Read The Pleasures of Summer for Free Online Page B

downloaded to her Kindle.
    They took their places at the table. Annoyingly, Flynn, who hadn’t bothered to turn up for the pre-dinner drinks, arrived at the last minute and insisted on sitting beside her. She gulped another mouthful of champers.
    The plates were presented to oohs and aahs of delight from the girls. Ravioli of Cornish crab, slivers of artichoke heart and a lemongrass sauce.
    It was beautiful – and tiny. Barely a mouthful of food decorated the oversized plates. After the previous evening when he had grumbled about the salad, Summer was suddenly nervous about Flynn’s reaction to the starter. He didn’t disappoint her. Picking up the single ravioli between his fingers, he popped it into his mouth and swallowed it whole. Gavin and Mike followed suit with hoots of laughter.
    Affronted, Robert glared at them and proceeded to cut into his parcel of pasta, pronouncing it perfectly al dente. He savoured the sauce like a connoisseur. Summer was relieved when the plates were collected and hoped that the next course was ready.
Plaisirs du Mer –
wild brill, oyster, scallop, shaved cucumber and wasabi.
    The confection arrived in an exquisite tower and she felt a small thrill when Robert’s eyes lit up.
    ‘What’s the green stuff?’ Gavin asked.
    ‘That would be the salad,’ Mike replied, eying the single leaf of chervil. There was another guffaw of laughter and Summer glared at them.
    ‘Mmm, green,’ Flynn said with relish. He swiped his index finger through the tiny green mound and raised it to his lips.
    ‘Don’t.’ The word was out of her mouth before she could stop it. ‘It’s hot.’ She tried to sound reasonable. ‘No sense in burning yourself.’
    She forced a smile. Secretly, she would have been happy if Flynn had eaten the whole dish of wasabi. She hoped that he might spend half the night in the loo. It might keep him out of her way for a while.
    Ignoring her, he sucked his finger without a hint of discomfort. The elegant fish course was speared and swallowed in seconds. When Gavin asked for a beer, Flynn announced that he had some cooling in the kitchen. She took a deep breath and tried not to glare at him.
    Robert carefully dissected his fish into individual pieces before placing them into his mouth one by one. ‘I see you like a little spectacle, Summer. I admire a woman who uses her imagination.’
    She heard what sounded suspiciously like a snort of laughter from the chair beside hers and she ignored it. Flynn was so going to pay for this.
    Natasha clapped her hands when the main course was presented. Roasted fillet of rosé veal. Summer wouldn’t admit that she didn’t like veal.
    Gavin swigged his champagne as if it was water. ‘A bit of meat for the guys. About time.’
    Summer could have cheerfully stabbed him with a fork. She sliced into the meat and pushed it around her plate, pretending to eat. She hated to think of the baby calves being taken away from their mothers.
    ‘Not hungry?’ Flynn asked before spearing her veal and popping it onto his own plate.
    Robert stared speculatively at them. ‘I didn’t realize that you were –’
    ‘Her boyfriend,’ Flynn countered without blinking.
    ‘I was going to say hungry.’ Robert laughed at his own joke. Fuelled with champagne, Mike and Gavin joined in.
    The evening was turning into a disaster. How dare Flynn act like this? And Mike and Gavin were almost as bad. A pair of drunken … Australians.
    It was bad enough that Flynn had barely left her side all evening, but to announce that he was her boyfriend? She glanced across the table at Robert. If she made a scene now and admitted Flynn was really her bodyguard, she could kiss her invitation to
Noir
goodbye. With an angry swish of her napkin, Summer stood up. ‘Dessert will be served on the terrace.’



4
    A knock came on the bedroom door. ‘Are you decent?’
    ‘No. But I’m dressed,’ Summer replied. ‘Come on in.’
    Molly surveyed the opulent bedroom and whistled.