Sunshine and Second Chances Page 10
‘We’ve had a lovely time buying things that we never knew we even needed.’ Fiona giggled. ‘I haven’t had a shopping session like that for years. In fact, the last time was probably when we were in Corfu all those years ago.’
They all laughed.
‘Anyone for coffee?’ Debs asked.
A chorus of ‘yes please’ came back and she smiled and went into the kitchen. Liv followed her in.
‘You had a good day, Debs? Get up to much?’
Debs blushed and rubbed the back of her neck. ‘Nothing much, just hung around the pool.’
‘Don’t forget I know you, Debs, and I know when you are telling the truth.’ She grinned. ‘I just wondered why there were two empty cups on the coffee table when there is only one of you.’ She raised her eyebrows.
Debs blushed. ‘You always were a good detective, Olivia Pemberton. You are wasted as a housewife and mother. You really should have joined the organised crime squad.’
Liv laughed good-naturedly.
Sweeping back into the lounge with a grin on her face, Debs asked, ‘So, who bought what and do you still have some money left to go out into Vilamoura later for a meal?’
All the bags were opened and an array of leather goods, sundresses, souvenirs, football shirts and tablecloths were displayed.
‘I bet you wished you’d come along now, don’t you?’
Debs smiled at Liv, and said, ‘I’m sure you had a lovely time, but I’ve had a really nice day too just chilling out and relaxing here. I am looking forward to going out this evening, though. I hope Vilamoura knows what’s going to hit it when these four old slappers hit the streets.’
‘Oi, less of the old if you don’t mind,’ shouted Samantha, winking at them as she walked out to the terrace.
Early evening in Vilamoura was a bustling hive of activity, with families, couples and beautiful people meandering around the streets, only moving when the roar of a Ferrari or Lamborghini alerted the dawdlers that they needed to get out of the way. The marina was host to fishermen finishing their days out at sea as well as yachts of all sizes, mooring up, the staff of the rich and famous owners ready for an early evening aperitif in one of the bars to start the next stage of the day. The scents of expensive perfume and aftershave permeated the air and mingled with the aroma of the gastronomic delights from the many restaurants scattered around the marina, overlooking the moorings.
They’d seen a restaurant when they’d been into the marina for brunch the previous day that they fancied trying. They were offered the opportunity to sit inside, but after a brief discussion asked if they could sit outside next to the water instead. It seemed a shame to dine inside when they could do that at home. The outside section was buzzing with life, families dining together, couples holding hands, friends chatting and laughing, the chilled-out holiday vibe making it feel a relaxed and perfect setting for their evening meal. They were shown to an inviting candle-lit, beautifully laid table, next to the water’s edge.
The waiter brought olives, bread and tuna paste to their table, along with a bottle of still and a bottle of sparkling water and gave out menus. The ladies oohed and aahed then asked for a little more time to choose what they wanted. They had all made their decisions except for Debs. So much choice confused her, but remembering her decision earlier to be healthier, she settled on salmon, crushed potatoes and sautéed vegetables.
Liv raised her eyebrows at Debs when she’d made her choice. It was most unlike her to have a meal without chips. Liv made a note to take her to one side later for a chat. There was a sparkle in her eyes that wasn’t there last night, and Liv wondered just what she had been up to today that she wasn’t telling them about.
‘I’m so looking forward to our golf lesson tomorrow. Are you, Debs?’ she asked.
‘Erm, well… I was going to chat to you about that, actually. Would you mind awfully if I didn’t come along?’ She held her hand to her neck and Liv saw her skin turning pink.
‘Had a better offer, have you?’ said Samantha with a laugh.
This time Debs went full-on beetroot red. ‘Actually, yes, I have.’
‘My goodness, Debs, you’re a dark horse. I think you’d better tell us what’s been going on,’ said Samantha.
