The Heartbreak Hotel (Sandy Springs #1)

Chapter Twelve

Ella

Ella woke to something swatting her face. She squirmed, blinking away dreams of giant goats chasing her through Manchester Airport to see a fluffy paw hit her square between the eyes. Ziggy’s chest rumbled as he brushed himself under her neck, suffocating her. She chuckled, manoeuvring his body away from her airways and waking up Riley in the process.

Though they hadn’t had sex last night, they’d slept in the same bed together, and in a way, that felt just as intimate. She got the sense that Riley never shared her spaces, and yet here Ella was, lying between the soft sheets of her bed, basking in the warmth of her body.

Ella was wound up tight—who could blame her after all of those toe-curling kisses?—but she couldn’t rush anything. The last thing she wanted was to scare Riley away.

Small slivers of light peeked out from under the blinds. The rest of the cabin was still cloaked in darkness.

Ella fought off a yawn with the back of her hand while the other tickled behind Ziggy’s ears. “What time is it?” she mumbled.

Riley brushed her hands over her face. “Quarter past six.”

Ella groaned. “Doesn’t your cat understand the weekend?”

“My personal alarm clock doesn’t take days off, I’m afraid.” Riley laughed low in her throat and stretched, flexing her arm muscles. Ella’s mouth went dry.

It’s far too early to be getting caught in those thoughts, Ella.

“How’d you sleep?” Riley asked, and to Ella’s horror, she flung back the sheets and jumped out of bed. Ella missed her warmth immediately. “Can I get you a drink of something?”

Ella’s temple throbbed. As much as she’d thought she’d missed drinking, she did not miss the consequences plaguing her the next day. Combined with their lack of sleep—they’d stayed up until the early hours talking—her mind was running on a small delay.

Ziggy jumped after Riley, rubbing himself against her legs as she chopped oranges into halves. She popped a slice into the juicer and, without missing a beat, poured some food into Ziggy’s metal bowl, moving on autopilot with a bounce to her step.

Cute.

Normally, Ella would kill for a coffee, but the idea of fresh juice sounded better, even if the whirring noise made her want to hold a pillow over her head. She sat up and observed Riley cooing over Ziggy, making plaid pyjama bottoms and an oversized black T-shirt look remarkably attractive. But she had the kind of body that would be flawless wearing a Tesco carrier bag.

Seeing her so at ease, especially after their conversation last night, warmed something in Ella’s belly. Is she always so carefree in the morning?

There’d been a shift in the air between them, and finally, they were on the same page. That thought sent excited sparks all over Ella’s skin.

When the machine stopped whirring, Riley made her way back to the bed, carrying two glasses of freshly squeezed juice, and hopped in next to Ella.

Ella let out a small moan as the cool liquid slid down her throat. “Wow. That’s delicious.”

“No better way to start the day.”

Ella could think of several. Starting with curling up back under the sheets with Riley and exploring every inch of her sculpted body with her mouth. Heat crept between her thighs at the thought. Maybe she needed a cool shower.

She finished her juice and cleared her throat, angling herself towards Riley. “So today’s your day off. What are you going to do?”

Riley placed her glass on the bedside table. “Actually, I was hoping to spend some more time with you.” She smiled sheepishly. “So, what do you want to do?”

Ella pushed away the dirty thoughts infiltrating her mind. She glanced around Riley’s cabin, at all the bits and pieces that made her Riley. She wanted more of that.

“Why don’t you show me what you usually do on your days off?”

“Really? It’s not that exciting.”

“I think so.”

She locked eyes with Riley’s blues. When she grinned, it touched someplace deep in her centre.

“Alright,” she agreed. “But I warn you now, there are no refunds for the tour.”

They had a quick breakfast of eggs and toast, Riley packed a bag, and they headed out into the sunshine. Ella borrowed some of Riley’s cargo shorts and a vest. Not her usual choice of attire, but her sundress was still soaked from last night.

Clouds rolled over the sky, chasing the last of the storm away, but the humidity hung thick in the air.

Riley led them up the side of the cabin to join another gravel track leading through the trees and dipping back down into the valley on the other side. The grass grew long in places, overgrown trees hiding the mountains from view.

Ella smelled the grove first. The sweet, citrus scent swirled around her, and then the path opened up into an orange grove with dozens of trees bearing fruit.

