Being Shirley (20 page)

“He walked out on me.” His bottom lip dropped.

“You had a fight! Couples fight—that is how they clear the air before moving on. David needed some breathing space and now he is obviously ready to talk but if you don’t let him know that you are ready to listen, then the pair of you will remain in this stupid stand-off.”
It was so glaringly obvious
, Annie thought with frustration. “Come on, what are you waiting for? Text him now.”

“Do you think I should?” Carl pushed his fringe out of his eyes and Annie detected the flicker of hope in them as he looked up at her. “What if he doesn’t want to know?”

“Well, at least it will be better than being in limbo like you are now, won’t it? Besides, he wouldn’t have bothered to wish you a happy birthday if he wasn’t keen to patch things up.”

“I guess.” He stood and swiped the dust from the back of his shorts with his phone in hand. “I am going to wander down to the beach for a bit to think about what I want to say.”

“Good for you.” Annie got up and gave him a hug. “It will be fine. You’ll see.” As he padded across the burnt blades of grass, she hoped for his sake she was right.

Annie’s face was buried in the pillow as she lay on her stomach in the single bed, dimly aware of a spring in the mattress that dug into her hip bone. Her eyes were shut and she wished that the little hammer that tip-tapped away inside her brain would give it a rest. It was confirmation that she had indeed consumed far too much Retsina when she dined with Carl, Kassia, and the rest of the Bikakis family yesterday evening. Perhaps that third carafe of wine had been a bit over the top and she should have accepted a second helping of Mama’s delicious moussaka when it was offered to her. But she hadn’t wanted to seem greedy. Besides, she had been so busy enjoying the banter around the table that she’d barely noticed just how much of the potent wine she had managed to tip down her throat.

Okay, so spontaneously hugging a startled Spiros before she told him that she was so happy he and Kassia had met and married because otherwise Mateo and Nikolos wouldn’t exist should have been a clue that it might be time to bid the alcoholic beverages goodnight. She hadn’t left it there, though. Annie groaned aloud as she recalled how she had gone on to state that as they were the most gorgeous children to ever walk the earth, it would have been a tragedy had they never been born. Yes, she decided, still refusing to open her eyes and greet the cold light of day, that should have been the giveaway that it was time for a glass of water because even by Greek standards she had been a bit over the top.

Carl, however, had the good sense to take himself off to bed at a reasonable time and now she wished she’d followed his lead instead of agreeing that an after-dinner aperitif of Raki was a splendid idea. Now that she thought about it, Carl had been subdued by his normal standards, especially given the party atmosphere last night. She hoped he hadn’t received a short shrift reply from David. She hadn’t had a chance to talk to him before he went to bed.
Oh well
, she thought as she rolled over onto her back and then wished she hadn’t as it took a moment for her brain to catch up with her body;
she’d find out if he had heard back from him today
.

She massaged her temples. She hoped Kas’s head wasn’t in the process of doing a Morris dance, too, because she could only imagine what it would be like to feel the way she did right at this moment and have to sort the demands of two little boys out as well. Life did not stand still when you were a mother—hangover or no hangover. This would probably be one morning when she’d be more than happy to let Mama take over where Mateo and Nikolos were concerned. She became aware that she was being watched. She noticed her bedroom door had opened a crack and as she looked over the side of her bed, her eyes met a pair of yellowy, green ones. “Oh hello Adonis,” she croaked. She reached to give him a pat. It was all the invitation he needed and with a mewl, he leaped up on the bed, rotated a couple of times and settled himself down in the crook of her knees. She remembered Jazz doing the same and the warmth of the bundle curled up against her was comforting. She was just dozing off, lulled by his purring, when a herd of stampeding wildebeests sounded from somewhere above her head. Annie’s eyes flew open; she looked up at the sloped ceiling and remembered the locale of her room under the stairs. Guests heading down for breakfast, she surmised and reminded herself not to smack her head on the ceiling when she sat up. Kassia had been concerned that she would find the room too noisy but Annie had assured her that it was just perfect.

“You should be in that kitchen, helping to get breakfast ready for the guests and earning your keep, not lying here like a giant sloth, Annie Rivers.” She scratched behind the cat’s ears. “Sorry, Adonis. I am going to have to love you and leave you.” She willed herself to get moving and tossed back the covers. As she sat up, she promptly smacked her head on the ceiling.

