Chapter 6
As Raf sat next toJosie’s bed, watching her snooze, tenderness filled him. She was sedated and pain-free from her medication and had drowsed on and off during the day. He stood and stretched, peering through the hotel window at the waves breaking on the beach. He felt restless and on edge, his muscles twitching from inaction all day. Still, he wouldn’t give up being with Josie for anything. He was so relieved that she’d survived relatively unscathed the attack by the reef shark. Every time he looked at her bandaged arm and remembered the deep gouge in her skin, he felt a shudder of fear. They had been so lucky that she wasn’t injured worse. If the shark had aimed for her torso or head, it could have been lethal.
His phone pinged, and he looked at the screen. It was a message from Sue. She was in the foyer and coming up the lift. Raf gently leaned over and brushed Josie’s hair off her face. She smiled as her eyes fluttered open. ‘Sue’s on her way up.’
He leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.
‘Love you,’ she murmured.
‘Love you too,’ he said, the words feeling effortless and natural. He’d never said that to another woman, never really thought it would happen for some reason, and yet now he felt like Josie was the missing piece of him.
There was a knock on the door, and he opened it for Sue. ‘How was Josie today?’ she asked.
Raf briefed her and then watched as Sue unwound the bandage, holding Josie’s hand. He winced as he saw the red bite. Josie looked away, her hand fighting on his as she contained her pain.
‘Seems to be healing well,’ Sue said as she applied more antiseptic and ointment to the wound. She briskly re-wound the bandage, ensuring it wasn’t too tight.
‘I’ll get going.’ Raf leaned down and kissed Josie. ‘I’ll be back at 11 pm, and I’ll text you to let me in?’
Sue nodded.
Raf left, passing by Amanda. ‘The night nurse is here,’ he told her. ‘I’ll see you in the morning.’
He was walking out when Amanda called him back. He turned, nervous. Had she figured out his true identity? She handed him an envelope.
‘Your pay packet,’ Amanda said.
‘Thank you,’ Raf nodded, relief flooding him. His ruse was still in place.
Amanda entered Josie’s bedroom, and he left.
When he arrived home, he toed off his black runners and tossed the scrubs off before changing into his shorts and t-shirt. As he ran out of the kitchen, his mother called out to him.
‘Will you be back for dinner?’
He jogged in place. ‘No, I’ll eat leftovers when I come back. I need a good run.’
His mother blew him a kiss, and he ran out the back patio and down the concrete path. He ran his usual 5-kilometer run, his muscles stretching and pulsing, making him feel alive.
When he returned an hour later, his parents were in the dining room, lingering over dessert. ‘I made you a plate, and it’s in the fridge,’ his mother said.
After his shower, he went to the kitchen and took the plate of food his mother had put aside and microwaved it. He found his father in the living room, watching a war documentary, and heard the treadmill thudding from the back room as his mother did her nightly exercise routine.
He sat on the armchair and watched the TV with Jack as he inhaled the lamb chops and mashed potato his mother made.
‘What have you been doing with yourself?’ Jack asked, lowering the volume on the TV.
‘This and that,’ Raf said between bites.
‘Because Tommo told me you had a biffo with a reef shark.’
Raf sneaked a look at his father, wondering what else Tommo had told him.
‘I’m okay. My friend got bit when she pushed me out of the way of a jellyfish.’
‘Is that where you spent your day, then? With your friend,’ Jack sounded disinterested, but Raf was not fooled. His father always knew more than he was letting on.
‘Yes, just making sure she’s alright.’ Raf finished his food, feeling full and relaxed, and placed his plate on the coffee table.
‘So, your friend is alright?’ Jack asked.
Raf knew it. His father knew about Josie. Regal Bay was a small town, and gossip wouldn’t have taken long to travel. He hoped that the Herons were out of the gossip loop or he would be in trouble.
‘Yes, Josie is alright,’ Raf said, lying on the couch and leaning back on the armrest. Silence descended as they watched the images of tanks entering a French village during WWII. ‘You know she’s not my friend,’ Raf murmured softly.
‘I know,’ Jack said.
‘Are you angry?’ Raf asked, tilting his head to look at his father.
Jack glanced at him with surprise.
‘That I’m dating a Heron?’ Raf continued.
‘It’s not ideal, but holiday romances usually take their course.’ Jack shrugged.
