Page 76 of The Wedding Proposal
‘Then I’ll ask Loz if I can come with you and bunk on board Seadancer.’
She sighed, her breath hot against him. ‘Look — let’s not upset your parents.’
Shit. Guilt filtered through the small part of his brain that was still doing its job. She was right. It was going to be tricky enough to manage the Elle/parents relationship without putting their backs up. He pressed his lips against her hair. ‘I bet Mum was pretty surprised when you picked up the phone.’
A small silence. ‘Little bit.’
He laughed at her unconvincing attempt at nonchalance. ‘Don’t worry about my parents this time, all right? I’ll talk to them and they’ll behave.’
‘Great,’ she said, so brightly that he knew she didn’t believe he could do it. Mentally, he cursed himself for not supporting her as he should have in the past.
But this time it would be no problem. He was aware and he was in control. He yawned, hugely. ‘There’s nothing my parents can say to change things. I hadn’t told them about us because you said you just wanted to enjoy what’s happening and let the future take care of itself, and that’s fine. So long as you know that I see my future with you in it.’
She didn’t reply. But her embrace tightened.
Elle set the coffee machine going in the galley while Lucas retrieved his phone from the saloon. Elle had thoughtfully plugged it in to charge. Kayleigh’s phone was lying next to it.
‘I’ll start moving my stuff over while you call your parents,’ she said.
‘You don’t have to find an excuse to give me privacy. I’m not going to say anything I don’t want you to hear.’ He dropped down at the dinette.
‘It’s not an excuse. It has to be done. The coffee will be ready in a few minutes.’ She vanished into the cabin and reappeared with two cases, one pink and one with the union flag on it.
He had a sudden vivid memory of her lining them up on the quay on the day she arrived, using them as a barrier, glaring at him from behind it. ‘I’ll carry them for you.’
‘They have wheels. Make your phone call.’ She gave him a wide smile and dragged the suitcases rapidly across the saloon and out of the door.
The boat dipped slightly as she swung each suitcase across the gap between bathing platform and quay. After a moment he heard the rumbling of the hard plastic wheels along the concrete.
He shook his head. This was not the way he would have chosen to cement Elle back into his life. Her tension every time the subject of his mother came up was palpable. He was going to have to make that stop.
He pressed the button on top of his iPhone and saw eight missed calls from his mother. There were also a couple of texts. The first, also from his mother, said: Ring me asap. Dad and I are making arrangements to fly to Malta. I spoke to the hospital and they said Charlie’s in no danger but we’re coming anyway. I asked the hospital to ask you to ring me but you haven’t and Kayleigh’s and Charlie’s phones go straight to voicemail. Are you OK? Mum xxx PS Surprised to find myself speaking to Elle on your phone.
Charlie’s phone had been in his pocket when he fell into the water, so its life was over, and Lucas already knew that Kayleigh had left her phone on the Shady Lady in the confusion after Charlie’s idiocy.
The second text message said: You have two voicemail messages. When he dialled in, his mother’s even tones told him that they were en route already, their flight number and an ETA of just after 1p.m. Malta time. He pressed a button on the phone to check the time. They must already be in the air.
Pushing aside his desperation for sleep, he sent a text for his mother to pick up when she landed. I’ll meet your flight. Charlie’s going to be OK.
The next message was from a ruffled-sounding Vern. ‘So, what’s up, Lucas? Why the no-show?’
He called straight back. ‘Really sorry, Vern. My brother had an accident and I’ve been at the hospital all night.’
Immediately, Vern’s attitude changed and he demanded details. ‘Good job from you,’ he concluded. ‘I’ll work round it, mate. See you tomorrow?’
‘I’ll let you know, but I think so.’
Then he texted Elle: Calls made. Parents arriving early pm and he went to throw off his clothes and get himself under the shower for a couple of minutes before crashing onto the bed. Before he could close his eyes, he set his phone alarm for noon. A moment later he heard someone coming on board and soon Elle stole into the cabin.
He held out an arm. ‘Come to bed.’
Her eyes sparkled. ‘You need to sleep.’
‘Give me a break, Elle,’ he groaned. ‘I’m going to sleep. I just want to hold you for a minute.’
She arrived on the mattress beside him with a bounce, warm, soft, brushing kisses on his shoulder and his jaw. ‘Lower,’ he suggested.
‘You’re supposed to be going to sleep. By the way, Joseph says he’ll take you to fetch your parents. If they want to go straight to the hospital he’ll drop you all and then bring their bags here. You’re to ring him half an hour before you want to leave.’
