Wanderlust

by Natalie K. Martin

  She looked at him as he sat on the sofa with a book in his hand and took off the black-rimmed glasses he’d been wearing. She couldn’t imagine someone like him having anything other than perfect twenty-twenty vision.

  ‘Fine. I just went for a swim in the pool.’

  ‘How did you like it?’

  Selina couldn’t stop the grimace forming on her face. ‘It was…different.’

  ‘You look remarkably dry,’ he replied with that wry smile on his face again.

  ‘Well, it was just a dip, really.’

  Thank God her brown skin prevented her from blushing. She couldn’t deny that the setting of the pool was beautiful. It was surrounded by olive trees and had elegant wooden decking. With the addition of double-bed sized sun loungers covered with a canopy of white cotton, it was almost exactly how she’d imagined a pool at an eco-resort would be, but Penny hadn’t lied about the plants in the water. Selina had looked at the trails of seaweed and told herself not to be a wuss, but she’d only got as far as dipping her legs into the water before she’d heard frogs croaking and got straight out again.

  Alex smirked and irritation welled inside of her. So she didn’t like the idea of swimming with plants and wildlife, so what? Once again, he’d made her feel like she was some ditzy city girl, especially when he was lounging on the sofa, still topless and barefoot as if it were his natural state of being.

  ‘I should shower and unpack,’ Selina said.

  Alex nodded. ‘Your backpacks outside your bedroom door.’

  ‘Thanks,’ Selina replied and he shrugged before going back to read his book.

  She quickly made her way down the hall. He’d had that look on his face again, the one that made her feel out of her depth. He probably swam in the pool every day, relishing being surrounded by so much nature. She pushed open her bedroom door and sighed, longing to be by the clean blue sea instead, but as she stepped into her room, the longing was overridden by a smile.

  The scent of lavender wafted in from the open window as she looked around her large and simply, but beautifully, decorated bedroom. Wild flowers sat in a vase on the wooden chest of drawers and next to it was a basket full of small bars of soap. She picked up the thick, yellow piece of card in the basket and smiled.

  - Welcome to Colinas Verde! We thought you might need refreshing after your journey. Love and light, Lindy and Greg

  Selina read the list of soaps on the back of the card: Zesty Lemon, Spiced Orange, Luxurious Lemon, and Milk and Oat. She sniffed each one of them. It was a lovely gift, especially when a bar of soap like this would cost more than what she’d usually spend on a decent lunch back home. It seemed that maybe there were some advantages of being in a place like this after all. The only thing she needed to do now was put up a couple of photographs of family and friends, and it would start to feel like home.

  After she unpacked, she took a shower and changed into a vest and shorts, surrendering to the Ibizan heat. She wandered into the small living room, decorated with a low coffee table, sofa and two bookshelves. Tea-lights were dotted on the windowsills and warmly coloured abstract art hung on the walls. The glasses Alex had been wearing were sitting on top of a book on the coffee table and she held them up to her eyes. His prescription must have been pretty strong, because she took them off straight away, blinking to dispel the disorientation from the lenses. She put them back down before picking up the book they’d been resting on with raised eyebrows. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. If she hadn’t seen him reading it, she’d have never believed it was his. Despite his hippy-like attitude, the book didn’t strike her as his thing.

  ‘Feeling refreshed?’

  Selina turned and saw Alex leaning against the living room wall.

  ‘Yep. Nothing like a good shower in this heat.’

  ‘I’m going for one too, if there’s any hot water left?’

  She’d only been in the shower for five minutes. Ten, tops. But he was looking at her as if she’d stayed in there for hours, shaving her legs and deep conditioning her hair.

  ‘There’s plenty,’ she replied, even though she didn’t know if it were true. She guessed the water was solar heated and, if that were the case, there should be more than enough for the both of them.

  He nodded towards the book in her hand. ‘Feel free to borrow it when I’m done.’

  She looked at the cover again before putting it down on the table. ‘It’s yours?’

  ‘You sound surprised.’

  Selina shrugged.

