‘Join us,’ Dad insists, keen to move the game along.
‘Yes, you’re missing all the fun,’ Chester adds.
Funny, because it looks like all I’m missing is playing cricket with my family – aka the opposite of fun.
‘I don’t even know how to play,’ I reply.
‘It’s easy,’ Ethan tells me with a smile. ‘I’ll help you. You pretty much just hit the ball and run.’
‘There’s more to it than that,’ Beau replies. I don’t think he likes it, when Ethan makes his hobbies seem like silly little games that anyone can play.
‘Honestly, you all keep doing what you’re doing,’ I insist.
‘She’s always been a bore,’ Seph says. ‘If she doesn’t want to join in, let her watch us all having fun.’
‘Actually, while we don’t have anything planned, I thought I might go for a walk,’ I reply. ‘I’ve never been here before – I’d love to see more of the sights.’
I notice Ethan open his mouth, as though he’s going to say something, but Beau gets in there first.
‘I’ll come with you,’ Beau says. ‘I fancy a stroll – and I make an excellent tour guide.’
‘Oh, okay, thank you,’ I reply politely. ‘Sounds great.’
‘Don’t worry, Lana, we’ll look after Ethan for you,’ Tiggy calls out. She’s currently standing with the bat in her hand, wiggling her bum as she waits for Chester to bowl.
Tiggy looking after Ethan is absolutely something to worry about.
‘So, what are you in the mood for?’ Beau asks as we stroll.
‘I would love to visit Bondi Beach,’ I tell him.
‘Bondi it is,’ he replies. ‘Let’s go.’
I glance back at Ethan, who gives me a small wave – but then the ball flies in his direction so he turns his attention back to the game.
I’m sure he’ll be fine and, to be honest, some time apart might do us good. Even if it just means nothing bad can happen…
38
Bondi Beach is really something else.
I’ve seen plenty of photos of it, and scenes in TV shows and movies, but being here is just so surreal.
I feel like I’m on a film set, oddly, like my entire day is a page ripped from a movie script. I mean, come on, I’m strolling along Bondi Beach with a fucking earl.
I’m carrying my shoes in my hand, so that I can feel the warm sand beneath my feet. It sounds silly but the sand here is perfect – like, if you could buy bags of beach sand, this is exactly how it would look and feel.
It’s like its own little area of perfection. It’s touristy, sure, but not in the same way that, like, Blackpool beach is – as though the two places are at all comparable.
Beau took me into what is essentially an Aussie chippy. It had a vibe of a UK chippy, with its wall-mounted menu and stainless-steel surfaces, but the food is a lot different.
I have fish and chips – although the fish is in breadcrumbs, not batter – and Beau is tucking into calamari and chips. We’re eating them out of cardboard containers, using wooden forks, aswe stroll – not very earl-y at all. I’m probably the most relaxed I’ve felt – apart from when I’m with Ethan, obviously.
He’s currently telling me more about the manor house he owns and I’m not sure if I’m jealous or it sounds like a nightmare. I’m guessing the reality is somewhere between the two.
‘So, theoretically, there are twenty-one bedrooms,’ he says. ‘Not that I’ve ever actually counted them. I have my own bedroom, of course, and I’ve turned one of the libraries into a private living room. It’s a big old thing – about 15metres long – but it’s full of books and I’ve got a television in there. That’s probably where I spend most of my time, when I’m home.’
‘Wow, it’s like you live in a hotel,’ I reply.
