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Had she been too scared to jump in at the deep end? Should she have done that ages ago? Maybe if she had taken a few risks, allowed herself to be hurt a couple of times, she would now be in a different place, emotionally less fragile. She wanted kids. She wanted a partner at her side. How long would she carry on searching for the one guy who wouldn’t hurt her?
She surfaced from uncomfortable thoughts to find herself in the cabin of Mateo’s private jet and she gasped and stood stock-still.
‘Wow.’
‘First time in a private jet?’
‘No, I hop on these all the time when I have to travel short haul.’
Mateo burst out laughing. ‘Why did I never see that sense of humour before? Help yourself to anything you want to eat or drink. I’m going to spend the time working.’
‘You haven’t told me much about where I’ll be staying.’
‘Haven’t had the opportunity.’ Mateo moved to one of the leather sofas, a pale-green affair that looked elegant enough for a five-star hotel, and Maude sat in a cream one opposite. ‘And now...? Well, we’ll be there very shortly. It’s as safe as Fort Knox when it comes to ensuring privacy. I haven’t had a chance to ask...but were discussions ongoing about this situation after I left?’
Maude sighed. ‘It was all a bit of a rush, to be honest. Everyone was heading off to lunch, and of course, by the time they all returned, I was already back in London.’
‘Good. Give it a few days and the fuss will have died down considerably.’
‘Not with my parents. But when they next see me it will probably be the night before the wedding, and I can always make up some excuse for you not being around. It’ll be hectic anyway. No one will have time to analyse why the guy I’m supposed to be engaged to has better things to do than to accompany me to my brother’s wedding. And afterwards I can begin laying the foundations for it being a relationship that was never going to work.’
‘You’re very level-headed, aren’t you?’ Mateo murmured and she reddened.
‘Yes, I am.’Not his type—that much she could tell from the amused expression on his face. ‘Can I ask what the project is that we will be working on when we get to...er... Italy? How big is it?’
‘All in due course, Maude. Why don’t you try and relax for a couple of hours, instead of diving into work-related matters before we’ve even landed?’
It felt like a reprimand, a gentle, amused reprimand, and she nodded and looked away. She had come prepared for a reset. No more blushing Maude but back to the Maude he knew—composed and ready to pick up the baton with whatever work issue he threw at her. She’d even dressed the part, in a neat grey skirt, a white blouse and her flat pumps, no concession made for the heat, and certainly no hint that she might interpret this as anything but a necessary detour which would involve work.
She pursed her lips and made a show of looking around her whilst she felt like a fool. The space was compact but beautifully and lavishly furnished, with leather seating and small walnut tables dotted in convenient places for computers and drinks. A partition in the middle sectioned off a desk and chair and behind it Maude could glimpse a pale sofa that would double as a bed.
The pilot stopped by to chat for five minutes, and they were offered whatever they wanted by a young man smartly attired in blue and white, but largely they were left to their own devices.
Mateo submerged himself in work, oblivious to his surroundings as the jet took off...and Maude contemplated how the next few days were going to be spent.
It took Maude under a day and a half to realise that this was not going to be the working retreat she had originally hoped for.
They emerged after their luxurious flight to a rolling panorama of hills creeping up to sharply peaked mountains. She had expected the bustle of an airstrip somewhere, only to discover that the runway was actually on Mateo’s own estate, which seemed to go on and on and on as far was the eye could see.
It was breathtaking.
He casually pointed out his acreage of vineyards stretching off into the distance and told her that the wine produced, fine though it was, was purely for local consumption—and of course his, whenever he found the time to return here.
She was led into an enormous villa, sepia-coloured and fronted by a sprawling, circular courtyard, which was dominated by a fountain.
Inside there was pale wood, pale marble and pale furnishings and, at the back, a splendid infinity pool. It was cleverly sunken into a carefully tended area that was contrived to look like a garden left to grow wild, from the dancing, coloured flowers to the artful planting of shady trees.
Of course, there were people around, staff to take care of everything, from the cooking to the cleaning. And in a building tucked to the side were offices where the people who ran the vineyards took care of business.
There were chaperones aplenty and yet, from the start, it didn’tfeellike work—not in these surroundings. Not with the sun pouring down like liquid honey on a lush, green, hilly vista.
Now Maude gazed from the window of her bedroom to the pool which she planned to avoid at all costs.
It was a little after six and she would be heading down shortly for drinks.
‘Work talk again, I’m afraid,’ Mateo had apologised. ‘The project, as you saw from yesterday’s drawings, will intersect the town close to the local church. We need to work on a way around that, making sure that every single thing is done harmoniously and is in keeping. Alberto Hussi is in charge and he’ll be joining us for dinner.’
Maude’s heart had lifted.More work? In the most stunning place on the planet? Where lush, peaceful surroundings beckoned one to explore and relax? A place where computers should be hidden away and mobile phones stuck in drawers, out of sight? Perfect.
