Chapter 48
48
SKYE
Her last few days on the farm were passing far too quickly for Skye’s liking. Even though she and Joe made the most of spending every single second possible together, it wasn’t enough. There were far too few times when they were alone, and as much as she would have liked to spend another night with him it didn’t feel right now that Melody and Zac were back in the house. Too many people around them to dare risk being overheard.
Gareth and Zac had been helping her on the farm, and Melody when she wasn’t helping Lettie by taking the baby so Lettie and Lindy could go out shopping, or into the town to buy things for her or the baby. It was lovely spending time with them all, but it wasn’t the same as being alone with Joe.
It dawned on Skye that she had lost track of the days and had now worked her last day with Joe without realising it. She wished she would have known so that they could have marked it in some way. But how? Skye found it more and more difficult to hide her sadness that her time on the farm and being near Joe was rapidly coming to an end.
‘What’s the matter?’ Melody asked, giving Skye a shock and making her drop the broom onto the barn floor. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.’
Skye bent to pick up the broom handle and stood, giving Melody a reassuring smile. ‘Take no notice of me; I’m probably just tired.’
‘Rubbish. I know you better than to accept that. You’re upset that you’re going to have to leave Joe behind, aren’t you?’
Melody knew Skye far too well for her to deny what was bothering her. ‘You’re right, of course.’ She rested her hands one on top of the other on the broom handle and sighed. ‘I really like him, Mel. He’s nothing like I first thought. He’s been so amazing helping me find my father and all sorts.’
‘What?’
Skye explained what had happened and about Carlos.
‘But why didn’t you mention this to me when you called? This is massive news, Skye,’ she added before Skye had a chance to explain.
‘I’ll tell you all about it soon, but it’s still very new to me. I suppose I needed to come to terms with everything before sharing anything about it.’
‘You like Joe though, don’t you?’
‘I do.’ Skye smiled. ‘He’s a lovely man. And—’ she laughed, still unable to quite believe it herself ‘—I’m not an only child any more.’
‘You’re not? Wow, that’s amazing.’
She thought back to all that she’d learnt about her family. She had three half-brothers who lived off the island. It was strange to think that one even worked alongside Joe at the station. A swell of excitement coursed through her as she thought about these new developments in her life. How lucky was she to have even been able to meet Mum’s flatmate from when she worked on the island. Sandra had been so generous with her memories as had Carlos. Skye smiled to herself.
‘What’s more, I have a suspicion that Sandra and Carlos seem to have struck up a relationship of their own.’
Melody’s mouth dropped open. ‘You’re kidding, right? This isn’t some episode from one of those soap operas we used to watch?’
‘No, I promise you it’s all happened, and all of it is thanks to Joe. He also works with Sandra’s son.’
She couldn’t help laughing as she watched the expressions on Melody’s face go through a mixture of confusion, surprise, astonishment and finally acceptance. ‘This really is amazing. So not only have you fallen for the dishy firefighter, slash farmer, but you’ve also found a family you never knew you had, as well as meeting your mum’s best friend. I’d call that one hell of a result, Skye, even by your standards.’
No wonder she found it a lot to take in, Skye thought.
Then, recalling Melody’s comment about her falling for Joe, she panicked slightly. ‘How do you know about me falling for Joe? I never said anything about that.’
Melody stared at her. ‘Seriously, Skye. Don’t you think I know you at all? To me it’s as obvious as that broom you’re holding.’
Astonished that her secret had been discovered, Skye needed to find out more. ‘But when did you come to that conclusion?’
Melody laughed and shook her head. ‘When you and he walked into the room that first night Zac and I were here. I saw the way you stood next to each other. Arms around one another and the way you were so comfortable with him. Also the way he kept gazing down at you as if he couldn’t believe you were standing with your arm around his waist.’
‘That does make sense.’ She thought back to that night and supposed it was obvious if they behaved in that way.
‘So,’ Melody said, looking serious for once, ‘what do you intend doing about it?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘If I know you at all, which I do, you will have little intention of letting mere miles get between you and the lovely Joe. Am I right?’
Was she?