Hi everyone! I'm starting a long story instead of the other shorter stories I wrote. I'm still to finish a few though... I like writing a longer one because then I have more time for the bantering and tension between Richard and Camille... And I can also put in some other stuff. Hope you enjoy!
Just visiting?
Chapter 1
"There she is." Camille said excitedly as she smiled widely when she saw her friend further away on the beach.
Richard squinted as he tried to look at the pair of people in the sea. The sun seemed to be even warmer today.
"I thought she was alone?" Richard asked.
"Oui, she is." Camille nodded happily.
"But she's surrounded by people."
Camille shrugged. "She's a people person. She meets people very quickly." Camille laughed. "She could probably even make a tree talk if she wanted to."
"O great." Richard mumbled. Another one of those... The chatty ones...
"She can read you like a book." Camille said proudly as she looked at Richard with a smile.
Richard froze. Great, another one of those self calling non verbal communication thingy readers. As if surviving Camille and her mother wasn't enough already every day!
Camille smirked as she saw the shocked look on Richard's face. "Don't worry. She won't read you."
"How do you know?" He asked as they walked towards the tall woman.
"I'll tell her, if it really unnerves you so much..."
"So, is she as annoying as you are?" Richard asked carefully, hiding his smile.
He smirked at the expected glare that gave him.
"Even more so." She promised. "Kris!" She shouted as she ran the last few meters towards the woman that stood talking to the group.
"Camille!" The tall woman shouted and then there was a lot of hugging and water splashing around, sand between his toes and really a nervousness at meeting one of Camille's best friends.
Richard sighed deep as he pondered that taking off his jacket would be a nice idea in this heat.
"Ahh, you must be Richard." The woman said as she came towards him with an extended hand.
Richard nodded and shook her hand nervously. At the same time he hoped that she wouldn't notice that he was nervous, which made him even more nervous and aware of his discomfort in the sand, in this heat. The bloody beach really wasn't his natural habitat, but Camille had practically dragged him here. Bated him as you had it... Promised to bring him home with the Defender and then all of a sudden parked the jeep here to fetch her friend.
Richard looked at Camille's friend and reminded himself instantly not to ogle, especially when he felt Camille's eyes on him. Richard swallowed and could breathe again when Camille asked Kris something and the two woman began to chat animatedly. Wild gestures and everything. He sighed. Yep, they sure were quite alike. Great. If only he'd survive the days to come...
He wiped away the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief as he took Kris in. She had large, very dark eyes, almost black, a sharp characteristic nose, a square jaw and high cheekbones, a very pale skin with some freckles. She was a bit taller then Camille, almost had the same physique as she did, although her hips were bigger, but for the rest her arms and legs were as long and slender as Camille's were. He noticed how toned they were when she had put down the surfboard next to her. And when she took off her white baseball cap long tresses of dark curly hair fell on her shoulders.
"I've heard a lot about you." She said as she gave him a radiant, friendly smile.
Richard put his handkerchief away clumsily. "O, er... I hope... Good things."
"Only good things." Kris said as she smirked and looked at Camille. "Did she tell you anything about me?" Kris quipped.
Richard shook his head. "Well, only the last few days she kept on babbling and rambling about you, so yes. Kind of. You read people like books I understood."
Kris smiled at that as she shook her head and looked at Camille. "I do?" She asked astonished.
"I rather read books." Richard admitted.
"And you don't love the sea." Kris said as she eyed his suit. "Inspector, I really can't believe that. Is there anything you do love about this place?"
Richard stopped himself from looking at Camille. "Ahh er... Well... You know... It grows on you. I'm getting there. Well 'love' is a big word. But you know... It has it perks. And the people are friendly." He shrugged.
"Is Camille treating you well?" Kris asked amused.
"Kris!" Camille warned. "She loves prodding. Don't let her."
"I'm not prodding. Just some friendly conversation."
Richard took a few steps back. The woman were standing in the surf with bare feet and legs and he really didn't need to get that blasted sand wet and on his shoes. Horrible venue this...
"Richard doesn't like friendly conversation." He heard Camille say.
"You don't? How the ever hell do you work with Camille then? She keeps on chatting away if you don't watch out." Kris teased.
"Yes, I wonder about that sometimes too..." Richard stated.
"Well, not to worry. I'll steal her for a few weeks if you don't mind. That might give you some well deserved rest?" She said as she put her arm around Camille.
