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‘Surely she won’t mind us being there,’ Anne said.
‘We’ll be on our best behaviour.’ Ron saluted, crossed himself, then did another thing that was a cross between Scout’s honour and some Vulcan sign.
Calum squeezed his eyes shut. What a disaster.
‘That’s the boat coming now.’ Anne took hold of his arm. ‘I’m sure she’ll be happy to have company. Watching these things on your own is boring. I’d love to meet her.’
Calum’s insides were slowly being ripped apart. How could he stop them coming when they were doing it for his benefit? Normally he’d have been touched by the gesture. But his mum would recognise Rhona in a flash.And what then? Could he message her? Warn her. He fumbled for his phone as Ron locked up.
‘So, tell us about the girl,’ Anne said. ‘What kind of friend is she if she’s not a girlfriend?’
‘Look, Mum, it’s complicated.’
‘Don’t sweat it, son.’ Ron laughed, slapping his back. ‘We can always walk onto the ferry and meet you at the sports centre if you prefer and we don’t have to sit with her if it’s a problem.’
‘Are we that embarrassing?’ asked Anne.
‘We are.’ Ron chuckled.
Calum strode ahead.Slow down.His subconscious nudged him.Postpone this meeting as long as possible. But the boat was almost in and once it was it was amazing the speed it offloaded. He needed to be at the car ready to drive on.
‘No, you’re not,’ he said. And he meant it. He wasn’t embarrassed by them. What was making him sweat was the woman standing beside his car. Even from this distance, he spied her leaning on the open door, her blonde hair flowing in the wind. Her eyes roamed around searching for him and any second now they’d find him… and not just him. Had she got his message? He crossed his fingers at his side.
‘Is that the girl?’ Ron squinted towards the line of cars. ‘What a looker. Well done.’ He slapped Calum’s shoulder.
‘Dad, please.’
‘Isn’t that the Lamond girl?’ Anne’s voice cut through the air over the ferry’s rumbling engine and the passing traffic.
Calum loosened his collar. ‘Yes.’
‘You’re dating one of the Lamonds?’ Ron’s smile sagged and fell.
‘Did I say I was dating her?’
‘No, but—’
‘She’s working for me and this is…’
‘What?’ Anne grabbed his arm, her expression equally as flat as Ron’s.
‘Look, be nice, ok. She’s not her parents and she’s not her brother.’
‘After what they did to you?’ Anne shook her head. ‘In fact, what they’ve done to our family for the last sixteen years. They’ve never stopped making up lies about us. Not a day goes by when I don’t hear something in the shop they’ve said about you.’
‘Please. Don’t drag her into this.’
Rhona’s eyes were always wide and round but they seemed to pop out of her face when she spotted them approaching. She swayed on the spot and gaped. Where to look? He fought to hold her gaze but couldn’t. By the time they reached her, she’d closed the door and was standing outside the car. She clamped her lip under her teeth and fiddled with the edge of her top.
‘Um…’ Calum flexed his hands. ‘This is my mum and dad, and this is Rhona.’ He briefly glanced at her. ‘I, um, well, they’re coming too. They wanted to surprise me.’
‘Oh.’ Rhona swallowed and tucked her hair behind her ears. ‘Nice to meet you.’
‘And you.’ Ron barely looked at her.
‘I suppose we should get in.’ Anne marched to the far side of the car. ‘I guess we’ll both be in the backseat.’
Calum closed his eyes and slowly inhaled. When he opened them, Rhona was staring at him and his parents were in the car. ‘I sent you a message. I’m sorry, I didn’t know they were going to do this.’
