The Love Resort (22 page)

‘So, Lee, how do you find the entertainment at the resort?’

Lily poured another glass of water. Lee and Carla had looked a bit distant when they arrived for their interview and as her efforts at small talk had failed, Lily decided to get straight on with it. She tried not to sound harsh, but she didn’t like Lee. He kept giving her looks, as if he had X-ray vision. She hoped he didn’t.

‘Oh, it’s very good.’ Lee looked at Lily then at Carla.

‘Carla?’ Lily liked Carla. Well, she felt sorry for her. The other night, when she’d been sobbing her heart out, she’d been pretty incoherent but what was clear was that she really loved Lee. Lily decided that both Carla and Jimmy needed to get lessons in who not to fall in love with, although it seemed for both of them it was too late.

‘Well, it’s fun and romantic, all rolled into one really.’ Romantic? At a guess, Lee was the most unromantic man in the resort. He was certainly the antithesis of Tim.

‘If you had to sum up your time here so far, what would you say?’

Lily studied the two blank faces in front of her and wondered what on earth was going on. They were as clueless as if she’d asked them how to build a nuclear bomb. Lee was monosyllabic, although generally he was only talkative when he had more of an audience. Carla’s features swung from pretty and smiling, to murderous. Lily sat back and waited for someone to speak.

‘I would say that it has been fun, and very sunny. And the food is delicious, so all good,’ Lee said.

‘And romantic,’ Carla hissed, again in a way that told Lily that it was anything but. Carla obviously hadn’t forgiven him for the other night and Lily was glad. She didn’t know how she put up with him, although by the looks of it she wasn’t doing. Had she not known better, Lily would conclude that The Love Resort was ruining relationships. She willed someone to speak.

‘Of course, romantic,’ he added. ‘I feel privileged to be here with Carla, I definitely do. She’s a top bird and I really, really love her.’ He smiled triumphantly. Lily decided not to push. Carla looked as if she wanted to hit him. Lily wondered if she should just make the interview up. After all, it would be easier than trying to get anything out of these two. Just as she was about to wrap it up, Carla cleared her throat.

‘Lee and I haven’t been out of university long and so we really built our love on a student foundation. It’s very different. We go to bars and clubs, but not really to restaurants. This feels very grown-up—which is, of course, wonderful for us. Lee is about to go to law school and I’m going to train as a journalist.’ She beamed triumphantly; Lee was obviously totally confused. ‘So, we are about to enter the grown-up world and this romantic interlude has certainly given us a taste for that.’

‘Lovely,’ Lily said, finally seeing some passion in Carla, and thankful that she had something she could use. ‘Finally, tell me how you feel your relationship has benefited from being here. Lee?’

‘We’ve grown closer. Much closer.’

‘Fantastic. Carla?’

‘I think we’ve seen ourselves for who we are and the foundations of our relationship, the ones we built before we came here, have been strengthened, and enhanced by the magic of The Love Resort.’ Carla looked at Lee with determination in her eyes. What she was saying was true. Lily wondered if there was hope for these two after all.

‘Wow, Carla, you have a great way with words. Good luck with the journalism,’ Lily said.

*

‘Look Carla, I’m really sorry,’ Lee said, as he tried to catch her up. Carla had given him the silent treatment throughout the photographs and still was doing, as they made their way to meet the others.

At first she’d been too angry to speak, now she wanted to scream at him.

‘I can’t believe you. I asked you to make a bit more effort, that’s all, so we could enjoy the holiday, but you just made a fool out of me again. Those answers you gave were so lame.’ Carla glared at him. He wasn’t even trying. After the other night, after dancing with Emily, he’d promised her that things would be better, that he’d be the boyfriend she wanted him to be. Well, that hadn’t really lasted. Carla couldn’t remember having ever been so angry with him.

‘Carla, stop a minute.’ He put his hands on her shoulders. ‘I can’t do the romantic thing. You’ve always known that. So, why are you surprised by my behaviour? I am sorry, but I can’t be who I’m not.’

Carla looked at him. She felt winded. She did know him, and she loved him for who he was, and he was right, she shouldn’t have expected him to behave like a romantic; she knew he wasn’t. What was she doing? Her anger deflated.

‘I’m sorry. Look, Lee, we’ve still got a fair way to go on this holiday, so how about we try to enjoy ourselves and I’ll be more relaxed?’ She smiled at him warmly. She had to take his feelings into account; she had to make this holiday work.

