COSMOPOLITANS & CLUB SANDWICHES
As Kate arrived at Cappuccino, she glanced anxiously around, hoping to spot Jamie. Emily was fidgeting, excited at the prospect of seeing Madison again. Despite first impressions, Jamie seemed rather nice, and Kate felt a little more enthusiastic than before at the prospect of meeting someone new. She loved the island; she loved the way of life and especially the weather, but she really missed her London friends and had struggled to make connections on the island. Sure, Jamie wasn’t the sort of person she’d automatically veer towards, and she was quite certain that she wasn’t Jamie’s usual cup of tea, but there was something about the island. It attracted a certain type of individual—those happy to step outside of their comfort zones and try a whole new life—which often meant they were open to getting to know new people too. Of course, there was always the possibility that Jamie was just lonely. The island, with all its magnificence, also had the power to create a solitary existence, and Kate felt this increasingly so. Whilst she had David, was it really enough just to have one person in your life, especially when that person wasn’t around as often anymore? Kate wasn’t so sure. She was going to be open-minded; at least they spoke the same language.
Inside, the lighting was dim, and dotted around the room were small round glass tables with dark mahogany chairs. Kate wasn't sure why she was even bothering to look inside, as virtually everybody congregated outside. Even in winter, large wrought iron heaters would create a warm and cosy atmosphere, even on the bitterest of days.
The popular coffee shop was in a prime location on the corner of buzzing Puerto Portals, with its shiny yachts and designer boutiques, and was the perfect place to watch the world go by. The problem for Kate at this precise moment, aside from the increasing discomfort of her too-tight jeans, was that Jamie and Madison were nowhere to be seen. It didn't help that the outside seating was on two different levels, making them easy to miss. Kate decided it was better to sit and wait rather than loiter around. Sinking down with Emily into an oversized chocolate brown sofa on the upper level, she gasped for breath as the offending jeans she'd somehow squeezed into were now violently digging into her.
“What’s the matter, Mum?” Emily could see her mother looking uncomfortable.
“I'm fat.” It slipped out before she could censor her words, conscious that it was bad parenting to use the word ‘fat' with one’s offspring. She made a mental note never to let those words escape her lips again.
Emily, however, with the face of a ten-year-old and the wisdom of an eighty-year-old, responded, “It's not that you're fat Mum, it’s just that your jeans are too small.”
As Kate sat uncomfortably, she agreed that Emily was indeed correct; the jeans were too small, so with a sigh of resignation, she discreetly undid the top button and eased the zipper down. Suddenly, her phone beeped. It was a text from Jamie. Kate prayed she wasn’t cancelling at this late stage, especially as Emily was so excited and she’d now made room for the much-desired sandwich.
Jamie: Where are you?
Kate: Here
Jamie: Very helpful.
Top level or bottom?
Kate: Top
Jamie appeared moments later, still dressed impeccably in skinny jeans, a tight-fitting T-shirt, and a cream silk wrap casually thrown around her shoulders. Only the high-heeled boots had been replaced with a pair of nude ballerina pumps, yet even in flats she was still annoyingly tall. Madison followed a few steps behind, but upon seeing Emily, ran ahead and the girls embraced. Kate noted that there wasn’t a single person in the café that didn’t follow Jamie with their eyes as she gracefully floated over. Jamie leaned down to give her the customary two kisses, and Kate noticed that Jamie barely wore a scrap of makeup and still looked stunning. Life was so unfair.
“Well, this is weird.” Kate smiled awkwardly.
“Yeah, a little unusual, but I'm pleased,” Jamie said, taking the armchair next to Kate while placing her grey designer bag on the little side table. She almost didn’t recognise Kate in her slim jeans, and the black T-shirt really accentuated her vivid blue eyes, even if it was a little on the baggy side. Jamie would love to do a makeover on her; she could see a mass of potential just screaming to be developed.
“Mum, do we have to eat here? Can’t Madison and I just get a hot dog and look around the stalls?” Emily said with her hands on her hips.
