by Lacey London
Without flinching, he briefly glances down at me before returning his gaze back to Janie. Taking that as a no, I tap my foot impatiently as the tattoo artist taps a tired leather lounger and gestures for someone to get on.
‘Who’s going first?’ He asks, pulling on some latex gloves and fiddling with a frankly frightening vibrating tool.
‘You should go first, Gina.’ Lianna mumbles quietly, looking nervous for the first time in this whole process. ‘After all, this was your idea.’
Without a hint of doubt, Gina squeals with excitement and immediately hops onto the chair.
Hearing the infamous buzz of the needle, I look away and pretend to be engrossed in my manicure. Gina’s shrieks surround me as my gaze drifts to a design on the wall which bears the words act in haste, repent at leisure. Smiling to myself, I watch Lianna and Janie wait in line for their turn and resist the urge to tell them to have that tattooed instead…
Chapter 10
‘I still can’t believe you went through with it.’ I mutter to Janie, who is sprawled out on the lounger next to me as gentle waves rush up the sand to greet us. ‘I really can’t.’
‘It’s not a big deal.’ Glancing down at the newly-acquired inking, Janie sighs and reaches for her drink. ‘It’s only a drawing…’
‘A permanent drawing.’ I correct, glad to not be confined to the shade like the rest of them.
Removing her hat, Janie allows her hair to fall around her shoulders. ‘Clara, nothing in this life is permanent.’
‘I can assure you, that thing isn’t going anywhere.’ I retort, picking up a handful of sand and admiring how soft it is.
‘Even so, at one point, it was exactly what I wanted…’
Peering at her over the rim of my sunglasses, I try to work out why Janie seems so different. She looks the same, she sounds the same, but Janie’s certainly changed, that’s for sure. She’s softer, somehow. I’ve tried to brush it off, but Janie is most definitely a shadow of the woman she used to be.
Noticing Gina and Lianna are dozing under the palm trees to our left, I take the opportunity of being alone to delve into the mystery of Janie’s life here.
‘How are you finding life in Mykonos?’ I ask casually, rolling onto my side to face her. ‘How does Greece compare to London, or Texas, for that matter?’
Pointing at the glistening water in front of her, Janie smiles brightly. ‘There’s no comparison. Things are just… easier here.’
‘Easier?’ I repeat, taking a sip of my pína colada. ‘Are you talking about the money?’
‘I’m not going to lie to you, the money helps, but it’s not only that.’ Reaching for her own drink, she plucks her glass from its resting place in the sand. ‘I don’t have to pretend here. Mykonos has given me a chance to wipe the slate clean and start again. I can be me here and drop the mask. I can knock down the walls I’ve hidden behind for so long. Finally!’
‘That’s so lovely to hear. I’m really happy for you.’ Resting my chin in my hand, I study her face closely, trying to read between the lines. ‘So, this life here with Stelios, is it the real deal? Is this where you see your future?’
‘Of course, it is.’ Staring back at me blankly, Janie attempts to pull her frozen brow into a frown. ‘Why would you ask that?’
‘No reason.’ I stammer, hoping I haven’t caused offence. ‘It’s just a lot to take in, that’s all. The bodyguards, the villa, the lavish lifestyle. It just seems so… temporary.’
‘Temporary?’ She repeats, a tone to her voice indicating I’ve hit a nerve. ‘Tell me, Clara, what would be temporary about it?’
Desperately searching for a way to explain my point without adding to her outrage, I stir my straw around my glass.
‘Please don’t take this the wrong way.’ I begin, pushing myself into a sitting position. ‘It’s just… it’s just I find it hard to believe this is where your future lies. I’m overjoyed you’re happy. I really, really am. To see this other side of you is amazing, but no one really lives like this. The bubble Stelios lives in isn’t real life.’
Janie simply responds with a slight nod of the head, so I carry on regardless.
‘I’m not against you having some fun out here with Stelios. Who wouldn’t want to live like this for a little while?’ I attempt a small laugh and stop when Janie doesn’t join in. ‘I’m just concerned because you seem different here. It’s like you’re still Janie, but somehow, you’re not. My worry is that you’re changing yourself to fit in with Stelios and his lifestyle.’ Shuffling closer to her, I place my hand on her arm. ‘Don’t lose who you are in your bid to get what you want.’
