Confetti & Confusion

by Confetti

  Millie chatted to Jen for a few more minutes, asking about Sofia’s swimming lessons and Lily’s birthday cake which, predictably, had a ballerina theme. She had loved reconnecting across the miles, but she didn’t feel any better than she had before she had called. In fact, she could now add a large dollop of homesickness to her expanding list of ailments.

  ‘Okay, I’d better let you get to bed or you’ll be too tired to control the happy hordes tomorrow. Send my love to Mum, and to Oscar and the girls.’

  ‘I will. Love you, Millie.’

  ‘You too.’

  Millie sat back in her chair, tipped her chin upwards and stared at the sky. After a few seconds of contemplation, she was sure she saw a shooting star amongst the millions of others scattered across the inky blue canopy overhead. She quickly made a wish, but watching the cosmic spectacle from a seat in the Grand Circle alone didn’t offer the same pleasure as it would have if there had been someone to share it with. Jen was right. Life was better when there was someone special by your side.

  A heavy mantle of fatigue descended. It had been a long and stressful day, and even though it was barely nine o’clock she decided that in her current mood of melancholy there was nothing else to do but to curl up in bed and partake in a bout of self-indulgent weeping.

  Chapter Twelve

  Millie woke early and for a few blissful seconds she wallowed in the luxury of the morning’s birdsong. The sun bleached through the muslin curtains and from the slice of pale blue between the drapes she could see it was going to be another blissful day in paradise. Then reality hit and she groaned out loud. Why had she thought it was a good idea to leave the clearing up until today?

  She leapt out of bed and straight into the shower to blast away the cobwebs. She was relieved to see it was only six-thirty so she had plenty of time to erase the evidence of the previous day’s culinary exploits.

  She wasn’t entirely sure whether Imogen and her friends would be coming over to the Paradise Cookery School that day – what would have been, in normal circumstances, the final day of Claudia’s Chocolate & Confetti course. When they had left in their hire car the previous day she had simply left the choice up to them, assuring Imogen that she and Ella would be there from ten o’clock onwards. They could either have a full day’s tuition on making chocolate eclairs and profiteroles as per the original itinerary Claudia had planned or they could make a mountain of cupcakes and decorate them with a variety of exotic toppings – an activity that Gracie could join in with. Or, if they all had better things to do, like organising the whole wedding ceremony singlehandedly because of the situation with the disappearing wedding planner, and preferred to give the last day a miss, then that was fine too.

  Millie had to admit she was disappointed the course hadn’t run as smoothly as she had hoped but, thankfully, that had nothing to do with her or Ella’s organisational skills. She knew Julia had emailed Claudia to personally apologise for what had happened. Claudia had immediately offered to refund the course fee but Julia wouldn’t hear of it, singing Millie and Ella’s praises as not only fantastic pastry chefs and course presenters, but awesome human beings for coming to their rescue with the replacement wedding cake and creating the favours.

  Millie checked her phone but there were no messages. She refused to admit to herself that what she was secretly hoping for was a text from Zach explaining exactly what had happened the previous day when he had been summoned to the airport to collect Chloe. Did his lack of contact mean that they had resumed their relationship? Or had he simply met Chloe in order to reiterate his assertion that he wasn’t interested in getting engaged – the reason Chloe had terminated their relationship in the first place. Millie was totally confused at her sudden reappearance, especially as the last thing Zach had told her about Chloe was that he had heard through the grapevine that she was engaged. So what was going on?

  Millie heaved a sigh and slid her toes into her sparkly flip-flops. If she thought about the Zach and Chloe situation any longer there was a risk her head might explode, so she prescribed herself a morning of scrubbing the kitchen floor and workstations as therapy for her dalliance with confusion. She flicked on the radio and, with the reggae rhythms to aid progress, she was finished by eight o’clock.

  She ground a handful of roasted coffee beans, made herself a cafetière of the best coffee in the world, and took her mug out onto the veranda. Three more days to enjoy the wonderful view, the tranquillity of the villa and its grounds, and the friendships she had made during three weeks’ sabbatical from her job at the little patisserie in Hammersmith. She stared at the scene in front of her, trying to fix every tiny detail in her mind’s eye so she would be able to conjure up the image on those drab, grey, drizzle-soaked days that London was so apt to produce.