‘It’s not a holiday romance. I think she’s the one.’ Raf was too scared to look at his father as he admitted the truth of his feelings. The silence stretched out, and he couldn’t stand the tension. He met his father’s gaze.
‘Do you love her?’ Jack asked, his gaze steady.
Raf nodded. ‘With all my heart.’
Jack nodded. ‘Love doesn’t discriminate,’ he said, his gaze taking on a faraway look. ‘It comes when we’re ready or not, and we have to take the chance, regardless of the consequences, or suffer forever.’
Raf nodded. Jack’s second marriage to his mother was a scandal that had rocked Regal Bay. They’d met while he was married with four children when Sue came to nurse Jack’s first wife, who was suffering from cancer. Their relationship was always viewed as an unseemly courtship that occurred under the nose of his dying wife, and their wedding six months later was gossip fodder for decades. It had only subsided as they approached their thirtieth wedding anniversary.
‘I loved Rachel, you know,’ Jack said, naming his first wife.
Raf tensed. This was the first time his father had ever talked about his first wife with him. While Rachel was always a feature of their household, with Susan and Jack acknowledging her publicly on every occasion for his half-siblings, neither of his parents had ever actually spoken about their romance.
‘Rachel and I were high school sweethearts. I didn’t know where she ended and where I began. Being together just seemed pre-ordained and never seemed like something I had control over. It was just meant to be.’ Jack sighed, taking a sip of his whiskey. ‘Over the years, we settled into a mostly happy marriage and then into a mundane partnership as parents to four kids. I thought that’s how it was meant to be. Then I met your mother.’
Jack’s face lit up. ‘The first time she entered the room, I felt more alive than I ever had in my life. It was like electricity jolted me awake from a deep sleep. And Rachel knew.’ Jack smiled sadly. ‘That’s what the gossips don’t understand. Rachel and I were best friends. We knew everything about each other, and she knew the minute that I met Susan what I was feeling, even before I did. She told me not to waste one second. Not to wait around and wallow in grief but to love and live deeply. And that’s what I did. That’s why our wedding was only six months later; I wasn’t going to waste one more second. Not when I’d seen how precious life was with Rachel’s passing.’
Jack turned to Raf and gripped his arm. ‘So, if you feel the same about the Heron girl, don’t waste a second. If she’s the one, then trust in it.’
Raf smiled, his eyes burning with tears. He’d never doubted his parents’ deep feelings with each other but had always wondered how his pragmatic father had gone from one marriage to another with such finesse. Now, he knew it was true love.
There were footsteps to his right, and he turned and saw the angry face of his older brother, Mateo. They had both inherited their father’s height and dark hair. However, Mateo’s features were more like his mother Rachel”s: a patrician nose and a dimpled chin. ‘The Heron girl?’ Mateo demanded, glaring at Raf. ‘So it’s true. You are dating the enemy.’
‘Take it down a notch,’ Jack implored, putting up a hand. ‘The girl is not to be blamed for her father’s sins.’
‘I disagree,’ Mateo muttered. ‘The Herons are a blight on our town and tourism. If they keep up their corporate greed, they’re going to drive us out of business.’
‘Now, now, business is fine,’ Jack said.
Mateo nodded, his lips thinning as he restrained himself from responding. Raf glanced at the clock. He only had a couple more hours before he would return to Josie’s side. ‘I have some stuff to do,’ he said, eager to get away from the brooding presence of his elder brother.
There was a ten-year age gap between him and Mateo; they’d never really spent much time together or had much of a bond. Still, it bothered him that his brother disapproved. Raf thought that avoidance was the best strategy.
He was in his room, preparing his clothes for a shower, when there was a knock on the door. ‘Come in,’ he called.
Mateo sauntered in. ‘Did you want to go play some billiards tonight?’ he asked nonchalantly.
Raf glanced at his older brother. Even though Mateo was projecting carelessness on the surface, Raf knew that his brother had an ulterior motive for asking.
‘Can’t tonight,’ he said.
‘Don’t want to take a night away from your girl?’ Mateo asked, his voice coated with annoyance.
Raf turned and stared him down. ‘No, I don’t.’
Mateo put his arms up in surrender. ‘I’m just trying to understand. Dad says that the Heron girl is the one?’
‘Her name is Josie,’ Raf snapped, irritated at the careless way he was denigrating Josie. ‘And yes, she is.’
‘Really? You’re only 25, and she’s what, 21.’
