“Then perhaps it should be had in private, rather than here where everyone can hear you scolding her like a naughty child.” While it’s said quietly, and in a polite tone, it’s the most confrontational thing I’ve ever heard Ant say. My heart swells at the way he’s standing solidly in my corner. Supporting me when he knows I find it difficult.
“How dare you speak to me like that?” Warren hisses.
“And how dare you ambush a grown woman and try to guilt her into playing nice with a cousin who doesn’t appear to give two shits about her and hasn’t even seen fit to include her in the bridal party.”
Mum looks scandalised, and if Warren’s head doesn’t explode it will be a miracle.
“He’s quite right, Warren.” Grandie appears beside me. “Emily hasn’t been the least bit bothered by Lili’s absence. And since this is her holiday, she should be able to spend it as she wants.” It’s my turn for a head explosion. I really need to find out what Ant and Grandie discussed because that was entirely from left field.
Warren sputters, shocked at this unexpected stance from Grandie.
“I hear you’re going snorkelling in a crater tomorrow.” My grandmother turns to me. “How exciting. I wish I’d been able to come to Maui when I was young and in love.”
“Love?” Warren barks as though the very idea is ridiculous. “You’re deluded.”
And away he stalks, with my mother trailing miserably in his wake.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Ant
After the blow-up with her parents, I suggested we could order room service and eat dinner on our lanai, but Lil is determined not to let their digs get the better of her.
That doesn’t stop me from making some adjustments to the nametags so we’re able to sit with Louise, the woman who helped Lil on her shopping expedition, rather than her parents. Louise is a blast, so now there’s three guests I can tolerate. Lil, Louise and Grandie. Since there are now over fifty people here, that’s not a great approval rating.
Dinner ends early. Apparently, cacao farms and tennis are exhausting. So we take a bottle of wine down to the bay and sit on the sand. Lil has been quiet since the argument, and I don’t push. I have no idea what it’s like to be at such odds with your parents.
It seems to be unusual these days, but I got to adulthood without any major trauma. Sure, my parents were a little stricter than I’d have liked, and we butted heads plenty when I was a teen. But they loved me, and each other, and I knew it. And Iloved them. There was no messy divorce, neglect or abuse. As a result, I consider myself a well-adjusted guy.
Of course, my mother frets about what she did wrong that has prevented me from forming a lasting relationship with a woman at the advanced age of thirty-two, but I honestly think that’s just my nature. No deep, dark wounds. No hangups or abandonment issues. I just like my space.
Or maybe it’s just taken till now for me to feel mature enough to settle down. Because, although I know there are no guarantees in life, I would like to do it right the first time. Like Mum and Dad did. I’ve felt no need to rush things. There always seemed to be plenty of time to wait for the right person. The belief that I’d know that person when I met them.
And in the past few days, even though we’ve only known each other for a matter of weeks, I’ve begun to feel that maybe Lilavati is that right person.
I’ve felt affection for women before. Fondness. Attraction. Strong liking. But never love. I’ve never said it to anyone in the romantic sense. Never felt it. Until now.
I know my parents would love her soft heart. My sister would enjoy the way she takes no shit from me. My nieces would admire her drive and determination.
But as I told Grandie, Lil has a soft underbelly. I have to proceed with caution. I need to be one hundred percent certain about how I feel. Because once it’s out there, I don’t plan on taking it back.
Before I can even consider any of that, I need to break it to her that I’m not quite the beach bum she thought when she picked me up in the car park. I can’t put it off any longer.
Shoes off, we settle on the beach and dig our toes into the cool sand, sipping the delicious wine we liberated from the resort restaurant. I clear my throat and turn to face her on the sand.
“Lil, there’s something I need to tell you.”
Her eyes are huge and dark in her delicate face, and the trepidation in them nearly has me backtracking. But I can’t go on being less than honest.
“When we met, you made an assumption about me. And that assumption led you to suggest this fake dating situation.” My voice is starting to crack, so I take another gulp of wine. Lilavati is motionless. Waiting. “And I should’ve corrected you at the time, because …”
Lil’s eyebrows are drawing together, her lips thinning. “Just spit it out, Antony.”
Her use of my full name has my stomach rolling, but I need to keep going.
“I’m not a barista,” I blurt.
Lil twitches, a look of puzzlement washing over her face. “You’re not? But I saw you making coffees at the café. Twice.”
