Page 39 of A Colourful Country Escape
‘Ben doesn’t really travel much, but he should,’ Lexie heard herself divulging.
Grace rolled her eyes. ‘Too busy making the money, hey?’ She looked around at the décor, a quizzical look on her face. ‘And you say their business is paint?’
Lexie tried not to giggle. ‘I know what you’re thinking. Why all the … ’
‘Beige!’ they said in unison.
‘It’s their mother’s choice,’ Mrs Moon added.
‘Isn’t it bloody always.’ Grace tutted and then put her hand over her mouth. ‘Oops, sorry. I’m sure she’s perfectly nice.’
‘Hmm,’ Lexie answered.
And they both laughed again.
‘I should be better behaved if I want to find a husband, so my parents keep saying,’ said Grace, and then lowered her voice. ‘I’m only here to keep them off my back.’
‘It must be tricky finding a suitable rich guy.’ Lexie checked around and then lowered her voice too. ‘It feels like the more money some guys have, the less manners they’ve got. Don’t you think?’
Grace pulled a strand of hair through her fingers as she appeared to give it some thought.
‘Honestly, I don’t think money makes much difference. If a guy’s a nob, he’s a nob. The jerk-gene fairy doesn’t ask about bank balances when she comes waving her wand.’
Lexie laughed. ‘I guess.’ She remained to be convinced, although Grace would know a lot more rich men than she did.
‘But, anyway, I don’t have to hook up with someone wealthy just because my parents are loaded. People are just people.’ She shrugged. ‘Love turns up where it wants to. Just like friendship.’
And on that note, Grace was ushered into the ballroom for her interview with the potential mother-in-law from hell. She was the day’s final contender.
Twenty minutes later, Grace was helping Lexie and Mrs Moon tidy up the ballroom. Mrs Carrington-Noble had gone to update Ben, who hadn’t shown up. Lexie assumed he hadn’t deemed it worthy of his trouble. It was only the trifling matter of marriage, after all. Maybe he was just as bad as his queue of pampered hopefuls.
Even Grace had shown more effort in the day’s proceedings. She’d insisted on staying to lend a hand, after hitting it off with Lexie and falling in love with Mrs Moon’s array of sponge cakes.
Just as Lexie and Grace were dragging out the last pot of wilting lilies, music began to fill the ballroom. The women looked around and Mrs Moon pointed to some dusty speakers, which were creaking back to life.
Lexie knew from watching too many YouTube videos on South America that this was tango music, and there was something irresistible about its beat. It was dynamic, as though it demanded to be stomped to. Grace, a woman so different and yet somehow so in tune with Lexie, seemed to feel it too. She extended her hands to Lexie and Mrs Moon.
‘Shall we?’ Grace’s eyes sparkled with a delight that was infectious.
Lexie grabbed Grace’s hand and pulled Mrs Moon’s sleeve.
‘No, no, lovey. It takes two to tango, not three! You go ahead. God knows, this tired ballroom needs some life.’
The lily leaves seemed to wave their approval and, within moments, Lexie and Grace were clutching each other and spinning around the room, making up a dance that probably resembled nothing the formal ballroom had ever seen.
But who had started the music? And why? Ben was surely more of a waltz man, although he did keep surprising her. Was he on his way? Grace interrupted Lexie’s musings.
‘So what’s this Ben actually like?’ she asked as they sashayed around the floor. ‘Seeing as he’s too important to show up. His mother wasn’t exactly a bag of fun.’
Lexie threw her head back and laughed, euphoric from the music, before gathering her thoughts. ‘Well, he’s … handsome, I guess. You know – tall, pretty muscular. Neat chocolatey brown hair that always looks fit to ruffle.’ She ought to try and do him justice.
‘Eyes?’
‘Hmm, unusual. Like globes, or something. He doesn’t even get out much, yet when you look into them … ’ Lexie shook her head. ‘Sorry. Blueish, with a bit of green. Just normal, really. Two of them.’
‘Oh, OK. Two is always handy. And personality?’
Now that was a tough one.
