‘I’m so pleased for you both,’ Fi said quietly behind them.
Daisy and Gabriel let go of each other and turned to face her.
‘I’m sorry, Fi,’ Gabe said. ‘You’re welcome to come out and visit any time you like, you do know that, right?’
Her face lit up. ‘I’d love to.’
‘Sebastian said he’d come out and see what we’re doing and how it all works, so you could travel out with him. It’ll be fun to meet up again. I’ll be able to show you what I’ve been working towards.’
‘How long will we be out there?’ Daisy asked, unable to hide her rising excitement.
‘For most of the winter months,’ Gabe said. ‘We should be back here in the spring, so if you want to work another season here at the hotel, you’ll be back in time.’
Daisy couldn’t believe how well everything was turning out. ‘Perfect.’
Gabriel kissed her quickly, then frowned andstepped away after spotting someone over by the door. ‘Here, sir,’ he said to a grey-haired gentleman struggling with a large leather suitcase. ‘Let me help you with that.’
Daisy returned to her desk and moved her mouse to light up the computer screen, ready to check the guest into the hotel.
Gabriel followed him the few steps to the reception counter. ‘I’ll leave your case here for you and go and let the porter know you’ve arrived,’ he said, walking away.
‘Good afternoon,’ Daisy said. ‘Welcome to the Encore. Do you have a reservation?’
‘No,’ he said. ‘I, er, wish to book in.’
Daisy smiled at him. ‘One moment, sir.’ She quickly checked the availability. ‘We have a twin room at the rear of the hotel overlooking the valley, and a double at the front of the hotel overlooking the pool and gardens.’
‘I take the room at the back,’ he said.
She had just watched the old man follow the porter to the lift when Gabriel returned to the reception. He smiled at Fi who was busily typing a letter. ‘All right if I step outside with Daisy for a few minutes?’
‘Um, of course,’ she said, looking taken aback at the request.
Gabriel ignored Daisy’s quizzical look and waited for her to join him at the front door. They walked outside towards the rose garden.
‘What is it?’ Daisy asked. ‘Is everything OK?’
‘Yes, it’s fine,’ he said, checking they were alone. ‘Over here,’ he said, indicating the row of huge pine trees planted years ago along the wall near the road.
They reached the middle pine tree and Gabriel stopped and faced her.
‘What time do you finish your shift?’
Daisy checked her watch, wondering why he couldn’t have asked her that inside the hotel. ‘In twenty minutes.’
‘Right, I’ll phone Nan now and tell her that I’ll be bringing you and Mum to her house because I’ve got something I want to tell you all. I’ll then go and chat to Mum and tell her I’ll come and get her shortly and then when you’re finished meet me at the back of the hotel.’
‘Won’t they think it strange that I’m going to be there?’
He stared at her, his dark eyes intent. ‘No,’ he said, his tone insistent. ‘I’ll be telling them about Sebastian’s funding of the project and about us planning a future together.’
‘We are?’ she asked, stepping up to him and hugging him tightly around his waist before he had time to answer.
Gabriel held her close to him, laughing. ‘Yes. We’ve wasted enough time with all this messing around. I want to be with you and I’m fairly sure you feel the same. So, from now on we plan things that will allow us to spend time together.’ He kissed the top of her head. ‘They’ll need something to cheer them up when I tell them about my return to South Africa.’
She nodded and let go of him. ‘I’d better get back to reception before Fi thinks I’ve left already,’ she giggled.
17