  She must have nodded off because the next thing she knew a warm tongue was caressing her fingers and she was woken by an enthusiastic bark of welcome.

  ‘Oh, hi, Binks!’ Millie smiled at the spaniel’s friendly face, her heart performing a swift somersault in anticipation of seeing Zach. But there was no sign of him. ‘How did you get…?’

  ‘Binks? Binks? Come back here!’

  Millie peered over the balcony onto the poolside terrace below the veranda where a woman was patting her knees in an attempt to persuade Binks to return to heel, but he simply stood on the top step, his tongue hanging from his mouth, and ignored her. As tall and willowy as a supermodel, Binks’s new friend shielded her eyes and noticed Millie for the first time.

  ‘Oh, I’m so sorry for intruding. Is Binks disturbing you?’

  ‘Not at all. He’s very welcome here. I think he wants a drink, though.’

  Millie jumped up from her seat and surreptitiously ran her eyes over her visitor before disappearing into the kitchen to fetch a bowl of water for Binks.

  ‘Can I offer you a coffee?’ she called over her shoulder. ‘I’ve just made a fresh cafetière.’

  ‘I’d love one, thanks. I’m Chloe, by the way.’

  ‘Hello, Chloe. I’m Amelia.’

  Millie paused for a few seconds whilst pouring the milk into a china jug. She never introduced herself as Amelia, always Millie, but for some reason she had felt the necessity to use her Sunday name in the presence of Zach’s, well… was she his ex-girlfriend or current partner, or maybe even his fiancée?

  ‘Ah, yes, you’re the cook, aren’t you?’ Chloe sniffed before slumping down into the chair Millie had just vacated and arranging her diaphanous scarlet sundress into perfect folds around her knees. Her appearance was so polished that she could have graced a glamorous photoshoot without any retouching. Every inch of her skin had been professionally bronzed and her short auburn hair had been carefully teased into random waves to give it that ‘just-tumbled-out-of-bed’ look. Millie wondered if that was true. Had Chloe just left Zach snoozing in his wooden lodge to take Binks for a quick walk? But Zach was an early riser, so did that mean that…

  A spasm of something Millie didn’t want to label shot through her veins. She quickly shoved the disturbing emotion to one side and plastered a smile on her face when she handed Chloe her coffee and took a seat across the table from her.

  ‘I am a cook, yes. But I actually prefer the term chef, although my current job title is cookery course presenter here at the Paradise Cookery School. No doubt Zach told you about Claudia’s horse-riding accident?’

  ‘Oh yes, Zach tells me everything.’

  Chloe smiled but the gesture didn’t reach her jade green eyes that had been highlighted with gold eyeliner and the longest false eyelashes Millie had seen. She noticed that whilst Chloe fidgeted with the handle of her coffee cup, she resolutely refused to raise it to her lips. As the initial shock of meeting Chloe receded, a wave of curiosity rolled over Millie. Whilst she was by no means an expert in the interpretation of body language, it was clear to even the most casual onlooker that her visitor was agitated. Millie wondered when she would get around to spitting out what she had obviously
made a special trip to say.

  ‘I thought I’d let Zach have a lie in this morning. He’s been working far too hard since he arrived in St Lucia. Is it true that he had to help you tidy up and clean the kitchen after one of your cookery sessions?’

  ‘Well…’

  ‘You know that’s not his job, don’t you? This is a huge plantation to manage, never mind the fact that he’s had to organise and lead the quad bike safari and the treasure hunt – that’s a lot for one guy. Anyway, now I’m here, he won’t have any time to help you out. When are you leaving for the UK?’

  Millie was taken aback by the directness of Chloe’s conversation. She was being made to feel like a naughty schoolgirl who had taken up too much of her teacher’s time with her antics and was now being told in no uncertain terms that from now on she would have to fend for herself. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She didn’t want to appear rude, but she wasn’t about to let Chloe believe that it had been her, or Ella, who had been the instigator of Zach’s invaluable assistance in the kitchen.