She spun to face Riley. “You really come here on your days off?”

“If I’ve run out of oranges. And we finished my last few today.” She reached up to pluck one from the tree and threw it towards Ella.

It slipped from her fingers and rolled across the ground. She picked it back up, laughing, and squeezed it.

“Smell it.”

“What?”

Riley grinned. “Just do it.”

Ella brought the fruit to her nose and breathed in the sweet, aromatic fragrance. “That’s the most… orange -smelling orange ever.”

“They’re the best-tasting ones too. Try it.”

Ella peeled the skin, then hesitated before taking a bite. “Isn’t this stealing?”

Riley brushed her hands through the leaves, giving each fruit a squeeze before tugging another from the stem. “They belong to the island. There are actually afternoon orange-picking classes in the activities…which you’d know about if you read the damn booklets we gave you.”

Before Ella could comment, Riley cast a cheeky smile in her direction and joined her side. She peeled her orange, cheersed them together, and they leaned in to take a bite.

Ella’s teeth sunk into the juicy flesh, sweetness lighting up her tastebuds and running down her chin. She wiped at it with her fingers, nodding. “God, that’s good.”

Riley chuckled, her blue eyes flitting over Ella’s face. Then she pulled her deeper into the confinement of the trees, gripped her waist and planted a citrus kiss on her lips.

Oranges might just be Ella’s new favourite fruit.

They collected more produce from the trees, stored them in Riley’s rucksack and then sat back on the grass overlooking the grove.

Puffy white clouds drifted overhead, stretching across the sky. Ella extended her toes, letting the grass tickle her feet.

Riley dug out two small square canvases from her bag, quickly followed by a portable paint tray, and a packet of brushes.

“You paint here?” Ella asked.

“There are so many beautiful places to paint on the island. Here seems as good a spot as any.”

Ella had to agree. Surrounded by trees, the warm sun overhead, and the heavenly scent of oranges, it made for a pretty perfect setting.

Especially when paired with the gorgeous blonde sitting beside her.

Riley handed her a canvas.

Ella frowned, poking it away with her finger. Devin had always been the creative sibling. “Can’t I just watch you paint? I’m kinda awful at this stuff.”

She shook her head. “You wanted a day in the life. No backsies. Besides, I could never concentrate with you ogling me.”

Ella snorted. Who knew it would take just three little near-death experiences to bring Riley out of her shell—and yes, Ella was counting the tumble down the cliff on her first day. It had hurt. But she could totally get on board with this confident, cheeky Riley, even if she was the butt of the joke.

“Fine,” she said. “But you’re going to have to teach me.”

Riley tucked one leg under the other. “First. Get comfy.”

Ella scoffed. “There’s no way I can sit like that. I’ll break my back.”

“You don’t have to sit like me. Just find what works.”

Ella laid on her stomach, moving the canvas in front of her. She could at least work on her tan if nothing else. “Alright. Let’s do it.”

Riley chuckled. “I usually sketch the scene first. Just a quick outline for positioning.” Her hand moved across the canvas, black pencil lines marking the white. “Don’t try to paint everything, but pick a focal point and think about what it is you’re trying to capture.”

Ella wished she had the capacity to capture the details in Riley’s expression. The way the tips of her eyebrows raised in concentration. Her lips, and how they puckered as her sharp blue eyes flicked across the landscape and back to the canvas. The flex of her long fingers as she worked, the twitch in her strong forearms, the way her vest clung to her body like it was sculpted to her. Watching her at work drummed something fierce in Ella’s heart, and she found it hard to look away.

Riley looked at her, her eyes sparkling in the sunlight. “What?”

Oh god. I am ogling her. “Nothing.”

Feeling flushed, she picked the spot in the orange grove where Riley kissed her and worked outwards, drawing the two trees and their outstretching branches. The lines came out messy and wobbly, unlike Riley’s precise, effortless ones.

They moved to painting, starting with the shadows in the scene, like Riley suggested. Ella was a little heavy-handed with her colours, and her attempts to even them out only ended with paint licking up her forearms, much to Riley’s amusement.

In between stealing glances, an ease fell over the two of them as they chatted beneath the afternoon sun, shadows stretching across the grass. Admittedly, Ella’s painting wouldn’t be winning any awards, but time passed quickly, and spending time doing something Riley loved warmed a little space in her chest.

