Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ant
After the blow-up with her parents, I suggested we could order room service and eat dinner on our lanai, but Lil is determined not to let their digs get the better of her.
That doesn’t stop me from making some adjustments to the nametags so we’re able to sit with Louise, the woman who helped Lil on her shopping expedition, rather than her parents.
Louise is a blast, so now there’s three guests I can tolerate.
Lil, Louise and Grandie. Since there are now over fifty people here, that’s not a great approval rating.
Dinner ends early. Apparently, cacao farms and tennis are exhausting. So we take a bottle of wine down to the bay and sit on the sand. Lil has been quiet since the argument, and I don’t push. I have no idea what it’s like to be at such odds with your parents.
It seems to be unusual these days, but I got to adulthood without any major trauma.
Sure, my parents were a little stricter than I’d have liked, and we butted heads plenty when I was a teen.
But they loved me, and each other, and I knew it.
And I loved them. There was no messy divorce, neglect or abuse.
As a result, I consider myself a well-adjusted guy.
Of course, my mother frets about what she did wrong that has prevented me from forming a lasting relationship with a woman at the advanced age of thirty-two, but I honestly think that’s just my nature. No deep, dark wounds. No hangups or abandonment issues. I just like my space.
Or maybe it’s just taken till now for me to feel mature enough to settle down.
Because, although I know there are no guarantees in life, I would like to do it right the first time.
Like Mum and Dad did. I’ve felt no need to rush things.
There always seemed to be plenty of time to wait for the right person.
The belief that I’d know that person when I met them.
And in the past few days, even though we’ve only known each other for a matter of weeks, I’ve begun to feel that maybe Lilavati is that right person.
I’ve felt affection for women before. Fondness. Attraction. Strong liking. But never love. I’ve never said it to anyone in the romantic sense. Never felt it. Until now.
I know my parents would love her soft heart. My sister would enjoy the way she takes no shit from me. My nieces would admire her drive and determination.
But as I told Grandie, Lil has a soft underbelly. I have to proceed with caution. I need to be one hundred percent certain about how I feel. Because once it’s out there, I don’t plan on taking it back.
Before I can even consider any of that, I need to break it to her that I’m not quite the beach bum she thought when she picked me up in the car park. I can’t put it off any longer.
Shoes off, we settle on the beach and dig our toes into the cool sand, sipping the delicious wine we liberated from the resort restaurant. I clear my throat and turn to face her on the sand.
“Lil, there’s something I need to tell you.”
Her eyes are huge and dark in her delicate face, and the trepidation in them nearly has me backtracking. But I can’t go on being less than honest.
“When we met, you made an assumption about me. And that assumption led you to suggest this fake dating situation.” My voice is starting to crack, so I take another gulp of wine. Lilavati is motionless. Waiting. “And I should’ve corrected you at the time, because …”
Lil’s eyebrows are drawing together, her lips thinning. “Just spit it out, Antony.”
Her use of my full name has my stomach rolling, but I need to keep going.
“I’m not a barista,” I blurt.
Lil twitches, a look of puzzlement washing over her face. “You’re not? But I saw you making coffees at the café. Twice.”
“Well, maybe it’s more accurate to say I’m not just a barista.”
Lilavati continues to watch me, giving me nothing.
“I own the café. Not just that one, actually. There are five of them. I work the floor sometimes to keep an eye on things, or when we’re short staffed. Which we are right now.”
Lil’s eyes leave my face, and she stares into her wine, which she swirls slowly.
“And the surfboards?” she asks, looking up again.
“Yeah. That too. I own Beach Road Boards. Probably doesn’t mean anything to you, but I make boards for a lot of the pros on the circuit. I’m making one for the world number one right now.”
“Hmmm. So that stuff at the airport about the Hawaiian champion?”
I nod.
Lil twists the stem of her wineglass into the sand, stands and walks to the edge of the water and paces back and forth, hands on hips, shoulders tense.
I give her a minute to process before I follow her. She stops moving and turns to face the dark waters of the moonlit bay. We stand silently, shoulder to shoulder, until she turns her fiercest glare on me.
Which is fierce in the extreme. God help our future children when they step out of line. The thought of having children with Lil almost brings a smile to my face, but I manage to hold it in.
“You … you … nincompoop!” she splutters, shoving me in the shoulder.
“Nincompoop?” I burst out laughing, despite how the future of our relationship is hanging by a thread.
“Yes, nincompoop.” Lilavati laughs. “Why didn’t you just tell me I’d made a mistake from the get-go?”
“Because I knew you were trying to piss off your parents, and I didn’t want you using it as an excuse to back out.” She hasn’t slapped me or stormed off, so that’s a good sign.
“Why?” She crosses her arms. If I look down, I wouldn’t be surprised to see her foot tapping.
“Why? I thought I’d made it clear, but if you need me to spell it out, I really like you. I wanted the chance to get to know you. And I didn’t think you’d give me the time of day if I asked you on a date.”
“You liked me?” Her lips twist in an attempt not to smile.
“Yeah. Call me weird, but the minute you hopped out of that car and started abusing me, you had me hooked.”
She huffs to try and cover a laugh.
“If you tell Warren or Mum or Grandie about this …” She leaves the thought hanging.
I run my thumb and forefinger across my lips, twist them, and I’m about to throw away the imaginary key when I hesitate. Something in my expression must alert her.
“What else haven’t you told me?”
“Nothing. Honestly. Well, except Grandie already knows.”
“She knows? You told her before you told me?” Her hands fly up and out in frustration.
“Not exactly. She googled me.”
Lilavati laughs. “Grandie? So that’s what you were talking about during your little stroll to the back of the boat on the cruise?”
I nod sheepishly. “She made it crystal clear that if I didn’t tell you, she would.”
“Were you ever going to tell me of your own accord?”
“Of course! I’ve been trying to tell you since we arrived. I started to tell you when we were dancing on the first night, but then Emily cut in. And I tried to slow things down when we were skinny dipping, but, well, I’m only human.”
Lil rolls her eyes, but the tension in her shoulders has eased. Dare I think the potential crisis is past?
We continue to stand, ankle deep in the dark waters of the bay, gazing at one another in silence.
“Is that it now? If there’s anything else you need to tell me, do it now. Because I don’t like surprises much. And I’d rather know than get blindsided.” Lil’s hands land firmly on her hips.
I hold mine up, palm out, in surrender. “There’s nothing else. Honest.”
Lil’s eyes bore into me for a long beat before she nods and turns back towards the beach, chewing on her bottom lip. I’m not sure what to make of her reaction, and the waiting is killing me. I’m about to ask what she’s thinking when she makes a humming noise and turns back to me.
“I’m thinking sex on the beach would be gritty. Is it too early for another skinny dip? Those poolside beds seem like a much better option than the sand. You’ve talked this outdoor sex up so much, I think I need to try it.”
The relief almost buckles my knees. I roar with laughter.
“It’s not even ten o’clock. I thought you wanted to piss them off, not give them a heart attack.
” I sling an arm around her shoulder, indescribably happy that I haven’t stuffed this up.
That we’re okay. “Maybe we could take a walk up on the headland. The views are spectacular. And the grass is nice and soft.”
“That could work. You’d better not have oversold this.” She takes my hand and starts leading me towards the hilltop path.
Fuck, this woman has me tied up with a red ribbon. It’s a shame she comes with so much unpleasant baggage. But there’s no doubt in my mind she’s worth it.