Waves of Betrayal (The Isabel Marsh Trilogy Book 1) (12 page)

In the cool, spacious, air-conditioned kitchen Leanne finds María perched on a tall cushioned stool with a back rest, rubbing her forehead with her manicured hand. ‘We have to choose ten from this list, the caterers tell me,’ she says, as she turns to Leanne, holding out the list of printed canapés, ‘and the lights are proving to be difficult to install... the DJ won’t arrive until ten o’clock now and I’m still not sure we have ordered enough champagne...’

Leanne pulls herself up onto the stool next to Marcos’s mother and scans the list of delicacies. The assortment is incredible. ‘How do they even come up with this many?!’ she smiles, shaking her head in disbelief, ‘look, María,
cariño,
calm down. It will all be amazing. It’s an engagement party, not a wedding and I’m sure everyone will have a wonderful time! The last thing we need is a stressed-out hostess. How can you expect anyone to relax and enjoy themselves if you’re running around having palpitations?!’ she laughs lightly, rubbing Maria’s shoulder in sympathy.

Leanne scans the list, runs a perfect French-manicured nail over her lips and continues. ‘Firstly, we’ll have music from Marcos’s iPod anyway, so it really doesn’t matter what time the DJ arrives. Secondly, who cares about lights?? The pool is lit up anyway, so is the terrace. We’re hardly going to be in the dark! Thirdly, we’ll have more than enough to drink. Remember, practically every second person will be driving home, unless they live close enough to get a taxi... and don’t even start worrying about soft drinks!’ Leanne laughs, anticipating her next question. ‘Now, canapé’s, let’s see...’

‘I’m so glad you’re here Lea. You and Marcos are going to be so happy together. I just want everything to be perfect for you,’ she says full of emotion, as tears threaten to spill down her cheeks.

‘And it will be, you’ll see. Right... the prawn and Marie-Rose sauce definitely, mozzarella and tomato, goats cheese and caramelised onion, anchovies... ooohhh and smoked salmon and cream cheese, my favourite! Now
you
choose five and we’re done!’ says Leanne cheerily, having ticked her “top five”.

As Maria chooses the remaining five, Leanne wanders over to the fridge and pours them both a glass of cava. She chuckles, as she looks over at her, chewing the end of the pen as if struggling with a particularly difficult multiple-choice exam!

‘Done!’ Maria declares happily, placing the pen down on the work surface and accepting the glass of bubbly from Leanne.

‘Now, what are you wearing tonight
mamá
?!’ Leanne asks.

‘Oh, I do love it when you call me that!’ smiles Maria, taking a sip of her drink, ‘I’m not going to scare the young people by getting into my bikini so I bought myself a new dress especially. You’ll see it later! Its hanging on my wardrobe door. I love it! Not too over the top but very
me
!’ she chuckles.

Leanne instantly has an image in her head. María is very straight-laced and traditional. It will be a calf-length, beige cotton dress with a lace cardigan or something similar, she smiles to herself.

‘Don’t tell me... a gold backless number?!’ she teases, as María begins to relax and joins in the laughter.

‘And whatever you wear, you’ll look gorgeous!’ smiles María proudly, ‘what time do your parents arrive?’

‘They landed early this morning so I expect they’ll be having a nap at their hotel. They’ll be here by about 7.30 p.m. I think. Now, if there are no more emergencies, I think I’m going to go and get ready. Marcos and I are in the ‘Blue suite’ tonight, aren’t we?’

‘Yes darling, of course. Marcos brought all of the things you asked for over to the house this morning. Let me know if you need anything
cielo,
’ says María and she kisses Leanne fondly on both cheeks.

‘I
think we can safely say that we caught some rays today Iz. And look...’ Rachel turns around proudly in her towel on the roof terrace, ‘no strap marks, whoooo!’

Isabel raises her eyebrows, impressed. ‘Right, now you’ve plucked and waxed yourself to oblivion are you going to join me in a pre-party glass of cava in this hot tub or not? I’m getting lonely up here!’ she laughs.

‘Hang on a minute, don’t blame me! It’s only because you spent three hours in there before me!’ Rachel teases.

Isabel has her recently washed hair piled up on top of her head in a band and Rachel has painted her nails a gorgeous, deep chocolate colour for her, seeing as she still struggles with her bandaged fingers.

‘You’ll do my hair later too though, yeah? I’m getting a bit nervous now. Come on, get pouring!’ Isabel adds in a voice an octave higher than usual.

‘Of course, you’ll look like a very glamourous Cleopatra by the time I’ve finished with you! But... maybe lighter on the eye-liner!’

