The Old Gals' Bucket List, page 19
Patti hesitated then followed suit. It was stupid to risk getting a couple of mosquito bites because the smell overpowered her perfume. Who would notice?
When they went back to the terrace Leo was there, looking quite dashing in long beige shorts and a green and white patterned short-sleeved shirt, talking to Mary. Again.
They both sprung apart when they saw them coming. They looked a bit uneasy, Patti thought. She hung back, letting Sandra carry on.
‘Hello, what are you two all in a huddle about?’ she asked.
Mary flushed and glanced over her shoulder. ‘Oh dear, is it that obvious?’
Patti swallowed. Had she been right?
‘You do seem to be whispering together a lot.’
Leo and Patti exchanged glances. He nodded slowly.
‘Okay, I’ll tell you but please don’t breathe a word to Keith,’ Mary said.
Oh God, she’d been right. Suddenly she didn’t want Mary to confess. She didn’t want to know. How could she keep this from her brother?
‘Maybe you’re best not to tell me. It’s not fair to ask me to keep it from Keith,’ she stammered.
‘Goodness, Patti, you look horrified. What on earth do you think I’m going to confess?’
Patti looked from Mary to Leo then back to Mary again. ‘I… er…’
Mary’s eyes widened. ‘Heck! You think we’re having an affair, don’t you?’
Patti felt her cheeks heat and couldn’t even bring herself to look at Leo. ‘Well…’ Her voice trailed away.
‘We’re planning a surprise for Keith. Leo is sorting it out for me.’ She shook her head. ‘I can’t believe you jumped to that conclusion. I hope Keith hasn’t as well!’ She turned abruptly and walked off into the house.
‘Oh dear. I’m so sorry. It’s just that Keith and Mary are at loggerheads a bit, and you seemed very attentive…’ She couldn’t look him in the eye.
Leo smiled. ‘De nada. It is nothing. You are right that things are a little… not quite right… with Keith and Mary, which is why we are planning this surprise.’ He thrust his hands in his pockets his eyes meeting hers, unwavering. ‘I would not do that to a friend. To cheat like that. I am not that kind of person.’
Now she felt even worse. ‘I really am sorry.’ How stupid was she to jump to that conclusion just because Leo spent a lot of time here, and she’d caught him and Mary talking together. Now she’d embarrassed herself and everyone else.
‘Besides, there is someone else that I like. Someone who is free. And I was asking Mary’s advice about that, also.’
‘Oh, I see.’ She guessed it must be one of the neighbours. She could understand that Leo was a bit hesitant and wanted advice. It was hard to get back into the dating game when you’d been out of it for a while. She should know! She’d made a few attempts with Tinder and other dating apps since she and Adrian split up but there had been so many disasters she’d given up. She was better off on her own. ‘I hope it works out for you.’
He nodded solemnly. ‘Me too. But this seňora, she doesn’t live in Spain.’
His eyes rested on her face, as if he was watching her reaction. He couldn’t mean… No… That would be stupid.
‘I see.’ She was repeating herself but she didn’t know what else to say. She’d already made a fool of herself once and she wasn’t going to say anything to make things worse. He must have met someone on the internet, lots of people did nowadays. ‘That’s difficult.’
He nodded again. ‘But not impossible.’
Time to end this conversation and go and make her apologies to Mary. ‘There’s always a way if you look for it, I guess.’ She hurried off to the kitchen to find Mary.
Mary was putting the last touch to the meal and Keith was opening a bottle of wine.
Patti looked at them both. ‘Sorry.’
Keith raised an eyebrow. ‘What for?’
‘She thought I was having an affair with Leo,’ Mary told him.
Keith threw back his head and laughed. ‘You’re way off the mark there, Patti. Leo has his eye on someone else.’
‘I know, he’s just told me. I think it’s someone he met on the internet.’
‘What?’ Mary and Keith exclaimed in unison.
‘He said it was someone who didn’t live in Spain.’
Keith shook his head and Mary put down the knife she was chopping the tomatoes with.
‘You really have no idea, do you?’
Patti looked from one to the other. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Patti. The lady Leo is interested in is you.’
