‘Norah, this is Jess who went to Uncle Lorenzo’s gaff to see Ben. On the retreat.’
Norah’s face slackens with shock and she reaches over to hug me ‘Oh my days,’ she says, half whacking her sister. ‘You should have said.’
‘You’re Ben’s sisters,’ I say, smiling to see the family resemblance shining through.
‘Not quite all of us…FLO!’ Phoebe calls.
Another face pops out from the kitchen and the final sister walks over to the table. ‘Is everything OK?’ she asks.
‘I’m Jess. I stayed with your brother in Ibiza. I…well, my family and I, thought it’d be nice to come here for lunch.’
She smiles broadly as I look over at the kitchen door, waiting for another face to make an appearance. But nothing.
‘Of course we know who you are,’ Flo says. ‘You wrote that article forCosmopolitan? We’ve had hundreds of bookings off it, we’re full until March of next year.’
I smile. It was the first bit of writing I’d done since the girls were born and I submitted it to an old editor on the chance she might take something from a freelancer. The social media response was insane.
‘So, lunch is on us, truly,’ Flo continues.
‘It was the least I could do,’ I tell them. ‘I had the best week.’
‘Really?’ Norah says, mildly surprised. ‘It was a bit rough around the edges. We know a lot didn’t go to plan.’
‘Yeah, but I think that was half its charm,’ I say.
‘But really truthfully,’ Flo says, pulling in a chair, ‘we got the glossy magazine version of the trip but what was the actual tea? Ben was very secretive.’
They all crowd round the table, pulling up more chairs. The lady in the tweed looks around like she’s wondering who’s actually manning the kitchen.
‘It was restful, joyous, fun. But yes, unpredictable at times. The bit I wrote about the beach rave…yeah, that happened, but I missed out the part about the fight.’
‘There was a fight?’ Norah asks, her eyes wide.
Dean laughs, familiar with the finer details.
‘Oh, we set on a group of mean girls, no major injuries, it was the best fun I’ve ever had.’
Norah, Flo and Phoebe sit there curiously, taking this all in, probably wondering if the fight was a planned activity.
‘Your brother is a fantastic host,’ I say. They all sit there and beam at each other. ‘I’m glad the article worked its magic and I’d like to say thank you to all of you too. It’s nice to put some names to faces. I know you helped Ben get it off the ground.’
‘I helped patch up a roof without a ladder,’ Phoebe says dramatically. ‘I feared for my actual life.’
‘Did you also make the Pedro Pascal flyers?’ I ask her.
‘Possibly. Apologies for the fake advertising,’ she says through gritted teeth. ‘But we’re working on everything, perfecting that Ben brand as we go along.’
I look around the restaurant and I see bits of that Ben brand everywhere. I see it in the menu and the fresh flowers; I can even smell the bread and it brings me back to sunlit breakfasts in that magical villa. ‘Has he come back?’ I ask. It’s been nearly a month since my return from Ibiza and I’m wondering if Ben returned, not for me but for someone else.
Norah shakes her head. ‘Not yet. We’re running this place for a bit until he decides what to do with it.’
‘Do you think he will?’ I ask.
‘I don’t know,’ Flo tells us. ‘But you know, he’s always worked incredibly hard, taking a break for him to enjoy some sunshine and work out the next stage of his life was long overdue.’
I nod, thinking back to Ben busying himself around that villa in the bright searing sun, and I can’t think of anyone who deserves a break more.
‘Well, I hope there’s a chance for me to bump into him again very soon.’
