‘I do not understand this word,’ Miguel says.
‘Well, I mean that I don’t understand her. I need some time to figure her out.’
‘You want to get to know her figure? OK then…’
I turn to him, despairing. ‘Miguel, I love you but you’re a dirty old man.’
‘It is why me and your Uncle Lorenzo were such good friends,’ he says. ‘I hope that girl gets to know what a lovely boy you are.’ He pats my cheeks with his hands.
I look out to the pool again. I hope Chloe and I manage some level of civility otherwise the next week or so is going to be bloody painful. There’s work to be done. I smile as I watch her elegantly swimming breaststroke to the other side. My attention is then drawn to Jess who sits by the edge of the pool, not taking off her kaftan, watching the other women swim, dunking her feet in and swishing the water about with her hands. There is definitely work to be done.
9
CHLOE
‘Ben might be gay,’ Jess tells us as she dunks her feet in the pool, holding a piece of pineapple in her hand.
There’s pineapple. I’ll take some of that if it’s going. I try and look through the window shutters to see if Ben is spying on us. After we all saw naked Miguel and his wrinkly balls floating about the pool, I’ll admit my heckles went up again. Ben had just told me there would be no one else in this mountaintop villa and suddenly there was a man with a snorkel waving proudly up to us on that balcony, his grey pubes all matted like seaweed. I went with my instincts again after that: I stayed in my room, I connected to the Wi-Fi, I deep-dived for my life. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn.Ben Allbright. Once went to a stag do dressed as a Viking; saw Tame Impala in concert; took two of his nephews to Disneyland Paris. There was a cute picture of him with Daisy Duck.Don’t get distracted, Chloe. Aside from the fact he wears a lot of baseball caps, there were no signs he was part of anything untoward.
Nevertheless, I texted George to tell him my location and some of my passwords to my bank accounts, just in case. Iwatched YouTube videos teaching me how to check for secret cameras and dodgy two-way mirrors. I did a what3words on this place so the authorities would know where to find me.
I don’t know why I’m like this. Perhaps it’s from living in London, from understanding that a girl needs to be a bit more streetwise, or maybe it’s because I’m being taken for a mug at work and my hurt pride is keen for that not to happen elsewhere. So, after that, I kept a close eye on the swimming pool, watching, listening to Zara talk to Miguel. He’s overfriendly, very tactile, but seemingly a nice guy. It makes sense that a property like this would have some sort of groundsman. But I’m still on the fence about Ben. He’s too nice and he’s not been particularly forward in giving us all the details of this retreat. I don’t think he’s an evil kidnapper. I’m still going to smell everything I eat but my instincts are telling me we are test dummies.Is that why this was so cheap?
After that, I debated my next move.Go down and participate? Join in?The mercury was rising and the pool looked inviting. I couldn’t stay in here for a week, locked away. I’d have to eat; I should swim and try and relax and get my money’s worth. I’ve also waxed because I knew I’d be wearing a swimsuit and I didn’t want to waste the money spent on that either. So, I put on my new swimming costume and tied my hair into a messy bun, slathering SPF 50 onto every part of me, standing in a star shape to ensure it was all absorbed properly.
‘Ben’s gay?’ Zara says in a loud whisper as soon as Jess airs her suspicions out loud. I like how Zara has had no trouble coming here and letting loose. She’s in a stylish one-shoulder swimsuit and keeps throwing her head up to absorb the sun on her face.
‘He was in the kitchen and he said something about liking “penis” so who knows?’ Jess says. ‘I mean, old Miguel is givingoff some very camp vibes. He’s certainly very comfortable in his own body.’
‘Almost too comfortable,’ I joke.
‘He also slapped Ben’s bum and he didn’t even flinch,’ she continues. ‘Do you think they’re a couple…?’
We all turn slowly to the kitchen and hear Miguel’s wild laughter ringing around the stone walls.
‘Oooh,’ Zara says. ‘That’s a bit saucy. That is less an age gap and more a frigging chasm.’
I don’t want to laugh too loudly so I dunk my head under the water instead, re-emerging and splattering water everywhere.So classy.
‘Alright there, Chloe?’ Zara asks.
Now it makes sense why someone so good on paper is unavailable. I didn’t see any pictures of girlfriends or potential love interests in my sleuthing, so this all computes in a way.Is it a relief?‘You know, when I was in my room before, I did a deeper dive into who Ben is. I didn’t see a girlfriend, but I saw…I guess I saw lots of green flags,’ I explain.
‘When I was chatting with him in the kitchen, he was super sweet. He’s very kind, not even in a smarmy way,’ Jess says.
Zara turns to me. ‘So maybe we let our defences down and give the lad a chance to show us a good time? Hold up, that came out wrong!’
Jess and I both laugh. ‘I mean, I’m still going to sleep with my door locked,’ I say.
‘Naturally…to keep out the goats,’ Zara says. ‘But perhaps we make a pact to chill out now, enjoy ourselves?’
‘Deal,’ Jess says, reaching down to shake Zara’s hand. ‘Chloe, you in?’
I try to peer into the kitchen again and I see Ben place a massive hock of ham on the counter. He moves his fingers across it and then inserts a knife carefully, caressing each slice as it fallsand laying it gently on the plate. Green-flag Ben who is possibly in a relationship with a considerably older man. I put my hand over the other girls’ hands and nod my head, watching as Zara winks at me.
‘Well, ladies…when you’re ready there’s some charcuterie here,’ Ben says, emerging from the house and expertly holding a large tray of food. ‘This is ajamón serranoand it’s excellent with these fresh figs or some of this grilled asparagus,’ he says, putting the tray down on the stone table and squeezing some lemon over the asparagus. He catches me watching. ‘Did you have a good nap, Chloe?’
‘I actually figured it’d be best to eat and have a swim to wake myself up,’ I tell him.
