by M J Porter
Chapter Two
The day was warm, still and quite frankly, perfect. There’d been no guarantee at all that the weather would be favourable for them. In fact going on past experiences, the odds had been heavily stacked against them.
As he opened the curtains in his hotel room, a broad smile lit his face. It was going to be a truly perfect day for his wedding. The sun was already high in the sky, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight.
His heart skipped a beat. It had been three years since he’d proposed and she’d jokingly accepted, not believing for a moment that he’s meant it. After all, they’d not known each other long. A year later, he’d proposed again, and in all seriousness, Rebecca had accepted that time, in all seriousness herself; and then the planning had begun. He couldn't quite fathom out why it had taken so much planning and why so much time had elapsed. He’d thought that it would just involve a simple ceremony, some family and some friends. He’d been completely wrong.
Between his mother and her mother and Rebecca herself the wedding had become huge and the cost, ridiculous. He had gone along with it. He wanted Rebecca to be happy and for their wedding to make the 'right' impression on everyone. They were the first to marry amongst their friends, and he knew that Rebecca wanted to set a high standard for them to follow, though God forbid, they ever managed to exceed it.
He’d have been much happier with more intimacy and less showing off. She wouldn’t have been. What the hell? As long as they both got what they wanted from today, it didn't matter what cost her happiness. He wanted to make her happy. He’d worked hour upon hour in overtime to afford the honeymoon she wanted, and he knew it would be worth every penny when he finally had her to himself again, and for three long weeks. It would be the same as when they’d first declared their love to each other. There would be long, lazy days in bed and hopefully equally long, lazy nights in bed.
Since they’d first met, they’d not lived together on their own. To start with they’d been separated; she’d returned to her university course and he’d needed to finish his semester of research on the island. Then they’d both found jobs, but in different cities. The difficulty in getting a job had meant that neither of them could afford to turn down what they’d been offered. Pity they’d been at opposite ends of the country. Sometimes he’d thought he was having a relationship with his phone and his computer and not with Rebecca at all.
All that would change now. They were getting married, and they were, finally, going to live together. He was relocating to London to be with her. They hadn't bought a house, were renting a flat to start with. He hoped that soon he’d be able to persuade her to follow his dream of peace and quiet in the countryside and not a hectic city life. As of yet, she wasn’t particularly keen. He felt a small ray of hope as she’d chosen the island as the place for their wedding; the place they’d first met. He hoped it was the start of a change in her outlook on what was important and what wasn’t.
The hotel room gave him a view of the castle on its promontory and knowing it was too early to dress in his wedding suit, he shrugged into his black jeans, blue shirt and found his trainers. He felt the urge for some fresh air and a brisk walk before his breakfast.
At the last minute, he grabbed his jacket and then gently opened and closed the hotel room. He didn't want to wake any of the other guests. They might decide to join him, and right now he wanted some time alone before the chaos of the wedding took over everything.
He was glad he'd grabbed his jacket as he opened the hotel front door. It was still early enough outside for there to be a chill in the air, as there often was even in the summer. He knew it would warm up nicely later.
As he stepped outside, he was greeted with the smell of the sea and a view, albeit sideways, of the priory on the island. He took a moment to absorb the beauty of the surviving arches of the ancient building before starting out towards the less ancient, but no less striking, castle he’d seen from his hotel window.
The way took him past his old student flat, and he smiled to himself with remembered memories of his first few weeks with Rebecca. A goofy smile lit his face, and he decided he’d let it shine and not contain it, as he normally would have. He didn’t like to let his infatuation with his soon to be wife show too often. Somehow, it never seemed the appropriate time for Rebecca's liking. Hopefully, after today, she’d no longer be embarrassed by the strength of his feelings for her.
Then from nowhere an image of Sapphire appeared in his mind and he couldn’t shake the images of her standing in front of him, soaking wet, in the torrential downpour, as he’d last seen her. He’d not thought of her for nearly three years and wondered why today of all days she’d reappeared in his thoughts.