  ‘Actually, I think if you ask Zach, he’ll tell you that there was no coercion involved. He very kindly offered to help Ella and I with the clearing up after a very hectic day in the cookery school because of a dreadful incident at the hotel where Imogen’s wonderful wedding cake was destroyed by a fire…’

  ‘That’s not Zach’s fault, though, is it? And if you’re so busy, how have you found the time for a jaunt to Castries market and wherever else you’ve been? I had to wait ages for Zach to collect me from the airport because he was busy being your tour guide.’

  ‘Again, I think you need to have a conversation with Zach about that.’

  Millie was about to continue with a self-justifying explanation that on each and every occasion she had been on a trip with Zach, whether it was for a drink at the Purple Parrot, a hike up the Pitons, or a very pleasurable sojourn in the tiny wooden cabin during the daily burst of liquid sunshine, the excursions had been at Zach’s instigation, not hers – especially the zip wire flight at Treetops Adventures! However, it struck her that she had no need to explain anything to Chloe, who had clearly only turned up on her veranda that morning to wrangle information out of her about Zach’s movements whilst he’d been in the Caribbean and she had no intention of playing that game.

  The air between them crackled with discomfort until Binks returned from drinking his fill and gave Millie’s hand an affection lick of thanks.

  ‘You seem to be rather familiar with Binks?’

  Millie smiled at Zach’s faithful canine companion, running her fingers over his smooth coat. ‘I think it’s because he knows there’s always a treat to be found here.’

  ‘You do know that baked goods are bad for dogs, don’t you?’

  ‘Of course, I…’

  ‘And humans, for that matter.’ Chloe patted her flat stomach before casting a critical eye over Millie’s contours.

  The thoroughness of the unexpected scrutiny caused a flare of indignation to ignite inside Millie. Whilst she was a perfectly normal weight, she certainly wasn’t as slender as Chloe, which, coupled with her height, actually made her look a little on the gaunt side. She opened her mouth to respond, but Chloe must have noticed the look of incredulity on Millie’s face at the overtly personal comment, because she sensibly decided to switch tack.

  ‘It’s really beautiful here, isn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, it is…’

  ‘I’m so pleased Zach and I are able to have this time together. I’m not sure whether he mentioned that we broke up briefly a few weeks ago, but now we’re back together it’s as though we’re enjoying an early honeymoon.’

  ‘A honeymoon?’ Millie spluttered before she could stop herself.

  Chloe laughed, a high tinkling false sound. ‘Well, not exactly, but who knows what will happen in such a tropical paradise? Love amongst the palm trees? Eh? Anyway, I must be making tracks. Zach will be wondering where I am and he doesn’t like to be kept waiting. We’re planning a romantic boat trip to Martinique today. Have you been?’

  ‘No, as I said, I haven’t had much time to sightsee. I’m not on holiday!’

  ‘Oh well. Good luck with the baking.’

  Chloe called Binks to heel and he obediently trotted off in her wake as she made her way to the end of the veranda, the ribbons of her sunhat rippling in the breeze like the tails of a kite. She walked as though she was on a catwalk, swinging her hips but keeping her head high and still.

  Millie opened her mouth to call goodbye but quickly closed it again. She had been left in no doubt whatsoever that she had just been well and truly warned off from fraternising with the hunky cocoa plantation manager, Zach Barker. Despite her acute sense of loss of their blossoming friendship, Millie found her lips twitch upwards. She would bet her favourite handbag that Chloe would never in a million years have ended up rolling in a ditch with Zach or have agreed to swap her Louboutins for Skechers to channel her inner Tinkerbell on an exhilarating journey through the tropical foliage.

  A chuckle erupted from her throat, followed by a deep belly laugh that Ella would be proud of. She laughed and laughed until tears trickled down her cheeks. She had no idea what Chloe did for a living, but if she were an actress she would have been awarded the wooden spoon in the contest for the ‘most transparent attempt to warn off a love rival’. She would have had more respect for the woman if she had screamed from the poolside ‘hands off my man, you harlot!’ and ran away.

