by Jane Keeler
When she got back she felt a pang of guilt knowing that she had experienced such a great day out without Harold – and also that she had barely thought of him at all. When she got home she found him sitting at the kitchen table, a glass of whiskey at hand and his laptop open. This was a surprise to her because although he enjoyed drinking he wasn’t much of a whiskey drinker normally.
“Harold! Hope you didn’t work too hard.” She went up and gave him a kiss, but he stiffened when she got near.
“You were out long.” He said, barely looking up. She instantly felt guilty but tried not to let it show in her voice. “Oh yes, there is so much to see. For a small place there sure is a lot to do. Oh you must see where Tristan works. He made me the best cup of coffee I think I’ve ever had in my life. Let’s go tomorrow. And you just have to have some cake! It’s seriously to die for.”
“Right well I’m off to bed.”
“Bed? Oh well, okay then. I guess I’m also exhausted. That’s fine. We can chat more tomorrow.”
“Uh… Harold,” said Tristan who had been standing in the corner watching them the whole time. “Do you mind if we talk a bit?”
“Yes, you should,” Alison said. “I’m going to head up to bed, but the two of you should definitely talk.” She kissed Harold and walked off. When she got to the room she could hear the two of them speaking and she wondered what they were saying. She tried desperately to listen to their conversation but it was so muffled that she could only get out a few words. She was glad that they were finally talking, no matter how hard it was going to be for Harold. They needed to speak about their father and about all the years that they had not seen each other. She still wanted to talk to Harold about why he had lied about the wedding, but she was going to wait until he was in a better mood. Tristan had uplifted her all day so she hoped that he would be able to do the same for Harold. Harold had always been quite temperamental and somewhat grumpy but it seemed even worse now that he was back home. She wasn’t sure if it was the place that was making him that way or whether he was always like that and she was only noticing it now.
Chapter Four
Alison had fallen asleep before Harold got to bed and when she awoke in the morning he surprised her by telling her that the three of them were going out to spend the morning together. She was dying to know what the two of them had spoken about last night but she didn’t dare ask. When she walked into the kitchen she was surprised by the jolt she got when she saw Tristan. He was a hard person to ignore, and not simply because of how good looking he was, but by the way he made her feel about herself. He grinned when he saw her.
“You look beautiful.” He said it so matter-of-factly that she wasn’t quite sure what to do with the compliment.
Tristan took the two of them to the café, and she could see how excited he was to show it off to Harold. “The Island?” Harold said the moment they arrived and wrinkled his nose, “Interesting name.” He seemed neither impressed nor upset and Tristan looked immediately deflated.
“Isn’t this place just beautiful,” she said to Harold, making sure that Tristan could hear her. “And just wait until you try the coffee.”
Tristan arrived with cappuccino’s and three big slices of cake and he sat with them to eat.
“Cake for breakfast?” Harold asked, moving the piece around with his fork while barely touching it.
“Oh for sure! You’re on holiday! Why not! If you were ever going to have cake for breakfast now would be the time.”
“Are you really going to eat that whole thing?” Harold said, looking at Alison.
“Uh, no, maybe not the whole thing.”
“Good.”
Alison was aware of Tristan’s eyes on her the whole time. Harold was always telling her what she should or shouldn’t eat. And up until now she hadn’t taken much notice of it. She was suddenly aware of how controlling it must seem to an outsider.
“Harold! Harold is that you?!” A man was walking up to their table and Alison watched with interest as he enveloped Harold into his arms.
“Oh, wow. Hey Paul. You’re still here.”
“Oh course I’m still here. Everyone is still here. Only you left. Man, we missed you around here. Thought you would visit. Every year we thought you would come, but I guess the city life has you busy.” Then Paul looked over and saw Alison, “Oh hello there. Now I see why he doesn’t want to come visit us. You must be the beautiful Alison that everyone is talking about. I’m Paul. Lovely to meet you.”
“Great to meet you too. Oh boy, so everyone is talking about me.”
“Oh don’t get too excited,” Harold interrupted, “They’re just not used to getting new people on the island.”
Paul burst out laughing, “The Island! You still call it that, hey. Well, Harold, it was good seeing you. I’m sorry to hear about your old man. He was a good guy that. If you have some free time come by and say hello. I’m sure the whole family would love to see you.”
Tristan came forward and patted Harold on the back, “Oh don’t worry about Paul. I know the two of you didn’t get on. But he’s a good guy. Harmless. Now, come on then, I have a few more things planned for you both today.” Alison could see that Tristan was trying not to look at Harold’s plate and his coffee which were both still almost full.
“Actually, I don’t think I’m going to tag along. You two go have fun. I’ll see you back at the house later.” And he walked off before either of them could say anything.
Alison was trying hard not to cry. It was only day two and she wasn’t sure if they would survive two weeks this way. She was desperate to enjoy herself but Harold was not making it easy. She walked with Tristan and listened to him talk about what it was like growing up in such a small town. He was so passionate about his home that she couldn’t help but feel swept away by it. She wasn’t used to being around a person that was simply just happy with his life as it was, and happy with himself as a person. She considered briefly what her mother would’ve thought if she had married this brother instead, and then quickly put it out of her head.