Kate hesitated, not that she was worried about the girls’ safety. There was minimal crime on the island and children were always running around, but she was more concerned about what she and Jamie would have to talk about.
“Pleeeease!” Madison had now joined in. Both girls looked at their mothers imploringly.
Before Kate had a chance to figure out a valid reason why they couldn’t, Jamie took it upon herself to decide. “Sure, why not? Here, take twenty euros.” Passing the note to Madison as the girls ran off before Kate could voice any interference.
Jamie pushed a few curls away from her eyes. “We ought to get some drinks in.” She figured a drink would help break the ice. “They do the best Cosmopolitans!”
Kate felt a little anxious. She never had alcohol at lunchtime and certainly not when she was driving, but it would certainly be easier if they lubricated the moment. David would pick them up if she needed him to.
“Great, a Cosmopolitan sounds fantastic.” Kate nodded in agreement, although she didn’t have a clue what a Cosmopolitan was and just prayed it was vodka-based and not whisky.
Jamie looked around for a waiter; she was near gagging for her drink now. Clocking one of the cuter members of staff, Jamie raised an eyebrow to alert his attention. Apparently, raising one’s eyebrow was all it took for him to come scampering over. Kate was amused. The waiter hadn’t taken his eyes off Jamie since her arrival; if it had been her trying to get his attention, she would’ve had to do impersonations of 'the wave' at a football match.
“ Dos Cosmopolitans, por favor, ” Jamie said to the young waiter, who was now standing there like a little puppy dog, hoping for any scraps of attention. Jamie smiled, and his face lit up as if she’d lifted her top and shown him her tits.
“What do you fancy eating?” Kate quickly interrupted, as it appeared Jamie had forgotten to order any food. “I've got to have the Club Sandwich; been thinking about it ever since we arranged to meet, but you look more like the salad type.”
Jamie looked blankly at Kate. She didn't want to correct her that she was, in fact, the ‘eat very little and only when she absolutely had to’ type. A surge of panic swept over her. She'd already had a yogurt that morning, and besides, the Cosmopolitan had enough calories to sustain her for the rest of the day. Hadn't Kate heard of a liquid lunch?
“Sure, why not. Are they big? Maybe we can share one?” Jamie figured Kate could do most of the eating, and no one would be any the wiser.
“Great, yes, they're huge; I can never manage one on my own,” Kate said, lying so convincingly she almost believed herself.
“ Y uno Club Sandwich tambien ,” Jamie said to the waiter, who was still hovering, before returning her eyes to Kate to signal he could leave.
Kate tried to stop her face from registering disappointment. She didn't want to share, but they were huge, and the desire not to look like a greedy pig in front of this woman overcame her desire to consume a whole one on her own.
“So, what do you do?” Kate said, fiddling with the top of her jeans through her T-shirt.
“You mean for work?”
“Yes. I mean, if you don’t mind me asking?” Kate wanted to kick herself. Clearly, this woman must have more exciting things to do than she did. What if she returned the question? Ummm, I’m a bored housewife with nothing better to do than go to the gym and stuff my face whenever I’m not there.
“I’m a model.”
“Of course you are,” Kate mumbled with a touch of unintended sarcasm. What else would she be? The words once again poured out of her mouth before she had time to vet them.
“Excuse me?” Jamie's already magnetic green eyes widened as she looked Kate square in the face.
Shit. Bugger. “Sorry. Er … er … I mean, that must be exciting.” Kate wanted to kick herself, desperate to extricate herself from her comment, when, thankfully, the young waiter was back, saving her. He was bearing two large Martini glasses filled almost to the rim with a blood red, clearly dangerous liquid, garnished with a slice of lemon and a glacé cherry. Kate eyed up the cherry, relieved that she could eat that too, seeing as Jamie was intent on starving her.
Jamie lifted up her glass. “Cheers! To crazy new gym friends!”
