Counterpoints (Counterpoints #1) Read online

  The walls that surrounded the structure were made of red/brown bricks – couldn’t get more British than that, she thought- it had a small and a big gate made of dark wood and she could see a sports car parked in the driveway. Must be his.

  The house was made of the same bricks as the wall that surrounded the garden and it had two floors and an attic. To Isabella, the best part of it was a lovely little porch at the front door. It was definitely nothing like the flats she had seen all afternoon.

  Isabella checked her outfit one last time, looking at her reflection in a car parked right in front of the house. She had decided to wear gray shorts and black tights with little stars on them. She had matched them with a white top and a long open cardigan, the same color of the shorts. The black, high heeled, ankle boots made her look taller of course but also slimmer. I wish.

  She kept telling herself that there was nothing wrong with her curves. Just because Christopher is surrounded by tall, skinny top models doesn’t mean that…she had nothing.

  Isabella rang the bell and, as she stood there waiting for him to open, she fidgeted nervously and thought about the conversation she had had earlier with her sister Emilia. They hadn’t had the chance to hang out, during the couple of days she’d been home because she had been in Naples, at University.

  But when she had called her up that afternoon, while doing some shopping in the city center- after seeing two, dodgy flats- she had been all ears.

  “Go for that look you love, the one with shorts and tights. You look great and so powerful in it, like a woman with big balls” Isabella had laughed so hard that she had gotten funny looks from the sales assistants. And then she had said:

  “Be yourself, just three times as much”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” she had asked, not having the faintest idea of what she was on about.

  “I mean yourself but more outgoing, more ‘let’s have fun’ than ‘I don’t know where this is going, I’m so confused’. You know what I am talking about” she had also made a dramatic voice, to prove her point.

  “Okay, I’m hanging up now” Isabella had snapped back.

  It had always been her problem. She wished she was the stress free, careless young woman that everyone wanted her to be. But the truth was she had never been one. Isabella always felt the responsibility, the burden of always having to do what was right, to be the adult even in situations where actual adults acted like selfish children.

  “You know I think he misses you” her sister had said to her, talking about their father.

  “Nah, he doesn’t” she shook her head, as if her sister could see her.

  “I think he does. He looks sad. You know you have to stop this, you guys are pathetic. Not talking… you barely see each other now… tell me what’s up, once and for all”

  “Believe me, I think he’s relieved that I’m gone” she paused and closed her eyes for a second. “I appreciate your insight, I do, but it’s something between me and dad” It was hard for her to say the word ‘dad’, she always felt she was going to choke on it.

  Then Emilia had told Isabella that she wanted her to meet her new boyfriend, next time she was around and they had said goodbye, just moments before she had chosen the outfit she was wearing for the night.

  I’m going to Christopher’s house, she had repeated to herself all afternoon, as if she was about to walk in the predator’s layer.

  How many women had he taken home? How many had he invited to dinner? Stop! She promised herself she wouldn’t think too much and just enjoy her time with him.

  Isabella rang the bell and the small gate and the front door opened at the same time and Isabella walked up the little pathway and up two little stairs with her head down, careful not to get rain on her face.

  Only once she reached the front porch, she was able to look up and noticed Christopher at the door, barefoot, messy hair as always, in a white t shirt like it was thirty degrees out – but really, it was boiling hot inside, with the big fireplace in the living room- and lose military, green pants.

  He looked so sexy, Isabella thought. If looks could take off clothes, he would have been naked by the time Isabella had stepped inside.

  But then again, so would she. He couldn’t take his eyes off her.

  “You look fantastic” he said and then asked her if she wanted to take off her shoes.

  She smiled happily. Those shoes had already given her blisters, after just a two minute walk from the bus stop to his house.

  Isabella enjoyed the soft touch of the carpet that spread all through Christopher’s house. It was such a relief to feel so laidback and at ease with him. It all seemed so natural in his presence. Easy and complicated at the same time.

  “Jacket, miss Bresciani?” he asked and she gave him her red coat.

  “Yes, Sir. Shall I courtesy as well?” she said with a very formal tone in her voice, making fun of him for calling her miss. Christopher took her hand and squeezed it tight.

  She smiled to the side and followed him inside the house. She tried not to gape as much as she wanted to.

  Just in front of the main door was a big staircase that led to the upper floor. The house seemed to have two separate front areas: the one on the left looked like a large study and on the right there was a living room with a big fireplace.

  Right behind that, was a wide kitchen with stools, surrounded from top to bottom by glass windows, that led into the back garden.

  The whole house was made primarily of dark wood and it was modern and cozy, with white and light gray furniture. It was amazing.

  Also, not the kind of house you’d expect from a single, ladies’ man like Christopher.

  “Your house is beautiful” she said as Christopher walked around the kitchen, looking for a corkscrew.

  “Thanks” he said.

  Isabella took a seat on a stool and watched him pour her a glass of red wine. A full bodied Montepulciano d’Abruzzo.

  “Did you chose the materials? The furniture?”

