Chapter 10
10
BATARIA BEACH, KASSIOPI
‘So, let me get this straight,’ Siobhan began, turning a little on her sun lounger. ‘You’ve inherited an apartment, an olive tree, a truck, a boat and one leg of a cat.’
‘Fifty per cent of it,’ Molly answered, gently rubbing some sun cream into her shoulders.
‘Fifty per cent of a cat’s leg? How does that work? Do you get the thigh or the paw end?’
‘No,’ Molly said. ‘I have a full leg of the cat. I mean, it’s probably not even divisible by legs, it’s shared care so no idea how that works but I have a quarter of the cat. Fifty per cent of the rest. Shared with Christos.’
‘Ah yes, the waiter from that nice bar,’ Siobhan said.
‘If he actually works there.’
‘What?’
Ah, she had said that thought aloud. ‘It doesn’t matter. I don’t have to know everything about him to co-own things. It’s like business.’
And Christos had already made it very clear that his thoughts were to sell everything. He’d possibly like to do that before she had even seen any of the things but, when she had got back to the table at Porto Nuovo, Katerina said they would meet again, the next day, for her to be officially shown the assets.
‘Talking of business,’ Siobhan said. ‘The views here! We need to get some photos of the make-up, and me in the make-up looking slay.’
‘Agreed,’ Molly said. And it would be a really good test of what she hoped was going to be her golden goose when it came to her USP for the brand. Could it work/hold up when put under intense atmospheric pressure? The science said it should, but testing had only been under laboratory conditions. She had brought a very small sample here with her because it had seemed like a gift to be able to put it through its paces in plus-thirty degree weather she hadn’t been accounting for in her summer.
‘And, talking of views…’
Siobhan let the sentence tail off and, for a second, Molly wondered if her friend had fallen into one of those siestas that everyone seemed to have here in the afternoons. Then Siobhan carried on.
‘I’m talking about Christos, if you didn’t know.’
‘Oh, right, well, I guess I see what you mean.’ Suddenly it felt like all the thirty-degree heat was sizzling over her like she’d been dropped into a deep fat fryer.
‘You guess you see what I mean?! Fuck’s sake, Molls, I’ve not seen a man as hot as that in my entire life… except Jude Bellingham obviously.’
‘I hadn’t really… thought about it.’ Why was she lying? When she had seen him shirtless on the balcony yesterday it was all she could think about. But obviously only because it had been a while since she had been given that kind of display. Or any kind of display.
‘Well, start thinking about it! He’s hot! You’re entangled with him and this dead man! You’re in Greece! Live a lot!’
Being entangled with a dead man sounded all kinds of wrong but, if she was honest, Vaggelis was at the forefront of her mind. He had known her mum from some long-ago holiday romance, he had only known Molly when she was in nappies, but he had left her half of everything he owned. It was her ‘are you my daddy?’ senses that were tingling more than anything. But, she didn’t want to let Siobhan in on this thought yet. Why? Because this felt like more serious potential than any other avenue she’d travelled before in the search for the truth about her dad? Because maybe her mum had reacted a little too quickly to dismiss the idea the minute she found out about the inheritance?
‘Well,’ Molly started. ‘More importantly, we need to make the most of the real views for the Insta account, like you said.’
‘Ugh,’ Siobhan said, turning on her lounger again. ‘Why did I lead with that? Not enough ouzo today, I guess.’
Molly wasn’t aware Siobhan had had any ouzo today…
‘Well, tomorrow I will find out exactly what kind of state everything is in,’ Molly said. Because no one had waxed lyrical about Vaggelis’s apartment being like a Grecian palace and how lucky she was to have been left a share in it. She was imagining more problems than princely décor but it would be good to see it for herself.
‘Do I get to come? Because, not gonna lie, if you leave me to my own devices anywhere near a bakery I’m going to put on a stone before our time here is up. Did you know they fill almost every pastry here with cheese. And they are so good!’
Food. The restaurant invitation tonight. She didn’t want to tell Siobhan about that either…
‘I’m not sure,’ Molly said. ‘It’s with the solicitor, Katerina, so all businessy and official. Like the will reading was.’
And exactly like this dinner invitation really, right? So not worth mentioning because Siobhan would suggest it was something it definitely wasn’t.
‘I can do businessy and official, you know. I’m not just all about hair and… cheese pastries.’
‘I know,’ Molly said, adjusting the strap of her bikini top. ‘But, wouldn’t you rather be getting like a bronzed goddess here on the beach, and have that cute barman serve you ouzo?’
‘He is cute, isn’t he? The one with the gold chain and the blue eyes! Not quite God tier, but definitely saintly.’ She laughed. ‘Let’s hope not too saintly in the action department though.’
‘And I can take photos and talk you through everything afterwards.’
‘And we have karaoke tonight! I’m so looking forward to that. It’s been a while since the world was touched by my Shakira. What time does it start again? Are we having dinner first? Because if I don’t embalm my insides with cheese the whole rest of the day I could definitely do one of those meat sandwiches. You know, like a kebab, but with chips and a white sauce.’
Oh God, she was going to have to mention that she was going to be late to the karaoke party at the very least. Think, Molly, think. Don’t mention Christos…
‘Siobhan, do you think Vaggelis might be my father?’