Chapter 4
NOAH
So Ali’s dinner date was also at nine.
And obviously she was from London.
This wasn’t sounding good.
What if we were matched?
As I imagined the look of horror and disappointment on her face, my chest tightened.
Being rejected by any woman was hard enough, but the thought of being reminded how ridiculous Ali thought the idea of us being together romantically was, would be like a punch in the gut.
Maybe this was a bad idea.
I shouldn’t have put myself in this position.
Again.
I typed out a quick reply to Ali saying that I needed to jump in the shower and suggested we speak later.
After putting my phone on the table, I blew out a frustrated breath then opened my balcony door.
As I stood outside and admired the sea views and the sight of the whitewashed hotel rooms carved into the rock, a wave of clarity washed over me.
No. It was good that I came. I was in Santorini. A place I’d wanted to visit for longer than I could remember, so whatever happened, I’d get to tick it off my bucket list. I was determined to make the most of my time here.
Once I’d showered and dressed it was almost time to head to the restaurant to meet my match.
I fired off a message to let Colin know I’d arrived safely and he replied wishing me luck with my ‘mystery lady’.
Here’s hoping she was a mystery lady and not one I already knew.
As I walked towards the restaurant, my heart thudded in my chest. I didn’t know why I was so nervous.
I’d thought the hotel grounds were impressive when Petros showed me around earlier, but at night, the restaurant’s terrace was even more striking.
The inky-blue sea was illuminated with lights from the boats and cruise ships in the distance, the stars sparkled in the sky and soft amber lighting shone from the lanterns that hung from the bougainvillea-covered pergolas.
They must have a herb garden nearby too because I swore I could smell thyme and oregano mixed with the salty sea air.
I walked towards the restaurant’s main entrance.
‘Hi,’ I said as I stepped inside. ‘I’m Noah Riley.’
‘Welcome to the Love Hotel, Santorini!’ He beamed. ‘My name is Stavros and I am your Dining Director.’
‘Is that your term for a ma?tre d’?’ I asked.
‘Exactly.’ He smiled. ‘You will find that everyone here has unique job titles.’
‘Got it.’
‘Your date has not arrived yet, but you are welcome to wait at the bar in the meantime. Let me take you to meet Grigoris our barman, or as we prefer to say, our Chief Mixologist.’
‘Thanks.’
I followed him over and ordered a bottle of the local beer.
After taking a few sips, I checked my watch. It was quarter to nine. I knew it probably wasn’t a good idea to arrive so early. I could’ve played it cool and just arrived a couple of minutes before, but I hated being late.
That and the suspense was killing me. I needed to know who she was.
Just as I was about to take out my phone to pass the time, I heard the click-clacking of high heels behind me and spun around to take a look.
Fuck.
My eyes popped and I attempted to swallow what felt like a concrete barrel lodged in my throat.
It was Ali. And wow.
She was beautiful before, but tonight she looked absolutely breathtaking.
Ali was dressed in a figure-hugging white sleeveless dress that stopped just above her knees and accentuated every delicious curve. It clung to her perfect round arse and accentuated the shape of her generous boobs.
Jesus Christ. The woman looked like an angel.
Her hair had grown since I last saw her. She was wearing it down and her curls tumbled past her toned shoulders to the middle of her back.
Ali’s light brown skin glowed, like it had been personally kissed by the sun. Her hazel eyes sparkled and those full lips… Holy shit. The things those lips could do.
Wait. What the fuck?
I mentally slapped myself around the face.
That was totally inappropriate. If she knew what I’d just been thinking, she’d demand I get a gallon of bleach and a scrubber to wash away every single one of the indecent and ungentlemanly thoughts that just flooded my brain.
How Ali looked was completely irrelevant.
Whether she’d turned up tonight looking like the back of a bus (impossible) or a goddess, it didn’t matter. The facts were still the same. She was my best friend. She still didn’t see me as anything other than that and I felt exactly the same.
End of story.
I should turn around right now and pretend I hadn’t seen her to give myself time to rid my head of those unsuitable thoughts. Then I’d be able to focus on preparing to meet my real date.
Wait. She wasn’t my real date, was she?
Just as I was about to look away and order another drink, something much, much stronger, Ali turned her head and her gaze met mine.
She frowned, then her eyes popped like she’d just seen a ten-legged hairy monster.
Yeah, okay, I get it, Ali. I’m still not your type.
