Chapter 4
‘He’s so annoying,’ Fi said, slamming down her car keys on the top of the reception desk.
‘Who is?’ Daisy couldn’t help being amused by Fi’s drama-queen tendencies. There was never a dull moment when she was around, and Daisy wished she’d had a younger sister like Fi when she was growing up.
‘My brother,’ she said through clenched teeth. ‘He can be such a pig.’
Daisy didn’t know Sebastian Fielding, but she’d seen a picture of him in the local paper a few times. She’d heard enough about him from others and doubted very much that he treated Fi badly; in fact, she’d heard he doted on her.
‘How come?’ Daisy asked, trying to pacify her before any of the guests wondered why their receptionist was flouncing around the marble entrance hall. ‘Didn’t he buy you that shiny red Fiat 500?’
‘Yes,’ Fi said, glowering at Daisy. ‘That’s not what I’m referring to though, is it?’
The phone rang and Daisy held up one finger to indicate Fi should wait while she took the call. ‘Gabe, hi,’ she said, unable to help smiling at the sound of his voice. Forcing away the image of him in faded denims, she listened while he explained that he was going to be slightly late to collect his parents.
‘I’m giving them a lift to the airport,’ he said. ‘Please let them know I haven’t forgotten them.’
‘Of course,’ she said. ‘I’ll tell them straight away.’ She put down the receiver.
Fi opened her mouth to continue her rant just as Francesca flounced out of the door linking the staff area of the hotel to the front lobby. She tapped her watch dramatically, before turning to open the door she’d just slammed shut behind her.
‘Rick, come along, darling, we’re going to miss this blasted flight if we’re not careful.’ She flicked her long reddish hair from her shoulder and added. ‘Why you always leave everything until the last minute I’ll never know.’
Daisy could hear him cursing and banging what she assumed to be their cases against the hall walls. ‘Bloody hell, Francesca, what crap have you filled your suitcases with this time? You’re going to be working on location. You do remember that they have costume and makeup departments there?’
Francesca squeezed her tiny form as far back against the doorframe as she could to let him through while she held open the door.
‘And,’ he said as he half dragged her suitcase through the hallway, ‘I only left things until the last damn minute because I was doing my best to placate you, if you recall.’
‘Miss Fiore, Mr Malone,’ Jose, the flustered head porter, called, frantically waving over two of his young assistants. ‘Please, we will take these to the car for you.’
‘Where is Gabriel?’ Francesca asked Daisy as she neared the reception area. ‘He was supposed to be here half an hour ago.’
Daisy couldn’t help noticing that Francesca had forgotten to draw in one of her eyebrows, giving her a lopsided look which made it difficult for Daisy to concentrate. She didn’t point out that if he had been on time then he would have had to wait half an hour for them both to be ready, but simply said, ‘He’s just phoned. He should be here any time now.’
Rick left the cases he’d been struggling with for the porters to handle and stomped outside. Daisy spotted him lighting a cigarette as soon as he was far enough away from the building not to infuriate his wife.
‘You’ll ruin your beautiful singing voice if you carry on doing that,’ Francesca said, spotting him as she stepped outside to peer down the long driveway for Gabriel.
‘Why don’t they just refer to themselves as Mr and Mrs Wilson?’ Fi asked. ‘Those are their real names, after all.’
Daisy shrugged. ‘I suppose it’s because Francesca is an actress and is still referred to in her work and the press as Francesca Fiore, and Rick is known as Rich Malone, his stage name.’
‘Weird,’ mumbled Fi, sitting down in her chair next to Daisy. She bent down behind the raised desk so Francesca couldn’t see her and took her pink lip gloss from her bag and reapplied it to her lips. ‘I find life confusing enough with one name, never mind having to listen out for people calling you by several names. I don’t know how Gabriel copes with their lifestyle, do you?’
Daisy sat up straighter as she recognised the deep purr of Gabe’s car. ‘I’m sure he’s quite used to it,’ she said. ‘After all, his grandmother was famous too, wasn’t she?’
Fi knitted her eyebrows together in confusion. ‘What, Mrs Grey you mean?’
