Chapter 7
SAMMIE
Considering Edward had made such a big song and dance about leaving so he could get to the briefing early, it was strange that he wasn’t here yet.
I was currently lounging in one of the fancy outdoor chairs by the pool admiring the surroundings whilst I waited, which wasn’t a hardship because, like everywhere in this hotel, it screamed luxury.
The enormous, pristine swimming pool was surrounded by luxury sun loungers, large comfy-looking white daybeds, complete with extra cushions, all shaded by a mixture of palm and olive trees.
And holy macaroni. The sea was so close.
In just a few strides, I could be sinking my feet into the powdery white sand and swimming in the gorgeous clear turquoise sea.
There were nine other couples here and they seemed to be chatting happily amongst themselves, whilst I was trying not to look at the tempting view in front of me.
And when I say the view , I was referring to a certain Italian Love Alchemist.
Directly in my line of sight was Romeo, who’d just finished setting up a table with a whiteboard beside it. He’d been trying to do it for the past ten minutes, but kept getting stopped by guests who wanted to talk to him.
Most of them were female and as exaggerated as it might sound, I was pretty sure that all of them fancied him.
I was no Enola Holmes, but the way they’d twirled their hair around their fingers, cocked their heads flirtatiously and giggled at whatever he was saying was a dead giveaway.
Oh, and the fact that, as I established yesterday, he was bloody gorgeous might also have something to do with my assumptions.
And from the way he was smirking, it was clear he loved the attention.
Yep. Romeo might be Italian, but he seemed just as arrogant as all of the other good-looking guys back home.
‘Good. It hasn’t started yet.’ Edward finally appeared beside me, snapping me out of my thoughts.
‘Not yet. There’s been some… interruptions. Everything okay?’ I said, which was my polite way of asking where he’d been. I didn’t get why he’d rushed off, leaving me to eat breakfast on my own, only to turn up here late.
‘Yes,’ he said quickly. ‘I wonder what the first activity will be.’
‘My best friend went to the resort in Spain and she said they did a pool activity.’
‘If it’s swimming related, I’ll enjoy that. How did your friend get on? Was she happy with her match?’
‘No. At first she was furious because they matched her with her ex!’
‘Oh…’ Edward’s voice trailed off and his face fell.
‘Crazy, right?’ People were always shocked whenever they heard the story. ‘Now they’re inseparable.’
‘Initially, it must’ve been a big surprise for them to see each other again. But sounds like it all worked out in the end. Clearly they were meant to be.’
‘Definitely. I give it a year before they’re either engaged, married or expecting. Maybe all three!’ I cackled. It was true. Stella and Max were at it like rabbits and I knew they both wanted kids.
‘Looks like the briefing’s about to start,’ Edward said bluntly, gesturing towards Romeo.
‘Oh, right, okay,’ I said, surprised that he’d cut me off. Maybe he was just excited to find out what the activity would be.
‘ Buongiorno !’ Romeo said.
‘ Buongiorno !’ everyone replied.
‘Welcome once again to the Love Hotel. As you may already know, my name is Romeo and I am your Love Alchemist, which means that I plan to do everything I can to help create that magical chemistry between you and your match.’
‘Yay!’ a woman at the front cheered.
‘Every day during the first week you will do an activity with your match in a group setting. Then during the second week you will choose your own activities to do just as a couple. You’ll create a daily playlist with at least five songs that remind you of the time spent with your match and we’d also like you to take photos together for your “memory book” photo album. ’
I remembered this stuff from when Stella stayed here.
At the moment, zero songs were springing to mind for the playlist, well, apart from ‘All by Myself’ by Celine Dion, because Edward had left me to eat breakfast alone.
But he must’ve had a good reason. Maybe he had a bad stomach and didn’t want to tell me.
I should’ve offered him some of my company’s diarrhoea relief tablets.
I was trying to approach relationships differently, so I couldn’t write him off yet. The day was still young. Hopefully once we started the activity we’d connect more.
‘Sound good?’ Romeo asked and everyone replied with a collective ‘ sì! ’ ‘ Perfetto. The first couples activity will start in half an hour and will be in the pool. If you are not already in your swimwear, please return to your room and change.’
‘I better go.’ Edward jumped up.
‘I’ve already got my bikini on under this.’ I gestured to my kaftan. It’d said to wear swimwear in the welcome pack on the iPads in our room, so I’d come prepared.
‘Back in ten,’ he said, without even bothering to look at me.
Did he even find me attractive? He hadn’t commented on my dress last night, so I genuinely had no idea.
Some of the other guests headed off to change and others started chatting.
Just as I started to think about how to kill time, Romeo strode over.
‘Samantha, come stai ?’
Fuck. His accent was so hot.
As his rich woody scent surrounded me, I swallowed hard.
Get it together, girl. He’s nothing special. Just another fuckboy.
‘You asked me how I am, so I say bene , right?’
His eyes widened with surprise.