“Are these your favourite clouds?” she asked, dabbing her brush in the white and trying to recreate the soft texture in front of her. “Crickets or something? ”

Riley offered a playful smirk. “Cirrus. And no, these look more like cumulus clouds. They’ve got those lovely puffy heads, see?”

“I just see Simon Cowell on a skateboard. Looks like something’s chasing him.”

She cocked her head, squinting up at the sky and biting her lip. “A dog, maybe? Or an angry contestant.”

Their eyes met, and everything around them faded away. Riley’s brush stilled in her hand, and Ella set hers down. She wet her lips, feeling suddenly dry. “Well…I think I’ve finished.”

Riley snapped out of her trance and turned her attention to Ella’s painting. She beamed, her dimples popping. “Hey, it’s good.”

The paint had glooped in parts, and the trees resembled angry monkeys more than the peaceful pull of the orange grove, but Ella appreciated her enthusiasm, nonetheless. She’d actually really enjoyed creating something. She snuck a glance at Riley’s canvas, and her eyes bulged.

“Oh my god, Riley.”

The mix of greens, oranges, peaches, and blues brought the grove to life. Riley had managed to capture the location with realism while giving it a dreamy quality. The hues of the mountains merged into a half-finished blue sky, swirls and dabs giving the canvas texture. How on Earth had she painted that in the same time as Ella?

“Hey, it’s not finished yet.” Riley moved it out of her view, but it was no use, she’d already seen it .

“You’re so talented.” She angled her head to peek back at the canvas. “You could sell that.”

“No one would want to buy this.”

“Yeah, they would.”

Riley’s brush stilled in the paint, and she shook her head, letting her chin drop. Ella moved to catch her face and stroked her thumb over her cheek. A new habit she couldn’t seem to shake. “I’m not joking,” she continued. “You’re really good.”

“I don’t think so.” She peered at her through thick lashes. “It’s just a hobby.”

“It could be more than that if you wanted it to be. If I could paint as well as you do, I’d be living in a millionaire’s mansion right now with fifteen flamingos.”

“Fifteen?” Riley blew out a small breath of laughter, and Ella dropped her hand. “That’s a lot of names to remember.”

“I love how that’s your response and not ‘why do we need fifteen flamingos?’”

Ella hadn’t realised what she’d said until Riley’s gaze warmed her face. “I’m there too in this wee mansion of yours?”

Her heart thundered against her ribcage, and she attempted a playful shrug. “Yeah. Who else is going to massage my feet and pick up all the flamingo poop?”

Riley chuckled, tucking her hair over her shoulder. “You know, I could think of worse ways to earn a living.”

“Deal.” Their eyes locked, and Ella arched an eyebrow. “You’d also have to worship me three times a day.”

“I don’t see that being a problem, either.” Riley’s gaze swept over Ella’s features, fanning heat inside her navel. Her mouth parted, pink tongue darting out to wet her lips, and a strong tug behind Ella’s sternum almost took her breath away. It seemed as though Riley was going to say something more, but then her mouth curved, and her hand jumped back to life, swiping blue across the canvas.

Ella watched her work for a little while, soaking up the feelings swirling around her like watercolour paint. Every second they spent together was multi-layered; she loved that. But she couldn’t understand why Riley, with all her positivity about life and her encouragement of others, couldn’t see her own talent.

“So you’ve seen my day,” Riley started, lifting her eyes above the canvas to find Ella’s. “What about you? What does a day off in Ella’s world look like?”

Caught off-guard, Ella went blank. She pulled a bottle of water out of Riley’s bag and had a sip. Her old life felt like a disjointed memory. She couldn’t even remember the last time she really had fun. She and Winnie always had a good time, but truthfully, Ella always had work or Maeve or her parents to complain about.

What did she actually do for fun?

There must be something.

She felt Riley’s gaze land on her when she didn’t say anything.

“I hang out with my best friend Winnie a lot, and…” Sh e didn’t want to talk about their nights spent getting wasted, or the time she’d spent stalking Maeve and Annabelle on social media. Other than that, all she could think of was late nights at the office, followed by watching Netflix in bed. She used to play netball at school, but she always preferred watching it to playing. Ella and her mum still liked to watch the Netball Super League together, but she’d cancelled a lot in the last few months. Work had sucked up so much of her time, like a boring old vacuum cleaner.

