Chapter 26
ERIN
Replete from a gigantic breakfast, Sam suggested that Erin would probably need to roll him to the car and push him inside. She smiled at him and gave him a playful shove out through Mabel’s front door.
Sam sat in the back and promptly fell asleep.
Mabel had given him a picnic blanket from the boot which she rolled up and it made an adequate pillow.
Erin sat in the front and she and Mabel chatted about life in England versus life in Canada and who had the best deal.
Erin loved the town she lived in and found she was missing it, but there was nowhere in the UK that could compare with the magnificent mountain range of the Rockies or the ice sheet on the sea in Churchill, or just the vast expanse of the Canadian countryside.
‘We have such beautiful places in the UK too,’ Erin said, suddenly feeling disloyal to her home.
‘You do. I’ve been to your place only once,’ Mabel said as if she’d popped round to Erin’s flatshare. ‘We spent some time in London and then went on a road trip up the country and around Wales and Scotland. Your country is so cute.’
Erin laughed. She supposed it would look miniature to a tourist from Canada.
She glanced behind her to see that Sam was softly snoring, his hands bunched up and into his chest, a little like a child would.
She had a sudden rush of emotion that she couldn’t quite quantify.
She couldn’t say she loved him, of course not, she barely knew him.
But there was a fear she might lose him somehow.
They had spent such an intense night together and when they arrived in Winnipeg, they’d be swept back up in the race.
What would happen then? She didn’t want to think about it.
Her grandmother had thawed a little towards Harrison, she could see that, but the competitiveness was still there and they were hardly friends. It would be awkward, that was for sure.
Mabel dropped them outside the bus station and once they were out of her car and had offered their many thanks to her, she was gone, down the street and around the corner.
‘So,’ Sam said.
‘We’re here, thank God,’ Erin said.
‘Yeah, that was a lot last night, wasn’t it?’
‘Yes, it was.’
This is a lot, Erin thought. It was suddenly just as awkward as she’d guessed it would be.
‘Back to sworn enemies?’ she said with a grin that Sam didn’t return.
‘You were never my sworn enemy,’ he said. ‘I acted like an idiot and you were rightly pissed off with me.’
‘Yeah, but after last night, when you definitely showed me your knight in shining armour side, I think we’re good,’ Erin said.
The door to the bus station was right next to Erin and she felt that once she walked through it and back to reality, this little unit they had become – supporting each other, looking after each other – would be gone.
She put one step forward towards it and prepared herself for the film crew and the questions.
Then Sam took hold of her arm and he pulled her back towards him. ‘Erin,’ he said.
‘What?’ she answered, surprised.
He steered them away from the entrance to the bus station and down a side street.
‘Sam, what are you doing?’
‘I just wanted to say one thing before we go back. It’s just that I know we’ve got the rest of the race to go and I’m not sure I can bear to watch you disappear.’
He stopped for a moment and Erin found she had to gulp and hoped he hadn’t heard it.
‘I’m not going to disappear. You’ll see me at the checkpoints. I’ll be the one with the vodka, lime and soda, looking at her watch and wondering what took you so long.’
He laughed and took a step closer.
‘Will you indeed?’ he said, his eyes bright with amusement and also something else.
And there, on the corner of a side street in Winnipeg, he kissed her.
* * *
Martha was brushing her hair in front of the mirror when Erin walked through the hotel bedroom door. She looked a bit wired and Erin immediately felt sorry for the trouble she must have caused.
‘Hi, Nana,’ she said as the door closed slowly behind her. Her grandmother jumped.
‘Erin!’ she said and flew to her granddaughter, grabbing her and holding her tightly. ‘Thank goodness you’re here. What on earth happened? Are you okay? How did you manage with no money?’
‘It’s all right,’ Erin said and laughed. ‘I’m okay. I had Sam with me which was perfect because he was great.’
‘He was great, was he?’ Martha said with a slight smile. ‘I thought you couldn’t stand him.’
‘I know, I know, but it turns out he’s pretty decent. And I know how you feel about Harrison. Sam isn’t like his great-uncle.’
Martha turned away to carry on brushing her hair, although it was gleaming and not at all tangled. Erin threw herself down on top of the nearest bed.
‘Not that one.’ Martha almost shrieked and Erin jumped back up.
‘God, Nana. Why not?’ she said.
‘Oh, just because I’ve already had a nap on that one. That’s yours,’ she said, pointing to the bed nearer the window. ‘I’ve put your bag on it.’
Erin sat down on her own bed and watched her grandmother not really putting her hairbrush into her bag and then not really taking it back out again. She was being weird.
‘How are you feeling now?’ Erin asked her. ‘You seem better. I guess those pills worked.’
‘Hmm? Oh, yes. I feel so much better, thank you.’
‘I was worried about you. Sam told me not to be as Harrison would look after you. Did he?’
‘Did he what?’ Martha said, finally deciding to put the hairbrush down on her bedside cabinet.
‘What’s with you, Nana?’ Erin said.
‘Martha, please.’
‘There she is. She’s back,’ said Erin.
‘I’m sorry, love, just a bit tired. Tell me all that happened last night.’
Martha sat down next to Erin and finally seemed to relax.
‘Well, it started with me getting stuck in the loo,’ she said and then relayed the events of the entire night, omitting the near kiss in the truck and then the actual kiss outside the bus station. She felt sneaky not telling her nana everything; she usually did.
Martha was the first to know that Erin had started her period, the first to know that she was in love with Damien Greenwell who broke her heart over Briony Evans and a snog after PE, the first to know her A-level results and her admittance to her first choice of uni.
All of Erin’s trials and tribulations were something she shared with her grandmother and most recently it was about how Hamish had dumped her.
Her nana would console, cajole and be the absolute best at perking her up or being the voice of reason.
But when Erin thought about telling Martha about Sam, the words died on the lips that had just been kissed.
The idea she might confide that it was the best kiss of her life and that she was probably half in love with him was redundant.
Martha held a fifty-year-old-grudge against Harrison.
How could she consider what might come next with his great-nephew?
She played out the conversation in her head and knew Martha would warn her off, tell her he was just like his great-uncle and probably making a tactical move to forward his chances in the race.
No, Erin would just have to keep zipped up about it and see what happened at the end of the race.
Piece-to-camera
Cally: Well, Erin, you’ve had quite the side adventure.
We’re just sorry we didn’t catch it on camera.
Seriously, though. You did really well under the circumstances and working brilliantly with Sam, too.
We’re all glad you’re both back and ready to race again.
But tell us, what was it like to spend a whole night with Sam?
Erin: Er, well, he was very kind and really good at, um, making sure we were safe.
Cally: That’s brilliant. And Martha, how was it for you?
Martha: I beg your pardon?
Cally: You know, the worry of wondering what had happened to your granddaughter. I’ll bet you couldn’t concentrate on anything else at all.
Martha: Oh, yes, of course. Quite. Yes, exactly that.
‘Cut. Ladies, you’re not giving me much. What’s up with you both? Lost your race spirit?’ Cally said and Noah slunk off with his camera.
‘Just a bit tired,’ Erin and Martha said, almost at exactly the same time, and Cally raised both of her eyebrows before she left the room.