The Runaway Visitors (24 page)

It was the opening of the door that caused them to draw slowly apart.

‘Sorry,’ said Amanda, but did not withdraw. She stood gazing at them in astonishment, so that they disentangled themselves and Victoria rose to her feet to face her sister. She was smiling.

‘Amanda, I’m going to marry Charles,’ she said proudly.

For a few moments, Amanda did not seem able to take it in. It was on the tip of her tongue to say: But Margarita is going to marry Charles. Then suddenly she smiled brilliantly.

‘Marvellous,’ she said. ‘I’ll be able to come and stay with you, perhaps come and live with you, and then I can see Giorgio.’

Victoria and Charles broke into spontaneous laughter.

‘Well, it was an honest reaction, if not exactly tactful,’ said Charles, and went to Amanda’s side and kissed her. ‘As my sister,’ he said, ‘you’ll always be welcome to come and stay with us. Your parents will have something to say about how you run

your life, I daresay.’

‘Well, when they go rushing off to Alaska or Tierra del Fuego, they’ll be able to send me to you, and that will be lovely. Of course, I do hope you’ll be very happy,’ she added belatedly.

‘Amanda, you’re impossible,’ said Victoria, laughing. ‘Go and make us some tea, darling, and we’ll all have it in the conservatory,’ and Amanda departed for the kitchen, her head (at the moment wrapped up, turban- wise, in a brightly coloured towel) beginning to be full of rose-coloured dreams concerning Giorgio.

‘I begin to be sorry for Giorgio,’ said Charles. ‘He’s a marked man. ’

‘She’s very young, Charles. The future could hold anything for her.’

‘At the moment, darling, it isn’t Amanda’s future that I want to discuss. It’s ours. You know that I’m going to Washington soon. Can we be married in time for you to come with me?’

‘Oh, I don’t know!’ Victoria went back into his arms with delight. ‘I haven’t savoured the present moment yet. I can’t think ahead. ’

‘You’ll have to, darling. You have to think about Washington. You have to think about coming back with me now.’

She struggled out of his embrace and detached herself. Unwillingly, she went to stand by the window, unwillingly allowed plans and problems to enter her mind.

‘Of course I can’t come back with you, Charles,’ she said. ‘Sebastien will be coming back from camp, and then getting ready for the autumn term. Amanda, too, has school to think of. They both go to day school. No, I have to stay here, at least until my parents come back.’

‘You see what I mean,’ Charles told her. ‘Everybody else comes before you do. Well, from now on, your problems are mine too. Barbara and Paul will have some re-thinking to do; and they’ll have to make different arrangements. I have no objection to keeping an eye on Sebastien, or to Amanda coming to stay whenever you want her; but I’m not having you responsible for the whole family. I’ll agree to you staying here for the moment if
you
agree to marry me in time for Washington.’

‘It sounds just too marvellous to be true, Charles. ’

‘I feel rather like that too. Washington with you will be much better than Washington without you. ’

‘And your lovely, lovely house at Fiesole. I’m really marrying you for your house, Charles. ’

‘And I’m marrying you to get a free model, Victoria, so we’re quits. ’

Amanda called to them from the conservatory that tea was ready. Charles and Victoria exchanged a long kiss before they went to join her.

‘We must send a cable about this to Mother and Dad,’ said Amanda.

‘And write to Sebastien and let him know,’ added Victoria.

‘And I shall ring up Jeanie and let her know the outcome,’ put in Charles.

‘Won’t everybody be surprised?’ from Amanda.

‘I don’t think Jeanie will be, but she’ll be delighted.’

‘We thought she was so
horrid
when we first arrived, didn’t we, Victoria?’

‘She was a bit unbending,’ admitted Victoria, ‘but we know her better now.’

‘We thought it was going to be one of our bad visits,’ Amanda told Charles. ‘We had had some miserable ones before, hadn’t we, Vicki?’

‘Yes. Do you know,’ she said, turning to Charles, ‘ that I almost didn’t come to Florence and Fiesole? I almost disobeyed my parents, almost decided to stay in London. It really was touch and go. So we might not have met at all this summer, Charles. ’ ‘And I might not have met Giorgio,’ said Amanda.

‘Perish the thought,’ said Charles, his hand extended to Victoria. ‘Perish the thought,’ said Amanda and Victoria together, united in thankfulness for their summer in Tuscany.