‘Noah?’ she called out.
‘Hey, Ali,’ I replied, a smile breaking out on my face.
‘Oh my God!’ She raced towards me. ‘Is that really you?’
Ali started poking my chest, then my arms as if she was trying to decide whether or not I was a figment of her imagination.
‘Yep!’ I grinned. ‘I have my passport in my room if you’d like to verify my identity.’
‘But…’ She gasped. ‘You’re… when did you? What’s… You look so… different!’
Ah, the word different. That’s right up there with ‘interesting’.
‘Thanks!’ I laughed.
‘No! I don’t mean bad different. I mean good different. Like, really different.’ She blinked several times, then snapped out of her trance. ‘Anyway, where are my manners? Sorry, it just feels like so long since I’ve seen you and I wasn’t expecting… anyway, I’m just surprised that’s all. Come here!’
Ali threw her arms around me and squeezed me tight, and I fought the urge to groan.
Hugging her felt amazing and painful at the same time.
I knew I’d missed her, but it was only now that I realised how much.
It was a shame we couldn’t just have a couple of hours to catch up now, then meet our dates afterwards.
She still had that sweet vanilla scent and she still gave the best hugs. I could literally hold her all night.
But as much as I was enjoying this hug, it wasn’t good for me.
Ali was still insanely attractive and… shit.
I quickly pulled away.
‘Calm down, woman!’ I joked. ‘If you squeeze me any tighter, you’ll break me!’
‘Unlikely!’ Her eyes raked over me from head to toe. ‘Look at my Noah Bear, all grown up!’
‘God, you haven’t called me that in ages!’ I laughed and Ali flashed her adorable smile. Noah Bear was the nickname she had for me when we were at primary school. ‘And you sound like one of my annoying aunties who used to squeeze my cheeks and tell me how much I’d grown when I was a kid.’
‘But it’s true! You have grown! Look at those muscles.’ Her gaze flicked to my biceps. ‘When did you start working out?’
‘I’ve always worked out,’ I said.
‘You have?’ She frowned.
‘And she calls herself my best friend.’ I rolled my eyes.
To be fair, I had stepped up my gym regime this past year.
In the beginning I started lifting weights, running and training to release my frustration.
But the more I did it, the more I liked how it made me feel.
And I’ll admit, the fact that women started to look at me differently was a nice side effect.
‘Well, maybe if you didn’t continually hide away from me and refuse to meet up then I might remember what you looked like.’
‘I’ve been busy,’ I said.
‘And he calls himself my best friend,’ she rolled her eyes then burst out laughing. ‘I’m glad that you applied so we can go through this experience together. It’s so good to see you.’
‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘You look really well, Ali.’
Really well was the understatement of the millennium, but I couldn’t exactly tell her that she looked breathtaking. That’d be weird.
‘Thanks.’ She smiled. ‘So do you.’
Our eyes locked and we just stood there smiling.
‘Your date is one minute away,’ Stavros announced.
I’d been so focused on Ali that I hadn’t even noticed him standing beside us.
‘Oh, right,’ I replied. I wasn’t even sure which one of us he was talking to.
‘You mean, Noah’s not my date?’ Ali said.
‘No.’ Stavros shook his head. ‘I did not realise that you two knew each other?’
‘Yeah,’ she replied. ‘We’re best friends. I was kind of worried that we’d end up getting matched, but we haven’t so, phew!’
My face fell.
And there it was.
The reminder of exactly where I stood.
For a second, when Ali’s eyes roamed over my body, I’d thought that maybe she was checking me out. But of course, nothing had changed.
I was still firmly in the friend zone.
Which of course was fine. Like I’d said to Colin, I’d never go there. My friendship with Ali was important to me. Even if it was now just telephone-based.
‘You should go,’ I said. ‘We’ll catch up properly later.’
‘Oh, okay,’ she said. ‘Yeah. Hope your date goes well.’
‘You too. I’m gonna pop to the gents’.’
‘I’ll let your date know,’ Stavros added. ‘She is on her way too.’
‘Great,’ I said, as I flashed him a half smile, waved at Ali then left.
At least I wasn’t being set up with my best friend.
That would’ve been so awkward.
My match was a complete stranger and she would be perfect for me.
Yep.
Those dates Colin and Shania set me up on were disasters. But this one was going to be different.
I was sure of it.