A Different Class - 3

Chapter 3

Rebecca had been handed a new contract to work on after the success of the last project, so she was extremely busy once she got to work. She'd waited all day for a vital phone call and it didn’t occur until nearly six o’clock, so she had literally just got out of the shower having washed away the grime of a day in London, when the door bell rang. Wrapping a towel around herself she reached for the doorway phone.

“Come up!” she shouted into the intercom as she released the door. “First floor, my door is open!” Then she disappeared into her bedroom to quickly dress.

When she emerged from her bedroom in a pale blue silk tunic dress, she tumbled into Nate who was stood awkwardly in the hallway, twiddling his thumbs. His eyes lit up when he held her, steadying her, “I didn’t know where to wait!”

"You should have gone into the lounge, I didn't mean to seem inhospitable." His arms were still around her and she was aware of the length of her body pressed against his, she felt unsteady, her whole body seemed to throb with what? Anticipation? She was so far out of the dating game that she had no idea what it all meant any more. 

As Nate spoke his breath sounded ragged and Rebecca realised that the contact between them was affecting him in the same way it was her.  "I would never think to be so presumptuous!"

She grinned, "then next time I'll be more explicit in my instructions!"

He nodded an answer, his eyes wide, and Bec felt as though she could barely breathe from this unexpected tension between them. In a dazed silence she finished brushing her hair, slid into a pair of heels, grabbed her bag. But then by the time he led her down the stairs, they were both chuckling, finally comfortable together again. 

The Italian was not only relaxed, intimate; it was also somewhere he frequented regularly if the welcome from the maitre’d was anything to go by. They sat in a corner booth, secluded from the main restaurant.

“What interests you?” he asked after she’d perused the menu for a few minutes and a waiter hovered nearby.

 She smiled at his choice of words, he was always so formal! She sat back folding her arms, “You choose! See how much you know me! After all you had two weeks of watching my eating habits!”

He smiled, “a real challenge!” He turned to the waiter, “I’ll take the penne arabiata to start, followed by a steak Sicilian - rare. This good lady will have seafood salad to start, and your chicken Alfredo is to die for so that for main, and a bottle of both Chianti and Chablis.”

As the waiter disappeared he turned to her, “so?” His smile was divine as he merely stared at her waiting for an answer.

Trying not to feel overwhelmed with his undivided attention, she smiled, “Sounds good, but I shall reserve final comments until I’ve tasted it.”

“It won’t disappoint!” he laughed as the waiter turned up with the wines. Pouring an amount for him to taste. Once he nodded at the waiter his glass was filled and the same procedure happened with her white wine.

“I can’t quite believe you’ve ordered two bottles of wine!” She whispered once the waiter had departed. "Are you trying to get me drunk?"

Nate chuckled, “No! Of course not! One bottle would go too soon, and you simply cannot mix your meat, cream and seafood!” 

“Of course!” she shook her head at that remark. Yet more etiquette that she was unprepared for. When would she ever be prepared for all this? 

He proceeded to tell her all about his previous day and the dilemmas of late public transport. And within moments their starters arrived. The seafood salad was divine. Slices of calamari, perfectly cooked scallops and prawns, dressed in a delicious vinaigrette.

“Ten out of ten so far!” She answered when he asked how it was.

He topped up her wine, “there’s very little on this menu I haven’t tried. And I love it all, though I think the Alfredo is the best. Their signature dish!”

She wasn’t disappointed, sitting back her hands knitted across her full stomach. “That was wonderful!”

He finished his last few mouthfuls of steak, “dessert?”

“I couldn’t eat another thing!” she assured him. 

Nodding in agreement he suggested, “Coffee? Or shall we go across the road for something lighter….a gin or a whisky?”

“A coffee and a sambucca are the perfect end to the meal….then maybe a little stroll to get the digestion working!”

He ordered from the waiter, and again they chatted amicably, but the tension became a little awkward as they finished their drinks. Suddenly Rebecca didn't want the night to end. There was something so appealing about Nathaniel. He was good looking, there was no denying that, and he devoted his time and attention to her. Then there was the fact that he was such a nice guy, so well educated, yet self deprecating of that fact. Where she wanted to criticise him, he was already there, laughing at himself. 

Then there was her reaction to his kiss, well not just his kiss, a hand on her arm was enough to send her off into a Victorian style swoon! Now the meal and any subsequent drinks were over, there were two choices really, go home alone, or invite him back to hers, for what? Coffee?

She wasn't sure she for 'coffee' and any indications that may bring, but she knew was she liked his company, loved how she seemed to be the centre of the universe when she was with him. She wasn't used to that sort of attention and she was basking in it. It was a real quandary, and if he touched her again...she didn't know which way that would send her!

“It’s still early, would you like a walk? Maybe to a little pub I know just down the road?” His words penetrated her thoughts.

Sighing with relief at the temporary reprieve, she nodded, “I need to walk off the four thousand calories I’ve just consumed!” And I'm not ready to say goodnight just yet!

Outside on the street, he took her hand, for a moment they both froze and looked at each other, when she smiled, he smiled too, and they started to walk. A man with such poise and elegance, a natural confidence in himself, was nervous about holding her hand, it was a thought that instilled a lot of confidence. 

