A Family Holiday (22 page)

‘Right,’ said Charlie, and Blue smiled before getting to his feet.

‘You don’t have to leave,’ she said, feeling the colour rush to her cheeks. She thought she’d been promised a kiss and now she really wanted it.

‘I think I probably should go,’ he said lingering, ‘but
…
’

‘You’re not great at making decisions, are you?’ said Charlie lightly as she stood up. Blue shrugged and gave her a cheeky smile. He stepped forward and Charlie held her breath. As Blue leaned slowly forward she closed her eyes. She waited. Charlie’s cheeks were still burning and she was starting to feel awkward. At last Blue’s lips met hers with the lightest of kisses, sending shivers all over her body like city lights coming back on after a power cut.

She opened her eyes to see Blue looking coy. She could no longer hear the tree frogs, only the thump of her own pulse in her ears. He stood and stared at her but said nothing. ‘So, anyway, I’m going to bed,’ she said, finishing her beer and picking up Blue’s empty bottle.

‘Okay, ‘night,’ said Blue and he jogged down the steps and disappeared. That wasn’t the effect she had hoped the mention of bed would have on him. She sighed. It was probably for the best. It was the drink and the effect of Shirley Heights getting to her, and she knew sex was a complication they didn’t need. Charlie wandered inside and set about tidying up in the faint hope that it would return her heart rate to normal.

Upstairs Charlie checked on the girls, who were both fast asleep. She retrieved Pooh from the floor and pushed him gently into Millie’s arms. She shut their bedroom door and went across the landing to her own room. It was dark and she padded straight through to the en suite. As she flicked on the light, she saw movement in the bedroom and she grabbed the nearest thing to a weapon she could find.

‘Please don’t make me look like Edna Turnblad!’ said Blue, in mock horror at the sight of Charlie wielding a can of hairspray.

‘You complete idiot, I could have sprayed this in your eyes! What are you doing?’ She lowered her weapon and took in the sight of Blue in just his snugly fitted briefs, lying on her bed that was now strewn with bright-orange flowers.

‘I’m being romantic and spontaneous and you said you were going to bed.’ He patted the bed next to him and the flowers bounced about.

‘They better not stain that white cover or Berta will be after us,’ Charlie grinned at him. He was fun and she was already imagining what sex with him was going to be like and she knew that was going to be fun too.

‘They’re from the Flamboyant tree,’ he said with a grin. ‘I think I might have brought in a couple of bugs as well, actually,’ said Blue, sweeping them to the floor before leaping back on, ‘no pressure,’ he grinned as he stroked the space next to him.

Charlie thought for a nanosecond then ran and jumped on the bed next to him and through stifled laughter they kissed each other. It wasn’t a particularly coordinated affair but it felt right and it was urgent and exciting. Charlie yanked her dress off over her head and got a bit stuck. ‘Er, help me, could you?’ she asked, her voice muffled by the dress.

‘I could,’ purred Blue, ‘or I could slowly torture you,’ he said, pushing her back onto the bed and feathering kisses across the tiny sliver of exposed skin above her knicker-line. Charlie wriggled a little in an attempt to free herself from the dress and Blue relented and started to pull the dress off for her. The dress revealed Charlie’s stomach and as it did so she heard a gasp from Blue, but couldn’t see what was happening because the dress was still covering her head.

‘Holy crap! What the hell is that?’ said Blue staring at Charlie’s midriff. Realisation dawned and she no longer wanted her face visible. Total embarrassment was seeping through her. He pulled the dress off her to reveal she had her eyes tight shut. He returned his attention to what was probably the worst tattoo ever inked. It had the face of some sort of black creature in the centre and then something that looked like feathers on its head. Thankfully it was only small, although that didn’t diminish its ghastliness.

‘Could you just not look at it?’ mumbled Charlie, her stomach muscles clenched, partly from the touch of Blue’s fingers and partly from the gut-twisting embarrassment.

