Wanderlust (10 page)

Alex typed in the security code from the back of his card and clicked ‘proceed’. After two weeks in Croatia, he was ready to move on.

The first week had flown past and he’d loved every minute of it. It had been a long, boozy reunion with his friends and he’d partied with nothing more than alcohol. It had been great, moving from stage to stage and tent to tent. After abstaining from any kind of nightlife for so long, it was nice to dip a foot back in again, and even better to know it could still be fun without the need for chemicals. Actually, it was even more fun than before.

The only thing that had blighted the week was thoughts of Selina. He’d tried to keep their goodbye as light as possible but as Penny had driven him to the airport, he’d wondered if it had been too light. The last thing he wanted was for her to think that the brief time they’d shared together was meaningless, or that she was just another notch on his bedpost when the opposite was true.

He’d sat on the plane, replaying the last twelve hours in his head, questioning if he’d done the right thing by going along with it when they’d kissed. It could have gone badly wrong, but it hadn’t. He just didn’t know what he was supposed to do next. His travels wouldn’t end, but he didn’t want to stick to his promise anymore. Not now. Not after the night they’d spent together in their bungalow.

He finished paying for his flight and gestured to the man behind the counter for another coffee while he waited for the email confirmation to arrive in his inbox. For the first time in almost six weeks, he’d set aside a few hours to Skype with his parents, catch up with emails and post a few photos on Facebook.

Sleeping with Selina had also somehow galvanised him into getting in touch with Marie and a few days into the festival, he’d finally replied back. He’d apologised and asked for a good time to call, hoping to speak to her and lay it all to rest. She’d simply replied saying there was no need. She’d got his message loud and clear. It seemed she was still in denial that she had a problem at all. It was an abrupt turnaround from the last message she’d sent, wishing he was there in the club with her and their friends, and he couldn’t help but feel he’d got off lightly. She’d since removed him from her Facebook, so he guessed that really was it. All he could do was hope she’d eventually wake up and get herself out of the rut, like he had.

The waiter brought over his cappuccino and Alex took a swipe at the froth with his spoon. As he put it in his mouth, his mobile beeped and he picked it up from the table. He saw Selina’s name and clicked through to the message, grinning at the picture in front of him. She was standing in the field, pulling her face into a surprised expression as she held two enormous zucchinis in her hands.

They’d kept in touch since he’d left, sending each other pictures of what they were doing. He’d sent pictures of the festival, the people who’d turned up in fancy dress and his friends, while she’d sent photos of everyone he’d left behind in Colinas Verde. He hadn’t lied when he’d said he’d miss them all, but he’d freely admit he missed her the most. He tapped his thumbs on the screen to write a reply.

- Nice haul, but what I’ve got is even better…

He took a photo of his cappuccino and the half-eaten slice of chocolate cake and hit send.

- Ooh, that looks good! Where are you?

- In a cafe. Checking emails, Facebook etc. Just booked flights to Greece :)

- Nice one! Still not decided where to go next. Another volunteer is coming in a few days, so I’ll probably look at leaving next week

From what he could see, she’d really taken to life at Colinas Verde after he’d left. She’d even sent him a picture of herself in the pool. The smiling face on that photo was like a completely different person to the one who’d stood in the living room on her first day, looking appalled at the idea of a natural swimming pool. She’d come a long way, and he was proud of her.

Alex looked at the laptop screen and saw the email confirmation he’d been waiting for. He clicked on it and read the details, checking they were all in order: Split to Athens, leaving in two days time. He looked back at the photo of Selina and took a sip of his coffee.

What if?

He frowned and shook his head. It was a ridiculous thought. He’d promised not to get involved with anyone while he was travelling and even though he’d slept with Selina and one could argue that he’d already broken that promise, what he was thinking now would take the promise from being merely broken to completely obliterated. It wasn’t as if his track record with girls had been especially good lately, but Selina was different. She was trying to move on with her life, instead of letting her circumstances keep her down. She hadn’t clung onto him on their last morning, and she hadn’t bombarded him with messages afterwards either. Their contact was friendly and their messages were spaced out enough to give him time to think about what he wanted.

What he wanted was to have an adventure and fun. He wanted to see as much of the world as he could afford to, and he wanted to do it as stress-free as possible. He wanted to create memories that would last him a lifetime, memories that would remind him what life was really about once he returned home. And while he was certain he could do all that alone, he couldn’t stop thinking that it would be so much better with Selina there.

He tapped his fingers on the screen again and looked at the message before pressing send.

Selina smoothed her hair down as she waited for her backpack to appear on the carousel. Nerves flitted in her stomach. Everyone else had swept their bags up as soon as they’d slowly been dragged up the conveyor belt at baggage reclaim, and it was possible that hers had somehow been put onto the wrong flight. But that wasn’t why she was so nervous. It was because she’d left Colinas Verde a few hours ago to fly to Athens, and Alex was on the other side of the doors leading to the arrivals hall.

She heard a clunking sound and finally, her violet backpack appeared on the belt. If anything, it only made her nerves even worse. There was nothing holding her back now. She’d bought her ticket, taken the plane and now she had her bag.

