Page 50 of Rendez-Vous in Cannes
‘May I open it now?’ Cindy asked.
‘Don’t see why not,’ Nat said.
Cindy squealed with delight as she saw the gold necklace with her name hanging from it and insisted on putting it on straight away.
‘Is Anna in?’ Nat asked Poppy. ‘Because if she is, I think you should go and say thank you straight away, Cindy, for such a lovely present.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ Tom said, and the two children raced across the garden towards the villa.
Left alone, the three adults looked at each other.
‘That’s a lovely present for a child you barely know,’ Daisy said. ‘It’s something you’d buy a very special child.’
‘Mmm. I wonder what Teddy and Verity will make of it,’ Nat said thoughtfully.
‘Oh, come on, you two,’ Poppy said. ‘This is beginning to sound like some sort of conspiracy theory to me. It’s simply a nice present from someone who can afford it for a child she likes.’
Daisy looked at her sister. ‘Just you wait and see.’
28
Cannes was still in party mode as Anna and Leo walked along the bord du mer towards the quay on Thursday evening.
The paparazzi were gathered, as usual, at the foot of the Palais steps; restaurants and bars were full; glamorous women in impossibly high-heeled shoes were stepping into limousines to be chauffeured away to some upmarket establishment along the coast to be wined and dined. International TV crews were everywhere filming, their reporters talking earnestly to cameras, trying to convey the frenzied atmosphere around them to audiences on different continents.
Bernard, casual in chinos and a black polo shirt, welcomed them aboard the large yacht he’d chartered for the evening as the stewardess offered them glasses of champagne.
‘Anna. Leo. So glad you changed your minds. Should be a fun evening.’ He hesitated as he looked at Anna. ‘Leo told me what happened last night after I left. Are you all right? I’m struggling to accept it, but with that wonderful thing called hindsight, I can definitely see a resemblance between Teddy Wickham and Philippe – and to you too.’ Bernard paused. ‘Verity and Teddy are hoping to join us later.’
Anna could feel the panic rising. ‘You haven’t said anything to Verity about me, have you? Or told her you know she’s Felicity Howell?’
‘No, of course not. It’s a bit late, but would you like me to ask them not to come?’ Bernard asked.
‘What reason can you possibly give them, Bernard? But I’m not ready for a confrontation with Teddy Wickham yet, so Leo and I will endeavour to stay out of the way. Once on the island we’ll… we’ll do our own thing and miss the barbecue. I’m not hungry anyway.’
‘If you’re sure,’ Bernard said. ‘I’ll try and make sure Teddy and Verity are kept occupied on the yacht.’
‘Thanks.’ Anna hesitated. ‘Are you going to say anything to Teddy about Philippe? About how close you both were?’
Bernard shook his head. ‘Not directly, no. After all, Teddy isn’t aware that anybody knows his true identity and without breaking several confidences, I can’t tell him. But I may talk in a loud voice when he is within earshot about how friendly Philippe and I were. See if he picks up on it.’ Bernard swished the champagne around in his glass before taking a sip and looking at Anna seriously. ‘You’re probably the only one who can approach the subject with him – if you choose to do so.’
Anna grimaced. ‘From what Verity is saying, there seems very little point, so I’m thinking the best thing is to leave it. Although Philippe’s will has complicated things,’ she sighed.
‘We went to the lawyers this morning,’ Leo explained. ‘Anna is about to become not only a French householder but also the proud owner of a boat.’
‘Philippe left you “One Life, One Love”? As well as the cottage?’ Bernard looked at her.
‘With certain clauses attached,’ Anna said. ‘One of which I need to talk to you about sometime, but not tonight. I’ve brought the keys to the cottage with me. Leo and I are hoping to have a quick look around tonight.’
‘Philippe invested a huge amount of money in that cottage over the years – he always hoped to eventually live in it full-time. He loved it over there.’
Anna nodded. ‘I know he did. He told me what his dreams were for the place the one time he took me there.’ She glanced at Bernard. ‘Did you not know the contents of the will?’
‘No. As a witness, I just had to sign along the dotted line. Once I’d done that, the lawyers, as appointed executors, whisked it away for safekeeping.’
More guests began to come aboard and Bernard went to greet them, leaving Anna and Leo to make their way along the deck to hide themselves in amongst the crowd of people. Teddy and Verity were the last to arrive and Anna caught her breath as she saw them walking up the gangplank, barely able to keep her gaze away from the man whom she now knew was her son. Leo, realising, moved in front of her, shook his head and, without a word, blocked the view. A few minutes later, the hum of the engines could be heard as the yacht began to manoeuvre off the mooring and make its way towards the island.
Bernard had instructed the skipper to take the yacht around the bay, ‘Give everyone a chance to enjoy the champagne and nibbles,’ and it was an hour before the yacht drew up alongside the island’s public pontoon and people disembarked. Anna and Leo hung back and waited until they’d seen Teddy help Verity off the yacht and join a group making their way to the beach.
