Chapter 23
‘Let’s not go back!’ Mirabel announced loudly an hour later with a drunken smile plastered across her face.
Darkness had descended, the bill had been paid and they were about to leave the restaurant.
Rhys held his hands up. ‘Might be a wise idea not to cos I’ve drunk too much to drive.’
He hadn’t meant to get drunk, but he’d become so swept up in the energy and exuberance of the evening that he’d forgotten he’d driven there.
‘I’ve only had one glass,’ Fabs said. ‘I can drive.’
Mirabel stuck her tongue out at him. ‘Spoilsport.’ She placed her hands on his chest and leaned so close her lips brushed his.
‘I really don’t want to go back tonight and face our parents.
’ She lowered her voice so it was sultry and suggestive.
‘ Amore mio , one night away from everyone, just the two of us.’
Fabs glanced over her head towards them. ‘Just the two of us and our friends…’
‘I’m sure they’re in no rush to go back either.’ Mirabel raised an eyebrow and looked pleadingly at Lola.
‘I’m happy to go with whatever you two want.’
Rhys couldn’t work out Lola’s tone, not when her face was a masterclass in neutrality, her eyes fixed on Mirabel.
Mirabel’s face, however, was a picture of mischievousness as she whirled back to Fabs with a seductive flutter of her eyelashes. ‘Come on, one night away, before the craziness really begins.’
Rhys was certain there was no way Fabs would be able to resist.
Already reaching for his phone, Fabs grinned at his soon-to-be wife. ‘Let’s see if I can find us somewhere to stay.’
* * *
Even if Fabs was sober enough to drive them back, Lola knew how tightly Mirabel had him twisted around her little finger.
Of course he wouldn’t be able to resist her blatant desire, not when the alternative was to go back to the warring parents and a shit tonne of headachy stuff to deal with.
A night away must have seemed like a dream, and they lucked out when he managed to book a two-bedroom Airbnb with last-minute availability in Costa Paradiso.
When they reached the lane that led to the Airbnb, Mirabel steered Lola away from Rhys and Fabs. ‘Are you two okay sharing a room?’
‘Of course,’ Lola said with far more certainty than she felt. They’d shared a room and a bed once before; why would it be a problem doing so again?
Mirabel leaned closer. ‘I know what I said earlier on the beach, it’s just I didn’t want to assume.’
‘Unlike Deni and Sarah.’ It was too hard to explain, even though she was worried about sharing a room with Rhys again.
The first time had been a bit of fun; they’d known where they’d stood with each other and there’d been no expectations.
This time she had no idea what he was thinking, while she was second-guessing each look and every interaction.
Not to mention the confusing mix of longing and lust that had coiled through her this evening.
Her thoughts were running wild with the what-ifs – what if they took things further than the pretend kiss that had felt anything but pretend?
What if she kissed him again – how would he react to that?
The thing that had changed between them was intimacy and expectation, precisely the elements that always changed a friendship into something undefined and more complicated. Their love pact added complexity, because what part was she pretending any longer?
The Airbnb was a simple one-storey building painted white, with just a small kitchen, living room and two bedrooms. They hadn’t got any further than the living room before Mirabel was tugging Fabs towards the nearest bedroom.
Fabs gave a backwards glance and a brief shrug in their direction, but there was zero resistance from him and their lips were on each other’s before they’d even shut the door behind them.
‘So,’ Lola said, twisting round to look at Rhys, who was standing in the middle of the room looking as awkward as she was.
‘I can sleep out here.’ Rhys pointed at a two-seater sofa that would leave his legs dangling off the end.
Lola gestured to the closed bedroom door where Fabs and Mirabel had retreated. ‘You seriously want to sleep out here while they’re in there?’ She raised an eyebrow.
Rhys pulled a face. ‘Fair point.’
Lola started towards the dimly lit hallway, which she presumed led to the second bedroom.
‘I’m happy to sleep on a chair,’ he said as she pushed open a door. ‘We might be lucky, and our room has a sofa…’
They both stopped short in the doorway. A double bed was pushed against the wall, with a narrow bedside table on the other side. There was a rail to hang clothes, a window and two doors; one onto a tiny terrace, another to what Lola assumed was an en suite.
‘I can sleep on the floor,’ Rhys said quietly.
Lola stepped into the room. ‘Don’t be ridiculous, there’s hardly any floor space.’
