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“Yes, safe. While I’m down there, I’m safe. Making it to the surface if something goes wrong is a completely different thing. Like I said, the line broke, and the storm knocked me into the boat’s ladder. I knew the weather was changing, and I shouldn’t have dived, but Chris—” He cuts himself off.

“Chris, what?”

“He said to dive, so I did.”

“Even though you knew you shouldn’t have.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know! I wasn’t thinking properly. A lot of shit’s happened this last week, and I just … I wasn’t thinking.”

I finally walk over to him and lay a hand on his thigh, needing to feel he’s really here. “Chris is getting sacked.”

“Yeah, I gathered as much.”

For both our sakes, I move the subject away from diving and how much I hate him doing it. “What happened with you and Bailey in Cumbria?”

“We talked. A lot.”

“Bet you kissed a lot too. From what I saw on the dance floor, it doesn’t seem like that was the first time.” I waggle my eyebrows at him, and his cheeks go pink.

He turns in the bed, searching for something.

“What are you doing?”

“Trying to find the emergency button.”

“Why? What’s wrong?” I jump away from the bed, scanning him.

“Nothing’s wrong, I just want them to kick you out.”

My panic fades instantly, and I’m both annoyed and relieved that he seems like his normal self. I pull up a chair and sit next to him. He’s not getting rid of me that easily.

He stops being dramatic, and we fall into easy conversation. I try to pay attention to him as he tells me what happened with him and Bailey in Cumbria, but my mind keeps going back to Noah, wondering why, out of everyone in my life, it was him I wanted to see in the waiting room. When they turned up, I went straight to Isla instead of him. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go to him—I wanted to prove to myself that I didn’t need to.

I need to focus on what I already have. Theo, Isla, and Rich take up more than enough space in my heart; losing any of them would be life-altering. The thought of letting myself fall fully in love with someone only for them to be taken from me? That would be catastrophic.

Not that I’m in love with Noah. Not even close. We had a one-night stand, stupidly, and in a few days, we’ll go our separate ways and I’ll probably never see him again. And that’s okay.

I want Noah, but I don’t need him. When he leaves, my life won’t change. Everything will go back to how it was before he showed up on my island.

NOAH

We drop Theo and Bailey home, then drive back to Robbie’s in awkward silence. He lets us into the cottage and goes straight into the kitchen. I follow him, wondering what he’s doing as he yanks open the freezer door. He pulls the dino nuggets out of the drawer and tips them onto a tray, then slides them into the oven without even asking me if I’m hungry.

I stand there, waiting for him to fill the silence, but he keeps his back to me and his mouth shut. “You okay?”

“I’m fine.” He doesn’t look at me, and it makes me feel uneasy.

Maybe he’s still upset about me snapping at him last night. “I’m sorry for yesterday.”

Robbie looks at me over his shoulder, frowning. “What about yesterday?”

“I shouted at you when you were trying to talk to me, and I-I’m sorry. We could⁠—”

“Don’t worry about it,” he murmurs, shutting me down immediately.