Chapter 41
41
MAX
When Stella came back from her chat with Jasmine, I was on a call to the office having a conversation that was best had away from the villa. So I told Stella I’d be back soon, then walked towards the beach.
‘That’s fine,’ I confirmed with Rita, my secretary. ‘Go ahead and book it.’
‘Will do,’ she said. ‘And I’ve arranged for a car to collect you from the airport tomorrow.’
‘Thanks.’
‘Colton’s in meetings this afternoon, but he asked me to tell you that you’re expected at his house on Sunday for breakfast.’
‘We’ll see,’ I groaned inside, knowing breakfast was just a ruse for what it was really going to be: an interrogation. ‘Depends if I have time before my flight to Dubai.’
‘He’s already asked me to arrange a car to pick you up from his house to take you to the airport.’
‘Right,’ I said, knowing that sounded just like him. ‘Thanks.’
‘Have a safe flight and speak to you on Monday. ’
‘Yeah. I’ll call you from the show when we break for lunch. Have a good weekend.’
I hung up then saw Jasmine had texted to confirm that everything had been prepared for tonight, so I headed back to the villa.
As soon as I stepped in the hallway, I heard the shower running, so went straight to my room to get dressed.
Half an hour later, my phone chimed with a message to let me know the car was waiting at reception.
It was only a short drive to the secluded spot that I’d chosen. We could probably walk there, but I wasn’t sure if Stella would be wearing heels, so I wanted to make it more comfortable for her.
We should really have a proper talk about how we were feeling at dinner. Then again, if the conversation didn’t go well, it’d ruin our last night. I’d just have to play it by ear.
As I stepped into the living room and saw Stella by the patio doors, with her back to me, my jaw dropped. She looked amazing. Stella was wearing an orange and yellow sleeveless mini dress which hugged her curves in all the right places.
The woman was a goddess. I wished we could stay here alone, but we had a dinner to get to. A leaving dinner. Thinking about the fact that this could be the last night we ever spent together made my gut twist.
‘You look incredible!’ I said.
When Stella spun around and I saw her smile, my pulse raced.
‘You don’t scrub up too badly yourself.’ She bit her lip.
Knowing she found me attractive made me feel ten feet tall.
‘Cheers. Shall we go?’ I held out my hand.
Stella walked towards me and placed her palm on mine, instantly sending my body temperature through the roof. Now everything felt better.
I led her through the villa door and down to the car.
The chauffeur opened the door to the sleek black Mercedes. We barely travelled for five minutes before he announced we’d arrived.
‘That was quick!’ Stella slid out of the car. ‘Can’t wait to see what you’ve organised for our last night.’
‘Ladies first.’ I gestured towards the path.
‘Oh my God!’ Stella gasped as she saw the set-up.
Pretty pink flower petals lined the path which led down to a private candlelit table for two on the beach.
A giant love heart had been drawn into the sand and the table was directly in the centre. The edge of the heart was surrounded by red candles in glass jars.
‘Like it?’ I asked.
‘ Like ?’ Stella’s eyes widened. ‘It’s amazing ! Look at the views!’ She pointed at the stunning blue sea and the orange and yellow sky. The sun was starting to set and she was right – the views were just as incredible as I’d hoped. ‘And the table !’
It was covered in a crisp white tablecloth, with a gold candelabra in the centre, matching gold crockery and cutlery and a stand holding a shiny gold bucket with a bottle of champagne chilling inside.
‘Not bad, eh?’ I smiled.
‘An intimate candlelit dinner on a private beach is what dreams are made of! And wait…’ Stella sniffed the air, taking in the scent of barbecued fish. ‘Is that…?’
Stella’s head swivelled as she noticed the chef further down the beach who was manning a barbecue and standing by a fire grilling skewers of small shiny silver fishes over an old fishing boat .
‘Wait? We have our own chef too?’ Her eyes were like saucers.
‘Yep! Only the best for you.’ I wrapped my arm around her waist. Seeing her so happy made my heart swell.
‘Hello, you two!’ I recognised Jasmine’s voice.
‘Oh, hi!’ Stella said as Jasmine stepped in front of us.
‘Welcome to your last supper! Let me take you to your table.’
We stepped inside the heart in the sand. I pulled out Stella’s chair, then sat opposite her.