‘Deal, babes,’ he agreed, and slung an arm around her shoulder as they walked off.

*

‘Hi, guys, did you have your photos taken yet?’ Thea asked as they arrived at the bar where Jimmy and Emily were sitting.

‘Yes, on the beach,’ Emily replied.

‘We had to sit in one of the love seats. It was a bit cheesy,’ Thea explained.

‘It was tackiness personified,’ Tim elaborated, and then ordered drinks.

‘We got engaged,’ Jimmy blurted out. He didn’t know why, but he wanted the others to know. He wanted to see how Emily reacted to what they’d say and he wanted his relationship back. He felt childish but part of him wanted them to know that she was his. Unless she told him otherwise.

‘My God, you did?’ Tim patted Jimmy on the back.

‘Wow, congratulations,’ Thea offered.

‘Thank you, but, Jimmy, I did ask you to keep it quiet. You see,’ Emily said, turning to look at him, ‘I wanted my parents to be the first to know.’

‘Never mind,’ Tim said. ‘I don’t have a clue who your parents are, so I’m not going to let it slip. Right, this calls for a celebration. Barman, champagne over here, please.’

Jimmy tried to keep himself calm. She wouldn’t wear the ring and she didn’t want anyone to know. He tried to tell himself that it was perfectly reasonable for her to want her folks to be the first to know, but he didn’t quite believe it. He didn’t know what to believe right now, apart from the fact that he was beginning to feel like an utter fool.

He had always been a bit blind when it came to Emily, but his eyes were being slowly, reluctantly opened. She wasn’t acting like someone who had just got engaged, she was acting like someone who didn’t want to be engaged. But before they left they’d talked about marriage. In fact, Jimmy recalled, it was Emily who brought the subject up. She said that the resort would be a perfect setting for a proposal. Which is why he’d bought the ring. As he thought about this he felt sad. He hadn’t even come up with that idea himself. It had been hers. They’d often talked about plans for the future. Emily had pointed out houses she liked, and venues for weddings. She’d even told him how many children she wanted (three). He felt sick with fear, and something else he couldn’t identify. She was behaving badly, and he had no idea what to do.

Lee and Carla arrived, looking thunderous.

‘We need to do the photographs first,’ the photographer told them as Tim tried to get them to have a drink. ‘Now can you all go and stand by the fence?’ They obediently made their way to the rose-covered fence and lined up.

‘No, that’s no good. You look like an army. Right. Men at the back, women in front. In front of your own boyfriend, of course,’ the photographer instructed.

‘Or in someone’s case, their fiancée,’ Tim quipped.

‘What?’ Carla asked, looking at Thea.

‘Oh God, not us, no, Jimmy and Emily.’

‘What?’ Lee asked, as Emily turned red. Carla and Jimmy both looked at the floor.

‘Can you all look at the camera?’ The photographer snapped, and as he took the photograph they all did, but only Tim smiled.

‘Thank God that is over,’ Thea said, going back to the seat where they’d started out. ‘I am so sweaty.’ She grabbed Tim’s shirt and used it to pat her face.

‘You’re getting a nice colour, though. Oh, of course, congratulations, Jimmy, Emily, that’s so wonderful.’ Carla’s eyes sparkled. Now Emily was engaged, hopefully she would leave Lee alone, although looking at them, she doubted it.

‘Thank you,’ Jimmy said, raising his glass.

‘To Emily and Jimmy,’ Tim toasted.

‘To the most beautiful girl in the world, thank you,’ Jimmy added.

‘Jimmy, you are so sweet,’ Carla said, glaring at Emily.

‘So, is this fake champagne?’ Tim added, laughing.

Emily and Lee said nothing.

*

‘So, it’s all finished?’ Anne-Marie asked as she, Ed and Lily sat in the office.

‘Yes. I’ll type up the interviews soon, but here’s a quick round-up.’ Lily could barely contain her excitement. ‘Jimmy proposed to Emily.’ She was triumphant. No matter that her money said the marriage would never go ahead, it was still a coup.

‘He proposed while you were interviewing them?’

‘Yes, and she said yes.’

‘How wonderful for our publicity. They were the only couple I liked, after all.’

‘Also, Tim surprised us. He was very articulate.’

‘What did he say?’ Anne-Marie was unconvinced.

