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“I’m sorry that Hana let you down.” The look in his eyes was intense, and it made her feel like she’d hatched a swarm of butterflies in her stomach. “It’s so much worse when it’s family who does that,” he continued.

Maya’s mouth went dry. He was tuning in to her with empathy. The emotional intensity of the situation dialed up a few notches because not only did she know the history of his own experience with family betrayal, but he’d also given her his personal insights. “I’m sorry.”

He frowned. “What for?”

She swallowed in an attempt to create an oasis in the Sahara desert of her mouth. “I’m being insensitive. About your dad.”

He raised his eyebrows. “No, you’re not. But thanks for thinking of it.”

Maya managed a smile and a gulp of air.

Sam started to lift his hand, then hesitated, before continuing to reach over and take hers. “My dad buggered off without a backward glance. If I’d been given the chance to speak to him, tell him how he’d hurt me, and my mum and sister, then I would have. But we don’t hear from him from one year to the next.”

The touch of his hand and the power of his words were combining to do strange things to her insides. Strange, but not unpleasant.

“Hana is still in your life, and so is your dad. Maybe you should speak to them. Starting with Hana. Be honest about the way they make you feel.”

She couldn’t take her eyes off his. He was mesmerizing, and randomly it made her think of the chocolate fountain her friend had hired for a birthday party. Maya had sat staring at the liquid flow for about twenty minutes with a resulting warm and tingly sensation. Sam was certainly giving off a sweet, warm vibe at this precise moment. And I remember him tasting warm and sweet too.

She cleared her throat, giving his hand a squeeze and letting go. “Thank you. It’s really kind of you to listen, and I appreciate your advice.” She pulled away through the car park. “You always gave good advice.”

Sam settled into his seat. “And you were always a good listener.”

Smiling, she started down the hill road. “Even when I’d make a joke about everything?”

Sam laughed. “Yeah. I appreciated your jokes. No one else managed to lift me from my melancholy moods with a laugh like you did.”

Maya’s smile spread further as they continued their journey along the snowy mountain pass, her insides warm and fuzzy as if she’d been drinking straight out of that chocolate fountain.

Lifting the phone for the tenth time, Maya stared at it. Calling Hana was even harder than she’d expected. After what Sam had said, she’d ruminated over it all evening, driven by the realization that she should be grateful for the ability to have it out with Hana when Sam and Liv had never gotten the opportunity with their dad. Plus, Elise would never have the chance to speak to Harry ever again. What if something happened to Hana, and Maya hadn’t ever tried to salvage their relationship?

Her finger hovered over the call button, and then she set the phone down again. “Argh! Why am I the biggest wimp in the history of the universe?” She folded her arms. “I’m also talking to myself again.”

Eyeing the phone, she decided that a text might be a better baby step. Normally when this sort of thing occurred, she’d leave it a couple of days, then message Hana a funny meme. Bypassing her humor defense mechanism and addressing the issue was uncharted territory.

After typing and deleting a number of times, she finally pressed send.

I don’t feel I should have to apologize for helping out Ben when he needed me. Nor for spending a little time, between jobs, doing something I love which benefits the children in Glenavie.

Her heart spasmed in hefty palpitations as she placed the phone onto her bedside table. When it didn’t immediately buzz with a reply, she opened it again. The message was confirmed as read. Oh my God, this is torture. Wishing she could become an ostrich and keep her head firmly buried in the sand, she lay back on the bed.

Still nothing. Should she text again and apologize for sending the message? Stop wimping out. Hold firm.

Another few minutes passed. Perhaps she should go and speak to her mum, ask her what to do. But she didn’t want to upset her by letting her know that she was at odds with Hana. Liv would be out at her karate class, and there was no way Maya was going to bother Elise with this. As she sat up straight, a thought occurred to her. Maybe she could message Sam. She bit her thumbnail. Was that inappropriate? But he was the one who had suggested she contact Hana, so surely it wasn’t?

After holding out a little longer, her heart couldn’t take it anymore. Lifting the phone, she messaged him.

Sorry to bother you. Need some advice. Texted Hana to say I don’t think I have anything to apologize for. I can see she’s read it but nothing back. Should I message again? Or call? Or take it back?

Setting the phone down again, she suffered a resurgence of palpitations after texting the last person in the world whom she thought she’d be going to for advice.

She waited a few minutes, but there was no reply from Sam either. Resisting the urge to check if it was marked as read, she placed the phone into her pocket and went downstairs to have a cup of tea with her mum. It was best not to get the phone out until it buzzed with a reply from somebody, otherwise she’d end up staring at it all evening.

Chapter

Ten

Sam rang the doorbell, wondering whether Maya had bitten the bullet and called Hana the previous evening.