Wife By Arrangement

CHAPTER THREE

WHEN Lorenzo had vanished, and Bernardo was showing Angie the garden, Baptista refilled Heather’s glass. ‘Renato told me how your prompt action saved his life,’ she said. ‘You and I have been friends from that moment.’

‘You’re very kind,’ Heather said, ‘but didn’t he also tell you that it was my fault he was ever in danger?’

‘I think he was largely to blame. He made you angry with his high-handedness. I’ve spoken to him very severely.’

Heather concealed a smile. The idea of the domineering Renato being alarmed by anything his frail mother might say was charming, but unconvincing.

‘You are going to be very important to this family,’ Baptista continued. ‘More important than perhaps you can imagine. Lorenzo says you have no family of your own.’

‘I was an only child. My mother died when I was six. My father couldn’t cope without her.’ Heather paused. She seldom talked about this because it seemed a betrayal of the sweet-natured, confused little man who’d longed only to follow his wife. But suddenly she wanted to confide in Baptista. ‘He drank rather more than he ought,’ she said. ‘In the end he couldn’t keep a job.’

‘And so you looked after him,’ Baptista said gently.

‘We sort of looked after each other. He was kind and I loved him. When I was sixteen he caught pneumonia and just faded away. The last thing he said to me was, “Sorry, love.”’

She’d sobbed over her father’s grave, unable to voice the real pain: the knowledge that she hadn’t been enough for him. The practical difficulties had followed-lack of money, the abandonment of her dream of college, seizing the first job she could find. She explained in as few words as possible, and had the feeling that Baptista understood.

They talked for an hour, and each moment Heather felt herself grow closer to this regal but kindly woman. When Lorenzo poked his head out through the net curtains with a questioning look on his face, both women welcomed him with a smile. Laughing, he joined them, bringing fresh cakes.

From inside the house they heard Renato’s voice, and suddenly he appeared through the long white curtains. When she’d seen him and Lorenzo off at the airport in England he’d looked pale, his arm in a sling. Now he moved freely and his look of vibrant health had returned.

She felt a slight shock. She had forgotten his massiveness, the heavy muscles of his neck, his air of being about to charge. Here in his native land, amid the fierce sun and the bright colours, that effect was reinforced.

Renato went first to his mother, greeting her with a mixture of affection and respect that caught Heather’s attention. Then he turned to her.

‘Welcome to my sister,’ he said, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder and kissing her cheek. She had a moment’s intense awareness of his spicy male scent. Then he moved away and greeted Lorenzo with a mock punch to the chin. Lorenzo returned the compliment and for a moment the two brothers engaged in a light-hearted tussle, as lively as young stallions, their voices rich with laughter. It ended with them thumping each other on the back in a way that suggested their mutual affection.

Baptista met Heather’s eye, inviting her to share her pride and pleasure in her magnificent sons. Heather nodded, thinking that one day it would be her turn. At least, she hoped so.

At last Renato seated himself opposite her, smiling self-consciously. He was dressed informally, in fawn trousers and a short-sleeved shirt. Against the white material his skin, tanned to dark brown, showed up sharply. His black hair was tousled, and grew more so when he ran his hand through it after brushing the damp from his forehead. Heather had the feeling that everything else had grown pale. Just by being there, leaning back, half sprawled in his chair, he made everything revolve around him.

The light was fading. Someone asked where Bernardo and Angie were, and Lorenzo went to find them, amid good-natured laughter. Heather recalled Angie’s laughing words on the plane, and hoped her friend hadn’t been carried away by her impulsive romantic tendencies.

When it was time to get ready for dinner Heather went to her room and Angie appeared a moment later, her eyes shining. ‘Have a nice time?’ Heather asked.

‘Lovely, thank you,’ Angie said with suspicious innocence.

Just as they finished dressing there was a knock on the door and Baptista swept regally in, carrying a black box.

‘Perfect,’ she said, smiling at the wedding dress which Heather had set up on a stand near the window. ‘And this will go with it.’ She opened the box, revealing a tiara made of flawless pearls. ‘Legend says that it once adorned the head of Queen Marie Antoinette,’ she said. ‘Later it passed to the Martelli family, and for generations it has been given to a bride for her wedding veil.’

‘But-it’s kind of you-but this is too much for me. What about when Renato marries? Won’t he expect-?’

