Chapter 28
28
After yet another delicious meal – four and a half courses this time, because Andrea claims he’s prepping me for the wedding feast tomorrow – we’re all gathered around the table at the open-air restaurant, having a chat.
Tonight’s dinner was a reward for the winners, and it’s amazing how far we’re stretching that definition. I suppose it’s for the best, otherwise it would have just been me and James, and I would be having to navigate another romantic meal for two.
The food has been nothing short of incredible. The first course was a delicate antipasto platter, adorned with more cured meats, artisan cheeses, and marinated vegetables than I can name. It’s almost like a starter-starter, which I love. Definitely something I can take back home with me and get used to in my day-to-day life.
Then I had my actual starter – a creamy risotto, made with (what Andrea told me was) Arborio rice cooked to perfection in a rich, savoury creamy mushroom broth. For my main, while I was tempted to go for a pasta or pizza dish (because, ciao , I’m in Italy), I decided instead to let Andrea choose something for me. What I ended up with was, essentially, an Italian roast dinner. We had tender braised lamb shanks, slow-cooked until they practically melted off the bone, seasoned beautifully with garlic, rosemary, and red wine. The meat was served with a variety of vegetable dishes, as well as a side of velvety-smooth polenta – something Andrea said I had to try, and I’m glad I did. Finally there was dessert, which was a classic tiramisu, which I love because it feels like a dessert, a cocktail and a coffee all rolled into one.
I am so, so full. I think everyone at the table is, to be honest. As ‘dinners for winners’ goes (as Rick described it when we arrived this evening), this one has been great. We have stretched the definition of ‘winners’, though – quite a bit.
There’s me and James, the actual winners of the banana boat thing. Then there is Andrea, who won the swimming race (which wasn’t officially a part of the competition but, to be honest with you, I think that Rick just really likes having him around). Oh, and Liz is here, because she complained that it wasn’t fair that the other half of her team got to be here, especially when it was Andrea who made her lose. And finally we have Rick who, despite not having won anything, and being the person to survive for the shortest time on the banana boat, is here too. Another fine example of how the system will always be rigged to favour those at the top.
With Rick’s big day just around the corner, the wedding is all he wants to talk about tonight.
‘I just can’t wait,’ he says for, I don’t know, the hundredth time. ‘It’s going to be incredible!’
‘I’m looking forward to seeing what you have planned,’ Andrea replies politely.
I’m sure he’s only feigning interest but I appreciate that he’s doing it for me.
‘It’s all me, you know,’ Rick tells him. ‘Everyone thinks it’s her indoors that has planned it, but the whole thing is my vision. The venue, the food, the music.’
‘Did she choose her own dress?’ I ask curiously.
‘Oh, yeah, of course,’ Rick replies. ‘It’s bad luck for the groom to see the dress before the big day, right?’
That’s – weirdly – a relief. I had visions of him telling his wife-to-be what she would be wearing.
‘I did tell her what kind would be the most appropriate, though,’ he adds. ‘So I sort of have an idea of what it’s going to be like – it’s going to be great. Honestly, I can’t wait. I really can’t wait.’
‘We can drink to that,’ Andrea suggests. ‘ Salute! ’
‘ Salute! ’ we all echo, clinking our glasses in the middle of the table.
‘So, what about your wedding?’ Rick asks.
I don’t know why I’m taken aback when I realise that he’s talking to me and Andrea. I suppose, because this isn’t a real engagement, I hadn’t actually considered that being engaged meant that we were intending to have a wedding at some point.
‘Oh, you know,’ I say simply – because I don’t know, do I? ‘We have some ideas, but we want to make sure it’s perfect before we lock anything in.’
I’m not being very convincing, am I? Almost to the point where it’s starting to seem like I’m not all that invested in the idea. I mean, what kind of person gets engaged, but has absolutely zero thoughts or feelings about their big day?
‘You don’t sound very excited,’ Liz points out – which is exactly what I was worried about.
‘There is so much to consider,’ Andrea tells her. ‘We want to do something special. Something that will honour both of our traditions. English weddings and Italian weddings are very different.’
Oh, he’s just so good at this.