Debs took a deep breath. ‘Well…’
‘Ladies, good evening.’ They looked up at the familiar voice and saw Mikey walking by with an older couple, who they presumed must be his parents. Mikey introduced them all. It was only when his father Keith called him Michael, that Liv remembered that he’d asked them to call him that in front of his parents.
Debs seemed really glad of the diversion and with excitement in her voice, invited Mikey and his parents to join them.
‘No, it’s fine really, thank you. Very kind, but thank you.’ Mikey looked horrified at the thought.
‘Oh what a lovely idea, Michael. Thank you, ladies, we’d love to join you. Wouldn’t we, Angela?’
Mikey’s mum nodded enthusiastically, and Liv called the waiter back over and asked if they could add a table to theirs so that they could all sit together. Mikey was as white as a sheet but sat down all the same.
His mother finally spoke. ‘It would be lovely to get to know our villa neighbours. Michael has been telling us all about you.’ She stroked his hair as if he was still a child.
Mikey pulled away, batting her hand. ‘Please excuse my mum. She still thinks I’m ten, despite the fact that I’m a grown man.’
She laughed good-naturedly at him and he smiled back at her.
‘I don’t get to see you very often and you’ll always be my baby boy no matter how old you are.’
Mikey shook his head and laughed. ‘Mum, I’m twenty-seven!’
‘And how’s that boss of yours? Bernardo, isn’t it?’ his father asked. ‘You’ve not said much about him.’
Mikey fidgeted in his seat. ‘Erm, yes, he’s fine, thanks. Business is going well for the time of year so he’s happy.’
‘That’s good. He should be happy having someone like you working for him. I bet his wife is a looker, he’s a very handsome man. It’s so nice of them to let you rent a spare room from them.’
Mikey quickly changed the subject and asked the ladies what their plans were for the rest of their holiday.
‘Well, one of the nights we’d like to see if we can have a sunset tour on a yacht, if we can arrange it. I was going to see if you had any contacts. I’ve got the name and number of one that we saw,’ said Liv.
‘You can definitely leave that one with me. I know just the company to sort that out for you. In fact, that’s one of their fabulous boats over there. That big white one on the end.’ There were lots of appreciative noises from around the table. ‘I’ll sort that out first thing in the morning and give you a bell, Olivia.’
‘That’s perfect. I think it’s actually the one that we saw earlier. Thank you. That would be wonderful. You really are a darling, you know. And then we’re going to go to the casino tomorrow night and try our hand at winning a fortune.’
‘Ooh how exciting.’ Angela clapped her hands in quick succession. ‘I do love a little flutter!’
‘Why don’t you all come with us?’ Liv’s mouth spoke the words before her brain had engaged. She looked over at Mikey, who was trying discreetly to shake his head. She immediately knew that she’d made a huge mistake. One that could not now be undone.
‘Oh yes, how wonderful. That would be fabulous, wouldn’t it, darling? Oh Michael, why don’t you ask Bernardo to join us too. It would be a great opportunity to get to know your boss a little better. Go on, message him now.’
Mikey closed his eyes but only Liv seemed to sense that he was extremely uncomfortable. His father could be quite assertive when he wanted.
Keith wouldn’t give up on the Bernardo situation and insisted that Mikey either rang him or sent him a text to invite him to the casino the following evening. He had no alternative but to do as his father had told him to.
He did, however, lo
osen up over dinner and relaxed into the evening and appeared to be enjoying spending time with his parents. The girls were all on their best behaviour and everyone got on famously. They talked about how much they were looking forward to their golf lessons the following day, which Mikey had arranged.
‘You are so going to adore the professional that I’ve got giving lessons tomorrow.’ He clapped his hands together excitedly.
‘Debs isn’t coming though. However, she won’t tell us what she’s doing instead. Perhaps you can get it out of her Mikeea— Ouch.’ Liv had kicked Fiona under the table.
‘Do tell, Debs. Have you got yourself a Portuguese lover to take you out for the day?’ asked Mikey.
Debs flushed scarlet and squirmed in her seat.
