Martine The Beginning (Cruising to Love, The Prequel) (20 page)

  Martine smiled. 
“This is fun, darling.  Doing all this with you.”

 
“I’m glad you enjoy it, Martine.  It’s the rest of your life.  Doing things with me.”

 
“This is the one of you,” he told her.  It was the first shot he had snapped.  Her back was arched.  It was so erotic. Her leg was tastefully placed so that some small degree of modesty was achieved…but her breasts were bare, in all their luscious splendor.

 
“I want her to use this photograph of you, Lucas…” 

  Lucas looked at Martine.
“Are you sure, darling?  It’s pretty graphic.”

  Martine licked her lips. 
“Oh, yes, darling.  That is exactly what I want to wake up to every morning…you in all your glory!”

 
“She’s coming by at five.  It must be close to that now, isn’t it?” Martine remarked.

 
“Five to.  I want to be here, Martine, when you give them to Belinda.”

 
“Ah…yes…”

  They put the rest of the photos away and locked them in Lucas
’s briefcase.  Martine took

the tea cups into the back room to wash them up.

  She came back into the Gallery just as Belinda came in.

 
“Lucas, so nice to see you here.”  She offered her cheek.  Lucas kissed the air beside it.  “Hi, Martine.”

 
“Hello, Belinda.”

  Belinda looked around.
“Major building site.”

  Lucas looked at her coolly. 
“Yes, business is growing.  We’ve had to expand the showroom.”

  Belinda smiled. 
“Yes, my takings last week were very satisfying.”

 
“Oh, Belinda,” Martine smiled.  “I understand Lucas asked you to do a nude of him.  For Christmas.  Well, he’s decided to do a matched pair.  So do you mind doing his lady as well?”

  Belinda was eager to see who Lucas was sleeping with. 
“Will this be from a photo as well?”

  Martine laid the photos on the counter. 
“These are the poses we’ve chosen, Belinda.  As you can imagine, we had great fun taking these pictures…” She smiled at Lucas.  “Didn’t we, darling?  And after…”

  Lucas grinned at her. 
“You are a little minx, Martine.  A little minx.”

  Martine smiled sweetly at Belinda. 
“He says that to me all the time…I can’t imagine why…” she winked at Belinda…”Men…”

  Belinda was squirming.  She was remembering her conversations with Martine about seducing Lucas.  Martine had very neatly boxed her in.

  “So, Belinda, I’m going to let Lucas pay you, I guess you’ll have to make a different arrangement now, since you’re doing the two pictures.  I told him you only like to do male nudes, and offered to get Tom to do mine, but he wouldn’t hear of it.  Says he’s the only man who’s ever going to see me naked…”

  Belinda squirmed a little more. 
“I could finish these this week, before I go to Jamaica, I guess.  It won’t take me long.  How big do you want them?”

  Martine turned and walked back into the new store room.  She came back out carrying two stretched canvases, two by three feet. 
“I thought these would be good.  But I don’t want you to paint us, I just want charcoal sketches.  I’m having our bedroom repainted, I think with pewter walls, so that these really stand out…what do you think about that, Belinda?”

 
“Oh…oh, that will be quite dramatic.  Quite dramatic.”

  Lucas sat watching Martine demolish Belinda
’s hopes of ever, ever achieving any sort of intimacy with him.  A slow smile played around his lips…he was getting a taste of how difficult besting Martine was going to be…Well, he loved a challenge.

 
“I know you’ll do a wonderful job on both of them, Belinda.  You’re the only one I’d trust to do us both justice…”

  Martine smiled as Belinda left in a hurry.

  Lucas looked at her.  “And you look so naïve, my darling.  I don’t think Belinda quite knows yet what hit her…”

 
“If you’d given her the photo of yourself with the two of you alone, Lucas, she’d have tried to seduce you there and then.  You say that you are the only man who is ever going to see me naked…well, darling, I feel exactly the same way.  Exactly.

 
“What do you need me for tomorrow afternoon, Lucas?”

  “Shopping darling.  I need to take you shopping.”

  And he did. He took her to the shop his mother used to work in, and bought her three very nice black dresses, to wear in the Gallery with her black tights.

  Dinner with Martine
’s granddad was very pleasant.  Beryl, his new wife was charmed by Lucas.  She didn’t feel unkindly toward Martha, she couldn’t get used to ‘
Martine
’, but a granddaughter was not in her plans.  She was several years younger than her husband, too young she thought to have a grown up granddaughter.

  After the meal, the two women went to find the Ladies
’ to freshen up.

  Lucas took the opportunity to speak to Martine
’s Granddad.  “I would like to ask you for Martine’s hand in marriage, Sir.” Lucas said.  “I promise to honour her, and treasure her, and look after her the very best that I can.  I love her very deeply.  I promise you that she will still be entitled to wear a white gown when you walk her down the aisle of the parish church.”

  The older man smiled.  He had been watching Lucas and his granddaughter during the meal, and had expected this.

  “And when are you getting married?  Soon, I hope.  I’ve never liked her living in those rooms behind the Gallery, even with the security system.”

 
“Actually, I moved her into my flat yesterday.  I didn’t like it either.” 

 
“So you’re living together now?”

 
“Yes, sir, I have my own flat, just two minutes from the Gallery.  But as I said, Martine will still be an innocent when we married.  I want to do this right, sir.  My mother and father were engaged to be married when he was killed.  He was in the British Army and shipped to Northern Ireland.  He was killed three days later by a roadside bomb.  He never knew she was carrying me.  I’m not going to have that happen to Martine.”

