Chapter 6
Lily drove from the small apartment she shared with Dee on the outskirts of Castries, music blaring within the confines of her little yellow Mini Cooper – a gift to herself for her thirtieth birthday.
The tiny roadster hugged the corners as she darted between cars on the highway, heading back to the hotel.
When she arrived, she waited at the aptly named Sunset Bar for the Irish wedding couple to appear.
She was watching the fireball of golden light, perfectly framed behind a pair of curved coconut palms, sink into the horizon, and sipping from a tall ice-filled glass of water when she heard a familiar voice from nearby.
‘Lily?’
The lilting accent seemed even stronger in person, but there was no mistaking the voice.
‘Shay!’ she greeted, somewhat more enthusiastically than decorum necessitated, as she jumped up. ‘We meet at last,’ she added brightly, extending her hand.
‘Great to finally see you in person.’ Though his reply was considerably more lacklustre than hers and Lily quickly noted his ashen face and more serious demeanour.
‘Everything OK?’ she questioned, terrified that something had been missed, a problem with their hotel reservation or some crucial piece of information about the wedding she’d neglected to inform them about.
Then, realising Shay was alone, she wondered if someone in their party was unwell after the journey or, as sometimes happened, become overwhelmed by the island humidity. She looked past him. ‘Where’s Sarah?’
His gaze faltered and she watched the slight bob of his throat as he swallowed. ‘She isn’t coming,’ he said, his words heavy.
‘What?’ His response made no sense. ‘Did she miss the flight or something?’
‘No.’ She watched stunned as the groom-to-be slumped down on the chair alongside her. ‘She broke up with me, Lily. The wedding’s off.’
‘Poor guy,’ Dee commented the following morning over breakfast before they left for work. ‘I can’t believe she’d actually dump him like that, and right before they were about to fly?’ She poured herself a fresh cup. ‘I’d be devastated. I imagine he is devastated.’
‘He is,’ Lily confirmed. ‘He was at the airport waiting to check in when she called and told him it was over.’ She held out her favourite palm-printed ‘Island Life’ mug – a gift from her dad – for Dee to fill.
‘Can you imagine? Standing there in the crowd, all excited about your Caribbean wedding and then getting a call from your fiancée telling you not only that it’s not going to happen, but your entire relationship is over. And all your dreams are at an end.’
‘So what was he hoping to achieve – by coming here anyway, I mean?’ Dee inquired, as she and Lily sat across from each other, both sipping their coffee.
‘I mean their money’s blown – obviously.
He isn’t going to get anything back from the external suppliers at this point.
We can try … but you know how it is … plus we’ve already gone to so much expense in-house. ’
Lily pulled at a piece of the cheese and onion croissant she was eating.
‘I already explained all that … well, as much as I could without adding to his woes,’ she told her friend with a sigh.
‘He intends to go ahead with the stay as planned, so that the cost doesn’t all go to waste, at least. But obviously cancelled family and friends; what few they had coming along.
Said he definitely couldn’t face seeing anyone else. ’
‘Brave.’ Dee sipped her coffee. ‘Even so, I don’t think I could face still travelling here after all that.’
Lily nodded, thinking again of all the effort Shay (and indeed she) had made on his fiancée’s behalf. Poor thing, though.
‘He was supposed to be here with the love of his life to start the rest of their lives together. But instead, he’s all on his own in a foreign land,’ she said, shaking her head. ‘Not exactly the best circumstances for a vacation, is it? I feel so bad for him.’
‘Yep, but what can you do … ’ Dee agreed absently as she skimmed the headlines of the newspaper. ‘Best laid plans and all that. You of all people should know that.’
Lily set down her mug. ‘Actually, I was thinking that maybe I can and should do something.’
‘What though? It’s not like you can force the fiancée to go through—’
‘No, I mean – the poor guy’s just had his heart broken, Dee. I can’t leave him to wallow on his own in a strange place.’
