AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER FIVE
Jessie
AWEEKLATER, I bade goodbye to Belle and Alexi and their family in Monaco and Alexi’s chauffeur drove me to the Camaro estate in Cap Ferrat.
Henri Deschanel, the Destiny Inc. CEO and Renzo’s business manager, was supposed to be meeting me at the estate. But when the huge metal gates of the complex opened to admit us for the half-mile drive to the villa itself, which sat on a secluded spit of land overlooking the clear blue waters of the Mediterranean, I asked the driver to let me out.
I only had a rucksack with me—I’d always enjoyed travelling light—and I wanted to clear my head before I arrived.
As soon as I began the walk, though, I saw the signs of neglect, in the overgrown pine forest which covered the estate and made it seem so cut off from the rest of the neighbourhood. Given that Cap Ferrat was such an exclusive area, and the real estate so expensive, most of the chateaux here were built close together within carefully manicured grounds. But Renzo’s home was very different: the acres of trees cut out the light, until the driveway opened to reveal a four-storey Belle Epoque chateau, as grand and ornate as the Galantis’. But unlike Belle and Alexi’s home, the Camaropalaciowas marred by neglect, its paintwork peeling and the circular flower beds which surrounded the huge eighteenth-century structure dry and filled with weeds.
I could see the edges of the cliffs beyond the chateau, which led down to the boat dock, the pool house and the private beaches the estate had once been famous for...back in the heyday of Destiny’s success—when Renzo had been famous for throwing lavish parties at a moment’s notice, which would be splashed all over the celebrity press.
But now the house and its grounds were eerily quiet, the ghosts of Renzo Camaro’s high society lifestyle evident in the broken marble tiles, the heliport beside the overgrown lawn which didn’t look as if it has been used in months. It was almost as if Renzo’s home was under a spell, a cruel enchantment which had destroyed his once glittering billionaire lifestyle.
I swallowed down the fanciful—and stupidly sentimental—thought as a middle-aged man appeared from the grand oak doors of the chateau.
He jogged down the circular stone steps to greet me, looking debonair but informal in jeans and a light sweater.
‘Mademoiselle Burton, I did not realise you were on foot, or I would have driven out to collect you,’ he said in perfect if heavily accented English.
‘It’s okay,’ I said as I shook his hand. ‘I fancied the walk.’
‘I am Henri—we spoke on the phone,’ he added.
‘I know,’ I said, surprised to realise Destiny Inc.’s CEO appeared to be a little nervous.
He nodded. ‘I must apologise first of all for the state of the Camaropalacio,’ he said, glancing at the dilapidated estate. ‘Every time I have hired new staff, ever since Renzo returned from the hospital, he has made their lives so impossible, they have refused to stay.’ He huffed, looking embarrassed now, as well as harassed. And I began to realise why he looked so concerned. He was expecting me to go the same way as all the others. Was that why he had insisted on paying me a small fortune to do this job?
‘What exactly are you expecting of me?’ I asked. Because all the contract had mentioned was cooking Renzo regular meals and maintaining the kitchen area. ‘I’m not really trained to do more than cook.’ Was he expecting me to do the gardening too? Or worse, become involved in Renzo’s care?
‘Oh yes, yes, I know,’ he added. ‘We have a cleaning crew who come in twice a week but who cannot enter his room—and another new grounds crew who start tomorrow.’
‘What about Mr Camaro?’ I forced myself to ask. ‘Exactly how much interaction am I expected to have with him?’
Belle had talked about me becoming his friend. That was not going to happen. But I was not equipped to become his carer either.
‘All you need to do is bring him the meals. And take them away again. He no longer needs nursing care. Although he’s not that mobile.’ He cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. ‘He never leaves his suite. But I must warn you, he’s angry still about his injury. And he takes that anger out on the staff. He’s not violent. I would never...’ He stared at me, his cheeks heating. ‘I would never put an employee in that situation. But I apologise ahead of time for anything he might say to upset you. Believe me, his temper is not really directed at you, but at himself.’
I nodded, beginning to see the scale of the problem.
‘You don’t need to apologise,’ I said. ‘After all, you’re not responsible for his behaviour—he is.’
The poor guy looked so relieved, I realised how tough the last fourteen months must have been for him too.
‘Belle said you are a strong woman. But if at any time you wish to terminate our contract, I will understand.’
‘Okay,’ I said, suddenly determined not to do that.
I was here now, and I wanted to see this through. Maybe I wouldn’t be able to help Renzo Camaro, but I was prepared to try.
Of course, he might be even less inclined to have me here if he recognised me. But I doubted he would. Not only had I worn a mask through our entire encounter, but I had long ago accepted I was just one of the many women he had had in his life. And his bed. He had probably already been sleeping with someone else by the time I had woken up that morning, alone and pregnant in his bed.
I allowed the small spurt of resentment—and sadness—to fold around my ribs. And fire my determination.
It was already obvious, before I had even met him again, that Renzo didn’t need people around him who were going to indulge his temper tantrums. Or get sentimental about who he used to be. The good news was, however tough this was going to be on me, it would be tougher on him, because he wasn’t that man anymore. And it seemed he knew it.
I settled into the small housekeeper’s cottage at the edge of the gardens, just below the pool. Then spent some time in the kitchen, sorting out the groceries I had ordered in. Thank goodness, the large catering space was well equipped and scrupulously clean. But it was beyond weird that once Henri left later that afternoon, I was alone in the huge empty chateau, with Renzo. For a man who had once been surrounded by people, it seemed inconceivable he had become a virtual recluse.
