Page 27 of A Chance in a Million
‘See? Loads of depth. Now I’m off. Bye.’ And he dropped his face back into the water and set off for the shore again.
Jane swam over to the raft and climbed out onto the wooden surface, enjoying the warmth of the sun-scorched timbers. She spotted Flora over on the shore, looking on, and received a little wave from her. Before diving back in she sat down with her feet in the water, still watching David’s back as he waded out of the lake and disappeared up the track towards home, followed a few seconds later by his dog. She sat there, trying to get her head around the fact that this was the first time in more than two years that she had felt physically attraction to a man. She was still struggling with the ramifications of this discovery when her thoughts were disturbed by Diana’s voice.
‘I see we’ve frightened David off.’ Diana hauled herself up the ladder and was soon joined by the other two girls. They sat there, basking in the sunshine, and Jane rapidly discovered that she wasn’t the only one to find Diana’s hirsute brother attractive. Grazia’s voice sounded decidedly dreamy.
‘He’s such a hunk, your brother. Does he really live all alone?’
Diana nodded. ‘Apart from the dog.’
‘Wish I was that dog.’ There was real longing in Grazia’s voice now. ‘He could pet me and tickle my tummy any time he wanted.’
‘Don’t waste your time. The man’s a hermit nowadays. He never goes out, he never talks to anybody; he just lives for his books and his work.’ Jane could hear the regret in Diana’s tone. ‘More’s the pity.’
Jane would dearly have liked to ask for a bit more information about why this desirable man was so closed off from society and unapproachable, but she decided it wasn’t her place to ask such a personal question of her employer’s daughter, so she stood up and braced herself.
‘Well, I can’t put it off any longer. I’m going back into the freezing cold water before I get too warm and don’t want to leave the raft at all.’
With this she dived back in and by the time she had got her breath back after the shock of the impact she was already halfway towards the shore. She was just wading out of the water when she heard Flora’s voice.
‘Poor David…’ Flora was still staring up the path towards David’s house and she sounded unusually subdued.
‘Poor David?’ Jane reached for her towel and stretched it around her shoulders. Here in the shade of the trees she was almost cold. ‘Why do you say that?’
‘He’s had his problems. He’s not the boy he used to be.’
Considering he was thirty-three, he was hardly a boy, but to a nonagenarian it probably felt that way. ‘What sort of problems?’
Flora turned towards her and for the first time Jane noticed that she had the same blue eyes as her grandson – just a bit faded by the passage of time. ‘The sort of problems only you are likely to understand.’
‘Only me? I don’t understand.’ Although she had an inkling it might have something to do with his time in the army…
The old lady reached out and patted her arm. ‘You will. Believe me, you will.’
Chapter 15
The following Sunday Jane decided it was time to put on her new walking boots and climb up to the TV masts. By now she had discovered that this was called Monte Venda and it rose to over six hundred metres. Her map showed a number of paths and tracks leading up its flanks but she decided to check the best way by asking the resident expert. Although she felt sure this should really be Umberto, the groundsman, she decided to ask David. After all, she told herself, he did live up here all year round, didn’t he? The fact that this would give her an excuse to talk to him again was not lost on her but she managed to avoid obsessing about why she so badly wanted to see him, or any man, again.
She had only glimpsed him a couple of times since meeting him in the lake – usually when he was out running laps around the perimeter – but hadn’t spoken to him again. Secretly she was a bit sorry that since his return she saw less of the friendly Labrador, but Dino was his dog so she could hardly complain and, besides, she now often had regular company in the shape of a seven-year-old girl and her teddy. However, she still hadn’t been able to shake Flora’s words down by the lake out of her head. What was the trouble with ‘poor David’ and why did she find herself thinking about him so often?
That morning, she spotted him and his dog out for a run and decided this was the perfect opportunity. She did a quick change into her running things and timed her exit from the house to coincide with when his next circuit would take him past her part of the house. Her plan worked perfectly and she came out to find Dino right outside her door with his master only twenty or thirty yards behind. She stopped to make a fuss of the dog before falling into step alongside his master and broaching the subject.
‘Hi, David. I was hoping I’d see you. I’m thinking of climbing Monte Venda later today and I thought you could maybe tell me the best tracks to take to get up there. There seems to be a choice.’
He didn’t break step but he did acknowledge her presence and her request for help. ‘Good morning, Jane. Of course I can help.’ He sounded cordial enough, but just a bit distant.
At that moment the path narrowed between the trees and he slowed to allow her to go first, so she was unable to respond for a minute or so. When they once more emerged into the open, she tried again.
‘I’ve bought a pretty detailed map of the area but a bit of local knowledge would be a big help.’
‘No problem; whenever you like.’ Still little trace of warmth but at least he had said yes.
‘What about a cup of coffee at my place after your run?’
He didn’t reply immediately and she had the feeling he was searching for a suitable excuse to say no. Presumably he must have drawn a blank as he nodded. ‘Of course.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘Would ten thirty be okay?’
At ten thirty, after a quick shower, Jane had just spread out her map on the kitchen table when she heard a familiar scratching sound at the door. She went across and opened it to see the Labrador standing there, tail wagging, with David behind him. The dog stretched up on his hind legs to be petted and she beckoned his master in.
‘Hi, again, David. Do come in. This is very kind of you. This is the map I bought. Is it detailed enough?’