“And…erm.” Ella sighed, chewing at her lip. “I don’t know. My family are always doing something. Mum loves to cook for us.”

Compared to Riley’s daily life, hers had all the excitement of a rusty fax machine. That left a sour taste in her mouth.

“That’s sweet, actually,” Riley said. “Are you close with your family?”

“Yeah,” she started. But then her mind wandered. When was the last time she didn’t cancel plans on her mum or make excuses not to see her brother? There were only so many times she could fend off unwanted questions about herself.

They were always pressuring her. Weren’t they? She sat up a little straighter, trying to recall her mother’s words. I just want the best for you. Ella had assumed she was being patronised, implying “the best” was “to be like Devin”. But the more she thought about it, the more she wasn’t sure. Her mum had never pushed her to change careers or relationships. She just asked a lot of questions. A lot of questions Ella didn’t have the answers to.

Huh.

“What is it?” Riley asked, looking up from her painting.

Ella swallowed, then had another swig from the water bottle. “I…just realised I need to put in some more effort with them.”

Riley nodded. “This place has a way of doing that to you.”

Didn’t she know it. Ella was one more epiphany away from a brain haemorrhage. “Are you close with your family?” she asked tentatively, remembering their conversation about Ireland.

Riley hesitated before saying, “No.”

“What happened?”

She continued to paint, her eyes focused on the canvas. “My mum left when I was young, and my dad…he’s a drunk.”

That surprised her. She reached for Riley’s thigh and gave it a squeeze, the urge to comfort her overpowering any overthinking about first-date etiquette. “Riley, I’m sorry… Do you wanna talk about it?”

“He’s always been the same. For as long as I can remember.” The birds singing in the trees around them filled the silence while Riley chewed at her lip. “The house was a mess. His friends were constantly around. We didn’t speak for a long time, and then…” She furrowed her brows. “Well, I thought he might change. But he never wi ll. Leavin’ was the best thing I did.”

Ella’s heart pulled, imagining a young Riley having to deal with that on her own. “You deserved much better than that.”

“Thank you.” Their eyes met, tingles running along Ella’s skin. She realised her hand was still on Riley’s thigh, burning heat through the touch. “Senhor Arenoso gave me an alternative,” Riley went on. “He showed me that there’s more to life. That’s why my family here are so important.” She offered Ella a small smile and gave her canvas one more look over before announcing, “It’s done.”

Ella wanted to ask more, but she turned her attention to Riley’s canvas. “Can I see?”

After a little more encouragement and some batting of eyelashes from Ella, Riley spun the painting to face her.

“Riley…it’s breathtaking.”

The finishing touches and white highlights on the leaves and sky elevated it to a whole other level—one that Ella couldn’t even put into sensical words.

The two of them packed away their things and headed back up the path towards Riley’s cabin. The sun warmed her neck as it dipped in the sky, the soft pad of their footsteps blending with the chatter of the birds in the treetops.

Riley was a little quiet once they started walking, pushing Ella’s mind into overdrive. Had she said something to upset her? Or was she itching to get back and get this date over with? Maeve sometimes ended their time prematurely, claiming an early start, only for Ella to see she’d been active on Facebook hours later.

She brushed her hand against Riley’s, making her turn around. “Everything alright?”

“Yeah, sorry.” Riley observed the view over Ella’s shoulder before giving her a small smile that didn’t touch her eyes.

“You sure? You sound like you just dropped your ice-cream cone on the floor.”

Riley sighed and glanced behind them before hooking her hand behind Ella’s neck, beckoning her closer. The corner of her mouth ticked upwards. “You’re not the only one this island makes reconsider their life choices.”

In Riley’s strong hold, Ella’s body was no longer her own. She felt herself leaning closer, losing herself in the woman’s orbit. She couldn’t look anywhere else apart from those blue eyes, their flecks of green and brown visible in the sunshine. “How so?” she said in a breathless whisper.

Riley shook her head, dimples forming in her cheeks that made Ella want to kiss her all over. “You’re very direct, do you know that?”

“Sorry.”

Riley’s other hand cupped her chin when Ella’s head dipped. “No. It’s a good thing. You’re making me realise how much I’ve been hiding away. Sharing this with you…has been the best day I’ve had in ages.” She grinned, the dimples sinking deeper. “Which is not so mething I would usually admit on a first date.”