  ‘People are rarely ever who we think they are.’ He grinned at her before disappearing into the bathroom.

  Selina walked over to the window and looked outside, leaning her hands on the sill. People are rarely ever who we think they are. He was right about that, but she knew his type. He was over-confident, bordering on arrogant, and something about him told her that he had a string of broken hearts behind him, just like Liam had.

  She’d known all along that Liam would be bad for her in one way or another. He was always having ‘trouble’ with exes, and their own relationship was toxic at best. Once she’d started to look past his sexy smile and the overblown gestures he’d always used to win her back, she saw him for what he really was: spiteful and manipulative. She’d been happy to become an ex of his herself when she’d ended it, but she’d paid the price when she’d found herself looking at photos he’d posted on Instagram and Tumblr two months later.

  She hadn’t thought for one moment that he’d share them and she’d reasoned with herself that even if he did, who’d be interested in her? After all, she was a normal twenty-five year old from Brighton. It turned out, a lot of people were. Almost eight thousand in fact. Eight thousand people had looked at, liked, retweeted and shared those topless pictures of her, with only a pair of tiny, lacy knickers to preserve her modesty and a pair of stockings, held up with a diamante studded suspender belt to add a touch of class. She grimaced. The photos had looked anything but classy when she’d looked at them, splashed all over the social media sites she frequently used herself. Her only saving grace was that she hadn’t gone fully nude but even still, her life had turned upside down overnight. That was only three weeks ago and now she was in a foreign country, it felt like her life would never resemble anything like normalcy ever again.

  Outside, the sky was streaked orange as the sun began to set over the green hills of Colinas Verde and Selina pushed the thoughts of those photos away. Thinking about them couldn’t change what had happened and, at least here, she didn’t have to be that girl. She could be whoever she wanted to be.

  She looked at the bathroom door. The next few months would be a lot more enjoyable if she broke away from old habits. Nothing good would come from Googling herself, or thinking of ways to get back at Liam. Colinas Verde aside, the next few months would be about luxury backpacking for as long as her savings would last, and absolutely no men.

  The smell of Alex’s shower gel exploded into the air as the bathroom door opened and he stepped out with a towel tied around his waist. Droplets of water clung to his skin and he smoothed his wet hair back with his hands.

  ‘Hot water lasted then?’ Selina asked.

  ‘Just about. Are you hungry? I need to make some pasta.’

  ‘Are you going to put some clothes on first?’

  ‘You don’t like me being barefoot and you want me to put clothes on to cook dinner. Are you some kind of prude or something?’

  ‘No, but I’d prefer it if you didn’t walk around naked.’

  ‘Don’t worry, I’ll save you the embarrassment. We’ll be eating with everyone else tonight anyway, it’s tradition for newcomers.’

  Thank God for that. A communal dinner sounded nice, and much more preferable than eating alone with Alex.

  She looked back out at the glorious sunset as he disappeared into his room. They only had one week together. Just one week, and then he’d be gone. Maybe she could do this after all.

  Twenty minutes later, Selina looked
at Alex as he opened a cupboard in the kitchen.

  ‘There’s no meat, I’m afraid. I’m a vegetarian, hope that’s okay for you?’ he asked.

  ‘It’s fine. Do you eat fish?’

  Alex shook his head. ‘Call me weird, but I think animals are happier where they’re meant to be, instead of on a plate.’

  For a reason she couldn’t figure out, Selina decided not to tell him she was vegetarian too. It was hardly a personal thing to tell someone, but after the photos had been posted online, she’d learned to keep herself to herself.

  ‘So, Penny mentioned that you’ll be giving me the jobs to do this week?’

  ‘Yeah. That way, you’ll get a proper handover and everyone will be happy,’ he replied, pulling a few vegetables from a wooden crate sitting on the counter next to the fridge.

  ‘What time do we start?’

  ‘Whenever you want, but I like to get going before it gets too hot. I’m usually ready by eight.’

  Eight in the morning? It wasn’t that she was averse to working, but she’d been looking forward to being able to wake up without the aid of an alarm, especially after quitting her job.