Rachel lowers herself in the tub next to her friend and they toast to a perfect evening. ‘We’ve still got three hours before your mum and dad get here. 8.30 p.m. you said?’

‘Yes, plenty of time to get myself worked-up into a frenzy!’ Isabel laughs. ‘You know when you try on a dress in the changing rooms of a shop and you realise that it’s too small? You’re standing with your arms up in the air, the dress over your head and you suddenly have that horrible, claustrophobic feeling that you can neither pull it up or down... you’re stuck...??’

‘Hmmmmm?!...’ mumbles Rachel, giving her friend a worried glance.

‘That’s how I feel at the moment,’ says Isabel seriously, looking over the rooftops. She takes a big slug of cava.

‘Like you have a dress on your head?!’ asks Rachel, looking confused.

‘No, not literally! I mean, the panic! I’m stuck in an unavoidable situation. I want the dress but I can’t have it... I know it’s too small but I still have to go through trying it on, just in case I’m wrong. You see what I mean?’

‘Not really Iz,’ says Rachel, turning to face her friend, watching the tortured look on her face.

‘Marcos
is
the dress,’ she says adamantly.

‘Marcos is the dress?!’ Rachel repeats, frowning.

‘Yes. I
want
Marcos, but I can’t have him. He’s engaged to somebody else, someone he
fits,
somebody else... but we still have to go through the performance of seeing each other, possibly even rekindling that feeling that we felt all those years ago, but it’s futile!’

‘Iz, you really do like this bloke, don’t you?’ Rachel asks with sympathy when she suddenly realises how difficult this must be for her friend.

‘I never forgot him Rachel, I just didn’t know where he was and thought he was unobtainable, I suppose. Then I got all settled with Paul, who I still think I love, by the way, and gave up on the idea of Marcos... and now we’re going to be thrown together and it’s
all too late,
’ Isabel surprises them both with her outburst as she begins to sob angrily.

‘Oh Iz,’ sighs Rachel as she puts her arms around her best friend. ‘Listen, we can cancel the whole thing if you prefer. Call your parents?’

‘No,’ Isabel says firmly, ‘I’m just being stupid. I suppose I’ve just built the whole thing up in my head. I haven’t even seen him yet and he’s sending me loopy,’ she laughs, wiping her eyes and shaking her head at her embarrassing performance.

‘Do your mum and dad know how you feel about him?’ asks Rachel.

‘No, not at all, I mean it was thirteen years ago. I was fourteen, I don’t think they realised at the time just how much I liked him. Mum is convinced that I don’t even remember what he looks like... I remember
everything
about him, Rach!’ Isabel sighs and leans her head back against the tub. ‘His thick, wavy black hair, his long lashes, blue eyes... so intense. His perfect aquiline nose, his tanned muscular forearms... oh Rach, I really hope that he’s aged terribly, I’m not sure I’ll cope otherwise!’

They both laugh and start imagining the horrible habits he may have developed over the years, his personal hygiene issues and his recurring sexual health problems. Before long they are both roaring with laughter and Isabel finally starts to feel a lot lighter.

‘Stunning,’ says Rachel as she admires Isabel in the evening sun on their patio. ‘Told you your hair would look gorgeous with those long, loose curls. Not too fussy. Very natural looking.’

‘Thank you so much, Rach. I love it!’

‘I’m not used to seeing you with make-up either. That dark mocha lipstick matches your nails perfectly. And I’m liking the halter neck bikini underneath the dress, you sexy thing! You’ll knock ‘em dead!’

‘I’m just hoping we don’t have to deal with many steps, these wedge heels are quite difficult to balance on! I’ve got a pair of flip-flops in my bag just in case!’ Isabel giggles and steps back to admire her friend.

‘Stand up! Oh Rach, you look stunning as usual. Have you got your bikini on underneath?’

Rachel is wearing a Rip Curl, black and pink strapless maxi dress which just skims the ground. She has her hair up in a loose bun with loose curly strands framing her face. Cerise pink lipstick completes her confident look.

‘Of course. Strapless!’ answers Rachel, ‘I look forward to a bit of pool action later! Sounds like these people have money. I want to make use of the facilities
daaarhhling
’ she mocks.

The doorbell rings ‘
Ahhhhhhh,
’ screams Isabel, gripping her friends’ hands; ‘it’s time to go!’

With one last glance in the mirror, they head outside to greet Isabel’s parents.

