Hi everyone, thanks so much to SWEEPEASPATCH again for helping me with the grammar!
Thanks to the guest for reviewing and to the others for your reviews, they really make me happy. Here's an update already because the other chapter was rather short... Hope you like it.
Chapter 11
"Found some nice company?" Camille asked as she saw Kris walking away from the boats that were stored on the beach.
"Hi!" Kris greeted her. "Jim was just showing me his new surf board." She lied easily with an innocent smile. It wasn't really a lie... Jim had shown her his surf boards. That had only been hours ago...
Camille put her hands in her pockets and looked at her feet. She felt shy all of a sudden. And her body felt heavy. "I'm sorry for the way I reacted earlier." She said as she looked up at Kris. She noted that the pale woman had burned her face a bit. A fresh wave of freckles had been sprinkled across her cheeks and nose since she'd seen her last. Or maybe she just hadn't noticed before, in her anger.
"I'm sorry too if I gave you the idea that I was laughing at you." Kris put her sunglasses on her forehead so she could see Camille's eyes. "I'm sorry I teased you about Richard. I didn't know that it was such a touchy subject."
"It's not a touchy subject!' Camille blurted out defensively.
Kris raised her brows.
Camille looked away and bit her bottom lip as they began to walk along the shoreline. . "Who am I fooling anyway?" She shrugged and sighed deep. "It is a touchy subject I guess. For some reason. For some stupid reason. I need time to process that. Think about that..."
Kris nodded as the sea covered their feet momentarily. "We don't get to choose what our heart wants do we?" She asked as she put an arm around Camille's shoulders.
She received a glare from Camille.
"I'm sorry, was that too much to say also?" She asked as she let go of Camille quickly and put up her hands defensively.
Camille sighed and shook her head. "No, I am sorry.. It's just a really big off day today. I'm sorry for my behavior." She stopped walking.
Kris stopped too as she smiled. She shrugged. "It's okay. Just let me know when you want to talk. If you want to talk."
"My own private psychologist." Camille joked.
"Day and night." Kris quipped.
"Kris..." Camille said as she grabbed Kris's arm to stop her from walking again. "I'm sorry for what I said about the session thing."
"Yes." Kris sighed now too. That had hurt. "Why did you? Do I come off too belligerent or too much like a psychologist?"
Camille shook her head. "No, not at all." She thought for a moment. "I... I just lashed out. You were so sweet and maybe... Maybe it was too much for me that moment.. Too close."
"I'm sorry, I would never want to push you like that."
"Well the thing is... You didn't. So I need to think hard why I'm so extremely sensitive about this subject. You know I usually share everything with you." Camille confided.
"Everything?" Kris asked.
"Oui." Camille admitted as they began to walk again towards la Kaz.
"I'm honored mademoiselle Bordey." She quipped as guilt settled in the pit of her stomach. She had always confided in Camille too. Hadn't kept any secrets. But now... No. This wasn't the same. She was keeping information from Camille for her own good. And she would tell her later.
Camille rolled her eyes.
"Richard was asking for you at the bar by the way. I almost got him to wear flip flops to look for you on the beach."
Camille smiled at that.'You'd enjoy that, wouldn't you?'
"Very. What better way to pass my free time then to force someone to become a sea and sand lover?"
"O finally!" Catherine muttered when the women walked into the bar. "Tell her to eat my stew Kris!" She ordered as she breezed by.
"Eat the stew Camille. I'm going to shower and change." She put her hand in her side to hide the dark stain that was rapidly spreading on her turquoise shirt.
Camille's room
"It's so nice to be back here." Kris said as she looked up from Camille's bed. She was re-organizing her toilet bag on Camille's blanket. "I really needed this."
"I'm very happy that you're here." Camille said as she smiled brightly. She had missed having a female friend around.
"You are? I couldn't have guessed by your behavior." Kris sulked teasingly.
Camille smiled as she rolled her eyes.
"Can I ask you something?" Camille asked.
Kris stopped rummaging through her bag and looked up at her. "Since when do you ask permission?" She combed through her wet hair with her fingers and made a knot.
Camille sighed and dropped herself in the armchair opposite the bed. "I know, it's just..." Camille swallowed.
"What?" Kris asked sweetly. "Tell me?"
"I still have this job to do with Richard." Camille sighed. "I have to make him feel at ease somehow... Maybe I'm too impatient. How am I supposed to stay calm and put him at ease?" She asked as she straightened herself and fiddled with the pajama-shorts Kris had gotten her. She put her finger on the little dolphins that were spread all over them.
