CORAL (A Romance Trilogy, Book 1) (14 page)

“I’m sure I would have liked them
too,” I say.

“What about you Coral. Any
Grandparents?” he asks.

“No, I only knew my granny on my
mother’s side. I only met her once and when I did, I understood why my mom
wouldn’t have her in our lives, she was...well horrid. She took me in for a
couple of weeks before I went to live with Gladys.” I cringe at the memory.

Tristan is quiet for a moment. “I’m
sorry…do you see her now?” he asks softly.

“No, she could walk by me on the
street and I wouldn’t know who she was.” I answer blankly.

We are both quiet and
contemplative for a few minutes, the silence is comfortable.

“I sometimes feel like I was born
in the wrong era.” I muse out-loud.

“Yeah...” I nod and lock eyes
with him.

“I think I would have liked the
forties, you know, the way people were. Guys taking girls out dancing, the
girls wearing pretty dresses. I think people had better manners and were
more...” I cut myself off.

“Go on,” Tristan urges smiling
down at me.

“Well, it just seems like, I
don’t know…like there wasn’t any of the crap that we all have to deal with
nowadays.” I say.

“Like what?” he asks.

I sigh heavily.
Do I really
want to say it?
I shrug and start blurting it all out. “Like it was,
couples got to know one another first, you know? There was no pressure to have
sex straight away, or be a goddess in the bedroom, nowadays you’re made to feel
weird if you’re not out every night having one night stands. Men were gentleman
and women were ladies. They conducted themselves in a much better manner. I
guess what I’m trying to say is that they fell for one another because’ – “They
fell in love without the sex.” Tristan says finishing my sentence for me.

I nod shyly knowing sex has been
mentioned.

“That’s how it was with my
grandparents.” He smiles widely, his dimples deepening. “My grandma always said
to me ‘if she falls into bed with you, she isn’t worth keeping’.”

“Sounds like my kind of woman.” I
softly say.

Tristan smiles sweetly at me,
then stares out of the window again and we sit in comfortable silence, both
deep in thought, my hand still in his. Acker Bilks, Stranger on the Shore
starts playing on the radio. I feel myself tense up, yet I love its relaxing
melody. It’s a bitter-sweet sensation. I see Tristan notice out of the corner of
his eye.

“Coral, what’s wrong?” He asks
huskily. I turn to him and shake my head. “Tell me,” he urges. I sigh inwardly
then I think... what the hell –
After what we’ve just shared...

“This piece of music,” I say
shaking my head, trying not to remember the nightmares.

“Do you want it turned off?” He
immediately asks, reading my expression.

“No, no it’s ok,” I tell him.
“I’ve always loved it, ever since Gladys introduced it to me. She used to play
it to me to help me sleep. Just takes me back, that’s all.” I smile remembering
how thoughtful and careful she was with me back then.

“She sounds pretty awesome.” I
turn to Tristan and smile widely at him, knowing I love that woman more than
I’ve ever loved anyone, ever.

“She is.” I acknowledge then
stare out of the window. “Gladys put it onto a tape, so it played over and over
all through the night, so if I woke, it would sooth me back to sleep.” I close
my eyes for a moment, letting its soothing tune relax me.

“You used to have problems
sleeping?” He asks.
Still do honey!
I decide not to get into that one;
we could be here all day!

“I really like this tune too.”
Tristan says, ignoring the fact that I haven’t answered him. “Very relaxing,”
he adds.

I smile weakly at him then close
my eyes again. Out of nowhere, I get an image of Tristan and I dancing. I'm
safely cocooned in his arms as he swishes us slowly around, my idea of heaven –
How odd?

I open my eyes and look out of
the window, I’m drawn to a couple strolling along with their baby in a
pushchair, the woman is laughing heartily at her man, and then he places his
arm around her shoulders and kisses her on the lips.

I quickly look away. I can't help
feeling bitter when I see happy families, makes me so mad to think my parents
couldn’t keep their shit together and make it work.

STUART STARTLES ME BY GETTING
back in the car, just as another car pulls up behind us. I look
behind me and see a short balding man jump out. He looks flustered, and I can
see from his pale pink, short-sleeved shirt; he’s sweating buckets. I instantly
don’t like him – he looks slimy.

“Showtime.” Tristan says, smiling
wickedly at me. I smile back at him then he exits the car. I watch him talking
to the man. Then I watch the sweaty man punch a code into a security system and
the gates swing open. Tristan gets back in the car and Stuart cruises down the
short sweeping driveway, the estate agent following, and brings the car to a
stop.

I turn in my seat and see the
house. I’m instantly blown away. It looks brand new, standing two stories high.
And for some reason I think it’s much smaller than what I thought Tristan would
have gone for, but it is beautiful. The house is white with a beautiful dark
grey slate surround that encases the first floor, including the front door,
creating a kind of open porch with enough space for a seating area, yet the
owners have chosen several potted ferns instead, it looks lovely.

“Ready?” Tristan asks.

I beam at him. “It looks
beautiful,” I gush.

Tristan jumps out of the car
races round to my side, and opens the door for me. I momentarily compare him to
Justin, who never opened car doors for me or any kind of doors come to think of
it.

