Page 82 of Daydreaming at the Boathouse Cafe

He couldn’t speak and merely held the phone out for Hannah to look at the screen.

‘Is it the race? Today?’ she asked softly.

He nodded.

She appeared to hesitate before suddenly swinging her legs onto the bed to lie down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

He was instantly comforted by her support, knowing that he wasn’t alone, and laid his head on hers.

‘Johnny’s in the lead,’ he muttered.

‘Your friend?’ she asked.

‘He’s a good guy. He should win easily.’

They watched in silence as the runners headed around Sydney Harbour before coming to the finish along by the water. Huge crowds were cheering them along and he couldn’t help but wonder what would have happened if it had been him winning instead.

The race finished with his friend winning the gold medal easily. They watched the celebrations in silence before Alex switched off his phone.

Hannah finally lifted her head to look at him.

‘Do you miss it?’ she asked. ‘The competitions? The training?’

He nodded. ‘I didn’t think I would. I thought I was ready to step away. And I was. But…’

She took his hand with hers and gave it a squeeze and at once the pain was shared.

‘They all called and texted when they heard that I was out of the competition,’ he told her, gulping to clear his thick throat. ‘I was even invited to go over and do some coaching. Moral support and all that.’

‘Why didn’t you go?’

He sighed. ‘I could lie to you and say that I was too busy here and needed to recover.’ He gave her a sad smile. ‘But I never can seem to lie to you.’

‘So why are you here and not out there in Australia?’ she asked.

He took a deep breath. ‘Because, truth be told, I couldn’t bear to be there and not race. To be a part of all of it but only on the outside. It wouldn’t be the same.’

‘Have you heard from your dad since you saw him?’

He shook his head.

‘I’m so sorry,’ she told him.

‘But I’m not.’ He looked down at her hand still resting on top of his and squeezed it. ‘Just call me confused. Because I was desperately unhappy towards the end. And I think that perhaps I’ve found my way forward. Here. With you.’

The silence stretched out and he sensed her still holding back from him.

‘And Tiny and your family,’ he added quickly.

She nodded slowly. ‘Well, Tiny is very important and needs a steady home life,’ she said, with a smile.

‘He does.’

‘And for what it’s worth, we all want you here too.’ She appeared to take a deep breath. ‘Iwant you here.’

‘You do?’ He stared at her in wonder, reaching out to smooth down a lock of hair that had escaped from her ponytail.

She grabbed hold of his hand before he could pull it back and they locked eyes once more. His breathing quickened and yet neither of them made a move for a moment. It was if they were locked in time, in their own private moment.