LOVE'S GHOST (a romance) (22 page)

I hadn’t told him what I’d like painted, I’d given him a free hand. He’d chosen to portray the transition of day into night, then back again into day. On the left hand side of the wall, the sun crept over the horizon, rising and falling as you looked along the wall’s length. It was then replaced by the moon and stars. That in turn was usurped by the sun again. He’d almost finished. It was a wonderful piece, capturing the essence of the light on the island.

“You’ve done a good job,” I said.

“Thank you, señorita,” he replied.

“I’d say it was better than Banksy.”

“That’s very kind of you.”

I smiled at him. That dark hair and those dark eyes had the effect of broadening my smile.

He went on, “But I think the work is a little derivative.”

“Well, yes,” I said. “It does remind me of Gaugin.”

“Gaugin?”

“Yes.”

“I was thinking more of Carl Rask.”

“No, no, no. It’s far superior to his work.”

“You think?”

“Yes. Definitely.”

Carl put down his paintbrush and stood with his arms akimbo. “That’s fighting talk.”

“It certainly is,” I said.

Carl took a couple of steps towards me and I threw my arms around him. He lifted me up and spun me around a couple of times, which made me howl with delight. It was so good to see him again, good to feel his firm embrace. He put me down gently.

“Good journey?” he asked.

“Not bad.”

“Jax dropped by earlier with the deeds. I’ve swept the floor and arranged for a plasterer to drop by later to give us a quote.”

“Thank you.” I glanced around again. “Isn’t it a wonderful place?”

“It is.”

We both stared out at the beautiful view. Hills rose on either side of the inlet. The sea was a vivid blue and as calm as a garden pond.

“I’ve got some photos of house we can look at,” he said.

“You
have
been busy.”

Carl put his arm around me and gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze.
 

“Any regrets?” he asked.

“None.”
 

And it was true. I was a little apprehensive. Who wouldn’t be, starting a new life abroad? And with a man who had a chequered history when it came to relationships. Of course, this radical decision could just have been a reaction to Russell’s death, but I wanted to take that chance. To boil it down to life’s essentials, in the end Carl just “did it for me”. My heart still beat faster whenever I saw him. So why not take that chance?

“I’ve underestimated the amount of paint I need,” he said. “Are you going to be all right on your own for half an hour?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll be as quick as I can.”

Carl had bought a scooter. What better way to explore such a beautiful island? We brushed fingers as he walked past. Carl made me want to smile all the time. I don’t think I’d ever felt like that.

I watched him ride away, the little engine whining as it took him up the coastal road. I didn’t take my eyes off of him until he was out of sight.

With a bit of sunshine and a warming breeze, a whole pile of work doesn’t look so bad. When I opened the door to the bar, I was greeted by the barest of rooms. We had decided to gut the inside and start again. The only part that was still standing in the main bar area was the bar itself. There were a couple of shelves built into the walls, which were back to their original stone texture.

It was a blank canvas. But it was a large canvas. And we had planning permission to add other buildings. By the time we finished, the place would be a riot of colour, a place people would talk about and travel for miles to visit.

But for now, I wandered through an empty bar, my footsteps echoing on the bare concrete floor, kicking up dust with my heels.

I stopped and faced the windows that framed the idyllic view. A boat similar to Carl’s cruised along the water.

“I don’t know what to think about it.” The voice came from behind me. “I’ve tried again and again to think about it, and I still don’t know.”

I knew that voice. But I thought the man it belonged to had gone for good. I hadn’t conjured up his image for weeks. Yes, I’d thought about him, but in a quiet way — I’d not had a conversation with him.

“I want you to be happy. Of course I want you to be happy. But this is so drastic. Are you sure this is what you want? You didn’t need to throw in your lot with Carl. Not so soon. You could have just come out here for a couple of months on your own. Come out to regroup.”

I turned and saw the vague outline of Russell, as I imagined he would sit at the bar.

“Is it too soon?” I asked him.

“I don’t know. Is it?”

“I don’t know.”

Russell shrugged. “No, it’s not too soon. Life rarely runs to an ideal timetable.”

“I’m surprised I’m thinking about you at this particular moment.”

“Sorry to ruin the party.”

I couldn’t help but smile at the remark.

Russell stood up and surveyed the place. “You really think you can make a go of this place?”

“You always said I could do more with my career. You were right that I wasn’t at home in the fashion world. You always had faith in me, Russell.”

He nodded. “Yes, I did. It’s a shame that I’m not here to see how you turned out.”

I sighed. I didn’t know whether to smile or cry. “Yes, it is. Maybe we would have got on all right after the split. Maybe we would have found a way to be friends again. I would have liked that. It might have taken a while, but I would have liked that.”

“Yes, I think I would have liked that, too.”

Russell walked over to the window and I followed him.

“That’s quite a view,” he said. “Quite a view.”

“It is.”

A couple of months ago I would have broken down at this point. But not today. It wasn’t a sad thing, talking to Russell. It was strangely comforting. His presence was strangely reassuring.

“I could go. I could disappear from your life completely,” he said. “If you want me to.”

I thought about it. But I couldn’t think of an answer.

So Russell carried on. “It would give you, and that Carl guy, a bit of space.”

A waterskier went by, bouncing up and down on the water at high speed.

“We’ll see,” I finally said. “This is a big step for me. A huge step. I might need your advice occasionally. If that’s okay.”

“Of course it’s okay.”

“Thank you.”

“It’s a pleasure.”

We both stared at the waterskier. I felt sure that going at that speed it was only a matter of time before he tumbled. But despite the rough ride, he kept his balance and hung on.

I turned to my right, but Russell was gone.
 

Thank you…

Thank you for reading
Love's Ghost
. If you enjoyed it, please consider posting a review where you bought it. It helps other people discover the book and this new author.

If you'd like to hear about future novels by T. S. Ellis, simply sign up to the mailing list. Your email address will be kept private and not passed on to any third party. And you will only be sent emails when there is a new work by T. S. Ellis.

The mailing address can be found at
http://tsellis4.wix.com/ellis