‘Come on, please. Don’t play games. This is serious.’
‘Yeah? How serious?’
Picking up a fork, he turned it over and over in his fingers. ‘Cassie, what were you doing on the third floor last night?’
‘Sleepwalking. I guess it’s a common habit, right?’
There was an awkward pause.
‘Look, I …’ He took a breath. ‘I’m only—’
‘Yeah? You’re only what? What’s your game, Jake?’ She couldn’t suppress a furious sneer. ‘Are you that desperate to follow the Snow Queen around?’
He dropped the fork back on to the linen tablecloth. ‘Cassie, I know it looks weird, but I swear I’m not doing anything wrong. Please, will you just tell me why you were there?’
‘Not till you do, sunshine.’
‘All right.’ He ran his hands across his scalp. ‘Will you just tell me this? I know Darke tore a strip off Keiko, but what did he say to you?’
‘Not much.’ She shrugged, scanning the room for a distraction. Where the hell was that waiter?
Jake wasn’t letting it go. ‘Did he— Was he threatening?’
‘Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous.’
‘What about Ranjit?’
‘What? What about him?’
‘Did he threaten you? In the common room, I mean. Did he say anything?’
Cassie hesitated. But he wasn’t there, Jake …
Thoughtfully she bit her lip. There was no reason to lie to Jake. But there was no reason to trust him, either. ‘No,’ she said at last. ‘Ranjit didn’t threaten me either. Why would he?’
Jake didn’t answer. He seemed troubled.
‘I need to go now. I hope you’re fond of chicken, ’cos you’ve got two mains to get through.’ She stood up. ‘And pay for.’
He looked as if he might grab her wrist again, but managed to restrain himself. ‘Cassie, will you please be careful? Really careful?’
‘You certainly are a patronising git, aren’t you?’
‘Maybe.’ Jake grinned, just. ‘But I’m serious.’
‘So am I. Don’t you dare hurt my friend’s feelings again.’
‘Round here?’ He gave her a thin-lipped smile. ‘I’m not the one who does the hurting.’
Cassie turned on her heel, throwing Katerina a last ferocious glower. She could feel the girl’s loathing, and Jake’s stare, so she walked out very carefully. Now would be the worst time in the world to trip over her own feet.
Parisian elegance, she told herself grimly. And pride. I’m a student at the Academy, dammit!
She wasn’t going to let them forget it.
CHAPTER TEN
Cassie focused intently on the art master. The class had left the Orangerie and its treasures, and now they sat blinking in the sunlight as Signor Poldino gestured enthusiastically around the Jardin des Tuileries. He was no oil painting, bless him, but at least he was relaxing to look at.
‘Remember Les Nymphéas,’ exclaimed the little teacher, bouncing on his heels with excitement. ‘The impact on the eye and the heart! Think of texture and light, of creating your landscape from these. See with Monet’s eyes! Use colour! Use emotion!’
‘Use a camera, perhaps?’ murmured a familiar English voice, carrying in the clear autumn air. ‘Technology having advanced since Monet’s day.’
Keiko put her sketchbook over her face, snorting with mirth. Signor Poldino reddened, Jake threw Richard a filthy look, but Cormac frowned and called out, ‘Give it a rest, Richard.’
‘Quite,’ snapped Ayeesha. ‘Do go on, Signor Poldino. Please. Some of us were quite overwhelmed by the waterlilies. Some of us would like to learn more.’
Poldino shot her a grateful look. ‘I shall leave you all to wander in the gardens. Please return here in …’ he checked his old-fashioned pocket watch, ‘… two hours. I am sure some of you will produce delightful sketches.’ He smiled at Ayeesha and Cormac, then at Cassie.
‘God,’ Richard murmured to Perry as he stood up and stretched. ‘Ayeesha’s turning into an insufferable prig. And old Oirish-Eyes is almost as bad.’
Perry sniggered. ‘I think he fancies her.’
‘Perry!’ called Keiko imperiously.
‘Go on, you’ve been summoned. Do try to get some work done too, Peregrine. I don’t want my roommate’s poor performance reflecting on me.’
With another sycophantic chuckle, Perry was gone. Richard was close to Cassie’s shoulder, and she felt her heartbeat quicken as he leaned down. ‘Come and see my sketchings?’ he said seductively.
‘Ha ha,’ she said, not turning. If he only knew how close he was to a good slap … But which of his two faces would she go for? No, better to keep pretending that everything was fine. Cassie wasn’t about to have a row with him in front of everybody. He’d caused her enough embarrassment already.
‘Sorry. Not funny. Come and be my muse, then, lovely Cassie?’
Cassie concentrated hard on sorting the half-squashed tubes in her paintbox. ‘Richard, if it’s OK with you, I’d like to … um … be on my own?’ Taking a deep breath, she managed to glance up and force a smile. ‘I’ve never been here before. It’s pretty amazing. I need to think about it. If you don’t mind.’
‘Oh. Of course not.’