‘Is it a cross between Darth Vader and the Indian from the Village People?’ he said, twisting his head to try and work it out.

‘Don’t,’ groaned Charlie.

‘There must be a story here,’ said Blue as he traced his fingers over the faded blue and black lines on her abs.

Charlie sighed heavily, ‘I was seventeen, a mate said they knew someone who was training to be a tattooist and would do it for free,’ she said, with her eyes still closed and her concentration waning as Blue’s fingers continued to trace the pattern on her flesh.

Blue studied it a little closer, ‘I still have absolutely no idea what it is. Could it be the devil wearing a chicken for a hat?’ he shuffled down the bed to have a closer look from a different angle and Charlie groaned.

Charlie took a deep breath and sat up. ‘It’s meant to be a panther’s head. It means strength and courage.’

‘Right, and is that a scar or part of the feather pattern on its head?’

‘It has wings, to symbolise peace and freedom,’ said Charlie, ignoring the comment about her scar. The scar was the whole reason she had got it done. Every time she had caught sight of her scar it had reminded her of her operation and the fact that she could never be a mother. The tattoo was meant to hide it. They both stared at the discoloured artwork.

‘Do you, um, like how it turned out?’ said Blue, failing to stifle his laughter.

Charlie gave him a playful slap, ‘I hate it. I hated it the minute I saw it, but it was too late.’

‘Oh, it’s not that bad,’ he said, having another look. A grin spread across his face, ‘Actually, it’s frigging hideous,’ said Blue eventually, and Charlie started to laugh. ‘Seriously, it’s awful,’ said Blue, his face now edging towards Charlie’s.

‘Someone once told me that if this was the biggest mistake I made in my life I would be doing okay. So, I kind of judge things against the tattoo.’

‘Right, so am I a mistake and if so how do I measure up to the tattoo?’ he breathed.

‘I fear you are going to come close,’ said Charlie, feeling her pulse quicken. The frenzied kissing started again and they found they were no more co-ordinated than the last time. Charlie tugged off her underwear and was quickly pulling a naked Blue on top of her. Blue groaned and Charlie quickly put her hand to his mouth. ‘Shh, no noise, we mustn’t wake the children.’

The sex was hot and sweaty and very physical and they found themselves lying on the bed trying to catch their breath. When her breathing had returned to almost normal Charlie went to get her pants but was pulled back on the bed by Blue.

‘Er, excuse me, don’t love me and leave me. I haven’t finished with you yet,’ and he drew her into his arms and kissed her. This time it was slow and measured and Charlie felt her muscles relax as she melted into it. She was so tight against him she could barely breathe. She ran her hands over the arms that held her and squeezed the solid muscles of his biceps. There was no getting away from it, Blue had the most amazing body and Charlie was happy to explore it some more. She didn’t like the sense of being trapped beneath Blue, though she wasn’t afraid, but she pushed him off her and he released her immediately.

‘Are you okay?’ There was concern in his voice.

‘My turn on top,’ she said straddling him. She felt totally uninhibited with him and that was a turn-on in itself. She leant forward and looked into his eyes, those ridiculously blue eyes, and kissed him slowly at first but her own desire soon increased the speed.

‘You are so my kind of woman,’ he said and she stifled another moan from him as she slid herself onto her target. He took hold of her backside and moved to the rhythm that Charlie was dictating. The sensations pulsed through her body until she finally arched her back and shuddered.

‘Slowly!’ she pleaded and he released his grip and drew her into his arms. He kissed her lightly on the lips.

‘You are something else, Charlie,’ he said and he kissed her again.

Charlie smiled as she retrieved her clothes, which were scattered around the room. She felt like such a hussy but it had been fun and the odd thing was that although it was the last thing she’d thought she needed, it turned out it was exactly the right thing. She picked up Blue’s t-shirt, folded it carefully and put it on the bed. He would be out of the shower in a minute or two. She reached for his trousers and as she lifted them from their prone position the pocket contents scattered across the floor, making a noise. Charlie winced at the sound, quickly threw the trousers onto the bed and started to collect the scattered items: a bunch of keys, some coins, a printed email and a yo-yo.

