Chapter Forty-Three
Gabi
The taxi driver probably reckoned it was his lucky day, Gabi thought.
Who normally calls and requests an immediate cab to Scotland – six or seven hours’ drive – in the middle of the morning?
He whistled along cheerfully to the radio from the driver’s seat, no doubt thinking about the big fat fare at the end of the day.
Gabi drummed her fingers against the armrest in the back, watching the countryside flash by, not caring about the money at all – she could easily afford it – but wishing they could go faster, get there sooner.
But to be fair, if she had been driving herself, she would have been stopped for speeding already.
If her suspicions were right and she found Walker at the loch, the first thing she was going to do was apologise.
For all the things she’d said and the way she’d treated him.
Every time she closed her eyes she relived the wounded shock in his eyes, the physical impact her words had had on him.
Guilt stabbed like a thousand tiny pins in her chest.
It was an unusual and uncomfortable feeling, and she had plenty of time to examine it as they headed north.
She’d rarely felt guilt in her life, but maybe that was because she was normally on her own.
Gabi didn’t have to consider other people’s feelings or reactions when she did her job – excellently of course.
She had no one to answer to at home. She didn’t let anyone down because she didn’t have anyone around who relied on her.
And yet she’d felt guilty twice in the last few days in Honeybridge.
First, with Rosie – and that had been easily solved with an apple crumble – and now, with Walker.
This time, she feared it might not be as easily resolved.
He had not deserved what she’d said to him. Gabi could see now that everything Walker had done for her was the good, decent thing. Isabella had said it was how he showed people he cared about them. He’d caught her, carried her, cared for her and she’d thrown it back at him in anger.
The driver offered her a sherbet lemon as they crossed the border, but the taste in her mouth was bitter enough already. She knew she wouldn’t be able to stomach anything until she’d found Walker.
She watched the motorway turn to mountain roads and forced herself to focus on doing the right thing when she got there.
First, she should apologise to Walker – for everything.
Second, they should talk more about how he felt.
Third, she would bring him home. The more she thought about it, she realised that the only thing she wanted to do was put her arms around Walker and hold him tight.
Her phone rang and made her jump, but it was just an excited voicemail message from her agent, following up on her interview.
‘You obviously did a great job on the interview. The film people are very keen to proceed. They are checking references and will be back in contact as soon as possible.’
Gabi sighed. However exciting that sounded, it was not the person she was waiting to hear from.