‘M
amá, you can relax now. Here have a glass of champagne and sit down for a while. Everyone is happy, the waiters are doing a great job circulating with the drinks and canapés. Leanne and I can greet the rest of the guests as they arrive. Here..’ orders Marcos as he hands a sparkling flute to his mother and leads her to a comfortable chair on the lawn amongst her friends.
She looks beautiful
, he thinks, in a lace covered cream dress and a little cardigan over her shoulders.

There are at least forty people at the party already, gathered in groups, talking, introducing each other, laughing, and clearly enjoying the delicious food. Some of the ladies shelter under the parasols, whilst their husbands stroll around the grounds, admiring the gardens and the pool. Others have arranged loungers in the sun, to enjoy the last of the evening sun.

Marcos finds Leanne sitting on a large sofa surrounded by her girlfriends, with their own bottle of champagne in the centre of the table, laughing and clearly enjoying people-watching. He approaches them, smiling, hands in his pockets, looking very handsome in his beige trousers and his white, fitted Italian shirt. The stitching emphasising his toned torso and slim waist.

‘Hello ladies, I hope you are enjoying the evening?’ he asks, with a hint of humour in his voice.

‘Ohhh,’ says one of Leanne’s friends in a flirtatious voice, ‘very much the perfect host.’ They’re all quite tipsy already!

Slowly, Leanne gets up from the sofa and moves seductively towards him, with a cat-like grace. She is wearing a white dress, which clings to every inch of her body, leaving nothing at all to the imagination. She reminds him of the Elf Queen, Galadriel, from The Lord of the Rings, with her long blonde hair and her delicate features. She has an air of sensual confidence as she approaches Marcos and gently runs a perfectly painted, scarlet nail down his cheek, her eyes never leaving his. Her friends watch how Leanne seems to mesmerise him, teasing him as she leans slowly back from his kiss, sealing his lips with her finger tips. ‘Not here darling,’ she says in the slippery voice of a temptress. She turns away, almost laughing at the power she seems to have over him, as she re-joins her friends on the sofa.

Marcos joins in with the laughter, but feels more than a little disappointed as he realises that he has actually just been dismissed. It was a harmless joke but then he did, at least, expect her to jump up and join him afterwards. Realising that he is being played with, he excuses himself cheerfully and heads over to check on his parents.

He finds them sitting comfortably on the terrace with Leanne’s parents and two people he vaguely recognises. As he approaches, the man jumps out of his chair, arms outstretched.

‘Marcos,
cuánto me alegro de verte, hijo
.’

It takes a few seconds but he suddenly recognises him as his father’s English friend, Duncan. They embrace and Marcos slaps him firmly on the shoulder, ‘
cuánto tiempo
. It’s been years!’

Instantly he recognises Duncan’s wife, Louise. ‘You haven’t changed at all,’ laughs Marcos. ‘I had no idea you were going to be here! How lovely to see you both.’

‘You’ve grown into a very handsome young man,’ says Louise, blushing, ‘So where is the lucky lady?’ she asks.

‘She’s sitting over on the sofa there with her friends. I’ll introduce her to you later, of course,’ he says, feeling more than a little embarrassed that she isn’t with him right now.

Louise sits up in her chair and sees the group of young girls laughing and enjoying themselves on the sofa’s.

‘She’s the one in the white dress,’ he adds.

‘Wow, she’s terribly pretty Marcos. You’ll make a very handsome couple. Many congratulations,’ Louise says, standing up and kissing him on both cheeks. ‘You remember my daughter, Isabel?’

Marcos is starting to feel a bit uncomfortable. ‘But of course I do,’ he says, remembering the circumstances under which he had left their family home, ‘is she well?’

‘Well, as a matter of fact you can ask her yourself!’ she laughs lightly, ‘she’s on holiday here with a friend and I hoped that you wouldn’t mind if we extended the invitation to include them?’

‘No, of course not!’ he answers hurriedly, feeling suddenly nervous.

‘She’s just over there on the lawn with her friend, Rachel. She’s wearing a yellow dress. I’m sure she’ll be so happy to see you again after all this time!’

Marcos scans the lawn discretely, in case she is looking in his direction... then he sees her.
Oh my god! Isabel!

Leanne swaps the empty bottle for a full one and they all scream with excitement as she shakes the bottle spraying them all with champagne.

‘God you’re so lucky to be marrying in to such a rich family Lea’ says Tracy, who works as a receptionist at the same hotel. ‘I mean who wouldn’t want all this?’ she sweeps her arm around dramatically, taking in the pool, palm trees, statues and water features. ‘This party must have cost a bomb!’