38
They all tucked into the goat cheese salad and crusty bread, followed by strawberries and ice cream, and Patti tried to act natural, tried not to stare at Leo. Could Mary and Keith be right? She was definitely attracted to him, he was kind, and handsome, but what future was there when she would be going home next week?
Sandra and Keith had disappeared into the kitchen to make cocktails, so Mary, Leo and Patti sat chatting on the terrace.
‘Now let us tell you the secret we’ve been planning for Keith,’ Mary said. ‘You know how he loves the old Cadillacs and has always wanted one.’
‘How could I forget? He was always going on about it when we were younger. He used to watch those Humphrey Bogart films over and over again. He even had a trench coat, didn’t he? And a fedora.’
‘We still have them in a box in the spare bedroom.’ Mary leaned forward and lowered her voice. ‘Well Leo has a friend who owns a Caddy. He’s been away but he’s back tomorrow and Leo is going to ask him if he can take us all for a spin in it on Friday.’
‘Really? Oh, Keith will love that! That’s amazing,’ Patti exclaimed. She glanced at Leo. ‘It’s a big ask though. These cars don’t come cheap. You must be VERY good friends.’
‘We are.’ Leo smiled at her. ‘It might be the push Keith needs to get out and about. We are keeping it a surprise until we know for sure but we hope that you ladies will join in too.’
‘Oh, I’d love to. It sounds amazing!’ Patti said. ‘And more Insta pics too!’
‘And we’re all going to dress up in forties style,’ Mary added. ‘I’m thinking of channelling Audrey Hepburn. Scarf, sunglasses, red lipstick. Sandra would make a good Marilyn Monroe with her hair and full lips.’
‘And you would be a perfect Shirley MacLaine, Patti, with those amazing cheekbones,’ Leo said.
Patti felt her cheeks flush at the compliment. ‘It sounds exciting. And Keith’s got his Humphrey Bogart trench coat and hat. But what will you wear, Leo?’
‘I can be Cary Grant. I have a trilby and a trench coat too.’
‘Mary!’ Keith shouted from the kitchen.
‘I’d better go and see what he wants.’ Mary got up and went into the kitchen, leaving just Patti and Leo outside. She felt awkward, after what Keith and Mary had told her. It couldn’t true. Leo barely knew her.
‘It’s very kind of you to organise this for Keith,’ she told him.
‘Keith and Mary, they are good friends. I would like to help.’ He smiled at her, his eyes meeting hers. ‘It will be a nice day out for you seňoras too, yes?’
‘It definitely will!’
‘Panic over, they couldn’t find the cocktail glasses,’ Mary came back out, followed by Sandra holding a tray containing five fancy cocktails. She indicated the glasses with a flourish as Sandra put them down on the table. ‘Let me introduce you to a Sandra Surprise!’
Patti looked at the glasses filled with a strawberry-coloured drink, garnished with a strawberry and a slice of lemon. ‘They look great. Let me take a photo for Instagram – it’s another thing off your bucket list.’ She snapped the tray of cocktails. ‘I’ll upload it later.’
‘Can we ask what’s in them?’
Sandra tapped the side of her nose. ‘Top secret!’
‘See if you can guess,’ Keith suggested.
They all took a sip of the drinks and Patti took a swig and almost choked. ‘This is strong!’
Sandra grinned. ‘That’s the surprise!’
‘I can taste Cointreau,’ Mary said.
‘And vodka, I think, a double shot by the taste of it,’ Patti added.
‘I think I detect a taste of honey.’ This was from Leo.
Sandra giggled and chinked glasses with Keith. ‘There’s a secret ingredient that only we know.’
‘I’ve made a Keith Special too. So drink those up and I’ll bring out round two!’
‘We should play some games,’ Patti suggested. ‘How about charades? Do you know how to play that, Leo?’
‘Charades?’ He frowned then his eyes lit up. ‘Ah, cha-ra-das! Si, I know it.’
They had a fun evening, drinking cocktails and playing charades, which included lots of amusing photos for their Instagram account.
When Leo had, left Patti and Sandra helped Mary clear up. Patti followed Mary into the kitchen with a tray of snacks.
