Page 22 of An Island Promise

He took two bottles of Sprite from the ice bucket on the table and cracked them open. Sitting this close to him, Belle was a bundle of nerves, glad of the chilled drink which went some way to temper her internal heat. The sun beat down. A plane coming in to land added to the background noise of people chatting and the beat of dance music. At least their initial conversation was focused on the safe topic of how Diego had come to work at Ushuaïa and the deal that Cara had been working on. Yet Belle’s focus kept shifting to the past and the stark differences between then and now: sober instead of drunk; fully clothed instead of naked; in their thirties instead of twenties; strangers instead of lovers.

Belle felt suddenly conscious about having a drink with him, their history and intimacy as yet un-talked about. She had no clue what he was thinking or how much he even remembered. Was she only vaguely recognisable, just one of the many women he’d slept with? The Ibiza holiday had made a hell of an impact on her, most of it to do with him. He’d been a huge flirt then and she wondered if he’d changed at all.

When the conversation stalled, she decided to ask. ‘What about you then?’ She clutched the bottle and crossed her legs, conscious of what little space there was between them. Was her choice of skirt that only reached the middle of her thighs a good idea or not? ‘Are you married?’ she asked, even though she already knew the answer.

She caught his glimmering smile, a reminder of the way he’d once flirted with her. ‘No wife. No one permanent.’Some things obviously haven’t changed, Belle thought. ‘I still work unsociable hours; it’s a lifestyle that’s never worked well with a relationship.’

She’d held a sensible mainly nine-to-five job with a few evening and weekend events thrown in, yet she hadn’t managed to hold onto a permanent relationship either. Although she sensed he was perfectly content with his bachelorhood. She swigged her drink and avoided meeting his eyes. A strong sense that she was looking at the one who’d got away washed over her.

‘I imagine it’s not an easy way of life to share with someone.’ Or was it more to do with his desire for freedom to flit from one woman to another…

‘I like what I do; I always have done,’ he said with an honest shrug. ‘You’ve always wanted to do this kind of events work?’

And there it was, the confirmation that he didn’t remember her, at least not what they’d talked about. But then, just because she remembered everything about their time together, why would he ten years on? They were strangers making small talk yet Belle felt as if she knew him. She remembered he had a faded scar on his knee from tumbling from a wall when he was a boy; she knew he had a small tattoo of a bird on his ribcage because she’d run her fingers along it and had kissed it on her way down to?—

She stopped that train of thought right there. Their conversation had stalled again and she was wondering if she’d outstayed her welcome when Diego spoke.

‘So,’ he said, filling the silence. ‘Are you still friends with Gem and er…’

‘Laurie.’ Belle nodded, relieved that he’d found something for them to chat about. ‘We’re still friends although we all live miles away from each other now. So, um, what about you? Do you just know Caleb through work?’ She nearly said she’d seen the two of them in a photo together but stopped herself in time; she wasn’t going to admit she’d been trawling through his Facebook profile.

‘I do sometimes work with Caleb, but I’ve known him for years. He’s my brother-in-law.’ His eyes shifted from hers, glassing over as he stared towards the pool. The party atmosphere was in full swing with driving beats drifting into the sun-tinged air, and skimpily clad dancers on the podiums. ‘I mean, he was, sort of still is, depending how you look at it. My sister died.’

13

‘Your sister was Caleb’s wife?’

Belle was bewildered by the connection. The sister of the man she’d fallen for all those years ago had been married to the man she was now working for. She didn’t know what to say or think until she clocked the sorrow in Diego’s eyes. ‘I’m so sorry you lost her.’

‘Thank you. But you didn’t know?’ He folded his arms across his chest. ‘Of course you didn’t; he rarely talks about her with anyone apart from Cara or Mama.’

‘He’s my boss so it’s not really surprising that he hasn’t.’ Although when Belle thought back to Sunday and his comment about changing his life in a heartbeat if he could, it now made perfect and heart-breaking sense.

‘So the wedding you went to when I was here, that was your sister and Caleb’s?’

Diego nodded, pain washing across his face.

She remembered he was from a big family but he’d only had one sister; she couldn’t even begin to comprehend how devastating that would be. Their second and last night together had been the day before the wedding. She remembered snatchesof what he’d told her about how he’d been avoiding going home because his mum was in full mother-of-the-bride mode.

‘Do you talk about her?’ Belle asked softly, aware of the serious tone of their conversation as electronic beats dipped and spiralled.

‘I do now but it took me a long time to even be able to look at a picture of her without breaking down.’ Diego was staring ahead, focusing on the stage as if needing to distract himself, his tension and upset noticeable. ‘She was the heart of our family and losing her broke us all.’ He downed the remainder of his drink and stood up. ‘If you have everything to get started your end, I should get on.’

His tone and demeanour had changed but she understood it was from grief. Also, she’d reappeared unexpectedly so there was every chance he was feeling uncomfortable too.

‘Just call me if you need anything, and when things are in place with your guests let me know.’

Diego walked her out. The uplifting beat and the sun shimmering on the surface of the pool were at odds with what they’d just talked about as more and more people streamed in ready to party throughout the afternoon and into the evening. As they shook hands goodbye, all the what-ifs she’d dreamed about collided with a cold hard reality.

Belle didn’t drive off straight away. The steering wheel was hot as she rested her hands against it and stared at the oversized flowers decorating the side of Ushuaïa Tower with its red hummingbird emblem. The job in Ibiza had come along at just the right time, her decision to apply impulsive, and she hadn’t really known what she was hoping to get out of it beyond escaping an awkward situation back home. Seeing Diego had been unexpected because she hadn’t intended to seek him out. But now she had seen him, she felt strangely empty. He was familiar yet a stranger. Her memories were clouded bydrunkenness and the passing of time, yet moments of clarity broke through like rays of sunlight through a storm cloud: that adorably cheeky smile, the intensity of his dark brooding eyes and the way he still sat with one leg resting on the other.

What had she hoped for? A fairy-tale ending? For them to lock eyes and all those feelings that had been rumbling for a decade to come crashing back, his matching hers as he’d swept her into his arms? Real life was no fairy tale. As easily as you could grasp happiness, it could be snatched away again. What upset her most was that there’d been no instantaneous spark, and she was no longer sure about her own feelings.

Belle started the engine and drove away from Ushuaïa along the palm-tree-lined road. The other thing bothering her was she now knew something about Caleb that he’d obviously not been ready or willing to talk about. But that wasn’t all she’d taken from talking to Diego. He’d remembered Gem’s name. Belle frowned; he’d met her, what, once or twice? She didn’t remember them even talking. But then as a confident, self-assured twenty-one-year-old, Gem had always been the one to capture people’s attention; her outgoing personality was matched by a killer figure and outfits that accentuated her curves. But back then Belle had been the only single one, even if Gem had strayed a fair bit; Belle had flirted and Diego had reciprocated. And yet despite Belle having to remind him who she was, he’d clearly remembered Gem.

14

JULY 2013, TEN YEARS AGO

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