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‘Hey! Hey, give Edward his change back.’ Isaac had pocketed the coins.
‘That’s okay.’ Edward winked at her. ‘He might be needing it later for ice-cream.’
Isaac looked from Charlotte to Edward, then back again, waiting to obtain a final decision. ‘All right, then. Here—let me zip your pocket up, so you don’t lose it.’
She bent and fastened Isaac’s pocket, then gave way to the pressure from both Edward and Isaac and hurried with them to the car. The afternoon was bright and blustery, just right for kite-flying, and the three of them seemed in complete accord. No one wanted to miss a moment of it.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THEY DROVE FOR an hour, right out of London, making a beeline for high ground. The last five hundred yards had to be walked—or rather climbed—until finally they reached the exact location that Edward wanted.
‘It’s windy enough here.’ The words were almost dragged away on the breeze as soon as they left her mouth.
‘Yes. I think this will do.’ Edward looked around with an air of satisfaction. ‘Which kite shall we try first?’
‘The big one!’ Isaac was jumping up and down with excitement. ‘I want to see the big one...’
‘Okay.’ Edward grinned, laying the large kite onto the ground, clipping together the last pieces of the framework so that it was ready to fly. ‘You see, I think that the wind will catch it here...’ he indicated the breadth of the kite ‘...and funnel through this way...’ A sweep of the hand to show the anticipated wind direction. ‘That should give it extra lift, and the weight of the tail makes it steadier.’ He grinned. ‘That’s the theory, anyway.’
‘Will it work?’ Isaac stamped his foot impatiently.
‘That’s what we’re here to find out. It’s all very well to have a theory, but you always have to test it out... Here, you hang on there.’
Edward gave the kite to Isaac and winked at Charlotte, walking away from them as he unravelled the twin reels of lightweight cord.
He paced out the distance and called back to Isaac, ‘Okay, hold it up...’
Charlotte kept a discreet hold on the top of the kite, in case Isaac decided to let go of it before he was supposed to.
‘Now, on my count... One...two...three...let her go!’
The kite rose in a straight line, up into the clear blue sky. Isaac shouted at the top of his voice in excitement, and suddenly the only thing to do was to shout with him.
‘Nooooo!’ The kite dipped erratically and Isaac screamed in horror.
Edward fought for control for long moments and then the kite soared upwards again. Charlotte cheered, and Isaac followed suit, running towards Edward.
‘That didn’t quite work...’ Edward was grinning at her. ‘Perhaps I’ll just concentrate on keeping it up there at this stage.’
‘I want to hold it... Pleeeease...’ Isaac was pulling at Charlotte’s windcheater in excitement.
‘I don’t think so, sweetie. It’s very hard to control. We don’t want you flying away with the kite.’
‘Owww.’ Isaac seemed to think that flying away was an added bonus.
‘What about yours?’ Edward reeled his kite in and turned his attention to Isaac’s blue and silver kite.
Isaac’s face was a picture. Happiness that he was a part of their great enterprise and not just relegated to watching. Pride when the kite soared up into the sky, with Edward kneeling at his side, showing him how to control it.
‘Thank you.’ Charlotte caught at his sleeve as he stepped back, letting Isaac go solo. ‘Thank you so much.’
Edward nodded in satisfaction. ‘Every boy needs a kite. I’m just going to make a few adjustments to mine and perhaps you’ll help me launch it again.’
A few knots, a little staring into the middle distance as Edward estimated airflow and wind speed, and the kite was up in the air again, this time flying more steadily. Charlotte ran back to Edward’s side and he looped his arms over her head.
‘Here, you try. Take hold of the reels.’
She pressed her hands over his, trying to stop her fingers from trembling. The wind around them buffeted her, but she was safe in his arms, her back against his strong body, his scent surrounding her and then blown away by the wind.