***

“How are you feeling this morning?” Spiros winked across the table at Annie as she pulled a chair out and sat down opposite him. She tried to summon up a smile and hoped it wasn’t a grimace. Nikolos was perched in his highchair next to his father and flicked yoghurt about while Mateo on the other side chomped his way through a thick slice of jammy brown bread. The homely scene was comforting.

“I have been better, thank you, Spiros,” Annie croaked as a glass of water and a packet of pills were slapped down in front of her. She turned her head to find Carl stood behind her and smirked knowingly.

“That will teach you to be a lush. I thought you might need a couple of those.”

“And a coffee would be wonderful.” Annie looked at him hopefully. Her nose twitched at the smell of thick and heavy liquid gold wafting around what was obviously the heart of this home.

“Seeing as it’s you, sweetheart.”

She popped a couple of painkillers before she glanced round the kitchen. Mama, an array of pots and pans dangling above her head from a rack, wielded an egg whisk. She’d already greeted Annie with a cheery—and in her fragile condition, far too loud—good morning. Carl poured her a coffee from the pot that warmed on the stove and at that moment the door to the dining room swung open as Kassia, having used her rear to push it open, backed into the kitchen. Annie caught a glimpse through to the dining room of a middle-aged couple buttering their toast. They were seated at the table by the window.
You’d pay an absolute fortune to eat your toast in front of a vista like that at home
, Annie thought as the door closed. She watched as Kassia deftly deposited the assortment of dirty dishes she balanced onto the bench alongside a pile of washing up. She wiped her hands on her apron and then turned to Annie. Her face broke into a wide smile.

“Ah, you are up and about! I hope you are feeling alright?”
She obviously was
, Annie thought and wondered whether her friend’s cheeriness could be due to her having hollow legs.

“I will be in a minute when these kick in, thanks.” She waved the packet of pills.

“I see you have showered—you found the towels I left outside your room for you last night then?”

“Yes, thanks.” Annie was aware that her freshly shampooed hair was probably drying into tight corkscrews and she ran her fingers through them in an attempt to straighten the inevitable frizz. Mateo watched with fascination and his little hand snaked out to give them another good tug. His father swiped his hand away and barked at him. Annie didn’t need to speak Greek to know that it was along the lines of, “Don’t even think about it.” She wouldn’t have minded if the little boy had.

“The horrible Mr Palmer and his wife were last up and they are eating now, so I think maybe some toast and scrambled eggs will fix us both, yes?” Annie nodded, not having the energy to inquire as to what made Mr Palmer horrible as Kassia asked, “Carl, are you hungry?”

“No, I’ve had some of that delicious yoghurt and toast. I’m fine, thanks.” He patted his middle.

“Go sit down, Kassia. I am already making the eggs.” Mama pushed her daughter-in-law in the small of her back towards the table. She rolled her eyes and did as she was told.

“Where’s Alexandros?” Annie asked innocently. As she sat down, Kassia raised an eyebrow towards her husband. “Yes, Spiros, where’s your little brother?”

He looked sheepish and busied himself wiping up Nikolos’s tray. “He has taken a guest out on the boat for the morning. He promised to show her the sights.”

Kassia lips pursed. She muttered, “You see, Annie, Carl—what did I tell you? He is just like that man in your
Shirley Valentine
.”

Carl snorted and everybody looked at him in alarm. “I’m fine—my coffee just went down the wrong way, that’s all.”

“Who is this Shirley Valentine?” Mama called over.

“Nobody, Mama.”

Mama shook her head and muttered something as she stirred the eggs about the pan.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t up earlier. I should have been giving you a hand.” Annie took a sip of her coffee as the pills slowly worked their magic.

“Don’t be silly, we manage fine. Carl did a good job at being our waiter this morning seeing as Alexandros is off playing the friendly tour guide once again. Carl here—he has a way with the guests—a—oh, what do you call it?” Kassia frowned and searched for the correct word.

“A banter? Rapport maybe?” Annie supplied.

“Yes, yes, both of these.”

Carl looked pleased. “I enjoyed myself. That couple from Manchester liked a bit of a laugh. I’m no virgin either.”

This time Annie snorted.

“Don’t lower the tone.” Carl shot her a look. “I paid my way through polytechnic by waiting tables. The tips I earned on top of my wages paid for my camera equipment.”

Mama placed two heaped plates down in front of Kassia and Annie. “Eat up, girls. This one here, she is too skinny.” Annie looked up and felt a bit like Hansel’s Gretel as she squeezed her arm.

