Page 63 of An Island Promise

‘You were more than just a friend, Hannah. You were there for me every step of the way, going with me to appointments and listening when I needed to mouth off about my shitty boss. You encouraged me to stick up for myself when all I wanted to do was quit. Honestly, without you being my rock back then, I wouldn’t be where I am today.’

‘Well, you’ve done the same for me now, being my saviour by letting me stay here. I feel better than I have done in months, and Jake and I are actually managing to talk civilly to each other.’ There was a lightness to Hannah’s voice that Belle hadn’t heard in a long while.

‘Having your own space has obviously done you both good.’

‘Mmm, yes,’ Hannah said, suddenly sounding cagey. ‘Except he suggested I move back in on a trial basis…’

‘Why would you even consider that…? Oh wait, he wants you to move back in as together together?’

‘Yep, but there’s no way I’m going there, Belle. No way. He’s cheated once, how can I trust that he won’t do it again? I did too much for him when we were living together and I think he’s realising the grass isn’t always greener. He’s cheated, possibly regrets it now and wants his easy life with me back again.’

‘You are worth so much more. He didn’t deserve you back then, he certainly doesn’t now.’

‘No, I know. Because having space and time away from him has really made me see things clearly and I understand exactly what was wrong. It wasn’t me. The strain in our relationship and the breakdown was all his doing, so thank you, I am so completely done with him.’

It warmed Belle’s heart to hear her friend sound so positive and clear about what she wanted – or more to the point, what she didn’t want any more. It was only after they’d said goodbyethat Hannah’s clarity made her consider her own wants and desires, not that they were quite so straightforward.

Over the following week, two private parties at Spirit and another outdoor movie night at Serenity kept Belle busy, so she didn’t see much of Caleb, and when she did have free time he didn’t seem to be around. Not that she was actively looking for him, and of course he was a busy guy, juggling a lot.

When the following weekend came and went, she did wonder if he’d gone to Maria’s for a family dinner. The stab of envy she felt took her by surprise and it was impossible not to wonder if he hadn’t thought to invite her, or worse – he hadn’t wanted to. The pragmatic side of her reasoned it was probably best to maintain their professionalism as work colleagues but she missed talking to him, she missed his slightly crooked smile and the way being around him made her feel, and she thought about him more times than she dared to admit.

Caleb knew he was purposefully avoiding Belle so he didn’t have to deal with his feelings, but that only led to guilt because his response to run away wasn’t fair on her. Of course, being genuinely busy with investment plans and organising meetings gave him an excuse, but he could easily make time for her if he chose to. Perhaps he was being cowardly, or maybe it was self-preservation to bury his confusion and troubled feelings. It was definitely a bad idea because it was making him stressed and miserable when time spent with Belle had the opposite effect.

‘Where is Belle?’ was Maria’s first question when he turned up for dinner that Sunday.

‘Oh, I wasn’t sure you’d want an extra person to feed this weekend,’ he replied lamely.

‘What are you talking about?’ she scolded. ‘Belle is always welcome.’ She shook her head and tutted. ‘Bring her next weekend,sí.’ It wasn’t a question.

Caleb escaped from beneath her glare into the garden and found a quiet spot on the wall away from the kids screeching around playing hide and seek.

‘What the hell are you playing at, Caleb?’ Diego perched next to him. ‘Mama said Belle was welcome but you didn’t invite her.’

Caleb grunted. ‘It feels… complicated.’

Diego snorted. ‘Yes, of course it is, most good things in life are. Doesn’t mean you should ignore a tricky situation. Last weekend you literally told me to go and talk to Gem, knowing what she was about to tell me. Whatever has gone on between you and Belle?—’

‘Nothing has happened,’ Caleb said vehemently.

‘You don’t have to have had sex for something to have happened. Anyone with eyes and half a brain can see there’s something between you. The chemistry is obvious.’

Caleb stood up and paced to the edge of the garden, trying to disguise the sudden distress Diego’s words had caused. Because he was absolutely right, their chemistry was electric, the feelings she stirred undeniable, and yet he was intent on denying himself even her friendship.

‘You can’t ignore her,’ Diego continued. ‘You’re going to confuse and upset her. And end up hurting her too. She doesn’t deserve that.’ He sighed. ‘I really don’t know what we can do to make you see that it’s okay to let go, but it is.’ Diego squeezed Caleb’s shoulder and walked away towards the light and laughter on the top terrace.

Caleb understood what he meant by ‘let go’ because it was what he’d been battling against every time he was around Belle. Not being around her seemed the easier option; except it wasn’t, because he was hurting and Diego was right, if he carried on likethis he’d hurt Belle too. How could he be sure that he was ready when letting go had the potential to change everything?

40

The beginning of the week was a scorcher. Even at dawn, the air felt sultry and the usually cool apartment stuffy. Belle did her morning routine of twenty minutes of yoga before having a stroll along the beach and a swim in the sea. She returned to the apartment and sat outside in the courtyard garden to eat her breakfast while listening to the birds and gazing up at the cloudless blue sky, the promise of a hot Ibiza day in the air.

She’d just finished getting dressed in a white maxi skirt and crop top when a message from Cara popped onto her phone.

Love what you’re doing on the socials, Belle, it’s so good to know Spirit, Serenity and Caleb are in safe hands. I hope you don’t mind me messaging you like this. I talk to Caleb all the time but he has a habit of soldiering on even when he’s falling apart. So I thought I’d come directly to you and ask a favour. He has this investment opp to take a look at later today and I think you should go with him. Not that he needs hand holding, but he will need to talk it through, which of course he can do with me, but as I’m halfway round the world dealing with a whole load of shit and won’t have seen the place, I think he’ll need to debrief with someone who can actually cast a critical eye over it. Cheers, doll.

The message puzzled her with Cara’s concern about Caleb worming into her heart, the words ‘falling apart’ jumping out. He’d certainly closed himself off, at least from her, which made it all the more concerning that Cara was confiding in her, suggesting she was really worried about him. She also had mixed feelings about going somewhere with him when they’d hardly spoken to each other over the last week.

Yeah I can go if you think it’ll be helpful. He might not want me to though…

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