“Your only brother, but I’ll take it. I knew I was right to come.” Carl gave a quick smile. “I know I questioned you coming here, but honestly I think you’re super brave. And I thought to myself, what would Vanessa do?”
Vanessa rested her hand on Carl’s. “Well, you’re more than welcome here. That said, there’s only one bedroom, so you’re going to have to sleep on the sofa.”
“I figured.” He looked around the room and then back at his sister. “Anyway, what’s going on with you? You look like you slept in that dress. It’s all creased.”
Vanessa blushed and looked down at the outfit she had now been wearing for twenty-four hours. “I had an afternoon nap.” Well, it was true, if not the entire truth.
“By the fact that you’ve just gone bright red, I’m assuming it was a nap with a friend?” Carl waggled his eyebrows.
“No, actually,” said Vanessa in her haughtiest voice. But she couldn’t keep secrets from Carl. “But I will confess I did not sleep alone last night.”
“I knew it! You dirty stop-out! Good for you, Nessa.” Carl clapped his hands and gave the first genuine smile since he’d arrived.
“What happened with Gem?” Asked Vanessa.
“It was the whole ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ thing. She says she needs to find herself and can only do that while she’s single. Ugh. So clichéd.” He ran a hand through his tidy, short dark hair.
Vanessa sighed. “I’m sorry, that is pants.” She patted his hands again. “You’ll find someone, Carly. Promise.”
“Hmm,” said Carl. “It seems like you’ve found someone already. I need all the details. It’s the least you can do for me in my heartbroken state.”
Vanessa laughed. “You never could resist gossip. Ok, I’ll tell you. But I really need a shower. There’s a bottle of wine in the fridge. Pour yourself a glass, and I’ll tell you the whole story when I’m out of this wretched dress and into my pyjamas.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
JOEY
There was something about Seville that Joey always loved. Barcelona was her home, but the narrow streets of the gothic area in which she lived and worked could become very claustrophobic. Seville was more open, and she enjoyed being able to see the whole sky.
But however lovely Seville was, she couldn’t hide from the guilt. The truth was, she hadn’t needed to leave her home city in such a hurry. Carmen had been asking her to go and meet some of the suppliers in Seville for a while, but there hadn’t been a specific date set.
Until that text had arrived.
Joey tried to put it out of her mind. She wasn’t going to reply. Of course she wasn’t. She sat in the hotel restaurant eating breakfast, appreciating the strong coffee and selection of pastries. It was enjoyable, sampling someone else’s baking handiwork. Much like she enjoyed Vanessa’s culinary creations.
No, not helpful.Thinking about Vanessa wasn’t what she needed right now.
She was still wondering how to respond to the text Vanessa had sent her after she’d read Joey’s note. Joey shook her head and came to a decision. She wasn’t going to think about Vanessa, or the other text she’d received, until after she’d met the supplier Carmen had suggested she find.
Walking through the streets of Seville she felt lighter. The sun was shining and the wide streets let all that wonderful light in. She strolled past colourful shops and cafes. It really was a beautiful city, with so many places to explore. She walked along a path with a pale bricked wall alongside. Draped over the top of the wall were tree branches laden with oranges and lemons, giving the air a fresh citrus scent. Seville was famous for its oranges, of course. And she never experienced fresh orange juice of the same quality in any other part of Spain.
Joey checked the map on her phone. She was just a minute’s walk from Señor Rojas’ orangery.
There was an archway in the wall, opening onto a small thicket of orange trees. Joey smiled in delight. She walked between the branches and fruit, marvelling at the deep green and bright orange.
Shaded by the fruit trees she saw an older man in a flat cap with a large grey moustache, sat at a rickety wooden table. That had to be him.
“Hola, Señor Rojas.” Joey raised her hand in greeting.
“Hola, Josefina.” The man stood and gestured to the chair opposite him.
Joey smiled, knowing that Carmen would have emailed him an introduction, featuring the Spanish version of her name. She offered her hand for him to shake.
Señor Rojas, or Cisco, as he told Joey to call him, enthused about his fruit produce, waving the fat cigar he’d lit to emphasise his points. She smiled as he gave her thehard sell, telling her his oranges, lemons and limes were the best in Spain.
“It’s ok, Cisco.” She spoke confidently in Spanish. “You know how much we love what we get from you. We just wanted to find out what’s new, what you’re recommending now, and how we might amend our regular order with you.”
“You are clearly a very wise woman.” Cisco tapped his cigar on the ashtray in front of him. “So you’ll appreciate my new variety of blood oranges. You don’t order those at the moment, and this year’s crop is delicious. You will not believe the flavour when you taste it.”
