Page 33 of The Wedding Pact

‘It’s lovely to meet you, Gianni. I’m blown away by this place too. I’ve never been anywhere like it. It’s the perfect setting for a wedding, isn’t it? If I ever tie the knot, I’ll definitely be praying for a friend to buy a place like this so I can co-opt it.’

Then she winks at my dad.

Winks.

I’m not sure what I’m feeling right now, but it’s a very weird mixture of emotions.

My dad, predictably, seems to love her.

No surprise there. He adores it when women flirt back with him. So much so, I’ve always found it strange that he chose to marry Carrie, who is the coldest, most uptight woman I’ve ever met.

‘Okay, well, we’ll grab ourselves some drinks and come and sit with you for a bit, if that’s okay?’ my dad says in a hopeful voice.

No chance.

There’s no way I’m sitting with him and my stepmum for the rest of the evening while they grill Ida for information about herself and make digs about me and how little time I’ve spent with them recently.

‘Actually, we’re bushed so we’re about to head back to our villa. But there’ll be plenty of time for us to catch up over the week,’ I say.

When I turn to glance at Carrie, I catch her scowling, but she quickly turns it into a tight smile.

‘Okay. No worries. You go and get your rest,’ my dad says jovially, but with an emphasis on the ‘rest’ that suggests he doubts we’ll be resting when we get back to our place.

If only.

‘Yeah. Thanks for understanding,’ I say, giving him an appreciative grin.

I’m happy to spend some time with him while I’m here, but not tonight. I’m too tired to keep up the pretence of being laid back and comfortable in his wife’s presence. I don’t want to lose my rag and say something I’ll regret later. Especially as we’re stuck on this island together for a whole week.

‘Righto,’ my dad says, sliding his arm around Carrie’s shoulders and starting to steer her away. ‘Well, have a good evening, the two of you.’

The moment they’ve moved away, I let out a long breath and feel my shoulders relax a little.

‘You okay?’ Ida asks me, intrigue clear in her expression.

‘I am, yeah. Just a bit tired for making polite conversation with my stepmum. In fact, I really am done with socialising. Let’s get out of here,’ I say, hoping the moment after I’ve said it that it doesn’t sound like a come-on to her, like my dad suggested.

‘Yeah. Okay,’ she says, not seeming to take it as such. ‘I’m pretty bushed too.’

We make our way around the edge of the gathering, giving the odd person a quick friendly nod and a wave on our way out, leaving them all to make their own assumptions about why we’re creeping away early.

We walk in silence back to the villa, the noise of the party still ringing in my ears, but it’s quickly soothed by the gentle swish of the waves against the wooden decking.

It’s so calm here, away from the main hotel.

Despite being hit with that curveball about her internet fame, I have to admit, I’m really glad Ida’s here with me. She just did an excellent job of being my shield and she’s turning out to be a lot of fun to be around. In fact, I still can’t quite believe I got so last-minute lucky, bringing her to this thing with me.

When we reach our villa I let us in through the sliding doors and she follows me inside, kicking off her heels and giving a sigh of relief, clearly happy to be back in her bare feet.

I take off my shoes too. The floor is warm from the residual heat of the day and it feels beautifully soothing against the soles of my feet, which are sore from all the dancing.

Now, that had been fun. Especially the look on Ida’s face when she realised I wasn’t bullshitting about being able to dance.

‘So, tell me,’ Ida says as we walk into the living area, ‘if you struggle with being around your family so much, why the heck did you come to your brother’s wedding?’

I feel myself bristle at the question. ‘Stepbrother,’ I correct her. ‘Because I’d never hear the end of it if I don’t show the appropriate amount of interest.’

‘From your parents?’