To Rome, With Love Page 7

  ‘Thanks, Miles. In fact, that’s pretty much what Paul came along to say to me as well. I’m grateful to you both but, so far so good, as we were saying. It’s reassuring to know I’ve got two men on hand to help out if we run into trouble.’

  ‘Paul offered to help?’ Miles sounded amazed and Sarah decided she could maybe help Paul’s case a little here.

  ‘Yes, and like I say, I’m grateful to you both. I get the impression he’s really looking forward to coming into the business.’ She heard what sounded like a grunt from Miles, but no other comment, so she added another bit of icing to the cake. ‘So, he’s going to be working in the US?’

  ‘Yes, thank goodness.’

  ‘Why, thank goodness?’

  There was a pause, during which Sarah wondered if she had gone a bit too far. ‘He and I haven’t been hitting it off too well, to be honest.’ There was another pause before he changed the subject. ‘Anyway, that’s going to have to sort itself out. It’ll be fine, I’m sure. So, is today going to be all flat again?’

  Sarah took the hint and kept off the subject of business and Paul. Clearly, the two brothers needed to iron their relationship out. She replied to his question. ‘Yes, as a pancake. The closest to a hill is going to be a railway bridge, I would imagine. Have you been to Ferrara before?’

  ‘No, but I’m really looking forward to it.’ Sarah was surprised, and pleased, to hear animation in his voice. ‘It’s one of the oldest university towns in the world. Did you know Copernicus studied there?’

  ‘No, I didn’t. Have you been reading up on the place?’

  ‘Yeah, last night.’

  ‘When you couldn’t sleep?’

  ‘Yes, you know how it is.’ She certainly did know how it was and memories of her own broken night returned. She thought for a moment about commenting further, but decided to return to a safer topic. She glanced across at him. ‘From the look of your leg muscles, you do quite a bit of cycling.’

  He nodded. ‘Yes and no. I’ve been spending a lot of time on a static bike but, living in New York, it hasn’t been that easy to find quiet roads to do a long ride. Now I’m back in London I’m planning to try and get out more.’ He looked across at her. ‘I hear you do a lot of cycling. Where do you go for longer runs?’

  Sarah reeled off a few routes and then made him an offer. ‘If you like, I can take you out some time and show you.’ If she had been expecting grateful acceptance, she was to be disappointed. After a few seconds hesitation, he cleared his throat and gave a brief reply.

  ‘Thanks, you never know.’ And then, without another word, he accelerated away from her up the line, leaving her feeling more than a little miffed at his abrupt departure.

  Sarah spent quite a bit of the morning wondering why he had been so terse and what sort of rough patch he might have encountered, but she knew full well she wasn’t going to ask him. It was nothing to do with her and, besides, part of her respected him for wanting to keep his private life private, just as she was trying to do.

  They stopped for their mid-morning break in the little town of Adria, just north of the River Po. They sat outside a café set alongside the brown waters of a canal running parallel to the mighty river, protected from the sun by a wide, and very welcome, awning. Even at that time of day, the temperature was already in the high twenties and heading steadily upwards. As the others relaxed, Sarah noticed Miles pacing up and down, his phone to his ear. She caught Paul’s eye and he shrugged his shoulders.

  During the course of the morning, she had discovered that she had been the only one to have aircon problems the previous night and, although this had made for a broken night for her, she felt pleased everybody else had been satisfied with the hotel. So far so good, as Miles would say, she thought to herself as she sipped her cappuccino and chatted to Lars and Diana, who were quite evidently getting on very well. As they got up to leave, Paul walked casually past Sarah and murmured in her ear. ‘Change of bet. My money’s on Lars and Diana getting it together.’ He had the good sense to keep walking before she could retort.

  The only casualty was Dan, the American, who was complaining of a sore knee and opted to spend the afternoon in the van with Polly. As far as Sarah could see, he was walking quite normally, so she hoped it wouldn’t prove to be serious. For her part, Polly looked pleased to have the company.

