Page 83 of The Island Villa

“I’m sure.” Adeline released her and grabbed her bag.

“Are you really reading it today? I hope you don’t hate it. I didn’t dwell on the affair part. I focused on the love they had.”

Adeline felt a twinge. “Cassie, it’s fine.” It wasn’t fine, but she wanted to support her sister. It was just a book, that was all. How much pain could a book cause? “Are you sure you don’t want to come with me to the beach?”

“No. I have a video conference with my agent and my new editor, and then I have to write a biography for myself. That will be short. Cassie Swift was born, went to college and then wrote a book. I need to embellish it. Make it sound more interesting.”

“Cassie Swift?” Adeline reached for her sunglasses. “You’re using Mum’s name?”

“The publisher really wants me to. I told them I wasn’t sure. For a start I’m not Swift. But they said it was no different from using a pen name. They say that Cassie Dunn doesn’t have the right ring to it.”

Or maybe they wanted to exploit the Swift name. Adeline slid her bag onto her shoulder. She needed to stop being a cynic. She knew nothing about publishing.

“Don’t worry about that now. Enjoy the moment.” She grabbed her hat and checked her reflection in the mirror.

Cassie studied her. “You look fantastic. That cover-up is gorgeous and your swimsuit looks pretty underneath. You look good in turquoise.”

“You don’t think it’s too...naked?”

“I do not. You’re at the beach, Adeline. What time are you meeting him?”

Adeline felt her cheeks warm. “Who?”

“Stefanos.” Cassie waggled her eyebrows. “You’re looking exceptionally hot, and you’re wearing just a touch of lip gloss.”

Was she that obvious? “It’s lip sunscreen.”

“Of course it is. This is romantic. You haven’t seen each other for two decades and then wham, you see each other and that’s it.”

“You really do have a skill for fictionalizing reality.”

Cassie gave a happy shrug. “Call it what you like, but the fact that you’re seeing him again today, less than twenty-four hours since you last saw him, tells me something.”

“It should tell you that I’m keeping myself occupied. You’re going to be busy for most of the day, and our mother has a meeting with the wedding planner, although why you need a wedding planner when there are only going to be a handful of people at the wedding, I have no idea.” She was trying hard to accept things the way they were, but still the idea of the wedding itself didn’t thrill her. She hoped she’d be able to wear a suitably happy expression.

“You don’t have to make excuses. There are numerous ways to occupy yourself on the island, and you’ve chosen to spend your day with Stefanos. But don’t worry—” Cassie held up her hands “—I get it! You’re probably afraid to give me details in case you appear in my next book, but I promise that basing a book on real events was a one-off. From now on, I’m fiction all the way. The book I’m writing now has an eighty-year-old main character who is doing outrageous things, and it is entirely the product of my imagination.” She jumped as her phone pinged. “That’s Oliver. I said I’d call him to catch up before my meeting.”

Adeline headed to the door. “I’ll see you tonight. Have fun planning your next bestseller.” As she walked across the patio and down toward the path that led to the village she heard her sister’s breathless voice.

“Olly? Can you believe it? It’s actually happened!”

Adeline smiled and kept walking. Her sister’s excitement was infectious and uplifting. It was a reminder that good things happened in life, and when they did, you had to savor every moment.

And she’d already decided that whatever the book was like, she would say she loved it.

She felt better about everything this morning. Maybe it was because she’d had a good night’s sleep, or maybe it was because she’d woken to find a message from Stefanos waiting for her on her phone.

Join me for a boat trip and lunch?

Her instinct had been to refuse, but then she’d thought, Why not?

She’d go, if only to prove to herself that her father was wrong about her.

The beach was crowded, and she followed the path until she reached the end of the bay, where Kostas had his boat business. She felt a twinge of nostalgia, remembering him from her childhood.

Stefanos was standing on the beach, helping a family board one of the boats.

He saw her, waved and then gestured that he’d be five minutes.

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