Tommy looked around the bar as if he was checking who was about. “Keep your distance from him if you can. He’s mixed up in some stuff.”
A shiver went through me. “What stuff?”
“Dealing. Shall we head out for a drive? Go somewhere quiet?”
That actually sounded perfect. “Let’s go.”
We headed to Cala d’Hort,a beach hidden away in the national park, and facing Es Vedra. It was clear and quiet, just as we expected, the beach pretty much ours and ours alone. Tomorrow it wouldn’t be as quiet, the holidaymakers who’d arrived today going to see it, to feel the course sand and pebbles under their feet, as well as the glorious view of Es Vedra.
“I think that’s where you’re meant to be.” Tommy pointed at the huge rock that jutted out from the sea.
“What do you mean?”
“Es Vedra. Legend has it that there were sirens on it that called fishermen to their deaths.”
I laughed, flicking his leg that was resting next to mine. “That’s not very nice.”
“They were beautiful sirens that enchanted men, made them believe in anything, and then drew them to their deaths. I think you were one of those.” His voice sounded far away.
“I wouldn’t know how to draw a man to his death. What are you trying to say?”
He laughed, and wrapped his arm around me. “Maybe you cast more of a spell than you think.”
He kissed me then, and the hurt of the last couple of days evaporated like rainwater on a warm day. The kisses were different, less demanding, not a prelude to sex right now, which most of our kisses had been. These were soft and tender, as if he was giving me a little more of himself with each one.
I took it, because I was a fool and I was in love with him. If I hadn’t known it before, I knew it right then, and if he’d asked me to stay on the island, I’d have said yes in a heartbeat.
We stayed for the sunset, watching Es Vedra misted in all the colours the dying sun could conjure up. The sea became a little dense with boats, people taking in the sights, being drawn to the place like people had been for the past millenia.
“Shall we get something to eat?” Tommy offered. “Then I can take you home or you can come stay with me.”
“My car’s in Santa Gertrudis, so I’ll stay, if that’s okay. I’ll drive home tomorrow. But food now sounds good.” I was hungry, and this felt more like a date than what we’d had before.
We headed to a local fish restaurant where Tommy chatted in Catalan to the waiter and we ordered prawns cooked in the house sauce, and the fish of the day, the conversation light and breezy, not circling too much around my family or Lawrie. It was the most normal I’d felt for months, longer maybe. The power dynamic between us seemed balanced and for the evening and no more, I let myself believe that this could go somewhere.
Tommy’s apartment was in darkness when we got there, the air still and unbothered. He hadn’t gone to check in atCòctels, saying that the manager had stepped up and it was time to let her be more independent, so we had the rest of the night to just ourselves.
I went into the bathroom to take a quick shower, the grit of the sand from the beach needing rinsing off. Tommy made a comment about joining me, but he never arrived.
When I got out of the shower, I knew why.
Voices bubbled in from the living room, a voice that should’ve been familiar but I didn’t recognise it.
“You should be helping sort this, Tom! You were meant to tell us where to get her – before she left.”
“I told you to go for him instead.”
“Marcus? His dad wouldn’t give a fuck if we took all his fingers off and posted them one a week. If we don’t do something, he’s going to think he can get away with this again…”
“How? What’ve you done now so he needs to get away with something? Please don’t fucking tell me you’ve gotten involved in something else?”
“I’m just doing my job…”
“You’re a fucking idiot.”
“No, the fucking idiot’s you, Tommy. You were meant to get us that info on the girls so we could go ahead. Now you’re all fucking pussy-whipped…”
I froze with my back to the door, feeling all kinds of shit mixed in with crap. I didn’t let the tears fall this time. I pushed them back and thought of Livi and all the times she’d dealt with lies written about her in the media. I thought about Gav and how he always handled negative reviews. People with money and power would get used.
