Page 65 of An Island Promise

‘Homemade from the lemons in the grove,’ Eddie said as he poured them each a glass.

La Retirada was rustic and enchanting and Eddie was surprising, bold and memorable. His outgoing personality and confidence reminded Belle a little of Gem, which made her wonder if there were struggles beneath his confidently loud veneer.

Belle sat back and listened as Eddie and Caleb talked business, Eddie catching him up about his plans. The delays had meant the retreat hadn’t been ready to open for this summer season but that hadn’t stopped Eddie from already planning an on-site restaurant in one of two converted barns to sit alongside the finca which would serve as a yoga and art retreat. The restaurant was the part of the project that he was pitching to Caleb as a business proposal to partner up on.

Belle felt a little out of her depth as she listened and she hoped it didn’t show. Perhaps her discomfort stemmed from feeling like the odd one out. Instead of it being Cara sitting with them, she was the new events manager. The obvious friendship Caleb and Eddie had made her realise how recently she’d entered Caleb’s life, while the tone of their conversation on the drive over had left her stomach churning.

Belle took a sip of the lemonade, to ease the tension she was feeling. It was fresh, a perfect balance of sweet and sour, and the cool drink refreshed her senses, allowing her to refocus on the conversation. The ideas Caleb and Eddie were bouncing between them were exciting, including using the produce from the finca’s almond, lemon, orange and fig trees in the restaurant kitchen. The vibe of La Retirada reminded her of Serenity but it was surrounded by olive groves with views to distant mountains rather than by the coast with its mesmerising sea views. It was very Caleb, the farmhouse a traditional take on Solace, so a place she knew would appeal to him. He’d bring fresh and suitable ideas to it. That was if he’d even want her opinion.

‘You look thoughtful, Belle. What do you think?’ Eddie switched his attention from Caleb to her. It took her by surprise and she realised she must have been in a daze, her mind racing away with a million possibilities.

She felt both of their eyes on her, Caleb’s in particular, and she wanted more than anything to make things right between them, to not feel distraught by the thought that shutting down the possibility of anything happening between them had been a mistake. More than anything, she wanted to be able to look at him without her heart colliding with her ribs.

What she understood most of all was the need to be truthful and not second-guess what Caleb would want to hear. It was his money, his investment, ultimately his decision, but Cara had wanted her here for her honest opinion.

‘I think there’s so much potential, not just with the setting but the focus on the ingredients grown here. There are opportunities galore: olive grove picnics, olive picking parties, communal feasts, cooking retreats. A restaurant could be at the heart of all that.’

‘Oh, I like you, Belle,’ Eddie said, sitting forward and clasping his hands together. ‘Sparkling with ideas.’

‘There’s a lot to think on, Eddie, before we get carried away with the possibilities.’

Belle’s cheeks flushed as Caleb’s eyes grazed her face, the shafts of sunlight through the translucent leaves dappled on his.

‘Yeah, yeah, I know you, Caleb. Keeping your cards close to your chest. How about we stop talking business and have a proper drink. How often do we get to do this and catch up?’ Eddie slapped Caleb on the back. ‘And you must stay! That way you can both get a real feel for the place. Sunset on the terrace is special, I promise, and sunrise in the olive grove before a swim is magical.’ He sat back, spread his arms out along the cushioned back of the sofa and gave a satisfied smile. ‘We’ll fire up thebarbecue; it’ll be like old times. No need to drive back; I can put you up for the night.’ He looked between them with a raised eyebrow. ‘One room or two though?’

‘Two,’ they said in unison.

Eddie laughed. ‘I wasn’t sure. You seem, er… good together.’

41

Caleb couldn’t help but say yes to Eddie. He always had been persuasive and he liked him a lot – it was just he could only manage him in small doses. A night away from Solace, relaxing with a beer somewhere other than Spirit or Serenity, was appealing. His only worry was how Belle felt about it.

