The Secret Cove in Croatia

by Julie Caplin

  ‘I’ve had a text from Genevieve Ellingham!’ He scrolled through his message. ‘How jolly. They’ve invited us to lunch. The day after tomorrow. They’ve rented a place out here for the whole summer.’

  ‘I adore Genevieve,’ said Tara, turning shining eyes to Nick. ‘Oh, you’ll love her, she’s so much fun.’ And then she turned back to the conversation, her hands flapping enthusiastically. ‘I can’t wait to see her.’

  ‘That’ll be a blast. I’ve not seen Evie since Silverstone last year when Vettel won the Grand Prix and we all went back to their place,’ chipped in Simon. ‘Lewis was livid.’

  Maddie leaned back, sipping her Coke, trying to remember if she’d ever met a famous person in her life. Hanging around the stage door after a JLS concert hoping to meet Marvin probably didn’t count, even if he had signed her programme and smiled at her. Looking up, she caught Nick’s eye and he winked and took a long swallow of his beer, his face completely impassive. She wondered if he was as unimpressed as she was by all the name-dropping. Surely Mr Z and Lewis and Genevieve Ellingham, whoever she was, all went to the loo in the same way and all breathed the same air. They were human beings, not some superior interplanetary species above everyone else.

  ‘Oh, what fun. You’ll have to wear the nice shorts,’ said Tara, digging Nick in the ribs, lifting her hand to his face and rubbing at his chin. ‘You can’t go the Ellinghams’ looking like a scruff. In fact, I might take you for a haircut tomorrow.’ She gave him a seductive look that made Maddie want to vomit. The woman was so fake.

  ‘I can get my own haircut, thanks,’ said Nick, dropping a kiss on Tara’s cheek as if to soften the words.

  ‘I know, sweetie.’ She paused. ‘Have you ever thought about having your chest waxed?’

  Nick’s eyes widened with definite No! And not in this lifetime horror and Maddie couldn’t help sniggering.

  ‘It doesn’t hurt that much, darling.’ Tara’s tinkly laugh rang out.

  ‘I’ll take your word for it,’ he replied, glaring as he caught Maddie’s eye; her shoulders were shaking with laughter.

  When the conversation had moved on she leaned over and whispered, ‘Want me to share that with Nina?’

  Chapter 16

  ‘Wait.’

  Maddie looked up at the middle deck. It was seven o’clock in the morning and she’d just stepped into the launch, not expecting anyone to be up and about yet. Last night had been a late one by the time they’d returned to the boat and a fair number of cocktails had been consumed, although, conscious she was still on duty, she’d stuck to Coke.

  Simon’s head disappeared and a second later he came down the steps onto the stern.

  ‘Where are you off to at this ungodly hour, Cinders?’ he asked, still trying to button up his linen shirt while clutching a pair of deck shoes under one arm. A fine set of abs were on show and a nicely muscled smooth chest. Everything about Simon seemed smooth. She wasn’t sure she’d ever seen such a perfect body in the flesh. It had to take some work, although he didn’t seem to have done much in the way of exercise while he’d been here. How did he keep up those perfectly sculpted muscles?

  ‘I’m going to the bakery. I thought you all might appreciate some carbs for breakfast.’ She smiled warily at him.

  ‘Oh, Lord, yes, I do feel a bit delicate but not enough to stop me accompanying you.’ He jumped down into the launch and Maddie felt a momentary flicker of irritation at his presumption. She’d been looking forward to a solitary trip into Hvar. Last night had been a little too much for her, with all the name-dropping and my holiday was bigger and better than yours. It must be exhausting keeping up with the Joneses.

  As her shoulders sank there was another rock to the boat and she realised Nick had appeared and also jumped aboard.

  ‘Can I cadge a lift into Hvar?’ he asked. ‘I want to get a haircut … unsupervised.’

  ‘Yeah, sure. Why not?’ said Maddie with an uncharitable shrug, although secretly she was quite glad to see him. Hopefully, in his presence, Simon would keep his hands to himself.

  Nick went and sat in the seats at the back of the launch, leaving the seat next to Maddie free for Simon.