  “Yeah. I had a little help, but yeah it’s mostly me. Why? Doesn’t it feel like me?” he cheered with her and took a sip. The wine was strong and intense. Just like Christopher, Isabella thought.

  “It does but also I would have expected to find black and white or maybe shiny red furniture” he made a serious face and raised an eyebrow, as if he was saying ‘seriously?’ and she laughed “You know, like a proper bachelor’s crib” she went on.

  “Foreigners…I’ll just pretend you didn’t say the word crib, for your sakes” she grinned at that and he went on “What else do you expect from me? From a real bachelor like me?” he emphasized the word ‘bachelor’, looking amused as always when he spoke to Isabella.

  “Oh I don’t know… a fridge full of alcohol as any single, good looking guy”

  He stood there silent for a few seconds and then said:

  “I’m sorry what did you say? Cause all I heard was ‘good looking guy’” he grinned at her and she made a face.

  Isabella couldn’t help but notice how sexy he was, walking around the kitchen barefoot. There he was, a hot, good looking man cooking for his date, with that casual look and that intense voice of his. Was there anything sexier than man in the kitchen? Isabella didn’t think so.

  “So, what are you cooking?” she leaned forward on the stool and smelled spices and maybe meat or fish. She wasn’t sure.

  “It’s Paella, I hope you like it”

  As if on cue, he turned to mix the food with a wooden spoon. “Almost done” he mumbled.

  “It smells delicious, thank you” she smiled and then stood up. “Would you like me to help you?”

  “No, sit. It’s almost done. What’s that you have in your hands?” he asked and Isabella realized she was still holding the bag.

  “Oh, it’s a bottle of red wine and a dessert. Unfortunately, I don’t have a kitchen yet so I couldn’t make dessert but maybe I will from tomorrow. I have to meet up with a guy and give him a deposit tomorrow
morning, If I want the studio I saw today in Bayswater. I kind of wanted to sleep on it” she handed him the bag and he thanked her.

  “So you found something nice?” he asked, curious to know more.

  “Nice…I’d say decent with a good chance of becoming nice” she bit her lip and then drank a little wine.

  “What’s wrong with it?”

  “It’s a little cozy, too cozy. As in little” he looked at her intensely and she gave in. “Okay, it’s tiny, so tiny I have to shower next to my stove”

  “Sounds to me like there is very little to think about” Christopher said.

  “It’s much better than any of the ones I saw before” And she went on telling Christopher what kind of a jungle was London for common people like her.

  She had seen a place where there were rats, for sure. Evidence- let’s call it ‘evidence’ -was everywhere.

  Another house was too far from transport and the area looked a little dodgy. The third one was okay but she had to share it with a guy. Isabella didn’t feel comfortable enough, especially with her being away so often.

  In the end, this studio apartment didn’t look that bad considering the others.

  They sat down to eat dinner, both looking up from their food every now and then, smiling at each other.

  “I bet every woman you brought here said this to you, but I love this place. It’s great” she smiled at him at some point.

  She put down her fork, unable to eat more. It had been a delicious dinner. Handsome, good sense of humor, passionate, knows how to cook…where is the flaw? You know exactly his flaw.

  “I don’t know, you are the first woman that comes here, besides my mom and Rita of course” he shrugged, like he had just said the most normal thing ever.

  “Yeah, sure”

  “What?” he asked, with the best angel face he could pull.

  “Oh come on. You must have taken girls here” she doubted he was being honest but then he explained.

  “I’m never home. I’m always surrounded by people so when I’m here, in my house, I like to be alone or with people I care about”

  They studied one another, Isabella pleased to hear that he considered her a person he cared about.

  “No parties?” she insisted.

  “No parties. I party out, in clubs, bars. Or in my studio apartment in Central London”

  “Studio? You have a studio, too?” she gaped at him incredulous.

  “Yes. It’s where I hang out when I want people around or when I don’t feel like driving back here” then he changed the subject, before Isabella’s curiosity took the lead “Would you like a tour of the house?”

  Isabella nodded enthused and helped him quickly clean up the table.

  “This way” he said and guided her through the ground floor.

  In addition to the kitchen and living room, there were two bathrooms and a big study with books and a sound system on the floor. Christopher had a huge selection of music albums from the fifties onwards.

  “This is amazing” she looked around and took in the number of books and music on the walls. They were all stashed on wooden shelves, which were so full of stuff, that the albums and the books seemed to magically pop out of the brick wall. The wooden shelves were nowhere to be seen, expect for the sides.

  “Music is my second greatest love, after cars of course. Would you like to listen to something?” he looked at her amused as she wondered around the room, looking for a particular record. The music albums were divided according to the year of publication.

  “Ohhh. This one” she pointed and he reached for the album. It was the record of a popular rock star in the seventies and, the song Isabella wanted to listen to, was one of his greatest hits.

  The song was about a man who had been totally bewitched by this mysterious woman, but he had a very negative opinion of love. Love was dangerous, tricky, a game between two players and there can only be one winner. The woman in the song had cast a spell on him, making him lose his mind. For love.