He’d not seen her since that night, and neither, bizarrely, had Rebecca ever mentioned her, although he knew they were sisters. To begin with, he’d wanted to ask, to find out if she was all right and where she’d gone but Rebecca never spoke of her, and she was certainly not on the wedding list otherwise he was sure he’d have noticed her name and thought about her before today.
Inadvertently he felt his feet change direction, and at the crossroads, instead of turning right to carry on to the castle, he walked straight over, towards the car park where he’d last seen her on that fateful night. He couldn't reason with himself as to why he was going there. He’d walked, and driven past the spot no end of times while he still lived on the island and on the many trips he and Rebecca had since made to the island, on wedding planning journeys. He’d never yet revisited the spot where she’d appeared to him, surrounded by a hazy blue light.
He remembered the light well. It had guided him to her on that night. He wondered about that now, and then he remembered the stone she’d given him. It had glowed with the same bluish light. What had he done with the stone? He racked his brains, remembering only that he’d not returned to his flat with it, and that he’d disregarded it somewhere on the way home. He felt bad about that now. Knowing how fragile the human heart could be from his own experiences with Rebecca, he hoped that Sapphire had never known that he’d callously tossed away her gift to him. It would have broken her heart. He realised now that he’d been cruel that night. He’d followed her and gone looking for her, and then he’d rebuffed her again, and returned to the arms of the woman he loved.
As he walked towards the car park, in the middle of the two-lane road, his thoughts jumped from one memory to another, between Rebecca and Sapphire and suddenly he was back on the beach on that fateful day when he’d first met Rebecca.
It hadn’t been a day made glorious by the sunshine. Instead, it had been a more typical summer’s day, grey and hazy to start with and then with a sea fret that had failed to dispel even though the sun warmed the air around it. The sun that morning had appeared as a dim shadow of itself, never clearly seen, but always there. There had been no wind, and he supposed that was why the fret had remained.
Just like now, he’d been out for a walk, meandering along the paved roadway to the castle, through the castle gates and then skirting around the castle itself to find himself on the small sandy beach running around the entire island. It was a high tide day, and there’d been few visitors as none had bothered to wake up early enough to beat the tide as it rushed in and covered the access causeway. He’d loved the quiet days, and that was why he’d found himself meandering along, without a care in the world, pleased that no tourists or modern day pilgrims would disturb his thoughts.
Besides the beach, there were a series of rocks of all shapes and sizes, and he’d chosen one, not yet encumbered with sheep dung, and there he’d sat content to listen to the high waves lap gently in and out, and to feel the warmth from the hazy sun on his upturned face.
After only a few moments, he’d realised he’d not been alone and suppressing a sigh of irritation; he’d looked around to find a young woman, a little further down the beach, doing the same as him, enjoying the quiet and soaking up the heat from the still shrouded sun. He’d wanted to be annoyed that his pe
ace was disturbed but found he was unable to be, and that instead, she’d transfixed him.
The distance between them had prevented him from seeing her features, but they’d been something striking about her stance that had instantly stirred his desire and he’d spent long minutes debating over whether he should approach her or leave her to her solitude. He’d never been overly successful with the opposite sex, never expending much time or energy on trying to find ‘Mrs Right’. Whilst his friends and fellow students had spent every night out trying to pull anyone in a skirt, he’d been more content to have a good chatter with someone, maybe a kiss or too, or something a little more serious, but never with the intention of falling in love or spending the rest of his life with someone.
He didn’t doubt his abilities to attract the opposite sex. He knew he was a good-looking man. Rather, he wondered if he should approach someone based entirely on the outline of her figure, indistinct under the sea fret.
Luckily, the decision was taken out of his hands, as she stood up and began walking back toward the path behind where he sat. He’d thought she was going to walk straight passed him, with maybe just a nod of hello, but instead, she’d drawn level with him and he’d clearly seen her features; her deep green eyes and luxurious auburn hair cascading down her back. There had been an amused twinkle in her eyes as she’d stopped just before him,
“Trying to enjoy the quiet, were you? Sorry if I disturbed you.” Her voice had been light and airy, containing the humour in her eyes.