‘Exactly,’ I quickly chime in. ‘We want to make sure we have a big day that both of our families can enjoy, with all of the traditions we all love and care about – we’re thinking we’ll have it here in Italy, if only because the weather is so much nicer.’
‘And the food,’ Andrea jokes – well, I suspect he’s half-joking, but he’s probably right. I’ve never been to an English wedding that wasn’t either a buffet or maxed out at three courses. I don’t know how many courses to expect tomorrow but, when I asked Andrea if it would be more than four, he just laughed.
‘We want to make sure that everyone is as happy as we are,’ Andrea says, taking my hand. ‘But I know that, when the day comes around, I will be the happiest man on the planet.’
My heart is going at a million beats per minute as the butterflies in my stomach do a jig. Honestly, if the chef thing doesn’t work out for him (which, let’s face it, isn’t going to happen, he’s clearly incredible), Andrea could absolutely make a career for himself by telling women what they want to hear for money. I know for sure that he doesn’t mean a word he just said but, even so, it feels so good to hear it. It’s like when you’re a kid, and you play make-believe, and you know it’s not real but you get way into it. Even if Andrea is only saying this to keep up the act, at this point, I’ll take what I can get. Everyone likes to hear nice things, right?
‘Don’t you think that’s all a bit selfish of you?’ Liz blurts.
Andrea and I seeming so loved up is obviously getting a bit much for her.
‘What do you mean?’ I reply.
‘I mean, if you get married here, where Andrea is from, instead of in England, where you are from,’ she points out, ‘it’s incredibly selfish to expect people to travel all the way to Italy, for your wedding.’
Rick clears his throat and Liz looks at him, but you can tell that she hasn’t realised what she’s done yet.
‘Well, that’s what I’m doing,’ Rick reminds her. ‘And I don’t think it’s selfish. It’s our wedding day and we’ll have it where we want – and the same goes for Robin and Andrea. Good for them, for making themselves happy. Sometimes I think people forget who a wedding is for. It’s for the couple, not the guests.’
Liz gets an instant sunburn. Oh, she’s mortified. She should be too. As the saying goes, if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. She could have kept her mouth shut, but she couldn’t resist a little dig. Well, look where it’s got her. I wonder how far this has set her back in her mission to suck up to Rick, but it couldn’t have happened to a nicer person – or a not-very-nice person, as the case may be here.
‘I don’t get big weddings,’ James chimes in.
He’s been pretty quiet so far and, all of a sudden, it’s like something has built in him that he needs to get off his chest.
‘Well, you wouldn’t,’ Rick tells him with a chuckle. ‘You’re not that sort of bloke. You’re here for a good time, not a long term. If you were the marrying kind, believe me, you would feel different, but you are an eternal bachelor, my friend.’
My smile falls. Perhaps Rick is right; perhaps James is that sort of guy.
I notice something change about James’s expression. I don’t know what it looks like, when someone has an epiphany, but if I had to guess, I would say this was it.
‘You know what, guys? You’ve got me all wrong,’ he announces, his confidence in his words building. ‘I do want to settle down, when the time is right. I just haven’t found the right girl yet.’
James has no sooner finished his sentence than he starts staring at me, really intensely, to the point where I’m worried others are going to notice.
‘I’ll just nip to the loo,’ I announce.
‘Nip to the loo,’ Andrea says back to me. ‘I still find you cute, after all this time.’
I smile at him. He just plays this part so well.
As I stroll through the busy outdoor restaurant, weaving my way in and out of tables, all of my senses just feel so satisfied. It’s the smell of the food, the sound of laughter and chatter – even my body feels great, after spending time in the sunshine. It’s as though any stress I brought with me has just melted away.
Everyone here just seems so happy. Families, friends, lovers – even me and my colleagues (possibly with the exception of Liz and James right now, though).
