Chapter 42
42
JASMINE
The oven timer sounded, interrupting the music playing in the background. I’d lost count of how often I’d listened to this playlist today.
After what happened, I’d stopped playing it because it brought back too many memories of my time in Jamaica. But today was a new day. I didn’t want to forget those memories. I wanted to look back on them fondly, no matter how painful it was to be reminded of what I’d lost.
As I opened the door and slid the baking tin out, I held my breath.
This was my fourth attempt at trying to bake the pineapple and coconut cake. Because I didn’t have a recipe, I had to try and guess the ingredients and quantities.
I used too much oil in the first one. The second one tasted awful I think because I was over enthusiastic with the amount of flour and I burned the third one, so I had everything crossed that it’d be fourth time lucky.
It actually didn’t look too bad and the scent of pineapple and coconut flooded my kitchen, which looked like a bomb had hit it.
Although I wasn’t looking forward to cleaning up, as I rested the tin on the hob, I felt a sense of pride. Baking a cake wouldn’t be a big achievement for most people. But for someone who’d been repeatedly told for years that they were rubbish at anything cooking-related, it felt good.
I knew I was supposed to wait for it to cool down, but I was anxious to know if it was any good, so I sliced a small piece off the edge.
Fingers crossed…
That actually tasted really good!
Alejandro would be proud of me. At least I hoped he would, seeing as I’d baked it for him.
It’d been an interesting week. After my chat with Stella, I’d showered, gone shopping, prepared some pasta and cleaned my apartment from top to bottom. Then I’d started working on my email to Celine: the founder of the Love Hotel.
I explained everything. How apprehensive I was about being sent away with Alejandro to Jamaica knowing I had feelings for him. How determined I was to keep things professional. How hard we both fought to keep our distance. And how much I’d fallen in love with him.
I’d also stressed that whilst battling through all of those emotions, I’d still delivered what was asked of me and gone above and beyond the call of duty. Like I’d always done at the Love Hotel.
As well as pleading my own case, I’d spent hours creating a separate presentation on Alejandro. I detailed all the hard work he’d done on the trip, spoken about how much the guests raved about his food and why he was an asset to the Love Hotel brand. I’d even included a gallery of photos I’d taken of his food.
I inserted screenshots and photos of the many messages and cards I’d received from happy guests, plus listed dozens of testimonials.
And I also added a document on our experiences with Bob and why I felt he was worthy of a permanent role at the Jamaican resort.
I threw everything at that email. Poured my heart and soul into it. I’d lost count of how many hours I’d spent overall, but when I’d hit send at three in the morning, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
I’d sent it a week ago and hadn’t received a reply yet, but I wasn’t going to give up. If I hadn’t heard from her in a few more days, I’d visit the head office and try and set up a face-to-face appointment. I’d met Celine before and she seemed lovely and down to earth, so I was sure I could find a way to get her to see me. And if I couldn’t, I’d try another approach. I wasn’t giving up until I’d exhausted every possible avenue.
After pouring the pineapple juice over the cake, I picked up my attempt at a peace-making sign which read I’m so sorry in big, red letters. I’d drawn it out onto some card earlier, coloured it in, cut it out, then attached it to two toothpicks ready to insert into the cake.
All week, I’d been wracking my brain, trying to think of a way to get in touch with Alejandro to apologise and the idea finally hit me last night.
Cooking and baking weren’t my forte. But Alejandro loved food. It was his passion and the way to his heart. I wasn’t expecting a sponge cake to make him forgive all the mistakes I’d made and I knew he must hate me, but I needed him to know how sorry I was. And I hoped that by doing something outside of my comfort zone, like baking, just because I knew he’d like it, it’d show him that I was trying to make an effort.
I hoped that the gesture would be one small step towards a long path of forgiveness.
It was probably too late to salvage any hope of a relationship with him, but I had to try. Men like Alejandro didn’t come around every day and I was a fool to let him slip through my fingers.
