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“Sounds like a great idea.”
Sam helped Maya with the heavy rucksacks, one a cool bag, laden with food, then walked off towards a nearby kiosk. She flicked through her phone while she waited for Sam. She replied to Pierce, who’d texted to say he couldn’t wait to see her. He sounded very eager. It had to be a good sign, his keenness. Then she uploaded to Facebook a photo she’d taken of the three kids on some bumper boats when they’d first arrived, while trying to keep an eye on the log flume. She would video them coming down the final drop.
“Here you go.” Sam arrived, handing Maya a takeaway cup of coffee. “I’m starting to get peckish. Maybe we should stop here for lunch, as we have a picnic table.”
“Yes, by the time they come off this, I think they’ll be hungry.”
“And twice as wet.”
“We’ll shove them in that dryer.” Maya pointed to a big yellow and red walk-in.
Maya and Sam both videoed the children coming down the flume. All three had their hands in the air and gave a thumbs-up for the camera when they’d arrived at the bottom.
After, they ran around to where Sam and Maya were sitting opposite each other at the picnic table, giggling. The waterproofs had kept the kids fairly dry; it was mainly their jeans that bore wet marks.
Over lunch, the children discussed which rides they wanted to go on next, Chloe and Amber placing the map of Crealy Adventure Park in front of them.
“Okay, you guys head over there.” Sam pointed to a play zone on the map they hadn’t tried yet. “We’ll catch you up.”
“And stick together!” Maya packed away the leftovers, fitting them in one rucksack.
Once this was done, Sam picked up the spare bag. “You go follow the kids, and I’ll meet you there in a minute. I’ll take this back to the car.”
Maya found the children queuing for the pirate ship ride, which had been on the way to the play zone they’d picked out.
“I think you guys better do this one once your lunch has gone down.” The ride swung high, back and forth, and she could envisage them being sick. It certainly made her feel sick watching it.
They walked on, and Maya swallowed when she overheard the girls’ conversation.
“If your mum and my dad got married, we’d be sisters,” Chloe said to Amber.
“And you’d have Lewis as a brother. I can tell you that sucks.”
“Amber!” Maya said. Scolding Amber might be the best way to defuse this conversation. Where had they got this from? A weekend shared in Cornwall, plus a day trip out, and the girls had Sam and her married off! The minds of eleven-year-olds never ceased to amaze Maya. She was relieved Sam wasn’t around to hear the conversation — she’d be beetroot-red otherwise. She wanted the subject changed before he returned from the car park.
The two girls moved on to discussing being bridesmaids and what dresses they’d wear. What concerned Maya most was that they’d noticed how much time she and Sam had spent together over the weekend in Cornwall. They were more observant than she thought.
“Girls, Sam and I are just friends, all right?” Maya wanted to set them straight, and quickly. Lewis had abandoned them, running on ahead. “A man and a woman can be friends.” How did she explain this to children…? “It’s cool.”
“What have I missed?” Sam appeared. “Has Chloe been behaving? You look cross.”
Maya probably did, with her hands on her hips and pulling a frown. She shrugged and tried to relax. “Oh, it’s nothing. Run along girls, catch Lewis up.”
Thankfully, Chloe and Amber did as they were told and the subject of Sam and Maya getting married wasn’t mentioned again.
