Chapter 23
Harper
After spending the morning being ditched by Luke and his new girlfriend, I resort to sightseeing on my own.
Which is fine. Iceland is beautiful enough that even alone, it’s impossible not to enjoy yourself.
I stop at every scenic area I can find, take dozens of photos, and even make friends with a group of girls visiting from London.
They end up showing me a cave I didn’t know about and take a few photos of me standing at the entrance.
The cave itself is on the side of a mountain that sits on a beach.
I’d met the girls at a bathroom stop, and they insisted I follow them to the cave.
I was admittedly skeptical as I drove behind them because the road quickly turned to compact beach sand, but it ended up being well worth it when we pulled up to the cave.
The mountain is just sitting on the black sand of the beach, with a cave big enough for dozens of people to walk into.
Outside the cave, there are a few more masses of rock, like they’d broken off from the mountain and are sitting on the beach, waiting for the ocean waves to break against them.
It’s stunning, but I can’t stop myself from wondering about Luke.
And that is the source of all my problems, isn’t it? Luke, my best friend, who had a crush on me, so I insisted he go out on a date with someone else.
Never has one of my plans failed so epically.
I’ve never loved any of Luke’s girlfriends, but I could at least tolerate them.
I’m counting down the days until Cassie has to leave and I’ll have him back to myself again.
But Cassie lives in Massachusetts not that far from us, and the thought that she’ll be waiting for him when he gets back is something I can’t stomach.
I try to dispel any Cassie-related thoughts as I make my way into the first restaurant that popped up when I Googled food in Vik. I don’t mind exploring Iceland alone, but there’s something that feels a little sad about sitting in a restaurant by myself.
Unfortunately for me, the only table available is one in the middle of the room. I try not to look like a loner as I sit by myself at the table.
Yes, I am a social person, but only under the right conditions. I was hoping the place would have a bar I could sit at to order my dinner, and then I’d just make friends with whoever was sitting next to me. But when I stepped into the place, it was just tables and booths.
“Want anything to drink?” the waitress asks.
“Lemonade, please,” I tell her.
“Sure. If you have any questions about the menu, let me know.” She walks away.
“Are you using this chair? We need one more at our table.” A woman comes up, putting her hand on the empty chair across from me.
She looks to be about my age, maybe a little older, with a British accent.
She reminds me of the group of girls I’d been hanging out with earlier, but when I glance over at her table, I don’t recognize anyone.
“No, you can take it,” I tell her.
She starts to drag the chair over to the corner booth where there’s a large group of people congregating around one table. Then she comes back to my table. “You’re here alone?”
“Yeah,” I say with a shrug.
“Want to sit with us? You just have to bring your chair.”
For a moment I feel like I’m in high school and was just invited to the cool kids’ table. “You sure?” I ask, though I really hope she doesn’t change her mind.
“Of course. We’re all friends here.” She ushers me over, and I follow. “Everyone, hope you don’t mind I invited over a friend.” She turns back to me. “Blimey, I never even learned your name! I’m Lily.”
“Harper,” I say, the crowd taking me in. There are about ten people crowded into the booth, including Lily. They each wave and give a quick hello with their name.
“I suppose you aren’t here for Amelia and Theo’s destination wedding, are you?” says one of the guys, Archie, elbowing Theo.
“Oh, shut it!” Lily says. “Theo just proposed and there’s talk about an elopement, though I don’t think Amelia wants to get married in a place that requires a winter jacket.”
“I’d rather not,” Amelia says, sipping on the beer in front of her, a large diamond adorning her hand.
The group erupts into conversation, and though I don’t know any of them, they’re easy to connect with.
I expect them to jump into conversations that require knowledge of their long-standing friendships, but they pull me into each conversation like they’re making it their mission to include me.
We all order our food and chat like lifelong friends.
“Will Harper get an invite to the wedding if it’s in Scotland?” Archie asks. While everyone else has been talking about options for the couple to elope, Archie keeps trying to convince them to make it a big wedding so there’s an excuse to party.
“Archie, just go on your own time,” Tom says. He’s the one sitting on my other side and seems to have a banter with Archie, which is rather amusing to watch. Even if I never add to the conversation, just sitting with this group of people would make for an entertaining evening.
“Maybe Harper’s never been to Scotland. She needs an excuse to go!”
