Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
In the end, Jen had decided not to go to work.
There was no way she could leave Liam, even if the threat was imagined.
So they’d spent the day around the house, flanked by Kate, Sam and Dan, who also called in and stayed most of the day.
Jen had no doubt that someone had told him what had happened.
Megan, Lucy’s friend, and sundry other friends and neighbours also dropped in.
It seemed her family and community were rallying around to make sure no harm came to her and Liam.
It made her feel safe. She felt even safer when her attempts to contact Alistair came to nothing.
Ultimately, she had to concede that if Alistair had travelled all the way to New Zealand to find her, presumably he’d wanted to talk to her.
Had that been the case, he would have responded to her many messages.
The thing that had finally tipped the balance had been talking to her London neighbour, Barbara, who’d helped her escape through her garden.
She’d reassured her that Alistair had gone to Scotland for a short break.
He’d even given an address for her to forward his mail.
It was a huge relief and had comforted Jen enough to agree with everyone that she should attend the dance after all. And that, to do anything else, would be to allow Alistair to continue to control her wherever she was in the world.
Still, as she stood outside the hall with half the village milling around her, she wished Lucy and Kate were there beside her.
But they had tickets for a concert in Paraparaumu that night.
Kate hadn’t wanted to go, concerned that the heavy rain forecast might lead to yet another slip either north or south of MacLeod’s Cove, or both.
It had happened before, effectively cutting the village off from the outside world.
But Lucy had dismissed her concerns out of hand.
And, of course, Lucy had got her way. But now Jen wished she hadn’t.
She looked around for Liam. He was playing with another boy she recognised from school. She smiled to herself. Whatever else was going on around him, he was settling in.
When Jen had pressed, Megan, his teacher, had said that Liam had burst into tears a few times when things had got too much, but she’d been nearby and had comforted him.
And his friends had, too. She’d reassured Jen that each time it had happened, he’d recovered more quickly than the time before and that it was happening less frequently. He was going to be alright.
She watched as the boys climbed up the bank at the side of the village hall and then rolled down it again, covered in grass.
Suddenly the sun vanished, and she glanced up at the sky.
The weather had changed. The setting sun had disappeared prematurely behind a bank of clouds advancing along the horizon.
She shivered, and wandered over to check out the notices and cards in the community noticeboard, between Lucy’s café and the dairy.
Tarot cards, ukulele group, drumming at the summer solstice.
She was busy reading another card when she heard a step behind her.
She turned to see Sam looking over her shoulder.
‘Fancy the ukulele group? They meet in the library every Thursday.’
‘And you’d know because you’re a member?’ she said, with a grin.
He raised an eyebrow. ‘I’d know because I’ve just read it off the card.’
She laughed. ‘I can’t imagine you with a ukulele.’
‘I’m offended that you can’t see me as musical.’
They fell into step as they walked towards St. Andrews Hall, its warm glow spilling out into Beach Road.
‘I’m not saying that. Maybe…’ She took a step away and tilted her head to one side and pretended to assess him.
‘Something sexy like a bass guitar?’ he suggested, with a raised eyebrow. ‘Hm,’ he nodded, satisfied at the thought. ‘I can see myself standing at the back of a group, giving that rhythmic strum.’
‘No,’ she said, banishing the image from her mind, ‘more like a drummer.’
He huffed a laugh. ‘True. Bashing the hell out of something is more my style.’ Sam glanced at the bench outside the hall, along which sat three boys, including Liam. ‘Looks like Liam’s fitting in fine.’
Jen smiled. ‘Better than I ever could have imagined. But I’m not leaving him outside. I still want him where I can see him.’
‘Fair enough.’ He glanced over at the boys. ‘Hey, boys, you coming in?’
‘Yep!’ they called back before running ahead of Jen and Sam.
Sam greeted people as he entered, and Jen recognised a few faces, too, one of whom engaged her in conversation.
‘I’ll grab us some drinks,’ Sam said. ‘Still enjoy a white wine?’ he asked with a smile.
‘Absolutely,’ she said. ‘Some things never change.’
He grinned back, and she wondered if he was remembering their first date on the beach, drinking wine from plastic tumblers.
‘Except you now drink out of a glass,’ he said with a grin.
He remembered.
She watched him disappear into the throng and checked out where Liam was.
She’d given him a drilling not to leave the hall, even with the boys.
She didn’t know if it had been Alistair Liam had seen, but she couldn’t help agreeing with her family.
What was Alistair doing appearing at the window like that?
No, with each passing hour, Jen had come to believe that Liam had imagined the whole thing.
