What Happens in the Alps... (29 page)

As the song drew to a conclusion, she raised her face towards him. She saw the blank, emotionless mask bend in her direction and then she felt his lips against hers. It was a short kiss, but more intense than she could have imagined. For a moment she genuinely thought she was going to faint.

‘Oh, Alex…' She managed to get the words out during one of the quieter moments of the song. Then, to her surprise, he stepped back, took both her hands in his and kissed them softly. Without a word, he disappeared into the crowd, leaving her feeling abandoned. Why, she wondered, had he left so abruptly? She returned to her glass of water and took a large mouthful. Her head was spinning with the sensations aroused by his touch and his kiss. There was no doubt about it. Alex was the one.

She was roused from her daze a few minutes later by a man wearing a black-and-red-chequered mask that covered his eyes, nose and cheeks, but left his dark hair and stubbly chin uncovered. Annie did a double take. So Alex had got two masks? She wondered why. He was carrying a bottle of champagne and two glasses. The eye holes of this mask were wider and as he bent towards her, this time she saw the unmistakable bright blue eyes reflecting in the light and knew it was him again.

‘I thought you might like a drop of champagne.' She recognised his voice immediately.

‘You've changed.' She spoke just as another song started, this time much noisier, and she could hardly hear her own words. He took her hand and led her to a table in the corner, in the hope of getting away from the noise of the loudspeakers. He set the glasses down and filled them, sitting down alongside her, his thigh touching hers. She snuggled closer to him as he passed her the drink. She felt his arm reach round and cradle her against him.

He leant towards her and she thought she heard him say ‘Cheers', but it was impossible to be sure. It didn't matter anyway. All that counted was that amazing kiss on the dance floor and the fact that he was with her now. She took a small mouthful of champagne, not really wanting to drink any more alcohol. Then she put the glass down and reached up to take his head in her hands and pull him down towards her. Her lips sought for him, but this new chequered mask was much trickier than his previous mask. The twin wings that extended down his cheeks to his chin either side of his mouth protruded too much and she could barely reach him. Without removing the masks, all she could manage was a light touch of the lips, but she was content to settle for that.

They sat comfortably like that for some minutes, just happy to be together. It was well after midnight and the guests were drifting off to their rooms. She knew that the DJ was booked until one o'clock and it looked as if there wouldn't be many dancers left by then. She found herself wondering what would happen to Alex and her at the end. His apartment was only a few floors above them. She felt a naughty sensation of anticipation at the thought of what was to come.

‘I'd better do a last round of the guests.' His mouth was right beside hers and she could just about hear. ‘They all seem to be having a good time, but it won't do any harm to check. You'll be here when it finishes?'

‘Of course.' She had to shout.

He kissed her clumsily on the neck and stood up. Taking the bottle, he set off into the room. Annie watched as he made his way through the guests, stopping now and then to shout something into an ear or pour some champagne into a glass. A few minutes later she saw him on the dance floor, dancing with a tall girl wearing one of the hotel masks. Annie didn't need to see the blonde hair piled up on her head to recognise her as one of the German girls. But this time, Annie wasn't worried. She knew that Alex would be with her at the end of the dance.

In fact, in the words of the song, Alex saved the last dance for her. It was the Righteous Brothers' ‘You've Lost That Loving Feeling' and couples all around the room clung to each other in a last embrace. Annie felt Alex's arms slide round her and hold her close. She let her whole body press against his, burying her face in his shoulder as they swayed to the music.

Then a funny thing happened.

It started with her nose. As they moved from side to side in time to the music, her face pressed tightly against him, she gradually became aware that he didn't smell the same as before. It certainly wasn't an unpleasant smell, just different. Maybe, she thought to herself, he had run upstairs to spray on some deodorant. But then there was the realisation that his body against hers didn't feel the same as it had done an hour before. That was strange. And then there was the suit. From the feel of the cloth, this one was silk, while the other had been soft wool. Had he changed clothes? It was the strangest feeling, almost as if this were a different man.

