SIX - RICH

 

 

 

I DIDN'T WANT TO leave her but the sooner I checked on the computer, the sooner I could get back. I threw on a boilersuit, leaving my wet clothes draped over the back wall so the sun could hit them and hopefully dry them a little.

In the guts of the lighthouse, my laptop was still plugged into the cables and spitting out data. It had reset everything and in ten minutes, I had the answer I needed, things were back to normal.

I thought about her while I was working. I didn't even know her name. She was like a drug. One look at her and I was lost. I had to have her. And she was as amazing as I had hoped. Being inside her was like no other experience of my past. They all paled into insignificance, fading away and leaving only her, the feel of her, the taste of her, even the smell of her, still on my skin as I stood up and walked back through to the main room.

The fire was dying down and she was nowhere to be seen. I looked out of the front door, finding her laid on her back, still naked, making me hard at once at the sight of her sun-kissed body.

She had her eyes closed and I coughed politely as I approached. "Enjoying yourself?" I asked.

"Quite happy," she replied, grabbing the boilersuit that she'd been using as a pillow. She threw it on as I watched, unable to look away. I felt strangely sad that I couldn't stare at her naked body any longer but I got the feeling it wouldn't be the last time. There was no chance I was going to let her get away, not after what we'd done, after the way she'd made me feel.

"All done?" she asked, bringing me out of my reverie.

I nodded. "All done. Ready to go home?"

"Uh huh."

"Then follow me, my lady."

I led her down to the jetty, helping her on board my boat, loving the feel of her hand in mine as she climbed over the side.

I grabbed the kayak and passed it to her before jogging back up to the lighthouse and grabbing my still wet clothes. I brought them back with me, smiling at the sight of her looking off into the distance, like a Goddess of the Sea.

"So what's your name?" I asked as we set off.

"Joy," she replied with a laugh. "What's yours?"

"Rich."

"You often rescue drowning women, Rich?"

"No, you're the first one."

"You're pretty good at it."

"You're not that good at drowning."

"Or kayaking."

"You just got unlucky, that's all."

"That's sweet of you to say so."

I lapsed into silence, trying to decide whether to say what I was thinking. "Joy?" I began, waiting until she looked my way. I glanced from her to the front and back again, making sure to avoid the rocks that had caused such problems for her.

"Yeah?"

"Are you seeing anyone at the moment?"

She laughed again. "Thought you might have asked that before what we did."

"That's not an answer."

"No, I'm not seeing anyone. Do you think I'm the type to sleep around?"

"I don't think so. I think you seem the loyal type. I just wanted to check."

"Check what?"

"That what I'm feeling is all right."

"And what's that?" she asked, leaning forward in her seat.

"Don't you feel it too?"

"Feel what?"

"That connection between us."

She fell silent, looking away. I turned back to steering as we drew nearer to the mainland. The journey had been too short but we still had the drive back to her house.

She hadn't replied by the time I brought the boat into the bay. I left it at anchor, ready for Larry to bring in with his tractor. He'd collect it once the tide went out, storing it safe until next time I needed it.

We clambered out and splashed our way onto the sand. "So where do you live?" I asked.

"Alnwick."

"Then let's go," I said, walking around the barrier to my camper van.

"I wondered who this belonged to," she said as I opened the door. "Don't you lock it?"

"Good luck to the thief who can get it started," I replied, shoving the key into the ignition and doing the half turn then kick that got the wires aligned. The engine roared into life and I backed it onto the road. "Is that your car?" I asked as we started moving.

"Yep. It's going to be a hell of a hassle getting back to get it. Neither of my housemates drive."

"Tell you what," I said. "I'll give you my number. When you get a key sorted, give me a ring and I'll drive you back over."

"I can't ask you to do that. You've already done so much for me."

"It's no bother, really. I'd like to see you again."

"You would?"

"I would."

Again she fell silent. There was something she wasn't telling me but I couldn't work out what it was. It was like she was scared of admitting she had feelings too. I didn't push the point but I did insist she took my number. "It's really no trouble," I said as she protested again.

She climbed down when we got to Alnwick and I got a last look at her with the slip of paper in her hand, my number scrawled on it.

"It might be a while until I get a mobile," she said. "Is that all right?"

"That's fine," I replied, smiling warmly. "Ring me when you can and I'll see you soon, Joy."

"Bye, Rich," she said with a wave. I waited until she'd walked up and pushed the front door open before setting off.

I had a pile of things on my to do list but they had all just been bumped down. Top of the chart was a new number one. Get together with Joy and stay with her. That was the priority. But until she rang, all I could do was wait.