ROCKED BY THE WAVES (3 page)

Alex told me about his father, who was said to be was a strict man. His mother had died when he was very young.

Then I asked him who was the boy that I had seen at the match.

«His name is Hari. He’s the housekeeper’s son. She died and he was left alone. He had always lived here, so I decided to let him stay. He is a smart boy, so I let him study. He sometimes accompanies me when I travel, because he seems to be particularly keen on foreign languages. I’m sure he could become a good interpreter».

«What countries have you been to?», I asked.

«I’ve been to many places, but the one I love the most is France. I often go back there and I think I’d love to live in Paris someday. I own a house there, it’s near Saint Sulpice. I might buy an estate in the South».

«Why do you like France so much?», I ask suspiciously.

I was jealous. French women were known to be attractive and they were also known to be especially good at seducing men.

«I’m keen on tales. Very old tales».

Tales? I couldn’t really picture him reading books and solving ancient mysteries. He was too charming for such a lonely past time. But I knew him very poorly and, to be honest, he didn’t seem to be very interested in people. Well, except for me. His interest in me seemed to be an exception to the rule.

«How old?»

«Old enough to have been forgotten by almost everyone», he said smiling.

«Please, tell me some more about it. I like tales».

He looked at me carefully and I felt like he was evaluating me. Then he seemed to take a decision.

«Not now. We’ll talk about that some other day. I’ve been boring enough for one day».

Boring? But I was just beginning to find out some more about him! I could sense he had a much more complex personality than I had expected. He was beautiful, charming and even mysterious.

It was early afternoon by then and I had been out the whole day. He therefore offered to walk me home and I accepted. It had been an intense day but it turned out that something more was about to happen. As we got to my house, we found that James was sitting on the rocking chair in the garden. He had been waiting for me.

«Good to see you, Claire! I had no idea where you were and I was beginning to worry. Who’s your friend?»

His voice got to my nerves, as I believe he intended it to. He knew very well who my friend was, but I introduced them anyway. James kept being nasty, but Alex made his excuses and went away.

«Did you really have to be that nasty? You were very impolite! Alex went away because if you».

«I think it’s time we talked about our feelings, Claire».

«We’ve got nothing to talk about. I love you dearly and always will, but as a friend. That’s it».

«Good to know that. So let’s talk about Alex, as you call him. How do you feel about him?»

«I don’t know that. Not yet. It’s complicated. And I’m sorry, I don’t want things to get so... awkward between you and me. I knew we had to have this conversation, but I didn’t want it to be like that».

«So you’re telling me you have fallen for someone you barely know? And that I am just a friend to you?»

«Yes».

«Very well. I’see you tomorrow then».

He walked away without even saying goodbye. I was unsure about how I felt about that. Was I feeling any better? Was I feeling guilty?

I got to my room and unzipped my corset. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, trying to find something that could look attractive to Alex. I didn’t succeed anyway, because I found that every part of my body was just really ordinary. But I knew nothing about men, after all. I was suddenly stuck by the thought of our conversation about old tales. Why didn’t he want to tell me anything about it?

While having dinner, I told everything about my day to both dad and Renny. When I got to James’ part, my brother looked at me as if he would have wanted to say: «Didn’t I tell you?». Yes, he had told me and he had been right.

After dinner a beautiful fleur-de-lis bouquet was delivered. A note that said: «Tomorrow night, the Carmen. Will you come with me? AW» came with it.

On the morning after I sent Alex a reply. I accepted his invitation and told him I would be waiting for him to pick me up. He sent a second note saying he would be there at 18.30; we would have dinner together and then go to the theatre.

At 18.30 sharp he knocked on my door. He introduced himself to dad and Renny, then we got into his car and he drove me to his house. A marvellous table was waiting for us.

We chattered about this and that, our houses, my family and my past times. Then, out of the blue, he told me he had to go away for a few days. He had to go to Paris to check on some paperwork and he also needed to talk to a friend of his, an abbot. He didn’t add any detail and I didn’t dare to ask for them. I could tell he didn’t want to share his secrets with me yet.

It saddened me quite a lot, to think that we would not be able to meet for a few days. He must have noticed that, because he caressed my cheek. I turned pink and I was suddenly feeling very hot. I was in love with him.

The Carmen was amazing and I finally understood why Mme Fontaine was so well known all over the world. As I child, I used to come to the theatre with my mom.

At the end of the show, Alex took me to the backstage. It was immediately clear to me that he was a good friend of the singer.

«Elénoire, ma chére, you’ve been outstanding as usual. You still get to surprise me, with all your passion and your talent».

She smiled and they hugged once again. Then she turned to me.

«Elénoire, I want you to meet someone. That’s Claire... mon coeur».

She examined me carefully.

«Oh, finally! You found her».

Found... me?

They spoke French, so I didn’t understand what they said, but as they said goodbye, I understood they would meet again... in Paris.

That would be very soon, then. Why?

By then, it was clear to me that Alex had many important friends and that I knew very little about him. He spoke perfect French and he was handsome in such a way that women always noticed him.

I would have liked to know some more about his many «friends», but he was good at eluding questions. We got to my house without me noticing it.

I was under his spell, that was very clear. It was like playing cat and mouse. He approached me, caressed my face and then he kissed me. Very passionately. Afterwards, he looked at me and said: «I’ll see you in a few days, mon coeur».

By the time he had walked away, I was still standing on the doorway. I was speechless.

Renny opened the door and I run up to my room without saying anything. I needed to be alone, it had all happened very fast.

At night I couldn’t sleep. During the next few days, I did what I was used to. James and I made it up and Lizzie asked me way too many questions that I was unable to reply to.