‘It’s so kind of Leo to organise this surprise for Keith. How stupid of me to think you were having an affair I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you.’
‘Goodness, it’s a compliment that you think someone like Leo would be interested in me. He’s quite dishy, isn’t he? But my heart belongs to Keith, even if I do want to wring his neck sometimes.’ She put a tablet in the dishwasher and closed the door. ‘I asked Leo if he would come around more often while you and Sandra were here as I thought if another man was here Keith would join in, instead of leaving us women to it. He always gets on with Leo.’
‘I should have known.’
‘How could you? You’re right, things are a bit strained between me and Keith but we’ll sort it out.’ She gave Patti a hug. ‘Now stop stressing about it. It’s late, let’s all turn in for the night. I’ve got a feeling we’re all going to wake up with headaches tomorrow.’
39
SANDRA
She’d had such a marvellous time, she didn’t want to go home, Sandra thought on Thursday morning as she relaxed on the sunbed feeling the warmth of the sun on her skin. It was still morning, so it wasn’t burning hot yet, just warm and pleasant. She didn’t want to go back and face real life. Didn’t want to have to make the decision whether she moved to Cambridge or not. The clock was ticking. Don told her that both parties had already booked surveys and were expecting to exchange within the next few weeks, looking to complete before the summer holidays.
This break had done her good. Done them all good. Patti looked so relaxed now. And Keith and Mary seemed closer. Yesterday evening had been fun.
Mary was taking them to a pretty white village up in the mountains later – Mijas Pueblo – so they were chilling out before the journey.
Then, tomorrow, all being well, Leo was taking them to Marbella for a ride in his friend’s Cadillac. Patti had told her about it when they returned to the casita last night, saying it was a secret from Keith until Leo had the go ahead from his friend. And they were all dressing forties style. Apparently, that’s what they’d been whispering about, and Patti said she felt mortified thinking that her sister-in-law was having an affair.
Saturday was the flamenco night and Mary had booked them in for the Caminito del Rey on Tuesday. Then it was home on Wednesday and back to real life. It had been such a marvellous time. And such a shame they didn’t have longer because anyone could see the growing attraction between Patti and Leo. They had really hit it off. Perhaps that might encourage Patti to visit again.
She opened her eyes as her phone buzzed in, reaching for it from under the sunbed where she’d put it so that it didn’t get hot. She sighed when she glanced at the screen and saw that it was Don again. This time with the link to a small, detached bungalow for sale in Cambridge. He’d sent her at least two properties a day for the last few days. She sighed again as she put her phone back down on the coffee table.
Patti glanced over enquiringly. ‘Let me guess… another property for sale?’
‘Yep.’
‘When does he go? Is there any more movement on his house sale?’
Sandra filled her in.
‘A month or so then. Are you any nearer to making a decision?’
‘It’s difficult to decide while I’m here. We’ve had such an amazing time. Your brother and sister-in-law are wonderful hosts and it’s so kind of Mary to run us around like this.’
‘It is, but she’s enjoyed it too.’ Patti edged herself into a sitting up position, sensing Sandra was keen to change the subject. ‘I’m so glad we came, Keith and Mary seem in a happier place now. Maybe he’ll even start going out with Mary again, once we return home. Doug and Thelma will encourage him, I’m sure. As will Leo.’
‘They’re all lovely people, aren’t they? And how kind of Leo to ask his friend if he can borrow his car tomorrow.’
‘Yes, I’m really looking forward to that. We’ve ticked so many things off our bucket list, haven’t we?’ Patti sat up, hugging her knees, pulling her kimono down over them. ‘I do feel a bit awful that Mary is doing the Caminito del Rey walk with us though, when it was something she and Keith had always planned on doing together. I wish he would join us.’
‘Maybe he will later on. I’m sure she won’t mind doing it again.’
‘I guess you’re right. After all, look how long it took me to pluck up the courage to get on a plane!’
‘And me to learn to swim. Sometimes things take time.’
‘Yahoo! Lunch is ready!’ Mary was waving to them from the terrace.
