Five people,
three secrets, one planned proposal. What could possibly go wrong?
A holiday in a
luxury villa on Corfu sounds like the answer to all their prayers but it will
change their lives forever. A week in paradise might not be long enough…
Purchase Links
UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Corfu-Capers-Joy-Skye-ebook/dp/B082MP48H1/
US - https://www.amazon.com/Corfu-Capers-Joy-Skye-ebook/dp/B082MP48H1/
Excerpt
The
journey from Houston, Texas is a long one and the group have a layover in
Athens:
As the doors slid open to allow them outside a
blast of humid air hit them, the heat bouncing off the pavement, and they were
blinded by the rays of the sinking sun. They all stopped for an instant,
transfixed by the warmth and the smell of this new country.
‘Come on’ barked Kate, bustling into action
first and waving her clutch bag at the yellow taxis lined up a little way beyond the
doors. They piled into two taxis and, after confirming the hotel address, sped
downtown. Charlotte had stopped bleating at this point and was focused on
fixing her make-up in her compact so Linda was able to begin to pay attention
to her surroundings. Up until now they’d been inside bland airport terminals
and on planes and she hadn’t had the sense of being anywhere new but now, as
the taxis zig zagged crazily through the thronging streets, she began to smile.
With the constant cacophony of horns, enormous
junctions which would bamboozle the most competent of drivers and the strangely
cryptic road signs, she feared for their safety in a detached yet thrilling
way. Pedestrians seemed to have no hope and scurried along close to the walls
of the hotchpotch of concrete buildings on narrow, badly kept pavements that
would make Charlotte's heels redundant. As for the Zebra crossings, they were
apparently there for decorative punctuation rather than function and people
took their lives in their hands even daring to place a tentative toe on them,
causing the traffic to slow not one iota.
She knew from all her research that every big
city has its invisible side with sites and areas that bear the marks of history
but are hidden in the modern trappings that she could see from the taxi.
Athens, with its long, turbulent history, must be such a city, she thought, and
she couldn’t wait to discover its unknown corners and untold stories.
Dinner that night was a relaxed affair. The
receptionist of the hotel had directed them to a restaurant set in a charming
small cobbled platia a few minutes’ walk away that she plainly thought was the
best one in the area, her enthusiastic description of the food leaving them all
salivating.
They strolled happily towards the square and,
as the air thickened with the smell of spiced lamb and music from a taverna
nearby, they began to feel the essence of the city. The streets seemed to be
coming alive on this warm summer’s evening with lovers, shoppers and tourists
alike and the atmosphere was quite unlike anything they had experienced before
as children ran freely past them into the square.
The tables and chairs were placed around
Jacaranda Trees, planted at haphazard intervals, the last of their purple
blossoms dropping like confetti around them and lights were strung up between
them radiating a warm glow over the scene. The table cloths were chequered blue
and white to reflect the restaurants exterior and national colours.
‘My, isn’t this delightful’ said Kate, leading
the way to a round table large enough to accommodate them and placing her bag
on her chosen seat whilst she undid her matching wrap and hung it over the back
of her chair.
‘It
certainly is’ said Linda, seating herself next to her, so distracted by the
enchanting ambience of the surroundings that she didn’t even consider placing
herself as far away from Kate as possible as she usually would have.
The others found their places and soon the
conversation was of menu choices and preferred wines, and progressed naturally
to the planned tour tomorrow and finally faded as plates were brought, loaded
with delicacies, halting the need for communication in preference for the
enjoyment of the feast before them.
Scott looked across the table and was happy to
see Linda animatedly chatting with his Mother. Her face was flushed, glowing in
the candlelight, and her eyes were sparkling. She looked so happy and he didn’t
think that was entirely due to the amount of wine they’d consumed with dinner.
Apart from the hiccup at the hotel when it had
become apparent that Kate was not going to accept them sharing a room,
something that hadn’t even occurred to either of them, Linda and Kate seemed to
be getting on well.
‘Just let her have her way for now’ he’d said
when they’d managed to grab a few minutes alone together. ‘This trip is so
important to Kate, it’s the first time she’s travelled abroad since dad left
and she has a certain picture in her mind of how everything will be’
‘Expectation
is the root of all heartache’ snapped Linda, but then she softened when she saw
his face fall. She was so thrilled to be travelling, surrounded by all these
new sights, sounds and smells that she couldn’t give two hoots if Madam Kate
wanted to be a stick in the mud.
‘Don’t
worry,’ she told Scott ‘I’ll behave and it will be fine. We’re going to have a
fantastic holiday’. He smiled gratefully and held her close for a long minute.
‘Thank
you’ he whispered into her hair, breathing in the familiar aroma of her
favourite shampoo.
Author Bio
–
Joy lives on the seductive island of Corfu
with her four dogs and an embarrassing number of cats.
Her many years working in the tourist industry
on this sunny isle and her love of all things literary inspired her first novel
Corfu Capers which recently hit the #1 spot in Parenting and Family humour much
to her delight.
She loves to cook, dance and drink wine,
usually at the same time, and is currently working on book number two, due to
be released later this year.
She also loves to travel, absolutely anywhere,
and is looking forward to jumping on a plane!
Social
Media Links –
Twitter: @JoySkye4
Instagram: joys.kye
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B08S386CV1
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