‘That is no matter,’ Baptista observed imperiously. ‘If he’s so stupid and stubborn about marriage he has only himself to blame. Come, try it on.’

The tiara was perfect when set on Heather’s luxuriant fair hair, but best of all was the way Baptista accepted her. She thanked her but was relieved when Baptista offered to keep the jewels in her safe until the wedding.

Seeing the glories of the Residenza, Heather was glad she’d splashed out on some expensive clothes-or, at least, they would have been expensive if she hadn’t bought them at Gossways, heavily discounted. She was popular, and friends on many floors had slashed prices to the bone for her.

As a result she was able to appear in the medieval dining room in an off-the-shoulder pale yellow silk that followed the contours of her body without being obviously seductive. For sheer splendour she was outdone by Angie, a sizzling peacock in blues and greens that seemed almost to flame. But Lorenzo had eyes only for her, and Renato too seemed struck by the sight of her.

Baptista took her by the hand and led her forward, saying, ‘Here is our guest of honour,’ to be introduced to some local dignitaries. Then she was seated at the head of the table, between Lorenzo and Baptista, becoming uneasily aware that everyone was deferring to her, like a queen.

It was delightful but it made her nervous to have every dish presented for her approval. The meal was practically a banquet, and Baptista explained that the kitchen was practising for the wedding reception. The finest Sicilian cuisine was on offer. To start with, a choice of stuffed baked tomatoes, orange salad, stuffed rice ball fritters, bean fritters. Then the rice and pasta dishes, Sicilian rice, rice with artichokes, pasta with sardines, pasta with cauliflower, and the main dishes still to come.

By the time they reached the braised lamb, stuffed beef roll, and rabbit in sweet and sour sauce Heather was running out of appetite. But she knew that to say so would cause offence to those who had laboured to bring forth this feast in her honour, so she ploughed on valiantly.

‘Perhaps you would rather have no more,’ Baptista suggested gently, seeming to understand.

‘But I must try those sweet dishes,’ Heather said. ‘They look so delicious.’

Watermelon jelly, fried pastries with ricotta cheese and candied fruit, pistachio cakes, nougat-she took a mouthful of each, and was rewarded by the looks of approval from every direction.

But the reward that touched her heart the most was when Baptista whispered, ‘Well done, my daughter.’

She couldn’t help being struck by the three brothers. All elegantly dressed in dinner jackets, they made an impressive sight: Lorenzo, the tallest, the most handsome; Bernardo, lean and dark with a gravity that made his rare smiles breathtaking-and Renato, dour, forceful, with his air of giving no quarter and asking none. He would be a difficult man to get to know, she thought, despite his evident intention of making her welcome.

Twice during the meal Renato was summoned from the table to take a phone call. In the gathering that followed Angie murmured, ‘Bernardo says that Renato is the worker of the family and Lorenzo the charmer.’

‘And what is Bernardo?’ Heather wanted to know.

Angie’s eyes twinkled. ‘Tell you later.’

As the guests began to leave Lorenzo took her hand, whispering, ‘Come with me,’ and drawing her out of the room.

Hand in hand they ran up the stairs and along a corridor, until he reached a pair of oak double doors. He flung them open, revealing a large austerely beautiful room, hung with tapestries. ‘There are going to be three uncles sleeping in this room,’ he said. ‘But after that-oh, come here!’

He pulled her into his arms and in the tenderness of his kiss she forgot everything else. It felt so good to be here, knowing that she’d come home.

‘Excuse me,’ came a voice from behind them. They jumped apart and saw Renato in the doorway, grinning. ‘Sorry to disturb you,’ he said. ‘How do you like your apartment?’

‘Our what?’

‘This set of rooms is almost self-contained,’ Lorenzo explained. ‘It would be just perfect for us.’

‘You mean-live here, instead of having a home of our own?’ Heather asked, dismayed.

‘But this will be a home of our own.’

‘No, it won’t. We’ll be right next to your brother.’

‘A terrible fate,’ Renato agreed.

‘It’s nothing personal-’ she started to say.

‘Oh, I think it is,’ he said, meeting her eyes.

‘If we’re here, Lorenzo will be at your beck and call. I dare say that’s how you prefer it-’

‘But will you have time to arrange a house before you marry in just over a week?’ Renato asked reasonably. ‘Of course Lorenzo could have chosen something already, but I thought you’d prefer to do that yourself. Why do you assume the worst of me?’

