Page 31 of A Chance in a Million
‘Well, if you really don’t mind then, I will.’ Diana grinned. ‘It’s a small world, isn’t it?’
Chapter 17
That evening Jane made a big decision. After a lot of thought – and a couple of glasses of Prosecco – she sent Fergus an email thanking Virginia and him for the invitation to their wedding and saying yes. Although she had a moment of panic after pressingSend, she went to bed feeling satisfied with her decision. It wasn’t going to be easy to meet up with so many of her former comrades but she knew she had to try. Life didn’t stand still and she knew she had to make this attempt to begin moving on.
Over the next week or so the weather remained mixed and she spent much of her free time at the kitchen table – often with her neighbour’s dog snoozing at her feet or with Linda and her teddy alongside her – handling Veronica’s affairs and gradually starting to work out the plot of her book. Combining her two novellas was beginning to look too complicated so she decided to expand the plot of the romance and add in a bit of intrigue. Drawing on recent events, she rather liked the idea of a former boyfriend from fifteen years earlier putting in an appearance and sparking off a chain reaction that would lead to mystery, suspicion, heartache, but ultimately happiness.
When she wasn’t working or writing, she managed to persuade her employer to accompany her for a couple of walks in the fresh air and they chatted, increasingly freely. Maria definitely approved and congratulated her on her success in getting Veronica out and about at last after her long months of purdah. Diana and Beatrice added their best efforts and even got their mother to start making a few trips into Padua with them. It looked as though Veronica’s rehabilitation was improving in pace with Jane’s own.
One morning she was surprised to receive a visit from Veronica at just after nine. They now knew each other sufficiently well for Jane to feel she could comment.
‘Is it my imagination or are you getting up earlier these days?’
Veronica smiled. ‘It’s not your imagination and, believe it or not, I’ve already been up for over an hour. I’m sleeping a lot better. Whether it’s the cooler nights or the drier air or something else, I feel a lot more relaxed. Now then, I have a favour to ask. How would you feel about popping down to Venice and back today?’
‘Of course, no problem. Is there something special you want me to do?’
‘Two things: first, I’d like you to call in at the house. Just take a quick look around to see that all’s well, grab a couple of jumpers and some shoes for me and pick up any post that’s arrived. It shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes.’ She went on to tell Jane where to find the jumpers and shoes in the dressing room off the main bedroom.
‘And the second thing?’
‘And the second thing is that I’d like you to keep an eye on David.’
‘On David?’
‘He’s had terrible toothache for the past few days and he’s finally managed to get an appointment for two o’clock this afternoon with our regular dentist in Venice. He’s been having awful trouble trying to find a dentist around here. They all appear to be either on holiday or off sick. The thing is, he once had a nasty allergic reaction to an anaesthetic so if you could go with him and be prepared to drive home again if necessary, I’d feel a lot happier. Beatrice is tied up with little Linda, and Diana would have done it but she’s got an upset stomach. Too much beer and pizza with her friends, if you ask me. Anyway, would you mind?’
‘Of course not. I love Venice and it’ll be nice to see it again. You’ll need to tell me how to get into the house and turn off the alarm, but I can go any time you want.’
‘Thank you, that’s a relief. I’ll go and see David and you can sort out all the details together.’
Ten minutes later there was a knock at the door. Jane opened it to find David standing there and he didn’t look happy. At least, that was the impression she got from his eyes. The rest of his face, as usual, was shrouded in hair. Beside him was his much shorter-haired dog who looked anything but unhappy.
‘Look, Jane, there’s really no need for you to come all the way down to Venice with me. Mum’s freaking out because of something that happened twenty-five years ago and it’s never happened since.’
‘She told me you had an allergic reaction.’ By this time Dino was pressed up against her and was doing his best to climb up her thigh. She gently pushed him back down again and glanced back up at his master as she carried on scratching the dog’s ears. ‘Whatever you want, it’s no trouble to me. Your mother said she’d like me to drop into the palazzo and pick up some clothes for her.’ A thought occurred to her. She was going to need something to wear at Fergus’s wedding. ‘To be honest, I wouldn’t mind doing a bit of shopping myself if there’s time.’
‘Ah, I didn’t realise you both wanted clothes.’ She could see him rethinking his objections. ‘Well, in that case if you really don’t mind, then come by all means, but come for Mum or yourself but not for me. I have no doubt I’ll be fine.’
They set off in the Mercedes at half past ten and they didn’t talk much, but that came as no surprise to her. She could almost feel the protective wall that surrounded him go back up again and she wondered yet again why this should be. From what Flora had said she somehow felt convinced it had something to do with how and when he had left the army, but what could that have been? She was dying to ask him but she decided to be patient. It was clear he still didn’t feel comfortable with her so there was no point in pushing things. Besides, when all was said and done, she was an employee, rather than a friend, so it wasn’t her place to ask personal questions. Hopefully he would begin to relax in her company as they got to know each other better, although if he wasn’t going to say more than a few words, getting to know each other wasn’t going to be easy.
Getting into Venice along the causeway took a while as there was a line of slow-moving traffic and Jane could see that the city was going to be packed with tourists as Alvise had predicted. At last, they managed to reach the garage and left the car there. The launch was still tied up on the pontoon at the rear of the garage, protected by a thick canvas cover. Jane helped David unhook the cover and roll it up before stowing it in the cabin. He started the engine and headed out into the canal with a practised hand. This at least gave her something to talk about.
‘Have you been motoring up and down the Grand Canal since you were a boy? You seem really at home on the water.’
He glanced across at her and she thought she identified the beginnings of a smile in those bright blue eyes of his. ‘Motoring, sailing, canoeing, paddling… I’ve even learnt how to scull a gondola – and that’s not easy, I can tell you.’
‘Somehow I wouldn’t think there are many British Army officers who can double as gondoliers.’
The smile went out of his eyes like a candle flame in a sudden draft of air. ‘Probably not.’
Once again it would appear that she had overstepped the mark so she hastened to change the subject away from the army. ‘I suppose if we were to try and walk from here to the palazzo today, it would take ages.’
‘July’s always awful and next month will be even worse. You can hardly move in Venice in the summer. Thank goodness for boats.’
‘Where’s your dentist?’
‘In San Marco; a five-minute walk from home in mid-winter, but on a sunny summer day like today I bet it’ll take me a quarter of an hour of pushing and shoving.’