I take Tristan’s hand to get out
of the car thinking he’ll let me go but he doesn’t. I frown again, this feels
so nice – I should be freaking out about it? We walk over to the agent, Tristan
shakes his hand then he reaches out for mine, but I pretend not to notice and turn
to take in my surroundings.

The small, but quaint driveway is
surrounded by tall oak trees, and a high brick wall, and of course, there’s the
wrought iron gates; all giving the house maximum privacy. The driveway looks
brand new and has been laid with a beautiful choice of brickwork paving, and
has enough room for at least four cars. Then I notice a double garage set back
at the right hand side of the house, again the garage is white with a black
slated front.
So much room! Does one man really need all this space?

I’m suddenly drawn to what the
agent is saying about the place...

“As you know from the brochure Mr
Freeman, the house has been completely transformed by the present owner into a
contemporary style home, which has been finished to an exceptionally high
specification, both internally and externally. White Italian porcelain flooring
downstairs and walnut flooring in the bedrooms, giving it an absolutely
stunning; unique finish.” He smiles purposefully at me.
Maybe he thinks I'm
buying this place?

I have to stifle a giggle, he
continues...

“The property boasts five
bedrooms all with en-suite, three reception rooms, open plan kitchen-diner and
living area, utility room with downstairs W.C, games room, indoor pool, cinema
room, gym, bespoke outdoor dining area; and landscaped gardens to rear.”

My mouth pops open in shock. “An
indoor pool?” I squeak looking up at Tristan, he squeezes my hand and grins so
widely, I think his face is about to crack in two; he looks so happy.

“Like it so far?” He whispers.

“Yes.” I choke, half laughing.
What’s
not to like?

I'm really trying hard to hold
back my glee that I’m going to be walking around this place with him, and that
he wants my opinion, I’m so excited – I’ve never walked around a big house
before. This is miles away from my world, especially when I think back to all
the dark and dingy places I looked at when I was buying.

“Ready to take a look inside?”
Tristan asks; his smile still wide.

I smile and nod frantically at
him.
This is so cool!
Tristan squeezes my hand and we walk the few steps
towards the front door.

“Shall we?” The agent drawls in a
posh accent, which I’m sure is put on. Tristan nods, so the agent pulls a set
of keys from his pocket and opens the front door, which is unique in itself,
and three times the size of any normal front door – I think it’s walnut? It has
a very long, narrow window running down the centre of it. The door opens with
the grace that only a heavy door can allow and we follow the agent into a huge
entrance hallway -
Oh wow!
This place is huge. How have they done that?
It looks so much smaller from outside.

The agent continues…

“Entrance hallway leading into
the social centre of the house, utility room with small W.C to your right, then
into the beautiful bespoke fitted kitchen & dining area, glass doors
leading to rear terrace providing panoramic views of the coast...”
Whoa!

The first thing I notice is how
light and open it is, high ceilings, white walls, very contemporary; I’m
already in love with it. The second thing – this place is ginormus!

The large entrance hall expands several
feet in front of us then opens out into a large, open-plan living space – I
guess you could call it the living-room? Right in the centre of the room is a
huge, white column that houses a large fireplace – it’s new, white and silver,
very contemporary, and totally gorgeous. Surrounding that is a large white u
shaped sofa – it’s so big you could fit twenty of me on it. It hugs and surrounds
the column in a really cosy way, which I wouldn’t have thought possible with
how big it is, and I can just about make out what I think is a breakfast bar,
just off to the right of the fireplace.

The entire back wall is ceiling
height windows. I can see right out to the coast, the sun sparkling against the
sea, the boats way out, no doubt soaking up the beautiful weather. I stand
completely immobilized. The view is extraordinary, breathtaking. I think my
chin has hit the floor?

I hear Tristan chuckle and look
up at him. “Like it?” He asks beaming widely at me.

“Yes.” I choke out. I manage to
pull my gaze away and take in the rest of my surroundings.

To my left, is a wall that runs
right along the length of the huge room. I see a door behind the sofa and
another right behind me. The other reception rooms?
To my right, is a
small square shaped room.
I guess that’s the utility room?
Beyond that
is a short hallway that leads to a wooden slated staircase, surrounded by
beautiful glass panelling, but they head downstairs, not up -
I wonder where
they lead to?
Then I remember the swimming pool, that probably where they
lead to. I have to stop myself from jumping up and down with excitement, this
place is amazing! I take a deep breath trying to take it all in and slowly blow
it out; it’s such a huge expanse.

“State of the art alarm
system...” The agent drawls pulling me out of my musing, he points to a large
white box on the wall to my left. Tristan nods in approval then the agent turns
to his left and opens the first door.

Tristan and I follow him inside.
Ok, this room is huge, bigger than my studio.

“And here, we enter into the
first reception room, the smallest of the three. As you can see the current
owners use it as a study/home office.”

Tristan looks around the space
nodding in approval. We follow the agent out and walk diagonally over to the
door that was to my right.

