The Love Resort (16 page)

*

‘I will not have it,’ Anne-Marie screeched.

Lily, Ed and Abigail had all been summoned.

‘Listen, darling, they were probably overexcited. I’m sure that today they’ll be perfectly well-behaved,’ Abigail reasoned.

After Anne-Marie stormed out, the six winners had kept them in stitches with their ridiculous cocktails and their ideas for the resort. Ed, Lily and Abigail had all stayed with them, being entertained. No one thought about Anne-Marie at all.

‘Abigail, with all due respect, even taking that into account, not only did they get drunk and upset the bar staff by trying to do their jobs, but as soon as they left the horrific dinner, they all ended up in the pool, fully clothed, and no one is supposed to go in the pool after seven p.m. I made that clear at the welcome meeting.’

‘They’re young,’ Ed said. ‘That’s what young people do.’ There was an accusatory hint in his voice.

‘Not the young people I expected, not the young people I wanted. And I have to report that one of them, I don’t know who, broke the padlock on the bar last night and stole bottles.’

‘It’s all-inclusive; you can’t steal something that’s all-inclusive.’

‘Well, then, Ed, in that case it’s vandalism. All-inclusive does not mean breaking locks.’ Her voice had reached its highest pitch.

‘Do you want me to talk to them?’ Lily asked. She had no idea what was going to happen next. It was becoming clear that the looks that Anne-Marie wanted were there, but not the pliable personalities. They could put it down to the drink, but she was sure that something was off. For example, she could have sworn she saw Lee winking at her and checking her out last night. One thing that she was sure of was that spying was going to be increased, perhaps for different reasons this time.

‘Well, I don’t see what choice I have,’ Anne-Marie sneered. ‘I need them in line. What will Todd and Katie think?’

‘Well, they probably won’t know about it.’

‘What makes you say that?’

‘They have their private bungalow, they don’t really venture out.’

‘That’s not the point. They are supposed to be dining in public at some point and if they come across this behaviour, then they’ll think that the resort is trashy.’

‘Let’s give it another day or so. Last night could have been a one-off, after all.’

‘Let’s make sure it is. Otherwise I am holding you responsible.’ Anne-Marie pointed at Ed and Lily. Lily wasn’t surprised.

‘Perhaps if we keep a closer eye on them...’ Ed suggested.

‘Well, yes, that’s exactly what I expect you to do. And also, I expect you to find a way to make them behave as I want them to.’ The anger in her eyes showed that she was far from joking. ‘Today, you make sure you know where they are. If they put a foot wrong then I want to know about it. Todd and Katie will have to wait. And tonight we shall all be watching them. Is that clear?’

‘Yes, darling,’ Ed replied.

Lily nodded. How they were supposed to control these people she had no idea, but she also knew she had no choice but to try.

*

‘My head,’ Thea moaned as she opened her eyes.

‘It’s a lovely head,’ Tim replied, snuggling up to her. All at once she felt warm and safe. He made her feel safe, she realised. Despite everything. Despite him being unsafe at times.

‘What happened last night?’ Thea made to sit up. ‘Holy shit.’ The room was filled with bottles of various kinds.

‘Ah, well, they wouldn’t give me a minibar so I decided to make my own. You helped.’ Tim looked proud of himself.

‘I did?’ Oh God, not only was she a drunk now, but she was committing crimes. And she was supposed to be getting Tim to cut down on drinking, not encouraging him to drink more.

‘Yes, you helped carry some of them back, although you wouldn’t help me break the lock.’

‘You broke the lock?’

‘Yes, of the outside bar. You know, they locked it up, which I thought was a bit of a cheek as this resort is supposed to be all-inclusive and nowhere in the boring welcome meeting did she say that there was a time limit on drinking. Anyway, I managed to get in, luckily.’

‘Tim, we’ll be thrown out,’ Thea said, panicking. So maybe she shouldn’t have entered the competition. She just saw an opportunity for a holiday, and she thought it would sort them both out—lack of funds precluding her getting a holiday any other way. And she was exhausted, disheartened with her career and feeling really down. But Tim and all-inclusive were not really the best combination. She should have known that.

‘Don’t be silly. I’m sure everyone does it. Now, shall we take ourselves to breakfast and then to the swimming pool?’

‘Tim, why are you speaking like that?’

‘Oh, because the place is full of Americans and they love it. Don’t you remember last night?’

‘What else?’