‘ Sì .’
‘What?’ I took off my sunglasses, folded my arms and raised an eyebrow. ‘Surprised that the British girl knows some Italian?’
‘Honestly?’ he asked.
‘Yeah.’
‘A little,’ he smiled and I was tempted to roll my eyes at how ridiculously perfect his teeth were.
‘Rude! So, what – you think us Brits can’t speak other languages?’
‘No. You asked me if I was surprised that you knew some Italian and I am, so I just told the truth.’
‘The audacity !’ I mock gasped. ‘For your information, I know ten whole words of Italian. And I studied hard to learn every single one of them!’
‘Ten whole words?’ His eyes widened. ‘ Wow . You are right. That really is impressive.’ He smiled again. ‘Well, do not let them go to waste, Samantha. Share them with me. Tell me what you know.’
‘Challenge accepted!’ I stretched out my arms and flexed my neck from side to side like I was preparing for a workout, then exhaled deeply. ‘Okay, so number one: Ciao , two: grazie , three: bene , er…’ I paused, racking my brain.
‘Three words. Like I said, that is impressive. I see your Italian is as good as your maths.’ A small smile touched his lips.
‘I hadn’t finished!’ I protested. ‘Four: prosecco, five: pizza…’
‘Are you serious?’ Laughter rumbled in his chest.
‘Still not finished! Six: pasta, seven: vino, eight: sì , nine: gelato and ten: mozzarella. Boom!’ I pumped my fist in the air triumphantly.
‘ Brava .’ He slow clapped. ‘I clearly underestimated you. I had no idea you’d be able to successfully list ten of the most popular Italian food-related words, which are also common in the English language.’
‘Hey!’ I slapped his arm playfully. Jesus, his bicep was even firmer than it looked. ‘They weren’t all food-related!’
‘You are right. I apologise. Your Italian is exceptional. I did not realise the extent of your talents before, but now that I am aware, if any of our guests need a translator, I will make sure that you are at the top of our list.’
‘ Finally , he gives me the respect I deserve!’ I laughed and our eyes locked.
Fuck. How were his eyes so damn pretty? They were light brown and sparkly and of course he had to have those long lashes. What a waste.
And I liked that today he actually cracked a smile and even laughed. Yesterday he was so serious and grumpy.
Some people would’ve been offended about him taking the piss out of my Italian, but I liked a bit of good-hearted banter and let’s face it, my Italian was shit. I knew it and he knew it, so why not have a laugh about it?
‘So,’ Romeo broke the silence and I looked away, ‘how is everything with you and Edward? You like him, sì ?’
‘Yeah!’ My voice squeaked. ‘He’s… everything I asked for: decent-looking, good job, lives in London, we share some hobbies and both want the same things in the near future. Y’know, to settle down and stuff. All good!’
My stomach churned. Maybe Edward was right and I shouldn’t have had an omelette and pastries. But I’d finished eating over an hour ago and I felt fine before. Weird.
Anyway, everything I’d just said was true. Edward ticked loads of boxes.
Okay, his obsession with calorie counting didn’t seem healthy, but that was his personal choice and no one was perfect, right? Compared to the red flags a lot of the guys I’d dated had, that was minor.
Everything was fine.
‘Excellent,’ Romeo nodded. ‘The matchmakers have done well.’
‘Yep,’ I said, popping the ‘p’ for extra emphasis.
‘I must check on the other guests, but call if you need something.’
‘Okey dokey.’ I did a cringey thumbs-up gesture, then winced internally. One day I’d have an entire conversation with a man without doing or saying something stupid.
Minutes after Romeo left, I saw Edward striding towards the pool, in a pair of brown and orange striped speedos.
A shiver ran down my spine.
And not in a good way.
With all his gym workouts and healthy eating, I wasn’t surprised that Edward was in decent shape. His body was a million times more toned than mine, so I wasn’t judging. But as I looked at him, I wasn’t overcome with desire. Instead, I was overcome with a major case of the ick.
Maybe it was the speedos or the brown and orange print, which I noticed when he turned around had an unfortunate brown stripe running down his bum-crease which made it look like he’d had an ‘accident’.
I didn’t know what it was, but all I knew was that Edward wasn’t doing it for me.
At all.
Shame washed over me.
A long-lasting relationship was about more than just lust and attraction. I couldn’t dismiss an opportunity to build a future with the love of my life just because he chose to wear a pair of speedos which looked like he’d shat his pants. That was his choice.
Just because I preferred men in swimming trunks, that wasn’t the basis for questioning our compatibility. That was shallow.
I was better than that.
‘Did I miss anything?’ Edward said as he sat on the sun lounger beside me.
‘No.’
‘I think everyone is here,’ Romeo said. ‘So, your first activity will be pool volleyball.’
That was what Stella said she did first too. Should be fun.
And with any luck, pairing up with Edward and working as a team should help us come closer together.
At least I hoped so, anyway…