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Opening one eye, he saw her roll away and reach down the side of the futon, mumbling to herself while she hunted through her abandoned clothes. The ring tone grew louder. She perched on the edge of the bed while she answered the call.
She acknowledged the caller briefly then listened.
The crack of dawn light from the window fell across her back. It made him open his eyes wider and study her. Her skin seemed luminescent, adorably soft and feminine. Her bottom against the rumpled bed clothes made the most perfect image. Unable to stop himself, he reached out one hand to touch the soft curve of her hip, needing to touch what he wanted.
She didn’t respond, and he realized she was concentrating on what was being said. At first he made no other move, but when she exclaimed loudly and rose from the bed, hurriedly grabbing a sweater as she left the room and darted into the bathroom, he began to take more notice of the call itself, not the recipient.
When he lifted his head from the pillows, he could just about hear her.
The tone of her voice was stressed, concerned even, and the fact she spoke in Welsh registered quickly. There was a problem at home. He understood the odd word, things he’d picked up while living in Cadogan. It impressed him when she and Rowan conversed in Welsh, so he’d listened. Some of the words were similar to Gaelic but he hadn’t kept his national language up. The Welsh people were better at keeping their ancient language alive.
It had to be Rowan, or a friend. Whoever it was had got her attention, and whatever they’d said had upset her. A boyfriend maybe? She hadn’t had a full relationship before, didn’t mean she hadn’t been seeing someone after he left.
The question set him in motion.
What’d really happened back in Wales to send her running off to London? She’d mentioned being chucked out of College. He rolled onto his front and reached for his phone, pulling it onto the pillow so that she wouldn’t be able to see what he was doing if she came back in.
He did a search on her name and the name of her college.
While he was waiting on the browser to refresh he glanced down and noticed a T-shirt sticking out from under the futon. Tugging on the soft grey fabric, he extracted it from under the wooden bed frame. Opening it up he stared at it, confused for a moment. It was one of his own, one he hadn’t seen for years.
It was some dodgy band who’d played locally. He’d thought them kind of interesting, well, interesting enough to buy a T shirt. He frowned, trying to place their sound. They hadn’t yet risen to fame. Perhaps it was the T-shirt he’d liked. Whatever it was, he knew the T-shirt was his. And Sky had it.
When she came back into the room, he quickly closed down his browser, making a mental note to take a look another time. She’d been dismissive about the fight at college, she’d laughed it off. Was that all there was to it?
“You okay?” He knew she wasn’t.
Instantly, he felt her distress, right inside, knotting in his chest.
Her eyes were damp and she paced about as if confused. “I have to leave, right away. Nan’s in hospital.” She began sorting through her clothing. “They think she’s had a minor stroke. I need to see her, got to get a train ticket and fast.”
Rory leapt up. Arresting her in his grasp, he put a stop to her wandering. “I’ll take you. We’ll go on the bike. It’ll be quicker.”
She stared up at him, eyes brimming with tears. “You’d really do that for me?”
“Of course.” He rested a kiss on her forehead. “We’ll have to swing by Halliday’s for the bike, I left it at work. I’ll phone George and let him know what we’re doing. You get your backpack.”
She frowned. “I’ll have to phone my supervisor.”
“Okay, pack your bag then phone work when you get it together. Tell them it’s a family emergency. You think you’ll be okay for the journey?”
She nodded. I’ve been on the back of your bike before, I still remember.”
“This will be a much longer journey.” He didn’t want to take any risks with her safety and she looked distracted.
She looked back at him steadily and he was reassured.
“I really appreciate this. I’d be a wreck going on the trains.”
“Hey, I’m here for you. Don’t worry.” He hugged her against him. It wasn’t something he was used to doing, caring and guiding someone else in life, but it felt right. His vision was clear and he wanted to do the right thing by her. “I could never just put you on a train.”
Within ten minutes they were on the tube.
Sky was quiet, really quiet. He sensed how troubled she was. He held her against him, soothing her with his hand stroking her back through her jacket. Her supervisor had only agreed to one day off. It annoyed the hell out of him. She needed a better job.
By the time they got
to the workshop, George was already out front, wiping his hands on a rag as if he was expecting them to arrive at any moment.