“You know, Alison, I hope this is not wrong of me to say, but I think you’re the most beautiful woman I have ever met. I mean, you’re gorgeous on the outside – anyone can see that. But you’ve got a spirit inside of you that’s hard to ignore. You have a heart of gold. I just don’t think you see it yourself. I hope Harold knows how lucky he is.”
Alison was shocked. She had no idea what to say or what to do so instead, she said nothing at all and the two of them sat in silence watching the ocean. She turned to say something to him and was surprised to notice that he was watching her. Then, all of a sudden, he bent down and kissed her. Instead of pulling away she moved in closer and let him happen. But then, in a moment of clarity, she quickly pushed him off and burst out crying.
“No. What are we doing? We can’t do this.”
“I’m so sorry Alison. I didn’t mean for that to happen. I’m so sorry. Listen, it won’t happen again. I just got caught up in the moment.”
“It didn’t happen.” She said, mostly to herself.
“It didn’t happen.” He agreed, mostly to himself.
But they both knew – it did happen.
Over the next week Alison spent most of her time with Harold or by herself. Harold worked a lot so she often found herself wondering the town alone. She hadn’t had a lot of time to focus on herself in the past few years and she was surprised by how much she was learning about herself and how much about herself she didn’t recognize anymore. She thought back to the way she was before she met Harold and she knew that had become a completely different person. The type of person that cared deeply about material goods and who spent her life making other people work for her. It wasn’t something she was proud of but she felt good to finally be admitting it openly to herself. She spent as little time with Tristan as possible, and when she did see him she made sure that someone else was in the room with them. She couldn’t bear the thought of the two of them being alo
ne again and she didn’t want to admit to herself that it was because she didn’t trust herself. Her heart would pound every time she saw him but she told herself it was because of her guilt and not because she actually liked him.
Today she had told Harold that she was going to go out swimming at the local pool for the morning, but the pool had been closed for maintenance. So she went back to the house, deciding to try and convince him to go out with her. When she walked in she could hear the shower and so she went into the kitchen to wait for him, pouring herself a cup of coffee and sitting down at the table. Harold’s laptop was still open and she shook her head, annoyed but not surprised that he was still working. But then something on the computer screen caught her eye and she quickly leaned forward to read it.
Dear Harry, I miss you so much. I know you said it was only going to be for two weeks but it already feels like forever. I miss your kiss and the office feels so quiet without you. Hurry back. I promise you I will make it worth your while. Love, your Beverley.
Alison almost threw the laptop across the room. Instead, she sat there waiting silently for Harold to come out the shower. Finally, she heard the water switch off and she waited as he took his time getting ready.
“Alison?” he asked, when he saw her sitting at the table, “what happened to your swim?”
She didn’t answer him. Instead she turned the computer so that he could see the screen and she watched as his face turned red and then completely drained of all its color.
“Alison. This is not what you think. I can explain.”
“Harold. I just want you to know that I loved you. Being on this ‘island’ as you call it has made me realize a lot of things about myself. The one is that I have become a very materialistic and selfish person. I don’t blame you for that. I blame myself. I let it happen. But I have also realized a few things about you. I always thought that you grew up in this awful place with all people, and I felt so sorry for you. Now I see that the only reason that you didn’t like it here because it reminded you of the person that you were. It’s easy to see what type of a man you are when you are surrounded in a place like this. It brings out the truth. And I don’t like the truth that I see in you. I don’t like the person I become when I’m with you. I’m going to stay for a while longer. I have things to figure out. But I will be moving out the moment I get back. But I want you to go. You don’t deserve this place.”
“But Alison –
“I want you to pack your bags and go! Now!” Alison interrupted him, trying hard not to raise her voice. She thought he was going to say something more but instead he walked out to his room and she could hear him packing. When he came down she was still sitting in the same place, and he silently closed the laptop and packed it up with the rest of his belongings. He looked at her sadly, opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it again and walked out.
Chapter Five
Alison was still sitting in the same spot when Tristan came home, and when he walked in she didn’t look up. She couldn’t face him.
“Alison? What’s wrong? Where’s Harold?”
She told him the story. She thought he might be upset with her that she had told Harold to leave, but instead he came forward and took her into his arms. The two of them sat like that for the next ten minutes, and Alison silently cried into his shoulder. It was the first time she was allowing herself to really feel anything and it felt good to let it all out.
Then suddenly she felt his lips against hers, and this time she didn’t push away. His hands were around her face, in her hair, down her back and soon he had lifted her up and pulled her into his lap. She wrapped her legs around him and leaned down to kiss him. She had never experienced a kiss so full of meaning before and she didn’t want it to ever end. She didn’t say no when he took her hand and led her to his bedroom. There he undressed her, the whole time whispering how beautiful she was, and pulled her to the bed with him. When Tristan finally made love to her she knew that she had finally found someone that loved her for the person that she was, rather than the person that he wanted her to be. Afterwards, they lay together. He was propped up on one elbow and he was stroking her hair. He could not stop smiling and neither could she.
