Page 63 of A Riviera Retreat
‘You recognised me?’ Amy said. ‘From such a brief meeting?’
Simon nodded. ‘Plus, Tasha had shown us some photos on one of our visits. Your parents were here at the time too. They’d brought photos of your wedding,’ he added quietly. ‘Tasha didn’t take to Kevin, did she? In fact I’d say she actively disliked him.’
‘Both she and my mum tried to talk me out of marrying him, that’s for sure,’ Amy said. ‘Sadly I was too pig-headed to listen.’
‘Tasha told Naomi once she was worried about you and the way Kevin was towards you. Controlling, she said.’
Amy nodded. ‘He was. And I think that’s why Tasha left me Belle Vue.’ She stopped, remembering that last hospital visit with her aunt. ‘She told me that, should an escape route present itself, I was not to hesitate but to take it and run away. So I did, having wasted five years of my life believing I was married to a man who cared for me. Wrong. So wrong.’ Amy picked up a flat pebble and threw it forcibly towards the sea.
Before Simon could say anything, she stood up. She needed to get her emotions under control. Self-pitying tears were welling up too close to the surface. If she wasn’t careful, she’d be blubbing all over Simon in a moment and she was determined that wasn’t going to happen.
‘I fancy a paddle. Coming?’ and she ran down to the water’s edge.
‘I’m a very good listener,’ Simon said, joining her and catching her by the hand and gently pulling her to his side. ‘If you want to talk about what happened.’
So much of her wanted to take him up on his offer. After all, he was starting to open up to her, telling her about the retreat and knowing Tasha and Francois. But was it too soon to start talking about the skeletons in her own closet? Wouldn’t it be better to get to know each other a little bit more?
‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘I will tell you the whole sordid Kevin story at some point – but let’s not spoil such a beautiful day.’
Simon sighed as he looked at her. ‘Promise? Don’t judge all men by Kevin. Some of us are completely trustworthy,’ he squeezed Amy’s hand gently. ‘Just so you know, okay?’
27
‘This villa you’re taking me to see,’ Josh said as he and Matilda walked along. ‘Who owns it? A friend of yours?’
‘No, I’ve never met the owner – he’s a cousin of Pierre the gardener, who has become a friend.’ Matilda took a deep breath. ‘The thing is, I’ve decided to move to France and I’ve agreed to buy this villa. I was going to send you an email – I’ve half written it – to tell you and show you some photographs of the villa when I got home. But now you’re here, you can see it for yourself. We’re almost there.’ She realised from the silence that greeted her words that Josh was stunned. ‘It’s something that your dad and I always dreamed of doing when he retired, well, I’m doing it for him – but also mainly for me.’
Matilda glanced at her son, willing him to speak, to say he was happy for her, that it was a good idea, but it wasn’t until she pointed to and turned onto the garden path of number eight a few moments later that he spoke.
‘This is the villa you’re buying?’ Surprise registered on his face. ‘It’s not too big for you?’
Matilda shook her head. ‘No. It’s a perfect size. I fell in love with it the moment I saw it, and then there was a rainbow, and William’s favourite rose is already in the garden. Both signs telling me I was doing the right thing.’ Sensing she was gabbling away, nervous of Josh’s reaction, she stopped. ‘Come on, let me show you inside.’
‘You’ve got the key already?’
‘Luckily, Pierre let me have it for today. He knew I wanted to have a look around again. I’ll give it back this evening.’
Matilda inserted the key and opened the front door. Whether Josh approved or not, the very act of opening the door of the villa and ushering him inside made her feel it was already her home.
She showed him the kitchen, the sitting room, threw open the French doors leading to the terrace and told him to go and have a look around upstairs. ‘Choose which room you’d like as yours,’ Matilda said. ‘I’m going to have a wander around the garden.’
She was standing by the white roses deep in thought and trying to quell her nervousness over Josh’s reaction when he reappeared.
‘Well? What d’you think?’
Josh smiled at her. ‘I definitely think Dad would have loved the villa, but are you sure about moving here by yourself? It’s a huge undertaking.’
‘In a way, that’s the whole point. It’s something that will make me face up to life again. Force me to get on with things without your dad,’ Matilda said quietly. ‘This holiday has been a step in the right direction. Made me realise I’m still capable of doing anything I want to do. In other words, it’s shaken me out of the rut I’d slipped into after William died. I’ve had time to reassess things in a neutral place without any memories crowding in on me, colouring my thoughts with negative responses.’ She gestured at the villa and the garden. ‘I love this place. It’s exactly the kind of villa Dad and I dreamt of buying together. But I promise you, I’m not looking at it through rose-tinted glasses. I know packing up the Bristol flat will be hard. I know there will be times after I’ve moved to France that I’ll wonder if I’ve done the right thing but…’ Matilda took a deep breath, she needed Josh to understand and accept why she wanted to live here. ‘I’ve still got a lot of life left in front of me and I want to grab at it with both hands and I want to do it here in France. Living in this wonderful place.’
Josh was silent for some seconds before he enveloped Matilda in a hug. ‘Okay, Mum. I just want you to be happy and you’ve convinced me moving here is the right thing for you. I’ll even help you move, so long as you promise me that if – and I’m not saying it will – but if it does go wrong and you find you’ve made a mistake, you won’t let pride stop you from admitting it and selling up.’
‘I promise, but this time next year you’ll see that you were worried over nothing!’ Matilda said, returning his hug. ‘Next year, I’m going to host a garden party here for my birthday, so save the date!’
‘Seeing Chelsea didn’t know it was your birthday today – I’m guessing nobody else at Belle Vue knows it’s your birthday,’ Josh said.
Matilda shook her head. She was beginning to regret she hadn’t shared the news before about it being her birthday. ‘Now you’re here, though, shall we go out for a special meal? Just the two of us.’
‘No, you can’t disappear on your last night here,’ Josh said. ‘You must spend it with your new friends. Besides, isn’t there a barbecue planned? You know I love a good barbecue.’
