Chapter Sixteen
Two men in crisp white shorts and matching polos pulled up in golf buggies and started piling their luggage into a little trailer attached.
Well, her luggage; Alex only had one battered suitcase, while she had her giant case, her hand luggage and a bag of shopping.
She’d treated herself and her family to make-up and perfume from the onboard duty free.
Her stuffed plastic carrier bag looked like an afront to nature in this setting, and she shoved it deep into the belly of her straw tote.
‘Want to walk to the house or take the buggy?’ asked Alex, in between greeting the men.
‘Oh, let’s walk. I don’t think I can bear sitting down a minute longer.’
‘I’ll give you a little tour on the way,’ he said, helping her off the boat.
They strolled up the polished wooden pier and through the gardens, using a sandy path that looked like a trail of brown sugar. As they reached a fork in the path, Alex gestured to the right. ‘That goes direct to the house, and this one goes everywhere else.’
They took the fork to everywhere else, and she breathed in the scent of tropical flowers and salty ocean.
She flicked Alex a playful look. ‘Couldn’t they have bought something a bit nicer?’
‘I know what you mean. It’s so small.’
‘Yeah, absolutely tiny, and so… basic.’ She frowned at the beautiful palm trees and gardens as if they were offensive.
Alex gave a solemn nod. ‘It sure is.’ Their eyes caught one another’s and Alex roared with laughter, and Ellie collapsed into a fit of giggles.
‘This is a nice place to hang out,’ he said, pointing to a pristine beach to the side of them, the sun sparkling across the white sand.
A couple of hammocks swayed in the trees, and the turquoise water gently lapped against the land.
It was all so peaceful and tranquil. The gardens on this side of the island grew a little wilder.
There were fruit and palm trees, with colourful birds flitting between them.
A little lime-green lizard sped across their path and Ellie grinned.
Next, they passed a tennis court and the staff lodges, before heading towards the back of the house, with its kidney-shaped pool, sandstone steps and a fountain with stone dolphins leaping through the air, spurting water out of their blowholes.
When they reached the house, they walked along its veranda, complete with rattan furniture and porch swings, and arrived back at the front of the house.
He opened the tall double doors and stepped aside to wave her into the marble hotel-sized lobby.
‘Your parents don’t lock their front door?’
‘Oh, don’t worry, my parents have plenty of security. You just don’t see them.’
Ellie looked around and spotted a camera up in the corner of the ceiling. She gave a little wave, and then immediately felt like an idiot.
‘Alex!’ cried a jubilant voice from the massive, curved staircase above.
Ellie gulped as Hollywood star and legend Jessica King skipped down the stairs like a gazelle in a relaxed kaftan.
She could have passed for Ellie’s more glamorous – and only slightly older – sister, with nary a wrinkle or dark circle on her perfectly smooth face.
In contrast to Alex’s dark hair, his mum’s was caramel blonde and shoulder length, and her soft blue eyes were a little lighter than her son’s.
‘Darling…’ Jessica King cooed, reaching for Alex, and embracing him with a grasping hug, Parisian kisses and jangle of boho-chic jewellery.
‘Mom, meet my girlfriend, Ellie Jones.’
‘Hello, thank you for having me,’ said Ellie, as if she were a schoolgirl on a playdate.
‘Oh, sweetheart, aren’t you just gorgeous!’
Ellie was grabbed by the shoulders and pulled forward into a warm embrace followed by another sweet bookend of Parisian air kisses.
‘Don’t crush her, Mom. She’s been travelling for over twelve hours.’
‘Oh, my darlings, you must be exhausted. Come, I’ll sort out some refreshments for you.
We’re all in the sun room. Maggie!’ A brunette in her early forties, wearing an apron and smart uniform dress, appeared from one of the doorways.
‘Could we have some drinks brought to the sun room? Then a light dinner? Thank you.’ She turned back to them, her colourfully embroidered kaftan swirling around her gold-sandalled feet.
‘Eddie has taken your luggage to your usual room. If you two prefer, you can freshen up first before meeting everyone?’
‘What would you prefer, Ellie?’ asked Alex. His expression was tight and pale, and she could tell he was hoping she’d say unpack, because he kept looking towards the stairs.
She didn’t want to be unkind, but she knew sometimes it was better to be quick and efficient when it came to painful situations. Delaying only built up anxiety. ‘Maybe we should say a quick hello? I probably won’t be able to stay awake for very long. I’m shattered.’
His shoulders slumped, but he gave her a quick nod.
