Page 2 of The Island of Hopes and Dreams

‘Although, the silver lining is,’ Sarah continued, oblivious to Lola’s distress, ‘if you’d stayed with Jarek, then you’d never have got up close and personal with Dax and we wouldn’t have the best storyeverto remind you about?—’

‘For all eternity. Yeah, yeah, I get it,’ Lola said with a sigh.

‘And oh my goodness was Dax hot!’ Sarah wafted her hand in front of her face.

‘So damn hot Lola only went and sabotaged things by cooling the situation down in the most spectacular way!’ Deni reached across and squeezed Lola’s knee. ‘We promise we’ll find you someone even better in Sardinia. Imagine all the sexy Italians we’ll get to drool overandhook you up with. Right, Mirabel?’

Lola rolled her eyes and groaned, while inside she was squirming at the attention despite their good-natured teasing.Let them laugh, let them tease.Let it not bother me, she thought. She’d taken one for the team, so to speak, a story that would undoubtedly be retold at every social get-together until someone else did something worthy of being gossiped about.

So no, she didn’t mind the teasing, she wasn’t overly bothered that she’d made a fool of herself, but she was struggling with the attention so firmly focused on her love life – or, rather, her lack of one. They were living vicariously through her as the only single friend. Deni and Sarah in particular had their hearts set on finding her love when that was the last thing she wanted. To try to get them to back off would invite the inevitable questions about why she didn’t want to be matched with anyone, much less be in a relationship again. She was doing just fine on her own. Actually, that wasn’t true at all; she may be happy being on her own, but she was hardly fine.

Lola downed her gin and tonic and went inside to the bathroom, anxiety still swirling around her stomach. She rested her hands on the edge of the bronze sink and stared at herself in the mirror. The caramel tones running through her choppy blonde bob no longer made her face look quite so washed out now the travel sickness had eased and the colour had returned to her cheeks.

Laughter filtered in from outside, with Sarah’s guttural snort overpowering the others. When they’d first met through Mirabel, she’d seemed quiet and mild-mannered, but she had a wickedly naughty side that was released at social events when an extrovert emerged.

Lola ran her fingers through her hair to give it more volume and patted her hot cheeks with cool water. She tended to brush things off when she felt uncomfortable, instead of telling her friends to back off. What she needed to do was switch the focus back on to Mirabel. She would shrug off the teasing, forget about their promise of finding her a man and just enjoy being together. Because she knew the truth: there was no perfect man for her, despite her friends all having found theirs.

* * *

After a long, tiring and hot journey, it didn’t get much better than sitting out on the deck of a beach house, a breeze rippling through the long grass and the sun melting into a pool of burnished red and gold on the horizon. With good company, tasty burgers and a bottomless supply of drinks, Lola finally relaxed. They had the whole weekend to enjoy each other’s company, with a trip to Porthtowan planned for wild swimming in its natural pool, then lunch at Blue Bar by the beach.

The excitement for the upcoming wedding and the promise of adventure in Sardinia was at the forefront of their minds. Lola was relieved when the attention was finally off her and she could shrink into the shadows – quite literally when the sun disappeared. Only the glow from the fire pit and the string bulbs decorating the front of the beach house were left, casting warm light onto the wind-blasted wood.

The arrival of darkness and night-time insects was the cue for everyone to move inside to lounge on the comfy chairs and sofas. The lamplight kept it cosy, while the breeze drifting off the ocean tempered the summer heat. After such a humid day, it was fortunate it wasn’t raining, but it wouldn’t have mattered because the house was cool and eclectic, with velvet sofas, a mix of white walls, exposed stone and stripped wooden floors stained dark oak. It reminded Lola of a larger, more glamorous version of her loft apartment in London. She loved city living and a job that took her to cool places, but how incredible would it be to have somewhere like this, somewhere away from the rat race, to share with friends, to relax and recharge.

‘So, Mirabel.’ Clasping her champagne, Sarah leaned forward. ‘Have you found a house for you and Fabs?’

‘Not yet.’ Mirabel sighed. ‘We’ve been looking, but it’s difficult only seeing a place online. It’ll be easier when we’re there, I’m sure.’

Moving to Sardinia had been something Mirabel and Fabs had talked about from the minute they’d become a serious item, but it was Fabs taking over the management of his family’s business with its portfolio of holiday villas and an award-winning vineyard and winery that had instigated it.

‘It’s a dream move,’ Jenny said. ‘Remember at school sitting at the back of a physics class making plans for our future? I don’t think yours included moving to Sardinia, but you definitely wanted to move away from Chorleywood. You also wanted to marry Ryan Johnson.’

‘Thank goodness that didn’t work out!’ Mirabel laughed.

‘Mmn, you couldn’t have done much better than your Italian husband-to-be,’ Sarah said with a sigh. ‘You already live a dream life, but starting your married life in Sardinia is the ultimate dream.’

Polly reached across and grabbed a handful of crisps from the bowl on the coffee table. ‘I dream about not being woken up at 5a.m. every single day, which is ironic considering how bad my sleep is.’

Jenny huffed. ‘I just wish I could go to the bathroom on my own without being followed by a two- and four-year-old. That’s not too much to ask, surely?’

‘Oh, I hear you!’ Polly swallowed her mouthful of crisps. ‘One day!’

‘Remember this when they’re teenagers and no longer want to be in the same room as you, let alone actually talk to you.’ Sarah gave them a knowing look. ‘I dream about the day we’ll have an empty nest and the freedom to do all the things we’ve put off because of the kids or being tied to school holidays, but at the same time I know I’m going to bloody hate it when they’re off to university fending for themselves.’

‘And returning in the holidays with piles of washing and attitude.’ Deni raised her glass of champagne. ‘And you wonder why I’ve never had kids.’

‘It sounds nice to be wanted, though,’ Lola cut in. She glanced at Sarah. ‘Or even not wanted by your teenagers. Don’t go putting Mirabel off, when marriage and kids is next on her agenda.’

Mirabel slipped her bare feet beneath her on the sofa and gave Lola a soft smile. ‘Marriage first, find our new home and set up my business – that comes before kids, but it’s true I don’t want to put off starting a family for too long.’

‘What about you, Lola?’ Polly asked. ‘What’s your dream?’

Secretly, Lola wanted her confidence back. She wanted to not feel constantly worried when she was finally free of a damaging relationship, but eight months on from ending things with Jarek, she still berated herself for having been so easily deceived. She wanted to learn to trust again, to be open to meeting someone new rather than terrified of the idea of opening up her heart. Finding her way back to who she used to be was what she dreamed about. Not that she was going to say any of that.

‘I’d love to get a dog.’ She breathed in the warm ocean air and took in the freedom of being surrounded by green open space. The darkness beyond the open doors was vast, the clear night pitted with stars. She loved being by the sea, felt at home in a place away from real life and the reminders of a relationship she was desperate to forget but couldn’t. ‘I longed for a dog growing up, but my parents never wanted the extra tie – probably why they didn’t want another child either. I was enough. But I was lonely and wanted company. So a dog would be nice, but it’s not exactly compatible with my life. I’d love to spend time by the sea, maybe travel more?—’

‘Really?’ Deni said. ‘You already travel loads!’

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