  ‘Is that too early for you?’ Alex asked with raised eyebrows.

  Selina looked at the way he was holding the knife with its tip right on the outer skin of an onion, as if her answer was dependent on what would happen next.

  ‘Eight is fine. Great in fact.’ She smiled, refusing to let him see even a hint of doubt in her mind.

  ‘Good.’ He nodded towards the pantry in the corner of the kitchen. ‘There’s some Rioja in there, if you want something to drink.’

  ‘A drink would be great,’ she replied, and retrieved the bottle.

  After filling two glasses, she sat at the table as Alex began chopping the vegetables. Thank God Colinas Verde wasn’t an alcohol free zone. She might have left the cosmopolitan lifestyle behind her for a while, but that didn’t mean she needed to give up the odd glass of wine.

  ‘I thought you could start by picking the fruits and vegetables,’ Alex said. ‘It’s been a few days and there must be loads ready.’

  ‘Fine.’ She nodded. Picking fruit and vegetables, how hard could that be?

  ‘I’ll show you where the baskets and gloves are in the morning and then I’ll leave you to it. I’m needed somewhere else.’

  Oh good. For a moment, she’d thought they’d have to work together but since he was needed somewhere else, it looked like she’d be on her own. Which was just fine by her.

  ‘Why do I need gloves? It’s just picking fruit and veg.’

  ‘You don’t, but I’m sure you don’t want to ruin those pretty little nails of yours.’

  He gestured to her hands with his knife and she looked down at them. They weren’t manicured, at least not professionally. Alex turned back to the chopping board and she stuck her tongue out at his back. Who did he think he was? So she had her nails painted, big deal. There was no need to be a dick about it.

  ‘I don’t need gloves,’ she replied and took another long sip of her wine to stop herself from firing a bitchy comment back at him.

  He shrugged. ‘There’s quite a few bugs too, since they don’t use pesticides. Snails, spiders, centipedes…’

  Unease crept up Selina’s back. She hated bugs, spiders in particular. Her method of dealing with them was to suck them up in the vacuum cleaner. He slid the vegetables into a frying pan and when she didn’t reply, he turned and looked at her.

  ‘Not a fan of bugs?’

  Selina shrugged and took another sip of wine.

  ‘Are you sure you’re cut out for this place? You could always leave tomorrow and head down south. It might suit you better.’

  She scrunched her eyebrows together and looked right back at him.

  ‘Thanks for your concern, but I’ll be just fine.’

  ‘Suit yourself.’ Alex smirked again and turned to carry on cooking.

  As the aroma of sizzling vegetables filled the kitchen, Selina fought the urge to throw her glass at his head. If nothing else, it would be a terrible waste of perfectly good wine.

  ‘Is there anything I can do to help with the dinner?’ she asked, wishing she had something to do other than let Alex get to her.

  ‘Nope. Everyone brings one dish each. I’ve got ours control.’

  She looked at his back as he tossed the vegetables in the pan. Why did that feel like a dig at her, as if he thought she weren’t even capable of putting some pasta to boil?

  London felt a million miles away and even though she’d hated the way he’d said it earlier, he’d been right. She wasn’t in Kansas anymore, but if he could stick it out there then she bloody well could too.

  Day Two

  Chapter Three

  Alex looked at the freshly sanded beam and nodded to himself. For the last few days, he’d worked more than the hours expected for the exchange, but he’d finally finished. He jumped down from the raised floor, looked up at the new storage hut and removed the mask from his face.

  He was proud to have been a part of its construction and he’d worked overtime because he’d wanted to see it through to the end. It was the first time he’d ever built anything like this and Philipe had been a great mentor. He’d shown him how to do everything from making windows to fitting the doors and installing the guttering. It had been just the two of them working on it and every day, Alex marvelled at how much they’d done in such a small space of time.

