Jeannie’s little tirade turned out to be anything but the truth, of course. After a few hours of running around helping to set up the pool room in full Hawaiian regalia and blowing up gigantic floats, we were finally permitted to go to our rooms and change. We all knew when she’d said “all you have to do is show up and drink a goddamn Pina Colada” it was an out-and-out lie.
Rummaging through my suitcase, I found and changed into a hot-pink bikini and a floor-length sheer kimono, patterned with grapes and pineapples, that Miles had bought me on our honeymoon. Wrapping my hair into a low chignon, I secured it with a hibiscus flower clip, teased out a few strands and applied some make-up. It felt absurd in more ways than one to be donning such a scanty outfit when patches of snow still clung to the ground outside.
As I applied some lipstick, my mind wandered to the knife under Jeannie’s bed, and questions gnawed at me. A soft knock at the door interrupted my thoughts. It was Miles, looking dapper in a Hawaiian shirt and linen trousers.
His eyes went slightly wide when he beheld my outfit, and I hastily tied the strings on the front of my kimono.
‘Is it too much?’ I asked self-consciously.
He stayed my hand. ‘You’re never too much,’ he said in a low voice, slowly pulling one of the strings undone. ‘You look sensational.’
I playfully slapped his hand away as the bow came undone. ‘Now, now; people have started to arrive. And I really could do without your mother walking in on us.’
He flashed me a wicked smile and traced his finger down my throat to my boobs, causing my skin to goosebump. ‘Well, you’d better believe I’ll be seeing you as soon as they are gone.’
‘Hmm.’ I gave a half grin. ‘What about… in the billiards room?’
He groaned in frustration and gave me a tender kiss. ‘How the hell am I supposed to wait until then?’
I laughed and kissed him again before turning serious.
‘There’s something I have to tell you…’ My pulse picked up a notch. ‘Your mother said that she called the prison to ask about Quentin’s release, and they told her he’d been let out two days ago.’
‘My God!’ Miles’s eyes flashed, his pupils dilating. ‘What if he turns up here?’
‘You think he would do anything?’ I asked, heart racing.
‘Not immediately. But get a few drinks down him and he’ll be up for strangling the next person who breathes in his direction,’ Miles groaned. ‘Don’t worry. I will tell Mother that if he so much as sets foot on the doorstep, then we are gone.’
‘Okay…’ I said, feeling relieved. Maybe him showing up here was the excuse we needed. ‘There was another thing. Fergus said to Jeannie he wished he had seen Eugene off sooner. You don’t think he could have killed him, do you?’
Miles took in the information and thought for a moment. ‘It could be a turn of phrase, I suppose.’ He raked his hand over his face. ‘Let’s get this circus over with,’ he added, his jaw ticking. ‘But don’t forget, Olivia Weiss…’
‘Hmm?’
‘You owe me a game of billiards.’
I chuckled and kissed him again softly.
We walked downstairs, the sound of ‘Mele Kalikimaka’drifting down the hallway.
As we made our way to the pool room, the décor shifted from traditional Christmas to Hawaiian paradise. In the short time since declaring the party back on, the pool area had been adorned with palm fronds, tiki torches, and a makeshift beach bar. The scent of rum, coconut and pineapple wafted through the air, mingling with the crisp winter breeze that snuck in every time the front door opened to welcome guests.
Each new arrival was welcomed with a colourful lei and the choice of a Mai Tai, Lava Flow or Blue Hawaii cocktail, served in hollowed-out pineapples and coconuts. I spotted Mrs Harlow looking slightly uncomfortable in a floral muumuu, handing out drinks from a tray. Already there were handfuls of Jeannie’s ‘friends’ milling about, chatting and sipping fruity cocktails.
‘Miii-lesss!’ Jeannie’s shrill sing-song voice rang out as she spotted us. She glided over, resplendent in a vibrant turquoise kaftan, her silver hair sprayed to the gods and adorned with parrot feathers. ‘Your friend Reuben has come to see you!’
Miles cocked his head and said, ‘Who the bleeding hell’s Reuben?’
‘Really, Miles,’ she tutted in a mock-laugh. ‘He was one of your classmates at Swanhaven.’
Miles blew out the side of his mouth and shrugged, before leaning over to nab a drink.
‘Come on, now, he’s come all this way to see you…’ Jeannie took his arm and led him away through a cluster of bodies. I watched their retreating backs, feeling a pang of sympathy for him.
I inspected the usually serene space. It had been truly transformed into a riotous tropical oasis; faux vines hugged the arched windows, bamboo panels stretched across every inch of bare wall, and palms were dotted around.
The bar boasted fresh fruit on skewers and faux bird-of-paradise arrangements. Two huge flamingos and a handful of neon lilos floated along the water’s surface. It made for a bizarre but pretty juxtaposition of tropical décor against the slushy landscape visible through the windows.