I’d had a lot of time to think this past week and I’d realised a lot of things.
I’d been worried about the age gap thing, but Alejandro had displayed a more mature attitude than me. None of us knew what would happen in the future. All we could do was live for now.
I’d been worried about whether Alejandro would wake up one day and want children, by which point, it’d be much harder for me to fall pregnant. But who’s to say that I wouldn’t wake up in six months’ time and decide that I wanted children?
It was impossible for anyone to predict the future. I didn’t know what was in store. All I knew was how I felt right now. And as much as I’d tried to deny it, I loved Alejandro with all my heart. I was scared to admit it before, but now I wanted the world to know.
There were billions of women in the world and I was the one he wanted to be with. And even if every single man on earth offered themselves on a platter to me, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that there was only one man that I wanted: Alejandro.
He had everything I wanted in a man and more. He was so loyal, so kind, so caring, so loving. And whether we got to spend five years together or forever like I hoped, I wanted to treasure every single second.
Once I’d transferred the cake to the box I’d bought, I ordered a taxi to drop me at Alejandro’s apartment. I had to send a package to his place from the hotel a few months ago, so I still had his address on an old email.
Luckily, when I arrived, someone was just leaving the building, so I was able to get inside without ringing the buzzer.
When I found his door, I placed the box on the floor, knocked the door, then left.
It wasn’t fair to just turn up unannounced and expect him to talk to me. I’d left the cake; now I had to leave it to him to decide whether he wanted to contact me.
As the taxi pulled up back outside my building, I spotted a large, black Mercedes parked in front of the main door.
I took out my key and just as I put it in the lock, I heard my name being called.
‘Jasmine?’
I spun around, then my eyes popped as I saw a tall woman with short, dark hair.
‘Oh my goodness, Celine. What are you doing here?’
‘I got your email. Can we talk?’
‘Oh! Great! Yes! Of course!’ I stuttered, opening the door and leading her up to my apartment. It was only when I opened the door that I remembered that the open-plan kitchen was a tip. ‘Sorry about the mess.’ I winced. ‘I’d just finished baking.’
‘No problem.’ She waved her hand. ‘You have a lovely home.’
‘Thank you.’ I exhaled. It was a modern and minimalist style apartment with simple décor. Plain white walls with some paintings I’d bought when I’d moved to Spain lining the walls, oak wooden floors and neutral-coloured furniture. ‘Would you like something to drink?’
‘Water would be lovely.’
Once I poured two glasses, I joined her on the sofa.
‘So, you said you read my email?’
‘I did. And Alejandro’s.’
‘He emailed?’ I frowned.
‘He did. So did his sister. And several former guests including Stella and Max. Multiple times…’
‘Oh,’ I said, unsure whether she was annoyed that she’d been bombarded.
‘And it made me really angry,’ she said. My stomach twisted with dread, but then just as I was about to protest and stand my ground, she continued. ‘When I first set up the Love Hotel, I wanted it to be a place of positivity, love and happiness. An idyllic retreat where couples could find love and somewhere the best people in the business would enjoy working. I always wanted it to have a family vibe. A warm, welcoming atmosphere.’
‘That’s exactly what I’ve always tried to create too.’
‘I know. I always hoped it’d be successful, but I never expected it to take off so quickly and on such a large scale. I’m grateful for that, but one of the challenges with growth is that it’s impossible to oversee everything. You have to delegate and hope that others will share the same vision. But we made a mistake by hiring Hazel and innocent people like you and Alejandro have suffered because of it. So I wanted to apologise for that and thank you for bringing the situation to my attention.’
‘Oh!’ I didn’t know what I was expecting her to say, but it wasn’t that.
‘The company is called the Love Hotel. It’s supposed to inspire love. And to me, the fact that two of our very best Romance Rockstars have fallen in love isn’t something that should be punished. It should be celebrated!’ A wide grin spread across her face. ‘You’re both single, consenting adults and I love that the atmosphere is so romantic, magical and infectious that even our Rockstars can’t resist falling in love too! It proves that what we’re doing at the hotel works! That’s why I’m here to ask if you’d consider coming back to join our family as our newly appointed Love Alchemist Empress?’
