“I know.I trust you, Libby.I believe you.”
And he hoped that she’d trust and believe him back.
Or at least be brave enough to try.
Finally,Karimhadfallenasleep.Libby crept into the kitchen, and through the glass door, she saw Dan lying outside on a blanket, surrounded by candles.Next to him lay a bowl of chopped pineapples, mangoes, and bananas.
“What’s this?”she asked.
“Dessert.”Dan sat up to make room for her, his face scrunching in pain a little as he swung his legs around.She wished she could soothe his aches.“I also hope we can loosely call this our first official date,” he added.
“We’re a little past that now, aren’t we?”
“Call me old-fashioned.”
Her heart danced, and her lips twitched.
He wanted her in his bed.
He wanted to be more than friends.
He’d confided in her, like they were a team.
But what now?
Kneeling beside him, she reached for a piece of pineapple.Despite their past intimacy, this actually did feel like a first date.At dinner, Karim had diluted the intensity of their conversation, but alone, just the two of them, nerves mixed with excitement.
“No man has ever flat out told me they like having me in their bed,” she blurted.
“Did it ever occur to you that you might’ve been dating idiots?”
She laughed.“Maybe.”
He lay back down, his right arm making a pillow for his head.His left arm didn’t stretch that way anymore.“My ex-agent, Suze, emailed me today about that BBC project.They want to talk to me about a documentary on my life.”
“No surprises there,” she said, lying next to him.She propped her head on her elbows.“It sounds like a great opportunity.”
“For what?”
“To prove that you’re moving on, that all those conspiracy theories about you were nonsense.Another step—”
“—closer to my old life?”he finished for her.“Yeah, I remember.”
But he wasn’t looking too happy about it.He shifted to his side, so they were face to face, eye to eye.
“The thing is,” he added, “I’m just getting used to being left alone.I like not having to look over my shoulder for photographers.I like that no one knows who I am here.As soon as I go back to England, I’ll be faced with how things were when I left, and accepting the BBC offer now will mean getting back on that wheel.”
Which was why she’d be wise not to get too carried away by his words earlier.Dan might want to carry on with what they’d started on that couch, but he was on vacation here.This wasn’t how he usually lived his life.This—being out here in this tropical paradise, with her—was a fantasy world.
She snagged a piece of pineapple from the bowl and took a bite.
What if a relationship with her was part of his newfound freedom?What would happen when he tired of it?
Could she ride the coaster for a little longer?
“Part Five,” Dan said.“We’d better crack on with that.We only have a few days left before New Year’s.”
She winced, glad for the change of subject but also feeling guilty.“I’m sorry.I still haven’t seen your clips.”