  As the boat drew away from the yacht, Maddie eased up the trim, feeling the bow lift and enjoying the sensation of having mastered driving the motorboat. Simon’s shirt flapped in the wind and he turned in the seat to face her, his eyes hidden behind his Ray-Ban sunglasses. It didn’t take Einstein to realise that the unbuttoned shirt was a deliberate oversight and purely for her benefit.

  ‘You can get dressed now, Simon,’ she said dryly, facing the wind, not bothering to look at him.

  ‘You spoil all my fun.’ He laughed, pulling together the fabric, doing up the buttons and tucking his shirt into his shorts.

  She was rather pleased with the way she docked, cutting the engine and allowing the boat to drift into the harbourside. Simon watched as she jumped out and quickly cast a line around one of the mooring posts, Nick still clambering forwards from the back of the boat.

  ‘Feel free to join in,’ she said from the side as Simon straightened up and got out of the boat just ahead of Nick.

  ‘You were being so capable and efficient, I was enjoying watching. Independent women really turn me on.’

  Nick rolled his eyes.

  ‘You are so full of …’ said Maddie, picking up her trusty basket.

  ‘Language,’ admonished Simon. ‘So where are we headed, Little Red Riding Hood?’

  ‘Ah …’ she looked down at her scribbled note ‘… I’m not a hundred per cent sure, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find.’

  ‘I’ll see you guys later,’ said Nick, skirting around them. ‘What time shall I meet you?’

  ‘Back here in forty minutes?’ suggested Maddie before adding, ‘Think you’ll get a chest wax in as well?’

  Nick glared at her and turned on his heel and strode off.

  Zita had recommended a place on Stjepana Papafave, which Maddie quickly realised was the big main square that they’d seen the previous evening. It took only a few minutes to load up her basket with burek, crescent rolls with cheese, little breadsticks and Croatian-style sausage rolls, as well as apricot croissant and jam doughnuts. According to her phone – how on earth had anyone ever managed before Google maps – there was a good-sized supermarket, up beyond the square past the bell tower near to the bus station.

  Simon sauntered along with her in the early morning sunshine and Maddie was grateful for his silence as she let her artist’s eye rove over the view. Compared to last night when the square had been buzzing with people, redolent with the scent of fish and cooked meat, this morning there was a quiet sleepy air to the town, reminding Maddie of its historic origins and how it might have looked in times gone by. Apart from the modern signage tacked onto the front of some of the buildings, the basic fabric looked untouched and unchanged. Her flip-flops slapped on the glossy white paving slabs as she walked back into the square, passing the beautiful carved bell tower with its arched windows on each storey. It felt as if the town had held fast to its history, an iron white stone grip, telling of its community and a solidarity beneath the surface.

  She stared up to the top of the hill, the fort dominating the skyline. Not one of the party last night had voiced any desire to climb up there. As soon as she had some free time, she’d do it. The views must be amazing.

  ‘Right, where next?’ asked Simon as she was studying one of the buildings by the harbour, wishing she had her sketchbook with her.

  ‘Sorry?’ She realised she was daydreaming.

  ‘You’ve done shopping. Want to stop for a drink? Hair of the dog? Breakfast?’

  ‘No, thanks, I’m OK. Besides, I have to get back to the Avanturista. People will want their breakfast. And we need to meet Nick in five minutes.’

  ‘Oh, yes, good ole Neanderthal Nick.’

  Maddie raised a careful eyebrow. ‘Why don’t you like him? What’s he done to you?’ She stopped to put down th
e awkward wicker basket for a quick rest before she transferred it to her other arm. Served her right for allowing herself to give into the impractical romance of the basket. In reality only pretty slight girls in novels and films fannied around with whimsical baskets and trugs. She should have stuck with a plain old carrier bag.

  ‘I don’t dislike him.’ Simon sighed, a long-suffering, bored exhalation which Maddie found overly dramatic and more than a touch studied.

  ‘But he has no place here. I don’t know what Tara was thinking … well, I do. Thought a bit of Daniel Craig beefcake would make her look good. Putting the idea into people’s heads.’

  Maddie snorted with ill-disguised impatience. ‘Nick doesn’t look anything like Daniel Craig.’

  ‘No, more Chris Hemsworth. Tara’s not stupid. He’s got the rough and rugged look. Sets the scene rather well.’

  ‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘Come now, Maddie. Surely you can see Nick’s appeal in a rough and ready way.’

  ‘You make it sound as if he’s just stepped off a council estate. I’m pretty sure his family own their own home.’

  ‘What?’ Simon drew his hand against his chest in camp shock. ‘Don’t tell me that they have their own inside toilet?’

  ‘He lives in the north, not the post-apocalypse,’ said Maddie in slightly frigid tones. What on earth would Simon make of her family’s home? OK, so the outside toilet had long since been converted into a shed but it was not so long since a previous generation had made complete use of it.

  ‘Maddie –’ his voice took on a wheedling tone ‘– I’m only teasing.’

  But it didn’t feel like teasing and suddenly Maddie wasn’t sure she liked Simon very much. He never seemed to have anything positive to say about anyone. And she’d noticed he could be like quicksilver, one minute cosying up to Tara and Cory, but the next, when they weren’t around, quick to complain and moan about them.

  Simon shrugged with nonchalance, adding, ‘To be honest, he’s not really important enough for me to care one way or the other about whether I like him or not. Tara will ditch him soon enough. Now, are you going to have a coffee with me or not?’

  ‘I’ve already told you; we haven’t got time.’

  ‘Come on, Maddie, you know you want to really.’ Simon tried to press a kiss on her neck but she pulled away.

  ‘No, Simon. I don’t.’

  He rolled his eyes and despite the charming smile she could sense his irritation. ‘All right then, we’ll go back to the boat. You’re no fun, you know.’

  Swapping the basket, which had left marks on her arm, to the other arm, she ignored him and picked up her pace, heading to the little harbour area with a determined stride.

  Simon sauntered along behind her, whistling as if he had all the time in the world.

  She turned.

  He flashed her a grin which she was sure he thought was charming, but she was too wound up by his unwillingness to see she had to get back to the boat.

  ‘Are you being deliberately difficult?’

  With a stupid, she-couldn’t-possibly-really-be-mad-at-me smirk, he said, ‘OK, we’ll go back to the boat. Are you going to let me drive?’

  ‘No,’ she said shortly.

  Simon laughed and slid his hand into her shorts pocket. ‘Sure about that?’ he asked, pulling out the ignition key.

  ‘Simon, give those back.’

  ‘Only if you let me drive the boat.’

  ‘You’re not allowed to.’

  ‘Who’s going to know? We can swap when we get to the bay.’

  ‘I’ll know and if anything happens we’re not insured.’

  ‘What is going to happen? It’s hardly the Titanic and last I heard there were no known icebergs on the Dalmatian coast.’

  He dangled the keys out of reach above her head when she made a grab for them. ‘Careful, you don’t want me to drop them in the sea, do you?’

  Maddie could feel herself getting hotter. ‘Simon, this isn’t funny. Give me the keys back and stop mucking about.’ She looked around, hoping to see Nick. At least he would talk some sense into Simon.

  ‘Come on, gorgeous, stop being so strait-laced. No one is going to know. And you don’t need to worry about the insurance. I can drive this thing fine. I’ve driven an F1 around Brands Hatch; I don’t think a poky little engine is going to cause me any problems. I’m an experienced driver.’

  With his eyebrows quirked in challenge, he got into the boat and went and stood behind the wheel, looking at her over his shoulder. ‘You can cast off.’

  Maddie put down her basket. ‘Simon,’ she ground out, folding her arms, making it clear she had no intention of getting into the boat, ‘we’ve got to wait for Nick.’

  After a small standoff, he walked lightly to the stern and held out a hand. ‘Come on, get in.’

  She jumped down into the boat and arranged her basket in the back seat. They were still moored and there was no sign of Nick. When he got here, he could untie the line.

  Simon got out of the boat onto the side. ‘No sign of him.’

  The next thing she knew, Simon had the line in his hand, had jumped into the boat, slotted the key in the ignition and turned on the engine and was pulling away from the harbourside.

  ‘Simon! What are you doing?’

  With a devilish grin, he increased the speed, making the boats around them dance up and down in the wash. ‘Live a little, Maddie. Come on, let’s have some fun.’

  She turned back to look at the quayside, anxiously scanning along, looking for Nick.

  ‘We can’t leave him.’

  ‘Course we can.’