‘Instinct,’ she said, not mincing matters.

He grinned, unashamed. ‘You wrong me.’

‘No, I don’t.’ But she couldn’t help smiling back at him. He was a devil, but he could be a disastrously engaging devil.

‘You can start househunting later,’ Renato assured her. ‘Meanwhile, these rooms will be comfortable.’

It all sounded so reasonable, but her warning signals were flashing. Renato liked to keep people where he wanted them, and sounding reasonable was just another way of doing it. His teasing look showed that he followed her thought processes perfectly.

‘Just for a little while, then,’ she said at last. ‘As soon as we return from honeymoon-’

‘Not quite that soon,’ Renato said. ‘Lorenzo has a trip scheduled for New York-’

‘Oh, really-’ she began, up in arms again.

‘And I naturally assumed that you’d want to go with him.’

Her weapons clattered uselessly to the floor. She would die for a trip to New York.

‘That only leaves your honeymoon,’ Renato said.

‘Don’t tell me you’ve arranged that too!’

‘I thought you might borrow my boat for a couple of weeks’ cruising. The crew will do the work; all you need do is enjoy yourself.’

‘It’s a beautiful boat, darling,’ Lorenzo broke in eagerly. ‘A sloop, with air-conditioning and-’

‘And the two of you have settled it. Suppose I don’t like sailing? Suppose I get seasick?’

‘Do you?’ Renato enquired.

‘I don’t know. I’ve never been on a boat.’

‘Then the sooner you do, the better. Tomorrow Lorenzo has to go to Stockholm, to catch up on his delayed schedule. I shall take you out on the boat and you can let me know your decision.’

Heather had half expected Angie to come with them on the boat trip, but she was spending the day with Bernardo. ‘He’s going to show me his home village in the mountains.’

‘You only met him yesterday,’ Heather protested.

‘I know.’ Angie’s chuckle was full of delight.

‘You be careful.’

But Angie glowed with the self-confidence of a young woman who’d always been able to win any man she chose. She laughed merrily, and a moment later Heather heard her singing in the shower.

There was no mistaking the Santa Maria, a beautiful single-masted boat, over a hundred feet long, dominating everything in the little harbour of Mondello. Renato parked the car and handed her out. ‘What do you think of her?’ he asked in a voice full of love and pride.

‘She’s lovely,’ Heather admitted.

He leapt lightly down onto the deck and reached up to settle both hands about her waist. The next moment she was swinging through the air to land beside him. ‘All right?’ he asked.

‘Yes,’ she said breathlessly. The sudden movement had taken her by surprise.

He introduced the crew, who were lined up to greet her.

‘This is Alfonso, my captain, Gianni and Carlo, the crew. And this,’ he added, indicating a little man, ‘is Fredo the cook. He can manage anything from the fastest snacks to cordon bleu.’

The sun was bright and warm, a strong breeze whisked across the water, and soon they were edging out of the harbour into the wide sea beyond. After a few minutes Heather became used to the movement, and even began to find it pleasant.

‘Well?’ Renato asked, watching her face. ‘Do you want to go back, throw yourself overboard, throw me overboard-?’

‘That last one sounds nice,’ she said, laughing.

He shared her laughter, showing strong white teeth against his tanned skin. After the tense, argumentative man she’d met in England, this was a transformation. His clothes, too, were different. The elegant formality of last night was replaced by blue shorts and a white short-sleeved shirt, that was unbuttoned all the way. He looked powerful, glowing with life, intensely masculine.

‘Let me show you your kingdom,’ Renato said, taking her hand.

Below, it was like a little palace. In the galley Fredo, surrounded by the most modern equipment, was furiously at work on a feast. Along the narrow corridor was the master bedroom, complete with luxurious private bathroom. Everywhere was panelled with gleaming honey-coloured birchwood. At the centre was a huge double bed, the perfect place for lovers on their wedding night.

‘This is yours for today,’ Renato told her. ‘Why not change into a swimsuit?’

‘I don’t even own one.’

He pulled open a wardrobe to display a series of swimsuits on hangers. Heather stared. There must have been about ten, in all colours, styles, and varying degrees of daringness.

