Before he could do anything more, Cherry took the towel and dropped it to the floor.
Ravaged from the storm and the sex, Sean – a tousled, dishevelled prize of a man with the purest of hearts –watched her, confused, definitely not expecting what she did next.
Cherry slid her hand down the inside of her thigh, through the viscous liquid dripping there, and slicked a generous amount onto her finger. Then, meeting her husband dead on, she raised that finger and sucked.
‘Tastes like paradise…’ she murmured. ‘Just so you know how I feel about you, Sean.’
Sean’s chest was still heaving a little, his eyes darting in line with every move she made. He raked a hand through his hair, jaw ticking, like he was torn about what to do.
He hesitated for a moment, and she wondered if he might be about to concede something.
But then he spoke.
‘That was something else, Cher. All of it.’ Tenderly, he trailed his fingers through the lower strands of her hair, before they fell away, his touch drifting down her arm and leaving only the memory of his warmth in its wake. He blinked slowly, hesitating before clearing his throat and speaking again. ‘I know you have to go, and I won’t stand in your way. But I’m not a hundred percent convinced you’ll be back, so I think that it’s best that we aren’t in touch. I need to maintain some sanity, you know?
Cherry could hear the seams of her heart tearing, slowly. The prospect of being without Sean, even at the end of the phone, was devastating. But what could she do except respect his wishes? He was right; she couldn’t ask him for anything more when he’d given her so much of himself.
‘Sure, Seany.’ Her hand wobbled by her side, hoping to find his again. ‘I guess we just had the best goodbye-for-now sex ever.’
‘Aye, Paradise, I hope that’s what it was. I really do.’
Chapter 33
Sean
Sean considered skipping the usual Sunday drop-in at his mum’s house to avoid questions about Cherry. But that meant lying to her and sitting at home alone, so he opted for the lesser discomfort.
Of course, one of the first questions Amanda asked before he’d sat down at the kitchen table was: ‘How’s Cherry after the tournament yesterday?’
‘Aye, fine, I think.’ For all he knew, she was. ‘She raised a lot of money, Mum. A lot.’
‘That’s fantastic. But youthinkshe’s fine?’
If they were breaking up, then he may as well pull the plaster off. It was hard to mask everything right now. And it could be time he stopped.
‘She’s gone to see her mum,’ he said. ‘She left this morning.’
Amanda watched Sean intently. His heartache was probably written all over his face. He shrugged. ‘I’m not sure she’ll be back.’
‘Oh, Sean.’ Far from anI told you so. Amanda was nothing but compassionate. ‘What happened?’
Burdening his mum with the news that Cherry had left was unfair, especially as his dad’s birthday was on the horizon, so he wouldn’t go into any more detail.
‘I’d rather not talk about it. Let’s focus on the ashes.’ Normally, at this time of year, Amanda would be busy organising a huge party for her husband. But the plan on Jimmy Butler’s birthday this September was for the siblings to get on their surfboards and to scatter his ashes at sea. It would be a moving tribute, but there was nothing to plan, except to get everyone in the same place and on a surfboard, including – at her own insistence – his mum.
‘Listen to me,’ Amanda soothed in the matter-of-fact tone that had given Sean an immense amount of comfort his whole life. ‘Everyone is heartbroken, so we need to support one another. YourSean the superheroact won’t save anyone, so please, if you won’t talk to me, talk to one of your brothers. They all need it as much as you. Do you understand?’
Suitably humbled, Sean mumbled, ‘Aye, I do.’
‘Good.’ Amanda leaned against the oven and watched him.
He picked at crumbs on the table, hoping she would stop soon. When things became unnervingly quiet, he looked up to see her flexing her biceps Charles Atlas style. It was sweet and playful and made him smile. She always knew how to do that.
‘Do you think I’ve got what it takes to paddle out the back?’ she said.
‘Mum, you won’t need to do anything. I’ll do all the work, or whoever’s board you want to ride on. But, as I’ve said before, we can get you a boat.’
‘Oh no. Your dad wasn’t interested in boats. We agreedon surfing.’