She didn't have time to dwell on these strange sensations as the song finished and, after a pause, the lights came up. The dance was over. She and Alex stood by the exit and waved goodnight to the guests as they made their way back to their rooms until there were just the two of them left. Annie's ears were still ringing from the volume of the music before, but she clearly heard him as he lowered his lips to her ear and whispered. ‘Are you coming upstairs?'

She nodded and they went over to the lift. She still had this strangest of sensations that all was not what it seemed. When the lift arrived, Alex pressed the button for the top floor. Seconds later, the doors opened and Annie found herself outside the familiar sign marked
Direzione
. Alex took her elbow and they turned left, walking down the corridor until a marble stairway appeared. He led her up a dozen steps and they came to a door. He unlocked it and pushed it open. A familiar face appeared.

‘Ciao, Leo.' Annie bent down to stroke the dog who pressed himself against her legs, wagging his tail furiously. As she reached down to scratch his ears, she saw Alex remove his mask. He was perspiring and red in the face, but it was unmistakably him. Some of her unease left her and she straightened up, removing her peacock mask. She turned towards him and held out her arms. ‘A real kiss now, please.'

He took her in his arms and kissed her, first softly and then with real passion, pressing her back against the wall, letting his hands run slowly across her whole body. She abandoned herself against him, feeling the excitement build in her.

Then it happened again. He didn't feel the same. Somehow, the perfect couple they had made downstairs when he was wearing his golden mask had disappeared. Yes, this was a good kiss, maybe even a great kiss, but it was different. He was different. She jumped, as the realisation dawned like a slap in the face. He really was different. The man in the golden mask had to have been a different man.

‘Is everything all right, Annie?' She became aware that Alex was staring at her strangely and she struggled desperately for an answer. ‘You look as if you've seen a ghost.' He wasn't far from the truth. A sudden vision of Steve flashed through her brain and she felt a shiver run down her back. What on earth was going on and what on earth should she do? A movement at her feet supplied a possible way out. She pointed down at the dog.

‘I was just thinking about Leo. Shouldn't he have a walk, or at least a chance to go out and cock his leg?'

The expression on Alex's face would have been comic, but for Annie's state of befuddlement. ‘Leo? You were thinking about the dog at a moment like this?' The disbelief in his voice was palpable. She rushed on, jumbling her words as she realised she had to get away and sort herself out. Something very, very weird was going on and it frightened her.

‘I'll take him if you like. I've got an early start tomorrow so I'd better get home. Otherwise I won't be able to function properly in the morning.'

‘But, Annie…?' He was lost for words. Taking advantage of his moment of bewilderment, she reached up and kissed him on the cheek.

‘Alex? Just one thing… did you have two masks tonight?'

‘Did I what? No, of course not. But what's that got to do with anything?' He now looked totally confused.

Annie shook her head. ‘It's all right; I just wondered. Anyway, I really have to go so I'll take Leo down and let him out. One of the night staff will let him back in again, won't they?'

He nodded mutely and she made her exit, stopping only in Daniela's office to collect her outdoor clothes and her car keys. She and Leo climbed into the lift and she pulled on her jacket while they travelled down to the ground floor. She asked one of the porters to look after the dog and then ran for the stairs to the garage, stopping only to replace her killer heels with her driving shoes.

Chapter 24

Sleep didn't come easily to Annie that night. It had been a long day and a busy day, and she should have been exhausted, but her brain stubbornly refused to relax. Again and again, she found herself going over the events of the evening and, in particular, the dance and the kiss with the man in the golden mask. She now accepted that it hadn't been Alex, but that really didn't help. Yes, there were definitely a handful of men among the guests who were tall, dark and potential candidates for the role, but she failed to believe that a total stranger would have been able to involve her emotionally to such a degree. His touch, his scent, his body had all felt so absolutely right. How on earth could somebody she didn't know create such powerful sensations in her? And the overriding sensation she had felt had been one of familiarity, of belonging, of companionship. As the minutes ticked by, one face kept appearing in her mind's eye and stubbornly refused to go away. Try as she might, she couldn't shift it: Matt.

