Page 30 of Not My Greek Wedding

‘Or get on with it,’ continues Patsy. ‘Next option? Join that slimming club if it will make you feel better about yourself,’ she says, rather bluntly I feel. ‘Or stop living your life.’

‘Well, I’m hardly doing that. I’m here in Greece, aren’t I?’ she retorts. ‘And I have been considering the slimming club, you know that,’ says Irene, seemingly unoffended by Patsy’s remarks. ‘I just never seem to get around to it.’

I am quickly learning that this honest back and forth chat is something the pair exchange quite easily without upsetting each other.

‘I do get that,’ concedes Patsy. ‘I’m still having to puff on my vapes until I can quit the evil weed, so I know making changes isn’t easy. I just want you to be happy, that’s all.’

‘I know you do.’ Irene gives Patsy a squeeze on the arm.

We order our food and make short work of tasty bowls of creamy moussaka all round, and make appreciative noises as we eat, along with a generous bowl of hand-cut fries that we share.

‘Anyway, getting back to that bloke, I think you are rather missing the point,’ says Patsy as she finishes her food.

‘Oh, not this again, can we give it a rest?’ Irene sighs.

‘I promise, no more talk of it, but I just want you to realise that that man liked you just the way you are,’ she says more gently. ‘He would hardly be wanting to spend time alone with you otherwise, would he? Anyway, I fancy a mojito. Anyone else?’ she asks, closing the conversation down for the last time.

I guess that’s all anyone wants, isn’t it? To be loved for who they truly are. Maybe one day I will sing along to songs on the radio that will have my partner smiling, rather than rolling their eyes, or even going into another room, as my ex sometimes did.

‘Mojitos all round.’ I smile as Irene fumbles in her bag for a tissue. ‘It’s blinking hot here, isn’t it?’ she says, dabbing at her eyes.

FIFTEEN

There is no more talk of Irene’s admirer on the return journey and back at the apartments, my stomach churns a little at the thought of seeing Christos later this evening. But then I wonder if he will even remember me? I’m pretty sure he sees thousands of women in the hotel and the nightclub. The club that will undoubtedly be filled with leggy model types I realise, as I stress over what I should wear, before grabbing yet another outfit from my wardrobe to try on.

Lulu has been back for an hour, and is sitting on her bed scrolling through her phone as I consider what I should wear.

‘Everything okay?’ I ask.

‘Oh yes, just Chloe telling me she is feeling a lot better,’ she tells me.

‘Glad to hear it.’

‘In fact, she is off to Newcastle on a hen do next weekend and was wondering if I could lend her some money.’ She stares at her phone and chews her lip.

‘Is it a last-minute thing?’ I ask, wondering why Chloe hasn’t saved some of the money herself, but I keep that thought to myself.

‘Not sure.’ She sighs. ‘The thing is, I don’t have a lot spare with being on holiday myself. I don’t think she was too impressed when I said I couldn’t help though.’

‘Try not to feel bad, you are entitled to have a holiday,’ I tell her gently, as I finally decide on a white jumpsuit that will look good against my auburn hair and lightly tanned skin, courtesy of the spray tan I had before I came here to help it along.

‘I know that. I just wish I could give them whatever they want. But you’re right, as usual.’ She smiles. ‘And, of course, she is earning her own money. She could have saved up herself for next weekend.’

Once more one of her offspring has managed to ruin the mood of her holiday. It seriously makes me think twice about having kids, but as I don’t even have a boyfriend that stuff seems like a million miles away.

‘Exactly. And you do an awful lot for both her and Tom, which obviously, as a mother, I get that, but they really are very lucky,’ I tell her, reminding her of the number of times she has been a taxi to them both. They don’t seem to ask their father for anything either, which I think unfair, but then I guess I don’t really understand their relationship with their dad, which Lulu tells me is complicated at best.

‘Anyway, I have said I can’t help her, so that’s that,’ says Lulu, putting her phone away. ‘Now let’s go out and hit that nightclub.’ She smiles.

I take a quick glance at my phone after it pinged to see that the Santorini pictures have been very popular. The view of the caldera in the sunset already has over half a million views! I can’t wait to go into Fira this evening and try and grab some cool pictures of the nightclub that I know my followers will go wild for.

‘Anyway, how was your afternoon with Ash?’ I ask. ‘You didn’t really say much when I asked you earlier,’ I comment as I spray some perfume onto my wrists.

‘It was a really pleasant day,’ she says, but without much excitement in her voice. ‘Ash knew of this small winery and we sampled a couple of local wines,’ she tells me. ‘I bought a bottle to take home for Phil, you know, as a thank you for giving me the extra time off work.’

‘That’s a nice gesture. I know that Phil enjoys a good glass of wine.’

‘He does.’ She smiles.

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