The Forget-Me-Not Sonata(10)

‘How long do you both intend to be in the Argentine?’ she asked.

‘About a couple of years,’ he replied. He settled his steady eyes upon her and knew that he could be persuaded to stay longer. A piece of bread caught in his throat and he coughed then dislodged it with a swig of water. Disarmed by the loveliness of this serene young woman he felt self-conscious and clumsy.

‘Then you’ll return to England?’

‘That’s the plan.’

‘You might lose your heart to the Argentine. So many have,’ she remarked and noticed his lips curl into a small smile. He had already lost his heart but Audrey was unaware that she held it.

‘You don’t know England, do you?’ he asked. Audrey shook her head.

‘No, but Daddy talks about it often, I feel I know it quite well.’

‘There’s no place quite like England. Perhaps you’ll find the time to go there one day.’

‘I’d like that. But I can’t imagine living anywhere but here.’ Then she chuckled. ‘Colonel Blythe has a strange fascination with the weather in London. He reads the Illustrated London News and comments on it a week out of date. It appears to rain all the time.’

‘Ah, the inimitable Colonel Blythe.’ He chuckled, sitting back in his chair. ‘What a wonderful eccentric he is. A true Englishman, for like the rest of us he talks of little else – the weather and the war.’

‘Does it rain all the time?’ she asked.

‘My dear fellow,’ said Cecil in the Colonel’s deep plummy voice, ‘I should think it’ll be a wet summer again, bloody bad luck for all those at The Races.’ Cecil laughed and was delighted that Audrey’s shoulders quivered as she bubbled into laughter too. ‘Colonel Blythe isn’t wrong. It does rain a lot of the time, I’m afraid. You feel wet right down to your bones. It’s that damp cold in winter that’s so unpleasant, but springtime in England is lovelier than anywhere else in the world, even here. The rain makes it all so green. And when it’s sunny you can imagine everyone’s joy. That’s why they comment on it, because it’s such a rarity and therefore such a pleasure.’

As Cecil talked to Audrey he was unaware that during the pauses that punctuated their dialogue her attention was diverted across the table to his brother. Due to Audrey’s polite laughter and spirited commentary he felt he was being entertaining, but then he had a way with people. Everyone loved Cecil Forrester; mothers wanted him for their daughters and some secretly yearned for him for themselves. Young girls knew instinctively that he was eligible and did their best to attract his attention. But Audrey was different. She robbed him of his self-confidence. She had the same detached air as his brother yet in Audrey Cecil found it desperately attractive. It placed her out of his reach and gave her an ethereal quality that he had never encountered in anyone else.

He looked across at Louis and cringed with embarrassment. He hadn’t even bothered to dress up for dinner. Cecil was sure he had let his good manners slip in order to irritate him. But Louis was untameable and wild, a liability wherever he went. Cecil remembered his parents’ relief when he volunteered to take him to South America. They pretended to be saddened but he knew they were happy to see the back of him. He had let them down, badly.

Rose led her sister and daughters inside while the men smoked on the terrace, discussing the pros and cons of privatization. Isla grabbed Audrey by the arm and hissed into her ear, ‘Isn’t he the most attractive man you’ve ever met?’

‘Who? Louis?’

Isla shook her head with impatience. ‘Don’t be silly. Louis is odd! No, Cecil. He’s so handsome he makes my eyes burn.’

‘Yes, he is,’ she said lightly. ‘He’s a gentleman.’

‘You’re so lucky, you talked to him all through dinner. I could only look on longingly. I’m so glad he’s coming to your party, Audrey, I’m going to be the first to dance with him.’

‘If you like.’

‘Just for fun. I’d like nothing more than to annoy all the other girls. He’s the most eligible man in Buenos Aires, Audrey, and he’s yours if you want him.’

‘Oh, Isla, you’re still tipsy!’ She laughed.

‘Perhaps, but not too tipsy to notice the way he looked at you.’

‘Rubbish. He was just being polite.’

‘There are limits to politeness and he far exceeded those!’ Audrey couldn’t help but feel flattered, after all, she wasn’t immune to the attentions of such an attractive man and his interest caused her spirits to soar.