Chapter 27
A morning in bed always seemed like a luxury to me.
I used to try and squeeze as much as I could into the precious few hours before work, knowing I would be too tired at the end of the day to do much else.
I ran. I cleaned. I booked early salon appointments and breakfasts with Jess.
What I never did was sleep in. What I never did was wake next to a man and spend a lazy day doing nothing at all.
I was looking forward to my morning with Luke.
My morning with nothing to do. So when I’m woken a little before seven by a loud hammering on the door downstairs, I am not impressed.
I sit up as soon as it begins, my body used to the sound of an alarm, but only a sadist would have an alarm like this.
I glance at Luke, who blinks accusingly at me from where his head is buried in the pillow, as though I’m the one making the noise.
“I think someone’s at the door,” I say, and he groans.
“They’ll stop in a minute.”
“Does this happen a lot?”
“Sometimes people passing through think we’re open.”
“You should get a sign.”
“We have a sign.”
“A bigger sign.”
He smiles into the pillow, closing his eyes again as the noise stops. “See?” he murmurs. “Gone.”
“They’ve collapsed from a lack of caffeine.”
“Coffee. Coffee sounds good.”
I give him a look. “If only we knew a place that had some.”
“Not it.”
“Nuh-uh,” I say. “This is your place and you’re the host. I will take a double espresso and— Hey!”
His hand shoots out to tug me down and I land with a thump on the mattress as he moves over me.
“What are you doing?”
“Catering to my guests.”
“I thought you wanted coffee.”
“Now I want something else.” He nips my shoulder before kissing it as his fingers find mine, drawing my hand down between us.
The knocking starts again.
I try not to laugh as Luke drops his forehead to mine before rolling off me, grabbing a pair of sweatpants as he slips out of bed. “Someone better be dying,” he grumbles, stomping down the stairs.
I stretch languidly, burying myself in the covers as I hear him unlock the door below. I wonder if I have enough time to brush my teeth before he gets back.
“I’ve seen her naked before, Luke. Get out of my way.”
I tense at the familiar voice. Louise?
My mind is not awake enough to process the fact that she’s here, so I’m too slow to reach for my clothes when I hear footsteps on the stairs.
Too slow to do anything but tuck the sheet around me as I scramble out of the bed.
At least I manage to do that much as a moment later she bursts into the loft, wearing what looks like her pajamas with Luke hot on her heels.
“Louise!”
“Get dressed.”
“Get out!” I scream.
Tomasz steps in behind Luke, his fingers over his eyes. “Hi,” he calls into the room.
“Don’t come in here,” I snap.
“Okay.” He turns immediately to face the staircase.
“Can I just say that for the majority of time I have been staying with you I have respected your boundaries ,” I hiss, tugging the sheet tighter around me.
“I got a call from the office,” Louise says, her face pale. “The developers are starting on the Castlebay site today.”
Oh.
Luke brushes past her to get a T-shirt.
“I thought that wasn’t happening for months,” I say.
“They lied. We need to get everyone down there before the diggers arrive. I need your help.”
“I… yeah.” I nod, trying to keep up. “Of course.”
“We’ll be there,” Luke promises.
“Great. Thanks.” She rubs her forehead, her eyes distant as she thinks. “And how do you feel about getting arrested?”
We both stare at her. “How many times have you been arrested?” I ask.
“Four.”
“ Four? ”
“Five,” Tomasz says. “That pipeline thing.”
“Five,” Louise amends.
Five.
Luke clears his throat. “Then I guess I’d prefer not to, but I’m still happy to help.”
“I guess I’m the same?” I say.
Louise glances back at me. “Oh, no, you need to stay here, Abby. I need you to knock on doors and get the word out for people to come down. Everyone on the street, okay? As many as you can find.”
“But I want to come with you. I want to be there.”
No one says anything.
“What?” I ask.
Louise sighs. “It’s just—”
“You’re the bad guy,” Tomasz calls, still with his back to the room.
“Because I worked for MacFarlane?” I turn to Louise for an explanation. “Do you bitch about me to your protestor friends?”
“Of course not,” she says. “But it’s not like MacFarlane were pioneers of climate change, Abby. Greenpeace targeted them all the time.”
“But we had a climate committee,” I protest. “We switched to bamboo cutlery in the break rooms and we got the CEO to give up his private jet.”
Louise and Luke stare at me.