“Have you been there?” Lily asks.
I shake my head. “Iceland is the first place I’ve been outside of the United States.”
“How do you Americans stand to stay in your own country,” Theo mumbles, and Amelia elbows him in the ribs. “Sorry! I mean, you don’t want to travel anywhere else?”
“Of course,” I say, biting into a French fry. My burger and fries are the best meal I’ve had on the trip so far, which is a hard feat since everything has been good. “In America, we have to get on a plane to go to most countries. Not all of us can drive a couple hours and cross a border or two.”
Everyone gives a soft laugh, but Tom turns to me.
“So how are you liking Iceland so far?” he says. His eyes pin to me, giving me his full attention. Though our table is rowdy, it’s like he’s ignoring the rest of them and it’s just the two of us, which is a nice change after how Luke has been treating me.
His hair is buzzed on the sides, longer and gelled on top. He has the dark, moody gaze that most girls would swoon over and the type of accent that makes my toes curl.
I feel myself blush under his gaze. “It’s been amazing,” I say, already forgetting how much of a disaster the morning has been.
“What have you seen so far?”
I laugh. “Can I just show you photos? There’s no way I’ll pronounce anything correctly.”
The two of us flip through photos on my phone while the rest of the table launches into another conversation. I’m hyperaware of how Tom leans toward me the tiniest bit, his hand brushing over mine whenever he tries to reach out for my phone to point to something.
“So what do you do back in the States?” he asks, his accent so velvety it takes me a moment to process his question.
“Oh, uh, I work for a country club in hospitality. I’ve been feeling like I want to try something new though.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Any ideas?”
“You should be a travel agent!” Lily smiles, and I realize she was listening to our conversation.
“Yeah! Maybe we can work with you instead of Tom. The bloke always gets himself the best room. Need to take him down a few pegs.” He gives Tom a playful shove, and Tom rolls his eyes before turning to me.
“If you enjoy planning trips, being a travel agent might be something to consider.”
I cock my head to the side and give him my best flirty grin. “You’re a travel agent?”
“I am,” he says to me and then turns to Archie. “And I’m the reason you’re able to get such good deals on your rooms and plane tickets.”
Archie gives a good, hearty laugh.
“Well, those are some nice perks,” I say.
“Gives you the itch to travel all the time, but you get to live vicariously through clients as well.” Tom smiles, which makes me want to ask him more questions about his job, but the group launches into a different conversation.
“Will we be watching for the northern lights tonight?” Amelia asks.
Elise, who’s been so quiet this entire time that I’ve almost forgotten she’s here, moans. “I’m sick of sitting out in the cold just to see nothing.”
“The KP index is high tonight,” Amelia says.
My attention sparks, recognizing the term from the app I’ve been using to track the northern lights myself. “You’re trying to see the northern lights?”
“We’ve tried every night with no luck,” Lily says. “But maybe tonight!”
“Want to come?” Tom says, pulling my attention back to him. His eyes are soft, and his gentle smile makes me melt a little.
“I’d love to. I’ve been dying to see them.”
Lily gives an excited clap. “Okay, where should we go?”
The group launches into another discussion, trying to pinpoint the best location. Eventually we all finish eating and pay the check, and the group rolls out. They break into smaller groups when we get out to the parking lot, two or three going in each car. Tom turns to me.
“Want me to ride with you and show you where to go?” he asks.
“Sure.” I lead him to where my rental car is parked.
I follow behind the other cars as they pull out of the parking lot, so I don’t really need Tom there, but the company is nice. Besides, if Luke can go around dating while we’re on vacation, why can’t I?
“Where are you guys all from?” I ask as we leave the town.
“Wales,” Tom says. “We all went to university together.”
“What brought you to Iceland?”
“The flights were cheap.” He shrugs.
I’m a little stunned by the answer. Tom and everyone in the group shared stories of all the places they’ve visited—countless other countries.
Trips that if I wanted to afford, I’d have to save for months just to pay for the flight.
In Europe, it’s as simple as driving or hopping on a train or a short flight to go to a different country.
I glance over at Tom. While it’s already dark, the dashboard of the car lights up his face a little.
“You know, it must be fun to live in the UK,” I say.
He gives me a broad smile. “Why’s that?”