Page 10 of A Colourful Country Escape
‘Maybe I should just leave.’ Lexie looked up at the smartly suited man, whose name she knew was Ben. Not that he’d bothered to introduce himself.
Her eyes fixed on his as she waited for his answer. They were less dark than she’d expected. Blue flecked with green, like maps of the world. Why was he holding her gaze for quite so long? And why was it setting off a kaleidoscope of butterflies in her already nervous belly?
He blinked a couple of times and then seemed to reset himself. ‘Right, well, you’re here now. You’d better come in.’
Cory gave Lexie a conspiratorial grin. ‘He’s Ben, by the way. Excuse his manners; he’s a loser around women. Anyway, give me your keys and I’ll push that little beaut around the back by mine. Mum will do a kickflip if she sees it “littering the driveway”.’
An angry-looking muscle twitched in Ben’s jaw. ‘Watch your tongue, Cory. And I thought you’d thrownMother dearoff the scent for today? She’d be even less impressed than me if she heard about your interfering. If she turns up, sniffing around … ’
Cory held up his hands again. ‘Look, she’s meant to be at the polo club with the Fortescues or whatever they’re called, but you know what she’s like. If she gets a whiff of something, she’ll be clawing her way over here, the old fox.’
He looked back at Ben and stage-whispered, ‘This is the bit where you smile and shake hands. What’s with you today? I thought you were good at this business stuff?’
Cory grabbed Lexie’s keys from her sweaty fist, gave her an eyeroll and hopped barefoot across the pebbles, whistling as he went.
‘Never work with children or animals,’ said Ben through gritted teeth, as he watched his younger brother retreat towards the stool-splattered van. ‘I … ’ He cleared his throat. ‘I’ll arrange for your vehicle to be cleaned.’
Was that nearly an apology? But before Lexie could dwell on it, Ben moved back into the house and gave her a small nod to follow. She discreetly wiped her palms on her seen-better-days suit trousers and tiptoed in behind him.
And wow. Lexie tried not to looked fazed by the enormous entrance hall, which was bigger than the whole of her last flat. A wrought-iron staircase curved off imposingly to her right, like something from a grand film. Even the cream walls were dwarfing her, with their gallery of painted noblemen and horses that seemed to tower upwards forever.
But what was that funereal smell? It was like dust and history mixed with sadly wilting flowers. Lexie’s eyes landed on a spray of white lilies in one of those tall pottery stands. A woman’s touch.
Ben paced around, looking at his watch. Lexie guessed he was in his early thirties and she wondered if he’d spent all his years looking quite so agitated. She shuffled from foot to foot, her plastic ballet pumps squeaking embarrassingly on the cold marble floor. Perhaps she should say something polite.
‘Impressive house. I should have Google-stalked better before I arrived.’ She gave a nervous laugh. ‘Rookie mistake.’
‘Right.’
Did he even know what she was talking about?
Lexie looked back to the aristocrats in the paintings, hoping for a friendlier face. But they seemed similarly scornful, their disapproving eyes following her every flinch. How did these people live like this? It was like being in an episode ofScooby-Doo. Her artistic eye squinted for a resemblance between the effeminate horsemen and her strong-featured interviewer. Hmm, it wasn’t obvious.
He followed her gaze and shook his head. What did that mean?
And then, with a crunch of gravel, Cory arrived back at the open front door. He gave Ben a quizzical look, as though surprised to see them both still loitering in the hallway.
‘So, fans, are we going to hit this interview?’
Cory was surprisingly laid-back compared to his brother. Why were they so different? She hoped he would play good cop to Ben’s pain-in-the-arse variety.
Ben held up a finger, like he was still debating whether the interview would go ahead. ‘You’re a social media … ’ His voice trailed off.
‘Manager.’ Lexie tried to straighten herself up. ‘I breathe life into businesses by growing their social media following and adding sparkle to their online presence.’ She tried to keep her hands under control, aware that she sometimes got overexcited when she talked about this stuff. ‘I create content that really speaks to your audience and I get them talking back. Because an engaged audience means people are interested, excited, and getting ready to buy from you.’
Lexie looked at Cory and Ben, hoping her eyes weren’t too full of dazzle. Cory gave a hearty clap, but Ben just raised his eyebrows.
‘Sparkle.’ He let the word hang awkwardly for a moment. ‘And I just thought you’d be pinning chintzy photos and tweeting.’
Lexie filled her lungs and tried not to let Ben’s words deflate her. Why did people belittle her job like it was pointless? It always felt like there was something to prove.
‘Being a social butterfly is actually quite exhausting. And it would help if people didn’t try to trample on my wings.’ Her words came out quietly and she wished they hadn’t. She knew it was unprofessional, but Ben’s attitude was grating. Could she really work for someone who had no belief in her? It would be like the platonic version of Drew-gate all over again.
Cory coughed in an apparent bid to break the tension. ‘Er, let’s get to the interview room, shall we? If war’s going to break out, I at least want a comfy viewing seat.’
Ben raised his eyebrows but Cory bulldozed past him, leading Lexie by a reluctant elbow. They moved through a long hallway of closed doors, with Ben following under a cloud of obvious antipathy.
Lexie took in her surroundings, hoping to get a feel for what made this family business tick. Part of her job – if she ever made it that far – would be sharing their story. Bringing it to life. But why was all the paintwork sobeige? They were meant to be in the paint business. Who’d stolen all the colour?