“No, no. Not at all,” he’d stumbled, his voice rough with lack of use so early in the morning. She’d laughed at his obvious lie; the sound strangely muted in the advancing sea fret.
“There’s no need to spare my feelings. I was just as cross with you when I saw you walking onto the beach. But now … well maybe … we might have some fun together. I’m going to walk around the island. Do you want to join me?”
Without even thinking, he’d stood, more steady on his feet than his voice, which again had croaked,
“I’d love to.”
She’d held her hand out to him as he’d walked closer to her,
“I’m Rebecca. It’s good to meet you.”
“Andy,” he’d managed to utter, without his voice breaking. He’d taken her hand, its slightness apparent in his average sized hand, and she’d squeezed it gently.
“Well, it’s good to meet you. Now come. Tell me what you’re doing on this god-forsaken island in the middle of nowhere, and I’ll tell you my tale of woe.”
She’d slipped her slim hand through his arm where his left hand had been jammed in its pocket and had begun walking around the island in a counter-clockwise motion. That day had been a whirl of delight as he’d talked and listened more than at any time in his life. He’d arranged to meet her the next night and had walked home with a huge grin on his face, happier than he’d been in a long time, but then, on the way home, he’d met Sapphire.
Only moments had passed since he’d left Rebecca with a chaste kiss on her cheek at the bed and breakfast’s door when he’d physically bumped into Sapphire. He’d been so caught up in his joy and excitement at meeting someone new on his tiny island, that he’d been paying no attention at all to where he’d been walking.
Sapphire had been unloading heavy looking bags from the boot of her car onto the pavement of the main street. Not only had he failed to see Sapphire, but he'd also failed to notice the car or the large assortment of heavy bags and had barrelled into them at full speed, sending Sapphire and himself into a free fall that had only been cushioned by the large selection of black bags lining the floor. He’d attempted to grab her, as they went down in an untidy heap, and had succeeded in such a way that she’d landed on top of him and not vice versa.
She’d screamed as she’d fallen but had pushed the long blond hair away from her face with a giggle as she’d looked around in confusion at what had happened.
She’d struggled to pull herself clear from him, and he’d attempted to help her stand without touching any part of her body that would have been deemed as inappropriate.
Finally, she’d righted herself and still giggling, had offered him her hand and pulled him upright.
“Well, I guess that’s what they mean when they say, ‘bowled off your feet’.”
Her voice had been as light and airy as the summer day, and her eyes as shockingly blue as the clear sky that now dominated the warming day.
Long moments had passed as he’d stood there stupidly, looking at her stunning face and cursing his luck for meeting not one, but two beautiful women on the same day. He’d felt an instant attraction to the blond beauty and belatedly stuck his hand out to introduce himself.
She’d eyed his hand with a slight raise of her eyebrows, and spoken,
“I think it might be a little late for that.”
He’d flushed at her words, before noticing the amused twinkle in her eyes. She’d been teasing him, and he’d been so flustered he’d not even seen.
“Sapphire,” was the next word out of her mouth.
“Andy,” he’d managed to squeak before lapsing back into silence.
“Come on, you walked into me, the least you can do is offer some apology.”
“Sorry, sorry. Haven’t I said that yet?” he’d managed, only to have her laugh gently again.
“Um, no, I don’t think you did. Not that it matters. It would just have been nice to hear the words without the prompt.”
“Oh God, sorry. Yes, of course. I should have apologised straight away.”
“Didn’t you see me?” she’d queried, one shoulder shrugging with the question.
“Clearly not,” he’d muttered darkly.
“Not to worry. No harm was done.” She’d turned away and scooped up some of the black bags from the floor.
“Here, let me at least help you with those.”
“They’re not heavy you know, just big.”
“It’s the least I can do. Now, where do they need to be?” Again, there had been an eloquent shrug, and she’d begun walking away, back towards the door where he’d just left Rebecca.
“Follow me, and thanks.”