He caught her eye and she shrugged an okay, a hint of a smile on her lips. They’d sat apart the whole time they’d been here and yet Eddie had sensed something – enough to question the sleeping arrangements.

Diego’s warning about the risk of shutting out Belle and hurting her had come true on the drive over and he was furious with himself for not handling the situation better. At least here Eddie’s upbeat personality had won her over and La Retirada had obviously charmed her. Serene in white, she looked far more relaxed than when they’d arrived flustered and pissed off with each other. The evening sun slanting through the leaves made her hair shine golden, her lightly tanned skin glow and her freckles more pronounced.

God, was she beautiful.

Caleb was glad of Eddie’s boisterous company. With the sun going down, he showed them to their rooms in the finca before lighting the barbecue on the poolside terrace. What had taken him by surprise was Eddie being at La Retirada on his own when he was usually never short of company. He’d been married and divorced three times and had four grown-up kids. He had a lifestyle most people craved and his other hotel in San Antonio was vastly different, as glitzy and glamorous as La Retirada was traditional and sophisticated. Caleb couldn’t help but think that despite the multitude of women who hung out with him in San Antonio, the friends who visited, the guests he entertained and befriended and the party lifestyle he had, he was incredibly lonely, and this was accentuated by him being at La Retirada on his own. It shone a light on Caleb’s own lifestyle, although his loneliness had been through death rather than divorce.

When they’d talked earlier, Eddie had said he was moving in a different direction with the retreat, focusing on health and wellbeing, a place where groups of friends could congregate to escape the hectic pace of life. Eddie was incredibly successful and had supported Caleb’s own dreams over the years but his worry about partnering on the restaurant had been how different their tastes were. Then he’d set eyes on La Retirada with its sympathetic restoration, and restraint when it came to the colour and décor. Eddie meeting them alone instead of Eddie plus an entourage had been refreshing and made Caleb realise how much he must want the partnership.

He was still damn good company though, with many stories to tell that beggared belief and left Belle wide-eyed and occasionally blushing, as they feasted on homemade beef burgers and chargrilled aubergine. Having lived on Ibiza for decades, Eddie had seen and done it all. He entertained them with his effortless storytelling and charm, and the tension that had wound between Caleb and Belle on the journey over slowlyunravelled over the course of the evening with wine and beer, good food and company.

It was Eddie who uncharacteristically instigated the end of the night with a gruff laugh. ‘I need to take my blood pressure meds. Oh the joys of getting old, so you kids enjoy yourselves while you’re still bloody young. If you need me, I’ll be in the room across the other side of the courtyard. The house is yours so treat it like your own.’

Eddie’s wink was just for Caleb, because Eddie had known him since well before he’d met Paloma and had been as much a mentor in women and partying as he’d been in business and building a life on the island.

Caleb’s heart dropped when moments after Eddie had hugged them both good night, Belle stood up.

‘Sleep sounds like a good idea.’ The look she cast him was neutral although her tone was tinged with sadness, or perhaps he was projecting his own sorrow, imagining that was how she was feeling. He felt helpless about how to make things right between them.

They said goodnight without a hug or a kiss and the distance between them couldn’t have been more apparent. Caleb remained out on the terrace for a little while longer, his loneliness acute in the stillness of the Ibizan countryside with only the sound of cicadas for company, the night time heat away from the coast as heavy as his thoughts. Eventually he headed to bed alone.

Belle woke with a start, her heart pounding, her palms sweaty, her legs tangled in the bedsheet. Fragments of a nightmare remained, distorted like an image in a broken mirror. She laystill, trying to regulate her breathing. The silence was somehow unnerving, no voices or traffic, not even the distant sound of the sea like at Spirit. Caleb’s room was just on the other side of the living room, but the distance between them seemed to be widening.

Too many thoughts clashed. The night was oppressive, her skin slicked with sweat, her heart still racing. She threw off the sheet and paced from the room, needing to shake away the tormenting images. The stone tiles in the living room were wonderfully cool and there was enough moonlight slipping through the window to make out a shadowy figure…

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