‘But how come you-?’ She checked as she saw the wicked humour in his eyes. ‘I’m not even going to ask.’

‘You don’t really need to, do you?’ he asked.

His sexuality was so frank, his appetites so shameless that she didn’t know where to look. She began to rifle through some pastel-coloured costumes, but Renato’s big hand came out of nowhere and stilled hers.

‘Not those,’ he said. ‘This one.’

He held up a bikini but she instinctively shook her head. ‘No, I can’t-’

‘Why not? It’s very modest.’

That was true. As bikinis went it was unfashionably modest. The lower part would cover most of her behind, and the upper part would enclose her breasts satisfactorily. But Heather had always seen herself as a once-piece person.

‘And I can’t wear cerise,’ she argued. ‘I’m too fair.’

‘There’s no law to stop you wearing reds. Risk it.’

‘Right, I will.’

When he’d gone she changed, realising that in this place the dramatic colour seemed natural. She found a matching scarf in the wardrobe and tied it around her head, letting her hair fall free behind it. To cover her semi-nakedness she slipped on a robe of white lacy silk.

Back on deck she found Renato in the stern section, with a table that bore snacks and tall glasses. Above him a striped awning offered shelter from the sun. He handed her gallantly to her seat, and served her. The chilled wine was delicious; the little almond cakes were superb. Heather began to feel that she could easily get used to this.

‘Sicily’s at the centre of the Mediterranean,’ Renato explained. ‘So the boat can take you anywhere, easily. You can go across to Tunisia, or head the other way to Greece, or sail up the coast of Italy.’

‘Where are we going today?’

‘Just part of the way around the island, and then back. We’ll find a quiet bay, take a swim. Are you feeling seasick yet?’

‘Not at all,’ she admitted. ‘In fact, it feels wonderful.’ She took a deep breath of salty air. ‘Mmm!’

He grinned. ‘We’ll make a sailor of you yet.’

They toasted each other and she ate some of the little marzipan fruits, which looked so perfect that at first she thought they were the real thing. Then Renato took the helm and she stood beside him with the wind in her hair and the soft mist of water in her face, suddenly possessed by happiness and well-being.

‘Why not sunbathe?’ he suggested. ‘But first rub in some sun cream-your skin is very fair and you must protect it.’

‘The sun never touches me,’ she said, a little regretfully.

‘English sun,’ Renato said dismissively. ‘What do you know of the heat in my country? Even on land it can be fierce, but here the water reflects the sun back and doubles its strength. There’s sun block in your cabin.’

She chose one of the luxurious lotions in her little bathroom, and went back up on deck to stretch out. Renato watched as she smoothed the silky liquid over her arms and legs. ‘Turn over and let me do your back,’ he said. ‘Think how my brother would blame me if you went to your wedding looking like a lobster! I tremble at the prospect.’

‘Tremble?’ she chuckled. ‘You?’

‘I assure you that under this grim exterior beats the heart of a mouse.’

She gave in and rolled over onto her stomach. The touch of Renato’s fingertips on her spine was unexpectedly light, not forceful, but almost delicate. She rested her head on her hands and began to relax as he worked on the back of her neck, kneading the cream in thoroughly with both hands.

Through half-closed eyes she watched the sun slanting on the deck. The hypnotic rhythm of his hands, strong yet sensitive, was making the edges of the world blur, so that she couldn’t tell where one thing ended and another began, or where she ended and the world began. The blood was pulsing slowly, blissfully through her veins…

Suddenly she was awake, forcing herself back to reality through clouds of contented sensation. Somewhere there were seagulls calling, the waves lashing noisily against the side of the boat, but her heart was beating so loudly that it blotted out these sounds. She turned sharply and found Renato looking at her with something in his eyes that might have been shock.

‘I must return to the helm,’ he said, his voice coming from a long way off.

‘Yes,’ she replied vaguely. ‘You must.’

To her relief he left her. She looked around, finding to her surprise that everything was in its normal place. Her heart was pounding, but gradually it slowed to a soft throb of pleasure. She was breathless, as though she’d been running. And Renato had been the same, she recalled. She lay down again, meaning to puzzle it out, but contentment overcame her, and a moment later she was asleep.

Renato’s light touch on her shoulder awoke her. ‘We’ve dropped anchor,’ he said. ‘Just over there is a little bay.’