‘What?’ I gasped. ‘You’d like me to come back? And you’re giving me a promotion?’
‘Yes!’ She nodded. ‘Your presentation was powerful. So was Alejandro’s. What impressed me was that he said very little about why he should get his job back. He spoke more about you and how amazing you were. And I noticed that you did the same. The majority of your presentation focused on Alejandro and Bob. Jasmine, you epitomise everything I wanted to create with the Love Hotel. You’ve gone above and beyond. So if you come back, you’ll also receive an extra raise on top of your new salary, as a small token of my gratitude.’
‘That’s… wow! Thank you!’ Relief and happiness washed over me, but then my chest tightened. ‘What about Alejandro?’ I didn’t want to go back without him. It wouldn’t feel right.
‘We’d love him to come back too, but as our Cuisine King!’
‘Yes!’ I jumped off the sofa and punched the air with joy. ‘That’s amazing! He deserves it so much.’
‘I know. I’ve tried his food several times and have always been impressed. I’m going to visit him next, so thought maybe you’d like to come with me, to tell him the good news?’
‘Um…’ My brain froze. ‘Perhaps it’s best if you tell him. I know he’d appreciate it. I’m just happy he got his job back.’
‘But what about your relationship ?’ Her face creased with concern.
‘I’m still hoping we have a chance, but right now, I’d like to give him some space. See if it’s still something he wants. But don’t worry; whatever happens, or doesn’t, it won’t affect our work. We’ll still be professional and won’t let it create an awkward atmosphere or anything. I promise.’
‘Right. I see. Don’t give up on each other, though. Love is special. It’s not something you want to let slip through your fingers.’
‘I’m not throwing in the towel just yet. I’m still hoping he’ll forgive me.’
‘Good. Well, I wanted to tell you the good news in person, so now I’ve done that, I’ll let you get on with your day.’
‘Thank you.’
‘Oh, and in case you hadn’t already guessed, Hazel no longer works at the Love Hotel.’
Thank God for that.
‘That’s good,’ I said diplomatically. Calling it good was an understatement. I considered doing a victory dance, but decided that would be unprofessional, so gave a gentle nod instead.
Celine turned to leave.
‘Oh,’ I called out, ‘I forgot to ask whether you’d considered Bob’s position?’
‘I did. I called him myself and he’s quite a character! You’re right. He’d be a fantastic addition to the Jamaican team.’
‘Brilliant!’ I grinned.
‘I should head off to Alejandro’s. Sure you don’t want to come?’
Every fibre in my body was screaming, Yes, yes yes! Go and get your man , but I had to be patient. Hopefully, he’d got the cake and my message. When the time was right, he’d get in touch. If I hadn’t heard from in a few days, I’d try again.
‘I’m sure,’ I said.
‘Okay. So we look forward to seeing you back at work tomorrow!’
‘Yes!’ My stomach flipped with excitement. ‘Thanks so much again for everything.’
‘No problem.’
I shut the door, switched on Alejandro’s playlist, then danced around the room. I did an honorary wiggle of my hips to mark the fact that Alejandro had not only got his job back, but had finally secured his dream position.
Then, when the track switched to Lucy Pearl’s ‘Dance Tonight’, I gave my booty several extra celebratory shakes in honour of Bob getting a role at the hotel too. I was so happy!
It was a shame I couldn’t share the news with Alejandro. He’d probably be more thrilled to hear about me and Bob than he would himself. He was always so selfless. God, I missed him so much.
I was just about to call Stella to tell her the good news and thank her and Max for pestering Celine’s PA when there was a knock at the door.
Celine must’ve forgotten something.
I skipped over to the door, still buzzing with joy. But when I opened it, it wasn’t Celine standing there.
It was Alejandro.