In some ways the trip to America was all too short for Marc. It was just over two weeks away from London and he had met Katya's mother in New York, her cousin in San Francisco and her twin daughters, proposed marriage (and been accepted) and caught up with his sister Sophie, brother-in-law Peter and his mother. And he had met his namesake nephew Mark and niece Sandra.
There had been several discussions with brother-in-law Peter about a further development at San Gregorio. Marc had suggested some innovative designs, including an eco-cabin built into the hillside and a geothermal heat-pump and cooling system. He was a little surprised to hear Peter dismiss the cost of the projects, until Peter explained his patent and Pharma-share income.
How his life had changed since he met Katya!
Compared to life before Katya, the pace was almost too much for his normally quiet and low-key lifestyle.
He had to get back to London: work was piling up. There were several photo shoots he had arranged during the trip, including a cryptic one from 'Andi' which sounded like another potential art folio. He had at least a month backlog of photographic work, and there were several requests for weddings.
And he needed some time to himself: family life was stressful!
Katya was in heaven. She couldn't wait to get back to London and talk with her friends about their engagement, though she decided to keep the 'baronetcy' under wraps for the near future. It was hard to get her head around that little piece of information. Should she wear the sapphire ring -- for all to see -- or should she keep it off while modelling? Hide it, she decided.
Marc had agreed, reluctantly, to allow the two women to pay the inheritance tax on The Manor and Marc invited Katya to visit the accountant with him to discuss paying the tax. Once the taxes were settled it was arranged that they would visit The Manor together, so Katya could see her potential new home.
For Marc this could be a deal-breaker as far as marriage was concerned. He had not discussed this with Katya beforehand, preferring to wait until she had seen the family home. He hoped she would realize how important The Manor was to the family as a whole and to him in particular.
But this could wait until Katya had a gap in her modelling diary and Marc had caught up on his photography commitments.
The flight from San Francisco to London was direct but long. They chatted, watched movies and slept through much of the night arriving tired around noon the next day. From Heathrow they went straight to Peter's mews flat: Katya checked in at the office to confirm she would be ready for fittings the next day. Marc spent time sorting out projects, orders and wedding albums, and contacting 'Andi'. Andi turned out to be a model for Chanel who, having seen Marc's work, wanted a custom black and white portfolio for a new Chanel promotion. Exhausted they went to bed around 7 pm and sleep a little later.
Although they were in regular contact with each other, most days Katya and Marc saw little of each other except in the evenings. One of her colleagues saw Katya slip her sapphire ring on at the end of one modelling session and the word was out! Much squealing and questioning followed which was duly repeated to Marc in the evening.
Marc was also busy completing work begun before the trip to The States and scheduling fashion shoots. There were also requests for folios and weddings. He was becoming busy and decisions had to be made. Although the wedding work was steady, it was time-consuming and paid relatively poorly. The fashion work was highly-paid through the fashion houses, but inconsistent. This was to change.
Mid-way through the second week after their return, Marc had a call from Yves St Laurent main office: was he interested on a retainer-contract for YSL and other fashion houses? Marc was exhilarated: this would be a steady income and settle him for the near future. He had no doubt that Katya was in some way responsible but he argued that someone there must like him and his work. After talking with Katya, he accepted the offer.
No more architecture work except for the development at San Gregorio and The Manor. How life had changed!
But Marc had a sense of foreboding: everything was going too well -- and too fast. After so many years on his own, the occasional date but nothing serious, he was used to his own company and his quiet lifestyle. His income was lower than it had been as an architect but he lived within its limits. The decision to quit architecture and go fully into photography was a huge decision for him. It scared him. And the work was slow until that fateful day when, almost by chance, he was scheduled to substitute for the regular YSL photographer and he met Katya. Again.
Since then, his life had been turned around. Katya had encouraged him, even chased him. She had reintroduced him to his family through memories of his sisters' wedding and while he was delighted to be part of the family again, he was scared. Scared of the whole thing falling apart. What did such an attractive, no, beautiful, woman see in him? He was running hard just to keep up! But Katya was a heart-throb and he just couldn't say no.
The following weekend Katya had a 4-day break from fittings. Marc had made a few phone calls before they bundled into the Mini Countryman and headed down the M4 towards Bristol. Two hours and a bit later Marc turned south on the A4174 towards Willsbridge and The Manor, stopping at a layby to point out the old house to Katya.
"Its gorgeous Marc" said Katya, throwing her arms around Marc as they stood in the layby looking down at The Manor through the gap in the trees.
"It's home for me, Katya, though I remember it best when I was really small. It seemed huge then!" Marc replied, his arm around her waist.
They drove on, turning though a pair of old stone pillars, once supporting a gate with the adjacent gatehouse. The driveway was several hundred meters long, curving through the estate with several large old oak, elm and beech trees scattered haphazardly. There were cows munching contentedly, property of one of the tenants.
