Sunlight pours through Leroy Hart’s hotel room window, dancing over the hastily discarded clothes that litter his green carpet. Yawning he turns over, his hand brushing against the warm sun baked skin of Amy DiVita. His eyes pop open at the sensation, a slow smile curving his mouth, as he studies her. Her dishevelled hair is still covered in confetti from the previous night, and he giggles a little as the memories of what they got up to flood his brain.
“You know a woman doesn’t really want to hear a bloke laughing at her after she’s slept with him.” Amy comments drowsily as she cracks open one eye to look at him.
“I wasn’t laughing at you Amy,” he assures her. “I just…I’m really happy about what happened last night.”
“I’m happy too,” she smiles. “It was a great night…even though my hair resembles a bird’s nest now,” she laughs as she catches sight of herself in the large mirror that hangs opposite the bed.
“Don’t…” he stills her fingers as she reaches across him for a hairbrush. “You look great as always, and there are better things we can be doing,”
“Oh really what do you have in mind Mr Hart?” she asks, lifting one eyebrow as she looks at him.
“Not that Ms DiVita!” he laughs, “I don’t have your energy levels, I’m a lot older than you and you tired me out last night. I was more thinking that we could grab some breakfast and a cup of coffee,”
“Give me five minutes,” she rolls from the bed, and seconds later he hears the shower running. Her husky voice drifts out of the open door as she sings Feeling Good, making him smile.
Twenty minutes later they are walking down the promenade, she’s carrying the coffees while he carries the bacon and egg sandwiches. He makes a beeline for an empty bench, closely followed by her. She hands him a coffee and takes a sandwich. As he munches, he’s watching a family playing with their dog on the sand, but slowly turns to look at her, a laugh bursting from his lips.
“What?”
“You have a splodge of ketchup, right here,” he says, wiping the ketchup on her cheek away with one of the napkins.
“Thanks. Ketchup’s not exactly a must have accessory,” she grins at him, her eyes lighting up.
“So where do we go from here Amy?”
“Well I guess we head back to the hotel, get our stuff and you head off back to Madrid.” She says. “This was only really meant to be a weekend thing right?”
“It doesn’t have to be.” Leroy says, feeling a little nervous.
“Yes it does. You have commitments, you’re getting married in less than a month Leroy.” She says, sweeping one ringlet back behind her ear. “Last night was amazing, and I wouldn’t take it back for anything but don’t make me a reason for breaking Olivia’s heart. I can’t give you what she can, she adores you, and wants to build a stable life with you.”
“Shut up.” He presses one finger to her lips, stopping the torrent of words, “Just listen. I love you, have done since the moment I met you actually. I think you’re the most extraordinary person I’ve ever met and I can’t marry Olivia, if there is the slightest chance that you feel the same way about me. Is there a chance?”
“No, there isn’t. I’m sorry, I care about you a lot, but I’m not in love with you.” She says bluntly. “You don’t love me either, you don’t know me, not really.”
“I know you Amy,” he says, tracing the scar that bisects her left eyebrow. “I know that you make strange noises when you sleep. I know that your feet get cold easily that’s why you wear two pairs of socks in bed. I know that you used to take Down and Out in Paris and London with you every time you caught a train just so you had something you wanted to read. I know that you…”
She presses one hand to his lips to stop him. “Listen there are things I’ve seen that you couldn’t imagine, and I’ve done things that I hope to god that you never try to imagine.” A shadow fleets across her face, and he wonders what she could possibly have done, over her short life that would haunt her so much. “You need to go home and be with Olivia, what you have with her is real. She’s a good woman and she loves you. Our weekend wasn’t real, for either of us.”
“It was real for me. What was it to you?” he asks.
“A welcome break from the reality of my job, with a bloke that I really like.” She says honestly. Her phone starts ringing at that moment, and she answers it. “Hello.”
“Juno it’s all kicking off. Kiane needs us now.” Apollo’s lilting voice informs her.
“Okay I’m on my way. Give me half an hour and I’ll meet you at the usual spot.” She closes her phone, without waiting for his response, and turns back to the bench. She’s not really surprised to see that Leroy has gone.
Musings of a thirtysomething woman 