Daisy smiled at Fi’s surprise. ‘Yes, she was the Jersey Bombshell, didn’t you know?’
‘The what?’ Fi giggled.
Daisy was indignant on Lydia’s behalf that Fi found this revelation amusing. ‘Mrs Grey was famous in the fifties.’ She recalled pictures of a young Lydia dressed in a red-and-white polka dot dress with a tiny cinched-in waist. ‘She was very glamorous and incredibly beautiful. She was always photographed looking immaculate, not like actresses these days,’ she said, aware she was sounding just like her mother. ‘I particularly liked one of the pictures of her with a leopard-print silk scarf over her hair and wrapped round her neck. All you could see of her face were these huge dark glasses and perfectly made-up red lips.’ Daisy sighed. ‘I still can’t quite believe I’ve met her.’
When Fi didn’t answer, Daisy turned to her. ‘What’s the matter?’
‘You’re so old for your age sometimes, do you know that?’
Daisy couldn’t understand why and said so.
Fi thought for a few seconds. ‘I mean, who in their twenties would know anything about something that happened over sixty years ago? It’s odd.’
Daisy shook her head. ‘I don’t see why. I don’t even come from here and I know who Lydia Grey is. Maybe it’s because my mum was such a huge fan.’
‘Your mum can’t have been old enough to remember the fifties though, surely?’
Daisy sighed. ‘No, but she loved fashion and old movies, and I suppose I inherited that trait from her.’
Fi looked her up and down. ‘Even in your uniform it’s obvious there’s something a little different about you,’ she said.
‘Meaning?’
‘Your make-up, or what little you use, is like something out of the fifties. You only put eyeliner on your top eyelid and wear red lipstick.’
Daisy pictured herself. ‘I suppose you’re right. I hadn’t thought about that before.’ It also hadn’t occurred to her how different she must appear to Gabe now. He’d only ever known her with a make-up free face sporting nothing more than a tan.
‘Hi there,’ he said, as if she’d conjured him up with her thoughts. He was leaning through the doors into reception. ‘I can’t stop.’ He indicated his mother calling him from the back seat of his car. She hadn’t noticed them getting in and hoped Francesca hadn’t given her any orders she’d missed. ‘But I was wondering if you wanted to come out to see a band down at St Ouen tonight?’ he added.
Daisy didn’t have to consider the proposal. ‘I’d love to.’
‘Gabriel, will you stop drooling over that girl and drive us to the sodding airport,’ his father bellowed from the car.
Gabriel cringed. ‘He’s so embarrassing sometimes.’ He turned to leave. ‘I’ll pick you up at six-thirty,’ he shouted over his shoulder, before he got in the car and they sped off down the driveway.
‘So, you’ve pulled then,’ Fi said giggling. ‘Lucky cow.’
Daisy frowned at her. ‘We’re old friends and we’re going out for the evening to catch up, if you must know.’
‘You keep telling yourself that,’ Fi giggled. ‘If you’re not interested in him then I most certainly would be, so don’t go making out that he’s nothing to you if he is.’
Daisy admired Fi’s honesty and couldn’t help liking how direct she always was about everything. She supposed it probably had something to do with never having to worry if you upset someone, and knowing that whatever you did, your brother would be able to sort out any issues you inadvertently caused.
‘Fine,’ Daisy said. ‘I do like Gabe. Rather a lot, in fact. So keep your sticky mitts off him.’ She laughed. ‘I just know you’re going to be more offended by insinuating that you have sticky hands than the thought of you pinching some guy from under my nose.’
Fi held up her immaculate hands. ‘Damn right,’ she said. ‘There’s nothing mucky about me.’ She hesitated for effect. ‘Apart from maybe my imagination – that can be downright filthy.’
Daisy shook her head. ‘You’re impossible, do you know that?’
Gabriel was waiting for her outside the front of the hotel when she hurried through to meet him just after six-thirty. He was chatting to two elderly ladies, who came back to stay at the hotel several times each season. She waited for them to finish their conversation, staring out to the rectangular pool with its wooden steamer chairs which Fi told her had been sourced from an old liner and restored. She wondered how many times they’d had to re-order the cushioned covers in their navy and cream piping after they’d been ruined by a visitor getting careless with sun cream.