The manor was small as country houses went, built of white stone with dry joints in an L-shape. It had twelve suites or bedrooms on the upper floor and various sized rooms below. At the L-heel was the entry hall and off that, a morning room, the kitchen, scullery, servants' quarters and the stables. A paddock was enclosed beyond the stables. The whole estate looked a bit run down.
Marc explained the situation at The Manor in his absence while they drove down. Only six of the bedrooms were kept vaguely maintained and three lived in. The living space below was also under dust covers. Marc had not opened the library, formal dining area or any of the several rooms below the closed bedrooms in several years. Mrs Bradshaw continued to check on The Manor twice a week and she came in to look after Marcus when he visited. Jobs were scarce in the area so she was happy to have a small but reliable income..
Sophie's horse and Lady Margaret's hunter were still in the stables along with the neighbour's two horses. All were looked after and exercised by the tenant next door and his children. Marc did not ride.
"Ello there young Maaster Marcus" said Mrs. Bradshaw in her broad west-country twang. "And thee must be Mistress Kateeya: thee be master purty!"
Katya was embarrassed and Marc smiled. He greeted her and asked Mrs. B. for some cold cuts and sandwiches for lunch. She scurried away while Marc walked Katya through the various rooms. Kaya could hardly believe her eyes as they walked through the old nursery, the day room, Lady Margaret's bedroom and Lord Humphrey's study and bedrooms. Sophie's room, his room and the guest room completed the open rooms on the upper floor.
As they walked through the two levels Marc pointed out the changes and renovations need to bring The Manor up to current living specifications: "building code".
"First" Marc pointed out "are the systems changes. Wiring and electrical: new standard plugs and every 8-10 feet of wall. Second, the heating: each room has a fireplace but we need small-bore hot-water heating in the rooms in use. Third, we need washrooms in each of the 6 main bedrooms. Mummy and Sophie's rooms are OK but mine and dad's rooms were shared in the corridor, like the other 6 closed rooms".
"And the windows need some work".
"I estimate between two hundred thousand and a quarter million pounds for the basic work" said Marc, looking through his bedroom window at the meadow next to the paddock.
"Marc, it's just wonderful. I feel so at home here. Come and sit by me" Katya cooed, patting the bed beside her. "I think the main thing is just to get started. I will talk to Sophie and tell her what we are doing, so we can get ready for our wedding here as soon as we can!" Obviously, Katya had made a decision.
Before Marc was able to reply "but ... but ..." Katya had pushed him on to her back and was sitting astride him, kissing him fiercely. She pulled down his zipper and reached inside. Their activity continued, more and more intensely, until Mrs. B. rang the gong for lunch - in the kitchen.
After lunch and an inspection of the stables and outbuildings, Marc showed Katya his sketches of improvements and cost breakdown for the renovations. Katya then spent an hour on the phone to Sophie in Palo Alto passing on the thoughts and estimates. Sophie agreed with the general outline but said she wanted to talk to Peter before they were to start anything. She called back an hour later.
"Pete says fine, but probably double the cost to be sure: half a million and we will go 50:50, OK?"
Katya was happy with the arrangement; Marc was surprised but happy too. He realized this project was getting away from him but he was learning quickly to go along with Katya on most things, and after all it was Katya's money (... "theirs" she said).
So much to do!
Marc wanted to use mostly local contractors, from Bristol, along with local labor of course. He had many contacts in the building trade and he found a coordinating manager who could organize the sub-trades. Joe was close to retirement or there already, but Marc had known him since his architecture days working for Sir Thomas Percy. Together he and Marc were able to estimate the sequence and timing of the basic work, and to adjust the cost estimates. Marc did think about geothermal heat for The Manor but then he remembered the limestone substructure of the Cotswolds and the local caves: no possibility of geothermal power. They would have to make do with a gas-fired hot-water system.
Katya and Marc were incredibly busy for the next three months. The renovations to The Manor came in fits and starts. Sometimes Marc would arrive on a Friday night and find The Manor almost derelict, at other times there were tradesmen everywhere with Joe directing traffic. Marc had brought some photographic equipment with him so he could do some work in a room off the scullery which was both light-tight and had a tiled floor.
Katya was often on the phone to the USA to talk with her cousin Anna, her mother and aunt, and her sister-in-law-to-be Sophie. She and Marc had decided to keep the wedding list small: essentially just family. Marc had no other friends to invite but family. Katya had at least 6 close model friends who were all angling for invitations. Plus, her stock-market advisors Estaban and Gerald, the gourmands.
So, it looked like about 25 to 30 guests for the wedding. The close family: Anna, Alicja and the children Katherine and Alice; Sophie, Peter and their two; Lady Margaret, and Marissa. These plus Katya and Marc would occupy the ready-rooms. The other 6 rooms could be cleaned off and prepared if possible: did they have enough linen for a start?