‘Oh yes, you can,’ her friend corrected sternly.
‘Dee—’
‘No, don’t you “Dee” me. I know what that means. This guy isn’t one of your lost causes, Lily; he’s a human being who’s recently got his heart stomped on. Not something to fix.’
‘But he has no one else here, not even a friend to comfort him.’
‘He has family and friends back home; let them comfort him. His coming here alone was his choice; it definitely isn’t your problem,’ Dee huffed. ‘You seem to think you were put on this earth to fix everything.’
Lily looked at her. ‘Isn’t that kind of my job though?’
‘Well, yes, at the hotel, of course, but the problem is it doesn’t end there, does it?
’ she added with a knowing glance. ‘And when everything works out and … people ride off into the sunset, I’m still here to see you break inside.
I’m not doing it again.’ She flashed her best friend a stern look, but her tone was soft.
‘I am tired of watching you get hurt because you care too much about people, Lily. You’ve always made other people’s happiness your mission and, while I envy your soft heart, sometimes I wish it had a tougher part too. ’
‘This isn’t a repeat of Jonas, you know,’ she said, and Dee sighed deeply.
‘I know what you’re thinking and, really, it isn’t the same thing.
He was using me, I know that now.’ Lily hung her head.
‘But at the time I couldn’t see it. I only saw a nice guy who was down on his luck and needed someone to be there for him. ’
‘Yeah, you were there all right. Right up until he was running off with almost half of what you owned.’ The bitterness in her friend’s voice was a painful reminder of the most recent episode in Lily’s long-running series of disastrous relationships.
And partly the reason why she was now apartment-sharing with her best friend.
She’d been burnt by someone she thought she could trust, but luckily her friend was, as always, there to pick up the pieces.
‘I know, I … made a stupid mistake.’
‘Oh hon, I’m not blaming you, and I’m not mad at you.’ Dee walked over and hugged her. ‘I’m pissed at him. I hate seeing people walk all over you, Lily. You’re the nicest person I know, and you don’t deserve any of it. I only want the best for you,’ she added.
Lily took a deep breath. She guessed it was now or never. ‘Well, if you truly do want the best for me, then I have something to tell you.’
Dee looked at her, intrigued and more than a little concerned at her tone.
‘What is it? Is it your mum – is she OK?’
Lily nodded. Apart from Barbara’s broken heart, of course. Decades of a happy marriage coming to an abrupt end was enough to make anyone want to stay in bed and never get out.
Tears smarted at her eyes. ‘I still expect to see Dad when I get home, you know? Mum hasn’t moved a thing in Sea Shells since the funeral.’ She played with her nails absently, as she fought back the tears. ‘The other night … I could still smell his cologne when I walked in the door.’
‘He did love his Brut,’ Dee said fondly. ‘I miss him.’
‘That makes three of us.’ Lily looked again at her friend.
‘But since he died, I suppose I find myself thinking more and more about their relationship and the life they had together, and … I want that,’ she admitted.
‘Yet, Dee, how am I ever going to find it if, as you say, I spend my days making other people’s dreams come true? ’
‘I’m not sure what you’re getting at …’
Lily sighed heavily. ‘I’m saying that I think I’m done – with all of this, the job especially. How long am I supposed to keep chasing the perfect happily ever after for other people when I haven’t even managed it myself?’
‘You mean you’re thinking about quitting The Palms?’
‘Not just thinking about it,’ she admitted with a heavy sigh.
‘I’ve decided to hand in my notice as events coordinator.
I need a change, and now that Roger’s retired – it kind of feels like the end of an era anyway.
To help the new manager with the transition, I feel it’s only fair that I see out the rest of the season, but after that … ’
Dee’s eyes watered a little. ‘Wow, I had no idea you were so unhappy.’
‘I’m not unhappy per se, but as you said, maybe I need to start thinking about my needs and chasing down my own dreams for a change,’ Lily looked longingly out the window. ‘I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines.’