  With just a single puncture to delay them briefly, they rolled into Ferrara at just after four, with one hundred and five kilometres on the clock. Although the route had been all flat, the heat had been oppressive, and they were all glad to reach their destination. The city was very busy, but remarkably bike friendly, with dedicated cycle paths alongside many of the roads. All around them as they rode into town there were people on bikes. Clearly, this was the way to travel in Ferrara. Many of the narrow streets in the centre of town were traffic-free, apart from other bikes, and the winding roads were charming, the only problem being the uneven cobbles that soon had them all bouncing around. Chuck rode up alongside Sarah at one point and she gave him an interrogative look in the direction of his behind. ‘How’re things back there?’

  ‘As long as these damn roads don’t make the fillings fall out of my teeth, it’s been a massive improvement. That little girl knows what she’s talking about. Today’s been a whole new ball game.’ He grinned across at her. ‘If you know what I mean.’

  They were staying close to the cathedral, right in the centre of town, and because of the size of their group they pretty much filled the hotel. It occupied a lovely medieval building, made of mellow old red bricks like so much of the city, and the rooms were tucked around a maze of narrow corridors with uneven wooden floors that creaked ominously as anybody walked over the centuries-old boards. Fortunately, the hotel had a garage a few doors along the street, where the minibus and bikes could be stored overnight. As the door was slammed on them, Sarah reflected that she wasn’t surprised nobody had asked if they could keep their bikes out to ride round the town. One hundred and five hot kilometres had been enough for everyone.

  Once everybody had been allocated rooms, Sarah went up to her own room on the third floor and washed her kit in the washbasin, hanging shorts, socks and top out against the shutters to take advantage of the late-afternoon sun. Although there was no air-conditioning in the room, it was remarkably cool, presumably as a result of the old building having thick walls. It had been a long day and, after her unsettled night, she thought she might lie down for a few minutes. As she lay down on the bed, Paul’s words came back to her and she wondered yet again whether some deep, subconscious doubts as to the permanence of her relationship with James had been there all along at the back of her mind. Fortunately, for once, her brain then took a rest from churning over all her cares and woes, and she fell asleep almost immediately, not waking up again until almost seven o’clock.

  Tonight everybody was free to make their own dinner plans and she had arranged to meet Polly in the lobby at seven-thirty. She took a quick shower, changed into shorts and a T-shirt and headed downstairs a couple of minutes late. Polly was already waiting, flicking through a display of tourist leaflets by the reception desk.

  ‘Sorry, Pol, I fell asleep.’

  ‘I’ve a feeling pretty much everybody else did the same. I’ve been here for ten minutes and I haven’t seen any of our people. Even I was quite tired when I got here, and I’ve just spent the day in an air-conditioned van.’

  ‘How was Dan with his sore knee?’

  For a split second Sarah thought she detected what could have been a hint of guilt on Polly’s face, but it disappeared as soon as it had come. ‘Oh, fine, I think. At least, he said he should be able to ride tomorrow, hopefully all day.’

  ‘It must have made a nice change to have a bit of company.’

  Polly nodded. ‘It can get a bit lonely at times.’

  They walked out into the warm evening air and headed for the cathedral, the walls of the houses still emanating considerable heat, even though the sun had dro
pped lower in the sky and the narrow roads were now, for the most part, in shadow. Even the swirling patterns of cobbles beneath their feet were warm. It had certainly been a hot day and, from the clear sky above them, it looked like tomorrow was going to be more of the same. Swallows whirled in the evening air, feasting on the clouds of insects released by the heat. They walked around the old part of town for half an hour, admiring the crenellated buildings, hidden squares and archways leading into other squares and narrow lanes. Finally, they came out on a fairly major street in the pedestrian area, not far from the castle, and saw a big café with tables and chairs outside on the pavement. All the tables were taken but, as they walked slowly by, staring into the crowd, looking to see if anybody was about to vacate their seats, they heard their names being called. Sitting at a table against the wall of the café were Jean-Pierre and Véronique. They waved Sarah and Polly over and stood up.