  She wondered what Zach saw in Chloe. In contrast to his girlfriend, he was nothing if not straightforward and honest to the point of rudeness. And why had he changed his mind so quickly about resuming their relationship? But Millie knew she was the last person to ask for answers when it came to the task of unravelling the mysteries of romance.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It was true what they said. A good laugh is the best medicine for an aching heart. When Millie dried her eyes on a piece of kitchen towel, her spirits had ascended a couple of notches up the happiness scale. She carried her empty mug and Chloe’s untouched coffee into the kitchen, rinsed them in the sink and put them back in the cupboard. Perhaps Zach’s obsessive neatness was starting to rub off on her at last.

  She checked her watch. Nine o’clock. She wondered what the day would have in store. She was expecting Ella to arrive at nine-thirty but she still hadn’t heard anything from Imogen or Julia so had no idea whether she would have any students interested in learning how to make choux pastry. She decided that if no one turned up, she would suggest to Ella that they took a trip down to Soufrière to see how Lottie was getting on in her managerial role at the Purple Parrot.

  ‘Morning, Millie. Isn’t it another wonderful day?’ chirped Ella as she hooked the handles of her huge canvas bag over her shoulder so she could wave goodbye to Henri, who had dropped her off in the courtyard with a farewell toot to Millie.

  ‘Mmm,’ said Millie, her tone non-commital.

  ‘Okay, before we go any further, I want you to tell me what’s going on. And don’t say “nothing, I’m fine” because I’ve been a mother for twenty-eight years and I’ve heard every avoidance tactic in the book so I know when something’s festering.’

  Ella plonked her well-padded bottom into the cane chair next to Millie, folded her arms over her voluminous Kermit-green kaftan, and levelled her gaze at Millie, her lips pursed in expectation.

  Millie scanned her brain for a suitable alternate scenario that didn’t feature Zach in the lead role, and which would satisfy Ella’s line of questioning but came up with a blank. She opened her mouth to speak but no words issued forth, so she closed it before opening it again.

  ‘Don’t just sit there like a gobsmacked goldfish. Speak up. It’s Zach, isn’t it? I noticed he was somewhat conspicuous by his absence yesterday. What’s happened? Have you had a falling out?’

  ‘Not as such.’

  ‘So what is it?’

  ‘His girlfriend has arrived from the UK.’

&nbs
p; ‘His girlfriend? Are you sure, dear? I would have thought that if Zach had a girlfriend we would have heard all about her. Perhaps you’re mistaken. Maybe his visitor is his sister.’

  ‘Zach doesn’t have a sister. It’s Chloe, his ex. Don’t look at me like that. She called round here an hour ago on the pretext of an early morning walk with Binks but it was really so she could make it quite clear that she was with Zach and I should keep my hands off her man.’ Millie grimaced when she thought of the encounter.

  ‘A little melodramatic, don’t you think?’

  ‘Chloe has nothing to worry about. Zach and I are just friends. But, Ella, I have to admit that it was a shock when she arrived out of the blue and demanded that Zach collect her from the airport. We’d just had the most fabulous time zip lining through the rainforest yesterday morning. I thought… well, I thought we had a connection, something I had never felt with Luke. When I’m with Zach he makes me feel as if I can do anything, that I can conquer my worst fears – and enjoy myself while I’m doing it.’

  Millie allowed her lips to turn upwards, her go-to expression when she recalled their adventure flying through the tropical treetops like a pair of carefree monkeys.

  ‘I’m certain that Zach is still your friend, Millie.’

  ‘So why hasn’t he contacted me since Chloe arrived? He sped off to the airport and I haven’t heard from him since. Friends don’t do that. No, it looks like he and Chloe have reconciled and she’s here in St Lucia to have a good time and wants him all to herself.’

  Millie fiddled with the friendship bracelet Lottie had made for her the previous week and experienced a sudden urge to weep. Would it always be the same outcome for her whenever she made a tentative foray into the dating jungle? It seemed that every time she cracked open a tiny chink in her armour, disaster managed to wheedle its way in and blast her heart apart.