‘It was just…’ She sipped the liqueur, sweet and warm, burning its way down her throat. ‘That’s strong.’
He smiled briefly and drank some of his own. ‘It is. Locally made rather than a shop-bought one, so probably illegal if we get down to it. Mémé is a fan, as you probably saw yesterday. What did they say about Simon?’
Ari took another mouthful of the liqueur, probably too much. It made her eyes water. It was definitely that, and not thoughts of her lost fiancé.
‘How do you know Simon?’ she asked after a moment.
‘We were in school together, when we were little. Before my mother sent me away to the academy in Paris. Simon, Gwen, Laure and I…’ He sighed and leaned back on the desk, watching her. ‘It was a long time ago. A lifetime ago. We were friends, in that way children are when you all come from the same small village. And our families have a long history together. We lost touch ages ago. I didn’t realise you and Simon…’ He trailed off in that awkward way people did when talking to her about Simon. They couldn’t help it. She almost understood.
‘We met in college. Another lifetime ago. He was…he was a very special person.’
This was met with silence. Perhaps he didn’t know what to say. Grief made people uncomfortable, she knew that better than anyone. She made people uncomfortable, especially those who had known Simon. Their friends had turned out to be his friends and drifted away. She always wondered if they knew what he’d done, but she’d never managed to get up the courage to ask. She withdrew into herself. She had her work and that was enough.
Coming back here was a mistake.
‘He loved it here,’ she said at last because it seemed like a safe thing to say.
Was it her imagination or did Rafael suppress a shudder? ‘Many people do.’
Ari leaned forward, interested. ‘But not you.’
He sipped his drink, watching her with those dark eyes, delaying answering.
‘My father died here. There is a lot of duty tied to this place for me. Old traditions and family history. That is…difficult. And my great-aunt, of course. Well, you have met her.’
‘She’s formidable.’
He smiled, a slow lazy smile of genuine affection that made her stomach do something interesting and unexpected. ‘She is. And infuriating. But that’s family, I suppose.’
Ari thought of Jason and grinned. She raised her glass in toast. ‘To family, then.’
Rafael joined her half-heartedly. ‘This wasn’t what I had in mind when I said I’d buy you dinner, you know?’
‘Well, hiding in your study with strong liquor isn’t anyone’s idea of a sensible dinner, Rafael.’
His name rolled off her tongue, and tasted like the liqueur, sweet and spiced, a little dangerous. More than a little dangerous.
‘Let me take you out somewhere nicer.’
Nicer than his manor house on his ancient family estate. Right.
She glanced towards the door. ‘Don’t you need to be with your sister and your…friend?’
‘Gwen? God, no. And Laure is more than capable of getting into trouble by herself. You might want to watch your brother though.’
‘Well, speaking of people capable of getting themselves into trouble, she may have met her match. But no, Jason is focused on the treasure hunt. He’ll be busy with the university tomorrow and probably for the rest of the week with the mask. So will I, for that matter. And then I’ll be gone.’
Surprise flickered through his dark eyes. ‘You’re leaving?’
Why did he think she would stay? There was nothing for her here. Nothing but pain.
She shrugged the thought away. She couldn’t bear it. ‘This is only a visit. A holiday really. A favour to Jason. I’m due back in school soon. Students to see, classes to prepare, homework to mark, all of that.’
‘I thought you were here to help him for the duration of his excavations – is it still an excavation if it’s underwater? – or are you just here to follow stories and folklore?’
‘Are you making fun of my discipline of choice?’ she teased, feeling more herself suddenly, more at ease with him.
He raised a hand in surrender. ‘I wouldn’t dare, Dr Walker. But your brother needs your help or he would not have asked, would he? I think you should stay.’