Kate chinked her glass against Jamie’s, taking a giant swig as the strong liquid burned down her throat. Jamie took this as a signal to party and joined in with a large swig of her own.
“So what brings you to Mallorca, and how long have you been here? Oh, and I want to know about Madison, and are you married?” The questions were flowing into Kate’s mind and out of her mouth at the most alarming speed, helped in part by the Spanish-strength cocktail.
“Steady on. This isn’t an interview, is it?” Jamie winked as she took off her wrap, the alcohol warming her body, and carefully placed it on top of her bag.
Kate noticed how her smile nearly took over her face. It was very genuine. And her teeth annoyingly white.
“Well, I came on a shoot last summer, and I fell in love with the place, so I stayed.”
It was a familiar story for most expats. There was something extremely captivating about the island. It was hard to put your finger on it, but the feeling of peace and tranquillity was so completely removed from life in London. For Jamie, just looking at the sea gave her joy, and it was the reason she was paying double to rent her front-line apartment in Bendinat; the privilege of having sea views as a back garden didn’t come cheap.
“What, just as simple as that? Just liked it, and hey presto, moved here with your daughter?” Kate seemed in awe of this freedom, but wasn't that precisely what she and David had done too? Upped and gone?
“Actually, daughter and mother,” Jamie said as she drained the last drops from her glass. She figured in for a penny, in for a pound; she might as well give Kate the whole low-down of her domestic life. “Want another one?” Jamie was already looking for the waiter.
“Go on then, although this one's gone to my head. Bloody strong, isn’t it? David will definitely have to pick us up now.”
Jamie signalled across to the waiter for two more drinks just as the Club Sandwich arrived. Perfect timing. Kate was going to need food to help soak up all the alcohol. She looked longingly at the four neat triangles of white bread stuffed with chicken, bacon, tomatoes, and salad; she could easily down the lot. Her stomach gurgled in anticipation. Consumed with regret that she’d pretended not to be the gluttonous pig that she was, Kate picked up a triangle and nibbled at it like one of her frickin’ rabbits. If she was only going to have half, she was damn well going to make it last.
Mother? Had Jamie said, Mother? Kate’s head was already buzzing. Should she really have another drink? But it was too late. A strange adrenalin-type rush surged through her body, and she wanted to pinch herself. There she was, in the middle of the day, enjoying proper adult conversation with a glamorous model. She could get used to this.
“So, you mentioned your mother. How come she lives with you?”
Jamie indulged Kate with her story of how she’d fallen pregnant in Tokyo but then left … without the father, all whilst masterfully pushing her sandwich around the plate. Kate screwed up her eyes and listened with intent as they started on their next round of cocktails.
“Let’s just say there weren’t many fashion jobs that called for a bump the size of Japan, so the best place to go was Mum’s. She was alone and wanted to help me, so it worked for both of us. I could earn more money, and she was better at looking after kids.” Jamie let out a sigh. It felt like a lifetime ago.
Shit. How terrible. Jamie didn’t seem too bothered though, or at least she wasn’t letting on. Kate also wondered how anyone could go back to modelling after having given birth. She’d looked like a pregnant hippo for a good year after both of her pregnancies.
“Couldn’t have been easy. So where’s her father now? Does he ever see Madison?” Kate couldn’t imagine not having David by her side.
“Well Jake, that’s his name, had been seeing Madison maybe once or twice a year, but eighteen months ago he got married, and now he wants to play happy families and see her more often. I guess it’s good for Madison not to feel abandoned, but who knows with men. They just fuck things up, don’t they?” The words came out before Jamie realised how it might sound to Kate. “I didn’t mean it like that … just that you don’t need to have a man around. I never had my dad around either, and I turned out alright.”
Kate noticed Jamie had started to pick at the polish on her nails. “So, what about your mum? What’s it like living with her?”