“Do you feel bad?” she asked, barely able to say the words out loud.
“I love Harold. But Alison – he wasn’t good for you. He knew it. I knew it. I don’t feel bad, because I knew from the moment I saw you that I was meant to be with you.”
“So… so you want me to stay?” Alison suddenly felt extremely shy.
“I want you to stay. Do you want to stay? It’s a different life to what you’re used to. There won’t be many fancy restaurants or big parties.”
“But will there be cake?”
Tristan burst out laughing, “Oh there’ll be cake!”
“Well then that changes things then. I mean, before, I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to stay. Like you said, it’s not the type of lifestyle I’m used to. But now that you’ve promised me cake – well I simply just have to reconsider.” Tristan bent forward and kissed her again, and she immediately felt herself becoming aroused. She hadn’t felt this free and this happy in a long time. She thought about Harold and about Beverley and understood that she had always known that something was going on between them – she just didn’t want to admit it to herself. Lying in bed with Tristan she realized that she hadn’t worn make up in days, and had barely put shoes on, expect to get across the pebbles at the beach. Normally, this would have infuriated her, but now she smiled at the idea of how little she needed in order to be happy.
“Tristan?” she turned around and looked at him.
“Yeah?”
“I’d love you to meet my mother.” And that’s when it hit her – this was exactly the type of person her mom had always wanted her to be, and the type of man that she had always wanted Alison to have.
“Does she eat carrot cake?” he asked, suddenly looking serious.
“Oh yeah. And coffee – she drinks cups and cups of coffee.”
“Well what are you waiting for? Invite her!”
A year later and Alison was still living on the island. She, too, called it ‘The Island’ only she saw this as a good thing. She had been back once – to pack up her bags and to sign the divorce form. It hadn’t been easy seeing Harold but it had confirmed everything that she knew to be true. She found out later that he and Beverley had lasted only two months and that he was now seeing someone else in the office, and for just an instant she felt almost sorry for Beverley. But only for an instant.
Alison’s mother had visited the island and had never gone back home. She now lived close to Alison and Tristan and the two of them met almost daily for coffee (or heaven brew as her mom liked to call it). Life had changed for Alison. It was slower now. She read more. She cooked more. She even learnt how to make that famous carrot cake. Most of all – she laughed more. Now, Tristan was sitting with her on the beach, laughing as the waves touched their feet. They were celebrating their one year together on the very beach where they had both fallen in love.
“Alison, you might only have decided to stay because I make such a great cup of coffee. You might only have stayed because I taught you that eating cake every day wasn’t a sin. You might even have only stayed because of my devastatingly good looks. But you stayed. And I love you. More and more every day. Alison, will you marry me and stay on this island with me for the rest of our lives?” And with that he held out a ring for her. The ring was simple band with a small diamond in the middle. But inside he had engraved I love you more than carrot cake.
She burst out laughing and put her arms around him! “YES YES YES!”
Six months later, they got married. Their wedding cake – carrot of course!
*** THE END ***
Back to Contents
Book Four
Back to Contents
AN UNLIKELY HERO
By Jane Keeler
Chapter One
“You’re a m
ember of the ton, Julia. It’s about time you acted like it. You need to be more like your sister.”
Eloise groaned. She hated it when her mother told her sister to be more like herself. She was nothing special. She simply followed the rules. She also hated it when her mother referred to the ton – she hated nothing more than when people separated themselves from the rest of society. The ‘ton’ or ‘le bon ton’ as it was properly known, was a term used to describe those of the upper class. It meant good manners and was meant to symbolize wealth, manners and aristocracy. Eloise sighed, she had long ago stopped trying to convince her mother that everyone was equal. It would only lead to a debate in which her mother refused to back down. Not that Eloise wanted to be part of the lower class of society – she was certainly used to the riches and the ease of her life. But she didn’t want to be crass about it either.
Eloise Wycliff lived in a very affluent part of the city, with her parents and her twin sister Julia. While they were twins they looked so different that it was often hard to tell that they were even sisters. Eloise was small, her features almost miniature in detail. She had long auburn hair that reached down long on her back and bright green eyes which flicked with orange dust. Julia, on the other hand, was all curves and mounds. She had a big smile and an even bigger laugh. Her brown hair refused to grow past her shoulders. The only giveaway between the two sisters was their eyes – both captivating against the backdrop of their light skin. It wasn’t just their looks that set them apart but also their characteristics. Eloise was quiet and demure – always looking to please others and always following the rules even when she didn’t want to. She was easy to be around and well-liked by everyone who met her. Julia, on the other hand, was rebellious and feisty, wonderful to be around when she was in a good mood and awful to be around when she was not. Her blood seemed to run hot and cold constantly and it was hard to know what you were going to get each time you met up with her. But Eloise was grateful for this. Having a sister that was so different to her meant that she saw her as more of a friend than a sister. The two of them complemented each other through their differences – where the one struggled the other succeeded. They were a force to be reckoned with.