A waiter approached, took the champagne from the bucket then poured it out.
‘Something smells good!’ Stella said to Jasmine. ‘What’s your friend cooking?’
‘Oh, er…’ for some reason Jasmine blushed, ‘he’s doing espetos . They’re sardines seasoned with some olive oil and sea salt.’
‘Sounds delicious,’ Stella said.
‘So as you can see, Max arranged this private dinner for you. Alejandro will be cooking a three-course meal and your dedicated Cuisine Champion will be on hand to serve you throughout the night. I’ll be in different locations this evening, checking on all the couples, but if you need anything, before I return, please call me. Right, I better check how the espetos are coming along.’
Stella grinned as Jasmine walked over to the chef.
‘What’s that grin for?’ I cocked my head.
‘I think something’s going on with Jasmine and that Alejandro.’
‘Really?’
‘Yeah. I asked her earlier and she denied it. If she’s telling the truth and there isn’t, I reckon it’s only a matter of time.’
I glanced over just as Jasmine threw her head back, laughing at something the chef said .
‘Oh… yeah, you’re right. He’s giving her the look .’
‘What look ?’
‘The kind of look a man has when he’s eye-fucking a woman he likes.’
‘How do you know?’
‘Because that’s the way I look at you.’ I brushed my thumb over her cheek, then leant across the table, moved the candelabra to one side, then kissed her softly on the lips.
‘Mmm,’ Stella groaned and I wished I could record that sound and play it on repeat. ‘If we weren’t in such a gorgeous setting with this amazing dinner you’d arranged, I’d like you to do more than just eye-fuck me.’
‘Trust me, once we’re back at the villa, if you give me the green light, it won’t be my eyes that’ll be fucking you…’ My dick jerked in my shorts.
The waiter appeared, jolting me out of my thoughts.
‘May I present to you the first course for this evening’s meal: fresh espetos. ’ He laid two plates in front of us. ‘?que aproveche!’
‘What does that mean?’ Stella frowned as the waiter left.
‘Enjoy your meal,’ I replied.
‘Oh! Got it.’
‘Cheers!’ I lifted my glass in the air. Stella clinked her glass against mine, then we both took a sip.
‘So.’ Stella stabbed the sardine with her fork before realising I was eating with my hands then doing the same. ‘How’d it go with Jasmine earlier?’
‘Okay. You?’
‘Good, I suppose. Thankfully she didn’t gloat or say I told you so when I said we were getting on well.’
‘Yeah. She saw something that we didn’t right from the start.’
‘Oh and she admitted that she set us up! ’
‘What?’ I almost choked on the sardines, which tasted so good. I quickly swallowed my mouthful. ‘How?’
‘Remember the urgent call Olga had to leave for?’
‘What about it?’
‘There was no call!’
‘You’re joking!’ My eyebrows shot up.
‘Nope! I don’t think that was the only thing either…’
As Stella explained her theories on how she thought Jasmine had arranged certain things to bring us closer together, it started to make sense.
‘Wow.’ I took the last bite of fish. ‘Jasmine’s like a silent romance ninja. You don’t even realise she’s playing cupid and has cast a love spell on you until it’s too late.’
Stella and I looked at each other and our eyes locked.
I’d said the ‘L’ word by mistake and she’d picked up on it.
‘Yeah.’ She held my gaze. ‘Jasmine said that’s why she’s called a Love Alchemist,’ Stella added, placing an extra emphasis on the word love.
I supposed now was a good time to have that conversation.
‘So, maybe we should…’
‘Good evening.’ The chef approached the table and spoke in a thick Spanish accent. ‘You like the espetos ?’
‘They were delicious!’ Stella replied and I agreed.
‘Very good. The next course is almost ready. Your match requested fresh fish, including salmon and also barbecue chicken, this is good for you?’ He faced Stella.
‘I love barbecue chicken! And salmon!’ A grin broke out on Stella’s face.
‘Perfect.’
The chef left and soon afterwards, the waiter brought over the next course which smelt amazing.
Stella and I spoke about loads of different stuff like what countries were on our travel bucket lists, what we thought was gonna happen next in Ted Lasso , how many of the funny Love Hotel staff job titles we could remember… Everything except what we really needed to discuss.
