Chapter 15 #3
“That’s not what you said last night.” There was humour in his eyes, and she gave him a look.
“You could have ignored that. You could have not mentioned it. That would have been the kind thing to do.” Past caring what
he thought, she slid off her shoes. “Obviously I will never be drinking again.”
“Why not? It was a fun evening. You’re a great piano player. And a sexy dancer. And, it turns out, a strong swimmer. Which
is something we are all grateful for, Chrissy most of all.”
“You knew the family?” She was halfway through removing her sweatshirt, and paused. “Chrissy. Holly.” She nodded. “Of course.
I thought she looked familiar, but I couldn’t place her. I met her the first day I arrived at the hotel. Evie was talking
to her. How do you know her?”
“Her husband comes in here for a drink occasionally at weekends. Spends most of it on the phone wheeling and dealing. Rich
city type. He’ll probably give you a reward.”
“The only thing I want is for my headache to go away.”
She saw him raise an eyebrow and knew he was thinking of the night before. And she was thinking of it too, even though she
was trying not to.
“Get in the shower, Abby,” he muttered. “You’re freezing.”
She threw her damp sweatshirt over the chair. “I will. When you’ve gone.”
He hesitated. “Okay. I’m going to get you a bowl of soup. I’ll be back.”
“Don’t bother.” But she was talking to herself because he’d already left the room.
Too tired to care too much what he thought about her, she undressed. She was tempted to flop onto the bed and skip the shower
part, but he was right about her being cold.
She needed that hot shower.
She stripped off and headed to the bathroom. It was already steamy and she stepped into the shower and closed her eyes. Instantly
her head was filled with images. The mother screaming. The flash of pink. She kept visualising a scenario where she hadn’t
been able to find the child. And another where the child couldn’t be resuscitated.
Trying to block it out, she shampooed her hair to remove the salt and seawater and stood under the hot jet of water for another
five minutes.
“Abby?” His voice came through the door and she sighed and turned off the water.
He was persistent, she had to give him that.
“I’m fine.” She dried herself and rubbed at her hair, then pulled on the white dressing gown that hung on the back of the
door, taking her time in the hope that he’d be gone by the time she came out.
No such luck.
When she stepped out of the bathroom Tristan was standing by her little table, unloading food from a tray.
“I brought you a small bowl of soup, and some toast. Did you swallow a lot of seawater?”
“Some.” She sat down at the table. “I’m not hungry. I just want to sleep.”
“Just a few mouthfuls.”
Deciding that the sooner she ate something, the sooner he’d be gone, she picked up the spoon but her hand was shaking badly
and she put it down again.
“I keep reliving it,” she muttered. “I couldn’t see her at first. Couldn’t find her. There was a flash of pink and then nothing.
And the waves were getting bigger and she was so tiny—” Her voice broke. “It would make me happy if you’d leave me alone.”
“Why would I want to make you happy? Turns out I like annoying you.” His voice was rough. “Thanks to you the whole incident
had a happy ending. Try and focus on that.”
Tears spilled down her cheeks and she covered her face with her hands.
“What if I hadn’t decided to go for a swim? It was a last-minute decision.” She was sure the two teenage boys wouldn’t even
have noticed what had happened.
He gave a soft curse and pulled her into his arms.
She tensed for a moment and then buried her face in his shoulder. “If you tell anyone you saw me cry, I’ll kill you.”
“Why? You’ve had a pretty traumatic couple of hours. What’s wrong with showing emotion?”
She knew she should pull away but his shirt was soft, he smelled delicious and for a moment it felt good to lean on someone.
“It’s not something I do, that’s all.”
“Another first.”
“Oh stop.” She sniffed and pulled away. “You should have left me to find my own way off the beach. Why didn’t you?”
“The tide was coming in. It’s bad for tourism if someone drowns. Puts people off coming here.”
Despite everything, it made her smile.
“Okay. I get that. But I’m alive, so you don’t need to hang around.”
“Maybe I want to hang around.”
She felt something inside her soften but she ignored it. She was exhausted, still a little hungover, guilty and drained from
her conversation with Evie and shaken up by what had so nearly been a tragedy. This wasn’t a time to follow her instincts.
Of course she wanted to cling to him. It was a human response to feeling vulnerable. All the more reason for him to leave.