Staring back at me with an expression I can’t quite read, Janie eventually smiles and takes off her sunglasses.
‘I appreciate your concern, Clara, but you don’t need to be worried about any of those things.’ Looking over her shoulder as Lianna stirs in her sleep, she drops her voice to a whisper. ‘Being over here has changed me. It has changed me in ways I never imagined possible and I couldn’t be more grateful for it.’
Waiting for her to explain, I tuck my hair behind my ears to prevent it blowing into my face.
‘Mykonos is my future just as much as Stelios is my future.’ Her eyes appear glassy and she slips on her sunglasses to hide it. ‘But neither Mykonos or Stelios are the reasons for me changing. They have simply allowed me to remove the armour I’ve kept up for so long. The Janie you knew was a reflection of how the world treated me, but I’m still here. I’m just… happy.’
A lump forms in my throat and I suddenly hate myself for questioning Janie’s motives in being here.
‘The only thing that isn’t real about my life here, is that you guys aren’t in it.’ Janie says sadly. ‘Having Oliver’s blessing would be the cherry on the cake. Once I have that, I can finally accept this is my destiny.’
For the first time, I recognise how hard it must be for Janie to be here with her son refusing to be a part of it.
‘Oliver will come around to Stelios’ I reply, not believing this myself. ‘He just needs a little more time.’
‘I very much doubt it. I know my son and I know when his mind is made up, it’s made up.’ Janie looks down at the tattoo on her ankle and exhales heavily. ‘I wish things were different, but I can’t force Oliver to accept Stelios. He’s a grown man and he makes his own decisions…’
Looking down at the ground, I drag my toes through the sand and try to think of something to say to raise the mood. A loving relationship is exactly what we’ve all wanted for Janie. She’s been crying out for someone to spend her life with for so long. It’s completely unfair of Oliver to throw shade over it now that she has finally found happiness.
‘Leave Oliver to me.’ I say determinedly, taking Janie’s hand in mine and squeezing it firmly. ‘If I can make him trade his morning bacon sandwiches for kale smoothies, this should be a piece of cake…’
* * *
Thanking Calix for driving us back to the villa, I dust a few grains of sand from my dress before heading up the steps and into the cool building. After our lazy afternoon on the beach, Janie took us for a bite to eat at a cute bakery in a neighbouring village. With our stomachs filled with vanilla cupcakes and refreshing lemonade, we jumped back into the limo and made the short journey home, high on sunshine and sugar.
I did worry the girls would be full of regret after our impulsive trip to the tattoo parlour this morning, but even as we collapse onto the couches in the sitting room they’re still raving about their new inkings.
‘Well, what do you think?’ Gina asks Calix, waving her scrawled-on wrist in his face. ‘Do you like it?’
Narrowing his eyes, Calix’s cheeks flush and he covers his mouth awkwardly.
‘It’s… nice.’ He stutters, tripping over his tongue in his attempt to spit his words out. ‘Very… yes… very nice.’
Shooting him a questioning look, I frown as he quickly excuses himself and leaves the room in a fit of hysterics. His muffled
laughter echoes around the hall, but before I can chase after him to query his reaction to Gina’s tattoo, Stelios and the guys return home.
‘My Janie!’ Stelios exclaims, running through the foyer and enveloping Janie in a warm embrace. ‘How I have missed you, my Janie!’
Watching them chat affectionately about their day apart, I look up as Vernon collapses onto the couch next to us.
‘What did you girls get up to today?’ He asks, smiling at the sight of Janie and Stelios cuddling on the opposite sofa. ‘Anything fun?’
Exchanging excited glances, Lianna and Gina hold out their wrists and smile broadly. Not being too sure how Vernon is going to react to discovering his wife has gained a Kavos-style inking in his absence, I hold my breath as he squints at their arms.
‘You got tattoos?’ Vernon cries. ‘That’s so cool! I like it!’
‘You do?’ Grinning widely as he takes her arm for a closer look, Lianna squeals with relief.
‘You do?’ The words slip out of my mouth before I can stop them and Gina shoots me a deathly stare.
