Ty and all the worry and anxiety.”
“Well it looks as though either she was lying to you, or our friend Tom got her to change her mind. Do you think there’s something going on between them?”
“I have no idea. I thought she was in love with Ty. She made out they were serious. She said she loved him. Perhaps it’s just a harmless chat. Tom works for her, looking after the chalet. Maybe they’re talking about what needs to be done to patch things up after the fire until the full modernisation work starts.”
“But why meet in a crowded noisy bar on the top of a mountain for a conversation like that?” he asks.
I stare at the back of Amelia’s head. “I don’t know. Do you think they could be involved?”
“They look pretty cosy to me, so I’d say it’s a distinct possibility.”
“But it doesn’t make sense. Why is she lying to us?”
Dan takes a sip of his drink. “Could be any number of reasons. We do know this stalker stuff is genuine right? It’s not her behind it all, some kind of set-up?”
“She doesn’t have a reason for it to be a set up. She’s keeping it quiet. Not even Ty or her other guests know about the notes and stuff.”
“Well they’re up to something. We need to find out what. Tomorrow you head off for your ski lesson again and this time do not leave after class until you’ve got him to agree to some alone time with you. Private lesson or casual drink in a bar. I’m going to call at the chalet on the pretence of looking at the work which needs sorting and have another little chat with Amelia.”
As we climb into the lift for our return journey my phone buzzes and I quickly check it. Hope flares in me that it’s Charlie. Why hasn’t he called me or at least texted or sent
an email even if the time zone thing and his workload is making it difficult to speak to me?
The text is from Debs just saying she hopes I’ve heard from Charlie by now and asking how my skiing lesson with Dangerous Dan went. I slip my phone away. I’ll reply to Debs when I get back to the chalet.
“Still not heard from him then?”
“Sorry? Who?” I say, though I know exactly what Dan means.
“Charlie Boy. Still not heard from him?”
Do I tell the truth or make something up? I’m useless at lying. I shake my head.
“You’re worried,” Dan says as he pulls his own phone out, selects a number and makes a call.
“A bit,” I admit.
“Hey, Angie right?” Dan says into his phone once the call connects.
Strange he should suddenly decide to call one of his female acquaintances when we were in the middle of a conversation.
“I’m wondering if you could do me a huge favour,” he continues. The woman says something which I can’t hear and he laughs. “No, nothing like that. Not this time anyway. I want you to check on someone for me.”
There’s a beat of silence then he says, “Yeah, active. Just concerned. Charlie Huxton. You can? You’re an angel. Really appreciate that. Of course, you’re on. A drink it is, once I’m back in London for long enough. Thanks. Bye.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “What was that about Charlie?”
He glances around him and then slips an arm through one of mine and leads me towards the corner of the ski lift cabin where we can’t be overheard so easily. He leans down and whispers in my ear. “I have a friend in agency allocation. As you know they keep tabs on all agents when they’re on cases. I’ve asked her to make sure Charlie is OK. He has to report in every so often, touch base so to speak, like we all do at this level. Angie is doing me a little favour and checking he’s making his regular contacts like he should.”
“Oh, that’s kind of you, thanks.” I feel a surge of gratitude.
He moves away from me a little and shrugs. “Least I could do. Like I said, you looked worried.” His eyes take on a serious expression and he adds, “I know what that’s like so I thought I’d try and help you out.”
Forever Mine: A Fun and Flirty Romantic Mystery (Amber Reed Mystery Book 3) Page 10