There is just something about eating outside, on a warm night, that is so perfect. I really think I’ll miss eating here – or just generally dining al fresco – when I go back home. Sitting out on a warm night, hearing the ocean roar in the distance, smelling the sea air every now and then between bursts of delicious plates of food passing our table. The atmosphere is everything. It certainly beats eating a Maccies on the street outside my flat. I suppose the closest thing I have to this back home is the summer barbeques my mum and dad throw, but it’s not quite the same, is it? I have to put up with my brother teasing me, my dad taking the meat far too seriously, my mum ever so well-meaningly (but ever so annoyingly) asking me how my love life is going. As much as I love them all, it’s not the same, is it? Not even comparable to sitting by a beautiful beach with a handsome man.
I wash my hands and check my make-up in the mirror, killing a little time before heading back out there. Hopefully we’re all bored of talking about weddings now – or, at the very least, we’ve gone back to exclusively talking about Rick’s.
As I step out of the ladies’ room, ready to return to the table, I barely take a few steps from the door before James collars me. With a mischievous grin, he grabs my arm and pulls me behind a nearby beach hut, away from the prying eyes of the others.
‘Erm, hello,’ I say with a laugh. ‘Fancy seeing you here.’
Well, what else can I say?
‘Robin, I’ve got something to tell you,’ he says, his voice low but full of carefully masked excitement.
‘What?’ I dare to ask.
‘No more dancing around the point, it’s time to be honest,’ he says, gearing up to tell me what he needs to tell me. ‘I want you, Robin. And I know you want me too.’
I open my mouth to speak but nothing comes out. Yes, this is what I’ve wanted for so long, and obviously I knew that it was working but, wow, hearing him actually say those words. They’re like a fire that’s taking all the oxygen. I can’t speak, I can’t breathe – I don’t know what to say.
His words hang heavy in the air for a moment and, with me not saying anything in response, he has no choice but to say more.
‘I understand that you have a relationship, and a life, but with Andrea working away, well, he’s pretty much abandoning you,’ he continues. ‘You’re a strong, independent woman, Robin. You have needs and, with Andrea being away, those needs aren’t being met. I could be the person who… meets those needs for you. On cold winter nights, or boring days in the office, I can be the man who gives your life that bit of excitement it’s lacking.’
Still, I don’t know what to say.
‘Honestly, I think the best thing for you to do, when Andrea is in LA, is to forget about him,’ James continues. ‘You just need to focus on you. Focus on your happiness, because you deserve it. What you don’t deserve is to be left behind at an airport, like unclaimed baggage, while he jets off to start a new life.’
‘It’s not like that,’ I offer up, sort of in Andrea’s defence, even though nothing is what James is thinking or saying it is. But Andrea would never do that, or be like that, I can say that for sure already.
‘All I know is that anyone who can keep their hands off you for weeks at a time is a better man than me,’ James replies. ‘Or even days. Hours, in fact. Suddenly, it’s all I can think about.’
His hands find their way to my face, cradling my head as he pulls me closer. His lips hover close to mine, and I can feel his breath tickling my lips, but he doesn’t overstep the mark.
‘Just say the word and it’s yours,’ he tells me. ‘You can have me. You can have this, whenever you want it, whether it’s right now, when we get back home – all of the above.’
‘James, I’m engaged, remember?’ I point out, keeping my voice breathy and light.
James stays where he is for a few seconds before slowly retreating. As soon as he is far enough from my face, I can see him smirking.
‘You know it’s only a matter of time before you give in to me,’ he teases.
He’s giving up, but only for now. This man clearly knows what he’s doing. I wonder how many women he has seduced with his persistent flirting. It’s like he knows that, if he goes in too loud, he might spook his prey. Instead he does just as much as he needs to, while he waits for the timing to be right.
That’s what I need to do too.
I don’t say anything in response. Instead, I just smile back, step away, and head back to the table.
Believe me, I am not the kind of girl who usually gets what she wants, so to feel like everything – and I mean absolutely everything – is within grabbing distance, it’s almost suspicious.
Rick seemingly respects me, Liz’s pettiness and obsession with being rivals is finally biting her on the arse, and James seems like he is quite frankly obsessed with me. Oh, and after working really hard on my pitch, and checking it with Andrea, I’m feeling really confident. As far as my life goes, that’s bingo, right?
It’s all falling into place… And yet…
I don’t know. Maybe I’m just not used to it.