  ‘Simon –’ she folded her arms ‘– turn around now. We need to go back.’ She didn’t want to leave Nick. It was wrong.

  ‘Don’t be such a bore. He’s a big boy. Old enough and ugly enough to look after himself.’

  ‘I’m not being a bore. You’re being an arse.’ And Nick wasn’t old or ugly, he was … Something flipped in her stomach. Gorgeous in a rugged, masculine, action hero sort of way. Oh, heck, how come she’d only just noticed that now?

  ‘Ooh, Maddie, I love it when you get all feisty. Aaaaarrrrse,’ he repeated in a mocking Irish accent.

  ‘For fuck’s sake, Simon, will you stop and let me take over? You’re not supposed to be driving. Slow down. Ivan’s going to kill me.’ She looked back over her shoulder towards the harbour, growing smaller with every second. Where was Nick? What was he going to think? She hated the thought that he’d assume she’d been party to this. Right now she’d far rather have Nick in the boat.

  ‘Don’t be silly, darling. I’m a guest. He’s not going to say anything to me. Now, let’s see what this baby can do.’

  He was going so fast now that she couldn’t stand up without hanging onto the seat. There was no way she could wrest control from him. Resigned to his idiocy, she sat in the other seat with her arms folded, refusing to acknowledge him even as he whooped and kept trying to catch her eye.

  ‘Come on, Maddie, cheer up. This is fun. We’re having fun.’

  Another time in another pair of hands, she might have found zipping across the water exhilarating and enjoyable but a tight bud of anxiety had lodged under her breastbone and she clung to the sides of the seat, wondering what Ivan was going to say to her.

  The motorboat raced past several big yachts moored in prime spots. They were in a different league to the Avanturista. Huge, many tiered superyachts like floating wedding cakes. Some were silent and still, sleeping off last night’s party, as evidenced by the empty glass flutes, abandoned bottles of champagne and beer cans, strewn across the tables on the main deck, while others were hives of mini industry with crew members in smart uniforms buzzing about cleaning decks, polishing brass, having already, Maddie guessed, cleared up the previous evening’s debris.

  As they skirted one of the biggest gin palaces at anchor, they emerged directly in the path of another motorboat with three men on board. The other boat veered sharply aw
ay, narrowly missing their bow, making the boat rock violently in the sudden wall of water created by the wake.

  ‘Oy,’ yelled Simon. ‘Watch where you’re going!’ But his words were carried away by the wind and drowned out by the whining pitch of the engine as it struggled to crest through the choppy water.

  One of them gave a cheery no-harm-done sort of wave.

  ‘Tossers,’ muttered Simon.

  ‘They didn’t do it on purpose,’ said Maddie. ‘They may have had right of way.’ Ivan had definitely mentioned some points of seafaring etiquette and in the rush of driving the boat she’d not paid any attention.

  ‘Bastards,’ said Simon as the boat veered around with a splashy turn, increasing the churning wake before zooming off, with one of the men giving another cheery wave. ‘I’ll show them.’ He wrenched the throttle forward and the boat jerked forward, throwing Maddie back into her seat.

  ‘Don’t!’ she cried, but Simon wasn’t listening. The engine groaned and hiccoughed before dropping into a low growl as it settled into top speed. There was a grim hunger in the profile of Simon’s face as he stood up, one hand gripping the wheel and the other holding the throttle down, his thumb pressed on the trim.

  ‘Simon, slow down!’ screamed Maddie as the bow tipped up, too high out of the water, while the engine was too low, but Simon, intent on hot pursuit, was so focused on the boat ahead that he didn’t seem to notice the rollercoaster up and down bounce in the water, each smack down leaving Maddie’s stomach in freefall.

  There was a whoop from the other boat and it began to swerve in a flashy show – this driver knew what he was doing – as he sliced left and right. Simon pushed the boat faster and it bounced higher, hitting the choppy waves of the wake from the boat ahead. The boat rolled hard to the right, almost tipping over.

  ‘Slow down!’ Maddie screamed again, but it was too late; the boat rolled again as it hit the trough of the wake from the other vessel. Simon stumbled, letting go of the wheel. The boat swung wildly to the right. He grabbed at the wheel, caught it and then lost it again, sending the boat into another wild turn.