“That’s a rapid turnaround, don’t you think? I’ve been here for almost a month and up until yesterday you’ve barely spoken
to me. You called me Robot Girl.”
“Because you were frosty, invulnerable and untouchable. And now you’re warm, vulnerable and human. I prefer this side of you,
by the way.”
It seemed he wasn’t going to leave, so maybe she should get another of her apologies out of the way. Then there was just her
mother left.
“I’m sorry about last night. My memories are hazy, but obviously I’m never drinking wine again, ever.”
He smiled. “You’re interesting when you drink.”
Her memory might be hazy, but she clearly remembered the part where he’d rejected her.
“I saw your note when I woke up.” Thinking of it reminded her that she still had to call her mother. “I talked to Evie this
morning. I told her everything. Naturally she was upset. It was a horrible conversation.”
And that was the worst part of all of it. For the first time in her working career she’d felt as if she had a connection with
someone. She’d loved every moment of working with Evie.
He nodded and stroked his fingers through her hair. “You’ve had a hell of a day, haven’t you?”
“Not the best. Why are you still sitting here? I hurt your friend and you don’t even like me.”
“Oh, I like you. I like you a lot.”
“You didn’t seem to like me when I tried to remove your shirt last night.”
A smile spread slowly across his face. “That’s because you’d drunk a few glasses of wine. If you want to try it again, that’s
fine with me.”
Her heart thudded a little harder. It was typical, she thought, that she finally met a man she was interested in and couldn’t
do anything about it.
“I’m not in a sound emotional state. Also you think I’m a terrible person because I lied to your friend. I admire your loyalty,
by the way. Evie is lucky having a friend like you.”
“I think you’re a person who has been dealing with a difficult situation.” He reached for the bowl of soup and pulled it closer.
“Did I think you should tell Ev the truth? Yes. But am I judging you for what you did? No. I know what it’s like trying to
please a demanding parent. I know better than anyone what parental pressure feels like. For the record, I definitely don’t
think you’re terrible. I think you’re brave, and not only because you jumped into the water to save a child.”
“If I was brave, I would have told my mother no when she asked me to go under-cover.” She picked up a piece of toast and nibbled
the corner.
“Decisions are rarely as easy as they seem to other people.”
The last thing she’d expected was empathy. “I try and please her. I always want to please her.”
He nodded. “Because it’s work as well as personal. Everyone wants to please their boss. When family ties are involved—it becomes
a step more complicated. I could bore you for hours with some of the dilemmas I’ve faced. Have you always worked with her?”
“Yes. It was just the two of us and I don’t remember a time when she didn’t talk to me about the business.”
“She has built an impressive company.” He handed her the spoon. “Eat a little soup. A couple of mouthfuls.”
She didn’t have the energy to fight him so she took the spoon and tried a mouthful of soup. And then another. “It’s good.”
“All our food is good. Not Luca’s standard of course, but wholesome and comforting.”
“Your fish pie is the best I’ve tasted anywhere.” She ate half the soup and then put the spoon down. “I still have to call
my mother back.”
“Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”
“I’m not in a habit of putting off difficult and uncomfortable tasks. It’s not responsible.”
“Says the woman who dived into the ocean known for its rip tides.” He shrugged. “My point is that the right decision isn’t
always the one that is the most responsible.”
“If I don’t call her, she’ll be displeased.”
“Maybe that will be a first for her. And it’s good for people to experience firsts.”
Even the way she was feeling, he could still make her laugh.
“She’s already displeased, so it won’t make much difference, will it? You’re right. I’m going to switch my phone off and I’ll
call her tomorrow in my lunch hour. That’s if Evie still wants me to work at the hotel. I suppose today might have been my
last day.”
“Evie told me she’d give you a job if she could, so I would think the job is yours for as long as you want it.” He loaded
the bowl back onto the tray. “Will your mother want you to go straight back to Boston?”
“I have no idea.” The thought of it depressed her more than it should.
He stood up and picked up the tray. “If you decide to hang around here for the summer you can stay here. Maybe take some time to decide what you want for once.”
His offer surprised her and also touched her.
What did she want?
She had no idea. It wasn’t a question she asked herself.
But she was asking it now.