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He knew it was ridiculous. He’d had to check himself a few times to stop himself from wrapping Regan in cotton wool. It was so hard. He’d already lost his wife, he couldn’t bear it if something happened to his son.
But he didn’t have time to think about that because Lien and Regan were shouting for him to jump in too.
‘Come on, Daddy!’
‘Let’s go, slowcoach!’ shouted Lien. ‘What’s up? Scared?’
She was laughing. He knew she was joking but, in a split second, his brain was interpreting the question in an entirely different way. Was he scared? Of course he was—but not of the water, not of the bay.
But of what was inside it.
Lien and Regan were splashing each other, carrying on, and having the time of their lives. He couldn’t remember when he’d ever seen Regan interact with another woman like this.
He sent up a silent prayer. Thank goodness for this place. Thank goodness his mother had given him the push to step on the plane. Being in Scotland had left him feeling hemmed in. Here he was just Joe, the doctor. Joe, Regan’s dad. Joe...the man who might actually consider looking at another woman, spending time with another woman.
His skin prickled. These thoughts had been dancing through his brain since he’d got here. But they’d only been dancing in the direction of one woman. A woman he’d already invited to visit Scotland with them. But Lien didn’t seem quite so keen. Was he reading this all wrong? It had been so long for him that he wasn’t quite sure how to do this any more. He took a breath and shook his head. It was time to stop.
He didn’t let himself think any longer. He just jumped.
* * *
They splashed about in the water for a while, eventually tugging themselves back into the boat. Lien managed easily—she’d done it before. Regan scrambled up Joe’s back as he held onto the side of the row boat. And Joe?
Joe’s attempt to get back into the boat led to hysterical laughter from Regan and Lien with no help whatsoever. He kept getting one leg up, before the boat would tip towards him and deposit him straight back in the bay.
Eventually he ordered them both to the opposite side of the boat as a counterbalance before he finally, inelegantly, flopped into the boat, not quite sure that his dignity was still intact.
‘Looks much easier on TV,’ he muttered.
Regan was still laughing so hard that Joe started laughing too. It was infectious. Seeing his son so happy and at ease.
When they finally recovered from their laughing fit, Joe helped Lien row over to an islet a bit further away. As they circled around the back they saw the large cave, which was hidden from view from the small beach. It was still daylight, but the streams of sunlight reflecting into the cave gave the place a magical green glow.
Regan’s eyes were wide as Joe guided the boat inside. Lien had slipped her arm around Regan’s shoulder in a reassuring way. She bent down and started speaking in a low voice. ‘This is the pirates’ lair,’ she said.
Regan’s head flicked from side to side as if he actually believed there could be pirates lurking within the cave. ‘I don’t see them,’ he whispered back, his fists clenched in his lap.
Lien kept up the atmosphere as the boat bobbed further inside. ‘They come here at night. Look at the groove in the wall. That’s where they moor their pirate ship.’
‘Their pirate ship fits in here?’
Lien nodded. ‘It’s magic. It gets to the entrance and squeezes down just enough so it can fit inside the cave and let them unload their treasure.’
‘There’s treasure in here?’ Regan’s voice rose in pitch.
‘Oh, yes.’ Lien nodded as she shot Joe a conspiratorial glance. ‘Sometimes if you touch the inside of the cave, part of it will disappear and show you the pirate chest with all its gold and jewels.’
‘Can we touch the cave?’
Lien smiled and nodded as she guided the boat over to one of the walls. ‘Have a go,’ she encouraged.
Regan stood up in the wobbly boat and pressed his hand against the wall, moving it in a few different directions. ‘It’s not working,’ he moaned after a few minutes. He scrunched up his nose and pointed. ‘Can we try the other side?’
Lien nodded again and this time Joe guided the boat to the other side of the cave so Regan could press his hands against the wall.
After a while Regan let out a sigh of exasperation and flopped back down in the boat. ‘I can’t find the treasure chest,’ he said.
Lien nodded solemnly. She folded her arms. ‘You know, there is a rule, but it’s special. It’s only for kids.’
Regan sat back up. Joe felt a little burn somewhere inside his chest. Regan was hanging on her every word.
He felt captured in this little world in the green-lit cave. In here he could forget about everything else. He could forget about everything that had gone before, the pain and the sorrow. In here, he could take pleasure in the connection that his son had made with Lien without wondering about what came next. Watching them together warmed his heart and his soul. If he could take this moment in time and put it in a bottle somewhere and keep it, he would. In a heartbeat.
‘What is it?’ Regan asked in wonder.
She put her hand on her chin. ‘Well, it’s said that if you can’t find the magic treasure chest, and you’re a kid, you get to make a wish.’
‘What kind of wish?’
‘A good wish. A lucky wish. Something to look forward to. Something that only you will know.’
Regan frowned. Joe could practically hear the whirring in his brain. He held up one hand, glancing between Joe and Lien. ‘I’ve got it.’ He looked really excited. ‘How do I do it? How do I get my wish?’
Lien seemed to relish his excitement. ‘It’s easy,’ she said. ‘Lean forward and put both hands in the water. Once they’re there, just say the wish inside your head. It’s that simple.’
There was a swelling in Joe’s heart. If only wishes were this simple. This easy. Regan stuck his hands into the water and closed his eyes. Joe could see him mouthing silent words over and over, but couldn’t work out what they were. This place did seem almost magical. Joe wanted to believe that wishes came true in here too.
After a few tries, Regan sat back in the boat, looking pleased with himself. He nodded at Joe and Lien, then folded his arms across his chest. ‘It’s done.’
Lien was smiling, her gaze connected with Joe’s. ‘Then our work in here is done.’ She pulled up the bag she’d brought with them. ‘So, who’s for some lunch before we go back out into the sun?’
The response was unanimous. They ate a leisurely lunch before spending a few more hours rowing across the bay and watching the various sights.
As they headed back to the wooden pier, Joe’s hand closed over hers. He couldn’t not say something. ‘Thank you for today,’ he said quietly. ‘You made it really magical.’ He paused for a second, then added the words that seemed to just spill out. ‘For both of us.’
Her dark eyes were watching him carefully. ‘Of course,’ she said softly. ‘Anytime.’
The buzz spread through him. It felt like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle were slotting into place in his brain—and he was finally getting to see the way the world should be, and all he could concentrate on was what he wanted to do next.
* * *
She’d had the best day. And she couldn’t even begin to sort out why. If someone had told her last year that one of the best days of her life would be spent with a Scottish doctor and his son, she probably would have wrinkled her nose and said, ‘What?’
But there was something else. It was the way their gazes occasionally meshed, and in those few moments of silence it felt like a million unspoken messages were passing between them. She’d quickly learned to trust him at work. He did a good job, and queried anything he wasn’t sure of.
After their tour of the bay
, they went back to their rooms and rested for an hour, before dressing for dinner and dining in the hotel restaurant. Regan had been a relentless ball of energy all day, so it was inevitable that he would almost fall asleep in his dinner. So once they were finished, Joe carried him up to their room, got him settled, and then they met downstairs in the bar for a glass of wine.
The wide doors of the bar were open above the bay, letting the warm winds sweep in, and it was too tempting not to move outside and sit on the little beach just outside the glass doors of the hotel.
From this position they were almost directly beneath Joe’s room. The windows and doors were firmly shut to keep out any mosquitoes but if Regan woke and flicked the light on, they would see it instantly.
All day today had been a bit strange.