He’d always had a vivid imagination, she repeated like a mantra.
Sam interrupted her thoughts by handing her a glass. ‘Here you go. The best chardonnay money could buy.’
She laughed. ‘The only chardonnay money could buy, I should imagine.’ She sipped it. ‘Um, I’d forgotten how lovely New Zealand wine was. I never drank it at home —’ She swallowed. ‘In London, I mean.’
‘How come?’
She shrugged, looked around, wanting to change the subject.
‘How come you didn’t drink New Zealand wine, Jen? We export enough of the stuff.’
‘Oh,’ she shrugged again, ‘um, Alistair… he…’
‘Didn’t let you,’ Sam finished grimly.
‘Let’s not talk of him. I can’t bear that I wasted so many years with him when Liam and I could have been here.’ She stopped short of saying ‘with you.’
‘No problem. I’m more than happy to do exactly that. And I’ve got just the thing to make you stop worrying about him.’
‘And what’s that?’
He took her drink, placed it next to his on a trestle table and gave an exaggerated bow. ‘Dance with me?’
She grinned and then glanced around to see where Liam was. He sat on the floor in a corner where Megan was crouching, surrounded by a small group of her pupils, playing some kind of game. It seemed her love of children didn’t stop at the school gates.
‘I’d love to,’ she said. But as they stepped out onto the dance floor, the music changed, turning into a slower beat, with a soulful melody. They both stopped in their tracks, uncertain, and looked at each other.
Sam inclined his head to hers, so she could hear. ‘I’m game if you are,’ he said.
His breath tickled her ear, and she nodded in agreement before she could think it through.
His smile broadened, and he took her hand.
They walked into the middle of the floor, surrounded by other couples, and Sam reached out and put his other hand on her arm.
She looked up at him, and everything seemed to recede — the music, the surrounding people — and there was only her and him in that moment.
Sam pulled her close, their bodies finding a natural rhythm, as if they’d danced together only yesterday.
But then she remembered it had always been the same. They’d fitted and moved easily together from the first. She looked away and closed her eyes as the full blast of memory and sensation swamped her.
Slowly, tentatively, they wrapped their arms around each other.
Jen rested her cheek against the soft cotton of Sam’s shirt, the steady beat of his heart pulsing through the fabric.
Time seemed to stand still, and she wished the world outside this precarious bubble would cease to exist. Life seemed too hard outside, and easy and carefree with him.
Why had she waited so long to re-find this bliss?
She didn’t know. Instead, she breathed deeply, inhaling his essence.
And she felt his warm breath on the side of her head as if he, too, was breathing her in.
His lips mussed her hair, and she smiled against his neck.
With each movement, each sensuous beat of the music, the magic that had sparked at their touch settled and deepened.
Jen couldn’t believe how right it felt. And this was all to do with feelings.
Inside this cocoon of smell and touch and feeling, no rational thought existed.
It wasn’t necessary. Eventually the song ended, and they stopped moving to the music, but didn’t change position.
As another slow song began, the other dancers continued around them, but they stood unmoving — a quiet centre to the moving mass of people.
Jen could feel the thud of Sam’s heart passing through her skin, the vibration travelling along her muscles and sinews and sending sensations deep inside of her.
Her own heartbeat quickened at its effect.
His fingers had fanned out over the small of her back, their pressure slight but the effect was powerful.
He moved his face against her hair and whispered her name.
She lifted her face to his. Even in the shadowy hall, she could see his eyes had darkened.
For one long moment, she thought he was going to kiss her.
Those dark eyes had dropped to her lips, and she felt his breathing quicken against her cheek.
Then he drew back sharply and sucked in a breath and looked around as if emerging from a dream.
The noise of the music and laughter suddenly roared back into her ears, and a couple bumped into her accidentally, bringing her sharply back into the present.
Sam raked his fingers through his hair. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. He released her as if her touch was suddenly burning him.
‘What for?’ she asked, feeling bereft without his hands around her.
He shook his head and then huffed a laugh and smiled. ‘It’s kind of noisy in here, how about we go outside for some fresh air?’
‘Sure. Let me check Liam first.’
‘He’s trying to eat everything on the buffet table,’ said Sam, pointing to where a group of boys were doing a good impression of never having seen food before. ‘He’s fine. But if you want to stay inside, I understand.’
‘No, outside would be nice. It’s hot in here, and noisy,’ she said, raising her voice to underscore her point. It was. But it wasn’t the reason she wanted to leave the hall with Sam. There were undercurrents between them that could no longer be ignored.