She breathed in the heady scent of tea roses and jasmine, and rather than looking as if she was impatient for him to finish talking, headed to the back of the hotel and the pretty herb garden. Watching the tall, toned man she’d missed so much made Daisy smile. He was beautiful inside as well as outside and now she knew how he’d left his own project to return to help out his grandmother, she loved him even more.
‘There you are,’ he said, a few minutes later. ‘Sorry to keep you waiting.’ He bent down to give her a kiss on the cheek.
‘It’s no problem at all,’ she said. ‘It’s so tranquil out here, I was happy to wait.’
‘Isn’t it a perfect evening? You can’t beat Jersey on days like these.’
They walked a little further. ‘There are so many glorious smells out here,’ she said. ‘I was just admiring the roses, then the different herbs over there, and now I’ve got a waft of salty air from the bay.’
‘The wind direction probably changed,’ he said quietly. ‘Come on, let’s get going. We don’t want to miss the music.’
She walked with him back to where he’d parked. ‘I do love it here though,’ he said. ‘It’s a little like going back in time to a more genteel era.’
‘It’s wonderful,’ she agreed.
Gabriel shrugged. ‘Mind you, after a couple of months I need to get away and get back into discovering things in the ocean.’
She bent to sniff a dark-red flower; the scent was heady. ‘That is incredible,’ she said.
‘I think that’s Nan’s favourite,’ he said. ‘If it is then that one is called “Deep Secret”. Nan has a few of those in her rose garden.’ They walked a few steps further. ‘So, how do you like living in Jersey; is it to your liking?’ He grinned at her.
‘It is,’ she said, trying not to giggle. ‘I never thought I could find anywhere I’d be as happy as I was in Vietnam,’ she admitted. ‘But it’s lovely here, if not quite as exotic.’
‘Or as hot,’ he laughed. Gabriel took her hand in his, lifted it to his lips, and kissed it. ‘Meeting you here has made the anticipation of an amazing summer even more special than it usually is,’ he said.
Daisy didn’t answer; she was unable to trust herself not to fling her arms around his neck and kiss him.
He led her over to his car and they began the short drive to St Ouen’s. He sighed. ‘I was pretty upset having to leave my team,’ he said. ‘But I knew I couldn’t leave Nan to look after the hotel alone, especially now the high season is nearly upon us.’ He shook his head. ‘I still can’t believe you’re living and working here.’
Neither could she sometimes. They continued in silence for a few moments. ‘That storm last night woke me up,’ she said, recalling the loud clap of thunder that had given her such a fright sometime around two in the morning.
‘It was,’ he said. ‘I could hear Nan’s little rescue dog, Jack, yelping and barking the whole time it thundered. I went down to the house to check everything was OK.’
‘Poor little thing. Did he calm down in the end?’
Gabriel shook his head and yawned. ‘No. Nan took him up to her room. He sleeps in the utility room and is usually perfectly happy. I think I eventually fell asleep around four o’clock.’
‘Me too,’ she said. ‘Poor little dog. How long has she had him?’
‘About a year or so. He’s a Jack Russell cross about four other breeds. He’s a funny-looking thing, but he’s sweet and she adores him.’
They drove the rest of the way in silence. Daisy stole glances at him when she thought he wouldn’t notice. The last time she did it, he turned and smiled at her.
He turned down a narrow road. ‘Look,’ he said, pointing across to the beach where a paraglider was circling. ‘The tide is up at the moment, but when it goes out there’ll be all sorts of flotsam and jetsam dumped on the beach from the rough tides. It always happens after a storm.’
‘I’ll have to make sure I pop down to the beach later to do a bit of beachcombing,’ she said. ‘I could do with finding a few bits of faded glass and driftwood for my windowsill. It’s a bit bare in there at the moment.’
‘Good idea,’ he said.
‘I can’t believe your parents are my bosses,’ she giggled. ‘They’re characters, aren’t they?’
‘A bit larger than life, would you say?’ He smiled, the skin around his dark-brown eyes crinkling in amusement.