‘Yeah.’ Vernon says cheerily. ‘Identical tattoos, you’re like sorority sisters.’
‘I have one, too!’ Janie yells, wriggling out of Stelios’s grip and waving her own arm in the air. ‘Does that mean I’m in the sorority?’
‘What’s going on in here?’ Marc asks, kicking off his shoes as he and Oliver finally join us.
‘We got matching tattoos!’ Gina announces, like she’s just found the winning lottery ticket.
Recognising the look of alarm on Oliver’s face, I hold my hands up in defence. ‘Not me. I was just an innocent bystander.’
Shaking his head to indicate he doesn’t want to get involved, Oliver kisses my cheek and excuses himself to get a shower.
‘I don’t know about you guys, but we have had an amazing day!’ Marc gushes, walking across the room to Stelios and holding out his hand. ‘Thank you! Thank you so much.’
Seemingly oblivious to the fact his wife has gained a permanent sketch in his absence, Marc continues to wax lyrical about his incredible day at the golf course.
Not wanting to be subjected to boy talk, I leave the others to chat amongst themselves and slip away in search of my husband. After a few wrong turns, I eventually locate the guest wing and knock lightly on our door before letting myself in.
‘Hey!’ Flashing Oliver a grin, I throw myself down onto the bed next to him. ‘I thought you were having a shower?’
‘I’m just taking five minutes out first.’ He yawns, tugging his sweaty t-shirt over his head and tossing it onto the floor.
‘If I were you, I wouldn’t leave it any longer.’ I say teasingly, wafting a hand under my nose. ‘I could smell you out in the hall.’
Playfully batting me with a pillow, Oliver laughs and gently pulls me towards him.
‘How was golf?’ I ask, hoping to hear he’s bonded with Stelios over a love of chequered shirts and small balls. ‘Judging by the way Marc is talking out there, I’m guessing you all had a lot of fun.’
‘You can hardly call it golf when you’re followed by security the whole damn time and driven around like an old lady at a Florida retirement park.’ He sneers, rolling his eyes.
‘Marc certainly seems to have enjoyed himself…’
‘Well, Marc would, wouldn’t he? He spent the entire time schmoozing Stelios’s business associates. He was like a pig in…’
Covering his mouth with my hand, I finish his sentence by planting a kiss on his nose.
‘What about you?’ He asks, stretching his arms above his head. ‘Good day?’
‘Interesting day…’ I reply, recalling tattoo-gate. ‘Didn’t you see the tattoos in there?’
‘Yeah.’ Walking over to the minibar, Oliver grabs a couple of bottles of water and throws one to me. ‘What the hell was that about?’
‘It was the weirdest thing.’ Taking a gulp from the cold bottle, I sit in a cross-legged position and shake my head. ‘It all started when we were in the limo and I spotted Janie’s new tattoo…’
‘My mom has a tattoo?’ He growls, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.
‘Yes.’ Not wanting to make a big deal out of it, I attempt to swiftly move on. ‘When Gina saw it, she decided she also wanted a tattoo. After that, it just started to snowball. Lianna wanted one and before I knew what was happening, your mum was having another as well!’
‘She has two tattoos?’ Oliver shrieks, leaning against the wall in shock. ‘This is all Stelios’s doing! He’s supposed to be looking after her over here! Not encouraging her to mutilate her body like this!’
‘The tattoos aren’t down to Stelios!’ I reply, deciding to leave out the part about Stelios’s gift of an inking. ‘And he is looking after her. No one can tame your mother, Oliver, let alone talk her out of doing something she wants to do.’
‘I’m not going to argue with you…’ Stepping out of his shorts, he mumbles something I don’t quite catch before rubbing his face agitatedly. ‘Let’s just agree to disagree.’
Recognising that now isn’t the time to work on project Make Oliver Stelios’s New Best Friend, I kick off my sandals and divert the conversation to Gina.
‘Anyway…’ I sing, tugging on his arm. ‘I think Gina is on the verge of having some sort of midlife crisis.’
‘She’s not having a midlife crisis.’ Oliver says in Gina’s defence. ‘A stupid tattoo is a stupid tattoo, but it’s not enough to equal midlife crisis.’
