Chapter 37
37
JASMINE
It took approximately thirty seconds after Alejandro walked out and slammed the door of my apartment for the first fat, salty tear to roll down my cheek.
I’d lost him.
I saw the anger and frustration in his eyes when he bolted off the bed. And I couldn’t blame him.
He’d put his heart and his pride on the line by declaring his feelings and telling me he loved me. But I’d been too chicken to reciprocate.
Not because I didn’t feel the same, because he was right: I loved him. More than I’d ever loved anyone in my life. But I was scared: genuinely terrified of getting my heart crushed.
There were plenty of examples of age-gap relationships where the man was older and the woman was younger. I mean, look at my ex and his new squeeze for starters.
But the other way around? My brain highlighted countless female celebrities who’d dared to date younger men and it had ended in tears.
And that was exactly how I saw things going with me and Alejandro.
The pain was already excruciating. But imagine how much worse it’d be if we moved in together and started sharing a life.
My stomach clenched as memories of my painful divorce came flooding back. Including the way my ex argued over stupid things like who got to keep the crystal glasses and I kid you not, the salad bowl. A fucking salad bowl! It wasn’t even anything special. Of course I told him he could keep it. The point was, I couldn’t go through all that crap again.
That was why like I’d said it was better to make a clean break now.
I’d considered what Alejandro had said about going to Hazel or HR and telling them about our relationship. I’d also thought about suggesting we put things on hold for a few months until we both hopefully got our promotions and then we could go to HR. But it wouldn’t be fair to ask him to wait and it only addressed one of the main barriers, so I’d dismissed it.
And now here I was. Alone.
I wiped away another tear, pulled the bedsheet over my head and continued crying into my pillow.
* * *
After dragging myself to the bathroom to get ready for work, I took my concealer out of my make-up bag. I was going to need to use the whole tube to try and disguise my puffy eyes.
I rarely cried. I always considered it a waste of time because it didn’t solve anything. Whatever problems that caused the tears in the first place didn’t miraculously disappear once you’d used up an entire box of tissues, so it was pointless.
Normally, I found that if I threw myself into work or another project, it helped take my mind off things. Keep calm and carry on was the motto I swore by.
But so far, it wasn’t working. I’d spent the whole day and night sobbing and feeling sorry for myself. I’d tried cleaning my apartment, doing the washing and even reading, but none of them stopped me from feeling upset about how things had ended with Alejandro.
Every time I pictured a happy memory from Jamaica, I was reminded of what I’d let slip out of my fingers.
Today would be better, though. Work was all I needed. I’d be fine.
* * *
Thankfully, the first few days back at the hotel went smoothly. I was rushed off my feet catching up with everything that had happened whilst I was away, welcoming new guests and preparing my final report on Jamaica for Hazel which I’d submitted two days ago.
She’d replied yesterday to confirm she’d received it and would have a proper look at it soon, but had added that so far, she was very impressed with what she’d read and the feedback she’d received from Hortense, so she hoped to have good news for me soon.
Hearing that made me do a happy dance. I’d done it. The promotion I’d wanted for so long was finally about to become mine.
Luckily, I’d avoided seeing Alejandro too. I had access to his schedule so had carefully co-ordinated any kitchen visits for when he wasn’t working.
That didn’t mean I hadn’t spent almost every waking moment thinking about him, though.
My phone rang and when I saw it was Stella, I smiled.
‘Hi!’ I said, getting up from behind my desk. I hadn’t spoken to her since I’d returned to Spain so I decided to head out for a walk along the beach to make sure no one could eavesdrop on our conversation.
I slid off my sandals and let my feet sink into the soft, golden sand. It was different to the whiter sand in Jamaica, but still beautiful.
‘Hey! Are you back in Spain?’
‘Yes. Got back a few days ago.’
‘So… how are things with Hottie-Andro?’
‘Hottie-Andro?’
‘Alejandro! Thought he deserved a nickname. Chief Orgasm Giver was also a contender. So was Orgasm Oracle, but then I remembered Max already held those titles so I settled on Hottie-Andro. You’re welcome!’ She laughed and my gut twisted.
‘It’s over,’ I sighed.
‘Oh no!’
I filled her in on what happened and she seemed genuinely sad.
‘So that’s that. Back to reality.’
‘I’m so sorry. You sure you can’t work it out?’
‘No.’ I shook my head, now my stomach was churning so much, I felt sick. I didn’t understand why I was still finding it so hard. I’d been at work for days. I should be feeling better. ‘It was great whilst it lasted.’ I could feel the tears building again. I needed to change the subject. ‘My love life isn’t great but things are looking up professionally!’
‘Oh yeah? What’s happened?’
‘I sent Hazel my report and she seemed enthusiastic. Said she should have some good news for me soon.’
‘Sounds like you’re getting that promotion!’
‘I hope so!’
