Where did he think this was going to go? he asked himself. They lived in different countries. He had to return to London. He couldn’t put his life on hold indefinitely and there was no way he was going to contemplate the unthinkable—there was no way he would contemplate asking her to return with him. He didn’t want a woman in his life on any sort of semi-permanent basis. Never had, never would. They’d shared a handful of days together…but he would never allow himself to get so wrapped up with any woman that he couldn’t consider a life without her.
Mia couldn’t quite make out the expression on his face but, with a sort of sixth sense she seemed to have developed when it came to him, she knew that something was wrong.
What?
‘It…it was just a thought,’ she stammered. ‘I mean, the business of going for a swim…’
Scrambling to try and work out what was going on, she chanced a smile and held out her hand to him, desperately wanting to feel the warmth on which she had become dependent.
He stood up and when he didn’t take her hand she let hers drop to her side. A coldness was spreading through her.
‘I didn’t tell you,’ he drawled. ‘I heard from Izzy.’
‘What? When?’ She was swamped with relief because it must be whatever conversation he’d had with Izzy that had thrown him off-balance. Had he been waiting to talk to her about it once their hectic day came to a close?
‘Pretty much as soon as we got back here.’ He began walking towards the hotel, leaving the motorbike where it was, only glancing at it in passing. He would ask someone to ride it to the courtyard and secure it. His hands were shoved into his pockets and she hesitated to take one because something didn’t feel right.
The hotel was brightly lit, the trees rustling in the breeze and shadows cast by the moonlight. The air was cooler but still balmy, still humid.
‘Are you going to tell me what she said? Is she okay?’
‘She won’t be returning just yet.’ He carried on walking straight through the foyer, where several guests turned to them and smiled. In a small hotel, you quickly got to know who your fellow travellers were.
They were heading straight up to their bedroom suite. It was an expansive space with billowing voile curtains, a mosquito net draped over a super-king-sized bed, an overhead fan and lots of bamboo furniture that complemented the rich patina of wood everywhere.
‘It’s time we had a talk,’ he said, as soon as the door was shut behind them, and the coldness she had felt earlier returned with force. But she held on to her composure, because surely she’d known that this moment would come, sooner or later?
‘Has she said why?’ Mia sat on a rocking chair by the window, but then leaned forward, tense with nerves.
‘She’s…somehow got herself involved with trying to save my mother’s nanny from being evicted from her house. Long story short, she decamped to my mother’s house in California. Should have put two and two together and worked that out for myself but…’ He shrugged. ‘She’ll be back, and I’m willing for her to have a revised role when it comes to the hotel.’
Mia hadn’t heard from her friend for a while and she breathed a sigh of relief that everything was okay. She wasn’t surprised that Izzy had adopted a noble cause. She had a tender heart and a hugely caring disposition.
‘That’s all good, then, isn’t it? It must have been awesome talking to her, having her call you.’
‘At any rate, if you recall I had begun the process of auditioning for someone to take over the financial side of the operation…’
‘I know you said that Nat’s interviewed a few candidates.’
‘He has but I was holding off for my sister’s decision one way or another. That decision has been made and an offer has been tendered to a highly respected chartered accountant with a background in the leisure industry. He should find the process of dealing with all the various supply chains easy to manoeuvre.’
Mia nodded but she was wondering where this was going and why she had such a bad feeling about the direction of the conversation. Was it the flat coolness in his eyes? Or was she imagining that?
‘So,’ he went on, ‘you could say that my time here is officially at an end.’ He lowered his eyes and then looked at her without expression.
Mia’s heart slowed down. This was how it had always been going to end. Not with a bang, but a whimper. No great fireworks, no storming off after a heated argument, no revelations and tears. Just a quiet ending to something that always had a timeline attached to it. It was up to her to deal with it because she had gone into this with her eyes wide open.
‘Well…’ She floundered, trying hard to contain the burst dam through which her emotions were pouring. ‘It’s great that everything’s been settled.’ She smiled ruefully. ‘And you’re right. All good things come to an end.’
‘And this has been good. Really good.’ Rueful smile for rueful smile.
There was a heartbeat of a pause, then Mia resumed the conversation. She was frozen to the spot, and breaking up inside, but thankfully her voice was steady.
‘Yes, it has been,’ she said politely. ‘And I should thank you.’
‘For what?’
‘For…’ She sighed and meant every word when she said, ‘For getting me out of my hibernation. I’ve said this before to you—the failure of my marriage affected me a whole lot more than I could ever have anticipated. I went into hiding, and then you came along and you led me out, and I will always be grateful to you for that.’