‘It’s not just the tattoo. She’s constantly reminiscing about her teenage years, she’s wearing her old pulling outfits from two decades ago…’ Reeling off the many things Gina has done these past couple of days that prove my point, I follow Oliver out onto the balcony. ‘Not to mention how much she’s been drinking lately. The tattoo is just the tip of a very big iceberg.’
‘She’s just blowing off some steam. Don’t read too much into it.’ Collapsing onto a lounger in his boxer shorts, Oliver picks up my magazine from the floor. ‘You should direct your concern towards my mom. I know I am.’
Gingerly sitting down on the sunbed next to him, I watch a tiny bird as it hops along the railing in front of me.
‘I know you don’t want to hear this, Oliver, but your mum is happy here with Stelios. She’s happy and she’s settled. This is her life now. She isn’t going to get bored and come running back to England with her tail between her legs.’ Pausing for effect, I lick my dry lips. ‘She’s finally found where she wants to be. The only thing standing in her way, is you.’
Keeping a stony expression on his face, Oliver looks out to sea and remains completely silent.
‘Your refusal to accept Stelios is the only blemish on her horizon.’ Twisting my wedding ring around my finger, I prod him with my foot and smile softly. ‘If you want your mum to be happy, truly happy, you know what you have to do…’
Chapter 11
‘Can you see it, Mummy?’ Noah asks, holding an odd-looking rock towards the camera and pointing at a tiny swirl. ‘It’s a dinosaur!’
‘Wow!’ Bringing the phone closer to my face, I frown at the image on the screen. ‘That’s a huge… dinosaur, Noah! Where did you find him?’
‘Mummy, it’s a girl dinosaur!’ Noah giggles, placing the stone even closer to the camera lens. ‘Look!’
‘Of course, it’s a girl dinosaur!’ Forcing myself to laugh, I shake my head. ‘Silly me!’
As Noah continues to show me various different stones and dinosaurs, I nod along from my position on the balcony. It seems two days without his parents haven’t affected Noah in the slightest. If anything, he seems happier than ever. Sitting on my father’s knee, Noah has been chatting animatedly for the past thirty minutes. Too absorbed in his storytelling, he’s completely oblivious to my mum hovering in the background for some screen time.
Making all the right noises as Noah shows off Pumpkin’s security guard outfit, I lean over the balustrade and look down at the beach. Stelios, Marc, Vernon
and Oliver are playing cards under an enormous canopy. Their boisterous laughter drifts across the sand as Marc slams his cards down on the table and cheers loudly. Pleased to see Oliver is joining in with the fun and games, I return my attention to the video call.
‘We’re going to a hamster race tomorrow!’ Noah says cheerily. ‘Can we get a hamster when you get back?’
‘Erm, I’ll have to run that past your dad, but leave it with me.’ Realising my battery is about to die, I head back inside and take a seat at the dressing table. ‘Can you please put Grandma on for a moment, Noah?’
Nodding at the screen, Noah jumps off my dad’s knee and hands the phone to my mum.
‘Bonjour!’ She trills, holding the screen too close to her face.
‘Mum, we’re in Greece, not France!’ Laughing at her stumped reaction, I shake my head and search the drawers for my charger.
‘What’s Greek for hello?’ She asks, screwing up her nose. ‘Is it ola? Or is that Spanish? You know, I should know this with all the Greek food we eat down at…’
‘Never mind that. How’s Noah been?’ I interrupt, finally locating the charger beneath a pile of bikinis. ‘And Pumpkin, how is she?’
‘Fine! They’re both doing absolutely fine!’ My mum replies, attempting to turn the camera around and succeeding only in showing me the ceiling. ‘Look at them. Happy as can be!’
‘Mum… Mum, that’s the ceiling!’ I grumble, feeling a headache coming on.
‘There’s Pumpkin!’ Wiggling the camera around and making me feel nauseous in the process, she whistles to get Pumpkin’s attention. ‘Say hello to your mum, Pumpkin!’
The screen jumps to her feet and I roll my eyes. ‘I can’t see anything other than your slippers.’
‘Look at her face!’ She continues regardless. ‘I think she’s even happier here than she is at home! Aren’t you Pumpkin? Yes, you are! Yes, you are!’