Lovestruck

by Bronwyn Sell

  ‘I did indeed,’ Pippa said. ‘Carmen, I believe you have instructions for me?’

  ‘Uh, actually, no.’

  ‘You must have had discussions with the previous photographer.’

  ‘Oh no,’ Carmen said, waving away the suggestion from where she sat at the table, across from Amy. ‘It’s all really casual, you know. A simple beach ceremony. No one’s going to that much effort. Making it all up as we go along. Going with the flow.’

  Amy was impressed that the rest of her family managed to let that pass without even a snort.

  ‘Right,’ Pippa said dubiously.

  ‘But I do have a map of the layout of the ceremony.’ A swish as Carmen drew a piece of paper from her fat colour-coded and tagged wedding file. ‘This will show you the position of the sun as the ceremony progresses, and the likely wind directions, but I guess you probably don’t need that last particular detail for the photos.’ Another swish, another piece of paper. ‘And here’s the timetable of events for the day.’ Swish. ‘Plus, the tide chart—you’ll see the ceremony’s timed for mid-outgoing tide so we have enough sand but the bay looks nice and full and sparkly. And …’ Swish. ‘I printed out a copy of the rain radar as of twenty minutes ago and the latest Bureau of Meteorology forecast and observations, so you’ve got the humidity and wind and air pressure and temperature and UV index. Not sure what of that you’ll need, but Amy can give us an updated analysis of the likely climatic conditions once she’s had a chance to catch up with it. She was scheduled to have it done by seven-fifteen but she got … held up.’

  Quite literally, at that point of the morning.

  Carmen passed the sheets across the table, and Amy caught the flash of Pippa’s hand collecting them. After a few seconds and some rattling of paper, Pippa murmured something that may have been a swear word.

  ‘Josh can probably show you around the locations,’ Carmen said.

  ‘Happy to,’ he said. ‘And maybe we could go for breakfast? I’m pretty hungry.’

  ‘I’m sure you are,’ his mother said.

  ‘Aims,’ Jaz whispered in Amy’s ear, ‘The back of your neck is blushing.’

  Amy whipped her hands up to cover it as the door started to slide closed.

  ‘Oh, leave it open,’ Rosa said, coming out from behind the kitchen counter, ‘it’s nice to get the breeze. Just going with the flow here,’ she called, presumably to Josh and Pippa’s retreating backs. ‘All really casual!’

  Jaz and Geoff tittered. It wasn’t often that Rosa managed to pull off a burn.

  ‘Shut up,’ Carmen said, sliding the insect screen across.

  And the verbal ping-pong recommenced. Amy wasn’t sure if it was helpful or unhelpful to have her parents, aunt and niece there to ward off further discussion between her and Carmen about Josh. On one hand, she didn’t know if she wanted to discuss it. On the other, it meant she spent the next hour or so holding intense discussions in her head, and at the end of it she hadn’t reached any conclusions except that it was definitely over between her and Josh. Which implied there was something to be over, which there wasn’t. And how much of it was over? Could they return to their easy friendship now?

  ‘And speaking of comings and goings,’ Jaz began, as she applied Amy’s makeup. ‘Aims, stop wincing, you’re smudging your eyeliner. What was I saying?’

  ‘Probably something you shouldn’t,’ Amy said.

  ‘Oh yes. I hear a certain son of mine had an overnight visitor.’

  Amy mentally fist-pumped even as she mentally gagged her aunt.

  ‘Sorry to break it to you, Jaz, but that’s hardly news,’ Rosa said.

  ‘Not number two son. Number one.’

  ‘Whaaat? Not the bride?’

  ‘The very one. Of course, I’m not supposed to know this, which means you’re not supposed to know. But Harry should know that it’s impossible to keep a dirty little secret around here.’ Jaz patted Amy’s chin. ‘There. That nasty jellyfish sting is covered up now, Aims. Your skin’s all smooth. Practically virginal.’

  ‘Thanks,’ Amy said through her teeth.

  ‘Why am I always the last to know about everything?’ Rosa said. Carmen and Amy shared a look.

  When Jaz had finished everyone’s makeup and hair, Amy gratefully shut herself into Carmen’s room, laid the dress bag on the bed and unzipped it. The dress might not be black but it was a shade of midnight blue that reminded her of night swimming, a fitted silky number with a flared, floaty skirt that just begged to tango.

