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‘Looks like Nan and Grandad are going to have to put up with us for a few years longer then, doesn’t it?’ she replies.
The buffet is reasonably busy when we arrive, but we’re still able to find a free table without too much difficulty. A waiter comes to take our drinks order, and then we set off to see what we can find to eat. My stomach rumbles in anticipation as I walk around the various stations, helping myself to paella and a selection of salads. Our drinks are waiting for us when we get back to the table, and we drink a toast to a happy holiday. The food is delicious, and we eat pretty much in silence.
‘God, I feel fat!’ I exclaim, popping open the button of my jeans to relieve the pressure as I slump down on the bed later that evening. ‘I definitely ate too much.’
‘It was the puddings, especially that chocolate one. I couldn’t get enough of that,’ Katie agrees.
‘I don’t know about you, but the travelling, and then all the sunshine this afternoon followed by that sumptuous dinner has really taken it out of me. I’m knackered. I think I’ll have an early night.’ I cover my mouth as I yawn widely.
‘Yeah, I’m pretty tired as well. It’s been nice, though. I’m looking forward to the rest of the week.’
‘Me too,’ I tell her. We get changed, brush our teeth, and climb into the bed. Normally, it takes me ages to get to sleep on the first night in a strange bed, but this one is so comfortable that I’m asleep before I know it.
4
‘Excuse me. We’re going to play beach volleyball. Would you like to join us?’
Katie and I lift our heads from our books. The boy in front of us is tall, very skinny and, if I’ve got his accent right, German. He looks around sixteen, but has one of those faces that make it difficult to tell. He’s pointing behind him, where a group of teens and twenty-somethings have set up a net and are obviously getting ready to play.
‘Thank you,’ I say to him, ‘but I’m going to say no. Enjoy your game, though.’ Even if I wanted to play, which I don’t, the reality is that I don’t think my bikini top could take the strain of trying to contain my boobs if I were jumping and leaping about. I definitely don’t want to end up giving a load of strangers an accidental eyeful. I also have no hand-to-eye coordination where ball sports are concerned, so I’d probably just annoy them with my lack of ability.
He nods and turns to Katie. I fully expect her to say no as well, but she surprises me.
‘Yeah, why not?’ she says. ‘I need to do something to counteract all the food.’
‘Excellent. My name is Mark, please come and meet the rest of the group.’
I watch in amazement as my shy, bookish sister follows him across the sand. She smiles and shakes hands with everyone as he introduces her to the other young men and women. I set my book down and continue watching as they organise themselves into two teams and begin the game. Katie is a little tentative to begin with, but I can see her confidence increasing as she gets the hang of it. They seem like a nice crowd, and they are very encouraging. By the end, she’s leaping and hitting the ball as enthusiastically as the rest of them with her long, lithe limbs powering her across the sand. She looks alive in a way I don’t think I’ve seen before. I can’t help smiling as I look at her. I know I’m biased, but she’s turning into a beautiful young woman. Mark certainly seems to appreciate her, as I catch him staring at her on more than one occasion.
‘That was fun!’ she pants, as she flops back down on the sun lounger when they have finished. They played five games in all and, if I’ve worked it out right, Katie was on the winning team for three of them. After each game there was a lot of clapping and hugging, and I couldn’t help but notice the way that Mark made a beeline for Katie and enveloped her in his arms each time.
‘Mark was certainly very attentive,’ I tease her.
‘Was he? I didn’t really notice. They were all so nice. They’re not even a group, did you know that? Mark and Johann are brothers, you can see that, but the rest are from all over the place. Apparently, the hotel staff usually try to set up some beach activities, but they don’t need to with the volleyball, because it just happens organically. A slightly different group appears to play every morning. You should join us tomorrow.’
I look at her sceptically. ‘Katie, it’s all right for you, you’ve got an athletic figure. I’m not made for leaping about – not without an industrial-strength sports bra, anyway.’
She laughs. ‘Fair enough. I can’t believe how much I enjoyed that, though. Fancy a swim?’
I follow her down to the water, and I notice some of the other volleyball players are also cooling off in the sea. Some of them are just bobbing in the water, while others are exuberantly splashing each other. They wave enthusiastically at Katie as we walk into the waves and, although she’s trying to hide it, I can tell she’s enjoying her popularity.
* * *
The rest of the week follows a similar pattern. After breakfast, we go down to the beach and Katie joins in with the beach volleyball, while I lie on my sun lounger and watch. Then we swim, read, and wander up for lunch before making our way back down to the beach for the afternoon. As the days go by, our pallid skin begins to develop a golden glow. Mark continues to be very attentive towards Katie, but she doesn’t seem to be picking up any of the signs at all.
‘He definitely fancies you,’ I tell her, after a few days have passed.
‘I’m sure he doesn’t. He’s just affectionate with everyone, that’s how he is. Anyway, even if he does, it’s not going to go anywhere.’
‘Why not? Don’t you like him?’
‘I do, but what would be the point? We’re going home in a few days, and then what?’
‘Then you write it off as a holiday romance, and you look back on it misty-eyed in future and wonder what became of the handsome German boy you kissed in Mallorca.’
‘Or…’
‘Or what?’