  Out of everyone in Colinas Verde, Philipe was the one who interested him the most. Everyone referred to him as The Captain because he’d sailed to Ibiza forty-years ago from western France and never left. He was sixty-eight but looked at least a decade younger, and could do pretty much everything that needed to be done - building a hut, fixing the plumbing, wiring up the solar panels - just to name a few. If he could be like anyone when he got older, Alex hoped to be someone like Philipe.

  ‘Philipe?’ Alex called over the noise from the small radio. When he didn’t get a reply, he walked around the side of the hut to see him hauling huge planks of wood into a pile.

  Philipe looked up at him. ‘All done?’

  Alex nodded and lifted the other end of the plank to help. It was rough and warm in his hands. ‘When do we start painting?’

  ‘Not today. It will rain.’

  They put the plank onto the pile and Philipe picked up a small, grubby towel from the ground to wipe his face, slick with sweat. Rain? Alex looked up into the expanse of cloudless sky and frowned. It had been wall-to-wall sunshine ever since he’d arrived and it didn’t look like today would be any different.

  'Anyway,' Philipe said, 'I don't think we have enough paint. Maybe you could go to Canderas and get some more?'

  'Sure, no problem,' Alex replied. 'I'll go after lunch.'

  Sanding was hard work, and his elbow was already sore. After taking the money from Philipe, he waved goodbye and made his way across the meadow, holding his battered Converse trainers as his feet trampled over the dry ground. The brown grass, wild flowers and thistles brushed against his legs as he rubbed his elbow with a frown. The throbbing pain seemed to come right from the bone and it had taken longer to sand the hut than it should have. It was almost two years since he’d the accident that had killed his budding rock-climbing career, and the injury still played up. He tried to ignore the frustration building inside, knowing it would only lead to anger, which was pointless. It was what it was. Shit happened.

  When he reached the large section where the vegetables were planted, he stood watching Selina picking tomatoes. Clearly she hadn’t done anything like it before. It was almost as if she was scared of bruising them by handling them too firmly. Either that or she was finding the various insects too much to deal with.

  He didn’t know what it was about her that annoyed him so much. It could be her perfectly painted nails, the ridiculous shoes she’d worn yesterday, or the fact that despite being clearly out of her depth, she refused to acknowledge as much. She obvio
usly had a competitive, stubborn streak. When he'd walked into the kitchen that morning at precisely eight a.m., she was sitting at the kitchen table as if she'd been waiting there for ages with bright eyes and a make-up free face. He couldn’t help but notice how much better she looked without it. Alex shook his head. She might have given up the make-up for a day, but she was still out of her depth and if she had any sense, she’d leave and go somewhere else.

  It bugged him that after keeping to himself for three months, she’d walked in and the promise he'd made started to feel hollow, at best. No girls. That was what he’d told himself when he’d left Berlin. He didn’t even want to feel attraction to anyone, but then he’d seen Selina receiving a warm welcome from Loki and he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head since. The only way he knew how to deal with his frustration at her arrival was to try and get her to leave. He'd already seen how easy it was to wind her up and if she insisted on staying then he intended to have as much fun with it as he could.

  He treaded lightly on the ground, intending to sneak up on her but there was no need. Black wires trailed from her ears to her pocket, and she was singing. He put his shoes on the ground and listened to her tuneless voice for a few seconds. He stepped up right behind her and looked at the tantalisingly smooth skin on her bare shoulders before grabbing them.

  Selina screamed and dropped the basket as she spun around, ripping the headphones from her ears.

  ‘You scared the life out of me,’ she hissed. ‘How old are you? Twelve?’

  ‘Thirteen, actually.’ He couldn’t stop the laugh building inside. There was something about Selina that made him revert to his teenage years and the need for one-upmanship.

  ‘They’re probably all bruised now, thanks to you.’ She shook her head and bent down to pick up the tomatoes that had scattered onto the floor from the basket.

  He crouched down to help collect them. ‘They’re only tomatoes. You should lighten up a bit.’

  ‘So I can be all Zen like you, walking around barefoot like some kind of new age hippy? No thanks. And I don’t need your help, I can manage just fine.’