Page 67 of An Island Promise

Caleb shook his head and brushed a kiss on her cheek. ‘No. I’ve had sex a few times, but that was all it was. No emotional connection, only guilt.’

‘Do you feel guilty now?’ Belle asked tentatively.

Caleb shifted down so they were facing each other on the feather-soft pillows as he held her gaze. ‘No, not guilty, just loved.’

42

Sunshine streamed through the bedroom window, casting a warm patch across Belle’s stomach. Memories from the night danced through her mind as delicious and enticing as the sight of Caleb lying next to her. The sex had been satisfying and sensual, and everything she’d hoped for. They’d been open with each other too, talking about what they liked, and it had been different to anything she’d experienced before. Everything felt right and when he turned over and met her eyes it wasn’t sorrow she detected but a gentle contentedness which matched her own. The way he tugged her close until she was lying against his chest, his arm resting along the curve of her hip, felt natural, as if they’d been doing this for many mornings.

‘I should have talked to you rather than gone out of my way to avoid you.’ Caleb’s hushed voice sounded loud in the quiet of the morning.

‘And I should have been more understanding about how hard this must be for you, when instead my insecurities came out in a negative way.’

Caleb shook his head and circled his fingers against the curve of her hip. ‘Not that any of it matters now. Wishing we’ddone things differently doesn’t change a thing. And perhaps it wouldn’t have made a bit of difference but I can’t think of a better place to be than where we are right now.’

With the morning already heating up, they dragged themselves from the bed and made coffee. Caleb wedged the door to the finca’s living room open so the sound of birdsong drifted in, while the sunlight cast a block of inviting warmth across the muted terracotta tiles. They sat together on the sofa facing the open door that framed the view across the courtyard to the converted barn that would one day host wedding receptions and yoga retreats. For the moment, though, the peace was magical, their focus on each other as they chatted.

A knock made them turn. Eddie was standing in the doorway of the finca in just swim shorts with a towel flung over his shoulder, his bronze skin gleaming in the morning sun. ‘First a swim, then you kids want breakfast?’

Belle could see him quickly assess the situation, the two of them in just their underwear sipping coffee together on the sofa, as comfortable with each other as they’d been distant the previous evening. The wink he aimed at Caleb before he left them with the comment ‘I’m sure you’ve both worked up an appetite’ was as unsubtle as he was, but it made Belle smile.

She raised her coffee cup to her lips and slid her bare legs over Caleb’s. ‘I am rather peckish.’

‘You and me both,’ Caleb said with a grin.

He changed into swim shorts and she into a bikini and they joined Eddie in the pool, the cool water the perfect contrast to the heat of the morning sun.

Eddie got out first, telling them breakfast would be ready in twenty minutes, and they soon followed, dripping water across the stone-tiled courtyard as they made their way to the farmhouse.

When Belle started towards her room, Caleb grabbed her hand and with a grin tugged her in the opposite direction to the shower in his ensuite. If there’d been any lingering uncertainty about the night before being a good idea, it was extinguished as Caleb swiftly removed her bikini. The hot water pummelled her skin while Caleb’s hands stroked. The sensation of kissing Caleb while being soaked set every nerve ending on fire.

‘Remember Eddie’s cooking breakfast for us,’ Belle said as she came up for air, the torrent of water splashing off their bodies where they were pressed tight together.

‘Eddie won’t mind being kept waiting.’ Caleb ran a soapy hand down Belle’s back. ‘Shower sex is something he will most definitely approve of.’

Belle approved of it too and she was as ravenous as Caleb was by the time they joined Eddie at the table in the courtyard, and they enjoyed a breakfast of Spanish omelette washed down with freshly squeezed orange juice.

Belle’s first impression of Eddie had jarred with the place he’d created, but for all his crazy stories and the gaudy way he dressed, there was a man beneath it who obviously craved the sort of peace and understated beauty he’d created at La Retirada. It was the same with Caleb; his love for the partying side of Ibiza had morphed into something more refined and appealing with Spirit – even more so with Serenity. Belle knew in her heart that him partnering with Eddie would be a positive thing for them both. Her only reservation was the sobering thought that it would probably happen when Cara was back and after she’d left.

Not that she should be worrying about any of that now, on a hot Ibiza day in a place as stunning as this after a few hours with Caleb that had been utterly wonderful. She was sorry their time with Eddie had come to an end, although she could sense Eddie’s delight at how effortlessly La Retirada had won them over.

He walked them to the Jeep and slapped Caleb on the back, grabbed his hand and hugged him tight.

Eddie opened the Jeep door for Belle, took her hand and kissed her on each cheek.

‘You look after him.’ His voice was gruff but it was lined with love as he clutched her hand tight and looked intently at her with his piercing blue eyes. ‘He needs someone like you in his life.’

On the drive back to Spirit, all the tension, uncertainty and annoyance that Belle had felt on the drive over had well and truly gone. Their true feelings for each other had been shown through actions as much as words. Caleb was quiet but in a reflective sort of way, and it was a comfortable silence that allowed them both time to think.

Caleb gave her a long lingering kiss when he dropped her back at Spirit. Belle knew for certain that she’d never felt this free or wonderful or sure about anyone ever before. She just needed to be patient to allow him the time to figure out how they navigated this new relationship.

Before she opened the door, he reached across the gearstick and caught her hand. ‘Last night was everything.’ His eyes roved across her face. ‘But we need to take things slowly.’

Belle cupped his face in her hands and nodded. ‘One day at a time.’

Later that evening, Laurie had arranged a video call with Belle and Gem in the hope that it would become a regular thing where they’d have a chance to talk properly.

‘This is the continuation of us being open with each other,’ Laurie said as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. ‘You know, instead of bottling things up the way we have been.’

---