By the time they got back to the hotel it was gone midnight. Celeste had drowsed as the SUV snaked its way slowly down the unmade roadway to the metalled coastal road that led back to the resort, and as they disembarked she was yawning.
‘Off you go to bed,’ Rafael said.
She smiled at him sleepily and headed off across the atrium to her wing of the hotel. Rafael watched her go until she was out of sight, then set off towards his cabana-villa in the other direction. As he walked through the night-scented gardens, with the stars burning above, his mood was strange.
He glanced upwards. He desired her so much, the woman whose name was as celestial as the pale, burning stars above. But there was more than desire in what he felt—what he sought.
What is happening to me?
The question formed in his head, hanging there like a solitary star in his consciousness. Then he shook it aside and continued on his way.
But it hovered still, and in the morning he woke to its presence. It was with him as he set off on his daily run through the hotel grounds, and sprang stronger as he joined Celeste for breakfast. As it did every time, her beauty hit him. Today she was casually but beautifully dressed, as she always was, in a loosely shaped Grecian-style tunic sundress, her hair simply caught back at the nape of her head with a scarf. She had no make-up on, and her skin, despite her assiduous application of sunblock, had developed the glow of pale honey.
‘Hi,’ she greeted him. Her voice was warm. Her eyes warmer.
He felt emotion kick in him as he took his place. Desire, yes, and gladness that she was smiling at him—but there was more as well.
What is happening to me? The question hung again in his consciousness.
‘Wasn’t last night wonderful?’ she was saying.
‘Stars in your eyes?’ He laughed.
‘Oh, yes,’ she answered. She speared another slice of the pineapple that was her breakfast staple.
‘Mmm...’ she murmured appreciatively as the incredible rich, ripe sweetness of its juice filled her senses. ‘This is the best yet! Every morning I think this is the best Maui Gold pineapple in the entire universe—and then the next morning there’s an even better one!’
He laughed, reaching forward with his unfurled linen napkin. There was a tiny drop of pineapple juice on her chin and he dabbed it away. An intimate gesture...
Their eyes met, mingled. Then she pulled hers away.
‘What shall we do today?’ she asked. There was the slightest hint of heightened colour in her cheeks.
‘Your choice,’ Rafael said expansively, pouring strong black coffee into his cup.
‘After last night I’m feeling lazy,’ she admitted.
‘Then we’ll have a lazy day. In fact, why don’t we go the whole hog and indulge in a therapeutic massage? Every morning I run past the open-air massage beds by the edge of the sea and think I should book myself in!’
Celeste’s eyes lit. ‘Oh, yes—definitely! What a brilliant idea!’
His lashes dipped over his eyes. ‘I’m full of good ideas, Celeste,’ he said.
She felt heat flush through her and knew that he could see it, too. Knew, too, the truth of what he’d said. Resolve filled her. She would take everything that he was offering her, gladly and fully. No more questioning or torment or doubt or fear.
Rafael had reached out to her as no other man had done, had been able to. She did not know why, knew only that with him the past that chained her seemed so far away...so long ago. As far away as those distant stars that had burnt out long aeons ago.
Whose light no longer reached her.
* * *
The oceanside massage proved a wonderful idea, Celeste swiftly discovered. To lie in the sheltering shade of the open-sided cabana as the slow, relaxing, rhythmic kneading of a skilled masseuse worked its magic on her back and shoulders was blissful.