  ‘Hi Sarah, Polly. We’re just going. We’ve got a reservation at a Michelin-starred restaurant just along the road, behind the castle. You’d be welcome to join us if you like.’ Jean-Pierre looked as if he meant it, but Sarah glanced at Polly and both of them shook their heads in unison. First, Hall’s Tours expenses certainly wouldn’t stretch to what would no doubt be a very expensive meal, and second, remembering what Paul had predicted, Sarah didn’t feel like playing gooseberry if these two did have romantic intentions. Also, she wasn’t really that hungry, in spite of the long day in the saddle.

  ‘Thanks a lot, you guys, but I’ll be happy with something light tonight.’ She glanced at Véronique and caught her eye. From the look on her face, she was delighted at the prospect of dinner alone with Jean-Pierre and Sarah felt happy for them both. ‘But, we’ll take your table here if you’ve finished with it.’

  As the French couple set off to the restaurant, Sarah and Polly sat down in their places and took a look around. It was past eight o’clock and the sun was low in the sky, hidden from view by the buildings on either side of the street. The temperature was now perfect and all around them people were enjoying themselves, looking and sounding happy. Sarah sat back and relaxed as well, realising to her surprise that she, too, was feeling pretty good, certainly a hell of a lot better than she had been feeling back in England.

  ‘Hi, girls, mind if we join you?’

  Sarah looked up and saw Paul, followed by Miles. Sarah was especially pleased to see the two brothers together. Hopefully this meant a mellowing in their relations. The two men sat down at their table and Paul raised a hand towards the busy waitress, getting an immediate smiling response, while Sarah and Polly had been trying in vain to attract her attention. He glanced across at them. ‘What’re we drinking?’ He grinned at them. ‘Is Prosecco good for rehydrating?’

  Sarah shook her head. ‘We should probably be drinking water, nice as a glass of fizz sounds.’ As the waitress appeared, Miles made an executive decision. ‘Could we have a bottle of Prosecco, please, and a big bottle of mineral water. And if both could be nice and cold, that would be wonderful.’ He addressed the girl in Italian and gave her a brilliant smile.

  Sarah was very surprised. This was the very first time she had heard him speak Italian. Indeed, she hadn’t realised he knew the language. His brother certainly didn’t. Miles spoke it really well, better than she did. ‘I didn’t know you spoke such great Italian, Miles. Where did you learn to speak like that?’

  He gave her a smile; not as broad as the smile he had bestowed upon the waitress, but nonetheless a smile, and it illuminated his face. ‘I lived over here for a few years, way back. It’s inevitable you pick it up if you live in the country.’

  Polly was equally impressed. ‘What were you doing over here, Miles?’

  ‘Studying and working. I did a year at the University of Bologna as part of my degree and then came back a couple of years later to work in a travel agency in Rome.’ He glanced at Sarah briefly. ‘I’m really looking forward to spending a few days in Rome again at the end of the ride. I love the place.’

  Sarah nodded. ‘So do I, but I’ve only spent a couple of days there, mostly working.’

  ‘I’ll have to give you a tour some time.’ No sooner had he said it than Miles looked away, almost as if regretting his words.

  Paul and Polly then started talking about the following day’s ride and Sarah found she was very glad of the change of subject. In spite of everything that had happened to her recently, when Miles had mentioned giving her a tour of Rome, she had felt a little frisson of excitement. As she listened to them discussing the next day’s route, part of her brain was still trying to analyse what that little tremor might mean.

  As a distant clock chimed nine o’clock, Paul and Polly went off to find a pizzeria, leaving Sarah and Miles on their own. He looked across the table at her. ‘Not hungry?’

  She shook her head. ‘Not really. Certainly not hungry enough for a pizza.’

  Miles pointed across to an adjoining table where the people were eating sandwiches. ‘I’m thinking about having one of those. Shall I order two?’

  ‘Yes, why not? I suppose I’d better eat something.’

