Chapter 9
ALICIA
I couldn’t believe that Adonis wouldn’t swap seats with me.
There was so much legroom on this swanky coach that I was sure that even if he moved to the window seat, he’d still be able to stretch out comfortably. But I knew from experience that if I sat there, the journey would be difficult for me.
If he knew why it was so triggering, I was sure he’d agree to swap, but I didn’t want to start talking about that now. It’d bring down my mood.
My heart thudded against my chest as I scanned the seats behind us to see if there was any chance of me being able to move, but they were all full.
I was tempted to ask if Noah could give me his. He always understood my fears and whenever we travelled together, he offered without me even asking.
But this was different. He was here with Kayleigh and that wouldn’t be fair on her.
She seemed lovely. As terrible as it sounded, I expected that because Kayleigh was so pretty that maybe she’d be snooty. I mean, knowing you’re more attractive than 99 per cent of the population would make anyone feel superior. But she was really down-to-earth and the perfect match for Noah.
Just as I was contemplating whether to sleep to calm my nerves, Kayleigh came over.
‘Hi! Alicia, I was wondering if you wanted to swap seats? Noah can give you his aisle seat and I’ll take your window one. It’ll give you guys a chance to catch up. If you don’t mind, Adonis?’
‘Are you sure?’ I asked, my face instantly brightening.
‘Course! Noah and I will have plenty of time to spend together later and he seemed really worried about you in the window seat.’
My heart fluttered. That was so Noah. He was the best friend a girl could ask for.
‘You don’t mind, do you, Adonis?’ I said. ‘It’ll give you room for your legs and I’d feel more comfortable.’
I hoped he wasn’t offended. Then again, now that Noah had offered, he’d probably feel bad and offer his seat instead.
‘That is fine, beautiful. I will be happy to sit with Kayleigh.’ He smiled. My face fell. Oh. I wasn’t expecting him to be so cheery about it. ‘But of course, I will miss you,’ Adonis added.
‘Me too,’ I replied quickly, then got up.
‘Don’t worry, I’ll look after him.’ Kayleigh smiled.
‘Thanks. I’ll be sure to let you know about all the gushy things Noah says about you later too.’ I smiled back.
Over the years, sometimes I’d noticed that Noah’s girlfriends got a bit funny about us spending time together. They were often convinced that we were more than best mates, so I always tried to make it clear that I wasn’t interested in him romantically to reassure them.
But as I looked at Kayleigh making herself comfortable next to Adonis, I reminded myself that someone like her would never feel threatened by someone like me.
‘Oooh, yes, please!’ Kayleigh grinned. ‘And no doubt Adonis will have lots of lovely things to say about you too.’
‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘Fingers crossed! Anyway, looks like they’re ready to set off, so I’ll take my seat. Thanks again.’
I waved then took a few steps over to Noah. He’d already shuffled over to the window.
‘Hey.’ He smiled.
‘Hey,’ I replied, sliding into the seat.
Noah’s fresh, woody scent immediately hit me.
Did he always smell this good? I’d noticed it last night at the restaurant and at the pool this morning, but now we were side by side it was more potent.
I almost told him how much I loved it but stopped myself. Telling your male best friend that they smelt amazing would sound weird.
‘Thanks so much for offering to do this. I really appreciate it.’
‘No worries,’ he said. ‘I know how triggering it can be so… It was Kayleigh’s suggestion.’
‘Oh, that’s really sweet. She’s lovely.’
‘Yeah,’ he said.
Our eyes locked and I noticed how Noah’s sparkled. I’d always thought he had nice eyes but because he typically wore glasses, I rarely got to see them in all their glory. Now I had a completely unobstructed view.
And I liked it.
‘What happened with your glasses?’ I asked as the coach set off.
‘I discovered contact lenses.’
‘I don’t know how anyone can use those!’ I winced. ‘Isn’t it weird putting something on your eyeball? I’m way too squeamish.’
‘You squirm when you see mayonnaise and ketchup together on chips, so it doesn’t surprise me.’
‘But that’s just wrong!’
‘Really?’ He raised an eyebrow.
‘Yes! Ketchup is for chips. If you prefer mayonnaise instead, fair enough, but both of them? Together?’ I shuddered at the thought.
‘Says the woman who has pineapple on pizza!’ He chuckled.
‘What? That’s perfectly normal!’ I protested.
‘Don’t let Sammie’s Romeo hear you say that. That’s the kind of statement that gets you locked up in Italy!’
‘Stop!’ I prodded his bicep. Jesus. It was so firm. ‘And what’s with this too?’ I prodded his arm again.
‘With what?’
‘The muscles?’ I clarified.
‘I’ve always had them.’
‘You have not!’ I insisted. Last night in the restaurant he said he’d always worked out but I would’ve noticed if his arms were that muscular.
Despite what he said, the transformation was dramatic.
‘I thought you were hiding from me because you weren’t happy with how you looked, and you just breeze into the hotel like you’re Clark Kent who stepped into a phone box and emerged as Superman. ’
‘So you’re saying I look like Henry Cavill?’
‘There have been other actors who have played Superman since then, you know.’ I rolled my eyes, trying to fight the laugh that was threatening to spill out.
‘I’m aware. But I also remember the days when you were obsessed with Henry Cavill, so…’
‘Me and the entire female population. And probably a fair percentage of the male population too.’
‘Did they also pretend to watch The Witcher with me, just so that they could ogle him?’
‘I watched it for the plot!’ I gasped.
‘Yeah, yeah. Sure,’ he said, his voice laced with sarcasm. ‘The plot was any scene that showed Henry shirtless. Thanks for the Superman compliment though. Even though I know I look nothing like him.’
‘True,’ I said, thinking that as crazy as it sounded (because hello, Henry Cavill was hot), Noah actually looked better.
Nope. I definitely couldn’t tell him that. His head would swell so much it’d squeeze us out of the coach.
‘Cheers,’ he gasped, clutching his chest in mock shock.
‘You look different, that’s all. Good different,’ I added.
‘Thanks.’ Noah smiled and I noticed my stomach flip.
‘We are here,’ Petros announced.
‘Already?’ I said out loud. ‘That was quick.’
Part of me felt terrible. There I was begging poor Adonis to swap seats with me and the journey wasn’t even long.
Then there was Kayleigh. She’d kindly moved for me and it’d all been for nothing.
There weren’t any steep drops and the time had flown by.
When I went back over to Adonis, he was laughing with Kayleigh, which was a relief.
Now we were at Fira, Noah could get back to focusing on Kayleigh instead of worrying about me.
And I could spend some quality time with my lovely match: Adonis.
Yay!