“Right. Okay. I’ll think about it.”
“Wonderful,” she says, with such sincerity that I instantly feel bad for being so distant with her. I have to remind myself that she didn’t want much to do with me until recently. “Talk soon then, darling, safe flight! Bye now!”
I hang up and chuck my phone back into my bag. Ruby and Leo are next to me, Leo with his head resting on Ruby’s shoulder, snoring gently, as she rests her head on top of his.
I take the opportunity to glance over at Matthew. He’s sitting a few rows away from us, reading a book. Anxiety seeps through me as I watch him turn the page. There’s no chance he saw me kissing Gabriel by the pool last night. He’d left the wedding a while before and he looked pretty unsteady on his feet when he went, helped by one of Dominic’s friends. But I still feel guilty. Like I’ve done something wrong; like I’ve cheated. I know that’s stupid. We’re both single now. I can do what I want.
But it’s strange, all the same.
The hangover is making the fear and guilt much worse. I keep telling myself this. When I woke up this morning to my alarm, I plodded into the bathroom to find my makeup all over my face. I was actually startled when I saw my reflection. I looked like a mess. I hadn’t cleaned my face the night before and the stint in the swimming pool had caused my eyeliner and mascara to run all down my cheeks.Howdid Gabriel want to kissthis? I wondered, frantically scrubbing at my face.
Leo and I managed to get down to the hotel restaurant in time to eat some breakfast, which I think has helped, unlikeRuby, who decided to get the extra sleep. Simone also opted for a lie-in, especially as she’s getting a later flight. But Cali and Dominic were there this morning at breakfast, so it was nice to see them both before they headed off on their honeymoon.
“You were in great form last night,” Cali whispered in my ear as I hugged her goodbye. “I haven’t seen you so happy in a long time.”
I’m not sure if she meant since the breakup or before, but I was much too hungover to analyze it. Leo and I went back to our separate rooms to get ready for the airport transfer—and to wake up Ruby—and we survived check-in, only to get here and find Matthew waiting for the same flight. Typical. I felt ahundredtimes more sick at that discovery.
When we’re seated on the plane, I actually whisper, “Thank you,” when it turns out that Matthew is right at the back and we’re at the front. It is not surprising, when I think about it. I always select seats when booking flights, while he is happy to leave it to random allocation.
Maybe that’s what he means about me being a sturdy character and him being laid-back. I’m predictable and he prefers to take chances.
Whatever.
“You’re so tense,” Ruby groans, whacking me on the arm as she tries to get her head comfortable on my shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
“Matthew is on this flight.”
“So?”
“So, that makes me tense.”
She yawns loudly, nuzzling into my arm. “Just think about Gabriel in the see-through shirt. The abs of a sculpted god. That should help you relax.”
“My eyes are closed, but I can still hear you,” Leo grumbles from the window seat.
The flight is thankfully smooth and quick, and by the time I get home, I’m desperate to just crawl under my duvet and stay there forever, emerging only to get my takeaway dinner when it arrives, and returning straight to bed after I’ve consumed my weight in noodles.
The next morning, I wake up and not only is the hangover gone, but the guilt and fear are too. I turn off my alarm, glug down some water, and gradually sit up, gearing myself up to swing my legs out of my nice cozy bed, so I can start getting ready for work.
As I go to push the duvet off, I notice the ring on my left hand. I forgot to take it off last night. I smile at it. Gabriel didn’t think I was boring. He thought I was fun.
I think so, too.
“Dad,” I begin, looking out curiously across the lawn at the mound of soil next to a large hole in the ground with a spade lying nearby, “why are you digging up the garden?”
He comes to sit next to me on his garden furniture in the sunshine with two mugs of tea.
“I’m building a pond,” he explains proudly. “It’s my new project. Got a lad down the road helping me out with it. I want it to be a heavenly retreat for frogs, newts, insects, and other wildlife. Hoping for some dragonflies and damselflies. Will get some good plants for it, too. Can’t think why I haven’t built one before, to be honest, Freya. It will be nice to have some company when I sit out here.”
“Are you talking about the frogs and newts?”
“That’s right.” He smiles into his mug, taking a sip of tea. “They’ve much better conversation than most people I know.”
“You are, of course, referring to Adrian.”
“Hey!” my brother says, eyeballing me through the screen ofmy phone. “I have excellent chat. Much better than yours, Freya. Tell us that story about ripping the sleeve of your dressing gown on the door handle again? That one had me gripped.”
“All right, children,” Dad says in amusement as I stick my tongue out at Adrian. “That’s enough.”
