‘Lydia.’
‘You know what I hated the most?That you could leave me.’ I glanced down.‘I’ve been ignoring you these past few days to prove to myself that I can do the same.’
His mouth opened, then closed.His shoulders lowered in defeat.‘I deserve that.’
My chest heaved, my eyes heavy.‘How are we supposed to do this, Ren?When I feel like this?When it hurts this much?’ I shook my head.‘It shouldn’t be this hard.’
His hand lifted to my cheek.
‘Don’t,’ I whispered.
My phone buzzed, and I picked it up to find a familiar NO CALLER ID ringing.This fucker.They’d been calling me for weeks now, at all times of the day.Well, this was the perfect excuse to leave this conversation with Ren, whose soft, devastated expression was killing me.
‘I need to take this,’ I said, turning around, and swiped to answer.‘You know what?I probablydoowe you money for some shitty, overpriced utilities, but I’ve lost my job and I’m really fucking angry tonight, so—’
‘Lydia?’ A lilting Irish voice – familiar and deep – sounded over the phone.
I froze.
‘Is that you?God, woman, you’re impossible to get a hold of, I’ll tell you that.I’ve been trying for, God, it’s got to be two weeks now.That fella of yours, well, he wouldn’t stop calling me.And I don’t blame him.I fired that fecker when I found out.’
‘Niall?’
‘I owe you an apology, Lydia,’ Niall said, his voice grave.‘Craig told you he had permission to fire you, but let me tell you, he didn’t.He pulled the wool over my eyes – he told me you’d left the business.He told me it had been your choice.And I was happy for you.I didn’t realise, until your lad called—’
He sighed.
‘Ren?’ I whispered.
‘That’s the one.Ren.He was relentless.Wouldn’t let it lie.And I don’t blame him.I’d have done the same.Now, listen.I’ve got an opening at Momentum in Everly Heath.If you’re willing to come back…’
The rest of Niall’s voice faded, swallowed by the rush in my ears.
Ren had called him.Ren had hounded him and made him listen.Ren had done what I was too scared to do.
I turned around, but he was gone.
Chapter Twenty-One
Ren
The text came through as I pulled into the carpark of Glenhaven Lodge.My stomach fizzed, and my shaking hand swiped at the notification.
A pin.Just 500 feet from the carpark.Just 500 feet from Lydia.
I’d spent most of the beautiful drive up to the Highlands of Scotland wondering if I was making a mistake coming here.Lydia clearly wanted space.But when I pictured missing out on the final trip – not feeling Gen’s eyes narrow when I opened my mouth, not seeing Amy beam with pride after finishing her final challenge, or not eating one of Claire’s homemade flapjacks, still warm from her backpack – I felt something tighten in my chest.I realised I’d started these trips with Lydia in mind, but slowly, quietly, they’d become something for me too.
And if anything could soothe my bruised heart right now, it was Scotland.
Because, fuck me, it was beautiful.
The kind of beauty you couldn’t imagine from pictures or videos.You had to see it.The roads, winding and rural, revealed a new, breathtaking beauty at each turn.Mountains pierced the clouds, casting scattered patches of sunlight over the land below.It was so beautiful that it looked like those pristine screensavers from the 90s.
By the time I pulled up to the wood-cladded hotel the sun was setting.Mandy had mentioned it was a bit of an institution with hikers and climbers in the region.The hotel was only two storeys high and nestled down a remote road, surrounded by mountains and a picturesque loch.Mandy said that we would travel to Ben Nevis on the first day to tackle the most challenging ascent.Then we’d come back here and spend the rest of the trip walking more manageable summits and walks around Glencoe and Ballachulish.
But now, as I stared at my phone, I wasn’t thinking of the hike tomorrow.
I was thinking about the fact we hadn’t spoken since our argument at the social club.I’d received a fair few sad, sympathetic glances from locals as I’d walked down the high street yesterday to get some last-minute supplies from Ravi’s hardware store.I had accepted that when she answered that phone call, I was essentially dismissed, and wanted to give her the space she clearly needed.I spent the rest of my evening regretting listening to Kat and Liam’s advice.It was bogus.Just because they were sickeningly in love, didn’t mean they knew shit.