“It’s fine. Well, mostly.” Jamie wanted to say it was, in fact, rather difficult. Her strict but fiery Italian mother didn’t half give her a hard time. “Come on, Kate, I've told you my story now I want to know about you. What's it like being married so long? I'm presuming you must've been married for a while if David's Emily's dad?”
“Oh god yes, he's definitely Emily's dad.” Kate wondered if now would be a good time to say that David had been her only 'proper' boyfriend too. “We've been married for fifteen years but met in our teens.” Kate tried to ignore the almost horrified expression that appeared on Jamie's face.
“Fifteen years? Oh my god.”
“Bloody hell, Jamie, it's not that bad. Well …” How honest could she be with someone she'd just met? “Okay, sometimes it is ‘oh my god’ but for the most part, it's amazing.”
Jamie's face was sceptical.
“David's very special. I feel safe with him. Perhaps yes, it might've been nice to have had a few more boyfriends before settling down, but it's no sacrifice. Aren't we all just looking for Mr Right in the end? I'm just lucky I found mine earlier than most.”
There was no such thing as Mr Right, of that Jamie was certain. The thought of only ever having one man was unimaginable. It was like a box of chocolates. Why would anyone want to just sample one? “I'm sorry, it's just that I have a very brief attention span when it comes to men. Jake, my ex, was the longest relationship I’ve ever had, but after him I reckon my longest has been, hmmmm … well, in all honesty, I reckon only a couple of weeks. In fact, I don't even call them relationships, just shag buddies. Actually, forget the buddies; they're just shags.” Jamie creased up at the shocked expression now materialising on Kate's face.
“Oh my god,” Kate said in jest as Jamie went to mock hit her.
Feeling light-headed and enjoying how easy it was to share with Kate, Jamie suddenly blurted out, “I slept with my spinning instructor last night.”
“Oh my god!” Kate’s jaw hit the table as Jamie laughed out loud. “Which instructor?” They’d only just met, but this was more fun than she’d had in ages, and Jamie was open and honest and nothing like she’d imagined.
“Tomás. You know, the super cute one.”
“Can’t say I do. I’ve never tried spinning. Can barely figure out the treadmill, as you know. But I’ll take your word for it.” Kate giggled; although the thought of exercise reminded her of food, and she’d already polished off her share of the sandwich.
“Maybe you can come with me one day!” Jamie winked, but Kate didn’t look enthusiastic.
“David bought a rabbit,” Kate said the first thing that came into her mind, not wanting to pry too much about Tomás, or be lured into going to a spinning class; she could just imagine herself falling off the bike.
“Woah, that’s cool.”
“Actually, two; my favourite one’s called Floppy.”
“Floppy? That’s a terrible name for a rabbit. I’ve got a rabbit. It’s called Stallion. Why on earth would you call your vibrator Floppy, and why do you need two?”
Kate looked at Jamie with open eyes, her hand hitting her forehead in despair. “Not a friggin’ vibrator, a real rabbit. A pet.”
Jamie had just taken a sip of her Cosmopolitan as it came spurting out of her mouth when she realised the misunderstanding. Kate burst out laughing too and the ice was officially broken.
“Another round? Shall we?” Jamie managed to squeeze out, once she’d wiped the tears from her eyes. Kate was hysterical; this was exactly what she needed.
“Why the bloody hell not. To be honest, I’d never had a Cosmopolitan before, I just didn’t want you to think I don’t get out too much. Actually, I don’t. Not anymore. I haven’t really made any proper friends here. The thing is, even if you do find someone that you connect with, eventually they leave.”
“I know what you mean. Most people I’ve met are from my industry, so they're pretty transient. The thing is there’s not much work on the island, so I get why people have to leave.”
“Huh, bloody typical. That's what I mean; you meet someone, and then they bugger off,” Kate said in mock indignation.
“Well, I haven't ‘buggered off’ yet, have I? And besides, I’m thrilled to introduce you to new things, especially if they’re vodka-based. And dah-link”—Jamie put on her best fashionista voice—“you have so much to learn.”