‘Twenty-two,’ Raf said, crossing his arms over his chest.
‘You’re both so young. I’m sure you’ve met plenty of “the ones.”’ Mateo put air quotes around the word.
Raf seethed but attempted to keep his composure. ‘No, actually, I’ve met no one else I’ve called the one.’
‘Come on, I’m sure you’ve loved plenty of girls,’ Mateo’s voice was jocular, and it grated on Raf.
‘No, I’ve told no other woman I love her.’
Mateo’s gaze narrowed as he sized up Raf, his jocular manner fading as he became serious. ‘You’re both too young for something serious. You just finished your degree, and you want to set up your legal practice. And Josie is still finding herself. This is not the time to get into a relationship.’ Mateo approached him and put his hand on Raf’s shoulder. ‘You need to let this holiday romance end. Both of you need to turn your attention to your future. You’re just going to hold each other back.’
Raf felt a frisson of uncertainty. When he’d returned home after graduation, romance and relationships had been the last things on his mind. He’d just been thinking about his career and practice. Then he’d met Josie, and they hadn’t had a chance to discuss their future as their whirlwind romance had taken them both by surprise. But he knew he wanted a chance to explore a real relationship with her, where they were out in the open with their families and could see where it would go.
‘We’re not in any rush,’ Raf said. ‘We know our feelings are real, and we just want to see where it goes.’
‘So, you’re going to go public? Tell Rex Heron that a King is dating his daughter?’ Mateo laughed, injecting his mirth with sarcasm. ‘You’d better do it in public, or he’s liable to dump you in the bay for shark chum.’
‘We’ll deal with that when it comes up. For now, I know that Dad is supportive, and that’s all I care about. I’d like it if you were too, but it won’t stop me.’
‘Of course, I’m supportive,’ Mateo gripped his shoulder. ‘I want my little brother to be happy.’
‘Good. Because I am.’ Raf glanced at the time on his phone. ‘I have to have a shower and get ready. Josie is waiting for me.’
‘Of course.’ Mateo nodded and stepped back. ‘I heard she had an accident. Is she okay?’
Raf nodded. ‘She’s recovering from the shark bite. I’m going to go over and be with her tonight.’
‘Just think about what I said,’ Mateo urged as Raf stepped into his ensuite.
Raf was relieved to close the bathroom door and separate from his brother. Mateo was completely fixated on the family business, had dedicated his whole life to it, and expected his siblings to feel the same way. Raf had never seen eye to eye with his brother about the family business, and after working with his father and brother during the school holidays, he’d quickly realized that was not where his destiny and future lay.
After his shower, he dressed and drove to the Heron Hotel. He texted Sue, checking for the all clear so he could come up.
She called him, rather than texting.
‘I thought you said you couldn’t come, and that’s why you sent the other nurse to relieve you,’ Sue said.
‘What?’ Raf asked, trying to understand. ‘When did I send a message?’
‘At nine pm. You said you weren’t feeling well, and you were sending another nurse to come instead of you.’ Sue sounded confused.
Raf put her on speaker as he went through his messages, but there were no messages to Sue that he didn’t know about. He went through his movements and realized nine pm was when he spoke to Mateo and went to have a shower.
‘I’m sorry. I think Mateo got to my phone,’ Raf explained.
‘Oh,’ Sue said. ‘Oh no, that means he also sent that message to Josie.’
‘What message?’ Raf demanded, his blood chilling.
‘That you were going out with your friends and would call her tomorrow? She was a bit emotional.’
‘Shit,’ Raf muttered, pacing in the carpark. ‘I’ll call her and explain.’
‘Okay, good luck,’ Sue muttered and hung up.
Something about the way she said it made his hackles go up. He called Josie, but the phone rang out, and there was no answer. He texted her, but his messages were unread.
‘Goddammit.’ Fury filled him. Mateo was used to getting his own way and wouldn’t stop at anything to achieve his goals. He stalked to his truck and went to Mateo’s house, banging on his door. But he didn’t answer. Raf drove to the marina and saw Raf’s boat wasn’t docked. His big brother had thrown a grenade into his personal life and then sailed out onto the high seas to avoid a confrontation.
Raf cursed himself and his big mouth. He should have known better than to trust that Mateo would understand his feelings for Josie. Mateo was a robot and didn’t care about anything that didn’t involve business.
Raf went home and tried to sleep as he counted the minutes until daylight when he could try to see Josie.