  She gasped. Underwear. In her hurry to escape Pippa, she’d left it in her bedroom next door. The dress had a built-in bra, but she couldn’t go without undies. She took a step to the door. Aaand, she’d also left her key in the apartment. She couldn’t even get through the connecting door. It needed to be unlocked on both sides, and she’d made certain it was locked from the other side last night.

  ‘You could borrow some of my knickers?’ Carmen suggested after Amy explained the problem.

  ‘Like I’d fit anything in your wardrobe that’s not a scarf. And I need my dancing undies.’

  ‘Shhh!’ Rosa said.

  ‘Stand down, Mum. Dad knows about the dance.’

  Rosa gave a faint whine.

  ‘It’ll still be a surprise,’ Geoff said quickly, ‘and Sanjay has no idea. He thinks Josh and Amy are getting it on. Can you believe that?’

  ‘No, really?’ Rosa said, and not sarcastically.

  Carmen sprang for the door. ‘I’ll grab the key from Josh and bring it back up. I need to check that Grandma and Li Wei and Pop and Sylvia got here all right on the boat anyway.’

  ‘Don’t tell Josh what the emergency is,’ Amy said.

  ‘As if I would.’ Carmen beckoned Mika. ‘Come on, sweetheart, we’ll get you a snack while we’re there.’

  ‘Smoked cwocidile?’ Mika said hopefully.

  Jaz began to repack her Tardis. ‘I’ll pop back to the spa to start on my own hair and makeup.’

  Rosa raised her eyebrows at Amy. Like Jaz didn’t already look amazing. ‘We’d better get down to the function room,’ she said, taking Geoff’s arm. ‘See you there!’ They walked off, leaning into each other and whispering and giggling like it was them getting married. Amy frowned. Was her mum secretly hurting inside?

  While she waited, Amy returned to Carmen’s bedroom. She’d just zipped up the dress when footsteps sounded on the veranda.

  ‘That was quick,’ she said, returning to the living room. ‘I was—’ But it wasn’t Carmen opening the insect screen. It was Josh. Alone. ‘Crikey,’ she said, just as he said something way less family-rated. He wore a white shirt and black trousers with a pale-blue bow tie and cummerbund, and it all fit like it was tailored for a modelling shoot.

  ‘You look …’ he said. He swore again under his breath.

  ‘So do you,’ she squeaked.

  ‘Do you straight-up have nothing on under that?’

  She gave a tiny groan. ‘I’m going to kill Carmen.’

  ‘I’ll take that as a yes,’ he said, inhaling his words. He sauntered to their apartment—her mother’s apartment—unlocked the door and pulled it open, holding out an arm to usher her inside. ‘I don’t know which sister is my favourite anymore, Carmen for telling me that, or you for—’

  ‘I think we’ve moved way beyond the S-word.’

  ‘The S-word? Oh, sister?’

  ‘Shut up. And stop looking at me like you can see right through my dress.’ And stop heating me up from the inside. What was wrong with her? He’d lied to her. Deliberately deceived her, in fact, which was one notch worse. He may even have used her precisely because there couldn’t be a future in it. But she couldn’t bust him for his lies about the money without getting her dad in trouble. And he’d been upfront about his track record with women, and his intentions. Her naivety was the bigger problem. She’d known the risks, she’d signed the waiver, and now she was upset she’d got burned?

  Falling bloody coconuts!

&nbs
p; He closed the door behind him and went to kiss her. She brought her palm up, protecting her mouth and chin.

  His brow puckered. ‘Aims, about my mum showing up, please don’t take any of that personally. She’s never been the nurturing type. And I was a jerk for picking an argument earlier. I was just … Look, I don’t even know what I was doing. But I’m sorry. Total dick move on my part. Won’t happen again.’

  ‘It really was. And I really needed to hear that. But just now I was thinking more that you have no idea how long it took Jaz to apply this lipstick. I’m afraid to even swallow.’ She wasn’t even going to start on the pash rash, let alone the other very good reasons they shouldn’t be kissing, or doing anything else.

  He gave a devilish grin. ‘I know somewhere else my mouth can go where it won’t smudge a thing.’

  ‘Oh.’ Yep, he was a seriously sexy demon in a seriously sexy suit, and she could swear she felt cogs turning inside her, lining up in preparation for a repeat of their earlier adventures.