  Granddad smiled. 
“I think you are a very decent man, Lucas.  Just promise me you will always keep her safe, and love her.”

 
“I promise, Sir.  I promise.”

 
“And when am I walking her down the aisle?”

 
“January 30
th
, if the church is available.”

 
“Why aren’t you just getting a license and doing the town hall?”

 
“Because this marriage is for life, and Martine deserves a proper wedding.  We aren’t rich.  Most of our money has to go into the two businesses.  But I can pay for a small wedding.”

 
“The bride’s parents are supposed to pay for the wedding.”

 
“The bride’s parents are not here to pay for her wedding.  And I will not allow you to, Sir.  I can provide for my wife.  It won’t be lavish, but it will be happy.”

  The older man smiled. 
“Son, I think Martha has chosen well…”

  Martine and Beryl returned to the table.

  “So, I’m walking you down the aisle on January 30
th
, am I?” her granddad smiled.   

 
“Your young man has just asked for your hand in marriage, and of course, I’ve given my blessing.  Beryl, I imagine you’ll be buying a new hat…”

  Later, at home, Lucas and Martine sat watching the news.  A scandal had broken in an unspecified Ministry, some minor officials had been charged with various offences and an outside consulting firm had been engaged to assist in the restructuring, an unheard of development.

  “That’s you, isn’t it Lucas?”

 
“Yes, darling, but you can’t tell anybody.  That’s how we can afford to get married.  The consultancy fee pays the basic expenses for us for the next six months.  We should even be able to save a little money…”

 
“I’m so proud of you, Lucas…” Martine snuggled closer and kissed him tenderly.  “So proud.”

 
“Thank you darling.  Your opinion means more to me than a million pounds…” He kissed her back, just as tenderly…”Now go and put that flannel nightie on, so we can go to bed.”

  The days before Christmas sped by.  The renovations to the Gallery were complete.  With the decorated windows, and mentions in the papers, customers came that Martine had never seen before, and with the new, higher prices, sales were five times that of the December of a year ago, when she had just opened. 

  She had Gloria three afternoons a week.  Later, in the New Year, she would use those afternoons to go to art shows, to view other galleries…but in the two weeks before Christmas, she used her free time to buy Christmas presents for Penny, John and Lucas. And small gifts for Tom and Gloria and Belinda. And to go a couple of afternoons to look at bridal dresses with Penny, who was going to be her only bridesmaid.

  They found a dress.  Long, narrow sleeves, with an A-Line skirt in a nice brocade.  It had a matching sleeveless coat, with a hood, lined in white velvet that Martine would wear instead of a veil.  It looked stunning.

  “Martine, this is what you have to buy,” exclaimed Penny.  “It fits you perfectly and you look adorable!”

 
“But it’s twice my budget.  I can afford a hundred pounds, and this is two hundred.  And only because it’s on sale…see the hem is a little soiled.  But I could have it cleaned…”

  Penny smiled. 
“Martine, I am buying this for you. I got a very nice signing bonus from Domino Records.  Five thousand pounds!  I didn’t expect it.  So I am buying your wedding dress.  Your mom would have paid for it, but

she isn
’t here, so I am doing it in her memory.”

  The tears welled in Martine
’s eyes, and she hugged her friend.  “And I’m taking it home with me, Martine, and will look after having it cleaned as soon as I get back from this cruise job the band and I have.  We can’t risk Lucas

seeing it, can we?  You
’ll come and spend the night before the wedding with me, and we will go in the morning to have our hair done, and our nails.  My treat!”

  Later, the girls sat on Penny
’s sofa and had a cup of tea.

 
“So, how is John?” asked Martine.

 
“He’s good. Such a great guy.  I wish there was more of a spark there for me, but…”

 
“But?”

 
“At first I thought there was,” said Penny, “but then I met someone else, just casually, and realized that John is not the man I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

 
“And?”

 
“Oh, Martine. The other man, he’s older, well, he’s special.  I just met him the once, at that Cancer Dinner, actually.

 
“I don’t even know his last name.  But it was just a dance, just a dance…” she said sadly.  “He never even asked for my telephone number.”

 
“That was Bertie, wasn’t it?”

 
“Yes, that was Bertie.  But, it was just a dance.”

 
“More like five or six dances, Pen, and he couldn’t take his eyes off you.”

 
“Oh, you noticed.”

 
“I noticed, and John noticed, and said that was the end of his chances with you.”

  Penny smiled a little sadly. 
“John still calls me two or three times a week, and he’s taking me out for lunch tomorrow before I fly to Miami

to board the cruise ship, but yes, he has stopped pursuing me
…”

  Martine got back to the Gallery in time for Gloria to go to her regular job at Alfredo
’s. 

  Lucas came in at just before seven. 
“How was your bridal dress hunt today, darling?” he asked.

 
“I found one.  And Penny insisted on buying it for me.  She got a big signing bonus from the record company, Lucas.  So she bought it in my mother’s place, she said. Mom would have bought my wedding gown if she was still alive, so Penny did it instead.  And she’s keeping it at her flat.  Says it’s bad luck for the bridegroom to see the wedding dress before the bride walks down the aisle.”

  Lucas smiled. 
“Is it lovely?  I’m sure it is.”

 
“It’s classic, and it was on sale.  After the wedding, I can have it shortened and dyed, and wear it to dress up functions.  I only have the one nice dress now, the one with no back…”

 
“And what a dress that is, darling.”  He took her into his arms, and kissed her enthusiastically, remembering how wonderful she looked in that dress.