Daisy laughed. ‘You could say that.’
‘Have you been this way before?’ he asked, motioning down towards the sea on their right-hand side.
‘No,’ she said, looking down the cliff face close to the road at the waves crashing against hidden rocks below the surface. ‘St Ouen is on the north-west of the island, isn’t it?’
‘Yes. I love it down on that beach, it’s so wild and unspoilt.’
The car meandered its way through the narrow lanes, with grassy banks and flowers leaning precariously over towards the side of the car.
‘I’m sure these roads would be wider if the grass wasn’t so long,’ she said, wishing she could have shown him around the places she loved in Devon. Her emotions dipped as she realised that the chances of her having a reason to return to her home town were minimal. There was no one she wanted to visit there, no one worth the risk of being seen for. She fought her resentment. She realised Gabe was speaking and focused her attention to what he was saying.
‘The banks and bushes on the sides of the roads will be cut soon. They call it “the branchage”. We’ll all be moaning when they’re doing it because there will be traffic hold-ups. Even worse are the machines hired to cut the grass; they’re slow and a lot of them damage the hedging. It drives me nuts when I see that happening.’
‘That’s awful.’
Daisy closed her eyes and relished the heat of the evening sun warming her face. This island seemed so similar to her home in some ways, but the use of French road names and words like ‘branchage’ reminded her that she was on an island off the coast of France and not in south-west England. She’d never experienced anything this glorious when she lived at home with her mum. They hadn’t lived in a pretty house or with a sea-view and her mum had never driven, let alone owned a car, so their lives had been ruled by bus timetables whenever they wanted to go anywhere. Their estate could have benefitted hugely from banks of grass and flowers.
‘You’re very lucky growing up on such a pretty island, Gabe.’
‘I know and I do appreciate it. In fact, leaving for work can be quite a wrench at times, but I know I’ll always come back.’ He reached out and took one of her hands in his. ‘Do you envisage staying here for long, Daisy?’
She hadn’t decided, but being with him right now and having her hand in his made the thought of never leaving this place very tempting. ‘I would like to,’ she admitted. ‘Now Mum has gone and what’s left of her belongings are in storage, I don’t have anywhere else I need to be.’
‘That’s sad,’ he said honestly. She was grateful to him for not holding back with his thoughts; it was refreshing having someone talk about her feelings.
‘It is, I guess, but I can’t change how things are.’
‘Don’t you have any brothers or sisters?’ he asked, letting go of her hand to manoeuvre the car through a particularly tight bend in the road.
‘No, you?’
‘I’m an only child too,’ he said. ‘I always wanted a brother or sister, but I think my parents were so stunned by my unexpected appearance into their fun-filled world and having to make time in their workload to bring me up that they didn’t dare have a second child.’
Daisy couldn’t imagine making a child of hers feel like an inconvenient intruder. ‘I’m sure they were thrilled to have you once they got over the shock of being parents?’
‘I’m not so sure it was that easy for them,’ he laughed. ‘I was very inquisitive and always running off and climbing cliffs when we went to the beach, or jumping off rocks. I was the first one to tombstone off the harbour wall at Bouley Bay with my friends and my mother nearly went mad with fright each time I was carted off in an ambulance, or the police had to inform her that I’d had yet another accident. I don’t think they were at all surprised when I told them I wanted to be a marine explorer.’
‘Poor people.’ She couldn’t help feeling sorry for them now, though picturing someone as dramatic as Francesca trying to cope with such an adventurous child was also amusing. ‘No wonder they kept going away to work; they probably needed the break.’
‘Hey!’ he reached over and tickled her side with his free hand. ‘You’re probably right though.’
They slowed down as the car reached a small village and Gabe turned left down a long road. ‘The locals call this Hydrangea Avenue,’ he said.
Daisy opened her mouth to speak but was silenced by the avenue of pink and blue hydrangea bushes in full bloom on either side of the long road, a row of equally magnificent chestnut trees standing proudly behind them. ‘It’s beautiful,’ she gasped, making a note to come here and paint the route towards the bay.