"I'm looking forward to that." Richard lied. Would that mean that she wouldn't come around in the evenings? He already missed that now. He loved having her around, even if they were in arguing modus.
Later
"Camille." Richard said surprised as she dropped a heavy looking bag on his veranda. He had just had dinner about an hour ago and hadn't expected her to visit so soon after meeting Kris this afternoon.
"I just came by to say hello. Kris wanted to see your shack, if that's okay with you."
He nodded and looked behind her.
"Then where is she?"
Camille looked behind her too out at the sea. "I don't know." Camille shrugged. "She might take a while. She's windsurfing here."
'Windsurfing?" He asked in horror.
Camille nodded as Richard gave her a drink. "The wind blew this way she said and she wants to practice. If it takes longer then a few hours I probably have to go search along the waterline for her."
Richard narrowed his eyes at her. "What madness." He blurted out.
Camille laughed at that. "She's just a watersports person Richard. You can't blame her. There are actually a lot of people who love the sea." She said as she hung lazily over his bannister.
"There she is." She said happily and pointed at a pink with green and orange coloured sail that landed horizontal on the beach now as Kris dragged the board a bit further away from the surf.
'O wow, that is amazing." Kris said as she walked towards them. "And look at this view! You wake up here every morning? Wauw."
"Yes." Richard mumbled carefully. He wasn't sure what to expect from this visit... She sounded way to happy and giddy about his accomodations for his liking...
"That must be so calm and relaxing." Kris uttered totally in love. "Is that a tree?!" She asked amazed.
"Yes I know." Richard said. "It's rather horrible isn't it? One might think they can built a house-"
"It's amazing!" She squealed in delight. "Can I?" She pointed at the inside.
"O er yes..." Richard stammered as he watched Kris being pulled as a magnet to his inside tree.
But Camille stopped her and threw a towel at her. "Clean your feet, Richard hates sand." She ordered her friend.
Richard felt something flutter inside of his chest as he noticed how Camille cared for him with these small things.
"Yes sir." Kris answered as she sat down on the stairs and dry toweled her feet. Camille threw a pair of flip flops beside her.
"Thanks." Kris mumbled.
"Do you approve now?" Kris asked as she put her right foot up towards Camille.
Camille playfully inspected the foot, pointed at the other one making Kris sigh and refusing to put that one up too as she already fled in his shack.
Camille smiled as she saw how enthusiastic Kris was about Richard's tree and how he himself didn't appreciate the large thing growing through his home.
"O my god. Your own tree in your room. How amazing is that?"
"It's in the way a lot of times... I don't find it very practical... To be honest." Richard grumbled from the porch.
"Are you ogling my friend?" Camille asked softly as she studied Richard.
"I was not ogling." Richard said in a warning tone as he gave Camille a glare.
"You were." Camille accused him as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"So nice. So cozy!" Kris talked on, totally oblivious of what was happening outside.
"This may take a while." Camille told Richard. "Beach houses are her dream since she was a child." She explained. She looked him up and down. A mischievous glint appeared in her dark eyes. "So you do like woman with dark hair and dark eyes?" Camille asked him teasingly. Before she'd only seen him ogling blonds it seemed.
"Camille! Would you behave?" Richard snapped through clenched teeth. "I was not ogling. Stop saying that I was!"
"What?" She shrugged. "You can you know, she's pretty. And nice."
"Of course I can, you're not my keeper. And one of you is enough, thank you very much." He mumbled chagrined.
"One of us?"
"One of you cheeky, crazy woman. I've got my hands full with you as it is.."
"Are you giving me a compliment?" Camille quipped.
"Where in those sentences do you manage to fish out a compliment?" He asked confused. "There was no compliment in there." He muttered.
"Imagine going surfing every morning before work, and then at the end of the day. Richard, you can cool off in the sea so well after a long hot day. It's amazing." Kris babbled from his shack in an enthusiastic tone.
"It's rather hot yes."
"Richard prefers to keep his woolen suit on Kris." Camille intervened with a teasing smile. She just loved that Kris got to meet Richard and that she got to tease him mercilessly. One of her much cherished hobbies.
"There are a lot of animals in the sea that I don't really fancy." Richard went on, trying to ignore his big mouthed friend.
"And the color of this wood is also so nice. Some plants would be nice though. And maybe a rug over here..."