Finally, as she tossed and turned in bed, she had to accept that he was a possibility and consider him. Could the man in the golden mask have been Matt? He was pretty much the same size and shape as Alex, and his stubbly chin and dark hair weren't that different. She had never danced with him before, but she remembered Rita saying he was a good dancer, and the man in the golden mask had been a very good dancer. She was very familiar with him and she thought of him as a real friend so he qualified on those counts. But could it have been him?

It was surely unlikely. The last thing he had said to her earlier in the week had been that he was going to Turin to see the film people, and he might well be staying there all weekend. Anyway, even if he had come back to the valley, would he have been invited to the ball? Of course Massimo and he were old friends so, grudgingly, she had to admit that an invitation from him was a distinct possibility. But she had never seen Matt in a suit as elegant as the one the man in the golden mask was wearing, and she had never got close enough to him for long enough to recognise his scent.

But, above all, throughout all the years she had known him, she felt pretty sure that he had never thought of her in a sexual way. He had never demonstrated the slightest interest in her physically, and she had certainly never entertained the idea for one moment of becoming another notch on his rapidly disappearing bed head. Of course, over the past few weeks, she had begun to see a softer, more caring, maybe even loving side to him. He was always there for her, helping, supporting and offering a shoulder to cry on. Maybe, she found herself thinking, she had been so blinded by the sudden attraction of Alex, she had missed the signs. Could it be?

However, the most significant factor of all was that kiss. Annie could still feel it on her lips now, hours later. It had been a warm, loving kiss, devoid of open sexuality, but all the more stimulating for that reason. Whoever he was, the man in the golden mask had expressed deep and real emotion in that kiss. Surely Matt the philanderer, however caring and helpful he was to her and however good and experienced he might be in bed, could never invent something like that?

So, who the hell else could it be?

The other thing that exercised her mind over and over again as the minutes ticked by was just exactly where that left her and Alex. She had no doubt whatsoever that she had had every intention of spending the night with him after the ball. Indeed, right up to the moment he had kissed her in his apartment, that had definitely been uppermost in her mind. She found him very appealing, very handsome and very sexy. She still did. Ever since she had felt his hands on her naked body that night at her house, any doubts or hesitation she might have felt had gone, Daniela or no Daniela. She wanted him, badly.

And yet, in the space of a few minutes, everything had changed. How could that be? The kiss in his apartment had been a very good kiss. The attraction for him was still strong in her, but she had chosen to duck and run. What did this mean? At thirty-six, she knew she wasn't looking for a casual affair. She wanted more. Nice as it might be, she didn't just want a one-night stand or a series of them. What was it Matt had said? ‘Bonking like gerbils' was the expression he had used and, while she could most definitely see the attraction of a roll in the hay with Alex, she needed more. She wasn't a kid any more. And the man in the golden mask, without saying a word, had offered her more. However hard she tried to rationalise it in her mind, she just knew that the brief kiss they had exchanged on the dance floor had changed everything. Yes, she still found Alex desirable, but she also knew, without a shadow of doubt, that sex with him would be second best and, at her age and after everything she had been through in the past couple of years, she wasn't prepared to settle for second best. The problem she now faced was to establish exactly who or what the best might be. Who the hell was the man in the golden mask? Could it be Matt?

At last her brain gave up the task and she fell asleep.

The sound of the alarm seemed to come only a few minutes later. She reached across and pressed the button. It was half past six. She had been in bed for barely five hours, but had probably only slept for about four of them. She climbed wearily out of bed and went into the bathroom. By the time she had showered and dressed she felt better; still tired, but definitely better. A strong cup of coffee and she felt better still. This was the day the guests were all departing and she knew that some of them had ordered early taxis to take them to the station or the airport. She wanted to be at the hotel to wave everybody off, so she pulled on her jacket and went out to the car.