“Alex is very good looking,” she continues. “He always was. But it takes someone special to love him.”
I raise an eyebrow, wondering if she’s going to reveal some deep family secret.
She laughs uproariously. “You should see your face. Don’t look so worried dear. He’s not a closet axe murderer or anything like that. I just mean it takes someone special, someone he really clicks with and trusts for him to let his walls down. For you to have got to the man beneath the hard exterior, you must be special.”
Have I ever seen the man beneath the hard exterior? I think I have. Once, when we were at the lake, I saw something more, but he shut down faster than I could blink.
“Then you must be too,” I say with smile. “Because he talks about you a lot, and it’s obvious how much he loves you.”
“Ah, he’s a sweet boy.” Babushka smiles, clearly pleased to hear that Alex talks about her a lot. “He has a heart of gold, even if he does try his best to keep it hidden. Enough of my ramblings. Tell me about you, Cindy. Where did you grow up?”
She seems interested in what I have to say and she asks a lot of insightful questions and I am enjoying talking to her now we’re on a safer subject than Alex and I. So I begin to tell Babushka what amounts to pretty much my life story.
When I finish telling her all about me, I ask about her life and I am instantly enthralled by her stories of growing up here in Russia, about what life was like when she was a child and then a teenager. She is full of amusing, fascinating anecdotes and I realize I really do like the woman a lot, and I can see why Alex dotes on her so much.
We both lose track of the time, and Babushka seems as surprised as I am when Valeriya comes in and asks if she’s ready to get changed for dinner.
“It’s that time already?” Babushka exclaims. “Well I never. I’m going to eat dinner in my room tonight though, so no need for a fuss.”
“Are you alright?” I ask her, concerned that she wants to hide away in her room.
“I’m fine,” she smiles, waving away my concern. “I just want you and Alex to spend an evening together without me in the way.”
“You’re not in the way. We have all the time in the world to be alone when we get back to London,” I say immediately.
Babushka shakes her head decisively. “No, no, you are on holiday and there must be a million things you want to do together. I’ll eat in my room where I can watch an old James Bond movie. I like the ones with Sean Connery best. Doesn’t he remind you of Alex?” she asks with a twinkle in her eyes.
I smile at Babushka. “I never thought about it, but you are right. There is something about him that is similar.”
We exchange goodbyes as Valeriya leads her from the room. I guess I’ll be spending tonight in my room watching movies too, and tomorrow, Alex and I can come up with a story about what we’re supposed to have done together.
Cindy
I was wrong about what would happen.
Visions of sitting in my room making a start on the DVD collection weren’t to be. Just as I got into my room, Alex knocked on the connecting door. He surprised me by telling me he’d made reservations at his favorite restaurant in the nearest city, and that we would be leaving the house at seven thirty.
As I zip myself into a slim fitting white dress I wonder if after what happened this morning Alex thinks it will be easier to keep our ruse up if we go out and not join the others for dinner. Whatever his reasoning, I know for sure it’s not because he really wants to spend alone time with me. His complete and utter rejection earlier still stings. The only good thing about it is I now know exactly where I stand. There are no more illusions about what he wants from me.
There is a soft knock on the door and I take a deep breath and go to open it.
Alex is dressed in a white dinner jacket, black shirt and black pants and I realize Babushka is right. He is very, very James Bondish with a sexy, devil-may-care look around him. I can see the lower half of several Celtic design tattoos poking out from beneath the sleeves. He looks so hot I am finding it hard to tear my eyes away from him for even a second.
“Are you ready?” he asks quietly.
I nod. I’m not sure how to play this anymore. We walk down the empty corridor silently and when we reach the staircase we meet a servant who politely steps back to allow us to pass.