“A glass of red, please, mate.”
Rachel watches as Jack and Paige retreat to the kitchen, half-wishing that she’d been quicker off the mark.
“Honestly, guys, our room is insane,” squeals Ali. “It’s got windows into the pool, so you can see underwater.”
“Wow,” says Rachel lamely, willing herself out of the stupor that she’s become entrenched in. She can’t let Will see the change in her, no matter how dramatic the reason.
“So, whose villa is this, exactly?” asks Noah, proving he’s better at pretending everything is fine than she is.
Will sits down on the plump cushions opposite Rachel, and Ali immediately plops down next to him, snuggling herself under his arm.
“Funnily enough, it’s owned by the family of my business partner back in the UK,” says Will, looking up at the villa. It’s now awash with cool blue lighting, giving Rachel the vibe of a club that she and Noah went to in Ibiza, the summer after they graduated from uni.
“He and I met through the surfing school I set up down here,” Will goes on.
“God, I’d forgotten about that,” says Noah.
Rachel hates to admit it, but so had she. Will had had so many failed business ventures and half-cocked, hare-brained ideas, it was probably easier to remember the things he hadn’t done.
“So, he’s who you work with on the water-sports company back home?”
Will nods. “He had the finance to set us up with all the equipment, but it’s gone so well that we’re fifty-fifty partners now.”
“Do you think it’s something you’ll look to expand even more?” asks Noah.
“I hope so,” says Will. “It’s all very well having a water-sports company on a lake, but I miss the sea. We’re looking at premises down in Newquay, with the hope of setting up a surfing school again.”
“I’d love to give surfing a go at some point,” says Noah.
Will smiles. “Well, you never know…”
Ali bounces up and down in her seat. “Can I tell him?” she says. “Please, please let me tell him.”
Will looks at her with such warmth in his eyes that it almost makes Rachel cry. She doesn’t care if it’s still going on or not: she’ll never understand how Ali could ever cheat on him. She forces the thought to the back of her mind, because she has four days to get through and she can’t feel like this every time she looks at him.
“Go on then,” says Will encouragingly.
Ali sits up and looks between Rachel and Noah, her eyes alight with mischief.
“So…” she says, drawing it out. “We’ve got something to tell you.”
Jack and Paige return with a bottle of wine and a glass of water, which Paige almost looks pained to offer to Ali. This trip is going to be harder than any of them could imagine.
Ali waits until she has everyone’s undivided attention. “We’ve arranged a little surprise for tomorrow.”
Rachel’s sure that she hears Paige groan. If she did, Ali chooses to ignore it.
“The boys are going surfing, while us girls are having a yoga session on the beach.” Ali smiles and puts her arms in the air. “Woo-hoo, surf’s up, dudes.”
There’s a tangible delay in reaction, and if it weren’t for Noah, Rachel’s unsure anyone would have said anything.
“That’s awesome,” he exclaims, eager to fill the void.
Ali flashes a megawatt smile. “Will’s going to take you and Jack out and give you a lesson.”
“Great,” says Jack, desperately trying to show willing. “I haven’t been out on the waves for years.”
“We’ll take it slow to get you familiarized,” says Will. “And Noah, I’ve no doubt that once I show you the basics, you’ll be well on your way.”
“And while they’re doing their thing, ladies,” says Ali, “I’ve booked us a one-hour yoga session.”
Will blows his cheeks out. “Though, I warn you not to follow Ali’s lead unless you want to do yourself some serious damage, because she can get herself into some insane positions.”
“I bet she can,” says Paige, looking as if she has a bad taste in her mouth.
Rachel doesn’t need to look to know that Jack’s eyes will be boring into her best friend, sending a silent warning to watch what she says.
Ali giggles, none the wiser. “I remember one time we were in Paris and we went to see the Moulin Rouge. I’m ashamed to say that I was so drunk, that I thought I could join the cast, so got up on the stage just before the final curtain and did the splits.”