‘Oh! My! God! You have too, you little minx!’ he squealed, then covered his mouth and started coughing, probably
realising, Liv guessed, how camp he had sounded.
Debs, after lots of interrogation, confessed she’d been invited out with Eduardo on his day off.
‘Now that is a turn up for the books. Eduardo hasn’t had a girlfriend for a while according to Josep. How exciting. I can’t wait to hear all about it,’ said Mikey.
‘Well, maybe not all about it, eh, Debs?’ Keith nudged Debs’ elbow and she buried her head in her hands looking totally mortified.
‘Well, I hope you have a lovely day. You deserve a bit of happiness and I can see that he makes you smile and that’s all you can ask for in life really, isn’t it? Good for you, Debs.’
Liv smiled kindly at her friend, hoping genuinely that she’d have a nice day out but also hoping she wouldn’t get too involved. Where could it possibly go, when they lived in different countries? But a bit of fun while they were here would be really good for Debs’ spirit.
They had a wonderful evening out, Mikey’s parents were really good company, and at the end of the evening, when the yawns started to become obvious, Mikey arranged for two cars to pick them all up and take them home. They made arrangements to meet up at the entrance to the casino the following evening.
Once back at the villa, Liv asked if anyone wanted a nightcap before bed, and laughed when Fiona asked if they’d think her a stick in the mud if she’d rather have a cup of tea. They all laughed and the other three agreed that they’d also rather have a cup of tea. Liv thought that Debs would probably have a drink, but even she said that she’d prefer a cuppa.
Liv knew there was more of a sparkle in Debs’ eye than there was last night, and she was dying for Debs to dish the dirt on her and Eduardo, but she knew that it had to be in her own time.
This evening, when anyone asked her what she’d done that day, she’d got a little flustered, stuttered over her words and gone bright red in the face. And it wasn’t a sun-kissed flush in the face, or a menopausal one. It was definitely the first flush of excitement because a man that she liked was giving her some attention. And she deserved it so much. Even if nothing ever came of it, she loved that she was feeling the fluttering of attraction.
As Debs got into bed and pulled the sheet up around her shoulders, her phoned pinged.
Hope tomorrow is still OK, Deborah. I pick you up at ten thirty if I don’t hear from you.
Her heart skipped a beat. Those butterflies fluttered again in her tummy.
Looking forward to it. Goodnight x
Not as much as me. Goodnight beautiful lady. Sweet dreams xx
She felt ridiculously excited. She wondered how on earth she was supposed to sleep.
When Mikey arrived back at his swanky apartment, which overlooked the marina, Bernardo was sitting on the sofa, swirling a small amount of liquid around in the bottom of a brandy glass.
‘So, you’ve told them about us then?’ he asked Mikey.
Mikey took the glass from his hand and placed it on the table. He held Bernardo’s hands in his. ‘Well, not exactly. There just wasn’t the opportunity this evening. I’m sorry.’
‘Not as sorry as I am, Mikey.’ Bernardo took his hands away. He stroked a finger down Mikey’s arm. ‘I love you more than you will ever know. But we cannot go on like this any more. If you don’t tell them by the end of tomorrow night, then we’re over, Mikey.’
He reached across and kissed Mikey’s cheek, walked into their bedroom and shut the door.
Mikey’s chin trembled and a tear escaped. He was torn between upsetting his parents and risking them wanting nothing more to do with him, and losing the man he loved with all of his heart. What a decision to have to make. But it sounded like he needed to make his choice in the next twenty-four hours. He pulled a cashmere throw, which had been artistically draped across the back of the sofa, over himself, curled his knees up to his chest and silently cried himself to sleep.
Nineteen
Liv groaned as she rolled over and looked at the bedside clock. Eight a.m. She slept like a log out here. At home she was normally up at six a.m., trying to grab a cup of coffee in peace, to wake up gently, before sorting out the family and going through the morning ritual of everyone shouting, ‘Mum!’ or ‘Olivia, where’s my…?’ Once they were all packed off to school and work, she’d heave a sigh of relief and grab Hector’s lead. Once he heard that familiar jangle, he’d come running from wherever he was in the house – he had super hearing for things like that. They’d jump in the car and go to the forest, which was literally just at the end of their long country road.
