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‘How are you feeling?’ asked Gaynor, twisting the top off the second bottle of water and handing it to Hannah.
‘Awful,’ said Hannah. ‘But better than I was.’
‘Better out than in, I say.’
‘What happened?’ Hannah asked.
‘We think the guy you were talking to must have spiked your drink. Rob saw him follow you outside and came to check you were OK. He was . . . anyway, Rob lamped him but he ran off.’
‘Did he find him?’
Gaynor shook his head. ‘No, the fucking arsehole could run like the wind, apparently. Do you want to call the police?’
Hannah shrugged. ‘I don’t know. All I know is he was called Matt. That might not even be his name.’ She clutched her head in her hands. ‘I’ve got such a headache. Do you think I’ll be OK?’
‘You threw up pretty soon after, but I can take you to the hospital if you’re worried.’
Hannah shook her head. ‘I feel OK right now, I didn’t even drink half of the drink he gave me. Will you take me back to the hotel?’
‘I’ll stay in your room tonight,’ Gaynor said. ‘I’ll get the others, we’ll all go back.’
‘No,’ said Hannah quickly. ‘I don’t want to spoil everyone’s night. Just you.’
Gaynor nodded as Rob appeared through the door of the bar, his face somewhere unfathomable between fear and anger. ‘I’ll just let the others know what the plan is,’ she said. ‘Rob, can you stay with Hannah for a minute?’
Rob nodded and sat down beside her as Gaynor hurried inside. ‘How are you feeling?’ he asked.
‘Awful,’ said Hannah. ‘I feel like such an idiot.’ She turned to look at him, hoping she could find the right words. ‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t come to find me.’
Rob shrugged, looking down at his feet. ‘I gave the rest of your drink to the manager, asked him to give it to the police so they can test it. They might want to talk to you tomorrow; I’ve left your details.’
‘I wonder if he’s done that kind of thing before,’ mused Hannah, thinking of Matt’s hands on her body as he tried to kiss her and shuddering. Her lip was swollen and painful, and she could still taste the blood in her mouth.
‘I asked in the bar,’ said Rob, ‘but nobody’s ever seen him before, and he paid cash for your drink so they can’t trace his card. I chased him down but I couldn’t catch him, sorry.’
‘You don’t have to apologise. You win tonight’s hero badge.’
‘I still don’t like the idea of him getting away with it. Can I take you back to the hotel?’
‘Gaynor’s taking me back. You guys stay and have a good night.’
Rob opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, then closed it again. ‘I think my night is ruined, to be honest, but I’m glad you’re OK. I’m really sorry you had to go through that.’
‘It was my own fault,’ said Hannah, pressing her hand over her mouth and trying not to cry. ‘He probably thought I was fair game.’
‘No,’ said Rob firmly, taking her hands and folding them between his. ‘Hey, look at me.’ He ducked to catch her eye and gave her a hard, blazing look. ‘Whatever happened, whatever was said, it absolutely wasn’t your fault. It’s important you know that.’
Hannah held his gaze, blinking back the tears that would almost certainly come later, once the shock had subsided. His eyes were full of pain, and he was still holding her cold, shaking hand between his warm, strong ones. Maybe it was trauma or something, but she really, really wanted to kiss him and make the taste of this awful night go away.
‘Right, let’s go,’ said Gaynor, trailed by Jess and Trish and the rest of the tennis coaches. Rob dropped her hands and stood up, nonchalantly brushing down his T-shirt.
‘We’re all moving on,’ said Trish drunkenly. ‘Olly says there’s another bar down the road that attracts a more discerning clientele.’
‘You sure you don’t want us to come back with you?’ said Jess, glaring at Trish. ‘We don’t mind.’
Hannah shook her head. ‘I’m fine, but thanks.’ She glanced at Rob, who was staring at his shoes as Trish edged towards him and hooked her arm through his. Despite her foggy headache she could see they made a gorgeous couple, even though Rob had already shaken Trish off.
Gaynor took her hand and led her to the taxi rank, giving the name of the hotel to the driver and bundling her into the calm, muffled silence of the back seat. ‘It’s OK,’ she whispered, as Hannah buried her face in her shoulder and sobbed her heart out all the way back to the hills.