"Is your friend redecorating my home?" Richard asked as he looked from Kris at Camille.
Camille felt her heart warm at him using the word 'home'. "Kris, you're not going to live here So stop it." She instructed.
Kris wandered back towards them and hung lazily against the door frame as she looked at Richard. "I don't know... You're single aren't you?" She asked cheekily. "I could be your girlfriend. Do I have a chance with you?" She quipped as she looked back at the shack, totally missing Richard's enormous shaming reaction and the blushing he did.
"Well he did ogl-" Camille started but got slapped by Richard against her stomach. She uttered a cry in shock as she gave him a wide eyed look. "Sorry!" She stated bewildered in amusement. Richard had never slapped her there. If he'd ever touched her it was on her shoulder or arm. But never anywhere else.
Camille did enjoy the moment. "Richard doesn't do girlfriends." She explained at Kris. She then looked at Richard's flushed face. "What was your type again?" Camille prodded. Would she finally find out?
"Yes, what is your type Richard?" Kris chimed in cheekily as she was near his wicker chair inside the shack again. "A couch would be really nice here. You could look at the sea all the time." She thought out loud.
"I uh... " Richard stammered awkwardly. Two of these woman ganging up on him was just too much. He thought that Camille and Catherine together were already awful enough. If only he could flee.
"Come one Richard, don't be shy." Kris prodded playfully from the inside without looking at him. "I can cook."
Camille huffed at that. "O, please..." She mocked.
"An egg..." Kris finished with a wide smile in her defense.
"Richard's type is Fiona Bruce." Camille told Kris in a happy voice.
Richard sighed at that. "We're just teasing." Camille said as she gave him a radiant smile.
"O the antiques roadshow! Well, who can compete with her? I could dye my hair blond? I'll give you a drink every night." Kris offered as she came back on the veranda again.
"I'm giving him drinks already." Camille stated rather heatedly all of a sudden.
Both Richard and Kris looked with raised brows at Camille for this sudden outburst.
"O, look at who's getting all territorial." Kris mentioned as she winked at Camille. "I got the hint Camille, thank you. I wouldn't want to have you as my opponent."
Camille opened her mouth in surprise and wanted to defend herself but Kris already spoke further.
"I'm just teasing Richard. Forgive me. I"m just so jealous of your beautiful place, I just had to try."
"Behave yourself please." Camille snapped at Kris.
"Is she that bossy with you too?" Kris asked.
'Yes, sometimes." Richard admitted softly.
"Only sometimes?" Kris quipped. "You're very modest. You can tell me you know, I know her. I know her worst secrets and her worst traits."
"Yes, well... I have to work with her later on." Richard reminded her.
"O yes..." Kris nodded, she understood. "It's better to stay in her good book then. I can imagine." She quipped.
"Are you having fun? At my expense yes?" Camille pouted as she crossed her arms in front of her chest again.
"Oui. I'm very amused." Kris nodded as she gave Camille a wide smile. "Thank you. You're such a good host. Putting on shows for me." She said as she slipped her arm around Camille's waist and pulled her close. Putting her face against her shoulder. "Don't be angry now." She teased as she stroke away the wrinkle between Camille's eyebrows. "it'll just make you grow all wrinkly and old."
Camille slapped the hand away playfully. "You little minx!" She snapped as Kris wanted to run away but Camille grabbed her in her waist and dragged her back. "You get to sleep on the floor if you go on like this." She threatened.
"Oooo, we'll see about that. I'll kick you out of that bed anytime. And otherwise I bet Richard will have some room for me." She quipped. "It's like I already know you, from the emails Camille sent." Kris said as she looked at Richard.
"You get out of here." Camille said as she grabbed Kris's elbows and twirled her around and pushed her back onto the beach, away from Richard. "You don't know Richard. And you're frightening him." Camille answered.
"I-" Richard began but couldn't get in.
"Is that all you've got? You've gotten slow." Kris said as she pinched Camille and quickly ran away towards the sea.
Camille squealed and ran after her into the sea.
"Is that how woman behave together?" Richard asked Harry. "Because I really don't understand..."
But he did enjoy seeing Camille so lively and radiant. Maybe he wouldn't be her teasing goal these coming weeks if she had her hands full with Kris's teasing. Kris seemed to be her match on the teasing front, it could be quite enjoyable to see Camille being on the receiving end of teasing for once. And maybe along the way... He got to find out more about Camille.
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