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.She was not going to look like her, either.At least she'd won that argument, Kristy thought with grimsatisfaction, glancing down at the clothes she was wearing.Thelong-sleeved blouse and trouser pants were royal blue and thematching vest and belt had clever turquoise and green inserts whichgave the outfit an eye-catching attraction.Nothing neutral about thischoice.Her shoes matched it, too, suede shoes dyed royal blue withswirls of green. She now had a whole new bagful of such clothes all at Armand'sexpense.How it was worth the enormous cost to him she had no ideaand no longer cared.Let him have his own way, as long as she gotwhat really counted to her.Pierre and Eloise were more importantthan any amount of money."Tell me about your life, Kristy," Armand suddenly invited.They were out of Paris, driving through the countryside, with a lot oftime to fill in.Kristy didn't mind recounting the main events of herlife, the countries she'd lived in through John's various postings, theodd schooling she'd had because of their many moves, how she'dcaught up on her education when they were finally based in theUnited States, then choosing a career in nursing."Is there no man in your life?" he eventually asked, shooting her asharply probing look.Probably wondering how long she'd want to stay at Crecy with thechildren, Kristy surmised."Not at the foment.John was so ill duringhis last months, I had no time for anything but nursing him," sheexplained."It must have been very difficult," he said sympathetically."I didn't begrudge any of that time."He nodded."You are a very caring person."The words were accompanied by a smile that scrambled Kristy'smind and stirred a host of treacherous yearnings in her heart.Shefound herself fiercely envying her sister's intimacy with this man,envying Charmaine.He was so lethally attractive when he wanted tobe.Even when he wasn't trying, the tug was still there.Nothingseemed to block it. "How is it you speak such perfect French?" he queried, and Kristywas intensely grateful for the distraction from her wayward feelings."As I said, John spent several years in the Philippines.We used to goto Noumea for vacations.""Ah, New Caledonia.""Yes.French is spoken there.I found it very easy to pick up and I keptan interest in the language.Studying it.Betty bought me tapes.And Ihave been to France before.Paris and Provence.""When was that?""Ten years ago.""Before I married Colette," he muttered.Before anyone of consequence might see Kristy and question heridentity.If only their lines had crossed then.a sense of bereftnesstore at her again."You were born French," Armand remarked."You would have heardit spoken in your infancy.Perhaps that was why you had a quick earfor it."This was news to Kristy."You haven't told me what happened toColette after the earthquake," she prompted, wanting to know all shecould of her twin's life.Might they have run across each other in Parisor Provence?"Your family was touring Turkey together," he started, frowning ashe recalled the facts he knew."Your father and mother with the twoof you, your father's brother and his wife no children and yourfather's parents.They were camping near the village where theearthquake occurred.Colette and your aunt were rescued alive one day afterwards.Apart from you, the others were found but they hadnot survived.""Why wasn't I with them?""Your aunt said you were lost in the chaos.Everyone panicked."Kristy wished she could remember."What was my family name?"The name she'd been born to."Chaubert."Christine Chrissie Chaubert.Christine and Colette."Do you know my mother's and father's names?" she asked, eager formore knowledge of her real fam- ily."Marie and Philippe.""What of my mother's parents? Her family?""She had none.I understand she was Irish.An orphan.Philippe hadmet her in the Peace Corps."An orphan like her daughters, Kristy thought sadly."Your aunt adopted Colette and brought her home to France,"Armand went on, supplying the information he could give."Hername was Odile and she could not have children herself, due toinjuries she sustained in the earthquake.Eventually she married avigneron a widower with grown-up children Auguste Deschamp.His vineyard is near Bordeaux.Odile saw Colette married to me, butdied two years afterwards." Another loss."Was Colette close to her stepfather or his children?"Kristy asked, wondering if those connections could have been helpfulto her sister."Auguste was kind to her, but not close.His sons were much olderthan Colette.They were not really part of her life."No one for her twin to confide in then, Kristy concluded.She hadbeen right last night.Colette would have felt very alone.Though sheshouldn't have with Armand's family all around her, living under thesame roof.Clearly there had been an estrangement withArmand and the fault behind that was very murky but what of theother family members? Had no one befriended her?Well, she was going where she would find out, Kristy thought,embracing an even stronger sense of purpose.It wasn't only thechildren who would get her attention at Crecy.Something had beenvery wrong there