When the waiter placed dessert in front of us, Stella’s eyes widened.
‘Chocolate mousse with sprinkles? I can’t believe you remembered!’
‘How could I forget?’ I smiled.
That was always Stella’s favourite. Apparently she tried it for the first time at a birthday party when she was a kid and had been hooked ever since.
‘People always think it’s childish to have the sprinkles, but I love the extra sweetness and texture! I haven’t had this for ages. Thank you!’
My heart inflated. I was glad Stella had enjoyed the meal. I wanted this to be a memorable night so when she looked back on our time together, this time, she’d have positive thoughts.
‘You’re welcome.’
‘This is so beautiful.’ Stella looked up at the stars as she licked the chocolate off the back of her spoon.
That was when that I noticed the classical music in the background. I wasn’t sure how long it’d been playing because I was only focused on Stella.
The way she squeezed her eyes shut and groaned with pleasure every time she slid a spoonful of dessert into her mouth.
The way her whole face lit up when I said something funny. Everything about her made the rest of the world fade into the background. When Stella was there, it was like nothing else existed.
I really wished we didn’t have to leave tomorrow. I hated that we only had a few hours left together .
‘Hi.’ Jasmine appeared. ‘Did you enjoy your meal?’
‘Everything was fantastic, thank you both so much!’ Stella reached across the table and squeezed my hand. ‘This was the perfect last night. I really wish we didn’t have to leave tomorrow.’
‘I know.’ Jasmine nodded. ‘It’s hard to say goodbye to such a beautiful place. But this shouldn’t be a night of sadness. I’d like you to celebrate your experience at The Love Hotel and hopefully the long-lasting, loving relationship you’ve started. I know things were challenging in the beginning, but the transformation from, let’s call it uncertainty to love, is wonderful. It’s been a joy to watch you fall in love again! I have something for you. I’ll be right back.’
As Jasmine walked over to the waiter, I wanted to call her back and tell her that it was too soon for the whole ‘love’ thing. We’d only been here for two weeks and ‘together’ for just half of that. Yeah, I had strong feelings for Stella, but it couldn’t be love .
‘I never thought I’d say this,’ Stella said, ‘but I’m really glad I came here. And I’m glad you were my match.’
‘Same.’ I leant forward and kissed her again.
Once we pulled away, we stared at each other in silence. Like neither of us knew what to say.
Really we should talk, but it didn’t seem like the right moment.
Nah . I wasn’t gonna raise it tonight. If Stella asked me, I’d tell her where I stood. But until then, I wanted to enjoy our last night together.
‘I have something for you!’ Jasmine returned, breaking the silence. She handed Stella a large red gift box as the waiter cleared the table. ‘Here’s your memory book.’
Stella lifted the lid then pulled out the photo album which had a soft red velvet cover. As she opened it, I saw the first set of photos we’d chosen .
‘Wow!’ Stella’s face broke into a smile. ‘I love it!’
‘Great. I’ll leave you to look back on your wonderful memories. See you tomorrow.’
After waving her off, I moved my chair next to Stella’s then we started going through the book.
‘Oh my God,’ Stella winced. ‘I’m still mortified about the bikini top incident!’ She covered her eyes with her hand as we looked through volleyball game photos.
‘I love this one,’ I said, pausing at the photo of us on the bridge at the Caminito del Rey.
Every page sent happy memory after happy memory flooding into my brain.
We’d been through a lot together these past two weeks.
A link to the final playlists had also been emailed to us. I couldn’t wait to listen to that.
‘Thank you.’ Stella looked up at me.
‘For what?’
‘For two amazing weeks.’
‘Right back atcha.’ I kissed her again.
This time it was hungry and frenzied like we hadn’t kissed for weeks. I dropped the memory book on the sand, freeing my hands to roam across Stella’s back then brushed against the side of her breasts.
‘Oh… Max…’ she groaned into my mouth.
Fuck. Hearing her call my name was like a match had been lit inside of me. Reluctantly, I pulled away. The chef was clearing up and the waiter was still here too. As much as I wanted to have Stella right here on the beach, this was our last night and I wanted it to be special.
‘Shall we…?’
‘Yeah,’ she panted, knowing exactly what I was going to suggest without me even having to finish my sentence. ‘Let’s go back to the villa.’