‘À bientôt,’ he added before he left, giving me no chance to reply.
I stared after him for a second before letting my eyes find my sisters.
‘Rue! Wren! Time to go.’ I was ravenous, and was desperately hoping that Mum and Dad had bought a fresh baguette from the shop.
As we walked past the Brasserie, I heard my name. But it wasn’t Felix.
‘Over here, Margot!’
I scanned the crowded bar, and there were Mum and Dad, sitting at a table with tiny cups of coffee in front of them.
I walked over, followed by Rue and Wren.
‘Fancy an early lunch here today, girls?’ Dad smiled and stood up to look for more chairs. ‘We were watching out for when you came past.’
‘I’m starving!’ said Rue. Dad pushed a chair in behind her, pleased.
‘Me too,’ said Wren.
‘Me three.’ The restaurant was already buzzing, and I glanced around briefly to spot Felix. I saw him talking to a family, waving his hands and talking enthusiastically. Those hands that held me as we kissed. My stomach did a rollercoaster flip. I turned just in time to see Rue taking the piss out of me by doing a ridiculous kissing face at Wren, who burst into laughter.
I sighed dramatically, while Mum looked at them endearingly. ‘So how was surfing?’ Mum clasped her hands together and stared between Rue and Wren.
‘Amazing!’ Rue said. ‘Antoine said I was a natural, like Margot.’ Rue beamed with pride.
I couldn’t suppress my smile – for both of us. ‘He said that?’
‘Yep. Iamamazing. He said that there are special competitions for people with disabilities too.’
‘That’s wonderful, love. It is safe, isn’t it?’ Mum looked at me and I nodded, still basking in the glow of what Rue had said.
‘Antoine is with them the whole time, they don’t go deep,’ I reassured her.
‘You were surfing too?’ Dad took a sip of wine and found my eyes.
‘Yeah, I mean, just on the sand so far, but I think I’d like to keep doing it.’ I looked down at the menu to try to hide the blush that was threatening to engulf my face.
‘You are ready to order?’
Thatvoice.
Felix. Soft and warm, with the most perfect accent. I looked up to see him, eyes on me, white shirt pulled up at the sleeve, exposing tanned forearms. He smiled.
‘Felix, this is my family. Rue, Wren, my mum and dad,’ I said, more awkwardly than I’d wanted. ‘Mum, Dad, this is my friend Felix.’
Felix shook Dad’s hand, then proceeded to kiss the cheeks of mum, Rue and Wren, who dissolved into giggles.
‘You are enjoying Biarritz?’ Felix asked Mum and Dad.
‘Oh yes, it’s lovely, although we haven’t done much exploring yet,’ Mum replied. She pushed some hair behind her ear. Was Felix making her nervous? I sat back and watched the exchange.
‘Oh you must explore. I will give Margot the name of a restaurant in Bayonne for you. It is perfect.’
‘Well that would be lovely, but with the girls, we tend to eat in restaurants that serve pizza,’ Mum said, laughing.
And then it just came out. ‘Maybe you and Dad could go out and I’ll stay with the girls?’ I offered.
‘And Felix can stay with us too,’ Rue added, and I felt my face flush. ‘He can teach me French.’ Rue grinned at him and Felix smiled.