‘That he needed beauty to exist, and he thought he was a bit like you. He said this place was inspiring to him.’ Lily resisted the urge to giggle about the comparison between Tim and Anne-Marie. They both liked a drink, they were both blonde...no, that was as far as she could go with that.

‘Do you think I misjudged him? I mean, he sounds so utterly sensible, a kindred spirit. Do you think I should give him another chance?’ Anne-Marie was almost hopping with excitement.

‘Perhaps,’ Lily lied. They were anything but what Anne-Marie thought they’d be, of that she was almost convinced. ‘Oh, Carla was quite articulate and romantic; Lee was a bit monosyllabic.’

‘As long as he didn’t mention the lack of talent.’

‘He certainly did not.’

‘Good. When you’ve finished, and we’ve reviewed the answers, I might invite them to dinner again; let them redeem themselves. Maybe I judged them too quickly.’

‘So, we’re not sending them home?’ Ed asked.

‘Don’t be silly. However, they did disrupt the resort, so I still want to keep an eye on them. Especially as we have the big magazine people flying in tomorrow to do the interview with Todd and Katie. So, tonight, Lily, you have to help Ed watch the competition winners and leave Todd and Katie.’

‘OK, boss.’ Lily was relieved. She was running out of ideas of how Todd seduced Katie, and how Katie responded. She would never make a writer.

‘Now, I shall go to the house. I need quiet to think about my novel.’

‘See you later,’ Lily said knowingly. Thinking about it was all Anne-Marie ever did.

‘And don’t disturb poor Abigail; she’s got another of her heads.’

Lily and Ed obediently shook their heads.

I don’t feel that we’ve been alone enough lately,’ Ed said, when his wife had gone.

‘Well, we are now. Lock the door.’ Lily began undoing her blouse.

‘When these guys are gone, I think we should just leave,’ Ed said, as he turned to her. ‘The last few days have been so busy, and I’ve missed you.’

‘Are you sure?’ Lily felt her excitement mounting. She couldn’t wait and neither her guilt nor anything else could stop her now.

‘In a couple of weeks we’ll be together.’

‘That soon?’

‘It’s not soon enough, my darling.’

*

‘Everything is fine, Harriet,’ Todd said. He reasoned that there weren’t many men who had calls from their publicist on their honeymoon to check their itinerary.

‘Are you sure?’ He knew she wasn’t concerned for their welfare, just for the Studio.

‘Yes, it’s fine.’ Todd looked at Katie and smiled. It was fine. Sort of.

‘So are you going to be OK to do the pictures and interview tomorrow? You have all the information?’

‘Of course.’

‘Good. Listen, the press is going mad over here, guessing where you are, and they might find you. Be careful, all right? I mean, too many people know where you are for us to be sure of your privacy.’

Todd thought of Marcus. ‘We are being careful,’ he replied.

‘Good.’ She hung up.

‘That was Harriet.’

‘I guessed that,’ said Katie. ‘Is everything OK?’

‘Yeah, she just wanted to check in with us about the magazine people.’

‘Did she say anything else?’

‘No, apart from our marriage has rocked America. Apparently the press is on the hunt for us.’

‘They don’t know we’re here yet?’

‘No, but they might find out.’ He paused. ‘Harriet said we should be careful.’

‘Todd, I’m not the one that needs to know that.’ She looked at him pointedly, as if to tell him that she knew exactly what he’d been up to.

‘I know,’ he answered, dejectedly. He made a decision. When the magazine people left tomorrow, he would tell Marcus he couldn’t see him again. Too much was at risk. His pleasure was something that he could ill afford, and it wasn’t fair on Katie.

He thought about her more and more as a person, and he even believed they could perhaps be friends. But he had to persuade her that they weren’t going to be together romantically, and he needed to earn her friendship, her trust. Which meant that Marcus, and anyone else for now, was history.

19

Make
Yourself
At
Home
!

At The Love Resort, your happiness is the only thing that matters to us. The resort becomes your home for the entire length of your stay and therefore we want you to feel that you can treat it as such.

We are here to serve you; the resort is here to be used for your pleasure. So relax, have fun, and if you need anything, Guest Services are at your disposal twenty-four hours a day.

Remember, our home is your home!

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Handbook

*

‘We’ve done our duty, by the interview, praising the resort and all that, so I think it’s only fair that as we did nothing last night, we have some fun tonight, especially as we have something to celebrate,’ Tim announced, as he got the barman to open another bottle of sparkling wine.