‘We met this American couple, and I managed to persuade them, in my most charming way, to help carry the bottles. They were a bit reluctant until I told them that it was British royal custom.’

‘Oh my God. Oh my God. I think I’m going to be sick.’

Thea decided a shower would make her feel better. It just wasn’t fair. Tim was fine; he even looked good, not like her. As she walked into the marbled bathroom, she saw a glimpse of herself in the ornate mirror and quickly ran into the shower. As she stood under the gold shower head, she made a wish to feel human again.

‘Hurry up, Thea; we’ll miss all the good food. You know how fat those other guests are—they’ll eat everything in sight. Including us, if we’re not careful.’

‘I’m coming.’ Thea stepped out of the shower, in her fluffy bathrobe and stopped.

‘What?’ Tim asked.

‘I’ve never seen that before.’ Tim was wearing yet another Hawaiian shirt, bright red, orange and green, covered in palm trees, with a pair of navy-blue shorts and some deck shoes.

‘That, my darling, is because I’ve never worn it before. Now, I thought I’d lay your clothes out for you.’

‘How sweet.’ She kissed his cheek. He’d pulled out the same things she was wearing yesterday. Her old grey bikini, which used to be black when she was about sixteen, if she recalled right, and her only sarong, turquoise and yellow.

‘My God, do we clash or what?’ she giggled, slipping on her pink flip-flops. ‘I think we might even give those Americans a run for their money.’

*

‘I need some breakfast,’ Lee said, crawling out of bed and straight into the bathroom.

‘It smells like a brewery in here.’ Carla wrinkled her nose.

‘Um, that would be me.’

‘I was pretty gone too.’

‘I know but I think you smell it more on men.’

‘In that case I’m going to become a lesbian.’

‘Can I join in?’ Lee asked, as his laughter was drowned out by the shower.

Carla lay in the four-poster bed, sinking into the soft, white bed linen, and tried to remember the previous night. Her hair was knotted when she woke up, and she thought she remembered them going in the pool at some stage. Had Lee paid her any attention? That she had no idea about. She thought she remembered him flirting with other women. But Lee was a big flirt; she’d always known that about him, so she couldn’t complain. Could she?

He emerged from the bathroom and began to get dressed. He pulled on a pair of shorts and rummaged in his suitcase for a T-shirt, while Carla went to the bathroom.

After showering, she chose her only other bikini: a small pale blue one, which she hoped wasn’t too revealing. But as she looked at her flat stomach, her long legs and her tiny chest, she knew that there wasn’t much to reveal. Not like Emily, with her curves. She felt envious; especially as she was sure Lee had been paying her a bit too much attention. He’d flirted with Thea, she was sure, and also even with Lily a bit, but Emily most of all. She pulled on a white T-shirt dress and her blue flip-flops, and went on to the balcony, where he was sitting. Perhaps if she tried harder then he wouldn’t need to pay attention to other women.

‘So, gorgeous boy, are you going to take me to breakfast or what?’

Lee stood up and pinched her bottom. ‘I might have to take you to “or what” looking like that.’

*

‘So, you think I should wear the gold bikini after breakfast?’ Emily asked.

‘Yes.’ Jimmy struggled with the word. He had never known such a hangover.

‘Last night was such fun, wasn’t it?’ she continued.

‘I’m not sure. I think we might be in real trouble.’ He frowned. He hated to be sensible but he wasn’t used to such childish behaviour. After they left the dinner, they’d gone to the bar, drank more, although Jimmy stopped quite quickly. He always knew when to stop, when he was crossing the line. He just hoped that Emily, who was happier than he’d ever seen her, hadn’t noticed. Then Tim, who was clearly the ringleader, made everyone jump in the pool. Jimmy objected but Emily looked at him with such disgust that he’d followed them. Lee, who Jimmy at first thought was a nice bloke, kept looking at Emily’s nipples, visible through her wet top, and Jimmy had felt fury building up, but he couldn’t act because Emily would have killed him. Jimmy began to feel that perhaps it was all a mistake; that perhaps he was the only one there with romance as his first priority. This thought depressed him; he sounded so boring.

‘Right, Jimmy, get dressed, I want breakfast.’

Jimmy looked at her in her breakfast outfit and wanted to eat her there and then. He stood up and went to the wardrobe.

He noticed Emily sigh, and hoped it was the hangover. She sat down at the wooden writing table and searched her jewellery case. As he dressed he watched her pull out a few pairs of earrings, hold them up to her ears before finally deciding. He pulled on a pair of khaki shorts and a polo shirt, then waited by the door for her to apply her lip-gloss. Finally she rushed over to him and kissed him.

