Those Summer Nights (Corfu, Greek Island Romance) by Mandy Baggot Page B

forgotten.’
    ‘It’s in Greece, Harry. You can’t expect us to live here. Is that what you thought would happen?’
    ‘For the summer, maybe? I’m not sure how busy this area is in the winter but I do know there are a lot of ex-pats who live here. They’ll want food in the winter.’
    ‘Well, what about permits? I don’t know much about Greece but I do know they love their red tape when it comes to things like this. They don’t just let you open a restaurant willy-nilly.’
    ‘I’ve got some of them. I need to meet with the fire guy to go through what kit we need and get the music licence from someone called Helios,’ Harry responded. ‘Then there’s a business licence. I need to sort out that one.’
    She hadn’t been expecting that. It seemed her brother was far more organised than anyone had given him credit for.
    ‘I’ve thought about this, Immy. I told you. I’ve been planning this for weeks. It’s just what I need.’ He inhaled air like it was sweet mountain dew. ‘A fresh start. I can show Janie I’m still the man she fell in love with and seduce her with Greek treats that are going to have her remembering the time I took her up the monastery.’
    She nodded quickly, hoping ‘monastery’ wasn’t a euphemism.
    She watched Harry’s smile widen. ‘I know something we need more than beds,’ he said. ‘Let’s get some wine and toast our new venture!’
    ‘Our new venture,’ Imogen spoke with a little uncertainty. Feeling like a trapped third class passenger on the Titanic , she forced a smile. She could do this. She just had to keep them both afloat. The trouble was, if things got rougher, she couldn’t imagine who was going to arrive with a lifeboat.

12
Tomas’ Taverna, Acharavi Beachfront
    T his definitely felt better . Imogen and Harry had walked along the beach road then back, stopping at the bar next to the restaurant. Now, with her body elongated on a large well-cushioned chair, Imogen almost felt relaxed. If she closed her eyes she could just about pretend she was here on holiday and not the project manager of a Greek crisis. As the sound of the sea slushing back and forth over the shingle at the water’s edge lulled her close to slumber she recalled the last time she’d been on holiday abroad.
    Daniel had booked them what he had called ‘a second honeymoon’. A week in picturesque Cape Verde. She had looked at the brochure – the turquoise waters, the white sandy beaches, the couples snorkelling with multi-coloured tropical fish and turtles – and thought he was really trying. This was what their relationship needed. An injection of alone time without the constant drone of the forty-seven-inch television. How wrong she had been. The television in their gorgeous lily-filled suite with a swim-up pool was slightly smaller and only had German channels but it was switched on the second after Daniel turned the key in the door. Couple time was a quickie before breakfast and her day consisted of getting intimate with her Kindle and the cocktail list while Daniel exerted himself taking part in every activity available – volleyball, tennis, wakeboarding. Looking back now, perhaps she should have done something, told him how she felt. You couldn’t demand attention one minute and ignore someone the next. He wanted her there with him all the time just so she wasn’t anywhere else. It was quietly controlling and she wished she’d realised it sooner. It said a lot that on that holiday she’d never even taken one of the hotel pens.
    ‘This is the life, isn’t it?’
    Harry’s voice broke through her thoughts and she opened her eyes, shielding her vision from the sun to look across at him. He had his eyes shut too, his face turned up to the sky. Imogen looked, taking in every line and crease in her brother’s face. He had been through so much. It had been hard enough for both of them growing up in a one-parent family, but what had happened afterwards – Harry’s accident and his