  After Miles had placed the order, they sat there in silence for a few minutes, watching the never-ending procession of people going past along the road, some arm in arm, all looking happy that warm summer evening. Sarah, too, felt happy. That afternoon on the bike, she had reached a conclusion. She found she was really enjoying getting back out there with tourists again and realised how much she had been missing it. And that had all been down to James. She suddenly felt like a dog that had slipped off a chain and was free once more. It had taken a long time, but now, more than ever, she was able to see him for what he really was; a control freak, and the person being controlled had been her.

  ‘You know something, Sarah? You look really good tonight.’ Miles’s voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned towards him, surprised at his tone and the smile on his face.

  ‘Do you really mean that or are you just trying to make up for telling me how awful I looked back in London?’

  He grinned at her. ‘I really mean it. I’m not just talking about your outstanding natural beauty, of course.’ Although she could hear the humour in his voice, she found herself blushing all the same. ‘It’s not so much that. I’m talking about your expression, your body language, your general demeanour. Like I say, you look good, and happier. Have you had some good news, maybe?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, no news, but I think I’ve finally worked out something in my head. It’s taken me long enough, but now I realise what I should have realised months, years, ago, and yes, it feels good.’

  ‘Boyfriend problems again?’ His voice sounded casual, but she could see the lights reflecting in his eyes, which were trained on her, and she knew he was waiting for an answer.

  She nodded her head. ‘Ex-boyfriend problems to be precise.’ At that moment the waitress appeared with two huge focaccia sandwiches and the conversation stopped. While they ate, she reflected on what she was feeling. Miles had noticed how happy she was looking and she felt it as well. And, she was now slowly starting to acknowledge, there were two reasons for this. Yes, there was the realisation that James’s decision not to go through with the wedding, whatever had sparked it, had in fact been the right one for both of them. But also, in spite of her resolve not to get involved with another man, and a sense of concern that she might just be on the rebound, she couldn’t deny the fact that she felt unexpectedly attracted to the man sitting alongside her.

  Chapter 6

  The next day’s ride took them along a fascinating route, south east, back towards the Adriatic once more, en route to the even more historic city of Ravenna. The roads were dead flat and at one point the computer on Gianluca’s bike even indicated that they were below sea level. The fields looked fertile and it was clear that agriculture was the main industry in that part of the world.

  As they were passing a particularly smelly group of farm buildings, presumably containing pig
s, Sarah was joined at the back of the group by Miles. She felt an immediate sense of pleasure to see him.

  ‘Hi, Sarah, did you have a better night last night?’ He sounded very cordial. Their conversation the previous evening had been interrupted by the arrival of Glynis and Jo, both full of the joys of Ferrara, and they hadn’t been able to talk about anything more intimate, even if either of them had been prepared to do so.

  ‘Yes, I did, thanks. What about you?’ She saw him nod.

  ‘Yes, I’m glad to say. There’s nothing like riding a hundred kilometres for knocking you out.’

  ‘So, no time for reading up on our next port of call?’ Sarah was pleased for him. ‘Nothing you can tell me about Ravenna?’

  ‘There’s lots I could tell you about Ravenna. How about it having been the capital of the western Roman Empire, for instance?’

  Sarah was impressed. Clearly, Miles knew his history, or at least he had a good memory for facts. ‘How long ago are we talking?’

  ‘Some time in the fifth century; that’s over fifteen hundred years ago. There are churches and monuments there dating back to those days. I’m really looking forward to seeing the place.’ They rode on in silence for a few minutes, before he brought up another subject. ‘Have you seen Gianluca today? He looks like he’s had some bad news. I was going to ask him about it, but maybe it’s better coming from you.’

  Sarah had a sudden fear that Gianluca’s glum expression might be the result of yet another night on the grappa, but then she remembered that she had chatted to him barely an hour ago and he had been fine. ‘Of course, leave it to me. Will you play tail-end Charlie until I get back? If anybody gets a puncture or falls off, just give me a call. You’ve got my number, haven’t you?’ Miles nodded and she left him there, heading for the front of the group where she found Gianluca riding along all on his own. Normally he was very sociable so this was something out of the ordinary. She slowed as she came up level with him and glanced across. Miles was right. The expression on Gianluca’s face was anything but happy.