He slowed down halfway along the road and turned into a smaller road which meandered for a few minutes until they came to a packed car park where Gabriel finally managed to find a small space.
‘We have to walk from here,’ he said, getting out of the car and walking around to the passenger side to open Daisy’s door for her.
She stepped out and watched as he went to the back of the car and retrieved a hamper and rolled-up blanket from the boot. ‘We’re going on a picnic?’
‘Of sorts,’ he said, locking the car. ‘Come on, it’s this way.’
She walked with him across a couple of fields. ‘What’s that?’ she asked, looking at a strange arrangement of large granite stones.
‘That’s a dolmen,’ he said. ‘It was used as a burial chamber.’
Daisy hadn’t expected that answer. ‘Are there bodies buried in there?’
He shrugged. ‘I’m not sure. I seem to recall my dad talking about it once when he brought me here for a walk when we first came back to live here. I think it’s about four thousand years old and they used to believe that it had been built by fairies, or that’s what he said anyway. It’s owned by the Société Jersiaise now. They look after a lot of interesting places on the island, as do Jersey Heritage. I’ll have to take you to some of the other sites.’
‘I’d love that,’ she said, peering at the ancient monument. She stared at it for a moment then, hearing the chords of a beautiful tune coming from behind a high row of pine trees, hurried to catch up with him.
In her rush, she tripped over a stone in the soil and Gabriel grabbed hold of her arm before she fell. Regaining her balance she groaned. ‘Mum always used to moan about how clumsy I am.’
He took her hand in his. ‘Come on, we’d better get moving otherwise there won’t be anywhere to sit.’
Intrigued by the sounds of voices and beautiful music emanating from behind the trees, she walked a little faster to keep up with him. Daisy watched where she was placing her feet so that she didn’t trip again. Excitement bubbled inside her; something was going on and she couldn’t wait to discover what exactly it could be. A sparrowhawk hovered in the field nearby and the music got louder.
They strode through the trees and Daisy gasped. In front of them sat groups of people on rugs and coats, watching a band serenading them as the sun, turning the surrounding sky golden orange, was getting ready to set in the channel ahead of them.
‘Oh Gabe,’ she murmured. ‘This is enchanting.’
He looked down at her and smiled. ‘I’m glad you like it,’ he said. ‘It wasn’t until we were on our way here that it dawned on me that you might think we were going to watch bands playing contemporary music. I wasn’t sure if you’d want to stay.’
She couldn’t imagine anything more romantic as sitting on the grass listening to the harmonic sounds being played by the instruments with the spectacular setting of the beach and sea behind them.
‘It’s glorious,’ she said.
‘Now we just need to find a space where we can sit down,’ he said.
She looked around the couple of hundred people who’d had the sense to arrive earlier than them. Small children played with toys next to their parents and dogs, some sitting, guarding their owners, others snoozing on the rugs while their owners relaxed with glasses of wine as they enjoyed the atmosphere.
Daisy spotted someone waving at them and tugged gently on Gabe’s hand. ‘That guy over there is trying to get your attention,’ she said quietly, not wishing to disturb the audience.
Gabriel looked over. ‘It’s Ed,’ he said. ‘He works at a manor house not too far from here, in the gardens. Shall we go and see if they’ve got space near them?’
Desperate to sit down and take in the atmosphere of the evening, Daisy nodded. ‘Yes. I think we’re starting to annoy the people behind us.’
They stepped carefully over feet and glasses that were in their way, reaching Ed and his friends a short while later.
‘Good to see you,’ Ed said, taking the hamper from Gabe and indicating a space next to him. ‘Make yourself at home.’
Gabriel unrolled the blanket and placed it down on the grass, giving Daisy room to get comfortable next to Ed before sitting down on her other side.
‘Hi, I’m Ed,’ said the man who looked rugged and outdoorsy, yet somehow still refined. ‘This is Izzy, my girlfriend, and her friend, Jess, and Alex, Izzy’s brother.’
‘Hi,’ they all said in unison.
‘Good to meet you all,’ Daisy said shrugging off her jacket in the warmth of the setting sun. ‘This is incredible,’ she said. ‘I’ve never experienced anything like it.’
