Chapter 32 Joanie
Joanie
Kieran pulled off the main road into an empty parking lot.
“I thought we were going to the beach?”
He opened my car door. “We are. Just a quick treat first.”
I stepped out of the car and peered at the billboard of a bright red-and-green parrot ahead.
“The zoo?”
He grabbed my hand. “That’s right.”
A rush of excitement went through me. We walked to the ticket office, but the entrance area was oddly quiet. A café sat empty and there wasn’t a soul in the gift shop. It should have been humming with tourists, but there were only smiling staff in khaki uniforms.
“Where is everyone?”
Kieran slipped his hand around mine. “It’s ours for the day.”
“The whole zoo?”
“Yeah.”
A whole zoo for the day together was a dream come true. “Are you serious?”
“It’s one from your list, isn’t it? I arranged for us to look around, and then you get to feed the animals later.”
I glanced at him in surprise. That had been a fleeting mention. We’d spent so much time on the spicy parts of the list, I hadn’t realized he’d been paying attention to the other parts.
“It’s our last day together. We should do something memorable.”
Our last day together. My heart dropped. “You mean our last day in Menorca?”
He frowned. “Yes, I meant that.”
An uneasy feeling washed over me. Soon we’d be on the flight back. What was it going to be like? I looked up to see Kieran watching me.
“It’s going to be OK,” he said, as though reading my mind. “My mum is desperate to meet you, by the way. She’s been asking about you.”
“I’d like that. You’ll have to meet my dad. He’s going to love you. Have you ever spoken to him? He’s always loved Calverdale, even before he became a shareholder.”
He took off his baseball cap and fanned his face with it. “Your dad, right. I’ve seen him around.”
A guide greeted us and took us to a large mesh enclosure full of exotic birds. He talked us through feeding one of the large parrots. We admired a green-and-red parrot just like the one on the billboard, on a high perch. Gently, Kieran stroked the bird’s vibrant head with the back of his finger.
“My dad is doing this thing, actually. He’s having a living funeral.”
Kieran’s eyebrow lifted. “A what?”
“I know. Dad never likes to do things by halves. It’s a gathering really. He had a health scare, and it’s made him even more morbid than usual. Everyone is going to be there. He’s invited lots of people from the club. I wondered if . . .”
This was a lot to ask. My whole family would be there.
But this was my chance to show off my new Premier League boyfriend.
My cousins were going to flip out. Although, was he my boyfriend?
He’d said he wanted to be exclusive. It was weird that I’d gone on this trip single and I’d be coming home with my first real boyfriend.
If Kieran was going to be in my life, then he had to meet my family.
“I wondered if you’d come.”
He took my hand. “If you want me to, I’ll come.”
“You don’t mind?”
“No.”
What a relief. “And that way you can meet everyone. It’s not too much, is it?”
“Shit.” Kieran snapped his hand away from the parrot. “Little fucker bit me.”
He shook his finger in the air and gripped it close. I couldn’t help my chuckle.
He raised a brow. “Oh, you think that’s funny?”
His annoyance only made me laugh harder.
I threaded my arm through Kieran’s and led him to the next enclosure.
We walked a trail with lemurs on either side holding their hands open to soak up the sun, as though meditating.
A flash of black and white flared in my peripheral vision and a lemur landed heavily on Kieran’s back. He bent forward, his eyes narrowed.
“Get this thing off me.”
A laugh erupted from me at his stern expression. “Why are these animals all obsessed with you?” I pulled out my phone. “Hang on, I need a photo.”
“I’m serious, get this thing off me before it does a shit. This is a Givenchy T-shirt.”
He wasn’t serious. His eyes were sparkling with humor. I’d never seen him more playful. Any second now and he might actually laugh.
Giggles racked my body so much that it was hard to hold still to take the photo. “Say cheese.”
He rolled his eyes. “Where are the keepers? I’ve been assaulted by a parrot and now a lemur. I didn’t rent out an entire zoo to be harassed by the wildlife.”
My stomach creased with laughter. “Stop. You’re cracking me up. You’re like a reverse Doctor Dolittle. Doctor Do-too-much. You’ve riled this place up.”
With an incredible leap, the lemur bounded away into the trees within the enclosure.
He shook his head. “I love animals like family . . . with all my heart, but best from a safe distance.”
I laughed. “Then you’re going to love my family.”
He held my hand as we walked past magnificent strutting peacocks and plodding tortoises.
All I could think about was the simple pleasure of holding hands and wandering together with this man on a date.
We stopped at a bridge where a crocodile lurked in the water.
Kieran watched it with an intense, serious expression.
“You do want to meet my family, don’t you?”
There was a slight hesitation before he nodded. “Yes.”
“Good.” I squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
He slipped his arm around me and held me. I breathed in his strength and his comforting scent. Being with Kieran made everything lighter. He was willing to meet my family. This was happening. This was really happening.
I took a deep breath and focused on the feeling in the sea.
That moment when you lie back and your heart contracts with fear, but you have to surrender to the waves and float.
Sometimes in life you have to lie back and float and pray the sea will hold you.
There was seizing the day and then there was this, allowing the day to unfold in whatever way and putting your faith into not drowning.
This was fast, unexpected, and honestly completely unwanted, but I’d fallen for this man. I couldn’t fight it anymore.
I turned to him and held his hands in mine. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“Are we . . . ? What is this . . . ? I know it’s fast, but am I your girlfriend now?”
I resisted the urge to squeeze my eyes shut because I couldn’t stand the nervous wait for his answer. Please don’t let me drown.
He took my hand in both of his. “Do you want to be my girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
He turned my hand over in his palms. “I want that too. I really want that. But if we go public with this, it will get some attention.”
I tried to keep my smile in place. I was used to press attention, and Dad had done what he could to protect us, but it was hard at the peak of his fame.
This wasn’t the first time I’d walked around an empty tourist venue.
This was the only way we’d been able to have family days out when I was a kid.
Kieran must have had that in mind when he rented this place.
It wasn’t just a special treat for me. It was probably the only way he could visit a place and fully relax.
Still, I was used to it, and Kieran was worth the sacrifice. Although I had a lot to manage with starting the season.
“Maybe we should keep things under wraps until we’ve settled in back home. It will be easier once the season has started,” I said.
He nodded. “Fine. You’re going to feel enough pressure around that time. We’ll wait until it feels right.”
It was going to be tough enough going back for my first match. This was enough for now. Best to keep it under wraps.
“Then I’m your girlfriend, and you’re my boyfriend. It’s official. We won’t tell anyone yet.”
A smile pulled at the corners of his mouth and it was glorious, lopsided and boyish. His whole face transformed like the sun appearing from behind the clouds.
“You’re smiling.” My voice was filled with wonder.
“Because I have the most beautiful girlfriend.” His smile widened. “And because now all of this feels like it was worth getting bitten by a parrot.”