Page 41 of The Fool

“Oh, I thought the girls would have told you,” he says, looking a tad anxious over revealing such a thing. “He basically tried to rape her; he blamed her for the breakdown of their marriage.”

“Oh, my God!”

“I know I can trust you not to mention any of this. Lily doesn’t talk about it; I think it’s still quite raw.”

“Of course,” I reassure him, “it’s none of my business. I’m just…shocked!”

“Well, that’s what everyone’s reaction tends to be,” he says with a soft smile. “Anyway, let’s get some lunch and we can talk shop for a bit.”

“Good plan,” I confirm with a nod. “Can I do anything?”

“No, make yourself comfortable,” he says, gesturing to the breakfast bar, “and I’ll get some bits and pieces together.”

_____

Bea

For the next half an hour or so, Nathaniel tells me about the lawyer with whom we are going to be meeting this afternoon. He is representing a company that Cameron is trying to purchase. He tells me what to note down and what to pay special attention to. Apparently, this lawyer has a bit of a reputation for being difficult, as well as being extremely good at what he does. In fact, he is so well known, people try to avoid him if they can. Nathaniel says he’s nicknamed ‘The Devil’, being that he leaves you feeling soulless. I must have looked horrified because he laughed and told me not to worry, that Cameron has already negotiated the main details, so this is merely a follow-up meeting before they finally sign on the dotted line. He just wants me to be prepared.

“Have you ever worked with him before?” I ask.

“Not personally, no,” he replies, which comforts me a little, it means we’re both in the same boat. “Though, we were technically cousins for about three years.”

“Ok. I’m guessing there’s a story there?”

“His father was married to my aunt for about three years,” he explains. “He’s always been an ass, a very entitled ass too, if you know what I mean.”

“Oh, you mean very rich?” I smile in response, complete with an accusatory expression on my face. I know how much Cameron is worth, and Nathaniel doesn’t appear to be short of a dollar or two either.

“Still is, as far as I know. Honestly, I haven’t seen him since my aunt parted from his father,” he says matter of factly. “Would you like a tour of the house?”

“Oh, erm, shouldn’t we be getting back?” I ask, feeling a little nervous about his offer.

“Nah, we’ve got at least half an hour,” he replies with a wicked grin on his face. “Imagine what we could get up to in that time?”

My mouth drops open over his suggestion, but he simply laughs and grabs my hand to begin showing me around his home. First, we go outside to where there is a river running along the back, the very same one that runs along Cam and Lily’s house too. The garden is decorated with flowers and plants and looks very well looked after. When we go back inside, he shows me upstairs to where there are four good-sized bedrooms, two of which are en-suite. When we enter his bedroom, I feel a little intrusive, however, he doesn’t seem the least bit perturbed by me being in his personal space.

“It’s very neat,” I comment, thinking how my room looks like a hovel by comparison. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not dirty or smelly, and I never have food or drink in there, but every now and then, my entire wardrobe will be lying all over the floor.

“My mother was very particular about how we kept our rooms,” he explains, “it’s kind of stuck with me I suppose. Plus, I’m a little bit of an entitled prick too,” he says sheepishly, “I have a housekeeper who comes in twice a week.”

“Ah-ha,” I laugh, “it’s all coming out now.”

Downstairs, he shows me an extensive home gym that would be the stuff of nightmares for me. I own one pair of sneakers and a weighted hula-hoop that is currently collecting dust behind the TV.

“Wow, you must work out a lot,” I comment.

“Well, you don’t look like me without putting in the work,” he teases while throwing up his muscular bicep.

“Hmm, you don’t get to be as vain as you either,” I reply, feeling comfortable enough to poke fun at him with a roll of my eyes.

“Hey, I’m a single guy with free time,” he says with a shrug, “I like to work out; it zones me out for a bit.”

“Well, it appears to have the right effect on members of the opposite sex,” I laugh, “considering all the bunches of flowers I’ve had to send over the last year.”

“And what effect does it have on you, Beatrice?” He looks at me with a now serious expression, with him being so close, I can feel the heat radiating from his body. My breath catches and I have to think really carefully about what to say.

“Erm…well, you are extremely attractive if you like that kind of thing,” I eventually reply, together with a shrug of my shoulders and a nonchalant tone of voice. “I especially love your modesty.”

---