Kris smirked. "You're asking me?" She shook her head. "You're a good people's person. You'll find a way."
Camille shrugged. "Not when it's about Richard it seems... He's just so... I don't know... Difficult! Difficult to read also. It's hard to figure him out. Just when I think I'm getting there... I'm not...I just need some inspiration." She stood up. "It's like he's my blind spot. Like I lose all my skills when I'm around him."
Kris sighed. "Well, okay... Let's see.." Kris thought for a moment. "Maybe practice some light touching."
Camille raised an eyebrow and they both laughed.
"Okay, that did sound like I was giving you some sort of other advice. But I'm all business here okay? I think you just have to be a bit persuasive but stay sweet with him. He isn't going to move out of himself. So you have to do something. But not too much."
"O please. How am I to do that?" Camille asked as she combed her hair back into a ponytail with her fingers.
"Well, why don't you practice-" She started to laugh and received a glare from Camille. "Sorry, what a job. I'm sorry. I'm not laughing at you. I'm glad I'm not in your shoes. It's just a bit awkward I can imagine.."
"A bit?!"
"It reminds me of Simon."
"Ah oui Simon. Pretty, radiant man."
"And of course, so taken." She thought of Simone's wife.
"But it's not the same. You were in love with him."
"I wasn't in love with him!" Kris frowned angrily at Camille.
"Yes, you were."
"No, not really. I just... Liked him." She avoided making eye-contact and focused on putting her stuff back into her bag.
"You were in love with him." Camille decided as she dropped her trousers.
"Why would you say that?" Kris looked up at her.
"O come on! The way you talked about him. The sparkles in your eyes, everything in your body language."
Kris sighed as she let herself fall back on the bed. "I don't know. I don't think so. I think I liked him. A lot. But... Ahh well. It's complicated."
"Yes, it is. But not in this case." Camille smirked.
"Ahh really, you just have to be right." Kris quipped as she rolled her eyes.
"O, come on! You should have seen yourself. You turn into this giddy, clumsy school girl when you like someone. Suddenly tripping over your own feet, walking into things?"
Kris huffed. She knew that was true. "And I hate that."
Camille laughed. "I find it amusing. It's adorable."
"O you have your fun with it." She pouted as she stuck out her tongue.
They were silent for a moment. "Do English men even have sex?" Camille wondered out loud as she changed into the top that belonged with the shorts.
Kris looked at her surprised and then started to laugh. "Camille!" She chided.
"What? It's just a question."
Kris gave her a pointed look at that. "I think they do yes, thank you very much! Are you insulting half of my population?"
"Well, are they all this stiff and petulant?" Camille asked when she scrunched up her face.
Kris laughed. "Some of them are. And very snobbish. I don't like those men. But even they do procreate somehow... Children do exist in England, they have to come from somewhere don't they? So I guess they have the right anatomy anyway." She shrugged as she giggled.
"Well, they might have the right anatomy, but knowing what to do with it is something else..." Camille commented.
"That counts for more men, not just English ones..." Kris smiled at that and then laughed out loud. "You're awful!" She laughed again. "A little help might be in order then." Kris proposed as they smiled again.
"I like some experience." Camille said.
Kris shrugged. "I don't know. You can teach them, can't you?" Kris smiled softly. "If he's open and willing to learn and practice that is..." She gave Camille a mischievous look, and it almost seemed like she had someone of her own in her thoughts. "And are all the Caribbean men so experienced?" She asked after a short pause of what seemed like deep thought.
Camille shrugged. "I don't know." She stared into the distance. "There hasn't been anyone for me since my undercover job. Not even before that." She was surprised at the sadness in her own voice.
"I hope there will be soon." Kris said sweetly.
"You think?" Camille asked as she looked at Kris. "All those men maman comes up with... Horrible." It felt like her maman was serving her up to men like she was some sort of chicken. It took a lot of energy to be disappointed again and again...
Kris smiled at that. "Maybe he's right in front of you? You just have to open your eyes for it." Hint.
"O yeah, right. Like who?" Camille huffed at that.
"I don't know." Kris shook her head as she smiled widely. "Maybe he's just shy... Nervous..." And very English... "Is there really no one that comes to mind?" Kris asked as she raised an eyebrow.
Camille shook her head sadly.
Kris shook her head now too. Those two were really, really so oblivious! How was that even possible?!
"Maman told me you were all to ready to have her pick a husband for you?"
"What?!" Kris shot up from the bed and stared in shock at Camille.
"Oui." Camille laughed out loud at that.
