Chapter 21 – Observations and Plots
Joey was very satisfied with how the evening had gone so far. She had known she'd have to haul out the big guns to make Richard understand that it wasn't good to leave things between him and Camille up in the air. Right from the first encounter with them, she had grasped the tension between these two, and the more she had seen, the more she had wanted to bang their heads together.
She understood Richard's fears – he basically was a shy, maybe even timid man, despite his pompous demeanour, and he was clearly not very experienced when it came to reading women. Like everyone, he was afraid of rejection, and when she had heard that he had attended a single-sex boarding school and didn't have any siblings, she had understood him even better. Plus, he had apparently been disappointed, so obviously his years at uni and the time after that hadn't been so great in regard to romantic encounters with women, and that had seriously discouraged him.
Camille's demonstrative independence and strength hadn't helped with that. He was fascinated by her, but her occasional wilfulness, her mercurial temperament and the way she apparently threw herself at life scared him a little – she seemed invincible and beyond his reach. He hadn't expressly said so in their recent conversation, but it had been obvious to Joey that Camille puzzled him, and he struggled to understand her attitude towards life – while it undoubtedly attracted him…
It was ironic that neither of them could see how similar they were in many respects. Granted, they had different ways of handling situations, but they both were ambitious and intelligent, they both didn't show their softer sides very often, and they both were stubborn and fiercely tried to prove that they didn't need other people. And there was more… they both were afraid of getting hurt, they both hid behind a façade, and they both were easily misjudged.
With Richard, most people just saw his meticulousness, paired with his idiosyncrasies and awkwardness, and if he was lucky, his brains were 'registered', too – and with Camille, most people didn't look beyond her pretty face, her athletic, well-shaped figure, her ready smile, and her charisma. Few people took the time to try to look behind Richard's obsessive, abrupt behaviour and realise that Richard was an intelligent, sensitive, lonely man – and fewer people yet understood that Camille wasn't just physically attractive, but also had a sharp mind and a gentle, almost romantic side that she tried to hide so she wouldn't get hurt or ridiculed. Secretly, she wanted to be courted, charmed and 'conquered', no matter how old-fashioned she claimed this was. She was full of contradictions – and that was part of her charms.
Initially, Joey had only enjoyed observing their interaction, but the closer she had got to Camille, the more she had felt her restlessness. She had realised that Camille was seriously attracted to Richard, but just couldn't get around his armour… and she had seen the softness in Richard's eyes when he thought nobody noticed how he was looking at Camille, the insecurity when Camille was teasing him – and his determination not to let on how much he liked her – most likely because he feared it would only complicate his life if he showed his feelings.
She had become closer to Camille than expected, and if it hadn't been for the intense love that she still felt for Timmy, she would have found it very easy to fall for her friend – in a way that Camille most likely wouldn't have welcomed. Not that she was homophobe – she was very tolerant about other people and the way they lived their lives - it was just that she wasn't into girls herself, that was very clear to Joey.
Camille was a lively, spontaneous and witty person, and it was fun to spend time with her, so when she had asked Joey to join her and go to the gym together, it had been easy to tag along, and from there, their friendship had evolved quickly. Still, Joey had felt she shouldn't tell Camille too much about herself – she didn't know how long she would stay on Saint Marie, and she thought it wouldn't be wise to talk too much about her past – after all, she had come here to start over… Initially, Camille had seemed to be a little reserved towards her, but that had soon changed, and she had never pressurised her to open up about things she didn't want to talk about.
Joey also appreciated Richard. He was so English; to her, it was like a ray of sunshine to meet someone who didn't only moan and groan about the UK, but who seriously missed their home country and had phases when he would much rather be there than here on this sunny island. She could certainly relate to that… And she had understood that – being the repressive, reserved Englishman that he was – he found it impossible to show his feelings for Camille.
She had overheard snippets of conversations between Dwayne, Fidel and Juliet during the afternoon at the Bests' house, and it had been obvious that they all knew that Camille had 'a thing' for Richard, but none of them was entirely sure about Richard's feelings. Joey had drawn her own conclusions from what they had said - and how they had said it...
