Page 62 of An Island in the Sun

‘It’s not hard to see why.’

‘How long are you here for?’ Mai asked.

‘Only another week. I arrived at the beginning of September.’

‘That’s a shame; although I presume Raff won’t be staying either.’ She glanced beyond Tabitha’s shoulder, waved and nodded at someone. ‘I actually only thought he was coming back for our wedding; I didn’t realise he was staying at his parents’ house while they were away.’ She shook her head. ‘I hope he works things out with them; for his sake, not theirs.’ Her tone was filled with bitterness. ‘He deserves to be happy.’ She nodded again at whoever was catching her attention and placed a cool hand on Tabitha’s arm. ‘The only trouble with being the bride is there are too many people to talk to in too short a time.’ She kissed Tabitha on each cheek. ‘I’ll let you get back to Raff; it really is good to meet you and I hope we’ll see each other again.’ Her smile as she left to be embraced by one of the other guests was filled with warmth. It left Tabitha with the longing to be a part of something, whether as a couple or seeing her family again.

Raff was deep in conversation with the groom, but everyone was welcoming and chatty so Tabitha wasn’t left alone for long. Friends of the couple and then Mai’s aunt and uncle came over and chatted to her, and once again she was enveloped in the spirit of the evening. Mai was so happy, it made Tabitha wonder if she’d ever feel that way, if she’d ever be able to let someone back into her heart without the fear of them stifling and restricting her. Perhaps someone who could love her for who she was wasn’t out there. Yet when her eyes travelled across the terrace to Raff, the feeling he evoked had an intensity that she’d never felt before. It scared and elated her in equal measure.

After the toast at midnight, Mai and Edward thanked everyone and bade them all goodnight, retreating to their honeymoon suite to cheers and whoops. Tabitha escaped back out on to the moon-bathed terrace.

The rhythmic swoosh of the waves rolling onto the shore below before being sucked back into the dark ocean filled the starry night. They’d started the day on the hotel terrace and she was ending the evening there, after an elegantly tropical wedding. Tabitha wondered how the wedding had gone in Elspeth and Gethin’s newly renovated barn and if the weather had been as kind to them in Wales as it had been on Madeira. She was tempted to message her, but at gone midnight, she hoped her sister was heading to bed after an exhausting but hugely successful day.

‘Hey,’ Raff said, joining her by the wall and resting his arm across her shoulder. ‘Sorry I’ve been gone so long.’

‘Oh, that’s fine; everyone’s really friendly. Mai’s lovely,’ she said, slipping her arm around his waist.

‘I’m glad you like her.’

Away from the light spilling on to the terrace, the mid-September air had a delicious subtropical heat, yet Tabitha was grateful for his comforting warmth. She wished she could bottle the feeling, the quiet contentment and the ease of Raff’s presence, there with her but not an intrusion. Looking out at the ocean, she felt as free as she’d ever done. That was what she wanted to recapture, the freedom of following her own path wherever that took her. There was no place to return to, not anywhere she thought of as home, not even her parents’ cottage – a place she loved but somewhere she’d never lived. Even if she went and stayed with Elspeth, it could only be temporary, and then what? The nature of moving from place to place while growing up meant that she’d never had roots and when she’d tried to settle down, it had felt restrictive, rather than nurturing. But she’d grown over the past year, through the experience of new places and meeting new people, even if they were fleeting moments.

‘Do you want another drink before the bar closes?’ Raff’s deep voice merged with the rush of the waves.

‘No, I think I’m okay, thanks. It feels about time to call it a night.’ Her heart skittered at her words. After Mai and Edward had been cheered off, the guests had slowly begun to drift away. Tabitha and Raff were two of the few remaining. Part of her wanted to head to their room to see where things would lead, and yet where they were standing was a blissful spot overlooking the moon-streaked ocean and she was curious to know how Raff had found the evening. ‘How are you feeling after seeing Mai getting married?’

‘Like I’ve finally had closure. She’s in love with someone else who she’s going to spend the rest of her life with, so if this isn’t closure, then I’m doomed to let my love go unrequited forever. I think it’s time I move on from a lot of things – a bit like you and Ollie moving on from your feud.’

‘It was my reaction that forced us apart.’

‘Because ofhisshitty behaviour.’ He squeezed her tight. ‘But, either way, you’ve made up now and the past is behind you. I need to move forward too. Something I’ve been trying to do for a long time. With the completion of the house sale with my ex next week, that link will be severed and I’ll finally be out of a financial mess, which will make it much easier to move on, although to where, I have absolutely no idea…’ He stared out over the dark ocean. Tabitha followed his gaze to the rippling waves that glinted silver as they neared the shore, building up into foaming peaks before breaking with a whoosh.

‘It’s been a good day.’ Raff turned to her. ‘Thank you for coming with me.’

‘Thank you for inviting me.’

In the brief moment as they looked at each other, Tabitha considered how easy it would be to reach up and kiss him. Like that drunken kiss in the hallway. It felt longer than a couple of weeks ago. Except it wouldn’t be a drunken mistake now… and the thought sent her heart racing.

Raff took her hand and the moment was broken as he led her across the terrace towards the cluster of remaining guests and the light, laughter and music spilling out into the darkness. Calls of goodnight echoed after them as they retreated inside and went upstairs, her heart skipping with each step.

They were both quiet as Raff closed the door to their room and Tabitha switched on one of the bedside lamps. The room faced the ocean and the sound of the waves lapping the shore overpowered the distant night-time noises of Funchal.

Tabitha was riddled with expectation, nervousness and anticipation and her stomach twisted in a knot. She remembered Mai talking about Raff’s confidence when he’d kissed her as a twenty-year-old. Tabitha could do that: quit worrying that sleeping together would mess up what they had and just kiss him; she didn’t think he would say no. She turned to him and opened her mouth.

‘It’s okay; I’ll sleep on the sofa,’ Raff said. ‘You can have the bed.’

Maybe he wasn’t feeling quite the same way after all…

‘Don’t be silly,’ she said, busying herself by taking the cushions off the bed and putting them on the chair so she didn’t have to meet his eyes. ‘You’re not going to sleep on the sofa when there’s a perfectly good king-sized bed.’ She almost said, ‘It’s not as if we haven’t slept in the same bed before,’ but stopped herself. There was chemistry and an attraction, but she’d been worried about taking their fledgling friendship to the next level and he might be thinking that too. Or perhaps he’d simply played on the flirtation to get her to say yes to him staying. Perhaps she was a fool for thinking there was actually something between them when all he’d been doing the whole time was getting his own way…

She riffled in her bag for her pyjama shorts and vest top along with her wash things, while Raff used the bathroom. As soon as he came out, Tabitha shot into the en suite, feeling ridiculously self-conscious, clutching her night clothes so she could get changed in private.

Tabitha finished in the bathroom, switched off the light and closed the door. Raff was already in bed wearing a T-shirt; she remembered his comment about usually sleeping naked. Apparently not tonight.

He met her eyes and smiled. ‘I’m setting an alarm so we’re not late for breakfast.’

‘Good idea,’ she said, slipping into bed next to him.

He switched off his phone and put it on the bedside table. ‘Night, Tabitha.’

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