Page 29 of Not in a Million Years

At last, Daniel stopped. ‘Will this do?’

‘Looks great.’

As he’d promised, the restaurant was right on the water, a wooden jetty protruding into the sea set with white-clothed tables. I glanced at the menu by the entrance and could see nothing to complain about.

‘Take a seat,’ he said. ‘Order some wine. I’ll be right back.’

Relieved, I sank into a chair and waved over a waiter, ordering another bottle of rosé (because, after all, what other wine is there when you’re abroad and it’s hot?) and a gin and tonic for myself. I took a long, cooling gulp, then snapped a photo of the scene to send to Claude and to the Girlfriends’ Club WhatsApp. I knew Claude wouldn’t respond – he’d still be at work, given the time difference – but my friends did.

Kate: So we’re here. No sign of Andy yet but a promising lead to follow up tomorrow.

Rowan: But what we all need to know is… Have you and Daniel killed each other yet?

Kate: Well, he hasn’t killed me, otherwise I wouldn’t be posting.

Abbie: Have you actually, like, made friends?

Kate: Like I said, there’s been no bloodshed. That’s as good as it’s going to get, I reckon.

Naomi: God, that view! It looks heavenly. You lucky thing, on holiday with a hot man.

Kate: Not a hot man. He’s got wanky hair. Although every woman we’ve seen today has been simpering over him like he’s Chris Hemsworth or something. Guess they like wanky hair over here.

Abbie: Harsh! I quite like long hair on a man.

Rowan: And those biceps! If it wasn’t for Alex, I so would. Actually, if it wasn’t for Alex and us having been mates for so long. It would feel like fancying my own brother.

Naomi: Go on, Kate, admit it. You do fancy him, just a bit. Don’t you?

Kate: Not one tiny bit. Gotta go, he’s coming back.

But instead of sliding into the seat opposite mine, Daniel walked behind me – and stopped. I looked up and saw him reach into his pocket and take out a small, green-and-white plastic bottle. He snapped open the top, and a second later I felt blissful cold on my sunburned neck.

‘Aloe vera gel,’ Daniel said matter-of-factly.

His hands were gentle against my skin, spreading the soothing coolness lower down over my shoulders. Even the smell of it, herbal and medicinal, felt instantly healing.

‘Thanks,’ I muttered.

‘Do you mind if I…’ He eased my bra strap aside to make sure he didn’t miss anywhere. Fleetingly, I caught myself considering asking him to do my legs as well, then cringed so hard at the idea I almost turned inside out.

‘Thanks,’ I said again. ‘It’s okay. I can do it.’

‘Pretty much done now.’ He recapped the bottle and put it on the table between us. ‘Take that back with you and put more on before you go to bed. It won’t actually do much, but it does take some of the heat out.’

‘I appreciate it,’ I said. I’d finished my gin, so I poured wine into both our glasses. The waiter approached to take our order, and we picked an assortment of random items from the menu, then clinked our glasses together in a tentative toast.

‘So,’ Daniel said. ‘Tomorrow we find Andy. Hopefully.’

‘Hopefully,’ I echoed. ‘Although I’ve got to admit, I’m not looking forward much to trekking up that mountain.’

I gestured inland. The sun had fully set now, and the hills reared up behind the town, dark and forbidding. It would be a whole lot more forbidding, I realised, in full sunlight.

‘You don’t have to go if you don’t want to,’ Daniel said. ‘I can manage on my own.’

‘Yeah, right. With your fluent Turkish.’

‘Hey, I can use Google Translate just as well as you can.’ He smiled, the corners of his grey eyes crinkling. ‘And I can read a map.’

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