  With one finger, he traced a line down her cleavage. ‘You look incredible. I’m not used to seeing you in colour. I promise I won’t smudge or crumple you. I’ll just make you glow a little more. And only you and I will know why.’

  He replaced his finger with his lips and she sighed. And this did not mean she forgave him for deceiving her, or that this thing between them would continue past this morning. One last time would make no difference.

  He stepped away from her, locked the door and drew the curtain across, all the time with his eyes trained on hers like they had an appetite of their own. ‘I can’t believe I actually get to bang the bridesmaid.’

  ‘That’s gross, and I’m a groomswoman.’

  He prowled toward her with that sinful smile and it turned out that as well as having no self-respect, she had no self-control.

  Trip Review: Curlew Bay

  Rating:

  Review: My friends all had a good time but I just couldn’t get into it.

  35

  Josh

  Josh reluctantly left the apartment after not nearly enough time alone with Amy, heading for Viggo’s, which was a welcome long walk. She’d insisted they leave separately, several minutes apart, which gave the whole hook-up a new level of intrigue.

  He loved and hated that they’d gone there. Because the sex had been phenomenal. But a one-time-only thing had already turned into a … six-time thing? Seven? And as much as he’d adored hearing her stifled cries just now, they’d had to leave it way before he was ready to, seeing as they’d fallen behind on the wedding schedule and neither wanted to incur the wrath of Carmen. That silky dress—hoh boy. Amy had transformed from a girl-next-door fantasy into a siren from a whole other world of possibility, and there was so much unfinished business in that.

  Outside Viggo’s villa, Josh reset his face with a look that he hoped said I definitely didn’t just go down on my stepsister, and knocked.

  ‘Ready to sign your life away, Sanjay?’ he said as his father opened the door. He stepped into air-conditioning set about a degree above freezing, and thank Christ for that.

  ‘If by that you mean, am I ready to spend the rest of my life with someone who makes me happy, then, yes, I believe I am.’ Sanjay drew a beer from the fridge, opened it and handed it to Josh. ‘Don’t tell Carmen. There’s a strict no-alcohol-until-after-the-vows rule.’

  ‘Good call to set the air-con to hypothermic. It’s warming up out there.’ Josh hung his jacket on the drying rack and sat on the sofa next to Viggo. ‘Pippa’s setting up her equipment down at the beach.’ Josh noted Viggo’s disapproving glance in Sanjay’s direction. Seemed like everyone but Sanjay knew it was a bad idea. ‘You know that if I’ve figured out it was all a ruse to get her here, it’s a matter of time before she does.’

  ‘She’s never known what’s good for her, a bit like her son.’ Sanjay settled into the armchair. ‘If she hadn’t wanted to come, she would have turned me down flat.’

  ‘She didn’t want to come. She said no from the beginning.’

  ‘So I had to find a way to bring her here without thinking she was losing face. And I knew she otherwise wouldn’t have accepted me paying her expenses, and paying fairly for her professional skills, of course. She wants to be here, Josh. I know how hard it’s been for you to not have much of a family. It’s been hard for her too.’

  Josh put his beer down on the coffee table before even taking a sip. That look on her face when she’d found out Amy was Geoff’s daughter … She wasn’t just disgusted in her son, she was hurt too. ‘I know it has, Pa.’

  ‘I’ve always been lucky to have a tribe of friends who are my family.’ Sanjay raised his beer toward Viggo, who solemnly clinked it. ‘She’s a loner, like you. She hasn’t had that.’

  ‘And what? This is supposed to show her what she can’t have?’

  ‘This is supposed to show her she’s welcome in our lives. She’s always been welcome. Viggo’s asked Rosa to ensure she feels like part of the family.’

  ‘You can’t make her feel something she doesn’t want to feel.’ You can’t control everything and everyone.

  Leaning forward, Sanjay drew invisible circles on the table with the base of his beer bottle. ‘It’s not a perfect situation. Never has been, never will be. But I all but gave up on her after we split and that’s one of my biggest regrets, and I want to make it right. Look, this way she’ll have her camera to keep her busy—literally viewing everything through a lens. You know how much she hates small talk and sitting around and, you know, people.’

  ‘It won’t be too much of a squeeze in the apartment, Josh?’ Viggo said. ‘Rosa reckoned there’d be plenty of space.’

