Claire woke up alone and wondered where Luca had got to. She hoped she hadn’t slept very late. She would have liked to sneak away before everyone else was up and avoid seeing his mother again.
‘You’re awake!’ Luca exclaimed, as he burst into the room. ‘Come outside, quick – there’s a dolphin.’
He threw himself onto the bed beside her, and all the urgency seemed to go out of him. He sighed happily as he studied her face. ‘Good morning.’ He kissed her and his mouth tasted of coffee. His tongue slipped into her mouth as he rolled on top of her, and their kisses became hot and greedy.
‘I thought you wanted me to go see a dolphin,’ Claire breathed, as his lips moved to her neck.
‘Dolphin schmolphin,’ Luca mumbled into her throat.He kicked off his shoes, then tossed back the duvet and pulled her onto his lap so she was straddling him.
Claire giggled. ‘Maybe I want to see a dolphin.’
‘You can see it another time. I’m sure he’s not going anywhere.’ His hands cupped her breasts as he thrust upwards, the seam of his jeans rubbing against her tantalisingly. ‘Dad says they’ve been hanging around here for weeks. Ten a penny.’ His eyes were hot as she ground against him greedily, seeking more friction. ‘Anyway, you’ve seen a dolphin before, right?’
‘Well… only on TV.’
‘There you go. Seen one dolphin, seen them all.’
Claire had missed her chance of escaping without bumping into Jacqueline again, because by the time they finally made it downstairs, everyone was up. Ali was sitting with her father on the deck and Jacqueline was in the kitchen presiding over the grill, while the mouth-watering smell of bacon filled the air. Claire felt seedy in yesterday’s clothes, and more than a little ridiculous teetering around in her fancy shoes and party dress first thing in the morning. She really hadn’t thought this through at all. She wanted to get home as quickly as possible and change.
‘Good morning! Will you two have bacon butties?’ Jacqueline asked, as they came into the kitchen.
‘Yes, please!’ Luca said. ‘It smells fantastic.’
‘I really should be going,’ Claire said, ‘but thanks anyway.’
‘You’ll stay for some breakfast, surely?’ Jacqueline said. ‘It’ll be ready in a few minutes.’
‘Yeah, you don’t have to rush off straight away,’ Luca said. ‘You can stay for some breakfast at least.’
She had called her mother last night and told her shewas staying over. Her brothers always visited on Sunday mornings, so she didn’t even have the excuse that her mother would be on her own. Anyway, she hadn’t managed to avoid Jacqueline, so she might as well stay. Besides, her stomach was doing somersaults in anticipation of that bacon. ‘Okay, thanks.’
‘Go and join them on the deck and I’ll bring it out when it’s ready.’
Luca headed out, but Claire hung back, letting her hand slip from his. Now that she was faced with Jacqueline, she felt she had to say something to clear the air.
‘Um, is there anything I can do to help?’ she asked.
Jacqueline looked at her in surprise. ‘Thanks. You could make tea. The kettle’s just boiled.’ She nodded to a teapot sitting in front of the kettle.
Claire’s heart pounded as she drew out the tea-making, trying to summon the courage to say her piece. ‘I’m sorry I was rude to you last night,’ she said finally, while she poured boiling water into the pot, glad that she had something else to focus on and didn’t have to look at Jacqueline as she spoke.
‘But you’re not sorry for what you said.’ Jacqueline looked at Claire sharply, seeming almost amused.
‘Well, I…’ Claire felt herself going puce.
‘It’s okay,’ Jacqueline said, with a bitter smile, turning back to her bacon. ‘As you so rightly pointed out, I put our lives in the public domain, so everyone is entitled to an opinion.’
The sound of laughter drifted in from the deck.
‘I really do want the best for him,’ Jacqueline said, looking out through the glass. Luca was leaning on the rail, laughing as he chatted with his father and sister. ‘Despite what you may think.’
‘I’m sure you do.’
‘There’s a jug of Buck’s fizz in the fridge,’ Jacqueline said briskly, as she loaded a plate with butties. ‘Could you bring that out as well?’
Claire tottered over to the fridge and took out the jug.
‘Oh God, those shoes,’ Jacqueline said, her eyes on Claire’s feet. ‘Be careful. Don’t worry about the teapot. I’ll come back for it.’