Juliet was perhaps most optimistic of all of them – she had said that Richard wasn't like other men and that he'd need more time. Fidel had nodded in agreement – to him, Richard was a role model in many ways, but he had also seen him struggle in situations that appeared totally easy to everyone else, so he knew that Juliet had a point. However, he couldn't quite see how having more time would make a difference – Richard had been on Saint Marie for over two years now, and it seemed unlikely that he'd ever get round to making a move on Camille if he hadn't done so by now.
It had been interesting to hear Dwayne's point of view - apparently, he could understand the Chief's situation and – to a certain extent – his feelings – or what he thought Richard's feelings might be -, but was pessimistic for him to ever come out of his shell – unless someone gave him a swift kick into the behind. Part of the problem was Camille herself, as Dwayne obviously saw it, as she came across as overpoweringly strong and independent. Dwayne was a ladies' man, and while he didn't really fancy women who were mousy and quiet, he definitely didn't appreciate women who were too opinionated and 'self-sufficient'. In his own words, it was important that his flirts wouldn't latch onto him, but he wasn't fond of what he called 'bra-burners', either (he conveniently ignored that this 'type' of woman usually wasn't interested in him…). - So, his preferences were somewhere in the middle.
He had observed that the Chief usually was attracted to ladies who were a bit 'softer', and Camille's way of poking fun at him and getting all impatient with his mantra of 'following the procedure' didn't really help here. He figured that Richard was terrified of saying or doing something that Camille would perceive as stupid, and he'd lose face. Nobody liked losing face, and the Chief wasn't any exception there…
So, Joey had paid a little more attention to the team's interaction, and she had not only seen how Richard looked at Camille when he thought nobody noticed, she had also felt his frustration when he had stepped in on the scene with the young guys at La Kaz. She had realised quickly that he had only wanted to protect Camille and her, and also, it had been obvious that he had wanted to avoid a racket at Catherine's bar – he knew only too well that negative publicity like that wouldn't help her business. There were plenty of other bars in Honoré, and people were fickle… if rumour spread that Catherine's bar was a place where people got into brawls, La Kaz would suffer, and it would take a while to re-establish the good reputation. Richard knew that Catherine depended on the bar, it was her only source of income, and although he and Camille's mother weren't always on the same page, he cared about her and didn't want her to struggle. It had frustrated him when Camille hadn't understood that he wasn't patronising, but protective. He had tried his best, and she hadn't got it…
When Joey had followed him with the car, she had noticed how defeated he had looked. His entire body had radiated the frustration, the despair, the irritation and the disappointment that he had felt. The way he had literally kicked the dust with his shoes, the way he had clutched his briefcase, the way his shoulders had sagged and his head had been bent… his body language had been more than clear.
She had taken pity on him – she had been the underdog often enough in her life, and while her big mouth had helped in many situations, her bluntness and ready wit hadn't meant she hadn't been hurt. And like most – if not all – people, she also had been rejected and misunderstood by people that she had felt attracted to, and she could relate to his feelings.
It had been then that she had decided to tell him about her situation. For a while she hadn't known whom to turn to, but then she had realised that Richard would be the perfect choice. He could relate to her situation because of his background – she didn't know much about his personal life, but that was not the point here… he was a consummate professional, he could listen, and he was sharp minded. He seemed very much a black-or-white person, but that didn't mean he couldn't see or understand the various shades in between. She had listened to him talking about closed cases, and she had noticed that he had looked at situations from all possible angles, so he was capable of seeing nuances. He felt strongly about good and evil, right and wrong – but he didn't claim to be morally superior. And – last, but not least - he wasn't easily shocked. The last thing she needed in this situation was someone who'd cringe about her story, start to cry, or shower her with an overdose of pity. Not to mention give her a moral lecture…
All these scenarios were highly unlikely with Richard. She needed advice, not pity – and although Richard was compassionate, he was also solution-oriented, so she had known that he wouldn't offer useless platitudes. If he had no advice to offer, he would say so – but he would not play any games with her.
When the unexpected packet from her aunt had arrived and she had realised that it contained a letter from Timmy, she had been shocked and unsure what to expect, but once she had read it, she had known immediately that there was nothing else she could do but return to her. What else could she do? She loved her, after all, and knowing that Timmy loved her and wanted her back in her life had been all she had needed to know. Their subsequent Skype conversations had been almost heart-breaking… Timmy had been as wonderful as ever, and their feelings for each other still were going strong. So, it really was a no-brainer for her – she'd go back to be with Timmy and re-build her life with her.