“Utility room, and W.C.” He says.
Tristan pops his head inside and nods, he seems bored with this room. Typical!
I think it’s awesome, but I don't even have space for a washing machine! We
head down the hall towards the living-room, when suddenly it opens out to the
right – and there it is – the huge, bespoke kitchen.
Wow!

White walls, black slate
surfaces, chrome cooker and burners; I am in heaven. They are the exact colours
I would choose for a kitchen; if I were to ever have the money to buy a bigger
place. I smile inwardly, this kitchen is so big, I could cook up a storm in
here.
Oh, it’s so beautiful.

“Completely refurbished, double
cooker, warming drawer, large fridge-freezer, dishwasher, centre console with
extra hobs and sink, surrounded by a beautiful bespoke breakfast bar. As you
can see, the current owners prefer to dine here, looking out over the
magnificent sea views.”

I look down and set in front of
the large breakfast bar is a small, round, very quaint looking antique table
with six chairs. Yes – I think I would prefer the table to the breakfast bar –
Coral,
what are you talking about, you’re never going to live here?
I can pretend
– I argue back at myself.

The agent turns, and heads back
towards the living area, we walk around the sofa and he opens the door behind
it. “Second reception room.” He steps back to let us through.

As I walk in with Tristan, my
mouth gapes open in awe, the owners have turned this room into a library, a
beautiful, cosy library. All the walls bar the one to my right – which is floor
to ceiling height windows – have floor to ceiling bookshelves, and are
completely over-stocked with books, there’s even a stylish ladder to reach the
ones at the top. Then set in the centre of the back wall, is a very large
fireplace, it looks very old and suits the room perfectly.

There are several small, very
squidgy looking sofas and four leather recliners, each of them have a reading
lamp next to them. I instantly imagine myself curled up on one of the chairs,
book in hand, fire blazing, feeling warm and snugly on a cold, wet winters day.
I can't believe how cosy it feels, considering how big the room is.

“Current owners use this room for
relaxing and reading, they like to think of it as their own mini library.” He
starts laughing at his own joke, his nose making a funny snorty noise as he
does.

“Very good,” Tristan muses,
turning to me with a look that says, don't- laugh-or-you’ll-start-me-off. I
tighten my lips, fighting back the smile.

“If you would like to follow me
sir,” the agent says. We follow the agent out of the room, pass the huge sofa,
and straight past the kitchen towards another door. Just as we reach it, I
notice a carpeted stairway to my right.

“Stairs to the bedrooms.” The
agent points to the right. “And door leading into the largest reception room.”
He opens the door and we follow inside.

If I thought the other rooms were
big, well I was kidding myself, you could land a jet in here. The owners have
placed a long walnut table in the centre of the room and there’s at least
thirty chairs comfortably seated around it. I shake my head in mock horror. This
room is big enough to hold a banquet. I can't help chuckling sarcastically to
myself.

Tristan cottons on and cocks his
head to the side.

“Would you like some time to
peruse this level?” The agent asks Tristan.

“Yes, thank you.” The agent nods
politely, smiles at me, and turns to walk away. The moment he is out of view,
Tristan turns and gazes down at me with dark, worried eyes. “You don't like
this room?” He asks.

I snort sarcastically. “What’s
not to like?”

He frowns at me. “But you looked
horrified and then you laughed,” he says.
Jeez, he hardly knows me, yet he
has my facial expressions pegged already!

“Well it’s just...very
grandiose,” I murmur.

“I suppose,” he smirks. I smile
back at him. “And the rest of the house?” he asks.

“Gorgeous.” I say.

Tristan smiles enigmatically at
me, making my heart skip a beat. Then tugs gently on my hand, we walk back out and
into the kitchen. I turn and look out at the views again, then I decide I want
a closer look. Moving forward, Tristan releases my hand and leisurely follows
me as I skip towards the window. I feel like I’m on cloud nine, like I’m in
some sort of dream. I turn and giggle at him, he shakes his head at me his
smile widening.

When I reach the patio doors, I
see a large balcony that juts out with tables and chairs. I instantly imagine
myself sitting outside with a glass of chardonnay watching the sun setting
across the sea. I turn to Tristan and puff out my cheeks, exhaling all the air
slowly.

I walk back over to him and as I
reach him, I know I have to ask, it’s been bugging me since the door was
opened, actually before that...

“Tristan,” I whisper just in-case
the agent is close by. “How much is this place?” I ask in wide eyed awe.

“It’s rude to ask.” He softly
scolds, but I can tell he’s teasing me.

“I know. I’m just intrigued.
Maybe I can buy it?” I chuckle.

“It’s on the market for one,
seven, seven five.” I look up at him in confusion. That’s way too cheap;
somebody must have put it up wrong. “One million, seven hundred and seventy
five,” he clarifies.
Whoa!

I swallow hard and cross my arms.
“Guess I won’t be buying it,” I grumble as I walk over to the large bespoke
kitchen, Tristan follows me. “But I’ll be dreaming about this place for weeks,
I’ve never walked around a house so big. Maybe the rich really are happy if
they’re living in huge places like this?” I mumble to myself.

“What does that mean?” He half
chuckles. I moan, instantly wishing I hadn’t said anything.