On Saturday morning Leo and Gabrielle arrived in Nice a little before noon, and drove in a rented car to a hotel in Juan-Les-Pins, where Leo had booked rooms. Then they drove round Cap d’Antibes to the town and had a late lunch at a bistro before heading to the estate agent’s office.
‘I looked at a few places online,’ Leo told Gabrielle, as they waited for the agent to fetch the keys, ‘but this was the one that really caught my eye. I hope it’s as good as its pictures.’
Gabrielle was flicking through one of the brochures. ‘The way you described it makes it sound a bit poky. Why don’t you go for one of these apartments with a pool? Something a bit more modern and luxurious?’
‘Because I like the old town. I want to feel a part of it when I come here, be able to step out and buy croissants first thing, watch the market come alive at weekends. Anyway, who needs a pool when you have a beautiful beach a couple of minutes away? Not a huge fan of chlorine, personally.’
The estate agent, a slim, self-important young man, appeared with the keys and escorted them on the short walk to the apartment, which was on the third floor of an old building overlooking the Cours Massena. The ground floor of the building was a café-patisserie, and the apartment entrance was at the back, in a narrow cobbled street, through high wooden gates leading into a charming courtyard dotted with pots and shrubs. A gnarled bougainvillea creeper, wintry and naked, shrouded the doorway to the building.
The agent led the way upstairs to the apartment, and showed them around with great aplomb. ‘Vair light and airy. Vair unusual for the Old Town,’ he told them, leading them through the empty rooms. ‘Bedrooms are at the back, so all is quiet, oui? But the big living area through here has a balcony, quite charmant.’ He unfastened and flung back the wooden shutters, then opened the long windows to a balcony, with a high, wrought-iron surround.
They stepped outside, and the estate agent gestured towards the castle, whose medieval ramparts were visible. ‘That is where the Picasso Museum now is. Vair important tourist destination.’
Gabrielle leant on the iron railing and gazed down at the busy street which sloped away to the harbour. She smiled and turned to Leo.
‘It’s absolutely amazing. I take it all back. Imagine sitting out here in summer, sipping pastis, watching the world go by.’
They went back into the living room, and at that moment clouds parted in the winter sky outside, and the parchment-coloured walls and scrubbed floorboards were suddenly washed with sunshine. Gabrielle gazed around.
‘It’s beautiful. Makes me want to go out and start buying things to furnish it.’
‘I hoped that particular task might appeal to you.’
She laughed. ‘Is that why you brought me down here? To do the place up?’
‘Only partly. You also speak French very much better than I do. I thought we might get through the formalities faster if you were here. Seriously, I wanted to see what you thought of the place.’
‘Well, I love it, and I don’t mind helping out with red tape.’
They went back to the agent’s office and completed a volume of paperwork. The agent seemed mildly discomfited to discover that Gabrielle spoke perfect French. It was half past three by the time the lease was signed, and the keys handed over. Leo and Gabrielle took a leisurely drive back along the coast, had cocktails in Juan, then ate dinner at Tetou. The next day they spent browsing furniture and antique shops, ordering beds, tables, chairs and sofas, and buying kitchen and bathroom equipment. At the end of the day they had dinner at the hotel and talked over the day’s purchases.
‘That was such fun,’ said Gabrielle. ‘Like furnishing a doll’s house. And so lovely to be spending someone else’s money.’
‘I’ll have to take a few days off in the New Year to come down and take delivery of the furniture. Which reminds me,’ Leo fished in his pocket and pulled out a set of keys and handed them to Gabrielle, ‘these are for you. I had them cut before we went out yesterday evening.’
‘Keys to the apartment?’
Leo nodded. ‘I can’t see anyone else using it. I like to think I have a project to share with my daughter. Come down whenever you like, bring a girlfriend, enjoy Antibes and Juan in season. Sometimes I’ll be here, sometimes I won’t.’
She leant across and kissed his cheek. ‘That is so amazing. Thank you.’
‘I say girlfriend, but you’re welcome to bring your boyfriend down, too, if you like.’ Leo paused. ‘You still haven’t told me anything about him.’
Gabrielle knew that to hesitate or equivocate would be fatal. She said calmly, ‘Actually, he’s someone you know. I only found out recently.’ She glanced down, stirring her coffee. ‘He’s in your chambers. Anthony Cross.’