As she stuffed the things back into the trouser pocket she caught sight of her name on the email. She didn’t mean to pry but she thought her eyes were playing tricks so she had to have a closer look to prove to herself she hadn’t imagined it.

The email was confirmation of Felix’s agreement for Ruth to be the children’s guardian and to relinquish Charlie of her duties – and it was dated two days ago. She was effectively sacked, so was she now here with the children illegally? She heard the water stop in the shower and shoved the email back into his pocket and folded the trousers. Charlie jumped back into bed and pulled up the covers. She didn’t feel as uninhibited all of a sudden.

Blue emerged from the bathroom with a towel slung low around his hips and he was rubbing his hair dry with a small towel. He caught sight of Charlie sitting up in bed and checked his watch.

‘I don’t have time for a repeat performance, I’m afraid, but there’s always tomorrow,’ he said as he leaned over to kiss her. Charlie froze. It suddenly all felt wrong and she could feel the fire of temper start to burn inside her.

‘You okay?’ he asked, taking in her rigid form.

‘I thought I heard one of the children. They’ll be in here in a minute and I don’t want them to see you here.’ It was only a half-lie.

‘I understand. I promise they’ll never know I was here,’ he said, pulling his t-shirt on and running his fingers through his wet hair, which amazingly seemed to be all it needed to style it. Charlie studied him as he tugged on his clothes. When she looked at him now she could see a glimpse of perhaps what George would look like as he matured; the fair hair, the full lips and the distinct jawline.

He noticed her studying him and his smile radiated something akin to desire in her direction. Blue finished getting dressed and leaned across the bed to kiss Charlie, who was still staring intently at him. Blue grazed her lips. Briefly it lightened her heart and she felt her shoulders relax. She closed her eyes and let him kiss her. What was happening?

There was the faint sound of small bare feet padding across the landing and Charlie took a sharp intake of breath. Blue studied her face for a moment.

‘You’re beautiful, Charlie. I’ll see you later,’ and before she could start to panic and work out where to hide him he was climbing over the white-painted balcony railings. She watched him until her bedroom door opened and she had to drag her eyes away. Millie toddled in, yawning, and stood at the side of the bed with her arms in the air, waiting for Charlie to pick her up. She pulled Millie into bed, relishing the little person clinging to her and let her tears silently seep into the pillow.

A couple of days later, Charlie was spending another morning on autopilot, realising that they already had a fairly set routine; they stayed around the villa and pool in the morning then went down to the beach in the afternoon. It was oddly comforting to her. Lunch was a quiet affair with sandwiches and salad on the veranda. Charlie re-basted the children in factor fifty and gathered up the usual collection of towels and buckets and they headed down the now-familiar path to the beach. With the afternoon sun warming them, they walked along to the background noise of George jabbering on about sharks.

‘Charlie, can I talk to you about Blue?’ asked Ted tentatively and Charlie felt her eyes widen involuntarily. She slowed her pace to let the others get slightly ahead and for once was pleased that George was increasing his volume. She sucked in air and waited for the accusations to fly, but nothing came.

‘Out with it, Ted!’ Her impatience underlining the words.

‘He’s actually okay. Right?’

‘I’m the wrong person to ask, Ted. I thought I was good at judging people but I don’t think I’m as good at it as I thought I was.’

‘Riiiight,’ said Ted slowly. He appeared to sense Charlie’s mood but could not understand why. ‘Anyway, yesterday Blue said that he could do with a hand with the boats, because Tigi doesn’t work as much as he used to, and I thought I might offer to help him while we’re here. What do you think?’

Charlie let out the breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding in. ‘I don’t see why not. I’d ask him what he’s paying first,’ she said, looking across at Ted for the first time.