‘At least it looks clean.’ Rhys pulled back the bed cover. ‘Although perhaps not the romantic bolthole Fabs and Mirabel were hoping for tonight.’
‘I honestly don’t think they’re going to care one bit.’
Rhys closed the door behind him. ‘Do you think it’s all kicking off back at the house?’
‘I’m not sure Mirabel running off then Fabs following is going to have helped, but then it’s Fabs and Mirabel’s wedding, so I say whatever makes them happy should be the priority.’
Lola sat down on the bed, her heart sinking as the bed springs creaked. The place might be clean, but the bed sounded like it had had a lot of use.
Rhys turned on the bedside lamp and switched off the main light; his shadow dominated one wall as he opened the window.
‘It’s sort of got a sea view.’
She could tell he was stalling, but then she was feeling as tense as Rhys looked, even more so when he eventually sat down, the space between them a yawning chasm.
The ease with which they’d talked at the restaurant earlier had vanished.
They did manage to chat about random stuff, if only to avoid having to actually lie down and attempt to go to sleep, but even that got a hell of a lot more awkward when the hushed noises from the next room became way too loud to ignore.
Lola would have found the way Rhys’s cheeks flushed the colour of raspberry gelato utterly adorable if she hadn’t been quite so mortified. A headboard thumped into the wall directly behind them, and then the moaning started.
‘Who’d have thought a cheap Airbnb with last-minute availability and no air con would have such paper-thin walls,’ Lola hissed under her breath as she clamped her hands over her ears. She launched herself from the bed and flung open the door to the patio.
Pretending to have sex with Rhys to get back at his ex had been one thing. To hear her best friend getting amorous with Fabs while she and Rhys were trying to navigate how they were going to share a bed again was something else entirely.
Rhys closed the door behind them and joined her on the white plastic chairs that only just fitted on the narrow patio.
The street light cast an orange glow over the road that ran in front of the house.
Beyond was darkness, but she could just make out the expanse of ocean glinting silver where it shifted and caught the moonlight.
It was far better than sitting in a small stuffy room listening to Fabs and Mirabel getting it on.
‘It’s a bit better out here.’ Laughter coated Rhys’s words as he mirrored her thoughts.
‘Yup.’ Lola rested her feet on the peeling paint of the railing. ‘Just wish we had somewhere comfy to sit and a drink in our hands.’
Rhys huffed in agreement. ‘I don’t think Fabs and Mirabel cared about any of that tonight.’
‘No, they didn’t.’
They lapsed into silence, listening to the sound of the sea churning against the rocks and the incessant chirrup of cicadas, which drowned out everything else.
‘I hope both Fabs’s and Mirabel’s families work things out because her mum is the loveliest woman in the world – it’s where Mirabel gets it from.
Her dad’s quieter, but the same, just two great, caring people – parents anyone would love to have.
Perhaps Mirabel being their only child has heightened things. ’
‘Because they feel they’re losing her?’
Lola nodded. ‘Exactly.’
‘Believe it or not, Fabs’s parents sound very similar. Giada is the best, she welcomed me into their family when I stayed, but I can understand how she might be overwhelming for Mirabel. But she cares and loves her family fiercely.’
‘Which is what matters most, although an overbearing mother-in-law might be a bit much for anyone, even someone as easy-going as Mirabel.’
‘An overbearing Italian mother-in-law.’ Rhys raised his eyebrows.
‘I hadn’t factored that in.’ Lola laughed. ‘But one who cares and who’s present and interested in their son and daughter-in-law’s lives is something special. They all want what’s best for their children.’
‘It’s a nice problem to have.’
‘Isn’t it just.’ Lola sighed. ‘I should make more effort to see my parents. I love London, but I miss Devon and being by the sea. Mum hates cities and I resent their expectation that I should visit them when they don’t make the effort to come see me.’
‘Do you miss them though?’
Lola nodded and fought back a wave of sadness that took her by surprise.
‘More than I realised. Since Jarek…’ Glancing away, she watched a black cat dart across the road and into the bushes.
‘He bad-mouthed them and played on my insecurities and resentment and made my relationship with my parents even more strained.’
Rhys leaned forward in his chair, rested his elbows on his knees and looked at her intently.
‘You saw through him and got out. He manipulated and played you, but you’ve not lost your parents, have you?
’ At her shake of her head, he continued.
‘If you miss them, go see them. I’m sure they miss you just as much.
Sometimes it’s best to swallow pride or those feelings of resentment and make amends to get a relationship back on track. ’