“Last chance,” the man with the megaphone reminded them. Lucy nodded towards Bella, who had hunched her shoulders and was looking away.
Alex’s gaze narrowed. “You really want me to climb a greasy pole for my daughter’s sake?” he said in a low voice that only Lucy could hear. “I’d rather buy her a bra.”
“How about you do both?”
“Competition starts in two minutes, mate,” the man said, and Alex heaved a resigned sigh.
“All right, fine, I’ll do it.”
Bella turned around, her face lighting up with amazement. “You will?”
“I didn’t say I’dwin,” Alex told them, and Poppy clapped her hands.
“Oh, but you will, Daddy! You’ve got to.” She turned to Lucy with a confiding air. “I love lamb.”
Lucy watched as Alex peeled off his sweater, revealing a brief, tantalizing glimpse of his toned abs before he yanked his T-shirt down. He tossed his sweater to Bella, who caught it with a small smile.
“The things I do for you,” he said with an answering smile and a shake of his head. “If I win, we’ll be eating lamb for a month.”
“I like lamb too,” Bella offered, clutching her father’s sweater to her chest. Lucy smiled even as she remained slightly apart, sensing that this was between Alex and his daughters. Who knew what was going on in their hearts and minds, but somehow climbing a greased pole had become bigger than any prize thatmight be perched at the top. It was about showing his daughters that he loved them, that he’d do anything for them.
Even look ridiculous and get really dirty.
The competition began, and half a dozen brawny-looking lads managed to shimmy halfway up and snag one of the ribbons before they slid down, good-natured and covered in grease.
Alex gave Lucy a dark look. “I’m going to get filthy.”
“You can shower when you get home”
Finally it was Alex’s turn. Bella and Poppy waited, their breath held, their hands clasped in front of them, as Alex started up the pole. It was clearly a lot harder than he’d anticipated, because he started sliding down almost immediately.
Lucy’s breath caught in her throat. It was stupid, she knew; it didn’t really mean anything, and yet . . . she wanted him to win. The girls wanted him to win.
Wrapping his arms more tightly around the pole, Alex started to shimmy up again. His biceps bulged impressively and Lucy spared a second’s thought for how utterly fit Alex Kincaid really was.
“You can do it, Daddy!” Poppy screeched in excitement, and startled, Alex slid down half a foot before he managed to stop himself. He was past the halfway mark now and people had started to cheer him on, Poppy and then even Bella, loudest of all.
Lucy realized she was cheering too, and as Alex loomed closer to the top of the pole and the leg of lamb, she started screaming as loudly as the girls, all of them jumping up and down, caught up in the moment.
Alex spared them a glance, which cost him another foot, and then he made one last herculean effort and lunged upwards again, one hand outstretched as he grabbed the leg of lamb.
It must have been heavier than he thought, for it wobbled alarmingly and people jumped back in case it fell on their heads.Alex brought it to his body like a football, lost his grip on the pole, and came sliding down in a greasy rush as his daughters broke out into cheers.
“Your prize, my lady,” Alex said, and with a mock bow he handed the lamb to Bella. She took it with a surprised, shy smile.
“You were great, Dad,” she said quietly, and the sight of Alex’s answering smile nearly burst—or broke—Lucy’s heart. Either way it overflowed with emotion, and she turned away so they wouldn’t see how affected she was, when she had no right to be.
This was their moment, their time, not hers.
She wasn’t part of it.
Chapter twenty
Juliet
The morning of the Crab Fair Juliet woke early and left with the dogs; she and Lucy had been tiptoeing around each other since her awful almost-breakdown a few days ago, and she had no desire to sit silent and glum while Lucy got ready for her big day out.
Lucy had played down the invitation, of course, claiming she was going only for Poppy’s sake, but Juliet knew better. She could see the sparkle in her sister’s eye. It would have gotten on her nerves if her misery wasn’t weighing her down so much.