‘Love you, Em.’

‘I love you too,’ she replied.

*

The main pool was fairly busy as Thea and Carla, having bumped into each other at breakfast, picked out six sun-loungers, which they arranged together. Emily and Jimmy had arrived just as they were leaving and had asked them to save them some too.

‘My God, look at these people!’ Thea exclaimed as she surveyed the pool. A game of pool volleyball was underway.

‘How do they know which is the ball?’ Carla asked as the sea of shiny bald heads bobbed up and down, and other, unidentifiable bits flapped around. She screwed her nose up.

‘Is there anyone here with hair?’ Thea asked.

‘Just us.’

‘Oh my God, imagine if that’s what Anne-Marie does to people. They come with hair, they leave with none and that could happen to us.’

‘Ugh. After last night, I’m not sure I’d blame her for scalping us.’ Carla settled down on her sun-lounger and pulled out a book.

By the time everyone else had joined them, beach volleyball had turned into a swimming race. The bald men huffed and puffed as their wives cheered them on from the side of the pool. A large stereo had started playing Celine Dion.

‘Have I gone to hell?’ Tim asked.

‘I think so,’ Lee concurred.

‘This is a strange place,’ Jimmy added.

‘Well, it’s called The Love Resort,’ Tim pointed out. ‘And look at its owner.’

No one could argue with that.

*

Lily had drawn the short straw. When they’d seen the competition winners setting up their sunbeds together after breakfast, Anne-Marie had decided that Lily would have to spend the day by the pool. Undercover. Oh, and her undercover role was as an entertainment assistant. In true Anne-Marie style Lily had been made to wear a yellow pleated skirt, which barely covered her bum, and a white polo shirt. She also wore a whistle and had to pretend to be helping out with the activities, while keeping an eye on the three couples.

She wasn’t sure, because she had been too scared to ask Anne-Marie, if she was supposed to be taking notes for her book or just making sure they were not causing trouble. Or both. She decided to cover all bases.

Thea was lying on her stomach, reading a book. Lily couldn’t make out what it was. But she did notice how one of her legs dangled over the edge of the sun bed and rested on Tim’s. Tim seemed to be asleep, eyes closed, lying on his back. They looked like a normal couple. There was silence, apart from Celine Dion’s voice ringing out over the entire area. So far so good.

Lily had to speak to some guests who wanted to know the rules for the lilo races, so by the time she returned to her mission, Jimmy was nowhere to be seen. Emily was asleep, as were the others. Lily fielded a few more activities-related questions as she watched.

‘No, I’m sorry but I don’t recall which day the banana eating competition is. You should call Guest Services,’ she suggested, trying to look past the couple who were standing in front of her, and at Lee, who was in the pool with Carla. They were laughing and joking; she excused herself to get a closer look.

‘Hi, Lily,’ Lee shouted out. She was sure she caught him looking up her skirt.

‘Where have you been?’ Emily demanded as Jimmy returned. Lily thought she sounded annoyed. She began rounding up used towels so she could get closer.

‘Yes, sir, of course I’ll get you a clean towel.’ She gritted her teeth.

‘You were dozing so I thought I’d go and arrange something,’ Jimmy said.

‘What?’ Emily demanded.

‘Well, I’ve hired a boat for the afternoon, for the two of us,’ Jimmy mumbled.

Lily nodded her head in approval. Anne-Marie would be pleased with this. Jimmy and Emily were going to spend the afternoon on a romantic boat trip for two. There was hope for her characters after all.

‘What?’ Emily shouted as she sat upright. Lily nearly jumped out of her skin. She noticed the others all looking away, and she felt tempted to do the same.

‘I thought it would be nice.’ Jimmy looked at his feet. He had turned a very bright shade of pink. It wasn’t the sun, Lily thought, although why Emily was reacting like this she had no idea. If Ed whisked her away on a boat she’d be over the moon.

‘Jimmy, why didn’t you ask me?’ Emily sounded furious.

‘Em, I’ve booked it.’ Jimmy’s voice was quiet and Lily had to strain to hear him. Her heart went out to him. He was a nice guy, Jimmy. He was the least offensive at Anne-Marie’s dinner and he obviously doted on Emily. That girl was too good-looking for her own good, Lily thought. Poor Jimmy.