“Alright, I now realize how that sounds,” I say. “But I don’t care. Let me help. We can put a sign on the door. Ollie can tell them.”
“Let her come,” Luke says when Louise starts to argue. “Or you won’t hear the end of it.”
I scowl at him. “That was not kind of backup I was looking for.”
“Okay.” Louise sighs. “Just don’t say anything. To anyone. Pretend you’re my cousin.”
“I’m not going to pretend I’m your—”
Tomasz clears his throat.
“Fine,” I mutter. He flashes me a thumbs-up.
“Get dressed then,” she says. “I have a spare pair of boots in the car.”
“I’ll stick around,” Luke says. “Tell Ollie what’s happening and meet you there.”
“Thank you. Tell her it’s important.” She turns to me, exasperated. “Abby, did you hear me?”
“You need to leave first!” I exclaim, and she rolls her eyes, turning to the stairs.
“Five minutes,” she calls as Luke shuts the door behind her. I drop the sheet, grabbing yesterday’s underwear.
“She is not well,” I say, clipping my bra into place. “And you need to be more protective of your property. Next time someone’s hammering on the door, you threaten them until they leave. You do not let them inside.”
Luke’s still standing by the door, looking like he’s trying not to smile.
“What?”
He puts his hand on his hips and I drop my arms, realizing I’m in my stance again.
“Whatever,” I snap, and he laughs.
“I thought you were a morning person,” he says as I locate my dress by the coffee table.
“No one is a morning person when their morning starts like that. Even if they—” I stop talking as he kisses me, catching me off guard.
The back of my legs hit the couch and if it weren’t for the iron rod of his arm welded to my back, I think I would have toppled right over it.
It lasts only a few seconds but they’re a few very good seconds and when he pulls away I struggle to remember what I was saying.
“Is that your way of telling me you’re a morning person too?” I ask.
“That’s my way of telling you that you’re doing a good thing helping your sister. And that I’m sorry your morning is ruined. And ,” he says, pulling me into him, “that we’ll just have to find some way to make it up to you.”
“I can think of a few ways,” I say seriously, and he grins before leaning down to kiss me again.
One hour and one very dangerous car ride later, we arrive at the dunes near Castlebay beach, where the builders are due to arrive.
Despite the early hour, we’re not the first ones there.
A dozen or so people already mill about the makeshift parking lot, Louise’s co-workers judging by the branded T-shirts and supplies they’re unpacking.
A small bearded man in a navy waterproof jacket and green rubber boots is waiting for us, waving a clipboard in his hands.
“It’s a nightmare,” he calls, blinking behind his glasses.
“My boss,” Louise says as we get out of the car. “Ned.”
“They’re bringing the diggers and everything,” he continues. “They lied to us. Complete lies.”
“Have you contacted the Leitrim Observer ?”
He nods. “And the Connaught Telegraph says they’ll send someone today. We’ll be on the morning radio too. I’ve called everyone I know. We’re just waiting for the local council offices to open before we find out what the hell happened.”
“We’ve prepared for this,” Louise reassures him. “It’s nothing we haven’t been through before.”
“I just wish we had a bit more time,” he says. “But delighted to have you on board,” he adds as Tomasz walks past, clapping him on the shoulder. His eyes flick to me with a distracted smile. “I don’t believe we’ve met.”
“No,” I say as Louise stiffens beside me. I try not to roll my eyes. “I’m her—”
“Sister,” Louise interrupts. “This is my sister, Abby.”
Ned rears back in surprise. “ The sister? Didn’t you used to work for MacFarlane?”
I nod solemnly. “I brought them down from the inside.”
“Oh, look,” Louise says as Ned’s eyes widen. She points to more arriving cars coming down the road. “Reinforcements.”
“That will be the student union,” Ned says, bristling with importance. “If you’ll excuse me.”
I turn to Louise as he hurries away from us. “I guess you love me after all. I think I might cry.”
“The cousin thing was a stupid idea.”
“It was your idea.”
“Just distribute the T-shirts, okay?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The rest of the group isn’t anywhere near as suspicious as Ned.
In fact, they seem delighted to finally meet me, the mysterious sister they’ve never seen.
There must be around two dozen people there.
But by eight even more show including parents towing their children with homemade signs, tourists from the nearby rental cottages wanting to see what all the fuss is about, and, as Ned promised, a few reporters from the local radio stations, capturing soundbites for the morning headlines.
At eight-thirty, just as the developers are due to arrive, Louise starts her speech.