He’d not realised just how many of the black sacks she’d managed to fit into her tiny blue Micra, but by the time he’d made five trips to and from the Bed and Breakfast he felt sure that he’d more than made up for knocking her over.
It had transpired that inside all the bags had been the bedding and towels needed to keep the Bed and Breakfast, a firm holder of its three-star rating. Once they’d unloaded and were back on the street again, he’d found himself asking her to meet him that night for a drink and she’d readily agreed. He’d walked away feeling only a little guilty that he’d managed to line himself up two dates with two different woman. But that had only been the start of his problems.
He smiled ruefully as he walked along the road remembering his few weeks of having two women falling over themselves to be with him. He’d had fun, and his intentions had been purely honourable. He hadn’t for a moment thought that he’d fall in love with both of them and that those feelings would be reciprocated. Likewise, the revelation that he was seeing two sisters, as different from each other as chalk and cheese, had never crossed his mind. His panic when he’d realised the enormity of what he’d done had almost made him give up both women. Luckily, sanity had prevailed, and he’d broken one heart and kept his whole.
The thought stilled him. Could he think so callously about breaking someone’s heart? And if he could, then why was he now walking the path towards the spot where his last, fateful meeting with Sapphire had taken place?
He’d barely thought of her at all in the last three years, and this was hardly the first time he’d returned to the island. He wondered what guided his steps now?
He kicked disconsolately at a stone on the road, as he pondered why he was so wrapped up in the past on what should have been the happiest day of his life? The stone ricocheted out of the almost tame overgrowth
and hit his foot painfully. He looked up abruptly. Why had that happened?
Trying to remember exactly where he’d kicked the stone, he strode into the undergrowth that boarded the road, using his foot to clear away the knee high weeds and grasses. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for. And then he found it. Buried amongst the tall straw like weeds, he saw what he’d left that night, and he realised what had compelled him to walk this path again. The gem she’d given to him, it was here and had been here all along waiting for him to find it.
He bent down and retrieved the hand-sized sapphire from the nest it had made for itself in the tangled undergrowth by the side of the still quiet road. Not a single car had passed him as he’d walked. No dog walkers, cyclists or lone hikers either. He was still completely alone in the early morning sun with nothing but the sound of the gentle breeze to mar the serenity of the day, and yet his heart beat loudly in his ears, and his blood rushed almost painfully loudly round his head.
The stone was heavy in his hand. It’s deep blue surface barely penetrable in the early morning light. He turned it from side to side, examining its multi-faceted edges, admiring the uniformity of its dull colour, while his cluttered thoughts resounded almost as loudly as his heart beat in his body. What was this? What was it’s significance, because surely, she would not have given him something so priceless and then seemingly disappeared, unless it meant something to her, or was supposed to have some meaning for him?
It was too large to make a necklace from. In fact, it was too heavy to do anything with other than having it as an ornament in the house, so why give it to him?
Absent minded, and still fighting the panic that had shot through his body at the poignant reminder of the night he’d broken her heart, he began to walk back towards his hotel room. It might still be quiet, but he knew that time was moving on and that soon he’d need to be dressed and ready and standing at the front of the huge crowd of family and friends Rebecca had seen fit to invite. He smiled sardonically at the thought of all the fuss this one event had created, and in his hand, the stone he held seemed to pulse.
He glanced to where his hand fisted over the gem in consternation. Surely it could not have stirred in his hand? Convinced his excitement, and trepidation for the events ahead had him imagining things, he walked confidently back towards his future, as the road he trampled slowly woke up with florists vans and the arrival of the first of his guests. He smiled at people he knew and stared at people he didn’t, wondering if they were his relatives that he’d not seen since he was a small child, or whether they were Rebecca’s. He was sure that by the end of the day he’d be exhausted with being polite to people he little knew, but at least, at the end of it, he’d have Rebecca all to himself.
The stone throbbed slowly in his hand, but he was immune to its lure, simply dumping it on the side of the dresser when he returned to the hotel room. Whatever it signified, he would deal with it another day.
