A Year at the French Farmhouse(104)

‘Sensible man,’ Lily said, as they walked through to the kitchen.

‘Wow, it’s looking great!’ Sam said approvingly.

‘Thank you. I mean, it’s scrubbed up OK, right?’ Lily said, quite proud of the way everything was looking.

‘It looks amazing,’ Sam said. ‘There’s just one thing missing…’

‘What’s that?’

‘I don’t seem to have a glass of champers in my hand.’

Before she could rectify this, Chloé arrived, an enormous Tupperware container in her hands. She was wearing a navy dress, cinched in at the waist, that fell around her calves in delicate folds and looked – as always – absolutely perfect. ‘Les quiches,’ she said, before Lily could say anything. ‘I am sorry, I only make three.’

‘Wow, thank you,’ said Lily, smiling as she took the plastic box. ‘It’s really kind. And you look lovely.’

‘Ah, but so do you!’ Chloé said, looking at Lily’s strappy dress approvingly.

In the kitchen, she introduced Chloé to Sam. ‘Ah, I ’ave seen you at the lake, non?’ Chloé said.

‘Yes, probably. And I think my aunt stayed with you one year when we were renovating?’ Sam replied.

Formalities over, they finally popped the champagne cork and sat out on the terrace watching the children run amok in the enormous space. ‘So, is your friend, Emily, still coming?’ Sam asked.

‘Ah, Emily is coming?’ Chloé said. ‘She is a good friend to come so far.’

‘Yes, yes, she is,’ said Lily. ‘She should be here at three – her plane’s in about one,’ She looked at her watch. ‘I haven’t been able to get hold of her today at all.’

‘Ah, but she is travelling! It is not easy.’

‘She’s probably switched flight mode on.’

‘Yes.’ Lily nodded, still a bit perplexed that none of her messages had been answered. Worse, she still hadn’t been able to get hold of Ben and although there was probably no need to worry, she felt a frisson of anxiety in her chest whenever she thought about it. She took a gulp of champagne and felt it fizz coldly down her throat.

‘Steady on,’ Sam said. ‘You’ll be legless by the time anyone else arrives.’

‘Ah, just calming my nerves,’ Lily said. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll slow down.’

‘Ah, you don’t need to be nervous,’ said Sam, brushing her arm, ‘it’s going to be grand.’

‘Thanks.’ Lily smiled. She couldn’t bring herself to explain to Sam that she was also worried about Ben. Not least because she might well start crying and be streaked with mascara by the time the guests arrived. She was just feeling emotional because of the house-warming and the rite of passage it felt like. It felt like one of those occasions where everyone important in your life should be there, making the ones who aren’t loom large in your mind.

‘Bonjour!’ said a voice behind them, and they both jumped, Sam giving a little squeak and spilling a slosh of champagne on her front.

‘Frédérique!’ Lily said, turning. ‘You scared us.’

‘I am so sorry, Mesdames,’ he said, seriously. ‘But the door is open and I am carrying thees.’ His arms were wrapped around an enormous speaker, from which a microphone dangled on a wire. ‘My karaoke machine, uh?’

‘Oh, thank you,’ Lily said, hoping she wouldn’t come to regret her decision to let him bring it. ‘Let’s put it in the living room for now.’

‘The living room?’

‘Le salon.’

‘OK, bon.’ He disappeared back into the house and Lily got up to follow him.

‘You actually let him bring a karaoke machine?’ Sam said quietly, grinning.

‘I know,’ Lily said. ‘But it could be fun.’

‘Perhaps it’s finally time for that serenade?’

‘Don’t encourage him!’

Lily entered the kitchen and walked through to the living room where Frédérique was in the process of plugging the speaker into the wall. ‘Let’s leave it for now,’ she said. ‘We can set it up later, when people are here?’

‘As you want, mon coeur,’ he said, turning and smiling dazzlingly at her. He took her in his arms and planted a soft kiss on her lips, leaving them tingling as always. She leaned in for another, pressing her body against his. What was it about this man?

‘Ah, I ’ave missed you, non?’ Frédérique said as they moved apart. ‘I ’av been thinking about what you said – about how you need to be old-fashion… how you want to be slow. But I miss you.’

’I missed you, too,’ she said.

There was a knock at the door and she jumped slightly out of his arms as if she were a character in a soap opera caught in a clinch with someone else’s husband. ‘I’d better get that,’ she said, rushing to the door.

‘’ello love!’ Dawn and Clive stood there, clutching a bottle of red.

‘Oh hello!’ she said, exchanging slightly awkward kisses with the couple before standing back to let them into the hall. ‘If you want to go through, and out the back, there are drinks and nibbles waiting.’