He runs a hand down one side of my face, like he’s finding it hard to stop touching me. “So... what changed your mind? About traveling. I mean, you’ve literally come halfway across the world, Luce.”
I shrug gently. “After you left... I started thinking a lot about what you said. About Nate stealing experiences from me, and not letting him win. And I was missing you so much, and I started to get... I don’t know. Sort of angry. I couldn’t stop thinking about you, and then me and Jools watched that episode ofFriendswhere Emily flies to New York to see Ross—”
He nods sagely. “Classic.”
I smile. “—and I know wecanbe apart, but I just... didn’t want to be anymore. I wanted to see you, and if getting on a plane was what it took to do that, then I wasn’t going to let Nate be the reason I chickened out.”
He’s stroking my shoulders now. “So, was the journey okay? Did you feel all right?”
I nod. “Yeah, actually. It was pretty good. I brought my laptop. Spent most of it writing.”
Just forty-eight hours after Georgia sent her my manuscript two months ago, Naomi Banks got in touch to ask if we could meet at her offices in Bloomsbury. We discussed the book—why I wrote it and her vision for it—and chatted through her comprehensive list of edits. I’m working on those right now, after which we’ll submit the finished version to publishers. It’s a long game, with absolutely no guarantees, so I’m still working at Pebbles & Paper, which to be honest I do really enjoy, despite Ivan being something of a control freak who’s added two more customers to his barred list over the last five months alone.
I do know, though—however the novel works out—that Naomi and I are the perfect match. We work together so well, and are so aligned in many of our thoughts and ideas. Shegetsmy book, and me. I’m now convinced Ryan’s agent turning it down was so Naomi and I could be brought together, even though at the time it felt like such a kick in the teeth.
Caleb sketches the outline of my collarbone with one finger. “This is going to be the most amazing ten days, Luce. I’m so happy you’re here.”
“Me too,” I whisper, and then for a moment we are just looking into each other’s eyes without speaking, our happiness hopscotching through the space between us.
“So, what do you fancy doing now?” he says, eventually. “Do you want to go out? This is a hot surf spot, apparently. Loads going on.”
I shake my head and lean forward, pressing my lips to his. He responds instantly, his hand moving to my back and trailing down between my shoulder blades, a tease traced out across my skin. “Maybe later,” I murmur. “I’d say we’ve got some more reuniting to do yet.”
—
We spend every spare moment of the next ten days together. Caleb shows me the work he’s been doing and introduces me to his colleagues, and I get to go with them on trips to Hindu temples and museums, and to restaurants after hours when they’ve clocked off, plus a Balinese dance show, a couple of nightclubs. When Caleb’s not working, we explore together, venturing out to the palaces of East Bali, hiking Mount Batur at sunrise, visiting the rice paddies, sinking our feet into the sand of countless beaches. We eat breakfast in cafés and lunch at stalls, drink in what feels like a thousand sunrises, enjoy massages at a local spa. And we end our days with what we’ve been missing most—to touch and undress and soar sky-high with pleasure before lying bare-skinned together in the throbbing heat, almost numb with bliss, talking into the night and making plans for our future, as outside, the sky pops with a million stars.
—
On my last night, Caleb tells me he’s made a booking at a fancy restaurant overlooking the beach. So I wear my nicest maxi-dress and leather sandals, twist my hair up and add a flick to my eyeliner, and put in the silver earrings he bought me on our trip to Seminyak a couple of days ago.
As we stroll hand in hand toward the beach, I think about what I’d be doing if I were back in Shoreley right now, if I’d never come out here. Probably FaceTiming Caleb as I walked to Pebbles & Paper on an overcast morning, feeling that deep gnaw of longing in my stomach, oblivious to the magic of being here with him. I think about how glad I am that I pushed myself to do this, that I didn’t let fear overtake me and Nate steal this experience from both of us.
The restaurant is on a vast decked area right on the sand, candlelitand fringed with palm trees, raspberry-pink frangipani flowers adorning the tables. The setting sun makes the sky look ablaze, a tropical bonfire.
Once our drinks have arrived, freshly squeezed watermelon and pineapple, Caleb reaches out across the table and takes my hand. A warm breeze is trickling through the air, waltzing across my bare arms and shoulders.
“This... has been the most amazing ten days,” he says, eyes glimmering with emotion.
I nod and grip his hand. “I’ll remember it forever.”
“Really wish I was coming back with you tomorrow.”
“Just a month,” I remind him. “Four weeks. That’s it.”
“It’ll feel longer now.”
I smile. “That wasn’t the idea, but... I know what you mean. I feel the same.”
Caleb clears his throat. “You know, if you being here has made me realize anything, it’s that... I don’t want to be apart from you ever again, Lucy.”
“Me either,” I say, a warm tingle of relief spreading through me. “From now on, let’s just agree to be a couple of co-dependent limpets, okay?”
He laughs, then trails off. I feel a leap of love for him and, momentarily, I can almost see it suspended between us, like hot breath on a chilly day.
Caleb sets down his glass, and before I can fully register what’s happening, he’s getting off his chair and dropping to one knee in front of me. The restaurant is full, and straightaway I can sense heads turning. Somebody whoops. My pulse begins pumping hard, my heart breaking free from my body.
In the next moment, Caleb has slipped a hand inside the pocket of his jeans and retrieved a ring. I catch my breath. It’s the one I lingeredover in Seminyak the other day, momentarily entranced by the dazzle of its stone. I didn’t say anything to Caleb—I hadn’t even known he’d been watching me examine it—but he must have gone back to get it. It’s slender and silver, studded at its center with a bright blue sapphire. He holds it out to me now between finger and thumb, his hand shaking slightly.