for Colette to feel driven to go to Geneva, especiallysince her husband had told her there was nothing to be found.In a valiant attempt to ignore the disturbing presence of the manbeside her, Kristy watched the beautiful countryside they passed onthis route through the Loire Valley to the heart of the Cognac country.As lovely as the scenery was, her mind kept turning to theirdestination and what she'd be faced with.Wine was Armand's business, and it was undoubtedly very veryprofitable to live as he did.When she'd asked about Crecy thismorning, he'd explained it wasa village, next door to the chateau,housing a whole court of craftsmen to work the vineyard and tend thewine.Carpenters, painters, bricklayers, mechanics, gardeners, tilers,electricians, plumbers, and farmers; all lived there with their families.The chateau itself, unlike many chateaux in the district, had alwaysbeen lived in by some branch or other of Armand's family, going back to when it was built in the first decade of the nineteenth century.Itserved not only as a home for the Dutournier line, but as a centre ofentertainment for special occasions.Wealth, power, very high social status, pride in his reputation and hisheritage.Armand exuded it all.His family undoubtedly would, too.Had Colette felt intimidated by it, crushed by it? Kristy vowed shewouldn't.She had a place there as the children's aunt.The poorrelation, maybe, but still an important relation.Poor.she frowned over that description, wondering if Armand hadinsisted on the designer clothes to wipe out that image, to actuallyhelp her fit in more easily.Was it a kindness or did he have someother stronger motive? The shock of your resemblance to Colette.hehad said last night.What did he expect that to evoke? From whom?I'm being used, she thought.Nevertheless, it did get her into the lives of Colette's children.And no way would she allow herself to be abused!It $as late afternoon when the Citroen turned into the tree-lineddriveway which led to the superb stately mansion which was theChateau Crecy-Dutournier.Kristy was prepared to expect a certain amount of old grandeur, butthe building still took her breath away.It stood in the middle of a park which, while not on the same scale asthat at Versailles, had a similar elegance with its expanse of lawnslined up with pools and fountains, and the precise formality of itsgardens.The chateau was three storeys high, and fronted by amagnificent flight of steps leading up to a central portico supportedby four gigantic columns [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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.She was not going to look like her, either.At least she'd won that argument, Kristy thought with grimsatisfaction, glancing down at the clothes she was wearing.Thelong-sleeved blouse and trouser pants were royal blue and thematching vest and belt had clever turquoise and green inserts whichgave the outfit an eye-catching attraction.Nothing neutral about thischoice.Her shoes matched it, too, suede shoes dyed royal blue withswirls of green. She now had a whole new bagful of such clothes all at Armand'sexpense.How it was worth the enormous cost to him she had no ideaand no longer cared.Let him have his own way, as long as she gotwhat really counted to her.Pierre and Eloise were more importantthan any amount of money."Tell me about your life, Kristy," Armand suddenly invited.They were out of Paris, driving through the countryside, with a lot oftime to fill in.Kristy didn't mind recounting the main events of herlife, the countries she'd lived in through John's various postings, theodd schooling she'd had because of their many moves, how she'dcaught up on her education when they were finally based in theUnited States, then choosing a career in nursing."Is there no man in your life?" he eventually asked, shooting her asharply probing look.Probably wondering how long she'd want to stay at Crecy with thechildren, Kristy surmised."Not at the foment.John was so ill duringhis last months, I had no time for anything but nursing him," sheexplained."It must have been very difficult," he said sympathetically."I didn't begrudge any of that time."He nodded."You are a very caring person."The words were accompanied by a smile that scrambled Kristy'smind and stirred a host of treacherous yearnings in her heart.Shefound herself fiercely envying her sister's intimacy with this man,envying Charmaine.He was so lethally attractive when he wanted tobe.Even when he wasn't trying, the tug was still there.Nothingseemed to block it. "How is it you speak such perfect French?" he queried, and Kristywas intensely grateful for the distraction from her wayward feelings."As I said, John spent several years in the Philippines.We used to goto Noumea for vacations.""Ah, New Caledonia.""Yes.French is spoken there.I found it very easy to pick up and I keptan interest in the language.Studying it.Betty bought me tapes.And Ihave been to France before.Paris and Provence.""When was that?""Ten years ago.""Before I married Colette," he muttered.Before anyone of consequence might see Kristy and question heridentity.If only their