‘Good, isn’t it?’ Izzy said. ‘They say this place has a natural amphitheatre which is why the sound is so good.’
‘The backdrop of the bay is pure luck,’ Ed said, putting their hamper down in front of Daisy. ‘If you haven’t got enough of anything let us know. Izzy packed a hamper for us and I think she was expecting to stay here for a couple of days.’
Izzy elbowed him and giggled. ‘Ignore him, I just wanted to be sure we had everything we needed.’
‘Including cake forks and piccalilli,’ Ed said, shrugging. ‘Whatever that is. It looks like it could be radioactive.’
Daisy couldn’t help laughing at his teasing. She’d always hated the taste of piccalilli, despite her mother’s insistence that it was delicious. Gabriel handed Daisy two glass flutes, took out a bottle of champagne and opened it.
‘What are we celebrating?’ she asked.
‘Being here,’ he said simply, as he poured the golden bubbly liquid. He placed the bottle against one of the sides in the hamper and took a glass from her. ‘To you being here in Jersey,’ he said, clinking his glass gently against hers. ‘To a wonderful summer.’
‘I’ll drink to that,’ she said, taking a sip.
Gabriel sat cross-legged next to her as they listened to the beautiful tunes filling the air around them. As one tune ended, he leant down and pointed through the trees. ‘There’s another Napoleonic tower lording it on the rock in the middle of the bay, and down there is a small white house that can be rented out for the odd night.’
She had to move slightly to get a glimpse of each of the properties. ‘Is that white stone lighthouse over there on the left Corbière?’
‘It is,’ he whispered.
‘Wow, it’s breathtaking,’ she said. ‘It’s so wild and unspoilt down here and that gorgeous sand makes me want to go down there and run into the water.’
‘Nothing’s stopping you from doing that, if you’d like to,’ he said.
‘Maybe after this concert has finished,’ she teased.
‘I’m glad you like Jersey,’ he said, his voice quieter and more serious, his cool breath on her neck sending sensations through her body.
‘How can I not like it; each bay is different to the last and everything is so pretty. I love it here.’
As the music played, the sun slowly lowered and Daisy realised she was leaning against Gabriel. She wasn’t sure whether to move slightly away and sit up straighter. As if he’d heard her thoughts, he put his arm around her shoulders and rested his head against the top of hers. It was a perfect moment. She closed her eyes and lost herself in the music.
‘Move over, Gabe.’
Gabriel tensed and sat up. ‘Bella, I didn’t realise you’d be here this evening.’
‘Why shouldn’t I be?’
Daisy opened her eyes at the sound of the clipped female tone. The beautiful woman with the dark shiny bob and large brown eyes was gazing down at Daisy. She looked at Gabriel and raised a perfectly threaded eyebrow. ‘And this is…?’
Daisy forced her best receptionist smile and offered her hand to the woman. ‘Hi, I’m Daisy,’ she said. ‘I work at the Encore.’
‘Nice to meet you, Daisy,’ Bella said. She gave Daisy a knowing smile. ‘I couldn’t help noticing you were looking very cosy with my husband.’
‘Your…’ Her breath seemed to be sucked out of her. She willed the woman to laugh and tell her that she was joking. When she didn’t, Daisy took a deep breath. Gabriel’s arm dropped away from her. No one was laughing. She turned to stare at him.
Gabriel groaned. ‘Daisy, I should have mentioned this before now,’ he said, glaring at Bella. ‘This is Bella, and yes, technically, she’s my wife.’
Daisy couldn’t speak. She could have cried, but wasn’t going to let herself down by making a humiliating situation even worse. Refusing to look at Gabriel, she forced a smile onto her face and said. ‘It’s good to meet you, Bella. Do you want me to move over a bit so you can sit down?’
Bella shook her head. Daisy noticed that she’d suddenly turned rather flushed. ‘Oh dear – I was just being silly. Don’t worry about me, I’m old news. I won’t stay; I’m meeting friends. I just thought I’d pop by and say hello.’
Daisy watched the long, tanned legs step carefully over people as Bella made her way to a larger group of people sitting close to the band.
