They sounded like young boys again, and she walked around the car and spoke through the window.‘I’ll do my best. Keep your rooms tidy.’
‘Yeah, right,’ Mack said.
Liv gulped away a lump in her throat, unable to remember the last time she’d gone away without them. A strong pull reared inside her, ordering her to get back into the car.
Don’t go, Liv.
Even her own thoughts were taking Jake’s side.
She gripped the handle of her suitcase and looked towards the airport terminal. People were filing in and out, arriving and leaving. Jake’s eyes were full of hope that she’d change her mind. She kissed him on the cheek. ‘I’ll be back before you know it,’ she said.
Wheeling her suitcase towards the building, she turned back to wave. As she stepped through the glass doors, her heart soared with excitement and her mind spun with worry at the same time. After checking in her luggage, she headed towards a bookshop and browsed all the novels, to restore a little calm.
When she touched down at Dubrovnik Airport, Liv was greatly impressed by its cleanliness. The frayed navy fabric of her suitcase looked tatty against the shiny white marble floor.
After going through customs, Liv spotted a man dressed in a smart black suit and a peaked cap. His sign read STARLING AND GREEN, and he insisted on carrying her suitcase to the shiny black car that awaited. She informed him she’d be his only passenger.
He opened the rear door for her. ‘Welcome to my beautiful country, Ms Starling,’ he said.
Liv didn’t correct him.
The thirty-minute drive along the coastal road felt like they were gliding. The car rose up high in the mountains, giving her a magnificent view of tiny white houses and the glistening turquoise sea below. The scenery was so otherworldly it belonged in the pages of fiction.
When they arrived at the hotel, Liv navigated the revolving doors into the foyer while still wearing her sunglasses. She kept her head low and peeped over the top of them.
The grand winding staircase looked like it had been transported from a Hollywood movie, and a pink marble fountain had coins shining in the water. A woman in a black sequined dress tinkled a tune on a grand piano. Liv became aware that her mouth had dropped open, and she clamped it shut again.
A small group of girls loitered in a corner, straining their necks to look at Liv. They were dressed as Georgia Rory in blazers and floral dresses with big black boots. They looked away again, their faces etched with disappointment. Even if Meg and Marlon had kept things quiet about Essie’s attendance, it looked like word had filtered out to fans somehow.
The driver spoke to the man behind the reception desk and deposited Liv’s suitcase. He touched his cap and said goodbye to her.
The receptionist tapped on his keyboard. ‘Welcome to Croatia, Ms Starling. I hope you had a pleasant journey.’ Tap, tap, tap. ‘May I have your passport, please?’
Liv shifted uncomfortably. She’d not thought to bring Essie’s passport along and only had her own. Her hand shook as she fumbled in her handbag and handed it to him.
The man opened it up and frowned. ‘Madam?’ he questioned,turning it around to show her the photograph. ‘This appears to be the wrong one. This is for Olivia Green.’
Liv stared at it and didn’t blink. ‘Yes, I’m Ms Starling’s assistant,’ she said, affecting a posher accent. ‘Her passport will be in her suitcase. I’m seeing her shortly.’
‘Hmm.’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘The driver said you were Ms Starling. Perhaps a silly mistake, yes?’
Liv nodded. ‘Must be. May I also check in for Ms Starling, please? I’ll pass the room card on to her.’
The man hesitated for the longest time. ‘That is absolutely fine,’ he said eventually. ‘My fiancée is a huge fan of Ms Starling’s books. Please bring her passport to me when you can. I’m pleased to upgrade her room to our honeymoon suite.’
Liv shoved the passport back into her bag. ‘Splendid,’ she said. After he handed both room cards to her, she hurried towards the staircase.
‘Ms Green,’ the man called after her. ‘Your suitcase…’
Liv looked down at her empty hands and clenched them into fists. She performed a shuffle, not sure whether to move backwards or forwards. ‘Oh, yes. Sorry.’
‘No problem,’ he said. ‘I’ll have it brought up to your room.’
When Liv reached her own bedroom, it was compact and gorgeous with a view of the gardens from the window. By some miracle her suitcase was already waiting for her, and she carried it up two flights of stairs to look at Essie’s honeymoon suite.Wow, Liv thought as she opened the door.
The floor space was as big as all three of her bedrooms at home combined. It came with a lounge area and small kitchen. She whooped as she bounced up and down on the squishy leather sofa and gazed through the sliding doors that led to a terrace with a sea view.The bathroom housed a jacuzzi with steps leading up to it, a bidet and two marble sinks.
After Liv and Jake’s wedding, they’d spent a couple of nights at a country hotel for their honeymoon. She’d thought the bathrobes, fluffy slippers and croissants on the breakfast table were the height of luxury, but they didn’t compare to this.