Had it really happened? What was the real Alex like?

The days were boring, because things were just not the same without him. My daily routine didn’t seem appealing to me anymore.

One morning I was wondering when we would meet again and I found him on my doorway. He was beautiful and charming. I pretended to be nonchalant and asked him what he had been doing throughout the past two months, after he had disappeared. He replied politely but elusively. The only relevant information that I got was that he had been in London for one week, but that he had been too busy to see me.

«I can see you are a very busy man, and so am I. So I must go now».

I wanted to hurt him and he noticed that. He came nearer and nearer.

«I would have come to you as soon as I had gotten to London if only I could, but I just couldn’t. I’ve been thinking of you». His voice was very smooth.

«Good to know that. I didn’t think of you, though. Never».

I was lying. I didn’t want him to think that I had fallen for him. I was angry and I wanted him to know that.

He was calm, though. He put his hands around my waist.

«I need to take care of something, because I want to marry you».

My mind went blank and I’m pretty sure my cheeks went pale.

He hugged me.

«I don’t want to upset you, but I really want to marry you. Will you let me talk about that to your father?»

And then he kissed me and all my doubts went away.

A MAN SHOULD NEVER BE ALONE

“A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony in a moment.”

Jane Austen – Pride and Prejudice 1813

We got married at the end of June in a small church in the country. We invited very few friends; my brother was my witness and Alex’s friend, Alain, was his. Our engagement had been brief but intense. We got ready for our honeymoon, which was supposed to take place in Rome first and in France secondly.

I had never really thought about my life as a wife. I had never fallen in love with anybody, and I had always been too busy being a free spirit to think about marriage, but Alex had changed my life completely. I was standing in our room, unsure about how to act. I was too shy to even attempt an approach, but Alex came to the rescue. He knew exactly what to do.

He took his clothes off as he looked me in the eyes. When he was completely naked, he came to me and caressed my hair. He pushed it backwards and he started kissing my neck and shoulders. Ha caressed all my body and undressed me. I loved the way he kissed me. His lips were smooth and soft on my breasts. He unleashed my corset in a few seconds. He kept kissing me passionately as he undressed me. I somehow found myself lying on the bed, totally naked. He was whispering to me something in French. When he came over me and took my hands over my head, I felt the wall behind me. He was caressing my soul, before having me.

He unfolded my legs with his knees and he entered my body. He was moving very slowly, as if he wanted to make sure that he was not hurting me. Then he started pushing harder. He was kissing me passionately and he had put his hands over my waist. He was panting and sweating. We were one body and one soul. I wanted him so bad.

I didn’t think that something more would happen, but it did. He unfolded my legs even more and started pushing really hard. My body seemed to react spontaneously and I felt pleasure. He shouted and so did I. Then I felt something warm inside of me.

He was tired and really sweating. He closed his eyes and hugged me. He fell asleep, with his face over my hair.

After some time, he opened his blue eyes and said: «You’re mine, Claire, and I’ll never let you go.» Then he kissed me.

«And you are mine and I won’t let you go», I whispered kissing him back.

It was then that I sensed he must have had many girlfriends. He was just too good. I took a deep breath and asked him how many girls he had been engaged to.

«None. But I’ve slept with a few women. Much less than you think.»

I was determined not to let go.

«So, how many?», I asked.

«I presume you believe I’ve slept with dozens of women, but it was just two. The first one was when I was your age. She was sweet and nice and I had known her forever. She was called Rosemary and she lived in the Oxfordshire. We met almost every weekend, but I soon understood we were not made for each other. I haven’t seen her since. The second one... it happened later on».

He seemed to hesitate and his voice hardened. I could see he was unsure whether to carry on or stop talking. I asked him to carry on and pretended to be relaxed.

He told me it had happened in Paris.

I suddenly understood.

«In Paris, right? And when did it happen?»

I had already made a few calculations. His first love story must have come to an end some four years later, and «later on» meant that it had taken him some time to meet the second woman... I just needed to know if my guess was correct.

He was tense. He was clearly looking for the right words. Then he spoke.

«While I was in Paris. During the two months that I spent in Paris. I was crazy about you, Claire, and I knew you had an interest in me, but I just didn’t know if you really loved me. It was just sex, Claire. J’ai compris le sens du mot amour seulement après notre rencontre».

I was really angry. What I had felt in the past few hours had flown away and I suddenly felt ice cold. I stood up and wanted to go away, but first I shouted him: «You know I can’t speak French!»

He stopped me. He took my arm and looked me in the eyes. He was trying to guess how I was feeling and he was also looking for something to say.

«I said I understood what love is after meeting you. Claire, I already told you so, but I will tell you again: you’re my wife and I won’t let you go. It won’t happen».

He was naked and beautiful. He was still lying on the bed and his eyes were so blue. He looked like a Greek divinity. He was still holding my arm and he was determined not to let go of me. I was suddenly hit by the meaning of his words: «I won’t let you go». I was his.

There was no escaping, because he would have stopped me. So I calmed down, or at least I pretended to.

«Alex, I must go to the bathroom. I’m not going anywhere». He finally let go of me.

I was feeling much better by then, but I was still hurting. I was not sure whether it was a matter of pride or love betrayed. He was still lying on the bed, as I had left him.

I went next to him and hugged him. He hugged me back and caressed my breasts. It was not to show that he loved me, it was just to remind me that I was his. Then he whispered to me: «Claire, my beloved, I’ll always love you. You’re my wife and I will be faithful. I’ll tell you everything you want to know. Just not today».

I was satisfied with his words. I fell asleep in his arms.

On the following morning we made love. It was sweet. We kissed passionately and got ready for our honeymoon.