lines had crossed then.a sense of bereftnesstore at her again."You were born French," Armand remarked."You would have heardit spoken in your infancy.Perhaps that was why you had a quick earfor it."This was news to Kristy."You haven't told me what happened toColette after the earthquake," she prompted, wanting to know all shecould of her twin's life.Might they have run across each other in Parisor Provence?"Your family was touring Turkey together," he started, frowning ashe recalled the facts he knew."Your father and mother with the twoof you, your father's brother and his wife no children and yourfather's parents.They were camping near the village where theearthquake occurred.Colette and your aunt were rescued alive one day afterwards.Apart from you, the others were found but they hadnot survived.""Why wasn't I with them?""Your aunt said you were lost in the chaos.Everyone panicked."Kristy wished she could remember."What was my family name?"The name she'd been born to."Chaubert."Christine Chrissie Chaubert.Christine and Colette."Do you know my mother's and father's names?" she asked, eager formore knowledge of her real fam- ily."Marie and Philippe.""What of my mother's parents? Her family?""She had none.I understand she was Irish.An orphan.Philippe hadmet her in the Peace Corps."An orphan like her daughters, Kristy thought sadly."Your aunt adopted Colette and brought her home to France,"Armand went on, supplying the information he could give."Hername was Odile and she could not have children herself, due toinjuries she sustained in the earthquake.Eventually she married avigneron a widower with grown-up children Auguste Deschamp.His vineyard is near Bordeaux.Odile saw Colette married to me, butdied two years afterwards." Another loss."Was Colette close to her stepfather or his children?"Kristy asked, wondering if those connections could have been helpfulto her sister."Auguste was kind to her, but not close.His sons were much olderthan Colette.They were not really part of her life."No one for her twin to confide in then, Kristy concluded.She hadbeen right last night.Colette would have felt very alone.Though sheshouldn't have with Armand's family all around her, living under thesame roof.Clearly there had been an estrangement withArmand and the fault behind that was very murky but what of theother family members? Had no one befriended her?Well, she was going where she would find out, Kristy thought,embracing an even stronger sense of purpose.It wasn't only thechildren who would get her attention at Crecy.Something had beenvery wrong there for Colette to feel driven to go to Geneva, especiallysince her husband had told her there was nothing to be found.In a valiant attempt to ignore the disturbing presence of the manbeside her, Kristy watched the beautiful countryside they passed onthis route through the Loire Valley to the heart of the Cognac country.As lovely as the scenery was, her mind kept turning to theirdestination and what she'd be faced with.Wine was Armand's business, and it was undoubtedly very veryprofitable to live as he did.When she'd asked about Crecy thismorning, he'd explained it wasa village, next door to the chateau,housing a whole court of craftsmen to work the vineyard and tend thewine.Carpenters, painters, bricklayers, mechanics, gardeners, tilers,electricians, plumbers, and farmers; all lived there with their families.The chateau itself, unlike many chateaux in the district, had alwaysbeen lived in by some branch or other of Armand's family, going back to when it was built in the first decade of the nineteenth century.Itserved not only as a home for the Dutournier line, but as a centre ofentertainment for special occasions.Wealth, power, very high social status, pride in his reputation and hisheritage.Armand exuded it all.His family undoubtedly would, too.Had Colette felt intimidated by it, crushed by it? Kristy vowed shewouldn't.She had a place there as the children's aunt.The poorrelation, maybe, but still an important relation.Poor.she frowned over that description, wondering if Armand hadinsisted on the designer clothes to wipe out that image, to actuallyhelp her fit in more easily.Was it a kindness or did he have someother stronger motive? The shock of your resemblance to Colette.hehad said last night.What did he expect that to evoke? From whom?I'm being used, she thought.Nevertheless, it did get her into the lives of Colette's children.And no way would she allow herself to be abused!It $as late afternoon when the Citroen turned into the tree-lineddriveway which led to the superb stately mansion which was theChateau Crecy-Dutournier.Kristy was prepared to expect a certain amount of old grandeur, butthe building still took her breath away.It stood in the middle of a park which, while not on the same scale asthat at Versailles, had a similar elegance with its expanse of lawnslined up with pools and fountains, and the precise formality of itsgardens.The chateau was three storeys high, and fronted by amagnificent flight of steps leading up to a central portico supportedby four gigantic columns [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]