She got the distinct feeling that the others didn’t know what to do or say, and when they began busily delving into their picnic hamper and handing out food, Daisy turned to Gabe and in a low voice said, ‘You didn’t think to mention that you were married?’
His stricken look only served to show how guilty he felt, but she had no sympathy. The pain in her chest made her wince. ‘Why didn’t you tell me, Gabe? How could you take me out and spend time with me knowing you had a wife waiting for you at home?’
‘It’s not how it seems,’ he said, taking hold of her hand. ‘Please, let me explain?—’
She snatched it away from him. ‘Don’t touch me,’ she whispered between clenched teeth. ‘I don’t date married men, under any circumstances. Do you understand?’
‘Daisy, it’s not like that, honestly.’
She narrowed her eyes at him as white rage pumped through her system so strongly that she thought she might scream. How could she have been so stupid? She shouldn’t be surprised that Gabe wasn’t single, but a wife?
‘We’re not together any more, like she said. Our relationship has been over for months. It never really began, if I’m honest.’
‘Are you divorced?’
He hesitated. ‘No, but we will be.’
‘When?’
‘In two years’ time.’
‘What?’
Her evening was ruined. She couldn’t bear to be near him for another second. She grabbed hold of her jacket and small bag and stood up. Gabriel went to stand. ‘No, you stay here,’ she said quietly, not wishing to alert those nearby to her trauma.
‘But Daisy, how will you get home?’ He stood up ignoring her pleas.
‘I travelled around Asia by myself,’ she said. ‘I think I can find my way back to the hotel.’
‘I’m taking you,’ Gabe said, bending down and grabbing hold of the hamper. He handed the half-empty bottle of champagne over to Izzy and scooped up the rug.
‘I can give Daisy a lift home,’ Ed said.
‘No, it’s fine,’ Gabe said. ‘Thanks though.’
‘Will you sit down?’ an angry voice hissed at them. ‘Some of us are trying to enjoy our evening.’
Daisy marched off towards the pine trees and the peace of the field beyond. She could hear Gabriel apologising to the man for interrupting the performance followed by his footsteps as he ran to catch up with her.
‘Daisy, please,’ he said, stopping in front of her so that she couldn’t keep walking away. ‘I’m not lying when I say that Bella and I are no longer a couple. I wouldn’t cheat on someone, I promise you that.’
Daisy took a deep breath to try to calm down. ‘I’m probably overreacting but I feel such an idiot.’
‘Why?’ he asked, trying and failing to take hold of her hand. ‘How were you to know?’
She closed her eyes briefly and stared at the ground. ‘I’ve been acting as if I know you well, when all the time I’m the only one who obviously didn’t know about you and Bella.’ She looked up at him. ‘I wish you’d told me, Gabe, that’s all.’
‘I know,’ he said. ‘I couldn’t really find the right moment and I didn’t want to spoil the evening. I think Bella’s actually really embarrassed about it – she’s always been a bit of a joker and comes out with things she regrets afterwards.’
Daisy sighed. ‘Look, I think I just need to go back to the hotel and think for a bit.’
‘I understand,’ he said. ‘Let me drive you.’
They drove back in silence. Daisy pushed away the image of Bella’s face as she told her about her and Gabe and cringed.
‘Are you OK?’ Gabe asked, glancing at her.
‘Fine,’ she said, relieved to note that the road he’d just turned down was the one directly before the hotel. Only a few more minutes and she’d be alone to mull over what had happened.
He stopped the car and went to get out. ‘No, it’s fine,’ Daisy said. ‘You go back to the picnic.’ When he opened the door, she added, ‘I’m going to go and paint for a couple of hours.’
She got out of the car and watched him drive away. He didn’t seem very happy but right now she just wanted to be left alone.
The following morning Daisy got up early after a sleepless night and, choosing a quiet place down in the hotel valley, set up her small easel. Two hours later, with very little paint having been placed onto the canvas, she came to the conclusion that what had happened the previous night with Gabe was exactly the reason why she wasn’t ready for another relationship. She was better single. At least that way she knew where she stood and there’d be no nasty shocks sideswiping her when she least expected it.