‘Oh, I’m sorry – you planned to walk him?’
‘It’s really not a problem.’ He zipped up his coat. ‘Autumn is here.’
‘It sure is.’ She looked down the hill towards Lulworth Cove. ‘It’s so beautiful even when the weather is the opposite.’
‘Do you miss the English winters? Or is that a silly question? I bet you don’t give them a moment’s thought with all that Australian sunshine.’
‘Actually, it’s not such a silly question. I do miss it sometimes, the cosy winters, a huge fireplace like the one I remember having as a kid, the dark and snuggling up.’
‘All sounds very romantic. Then of course there are the howling winds, the heavy showers, the fact you can’t feel your face because it’s gone numb with the cold.’
She began to laugh. ‘All right, those are things I don’t particularly miss.’
‘Is your dad enjoying being back?’
They stood for a good fifteen minutes talking about her dad, her uncle, her parents’ marriage, or rather divorce, her life in Queensland, and they even talked a bit about the book club.
‘Howard was a lovely chap.’ Theo stepped off the kerb to let a lady with a pram walk past on the pavement.
When he checked his watch she asked, ‘Do you need to go?’
‘Not just yet, so we could walk if you like.’
‘Sure.’
They began to head down the hill towards the coastal path and when they reached it Theo said, ‘So, the bump on your head?’ He was still looking in the same direction as her, out across the water.
‘I fell off my bike.’ And with the soothing sounds of the waves crashing in the distance she found herself telling him all about her sister, the scandal, what led her to coming here, all the way to being chased by that man.
‘You should’ve called the police.’ She could feel him watching her now.
‘I will if I see him again, or rather if he hassles me again. So far I’ve not set eyes on him.’
They didn’t stay watching the sea for long and when they set off back up the hill they’d moved on to talking about his job, how much he loved being a primary school teacher, and how settled he was here.
‘I always thought that I’d want to stay in London,’ he admitted. ‘It was great being there for a while, having the city right on my doorstep. It was a lot of fun but when a job came up here I took it as a sign.’
‘Any regrets?’
‘None.’ They’d almost reached the bookshop when Theo told her, ‘Be careful. You know, in case that man is hanging around again.’
She liked that he cared. ‘I think Bonnie scared him off.’
‘Good for her.’
‘I’d better get going, take Midas on the nice long walk I promised him,’ she said. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll return him to the shop in plenty of time for his afternoon shift.’
‘I bet he’s loving all the added attention he’s getting.’
‘I hope in some way he can help Bonnie.’ She shrugged.
‘Hey, don’t doubt yourself. It was a good idea.’ He put a hand briefly to her shoulder for reassurance and the touch, although light, sent her a little bit giddy. She hadn’t expected to have feelings for anyone so soon after Brad, but she did. It had felt weird at the start but now it felt normal. Now it felt right. But she was leaving, and that thought did the opposite of making her feel giddy; it made her feel sad.
‘Carers often bring adults with learning difficulties into the shop,’ Theo went on, oblivious to the storm of feelings brewing inside her. ‘Midas seems to be good with everyone so I’ve no doubt he’ll be good for Bonnie.’
When they reached the point where he had to cross over to head back to the school and she carried on up the hill, she wedged the bag from the bakery under her arm so she could check her emails. She usually paid a fixed monthly fee to the salon for renting a chair there and had been allowed to put it on hold, but they had written yesterday to ask whether she would recommence payments for the following month. She’d said that, at the moment, she had no idea how long she would stay in England. She wanted to see whether they were going to give the chair to someone else or whether they would wait a while longer. The email was there and she replied to negotiate a date that would give her another four weeks before she would have to either start renting the chair again or give it up.
Her life was in Australia, wasn’t it? She was on holiday here, which wasn’t the same thing, but it wasn’t as clear cut as it had been when she first came here to get away. Already she was beginning to feel ties form. And she had to admit Theo might be a part of that.
