The man at the bike hire place was not at all happy about them keeping the tandem overnight, despite the assurances from Liesl at reception. Morgan was fresh out of chocolate, so it took a strong charm offensive to persuade him they’d return it in time for their first hire tomorrow. That, and a credit card as collateral. They waited until they were a safe distance away before they said a word to each other. Then Morgan let out a breath.
“And they say people in the country are friendly and trusting.”
“At least he didn’t press us when we said we didn’t want to wear helmets. Plus, I guess we don’t sound like locals. He’s probably been burned by tourists promising the world before.”
“I guess so.” Morgan went to put a hand on Ali’s arm, but thought better of it. She was still processing that kiss, but ignoring it, too. If she gave herself time to process and analyse her actions, she knew where that would lead her. Down a long road named What The Fuck Were You Thinking? Kissing any woman in the snow on a Ferris wheel was something she never thought she’d do. But kissing Nicole’s little sister had broken some rule or other in the friend world, she was sure. This was the little girl she’d robbed of a toy trumpet, after all. A little girl who’d been in the background of Morgan’s life for years, and then, nothing. But she would always be Nicole’s little sister. That would never change.
However, after that kiss, Morgan wasn’t sure of anything anymore, never mind some arbitrary rules that might have been in the friendship code 20 years ago. Did friendship rules have a use-by date, after which lines blurred?
She pushed that issue to the back of her mind. Right now, she had a tandem to master. The perfect distraction. So long as it didn’t break down. Could a bike break down? Morgan squatted by the chain and poked it with her finger just to make sure.
“What are you doing?” Ali dangled her ear muffs on her fingers, retrieved from the car for this part of the journey.
“Making sure the chain is fully attached. With our luck with transport of late, I want to check it won’t fall off five minutes down the road.” Morgan looked up at Ali, and something scrunched in her chest. It almost knocked her off her feet, but she stayed upright. She gulped. She had to keep a lid on this, or it might explode.
“Oh god, it can’t go wrong again, can it?”
Morgan snorted, then stood up, coming face to face with Ali. More specifically, Ali’s lips. Her insides pulsed. This was going to happen every time now, wasn’t it? She gulped, then ploughed on.
“Famous last words.” She patted the back saddle. “Are you going up top, or bringing up the rear?” Oh fuck. She hadn’t meant for it to sound so flirtatious.
Ali’s eyes glinted. “I was going to ask you the same question.” She raised an eyebrow. “But seeing as I need to steer because I’m the one who sort-of-but-not-really knows where we’re going, I should go up front, right?”
Morgan hadn’t thought of that. “I suppose that’s true.”
“You know what your job is?”
“Looking pretty at the back?”
“And singing that song ‘Daisy Daisy’. It mentions being on a bicycle made for two.”
Morgan wrinkled her forehead. “Never heard of it.”
Ali rolled her eyes. “In that case, can you manage looking pretty and not falling off?”
How the tables had turned. When they’d first met, Ali had seemed a little prickly about seeing Morgan again. Then bashful when she’d revealed her childhood crush. But now? Ali was the one calling the shots, the one with the cousin and the local knowledge. Also, it appeared to Morgan, she was quite enjoying it.
Strangely, Morgan didn’t mind. She was happy to let Ali take the lead. The little girl who’d once been an annoyance had turned into a capable, strong woman Morgan had faith in. Also, one Morgan was attracted to more by the second. But she wasn’t about to divulge that. At 3pm, it was still snowing, the light was dimming, and they had a cousin to find.
Ali checked her phone and swore. She tried calling someone, then blew out a sigh when nobody picked up. “Why are none of my family answering their phones? I’ve messaged mum, Nicole and Stuart.”
“What about your dad?”
Ali flinched, then focused on her phone. “He won’t answer either,” she mumbled. Then she checked her bag was secure in the back basket, kicked the bike stand and got on the front saddle.
Had Morgan said the wrong thing again?
She adjusted her backpack, got on the back saddle, then realised she’d done nothing like this before. Morgan was a team player, but if there was an opportunity to do something solo, she’d always choose that. Today, she didn’t have that option.
Up front, Ali twisted, then let out a yelp of pain.
“What was that?”
Ali winced. “Just some muscle in my neck waking up and punching me in the face.” She twisted back. “I’m going to look up the village on my map. I’ll send a couple more urgent messages to my family, and then we’ll set off. If I see my cousin’s house, fingers crossed, I’ll recognise it.”
Morgan rang the bell on her handlebars. “Ready when you are.” She paused. “Before we go, I just need to know. Are you a super-expert biker? Because if you’re about to speed off like Laura Kenny, we might have an issue. I haven’t ridden a bike since I left Devon.”
Ali tipped her head back, then blew out a raspberry as snow battered her face. “I am not Laura Kenny, so don’t worry,” she shouted. “You really haven’t ridden since you lived in Devon?”