‘Great idea.’ Jessica King – she literally couldn’t think of her as anything other than the full billboard name at this moment – swept them down a corridor before Alex had a chance to respond.
They passed elegant, airy rooms until they finally reached the back of the house and the beautiful sun room, filled with lush plants, comfy seating and low, glass-topped tables.
Huge bi-folding shuttered doors opened out to a gorgeous vista of the gardens.
The room was a mixture of white panelling and yellow walls.
Draped on the cushions was the elegant star Ellie recognised as Savannah Lochlan.
She was as luminescent and breathtaking in real life as she was in her films. Light-blonde hair fell about her narrow shoulders in choppy waves and her thighs were so slender they would most definitely not touch in those denim cut-offs she wore.
She had a large, pouty mouth that dominated her face and gave her an extraordinarily beautiful smile, which dropped the second she spotted them.
Beside her sat the caramel-blond-haired version of Alex who was obviously the action-hero star Liam King.
Off screen, Liam was noticeably slimmer than Alex and shorter by a couple of inches.
Absently, Ellie thought he looked like the stereotypical version of Gatsby, all suave glamour and golden looks.
As Alex and Ellie entered, Liam and Savannah both sat up a little straighter. Savannah’s fingers dug into the cushions, and Liam looked at her with concern deeply etched onto his handsome features.
Ellie felt as if she were intruding on a private moment by even looking at them. Alex stared at Savannah with a blank expression, giving away nothing of his emotions – she was strangely proud of him for that, but also worried at what might be lurking beneath the surface.
A rustle of a magazine drew their attention to the other side of the room.
Alex’s father, Robert King, who was a silver-fox version of Alex, sat in an armchair in stylish white linen, a film magazine in his hands.
No doubt checking up on what the bright young things were producing these days.
He had a sprawling, muscular physique most men in their thirties would have been jealous of.
There were a few other people she didn’t recognise, but she presumed they were part of the wedding party.
All of them looked like they’d just stepped out of a Californian surfing commercial.
Her initial thought was that they were all so slim and perfect, and, while she hated herself for doing that, comparing herself to them, some habits were hard to beat.
A few sly smirks passed between Savannah’s friends, and Ellie could tell they thought her pairing with Alex was odd.
Which, to be fair, it was, even to Ellie.
‘You have a beautiful home, Mrs…’ Don’t say her full name like some weirdo. ‘…Mrs King.’ She felt like a dirty chimney sweep in comparison to the beautiful surroundings and people around her.
‘Call me Jessica, sweetheart.’
Ellie swallowed, and turned to face the happy couple.
Her nanna’s drilled-in manners demanded that she be a polite guest – even though it warred against her heart to do.
‘Thank you for inviting me to your wedding, Liam… and Savannah. I know I’m a bit last-minute, so I hope I’ve not caused any problems for you. ’
They blinked at her like baby owls, before Savannah answered cautiously, ‘No… No problem at all.’ Her voice was low and husky, like a New York version of an M this wasn’t just any sexy voice, this was an M&S sexy voice.
‘Oh my God, I love your accent,’ drawled a dark-haired woman in head-to-toe pink over in the corner. Her voice and features were very similar to Savannah’s – a sister or cousin possibly? ‘You sound like Dick Van Dyke!’
Well, that served her right for mentally taking the piss out of Savannah’s voice. ‘Err, thanks?’
‘Dick Van Dyke wasn’t even British,’ grumbled Alex beside her, only adding to the awkwardness.
Jessica King – Jessica, for fuck’s sake – saved the day by quickly making introductions.
‘Ellie, that’s Savannah’s sister, Holly, she’s the maid of honour. These are Savannah’s other bridesmaids, Caitlyn and Keira. That’s Liam’s best man, Tony. And here’s my husband, Robert.’
‘Nice to meet you,’ he said, his voice rich and warm. Hadn’t he played God in his last film?
‘Likewise,’ replied Ellie, realising she was putting on airs and graces because she was so nervous.
‘She’s so polite.’ Holly cackled, as if manners were a quaint tradition – she’d been the Dick Van Dyke commentator earlier.
‘She’s British, remember?’ said Caitlyn, a redhead who looked like a bouncy cheerleader. Keira nodded as if that explained everything. She looked like a supermodel with her long, slender limbs, dark-brown glossy skin and gorgeously full features.
‘Ignore these fools. You’re wonderful, darling!’ Jessica King declared warmly, giving her arm a quick squeeze.