Page 7 of Paradise Pride

“Yes,” Meghan admitted. “The girl stayed on my mind for a while. Not in the moment, but after we’d kissed.”

“So you felt attracted to her?” Florence asked.

“I’m not sure, but as I said, she was on my mind in the weeks following. It happened at a party. She took me by surprise, said she wanted to kiss me. I was a bit tipsy, and she was cute, so I let her. The next day, I couldn’t remember her name and I never saw her again, so that was that.” Meghan finished her wine and held out her glass for a refill. “But I’m not bisexual. I’ve never been in love with a woman.”

“But you’ve been in love with men?” Florence realised the conversation had turned very personal, but she liked how Meghan was opening up to her.

“Yes. I was in two long-term relationships. It wasn’t perfect, but we had the same interests, and we were happy. The only reason I ended it on both occasions was that I didn’t feel it was going to last forever. Not from my side, anyway.”

“How did you know it wasn’t forever?”

“I guess I’ve always wanted what my parents have, and it wasn’t that.” Meghan smiled. “They can’t bear being apart, not even for a day, and they always have each other’s back. They’re like two peas in a pod.” She paused. “And your parents? Are they still together?”

“No, they divorced when I was young, but I have a good relationship with both of them. My father is British and my mother Spanish. I grew up here, but I have dual nationality. That’s why I work in the UK over winter.”

“Nice. You’ve got the best of both worlds.”

“I guess. I can’t complain.”

Meghan leaned back and looked at Florence’s curls. “And your hair? Is that from your mother’s side?”

“Yes.” Florence laughed. “My father is a tall, bald, pale Englishman, so I certainly don’t take after him. My mother is a bit of a hippie, and they couldn’t be more different. No wonder their marriage didn’t last.”

“A hippie?”

“Not in the literal sense of the word,” Florence said. “She doesn’t live in a commune, and she doesn’t wear headbands or tie-dye, but she’s into auras and the universe and that kind of stuff. She has a small practice in Altea where she does crystal healing.”

“Fascinating. Then you must know a lot about it.”

“I have basic knowledge of crystals, but I’ve never been very interested. I may have got my looks from my mother, but in essence, I take more after my father. He’s a dentist, and with his medical background, he doesn’t believe in alternative medicine. Growing up, I never saw any evidence of actual healing, so I decided my father was right.”

Meghan nodded. “I’ve always been curious about alternative healing.”

“Then maybe you should visit her practice,” Florence said. “I’ll give you her details so you can make up your own mind.”

7

Meghan

It was two o’clock in the morning by the time they’d finished the bottle, and Meghan could hardly believe how quickly the time had flown by. “I’m so sorry,” she said. “I didn’t realise how late it was. You’ve been working all day. You must be exhausted.”

“Honestly, I could happily sit here and talk to you all night, but I should probably get some sleep.” Florence checked her watch, stood up and stretched. “In that wonderful Paradise bed.”

“I’m sure it will be a treat.” Meghan laughed and stood up too. Her legs were stiff from sitting in the same position on the small balcony, and the wine had made her light-headed. They’d talked non-stop since she’d sat down at the bar, and Florence was right; they could have stayed here until the sun came up. “I don’t have any spare toothbrushes, I’m afraid.” She pointed to the bathroom. “But please help yourself to a towel and any toiletries you need. I’ll get you a T-shirt and underwear.”

“Thanks.” Florence locked the door behind her, and Meghan heard the shower running. She imagined her stripping off and stepping in, running her hands through her wild curls as water trickled down her face and shower gel slid down her body.

Why is my mind even going there?Suspecting their conversations about sexuality and the wine had something to do with it, she shook her head and sighed as she rummaged through her suitcase and pulled out two white T-shirts and two pairs of white panties. She was sharing a room with a woman she’d only met seven hours ago, and now she was having intimate thoughts about her, which was ridiculous. Her breath hitched when the bathroom door opened again, and Florence appeared with nothing but a towel wrapped around her. Her hair was wet and her skin shimmered from the lotion she’d applied; she let out a dramatic sigh as she fell back on Kim’s bed.

“That was so nice. I was seriously clammy from setting up all day.”

“Good.” Meghan caught herself staring and threw one of the T-shirts and pairs of panties at her. “Here. You can wear these.” She rushed into the bathroom and consoled herself with the thought that when she came out, Florence would have put on the clothes so Meghan couldn’t gawk at her anymore. Florence was pretty without even trying. In fact, Meghan didn’t think she knew how beautiful she was. She giggled as she looked at the top of the mirror, where a smiley face was drawn on the condensed glass.

As she’d already had a shower when she arrived, she settled for a quick one and left the water running while she took her time to check herself in the mirror. Uncertain why she felt the need to look good, she combed her hair thoroughly and applied moisturiser and a little bit of mascara before getting dressed for the night.

Florence’s eyes fell upon her breasts as she came out, and Meghan instinctively crossed her arms.

“Glad to see you’re wearing one of those see-through T-shirts yourself, or I might think you gave it to me on purpose.”

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