Page 116 of Second Chance Summer
‘Oh. OK.’ Damon subsided like a sunken cake. ‘Suppose I should wait here?’
‘No, thanks. You go back to Morven. I’ll take a taxi to the port if I need to.’
‘We’ll hang about down there in case you need a boat back.’
‘Thanks.’
Damon slouched off, leaving Lily battling her emotions. It was excruciating to think she’d dropped everything to see Sam when he was clearly travelling to see another woman. She felt foolish for thinking her feelings for him were reciprocated. But she also felt confused because she was normally a good judge of character, and she had never thought Sam would do something like this after the life-changing experience they had shared on Stark. She owed it to him to give him an opportunity to at least explain before she made her way back to London.
The next twenty minutes were agony. Finally, her phone lit up.
As Lily answered, Sam launched a barrage of questions: Are you OK? What’s happened? Where are you? I’ve a ton of missed calls and messages from you. I had to turn off my phone during the flight.’
‘At the airport on St Mary’s.’
Silence. ‘St Mary’s? What are you doing there?’
‘Looking for you,’ Lily said. ‘I’ve not long landed atLand’s End airport. I thought you’d gone to Penzance …’ she said, regretting the words as soon as they left her mouth.
‘Iamgoing to Penzance.’ He sounded completely confused. ‘How do you know that?’
Lily sank into complete misery. ‘I saw a card from Rhiannon in your house.’
‘You read it?’
‘Yes. And I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say …’
There was a long pause during which Lily could almost hear the beating of her heart, before he spoke again. ‘Stay exactly where you are. I’m coming home. We need to talk.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Lily decided to do as he’d asked, sitting in the airport, staring through the windows, willing the little plane to appear. Jack had gone home from the check-in counter and the café had closed. The airport was empty apart from a man in Lycra cycling gear and a woman with a yappy pug, presumably waiting for the incoming flight like Lily was.
Only a few ground crew remained outside, standing by chocks and chatting with each other until suddenly they started to look more animated.
Lily jumped up, crossing to the windows overlooking the runway. The pug yapped as if it could sense something was happening. The cyclist checked his watch and spoke to the dog owner.
Then she saw it: the tiny Islander, wings wobbling on its approach to the cliff edge at the end of the short runway. Suddenly, it dropped to the ground with a rumble and a screech of brakes. Lily half-feared it might plough into the terminal but nobody else seemed bothered. The pug sniffed at the cyclist’s shoes, while its owner chattered away.
The minutes stretched out agonisingly before the plane door opened and the passengers descended. Last of all, carrying a rucksack in one hand, was Sam.
The pug owner and cyclist had sauntered off to the side of the terminal, presumably where the passengers would arrive.
Lily followed them, her heart pounding fit to burst.
Then Sam was striding towards her, his mouth set in a line.
‘Lily. What are you doing here?’
‘I came back to surprise you because I couldn’t wait until the launch, but now … why were you off to Penzance? Was it to meet Rhiannon?’
‘No! I mean, yes, to the first part. Iwason my way to Penzance. I’d already ordered a cab from Land’s End airport but only to take me to the station, so I could get a train to London to seeyou.’
‘But I –why?’
‘Why do you think? I was going to turn up at your office or flat to tell you that I can’t wait until I’ve finished the bloody retreat. I pushed you away because I could never make you choose between me and your life in London and thought I’d make it easy for you by acting as if I didn’t care. But it was killing me. It seems completely crazy now.’
‘No crazier than me coming all the way here without telling you and accidentally breaking into Hell Bay House. I’m sorry but the wind blew the card onto the floor –really– and I couldn’t help but see it. I know I should never have read a personal message to you, and I’m sorry, only I saw her name, and then, well, I didn’t know what I thought apart from that you might have gone to meet her.’