“Tell me about your mother!” she asked as they strolled past some shops, the evening was warm and dusky despite being gone half past nine. The details of what sort of woman would tolerate let alone marry Sir Ed had long since intrigued her.

He was quiet for a few moments, “she was a nice woman, but never strong enough for my father, they had a planned marriage, arranged I suppose you’d say. It suited both families at the time.  My father as you aware is a chauvinist, not maliciously, but through ignorance and tradition I suppose." He sighed, "that sounds a ridiculous excuse to my own ears! Anyway, my mother was brought up to believe that her husband would always be right, and in charge. For that reason she was very passive, and became disinterested. She had cancer, and I think it was a relief for her. She just gave up. I was fifteen, but Lizzie and Henry were only eight. They struggled, and then we started on a succession of nannies, and I was away at school. I’ve got little in common with any of them now!”

She laid a hand on his arm, “That’s really sad! I try desperately to see a girl I was in care with regularly, even though she’s taken such a different path to me, it’s been important to me to keep in touch with someone…..I have no one else in the world, and that’s a scary thought! She's the closest thing to family.”

He stopped to look down at her, unable to imagine how it felt to be so completely alone in the world, apart from his siblings, his father came from a huge family, his life was littered with cousins, “so who do you tell your secrets to? Share your good times?”

She chuckled, “six months before the ‘project’ as my boss calls it, I still shared a house with Johnny, Lyle and Tara. They are my best mates from Uni, We shared a house in the first year, and have been friends ever since. I’ve spent every holiday, every Christmas, Easter with one of their families, to the point that their mothers fight over me, they all want the extra guest who helped with dinner, and the washing up! They're better than family sometimes, you know?”

He smiled, “I know exactly what you mean! You choose them! I have a few friends, but they’re more like colleagues, the only person I can call on for emergencies is Patrick. I think you’d like him. There is a bit of a ‘set’ in the ex-Eton circle, and I’ve hated the ceremony of it all. Patrick, is exactly. He's the begrudging heir to a very large estate in Anglia, as well as a huge manufacturing company in Suffolk...he hates it all, spends his days avoiding it! He’s on his tenth job in two years, because he’s not really an academic he seems to be 'let go', but as he comes with such recommendations and a reputation he's just recruited else where. He wants to manage his rock band full time, spends all his allowance promoting them.”

“Wow! A band? What are they called? Are they any good?” Bec's eyes had lit up, she loved music, and especially the rock genre...as long as it wasn't too heavy.

He shrugged, “I’ve never seen them, not really my scene.”

“Your best mate’s passion! How have you never been to a gig?" He grimaced apologetically, which spurred her to add, "Man you need to loosen that bloody tie a bit Nathaniel Groves!”

Stopping to stare at her he asked, “Do you really think?”

Rebecca nodded, “the next gig they play I’ll go with you. It’ll be fun!”

He looked bemused, “ok, why not?”

“You were right the other day, you really need to live a bit Nate! When was the last time you went on an impromptu holiday? Pulled a sickie? Got rat-arsed?” Suddenly she did pity him somewhat, he seemed to constantly have on eye on what was the right thing to do, whilst her life hadn't been easy, at least she only had herself to think about. She didn't hold a position that dictated her behaviour. Her way may not be any simpler, but she'd take the independence and freedom any day. 

He shook his head, not revealing how close she was to  the truth, “are you about to educate me?”

Looking up at him a glint in her eye she chuckled, “Sir Ed will have a wanted notice out on me!”

Cupping her face with a hand he brought his face close to hers, “and can I claim the reward?” 

Her mumble of 'yes' was lost in his lips as he lowered his head to kiss her. When they broke apart, a little dazed, she gripped his arms to steady herself. It could have been seconds or half an hour, she was that dazed and unaware.

“Now I can honestly say that I have never done this in a street! And never with someone as beautiful as you!”

Rebecca was trying to stay upright, his kisses were so devastating, “You’ve learnt one lesson that your father hasn’t….flattery gets you everywhere!”

He laughed and again they gripped hands and continued down the road.

Later after a few whiskeys in a nearby pub, he hailed a cab and they headed back to her house. On the doorstep they both paused awkwardly. This was it,  the moment she'd dreaded. But as Rebecca looked up at him, she lost all embarrassment and any awkwardness, “Do you want to come in?”

He shook his head, “I’m got a meeting at seven, then I have to prepare for two days of meetings in Paris. I can’t be that distracted tonight.” Rebecca instantly felt an overwhelming sense of rejection, he could have said, 'I'd love to, but...or sorry, I really can't', instead he was non committal, almost evasive. But Nate was wise to her confusion, and added quickly, “when I stay I don’t want to rush for anyone. What are you doing on the weekend?”

She shrugged, “nothing special.” She looked up at him trying not to let her disappointment show. “If it’s nice one of the boys may have a Barbie or something…..”

“If there’s nothing in your diary then can I have you for a whole day? I was thinking of climbing up Primrose Hill, having a picnic, then spending the evening in a beer garden overlooking the Thames…”

Glancing up at him she smiled, “Sounds nice, I could make that I think!”

He reached down to kiss her gently, thought that didn't last, and it was minutes later that he was able to muster breath and smile at her, “you have no idea how much I want to take you inside and…..well I…let’s just leave it at that.” With a regal bow, he watched her turn for her door, and once she was safe inside, she watched him disappear around the corner, waving before leaving her view.