It did her good to get away from the house; it oppressed her at times. Sometimes they ran, sometimes they walked, depending on her mood. There were times when she just needed the pace to slow, so a walk amongst the trees was therapeutic and calmed her down. There was something about being surrounded by trees. She wasn’t a tree hugger, but she definitely felt a benefit from being in the forest, she felt grounded and at peace. Just her and Hector, the odd mountain biker and other dog walkers. She missed Hector.
She did not miss the hectic mornings.
Even the weekends were full-on these days, with football on a Saturday morning for one son and rugby on a Sunday morning for the other. And George played golf most weekends on both days, so it was all left to her and she’d be expected to drop him off then wait for his call to say he wanted a lift home, at whatever that time may be. She could never entirely relax. It would have been nice some weekends to pour herself a glass of wine and chill out in front of the TV, but she’d learnt a long time ago that she’d always be expected to drop everything to chauffeur one of the males in her life somewhere.
Sometimes she just wanted life to slow down so she could take stock of what she wanted. She was unhappy, but she wasn’t sure what being happy looked like any more.
Before they’d had children, she and George used to love their Saturday nights in, snuggling up on the sofa together, watching a film with a cheap bottle of wine and fish and chips. Now, on a Saturday evening, if he wasn’t at the golf club, there was nearly always some function they had to go to, a charity event that George wanted to be seen at because it was good for his business connections.
He’d changed so much. ‘Family first’ used to be his motto. Now it was always the business that came ahead of everyone and everything, and she was left to deal with all the family stuff. She knew that lots of people would love to be in her position. She didn’t have to work, had access to as much money as she wanted, had loads of time on her hands while the kids were at school, so she could have been a lady who lunches, or spent every day shopping if she wanted to. Some of her friends were amazed that even though she didn’t work, George allowed her to have a cleaner, but their house was so huge, she’d never be able to keep on top of it without some help.
So, yes, in theory, she had a nice life. But she’d lost her spirit. She’d lost her purpose.
She missed their old life very much and would swap it back in a heartbeat.
Her plan for today had been to get up early, go for a run and be back by now, but she was on holiday, after all, and did she really want to go for a run?
Her running clothes were placed over the armchair in the corner of the room, so she popped to the loo in the en suite, brushed her teeth and tied her hair back, then got dressed. As she crept out of her room, closing the door behind her, she didn’t think anyone was up. She tiptoed down the stairs and started doing some stretching exercises on the bottom couple of steps.
‘Can you help me to run, Liv?’
Liv clutched her chest. ‘Jeez, Debs! You scared the life out of me. What are you doing creeping up behind me and lurking around in the hallway?’
‘Sorry, lovely. I didn’t mean to scare you. I wondered whether you might sit down with me later and put a plan together for me to start running. I really want to lose some weight, Liv, and I’ve made up my mind that I’m going to start to run.’
‘That’s brilliant, Debs. Go grab the spare pair of running shoes that are in my wardrobe and come with me now.’
‘Oh no. I’ll only hold you up.’
‘Come on, Debs, I really don’t mind. And I’d love to help you. We can do a bit of running and a bit of fast walking. Honestly, go grab my running shoes and we’ll go now. No time like the present. Go now, before you change your mind.’
Debs was out of breath before she got to the top of the stairs, never mind after any running. She’d probably have a heart attack before she got to the top of the street. She didn’t want to let Liv down, though, and she needed help because she clearly couldn’t do it on her own.
Liv gave her some stretches to do when she came down the stairs and then opened the door.
‘Here.’ Liv threw a bottle of water at her. ‘Come on. Let’s go. This time tomorrow, you’ll be so glad you did it today. And I’m so blooming proud of you for trying.’