‘That means you’re in the clear! You’re so lucky you two got to enjoy yourselves in Jamaica without it causing any issues at work.’
‘Yes. It was a combination of luck and being careful. The staff that got caught made the mistake of hooking up on the hotel grounds. But Alejandro never slept in my room or vice versa. And we didn’t kiss at the resort either.’
‘Smart. Maybe you should offer a course on how to get away with fucking your co-worker without your boss finding out!’
‘I think I’ll pass.’ I smiled.
‘Hi!’ I heard Stella call out to someone. ‘It’s Sammie. We’re just about to go for afternoon tea.’
‘Very fancy!’ I said.
‘It’s for work. I’ve got a new client that wants me to design some marketing materials for their new themed afternoon-tea menu, so obviously I said it was important that I try it out. Purely for market research, of course!’
‘Of course!’
‘Hey, Jasmine!’ Sammie called out. ‘How was Jamaica?’
‘Amazing, thanks.’
‘When’s the resort opening? Do you think you could hook me up? I’m fed up with the dating apps and watching Stella and Max suck each other’s faces whenever we go out. I’m happy for them, but I need to find my own face sucker!’
‘Face sucker?’ I laughed. ‘That’s an interesting name for your future soulmate!’
‘So what d’you reckon? Can you pull some strings? Get me a spot in the Love Hotel Jamaica ASAP? Pretty please?’
‘I wish I could,’ I replied. ‘But the Jamaican resort will be predominately targeted at the North American market. You’ll have better luck with our Spanish resort or the new one in Italy. And they only contact applicants when they find a perfect match, so I have no influence over that, I’m afraid. But the fact they’re opening more hotels means there’s more chance of getting selected.’
‘I’m not fussed about the location! They all sound amazing, so I’ll go wherever my dream man is!’
‘You should definitely apply. Like the saying goes, you have to be in it to win it! ’
Just as I was about to ask how Max was, my phone buzzed with a message. When I looked at the screen, I saw a text from Hazel asking me to come to her office.
‘Sorry but I’ve got to go! Hazel’s just messaged! I think this is it!’
‘Yay!’ They both cheered.
‘So happy for you!’ Stella added. ‘Make sure you ask for a shitload of money to reflect how brilliant you are at your job. And the use of a gorgeous villa so me and Max can come back and visit!’
‘I’ll do my best!’ I chuckled, feeling a surge of happiness flood my heart for the first time in days. I was so glad Stella and I were friends.
After saying our goodbyes, I literally sprinted to Hazel’s office, my heart pumping with excitement.
I knocked on the door.
‘Come in,’ she called out.
I pushed the door open, brimming with anticipation. My hard work was finally about to pay off.
But when I stepped inside, my eyes widened with shock because Hazel wasn’t alone.
Sat in front of her desk was Alejandro.
Panic ripped through me.
He wasn’t due at work for another three hours. I’d checked and Alejandro was definitely on the late shift, so why was he in Hazel’s office?
Bile rose in my throat.
Had he reported me for misconduct, because I’d ended things?
No.
As angry as he was, that wasn’t Alejandro’s style. He was a good man.
I had to play it cool. Act like I wasn’t affected and that everything was fine. She probably wanted to discuss my report and thought it was easier to have us both here because we’d attended the activities together.
‘Hello, Alejandro.’ I nodded in acknowledgement. ‘You wanted to see me, Hazel?’
‘Yes,’ she said solemnly. ‘I wanted to discuss your report.’
Phew .
My shoulders instantly loosened. See? I’d worried over nothing.
‘Of course! No problem! How can I help?’
‘I was particularly interested in Rick’s Café…’ She paused.
‘I know Hortense was unsure,’ I jumped in, ‘but I really feel it would be good for stimulating romance.’
‘Yes.’ Hazel raised an eyebrow. ‘You said that during our conversation. You also said there was a beautiful sunset, but you didn’t have a single photo.’
‘Apologies again about that.’
‘So you suggested I look for some online.’
‘Yes. They have some great ones on their website.’
‘Indeed. But you see, I wanted something more recent, so I searched online. They tend to have lots of different photos for places like this on TripAdvisor, social media and whatnot…’
‘Oh, I’m sure they have,’ I said calmly, wondering why she was giving so much importance to these bloody photos.
‘And they even have videos which are even better, because it makes you feel like you’re there: right in the middle of the action. I found this one which was recently uploaded that I thought you’d be interested to see.’
I swallowed hard. Why didn’t I like the direction this conversation was taking?
Hazel swivelled her computer screen around to face me and Alejandro and when I saw the video, my stomach plummeted a thousand metres below the earth.
Alejandro dragged his hands down his face.
The footage didn’t just show the sunset.
It was a video of me.
With Alejandro.
Not just standing next to Alejandro.
Kissing Alejandro.
Fuck .