‘I’m not doing it for free, I’m no goon,’ he said, giving her a playful punch on the arm and she swung a bucket at him.

The beach was quiet and they went to their usual patch, halfway between the beach bar and the sea urchins, and set up their things. Millie and the yellow bucket were almost a blur as she ran up and down in the shallow water squealing happily at her simple game. Charlie sat on the towel, hugging her knees; her mind was full of so many thoughts but her dominant thought was what the hell was Blue up to? She wanted to challenge him on his motivations for spending the night with her. Was it guilt at giving the go-ahead for her to be sacked or perhaps it was a leaving gift? She suddenly felt that she was running out of time and she needed to have a conversation with him about the children. But as Blue was working it would have to wait.

Ted was on child-watch and was supervising the build of an intricate multiple castle-and-moat system while Charlie was engrossed in her latest holiday read. After a few minutes she heard Ted whistle. She nudged her sunglasses onto the top of her head, turned down the corner of her paperback and sat up. Blue was helping tourists out of a boat and onto the small wooden jetty and Ted was now jogging along the beach towards him. Clearly he’d felt that a whistle was enough of a handover in the child-minding department. Charlie watched them exchange greetings and Ted helped the last few passengers off the boat. Blue scanned the beach and, catching sight of Charlie looking in his direction, he waved enthusiastically. Charlie faltered before discreetly putting her hand up in acknowledgement; she could see him grinning even from this distance.

Ted and Blue were laughing as they meandered back along the beach and Charlie could feel her impatience growing. Ted and Blue shook hands and Blue jogged over to Charlie. With George, Eleanor and Millie all manning the moat and fully occupied by trying to bail it out, Charlie saw this as her chance to speak to Blue. She had given herself a good talking to and was happy she knew what she was going to say.

‘I’ve done a deal with Ted. He’s going to do a spot of child-minding while we get a drink, assuming you fancy one,’ said Blue, his warm disarming smile not working quite as well as it once had.

‘Yeah, that would be good,’ she said, getting to her feet and pulling on her beach dress. Ted gave her the thumbs-up in between digging furiously to save the sandcastles.

They bought drinks and found a table on the edge of the bar area, away from anyone else. After a few swigs of rum punch, Charlie felt the pleasant warmth in her gut and hoped that would be enough to get her through the conversation.

‘So, Felix, when were you going to tell me I’d lost my job?’ said Charlie, her voice even and measured in total contrast to her emotions. ‘I read the email this morning.’

Blue hesitated for a second as he was about to take a sip of his beer but he recovered quickly. ‘Please don’t call me that. That was someone I left behind nearly six years ago.’

‘Okay, Blue, so if I’m sacked, does this now count as child-kidnap or do I hand them over to you before Ruth gets me arrested?’

‘Ruth doesn’t know you’re here. I stalled as long as I could before answering her email.’

‘Not long enough though, eh?’

Sweat glistened on his top lip. ‘I can’t help the children. Ruth can. I’m really sorry you and her don’t get on but…’

‘They need you, Blue. They need someone who loves them.’

Blue picked up his beer and took a few gulps before placing the condensation-covered bottle on the table and scowling at it.

‘So that was why you came here,’ he said, turning his eyes back onto Charlie. A glint of something cold was visible in them now.

‘No, I came here because Toby booked a holiday and, if you remember, you had buggered off without telling anyone where you were going. And hang on a minute – if you knew I was sacked and now possibly about to be arrested, why did you sleep with me?’ she could feel her annoyance building.

Blue started to laugh and shake his head. ‘Because, Charlie, despite my best efforts you have walked into my life and turned everything onto its arse.’ His sad eyes were fixed on hers.

Charlie’s temper was building at a rate of knots, ‘Stop it, Blue, you’re making this worse. Let’s leave you and me out of it.’ Charlie felt the unwelcome emotion catch in her throat and she took one more sip of rum punch before getting to her feet. ‘You know where I am when you’re ready to talk
…
about the children.’