  Christopher gave her a look but Isabella kept her face blank. She loved that song, always had and it now made her think of Christopher. How crazy it was, this attraction between them. He was everything she wasn’t looking for in a man and she was so normal, too normal –and maybe boring- for a man like him.

  Still there was a powerful connection between them and Isabella started to see it wasn’t just physical. Whatever it was, it was strong, something vital and yet so deadly. It could end up in nothing and leave them both hurt. Especially me, she thought.

  Without saying another word, Christopher put the song on and took her hand. He made her spin and then caught her so dramatically. She blushed and looked down, as they danced a little.

  When he trailed his fingers up and down her back and smiled to the side, Isabella looked up and smirked at him.

  “You know Christopher, you can stop trying to seduce me. We already did the dancing, in Valencia remember?” she giggled, as he tightened his hand on her back.

  “You want me to seduce you?” he smiled to the side again, after laughing at Isabella’s words.

  She was really something. Leave it to a smart ass like her, to crack a joke in a time like that. It was then that Christopher realized –seeing her blush under his touch- that he and Isabella were very similar in that.

  She made a joke maybe to push away the awkwardness of the situation. They were getting closer, not only physically while dancing, but also emotionally.

  No, the situation wasn’t awkward, Christopher thought. It was intimate.

  When things got too intense, Christopher too would do his best to laugh it off and try to ease the situation. That was just what Isabella was doing. She liked him.

  “I like this song” he broke the silence, after a while they were dancing.

  “It’s a sad song” she said, agreeing with him. That was what it made it so beautiful. “Have you ever been in love?” she asked and Isabella wanted to kick herself all night for being so upfront.

  What was it with her being so bold? Maybe Christopher didn’t want to answer that.

  “Don’t answer that if you don’t feel like it. I was just thinking about the song…” Yeah, sure, sure.

  “No, it’s okay” he didn’t look surprised or offended “I thought I was once, but now I know I wasn’t”

  “Oh…” Isabella bit her lip, refraining to ask more.

  She knew it was best not to pressure him, but the more she spent time with Christopher, the more she felt emotionally attached to him and it was so hard not to be interested in his life. Past and present.

  To her surprise, Christopher read her mind “She broke my heart in the worse possible way”

  Isabella didn’t know what to say. How? Who could do such a thing? Christopher, being dumped and hurt by a woman. Isabella just couldn’t believe that these things happened to people as perfect as Christopher.

  “I’m sorry” she said, placing her lips on his shoulder.

  “She used me to get where she wanted. Now she’s rich”

  “That’s terrible. How can you not hate a person like that” Isabella was outraged. She looked for the same reaction in Christopher’s eyes, but saw none and then of course she realized that he was probably used to it. He had been used before.

  “I don’t” he said simply, shocking Isabella.

  “How?”

  “I have more important things to think about. Like racing. It’s not worth focusing on people like that” he sounded so calm, no anger or regrets.

  “Well, I admire you for that. I would never be able to let it go like that, to forgive or just turn the other way” and immediately thoughts of her father, cheating on her mother came back to mind. Isabella pushed them away, hard, as hard as she could.

  “It’s not an ability. It’s a decision. People make mistakes, I just want to turn the other way and live my life”

  “But how can you trust people again after something like that?”

  Christopher smil
ed a little and tilted his head back, as if taking in the weight of the world.

  “How can you live a life without trust?”

  Isabella had no idea. How? Had that been her problem all along? Was she living a life without really trusting anyone? Had she pushed away every person that cared for her because she had let what happened to her parents, affect her?

  “Well, thank you for trusting me” she smiled at him.

  “Don’t forget to courtesy” he teased and spun her around. The song was ending.

  Isabella caught her breath and said “I won’t sir. But there is just one thing left that is bothering me”

  “What is that?” he looked a little taken aback.

  “Who is Rita and why did she have the privilege to see the house?” he took her in his arms and kissed her on the lips briefly. Then he walked to the stereo to switch off the music.

  “She’s a very good looking, sexy, seventy year old woman, who takes care of the house” he said, while walking back over to her with a grin on his face.

  Christopher explained how he had known Rita for years, since he started living on his own in London. She would come over and clean and tidy the house when Christopher was away.

  He didn’t show it to Isabella, but Christopher told her he also had his personal gym downstairs in the basement. Logically, a guy who spends so much time exercising, must have the right equipment with him at all times.

  Then he took her hand and guided her upstairs. Isabella’s breathing changed as they walked together down the corridor and Christopher showed her the rooms.

  There were four bedrooms upstairs and three bathrooms, one of which was in the master bedroom, Christopher’s bedroom.

  She swallowed hard. She was in Christopher’s house, in his bedroom. Her hands were shaking a little. Understandably.

  The room had yellow walls and it was bigger than Isabella’s living room back home. Christopher had a bay window and of course the finishes were all in wood, dark wood. It looked like a bedroom taken from a magazine. Those perfect houses really existed then, she thought.

  On the way down the stairs, Isabella heard someone walking and opening cupboards.