Ella’s belly flip-flopped. “Nothing about us is usual, anyway.”

“That’s true—”

Ella leaned in, melting against her soft lips. Her whole body hummed at the sensation when Riley kissed her back, warmth radiating over her skin. Riley’s fingers threaded into her hair, kissing her deeper, and when they parted for air, Ella’s lungs emptied completely.

Those kisses should carry warning labels.

“ Atenc?o !” a voice shouted from the path above them. Screeching brakes kicked up dust into spirals in the blue sky. “Watch out!”

A bike hauling a wooden cart was speeding down the hill, heading straight towards them. Riley pulled Ella out of the way, tripping over a boulder and landing in a bush. Ella collapsed on top of her with a grunt.

A loud crash cut through the air, followed by groans and the whir of spinning tyres. A murky cloud bloomed into the sky where the cart had tipped over, narrowly avoiding a tree.

Riley opened her eyes, grimacing. “Are you okay?” she asked Ella.

“I’m fine. Are you?” Ella stood up, offering her a hand and tugging her to her feet.

“Oh, no. No, no. Merda .” A tall boy was sprawled across the path, his long dark hair flopping across his face. He scrambled up, dirt covering his legs and shorts, and put his head in his hands. Remembering the two of them, he spun round and ran over, slipping over the gravel in his clunky sandals.

“Sorry. Peco imensas desculpas . So sorry.” His face fell in relief when he spotted Riley. “Ah, Riley. Gracas a Deus .”

Riley dropped Ella’s hand like a hot potato. “Romeo! What are you doing coming down the path like that? You could’ve killed someone.”

This is the famous Romeo?

Ella’s eyes narrowed, softening when she took in the boy’s round, chubby cheeks and fluffy facial hair. He couldn’t have been more than a teenager.

“I’m sorry. Sorry. The brakes are a little stiff, and I was late collecting the oranges.” His chocolate-brown eyes flicked to Ella. “Miss. I’m so sorry. Are you good?”

Good wouldn’t necessarily be Ella’s choice of word, but she nodded anyway, and the boy bowed his head in apology.

He turned his attention back to his dusty bike and wooden cart and let out a groan. “My bike. What am I going to do?”

Riley inspected the damage, eyebrows pinching. “It’s just the tyre, Romeo. You’ve bust it.”

“Oh, no. Senhor Arenoso is going to kill me. Estou feito .”

“I can fix it. I have some tools at my cabin.”

His face lit up, and he crushed Riley in a hug. “Yes! Obrigado . Thank you. So lucky it was you.” His gaze moved between the two of them, lingering on Ella. “ What—”

“We were orange picking,” Riley blurted out before he could say anything further.

“Ah.” He brushed a hand over his sad moustache. “Okay.”

“Come on, before anyone sees what you did to the bike. Push it up here.” Riley cast a glance towards Ella, but it was distant. Empty. Making the fuzzy feeling in her chest sink like stones into the soles of her feet.

They made their way back up the path. Romeo pushed his squeaking bike and cart, with Riley leading at the front and Ella trailing at the back, like a scolded child. When they reached Riley’s cabin, Romeo wheeled the bike into the garden, leaving the two of them alone on the path.

“I’m sorry to cut this short,” Riley said, her voice low.

“Me too.”

“But I had a great time.”

“Me too.”

They lingered for a moment, their gazes moving over one another.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Riley said.

“Yep. See you.” Ella gave her the best smile she could muster, then headed down the trail.

She should be walking among the clouds right now. Riley was into her. They’d slept in the same bed, had the best first date—if they could call it that—she’d ever had, and shared kisses that lit her whole body on fire, and yet…her heart quivered like a deflating balloon.

The crashing cart had knocked the wind out of her sails. The fear and panic in Riley’s voice rang clear in her ears, and Ella didn’t like the way she’d snapped back from her like an elastic band.

This was going to be harder than she’d originally thought. She kept her eyes down on the path, moving towards her own cabin at a glacial pace. Her head and heart were arguing with one another. So much so, she didn’t notice Pauline until she let out a curdling coo in her direction.

“Ella! Where’ve you been?” Her attention fell on Ella’s outfit, her eyes widening. “And what the dickens are you wearing?”