Джеки Браун – Exclusive!: Hollywood Life or Royal Wife? / Marriage Scandal, Showbiz Baby! / Sex, Lies and a Security Tape (страница 10)

Together they enjoyed a pleasant and interesting conversation over the delicious array of fruit and pastries set before her. ‘Gosh, I’ll have to be careful not to get fat here,’ she remarked, laughing.

‘I don’t see any danger of that happening,’ he answered, his eyes fleeting over her in that same scrutinizing, yet admiring manner they had yesterday. ‘Now, come. The doctor will be here any moment.’

‘SO, SIGNORINA, how are you feeling?’

‘I’m fine. Better than I’ve felt in a while.’

‘Good.’ The elderly doctor smiled a wrinkled but reassuring smile and placed his index finger on her pulse. ‘Your heart-rate seems perfect. No palpitations or shakiness since you have stopped taking the medication?’

‘No. I don’t even feel that I need it.’

‘Excellent,’ he approved. ‘I think you have been lucky, young lady. In fact you haven’t taken enough for it to harm you in the long run. But what will you do when you have to face a similar situation again?’

‘I don’t know,’ she said with a sigh. ‘I’ll just have to cross that river when I come to it?’

‘If you permit, I have another suggestion. Here in Malvarina we are very knowledgeable regarding herbal remedies and teas. There is a special tea, made of a local herb, that soothes the nerves without causing any harm to your system. I would recommend you take some with you when you leave. Sometimes, if you are feeling tense, you can have a nice cup of this brew and you will feel more relaxed without doing yourself any harm whatsoever. It is well known on the island. I drink it myself sometimes.’

‘Thank you, Doctor. That would be wonderful.’

‘Now, I want you to relax and take it easy for a few days—forget all this nonsense and enjoy yourself. That is the best way to recover.’

They both rose and shook hands.

‘Thank you again, Doctor. It was very nice of you to come.’

‘Not at all. Any request of the Prince’s is a pleasure.’

They walked out into the drawing room, where Rodolfo was waiting. ‘Everything okay, Doctor?’ he said frowning slightly.

‘Absolutely fine. Victoria is a healthy young woman and has not suffered any side-effects from the pills. I believe she did not take them long enough for them to harm her.’

‘Good.’ He let out a sigh of relief and smiled. ‘Thanks, Dottore.’

‘I recommended some of our special island tea. I’ll have some sent over later.’

‘Good idea.’

They all shook hands, then the doctor departed, leaving them alone.

‘Let’s go and enjoy the day.’ Rodolfo took her hand and together they walked towards the courtyard, where they’d arrived. A silver Porsche convertible stood gleaming in the sun. ‘Jump in,’ he said, opening the door for her, ‘and let’s go for a spin.’

Victoria sat in the car, hair blowing in the breeze. She loved the island immediately, the scent of the orange and lemon trees, the lovely faded terracotta houses peering lazily from behind olive groves overlooking the sea. There was a gentle sense of peace in this place, and a pace of life that she identified with.

With time to explore Malvaritza, she could see that all its charm had been preserved: there was a small crooked church in the main square, which was bordered by little cafés where some old men played backgammon and others drank coffee and passed the time of day. As Rodolfo had promised, the town also housed some lovely shops, filled with exclusive designer brands and jewellery and also quaint boutiques. But all this was incorporated into the architecture and atmosphere with such extreme good taste and grace that it didn’t spoil the overall feel of the place.

The town, she realised as they drove on down towards the sea—in fact the whole island—was like Rodolfo: tranquil, elegant and charming.

Soon they were entering a little fishing port below, and she could see a large yacht at anchor and wondered if that was the Mona Lisa.

Just as she was about to ask, Rodolfo pointed out to sea. ‘There she is,’ he said, a touch of pride in his voice. ‘I had her built three years ago.’

‘She’s beautiful,’ Victoria exclaimed, shading her eyes to take a better look at the vessel. She could see a small motor boat steered by a uniformed sailor approaching the shoreline as they parked the Porsche.

Minutes later they were on board the yacht. Leaning against the deck rail, Victoria sighed as the craft raised anchor and the vessel glided out to sea. Rodolfo stood next to her in the stern and together they watched the island recede.