The Santa Maria had a small dinghy, already loaded with a picnic hamper and being lowered to the water. Renato handed her into it and they were away, headed for a small golden beach where there was nobody else in sight.

‘Let’s swim before we eat,’ he suggested. ‘Come.’ He seized her hand and they ran down the yellow sand.

The shock of the cool water was delicious. She plunged in and together they swam out to deep water. She’d never swum so far from shore before, and she wasn’t a strong swimmer, but she felt full of confidence as long as Renato was there. They swam for half an hour, then headed back, side by side.

‘Let’s stay in a bit longer,’ he said as their feet touched ground.

‘No, I’ll unpack the picnic. You go back if you want another swim.’

He raced away and plunged back into the water while she dried off her hair, and swung it in the sun for a moment. When she looked out to sea again he’d vanished. The water was clear and level, and there wasn’t a sign of Renato.

Slowly she got to her feet, feeling as though a dark cloud had covered the sun. It was like waking in a lunar landscape where everything was bare and desolate, and no life would ever live again.

Then his head broke the surface and the world was bathed in her relief. He waved and she waved back, discovering that she’d been holding her breath.

‘You scared me,’ she accused him as he walked up the beach.

He grinned. ‘Sorry. I like to swim under water for as long as I can.’

He towelled himself dry, and sat down beside her. The movement gave her a good view of the ugly scar near his wrist, and she shuddered.

‘It’s nothing,’ he said. ‘It’s healed. See.’

He held out his hand and she took it between hers, turning it to see the scar better. As he’d said, it had healed beautifully, but now she saw how large the wound had been, how close he had come to death. His big, forceful hand looked strange against her slim, delicate ones. By tightening it he could have crushed her, but he let it lie there while she gently brushed the sand from it.

‘I always said no woman would ever leave a permanent mark on me,’ he mused. ‘But now one has.’

‘It’s not really funny.’ Something inside her chest was aching.

‘All right, then I’ll tell you something serious. What happened that night told me all about you. One minute you were telling me to jump in the river. The next you were saving my life as cool as a cucumber, despite having been knocked about yourself. And when you did weaken, just a little, you pulled yourself together so that you could clear the driver.’

‘That’s my English reserve and efficiency,’ she teased. ‘We’re well known for keeping our cool.’

‘Does anything throw you off balance?’

‘Probably nothing you could think of,’ she said with a smile.

‘By God, I did the right thing bringing you here!’ he said suddenly.

‘You? It was Lorenzo who brought me here.’

‘Of course, of course. I think we should eat now.’

The picnic was magnificent and Renato explained that Fredo had outdone himself in her honour. As they sipped the cool wine, the slight movement of his face drew her attention to another scar. It made him look as though he’d tangled with a wild animal and emerged battered. She wondered how the animal would look. He caught her gaze and he rubbed it self consciously.

‘I’m sorry,’ she said, horrified at herself.

He shrugged. ‘It makes no difference. Nature didn’t make me a beauty to start with. Then I played the fool on a motorbike and got what I deserved.’

‘You did that on a motorbike?’

‘I was wild as a boy. I bought a fast bike and rode it to the limit. The police warned me time and again, but I was a Martelli and that has its privileges. Then I took a mountain bend at an insane speed and nearly killed myself. Luckily nobody else got hurt, and I was left with this scar on my face as a reminder not to be a damned fool.’

‘I can’t picture you wild, somehow. You seem so much in control.’

‘I learned the consequences of not being in control the hard way. Besides, my father was dead by then, and the firm was being run by an uncle who wasn’t very good at it. Somebody had to get a grip while there was still time.’

‘So the firm had to become your life?’

‘It’s a more useful life than dashing about getting myself half killed. And now I find it very satisfying.’

She noticed that ‘now’ and wondered how hard it had been for a young man addicted to excitement to put on a suit and chain himself to a desk.

He said casually, ‘My mother told me that you were reluctant to accept her gift yesterday.’

‘The pearl tiara, yes. It’s a family heirloom. You’re the eldest son. Surely it should go to your wife?’

‘Who doesn’t exist, and never will. The single life suits me too well to give up.’

‘Oh, yes, Elena, Julia and the rest of the crowd. I don’t believe it. It sounds so immature, and I don’t think you are immature.’

