Under a Siena Sun (Escape to Tuscany #1) - T.A. Williams Page 0,66
they were sipping their coffees at the end of the meal that his phone rang again. This time it was Armando with bad, although not totally unexpected, news. The gates to the Villa Castelnuovo were now being besieged by a pack of paparazzi and journalists from as far afield as the USA. How the Americans had managed to get there so quickly was a complete mystery. As David set the phone back down again, he looked across the table at her.
‘I was going to suggest you might like to come up to the villa for a swim this afternoon, but I think it might be better if I drop you off at your place before you get caught up in the feeding frenzy. I’m used to it by now, but it isn’t pretty.’
‘I didn’t realise you had a pool. The idea of a swim definitely appeals, but I’m sure you’re right. Just kick me out when we get to my house.’ An idea came to her. ‘Or you could leave your car at my place and make your way home across country. I’m afraid you’re just too big to fit in the boot of my little Fiat or I could have pretended I was delivering something and sneaked you into the villa that way.’
He smiled. ‘Nice idea, thanks, but I’m going to face the music. I’ve had enough of ducking and diving. I’ve had a two-year break and it’s time I move on. When all’s said and done, all I’ve done is to injure myself and manage to get caught up in an unhappy marriage. In the greater scheme of things, it’s not exactly mass murder. They’re bound to get fed up and leave me alone before too long.’
Lucy did her best to look blank. ‘How come your marriage was so unhappy?’
His eyes caught hers for a fraction of a second before dropping to his now cold coffee. ‘It’s a long, sad story. Like I said, I won’t bore you with it now. What I can tell you, though, is that your ex-friend’s version of how it happened is a million miles from the truth.’ He reached into his back pocket and handed her the folded newspaper article. ‘Read this when you get home by all means, but, remember, don’t believe a word of it.’ He resurrected a smile. ‘Well, the details of tournaments I won are hopefully correct, just not the personal stuff.’
Once again, it was on the tip of her tongue to press him for more information, however, she knew she would be stepping into sensitive territory. She would be fooling herself if she tried to pretend she wasn’t fascinated to find out the real reason for the break-up, but today wasn’t the day to ask. Today had been fun and interesting, if excruciatingly uncomfortable at times, and this had been an excellent, if ostentatious, place to have lunch. There was no point in spoiling it with a cross-examination, particularly as ordeal by media was waiting for him back home. What she did find herself wondering was if the newspaper article alleging his infidelity as the reason for the collapse of the marriage was false, then what had been the real reason? Had it even been his fault? Had it maybe been his wife’s fault in spite of the allegations in the paper? Of course, she had to accept the possibility that he wasn’t telling her the truth, in spite of her gut feeling. After all, she had trusted Charles at one time…
They drove back through the hills, passing by San Gimignano but not stopping. From what she could see of the jam-packed car and coach park alongside the quaint walled hilltop town with its famous towers, it would probably have been even more crowded than Florence in there. They got back to Castelnuovo around four o’clock and he dropped her by her front door, chivalrously getting out to haul her to her feet once again. She gave him a smile and reached up on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheeks, giving his biceps another little squeeze as she did so.
‘Thank you for a lovely day, David. I really enjoyed myself, and the lunch was super. I just wish I could help you in some way. Listen, you’ve got my number now. Just call me if there’s anything, anything at all, I can do to help. Good luck when you get up to the gates.’
He smiled back at her. ‘You already have helped me, Lucy. You may