"How is that possible? I told her you didn't like her arranging dates for her. Then she said I was alone too. How the ever hell did she turn that backwards on me?" Kris moped as she crawled underneath the blanket and threw her bag off the bed.
"Oui, she was even talking about swapping you for me."
Kris laughed at that. "My god... Your mother! I'm really not waiting to go out on any dates right now!"
"You wouldn't want to insult her would you?"
"O please Camille. I'm here to rest. Not feel all clumsy and uneasy."
Camille began to giggle out loud.
"Let's just talk some more about how you are feeling uneasy with Richard." Kris teased as she smiled evilly at Camille.
Camille slipped under the covers too and ignored Kris's remark.
"I think I wouldn't mind having to play husband with my partner though." Kris said as she talked out loud and stared at the ceiling.
Camille smiled at that. "You have yet another beautiful man as your partner? How do you do it? You're so lucky!"
Kris shrugged. "I have him as my work partner yes. I have no one like that in my private life. So I'm not that lucky after all." She said somewhat sadly. "I'm just curious I guess. He has these beautiful full lips, with dimples in his cheeks. And a stubble beard, I love that." She admitted shyly as she laughed. She shrugged again. She didn't feel that awful about sharing this with Camille, because she knew that she would never meet him anyway. He was in England, far away. He would never come to Saint Marie. "I sometimes wonder what it would be like to feel those lips against mine. Not that I would want to kiss him of course... It's just something..." She shrugged. "You know... One wonders about sometimes." She smiled shyly.
"So one does." Camille replied, repeating Kris's chosen words on purpose. "And does one like ones partner perhaps?" She asked cheekily.
"O no, no. NOOOoo! Not like that! We are... Like fire and ice. Not a good combination. I mean.. He means well, I guess... But no... No... No no no!"
"There's a lot of feeling behind that." Camille commented in an amused tone.
"Yes, we didn't really leave each other on good terms..." Kris admitted sadly.
"Really? That doesn't sound like you?" She knew Kris always to want to talk out things.
"Yes I... I'm a bit over tired I think... I just need time..."
"Will you tell me what you're so tired from?" Camille asked worried as she tried to read Kris's dark eyes.
"Yes, but not now if you don't mind."
Camille nodded. "Whenever you're ready."
"Thanks." Kris smiled.
"You do know that I noticed don't you?" Camille asked.
Kris looked at her. And smiled softly. "What gave it away?"
Camille shrugged and looked in the distance. "You always plan your stays here in advance. I know not planning gives you anxiety. You're not as flexible as you like to think." She gave her a teasing look.
"Wow thanks." Kris mumbled.
"And I..." Camille studied her friends face. "I see sadness in your face. In your eyes. You laugh, play the clown, make jokes, but it's there. In the background."
Kris looked away at that. Fighting her tears.
"I do think the sea and surf does you good. It relaxes you in a way. But still there's tension. You can always come to me, you know that."
"Thank you Camille. I know that." Kris gave her a smile. And Camille noticed with a pinch in her heart that that deep sadness was there again, somewhere in her dark eyes.
"Okay." Camille smiled warmly at Kris. "I just wanted to make sure of that." She looked away shortly.
Kris nodded as she looked at the wall in the distance. "About Richard...Maybe it helps... You know... If Richard reacts stiffly or freezes, to accept that." She looked at Camille. "Let it be. Like the right way is with feelings. You have to let them be there. If you push them away they'll only come back bigger. Maybe things become easier when you allow it to be awkward and you accept that he flinches and does all the things you don't like."
"You think?" Camille asked as she thought about that. She'd never tried that. "I'll have to be patient I guess."
Kris smiled at that. "You do." She said as she began to laugh.
She received an angry stare from Camille.
"O, come on! Patience isn't one of your talents so to say. It's always funny when you lose it. Well... If I'm not on the receiving end that is..."
"How is it funny?"
"Do you remember Lucas? How you grabbed his lunch box from him and threw it behind you, almost hitting our teacher with it?"
"Well, he was taking soooo long with his dull explanations!" She defended herself.
"I can't believe that you're still defending yourself! Just admit that you can be an impatient little witch!" Kris teased as she laughed out loud at the memory and Camille's reaction.
"It's just so annoying!" Camille barked as she thought back at that situation.
"Okay, so now if Richard freezes up when you are near him, or when you touch him, just go with the flow. Just let it be. You don't always have to react. Let him act for once."
"Let him act?! Do you know how long that will take? Weeks maybe."
"Slow, but weeks? No, I don't believe that." Kris giggled. "See it as an experiment. It can be fun you know, it could make you see a whole other side of him."