He grimaced wryly. ‘I didn’t always feel this way. There was a lady once-her name was Magdalena Conti-the story is nauseatingly sentimental. I was much younger, and I believed in things I don’t believe in now. She taught me a lesson in reality from which I benefited enormously.’

‘Is she why you think all women are fortune-hunters?’

He shrugged. ‘Possibly. She was beautiful, tender, loving. She was also greedy, manipulative and deadly. She aimed her arrows at me for money. I fell for it. She told me she was pregnant. I asked her to marry me. I’d have asked her anyway, but fatherhood thrilled me. I indulged in many dreams in those days.’

He fell silent, looking out over the sea. His eyes might have been fixed on the horizon, or maybe on some other horizon, inside himself.

‘And then?’ Heather asked softly.

‘Then she met another man, much richer, and in films, which she found exciting. At our final meeting I learned for the first time how much I bored her. Then she went off with him.’

‘And your baby?’

‘She never gave birth. I know that much. Perhaps the child was an invention, or perhaps she-’ He shrugged. ‘I prefer to think she was lying about the pregnancy, but the truth is that I shall never know.’

Heather was silent. There was nothing she could have said that wouldn’t have sounded like a mockery of his pain. And the pain was unmistakable, even after so long. Suddenly the air about her was jagged with suffering. At the same time she was wondering about the woman who could be bored by this man.

‘Now the only woman I trust is my mother,’ he finished. ‘Lorenzo is fortunate to have found you.’

‘So you think I can be trusted? Then surely, other women can?’

‘Lorenzo still knows how to give trust. But I don’t. I would invite betrayal by expecting it, and-forgive me-such expectations are always fulfilled in the end. I made my decision, and I’ll stick to it. Take my mother’s gift. No woman will ever challenge you for it.’

She refilled his glass and he accepted it with a slightly forced smile.

‘Do you think you’ll be happy here, Heather?’ he asked quietly.

‘I’ve known it from the first moment. It’s not like me to be so impulsive, but Lorenzo made me feel so wanted.’

He looked at her intently. ‘Had nobody ever made you feel that way before?’

‘There was someone else, quite recently. We were engaged for a year, and he called it all off a week before the wedding. I suppose it left me feeling a bit bruised and rejected.’

Then a dreadful thought occurred to her. ‘But don’t think I accepted Lorenzo on the rebound. It’s not just because of Peter. It’s Lorenzo himself, the way he is-so loving and warm-hearted.’

To her surprise Renato was frowning as though something troubled him deeply. At last he said, ‘Heather, if ever you’re in trouble, promise that you will come to me.’

‘But why should I when I can go to him?’

‘He’s a fine fellow, but if you need an older brother’s help, please remember that I’m here.’

She would have turned the moment aside with a laugh, but something in Renato’s manner stopped her. There was a strange intensity in his eyes.

‘Promise me, miu soru,’ he urged.

‘What was that you called me?’

‘Miu soru. It’s Sicilian. It means, “my sister”, for that’s what you must be now.’

‘And what is “my brother”?’

‘Miu frati. Promise your brother. Give him your word.’

There was something in his urgency that was as puzzling as his frown had been. ‘All right, I promise,’ she said. ‘Miu frati.’

‘Shake?’

‘Shake.’ Her hand was engulfed in his big one, and for a moment she could feel the power flowing through him, power that he’d just offered to put at her service.

‘And to show that I’m really your brother,’ he added, ‘may I give you away at your wedding?’

She was touched. ‘Thank you. That’s very kind.’

‘For my sister, nothing is too much,’ he said gravely, raising her hand and brushing his lips against the back of it. Suddenly a stillness came over both of them. It was so total that Heather could hear and feel her heart thumping. She had the odd sensation that the whole world was pulsing with it.

Abruptly, he released her hand. Heather stared at it, wondering what had happened. Why did she have this strange feeling that the world had changed, that the sun had grown dark and the heat more intense?

‘We should go back now.’ Renato’s voice was strange.

‘Yes,’ she replied, not knowing what she said.

But by the time they’d packed everything into the dinghy the brief sensation had passed and she was chiding herself for imagining things. The whole Martelli family had opened their arms to her in welcome, and the sensation was so unfamiliar that it was distorting her perceptions. As the little boat sped across the water the rushing wind blew the last crazy thoughts from her head.