“This looks wonderful, thank you, Mama.” She didn’t need to be told to eat up twice; her poor tummy cried out for sustenance. She picked up her knife and fork to tuck in as the older woman went over to Nikolos and clucked him under the chin. She worked her way round the table to pat Mateo on the head and told him he could go and play as she picked up his crumb-filled plate.

Annie glanced over at Kassia. Her shoulders had visibly tensed as she kept her eyes fixed on her plate.

“So what are you going to do today?” Spiros asked, oblivious of his wife’s irritation. He went over to the sink and came back with a wet cloth to wipe Nikolos’s face and hands with.

Annie put her fork down and looked over at Carl, who shrugged. “We’d like to help you, so give us some jobs to do and we’ll roll up our sleeves and get stuck in.”

“No, no! You go and explore Elounda—you are our guests.”

“Well, at least let us sort the dishes out.” Annie glanced guiltily over at the pile on the bench but Mama was already busy stacking them in the dishwasher.

Kassia, who pushed the eggs around her plate but hadn’t eaten more than a few mouthfuls, said, “I have the rooms to make up and some paperwork to catch up on this morning, so why don’t you two wander into the village and have a good look around. Maybe later if the boat is back, Spiros will take you across to Spinalonga.”

“We’ll help you make up the guests rooms.”

“And I could clean the bathroom,” Annie added.

“There is always tomorrow to help out. Today, we want you to go and enjoy yourselves.”

***

“So come on then, did you text David?” Annie and Carl meandered at a snail’s pace. Their respective jandals slapped along pavement you could fry an egg on that would take them back up to the main road and then down to the village. Carl’s arm was linked through Annie’s and they both smelled like coconut thanks to the copious amounts of sunscreen they had slapped on before they left Eleni’s. As she squeezed a generous dollop from the bottle earlier, she rubbed the cream into her off-white legs with a derisive sniff. She knew a decent tan was a lost cause. “I can’t get over the mahogany colour of some of the tourists about the place, especially the Germans. They’ve obviously never heard of sun safety.”

“Or the fact that the wearing of Speedos when you have a hairy stomach and look nine months gone is offensive to some viewers.” Carl held his hand out for the bottle of Le Tan.

Now as Annie looked up at him, his expression was inscrutable thanks to the hat that shaded his face and set of Ray-Bans that gave nothing away.

“I did, actually.”

“And?” She tugged at his arm impatiently.

“And I am going home.”

“What?” Her jaw dropped as his words pulled her up short.

He stopped and placed a hand on either side of her shoulders. “Well, now that my mission is complete and I have delivered you into the bosom of the Bikakis family safe and sound, I am going to go home. It’s been wonderful. I have loved every minute of our little holiday together.” He frowned. “Well, almost every minute but I’ve been away long enough and David wants to give things another go and—” He shrugged. “So do I. I miss him, Annie.”

“But what about me? I’ll miss you.” Her lip quivered. This great big adventure she was on suddenly seemed daunting without her trusty albeit sometimes annoying travel companion at her side.

“And I you, Annie, my sweets, but you will be fine. You are where you need to be for a little while longer, I think.”

“Hmm.” She shook his arms off, not ready to be convinced, and they wandered along in silence for a few moments until she broke it. “Carl?”

“Yes?”

“I am really happy for you.”

“I know you are, sweetheart. I know.” They stopped and had a quick hug, both agreeing as they quickly untangled themselves that it was too hot to engage in that kind of carry-on for long.

“So when do you think you are going to go?”

“As soon as I can. I’ll sort out my ferry ticket back to Athens today and go from there.”

***

The village of Elounda was a bustling mix of smartly dressed locals touting for customers outside their tavernas and swarthy seamen in cut-off shorts who offered boat rides to the island of Spinalonga. All the while, their targeted tourists wandered in and out of the shops that abutted the busy port in various states of undress. It was a scene that was watched over by the square’s prominent clock tower. Annie and Carl paused to squint at the burnished copper view of Spinalonga out in the harbour. The former leper colony was a surreal rocky mass floating a short distance out to sea. The buildings it was home to looked as though they had been carved straight from the brown rocks on which they sat. Carl fished around inside his day pack and produced their guide book. He flicked through the pages for a moment until he found what he was after. His eyes skimmed over the text. “According to this, Spinalonga has been used as a Venetian fortress, a castle colony, and as a rebel refuge before it became a leper colony in 1903. Oh, and listen to this, the last leper died there in 1953.”