But that meant she'd have to leave Saint Marie – that in itself wasn't the problem. She wasn't overly attached to the island, although she quite enjoyed life here in general. Once that she had got accustomed to the climate, all had been well.
Nor was Andrew an issue – he was family, and he'd always be there for her and help when she needed him. He wouldn't make a song and a dance about her leaving, he had never presumed she had come to Saint Marie to stay. Her presence had helped with his business, but he'd get by on his own, too – after all, he had managed very well without her for several years before.
The problem was that she'd have to leave Camille – who had become so important to her and had admitted between the lines – when they had touched the subject of Aimee's death in a conversation - that getting abandoned (again) was her greatest fear… She didn't want to hurt Camille – it would be cruel to do that. Camille had trusted her enough to let her into her life, and she couldn't possibly betray her like that and abandon her… But what should she do?
Once she had spoken to Richard, she had realised that it would be entirely wrong and utterly selfish to handle the situation the way she had hoped she could… by disappearing and letting him explain everything to Camille. He hadn't given her any direct advice, but uttered a few suggestions, and she had realised that this was all she could expect from him – he would never say anything like "do this" or "try that" – he hated being told what to do himself, so he wouldn't come up with anything like that towards others.
So, without knowing what exactly she'd do, she had promised him to find another way – and after some thinking and mulling over the different options, she had finally come up with something that she thought might work…
Joey had spent a big part of Friday afternoon on writing a long, long letter to Camille. It had been hard, but it had been the only thing she could do. She didn't want to talk about it once again. It had done her good to talk to Richard because he had just listened neutrally. It wouldn't be that way with Camille, she knew that. So, it had to be a letter… Writing it all down was painful, but at least she didn't have to deal with an immediate reaction that way.
She hadn't gone into detail about the assault that she and Timmy had gone through, but she had provided enough information to give her an idea about how serious it had been and how it had happened that both she and Timmy had spent several months in hospital. She had explained how Timmy's family had taken control and how she – Joey – had been pushed out of Timmy's life – and how Timmy had found her and that they wanted to start over together. She had also explained that she didn't know where they would be going from here – where they would live, whether or not they would stay in the UK, and how things would develop in general… - but that she'd always value Camille's friendship and the sense of belonging she had given her on Saint Marie.
She had left the letter unfinished – she had wanted to see how the beachfire would go and add the final touch over the following days… Finally, she had called Camille to arrange the evening out together… It had been her reward for the hard work she had put into her letter, plus she had wanted to see if she could take a little influence on her friend, so she had cunningly made a casual remark about Andrew fancying Camille, but being too afraid to ask her out (which was the truth – Andrew had said so to her). That had been supposed to make her understand that she could indeed come across as a bit scary and to make her be more aware of her behaviour… apparently, Camille had no idea of how self-assured and dominant she appeared to be… It had clearly made her think – and Joey had been fairly pleased with herself. Maybe it would help and pave the way for Richard?
She'd never be a Machiavelli, but at least, Camille had got a bit shaken up. Joey had felt a bit guilty for being so manipulative, but didn't they say that everything was allowed in war and in love?
Tonight, she had also made a conscious effort to keep Andrew away from Camille, and much to her relief that had worked out. He hadn't mentioned that he wanted to approach her, but Joey knew her cousin well enough. He wasn't really on the look-out for anything permanent, but would take what he could get… Going out with Camille for a while surely wouldn't be any hardship for him. So, if nobody hindered him, he would try to find a way to get near Camille and rely on the sound of the waves and the generally 'romantic' atmosphere of the setting near the ocean, the singing, joking and talking… So, Joey had made sure that she had come to sit next to her friend and Andrew had to sit somewhere else. She certainly hadn't wanted him to interfere with her plans.
It had become a bit uncomfortable after some time because she had had a little too much to drink, so a trip to the bathroom had seemed to be the most desirable thing in the world for a while, but she had forced herself not to get up before the right moment had come – Richard had to be there to take her place so he and Camille could sit together… she had hoped that things would develop from there without further intervention.
And her plan had worked out… With satisfaction, she had noticed how Richard had put his arm around Camille's shoulder and how she had leant on him… there was hope for them, after all… Now she'd only have to find a way to persuade everyone to leave these two alone later on.
Well, she'd see what she could do…