‘Coming!’ Sandra stood and grabbed her maxi dress from the back of the chair, pulling it over her head. Then they both slipped their feet into their sandals and went over to join Keith and Mary who were sitting at the table outside.
‘I can’t believe we’ve been here more than a week already! I shall miss it so much,’ Sandra said as she sat down. ‘You two have been very good to us both. I really appreciate it.’
‘It’s a pleasure,’ Mary told her.
After lunch they got changed then climbed into Mary’s car and headed off for the hillside village of Mijas Pueblo. Sandra sat in the back, as usual, knowing that Patti always felt nauseous in the back, and off they set. They’d tried to talk Keith into coming with them, but he’d replied that he’d been there loads of times, and Leo was coming around later for a beer. ‘Well, at least Keith’s socialising again, I’m so glad,’ Mary said as they set off.
Sandra looked out of the window, admiring the view, as Patti and Mary chatted in the front. Sometimes Patti turned and said something to her, but she was mostly content to leave them to it.
‘I can’t get over how the mountains are literally sliced through to make way for the roads,’ Patti observed. ‘And how some of the places are so remote, high on top of the hills, I wouldn’t like to live that far away from everything.’
‘Me neither, but some people like the solitude.’
‘You said this village was up the mountains?’ Patti said.
‘Yes we’re about to turn off to go up to it.’
At first the road was quite wide but the higher up they went the narrower it got. The mountain wall was on Sandra and Mary’s side but Patti was sitting in the front passenger seat, on the side of the drop, and she was getting more and more nervous.
‘Oh shit, Mary!’ she screamed, clinging onto the edges of her seat. ‘It’s a sheer drop on this side! And there’s no barriers along this bit!’
‘We’re nowhere near the edge. And holding on to your seat won’t help!’ Mary told her with a chuckle. ‘There will be barriers again in a minute.’
‘I’m going to have to shut my eyes,’ Patti squeaked. ‘Let me know when we’re there.’
She’d feel the same if she was on the side facing the drop, Sandra thought. She’d make sure that she sat behind Patti on the way back so she’d be against the mountain again.
It was a bit of a hair-raising journey, but once they’d parked up they had a great time looking around. It was such a pretty little town, with lots of little shops and restaurants. Sandra had to stop herself buying another handbag, because there was no way she could fit it in her case, so she settled instead for an elegant black beret – she’d taken to wearing them a lot now back at home. Patti bought a colourful scarf and Mary treated herself to a soft beige leather jacket and a plaid cap for Keith. They stopped for lunch, sharing a paella with salad and garlic bread, had a wander over up to the fortress walls and beautiful gardens, stopping to look at the breathtaking view below before visiting the historic chapel of the Virgin of the Rock.
‘This is a beautiful place,’ Patti said. ‘It’s a shame it’s such a scary route up here.’
‘You’ll be okay going down, you’ll be on the mountain side, I’ll be the one with the drop on my side,’ Mary reminded her.
‘Aren’t you scared, Mary?’ Sandra asked. ‘I’m going to sit behind Patti this time. I don’t think I can handle looking down.’
‘It was a bit nerve-wracking the first couple of times we came here, but I’m used to it now.’
When they arrived back at home Keith and Leo had just returned from taking both dogs for a walk.
‘Did you have a good time?’ Keith asked.
‘It was beautiful, but you could have warned us about that mountain road!’ Patti told him.
He grinned. ‘If I had, you wouldn’t have gone and it’s well worth the visit, isn’t it?’
‘It certainly was,’ Sandra agreed.
‘Will you stop for a coffee – or a beer, Leo?’ Mary asked.
‘A cerveza would be good, gracias,’ Leo said. ‘I’ll give you a hand.’
‘I’ll give the dogs some water.’ Keith went off, the two dogs trotting behind him, to refill the water bowls and Leo followed Mary into the kitchen.
‘I wonder if he’s heard whether he can borrow the Cadillac tomorrow,’ Patti whispered, crossing her fingers.
They both returned with a tray of coffees, two bottles of beer and a bowl of crisps just as Keith came back and sat down by Patti and Sandra. ‘Well, ladies, what plans do you have for tomorrow?’ he asked cheerily.
