“He thought I was your husband or something,” Luis replied, looking almost proud. “He thought Reine was mine. That you’d moved on.”
“Why would he think such a thing?” she asked, but it was more a question for herself. “Why?”
“Oh, because the man’s hardly Albert Einstein, is he?” Sebastian rolled of his eyes. “He made some stupid choices and did some stupid things. Reine’s cleverness is a testament to our parenting choices, not her genetics.”
“She’s had good schooling too,” Luis added, though Sebastian held up his hand.
“Let’s not go there. You and Barbara Canning are still at each other’s throats over raffle prizes.”
“He came for me,” Ari whispered again. “He came for me.”
“Yeah,” Luis said, his voice soft. “Of course he did. He loves you, Ari. That’s the one constant in his story, you know? Whether he’s Tom Somerset or Tom Miller, or both, he always loves you. That part of his story never changes.”
“And you love him too,” Sebastian added with a shrug, and Ari blinked.
“No, I—” She stopped, closing her mouth.
Of course I’m in love with him,the voice in her head spoke up, clear and confident.I’ve always loved him. He wouldn’t have broken my heart so badly if I didn’t. I love him, and I’m always going to love him. I told him last night that I loved him, and I meant every word.
“Everyone knows, don’t they?”
“Which part?” Sebastian searched for clarification, before shrugging again. “Actually, scrap that. Because yes. Everyone knows everything. Well, except you, who apparently didn’t know that he came back for you, and Tom now, who has no idea how you feel about him but probably isn’t feeling very hopeful right now.”
“Why?” Ari asked.
“Well, love, because you’re here in our kitchen instead of in bed with him. That’s why.”
Ari paled. “I just... I needed to talk. To process what happened. I didn’t know,” she added tearfully. “I didn’t know he’d come back for me.”
“Well, you do now,” Luis replied, reaching forward to brush away another of Ari’s tears. “So, what are you going to do about it?”
Ari stood, lightning fast. “I need to speak with him. Right now.”
“Go,” Luis nodded. “He might not have woken yet. Go quickly.”
“Yes, I’m going,” Ari replied. “I’m going. Oh, God, Reine—”
“We’ll bring her to the airport. Just bring her bag and passport with you,” Luis told her.
“Yes, we’ll bring her.” Sebastian nodded too. “We’d take her to the airport lounge, but there isn’t one,” he added with a pointed look in her direction.
“Fine, next time I’ll book Heathrow, next time I’ll—”
“Ari,” Luis said firmly, “go.”
* * *
She let herself into her small house just forty-five minutes later, having run from the DLR to her door, but it was already too late.
Her bed was empty, and Tom had gone.
* * *
The flight to Reykjavík went by in a blur. Ari nervously ate peanuts, tapping her fingers on her tray table while mentally trying to run through her to-do lists.Liaise with florist, check over bridal gown, check over venue, liaise with Chef and service staff...
“Vos sí jodes mucho,” a voice suddenly intoned, and Ari felt a hand clamp down on her fingers. Luis gave her a look, taking a deep breath.
“Please stop that tapping. You have things on your mind, I understand,” he began patiently. “But I had less than two hours of sleep last night. I need to get another hour in before we arrive.”