‘You’re right about Malvarina, and I take back all the nasty things I said the other night in Cannes. It truly is a beautiful spot.’ Victoria smiled, relaxed now, the soft wind mussing her hair as she gazed over the side at the white ripples of the wake.

‘But not as beautiful as you,’ Rodolfo said softly, slipping a hand over hers.

Victoria swallowed. There was a choice to be made: she could pull her fingers away and pretend that none of this was happening, then get in touch with Anne and tell her she was heading back to England. Or, she could court adventure, live an exciting experience and be none the worse for wear.

Part of her wanted to run; another part knew she was mesmerised and that her whole being wanted Rodolfo as she’d never wanted a man before. His fingers still covered hers. By not removing them she was tacitly sending him a signal. And all at once Victoria realised that she needed to know what it felt like to be held in a man’s arms—a man whom she found devastatingly attractive and who knew the rules of a game she was far from proficient in. When his arm slipped about her shoulders she didn’t flinch or move away but allowed him to pull her close.

‘Ah, Victoria, you are so young and so lovely, cara,’ he murmured above the purr of the yacht’s engine. He wanted her, wanted to ravish her, take her to his bed and love her. But instinct told him not to rush it. After all, she’d just lived through an extraordinarily painful set of circumstances that had not yet been fully resolved. He must take care not to make things worse. He smiled down at her. ‘We’ll drop anchor by the Malva Caves. Have you ever snorkelled?’

‘Actually, no, but I’d like to try.’

‘Then you shall. We shall discover the caves together. You will enjoy that.’

‘I would love it,’ she agreed.

‘Then come on, and let’s look at the gear. Gino,’ he called to one of the smiling bronzed crew, ‘we need some snorkelling gear for Miss Woodward. Can you see to it?’

‘Of course, Your Royal Highness. Immediately.’ The man disappeared and returned minutes later with a mask and flippers. ‘I think these should fit the signorina perfectly,’ he said.

And he was right. Soon Victoria was wearing only the tiny white bikini that she’d slipped on under her clothes. She pulled on the flippers as the yacht slowed and dropped anchor near the entrance of a large cave, excited at the thought of snorkelling. Rodolfo helped her to the side of the boat and, laughing at their comic appearance, they dropped into the water.

Victoria had no fear of the sea, as she was a good swimmer, so she followed Rodolfo towards the cave without hesitation. Through her mask she could see deep down onto the sea bed. Multicoloured fish glided below her, sea plants and shells shimmered as the sunlight illuminated the water. Then they arrived at the entrance of the cave and the sun gave way to dark shadows. Shortly afterwards Rodolfo stopped by a ledge and they rested, their arms reposing upon it.

‘It’s an amazing place,’ Victoria exclaimed, pulling up her mask and peering around at the beautiful glistening blues and greens shimmering on the walls.

‘It’s the phosphorescent stone that gives it this effect,’ he answered. ‘Are you feeling okay? Shall we continue?’

‘Great, thanks. Let’s explore further.’

They lowered their masks once more and headed into the winding passages of the cave, which Rodolfo obviously knew well.

It was as they were heading back to the entrance of the main cave that Victoria felt a sudden suction dragging her down. She swam harder, fighting against the spiralling current, her legs and arms beating frantically. But instead of abating the suction grew stronger, as though an underwater cyclone was drawing her down into the dark depths below. Rodolfo was up ahead. Soon he would be out of reach.

Victoria panicked. Naturally he thought she was following close behind—had no idea she was desperately struggling to keep her head above water. In a fraught movement Victoria struggled with her mask and air pipe and finally managed to remove them.

‘Rodolfo!’ she yelled between gulps of water, as loud as her breathless voice would carry. But he simply went on swimming. ‘Please, Rodolfo, help!’ she cried again, her strength giving out.

Just as she thought she could not go on, that the water would win this battle and suck her under, she saw him turn.

Horrified, Rodolfo swam back as fast as he could. Something was happening under the water! He’d heard of this once before, many years ago. But the phenomena had never been known to occur again, and he hadn’t thought of the caves as in any way dangerous. Diving under the gloomy water, he scooped Victoria in his arms and pulled her to the surface. She spluttered, could barely breathe, and clung to him for dear life.