“Beloved?” I whisper, wanting to say the word out loud, to hear it ring between us with all its significance.
“Very much beloved.” She leans up to kiss me.
It’s a relief that she knows the truth and yet she still loves me. My anxiety has evaporated, replaced by hunger. I smile down at her. “Do you want to go ashore to eat?”
“I want to eat wherever you’re happiest.”
“Good. Aboard is where I can keep you safe. Thank you for my present.” I reach for it and, turning it around, hold it at arm’s length and snap a picture of the two of us wrapped around each other.
We take coffee post-dinner inside the impressive dining room on the Fair Lady. “What are you thinking about?” I ask, as Ana looks wistfully out the window.
“Versailles.”
“Ostentatious, wasn’t it?”
Ana looks at our surroundings.
“This is hardly ostentatious,” I observe.
“I know. It’s lovely. The best honeymoon a girl could want.”
“Really?” I smile. Pleased.
“Of course it is.”
“We only have two more days. Is there anything you’d like to see or do?”
“Just be with you,” she says.
I rise and come around the table and drop a kiss on her forehead
“Well, can you do without me for about an hour? I need to check my e-mails, find out what’s happening at home.”
“Sure,” she says.
“Thank you for the camera.”
As I head into the study, I notice that for some reason, I’m feeling far more settled. Could it be the delicious dinner, the sex, or telling Ana about the arson? It could be a combination of all those. I pull my phone out of my pocket and notice a missed call from my dad.
“Son,” he says
“Hi, Dad.”
“How’s the South of France?”
“It’s
“And Ana?”
“She’s great, too.” I can’t help my smile.
“You sound happy.”
“Yes. The only fly in the
“Your mother told me about that.
“What’s the matter, Christian?” He adopts a serious tone, probably in response to my monosyllabic reply.
“Shit. Police
“Yes.”
This and your helicopter. It’s a lot to deal with.”
“Welch is on it. But we don’t have a clue who it might be. Have
“No, I can’t say that I have. But I’ll keep a watchful eye.”
“Do,” I insist.
“Is the jet safe?” he asks.
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