When she’d read his message, asking her if she wanted to join in him in Greece, she’d almost dropped the basket of zucchinis she’d been holding. She’d hotfooted it over to Penny’s and shown her what Alex had written, and Penny had told her straight away to reply,
yes
. Penny had popped open a bottle of champagne to celebrate as Selina had replied with shaky hands.

They’d kept in contact after he’d left, but he hadn’t hinted at missing her, or wanting her to join him. Their messages were friendly and even though she’d missed his presence around the bungalow and hearing his laugh ringing through the air, she’d accepted things for how they were. As Natasha had told her, it wasn’t like she’d had to marry Alex. They’d slept together, shared something wonderful, and moved on. In theory.

In practice, she’d thought about him almost every minute of the day, and after they’d connected on Facebook, she’d looked through his photos, drinking in the image of him. She hadn’t taken any of the two of them over their week together and she was happy to have a reminder of the way his hair fell around his face, and the striking blue of his eyes. As if she could ever forget.

She’d booked her flight before either of them could change their minds and spent every day since, obsessing and fretting in turns about what it would be like. Natasha had squealed down the phone when she’d told her, telling her that this was what Hollywood romcoms were made of. It was an exaggeration to think in those terms, but as usual, Natasha had injected her with enough enthusiasm to overtake the nerves, of which there were many.

They’d lived together and worked together for a week. He’d looked after her and they’d opened up to each other. They’d covered every inch of each other’s bodies with their hands and tongues, but that was different. Now, they’d have to travel together, and who knew what that would bring.

How was she supposed to know if adapting her, albeit loose, travel plans to accommodate him was the right thing to do? The sensible side of her was sure it wouldn’t last, and even if it did, they’d have to go their own ways eventually - him to Berlin and her to London.

Maybe they’d realise they didn’t like each other that much after all. Maybe he’d get fed up with the way she always dithered about when she was getting dressed, and maybe he’d start bossing her around about their itinerary. Maybe it had just been the magical bubble of Colinas Verde that had made the time they’d shared together seem so good.

Selina picked up her bag and took a deep breath. Or, maybe, she’d walk through the door and have the time of her life.

She quickly sent a text to Penny, letting her know she’d arrived safely and promising to keep in touch. After feeling out of her depth when she’d first arrived in Colinas Verde, she’d grown to love it. She’d been sad to leave, but she knew she’d definitely go back one day.

With her bag retrieved and the update text sent, there was nothing left to keep her from walking through those doors, and Alex must have been there for a while already since she’d had to wait so long for her backpack. She took another breath and headed for the automatic doors. As soon as they swung open, her eyes darted around the arrivals hall, looking for him. She grinned as soon as she saw him and her nerves disappeared. How could she be nervous with him?

He’d been looking at his watch with a frown and hadn’t seen her yet and, in the split second before he looked back up, she stared at him, storing the image of him into her memory. He looked every bit as fabulous as when he’d left, if not more, dressed in a plain white t-shirt and dark cargo shorts. His skin was still beautifully bronzed and just looking at his hair made her want to rake her fingers through it again.

Finally, he looked up and saw her, and a grin appeared on his face as he strode over, closing the distance between them. For a while, she’d wondered if she’d distorted the memories of him in her head into something more than what it was but, when he kissed her, she knew that if anything, she hadn’t done them justice. It was as if they’d only just seen each other a few hours ago and she let herself get lost in his kiss, not caring that they were blocking the way for other people to come through the doors.

‘Fancy seeing you here,’ Alex said once they’d broken away, tucking a wayward strand from her fringe back into place.

‘I know. But I figured that with the recession, they need all the tourists they can get.’

She grinned, not quite able to believe she was with him again as he took her backpack and slung it over his shoulder, just as he had when they’d first met.

‘We won’t be in Athens for long. There’s a list of islands the length of my arm that need exploring.’

For a brief second, the nerves came back. Maybe she’d been right, estimating that he’d be bossy and fix all of their travel plans without considering what she wanted to do.

‘If that’s okay with you? I’m easy,’ he added, and she laughed. ‘What?’

‘Nothing,’ she said, shaking her head. She reached up on her tiptoes and planted another kiss on his lips. As if he’d just make plans without even asking her first.

A puzzled frown settled on his face and she simply smiled, linking her fingers through his as they headed towards the exit. Neither one of them were perfect. She was sure he’d soon find things about her that irritated him, just as she would, but she wouldn’t think about that now. For now, she was going to do what she’d set out to do.

See the world and have an adventure, forgetting everything she’d left behind, and Athens with Alex sounded like the perfect way to do it.

THE END

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Remember Penny mentioning her daughter, Effie? Read her story in Natalie’s second full-length novel,
Love You Better
. Release date: 1st October 2015.

After a soul-destroying break-up with her ex, Smith, Effie Abbott has met the man of her dreams. She’s had the whirlwind romance and the fairy-tale wedding to the charming and suave Oliver Barton-Cole, and life seems firmly back on track.

Things were never simple between Smith and Effie, so when he forces his way back into her life, Effie knows he’s a complication she doesn’t want or need. After all, she has Oliver, a man who loves her better than Smith ever did.

But when cracks in her marriage begin to emerge and Oliver shows flashes of a darker side, Effie has to question just how well she really knows her husband, and whether Smith is back to derail her seemingly perfect marriage or save her from it.

Pre-order
here
.