Page 76 of Escape to the Sun

Maybe she should consider sticking to someone she knew well, however imperfect he might be – maybe that would be a better plan. More logical. Safer.

Ruth managed the whole day without spilling everything to Hannah. It wouldn’t have been fair to do so; she knew that. And yet she desperately wanted to confide in someone. No, not someone – she wanted to confide in Hannah, who had become far more than a ‘someone’ to Ruth.

But she couldn’t pluck up the nerve to talk to Hannah about Louis. She was hiding behind the fact she’d promised Teddy not to. Had agreed to leave them all alone.

Or had she? If she thought about it, maybe Teddy had just said it and stalked off before she’d had a chance to agree. Could she find a loophole?

It was the least she could do to try to find out where Hannah’s thoughts lay, regarding Louis, wasn’t it? And if they were favourable, she could legitimately report her findings back to Teddy. It might not make things right, but it would be something.

‘I wasn’t going to pry, Hannah,’ Ruth said.

Hannah stifled a laugh. ‘But…?’

Ruth huffed in frustration. ‘OK, I know. But… I can’t help it. What’s happening with you and…’

‘The two men in my life?’ Hannah said, a conflicted expression crossing her delicate features. ‘That’s not a phrase I ever thought I would hear myself say. I didn’t do it on purpose, Ruth.’

‘No, of course you didn’t. You and Ian had broken up. This isn’t on you.’

‘But it is. Because I have to sort it out. And now I’ve gone and made it a million times worse.’ Hannah frowned. ‘I think I know what I need to do, though.’

‘Do you?’ Ruth blew out her cheeks. ‘I am so sorry for butting in with my opinions. I was completely out of order.’

Hannah shook her head. ‘No, don’t be. I’ve been hiding from reality for too long. And these exotic gardens are so outside my normal frame of reference for my life; it’s crystallised the situation for me. Somehow, I need to find a way to tell Louis, though. And that’s not going to be easy.’

Ruth stilled. Hannah was going to dump Louis… Now the possibility was made real, something approaching fear tickled its way up and down her spine. She’d done this. She’d taken a beautiful new relationship, taken two people so perfect for one another it made her heart ache, and had ruined it. It didn’t matter what Hannah said about it happening anyway, Ruth knew she was to blame. And logic dictated she and Teddy would now have zero chance of even remaining friends…

Ruth had done it again. Whenever her life looked like it was heading in the direction of happy, she managed to trash it. She was a complete idiot.

39

Louis busied himself as best he could with the mechanics of the layover in Bridgetown. Each department on board the Ballygowan worked as a well-oiled machine, so all he had to do was wander around the ship and the dock area, telling everyone what a good job they were doing.

It never failed to amaze him how busy the catering department was on a docking like today’s. Heavily laden vehicles traversed the dock, offloading trolleys stacked high with boxed goods. A ship like the Ballygowan got through an astounding amount of food, far more than they could ever store for a cruise of this length. Plus, there was no substitute for using the freshest ingredients, alongside locally produced goods.

A smaller van arrived, tentatively manoeuvring its way between the larger vehicles until it came to rest close to where he stood, the driver springing from his seat and making a beeline for Louis.

‘I’ve brought the paintings,’ he announced, putting Louis on the back foot.

‘Paintings? What paintings?’

To be bringing art on board partway through a cruise, let alone partway through a season, was unusual.

‘I don’t know, man. I’m just the delivery guy, you know?’

Louis smiled, reaching for his radio. Unable to raise April – who often left her radio wherever the mood took her – Louis radioed Martin and asked him to send April dockside.

‘Our gallery manager is on her way,’ Louis said.

‘Cool.’

With the side door of the van pulled wide, brown-paper-wrapped artwork in bulky frames were tugged into the bright Barbados sunshine. With little in the way of concern, the delivery guy began to stack them, haphazardly, on the dock.

‘Perhaps it would be better to wait…?’ Louis attempted to slow the process, fearing for the canvases as he checked for April’s arrival.

‘Is all good. They’re my sister’s work – she uses driftwood to frame them. Very tough.’

‘Yes, but…’