  ‘It’ll be fine,’ Josh lied. ‘How long have you been planning this? You only rang Pippa yesterday.’

  ‘Like I said, I had to wait until the last minute.’ Sanjay’s steely tone warned Josh to leave it at that.

  Wait. Had Sanjay brought Pippa over and installed her in Josh’s apartment as a chaperone? Now Josh and Amy would have to go around the backs of all of their parents, plus Amy’s other relatives. And sure, the fact he was already thinking about how to get around them meant he wasn’t ready to let go of this thing. Because, man, she made him feel good. She simultaneously heated him up and cooled him down—like a life-threatening fever.

  ‘Having a good holiday, Josh?’ Viggo said, playing the mediator, as always. ‘Haven’t seen much of you.’

  And what level of hidden meaning was in that? Amy was sure Rosa didn’t suspect anything, but did Viggo? ‘I could say the same of you.’

  Viggo chuckled, leaning back in his seat. Despite being back in a suit, he looked less strung-out than usual.

  ‘What happens next with you and Rosa?’ Josh said.

  ‘I’m trying not to think about that. She’s an incredible woman but it’s not like I can live up here, and she’s entrenched on the island. It’d be a challenge to make anything work long-term.’

  ‘Does she know that?’

  ‘We’ve been upfront with each other, sure.’

  As had Josh and Amy. But now he wasn’t sure which of those rules still applied.

  Trip Review: Curlew Bay

  Rating:

  Review: Dodgy phone reception and wi-fi. I spent the whole week trying to upload my photos to social media. It didn’t even look like I’d been on holiday!

  36

  Amy

  Geoff fiddled with his tie for the twenty-hundredth time since they’d taken up their ‘starting position’ for the ceremony (so named on Carmen’s annotated sat-map) on the steps that led from the pavilion deck to the beach. ‘I’m not so sure I can go through with this wedding,’ he said.

  ‘What are you talking about?’ There was an edge in Carmen’s voice. She glanced at Amy. Nerves?

  ‘What’s brought this on?’ Amy said.

  ‘Because I think I’m in love with whoever that is.’ Geoff pointed down the beach, in the direction of the jetty. ‘It’s the full An Offi
cer and a Gentleman.’

  A man was jogging their way, dressed in head-to-toe naval whites.

  ‘The captain,’ Carmen said. ‘What’s he doing here?’

  Geoff gave a low wolf-whistle. ‘Are those medals? Oh heart, be still.’ He went to adjust his hair.

  ‘Dad!’ Amy smacked his hand with her posy. ‘Have you seen the guy you’re about to marry?’

  ‘I’m kidding,’ he said, leaning sideways into her. ‘I’m reasonably sure I can go through with it. Ooh, he’s coming this way. Ten-hut!’

  The captain pulled up at the bottom step. ‘So sorry I’m late. Got a bit stuck—literally stuck. The G-Wagon got bogged in the mangroves. Know where I might find Jasmine?’

  ‘Aunt Jaz?’ Carmen pointed halfway down the beach. ‘There, with the rest of the guests.’

  He wiped an invisible speck from an epaulette. ‘Uh, she invited me as her plus-one. That okay?’

  ‘Sure it is,’ Geoff said, descending the stairs and shaking his hand a touch too enthusiastically. ‘You’re just in time. We’re expecting the Russian invasion any second.’

  The captain looked down at his clothes. ‘I didn’t have a suit, sorry.’

  ‘Fine with me, but I’m gonna need sunglasses.’

  ‘You’d better hurry,’ Carmen said, looking at her watch. ‘We’re starting in two minutes, forty-eight seconds—and where’s Mum? She should have been here seventeen minutes ago.’

  ‘She’s getting a drink,’ Geoff said, returning to his position as the captain jogged away. ‘Of water,’ he hurriedly added.

  ‘Is anyone else coming I don’t know about?’ Carmen hissed. ‘Now I need to get a place set for him and do up another placename. If the kitchen is short of meals, I’m giving him Jaz’s. And her chair. It’s not like we can pop down to the shops for an extra lamb rack.’ She looked around. ‘Oh no, where’s Mika? She was right here!’ They’d only just finished cleaning up Mika’s white satin dress in the bathroom, after a soy sauce incident.