Page 47 of The Magic of Provence

For a long moment, Arlo stood completely still. Christophe stroked Heidi’s head.

‘It’ssosoft,’ he said. ‘Come and feel it. Just with one finger? Like this…’

Arlo’s parents were watching. Fi was watching. It felt like they were all holding their breath, and Arlo took a step closer, stretched out his hand and touched Heidi’s head. He pulled away instantly, his head turning to look at his parents to see if they’d seen how brave he’d been. They were smiling. His father picked up his phone.

‘Do it again,’ he urged. ‘I will take a picture for you.’

By the time Christophe and Fi were ready to leave and Heidi was standing up, Arlo was ready to give her a farewell hug, his arms around the neck of the dog who was as tall as he was. His mother looked like she was on the verge of tears.

‘Gracias,’ she said. ‘Merci beaucoup,monsieur.’

‘De rien,’ Christophe responded. ‘It was nothing.’

* * *

Fi was quiet until they were on the other side of the road from the restaurant, walking back towards the marina and the fort and the car park beyond, but she had to say something then.

‘You love kids, don’t you?’

‘I do.’ He grinned at her. ‘I was one myself once.’

‘You’re very good with them. You’ll be a wonderful father one day.’

His smile faded fast enough to let her know she’d said too much. ‘No. Not going to happen. I gave up on that idea a long time ago.’ He shrugged. ‘But I’m happy to enjoy other people’s children.’ He looked down at Heidi. ‘And animals. They’re very like children in many ways.’

Fi’s heart broke a little for Christophe. How had one woman done this much damage by rejecting his first love? Was it possible that he could get past such a deep-seated fear of commitment?

Perhaps her thoughts were visible on her face and that could explain the sharp glance Christophe gave her.

‘Did you know,’ he asked, ‘that Theo is not Julien’s biological son?’

‘Erm…no.’ Fi was shocked. ‘But Bonnie is his daughter, isn’t she?’

‘Yes. It wasn’t that he wasn’t able to have children, it was because his wife was cheating on him.’

‘Oh, my God… Ellie’s never said anything about that.’ Not that Fi had been around enough to give her the chance.

‘No. Ellie, the beautiful soul that she is, considers Julien to be Theo’s father in every way that matters, which is entirely true. Just as much as she is his mother. Julien believes that himself, now, but it nearly broke him when he found out. It was not that long ago – when he and Ellie were first together.’

A time when Fi was well hidden in a different town and a career she’d never planned to have and a lonely bedroom above a stables. Cut off from her family. Cut off from life, really, behind those walls she had constructed so solidly.

‘I tried to help,’ Christophe continued. ‘I thought I would be able to because I knew, only too well, what it was like to live through that kind of betrayal, but no…’ He shook his head. ‘It was even harder than when his wife was killed in the accident and he discovered that she hadn’t been alone in that car. She was not only leaving him, she was abandoning her child to run away with her lover.’

‘Theo’s father?’

‘Probably. But who knows with a woman like that?’ Christophe’s snort was a sound of disgust.

The silence that fell was full of dark things like betrayal and deceit and death.

‘But… he did get through it,’ Fi said quietly. ‘And he found Ellie. They adore each other.’

Christophe nodded slowly. ‘Ellie is perfect for him but I was amazed that he had been that brave. That he could trust enough to let that kind of love back into his life.’ His breath sounded like a sigh of defeat. ‘I don’t even want totrybeing that brave. My life is just fine the way it is.’

Wow…

Had Fi really thought that her friendship with Christophe could develop to a point where he might believe that at leastsomewomen could be trusted to be more than just a friend or a fleeting liaison? She’d had no idea of how big this challenge really was or if she was capable of helping him towards a future where the love of his life might have only two legs instead of four.

She could, at least, try to lighten the atmosphere before they needed to spend an hour in the close confines of a car, however. Her cheeks puffed with the breath she blew out as she shook her head sadly.

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