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‘Good,’ said Hannah happily. ‘Then you can start by joining me and the girls for breakfast.’
‘Shit, really?’ he said. ‘Don’t you want to tell them about this plan yourself?’
‘And spoil the fun they’ll get from interrogating you?’ said Hannah. ‘I don’t think so.’
‘Oh Jesus,’ muttered Rob, following her out of the room.
‘So let me get this straight,’ said Jess, noisily sucking the dregs of her smoothie through a straw. ‘You’ve been fired, and now you and Hannah are going on a road trip together, but you’re not a couple.’ They were in the hotel restaurant, rationalising that Rob was their guest and Mark was hardly likely to cause a scene if he spotted them. He couldn’t be fired twice, for a start.
‘Yet,’ muttered Gaynor. Trish said nothing, her arms tightly folded and her expression mutinous. She ran her tongue over her teeth, her lips puckered into a cat’s bumhole of disapproval.
‘Shush,’ said Jess. ‘But look, Han . . . are you sure this is a good idea? You’re practically strangers. No disrespect, Rob.’
‘None taken,’ said Rob, catching Hannah’s eye and making her smile. Now they’d made the decision she was itching to get away from this place, beautiful as it was.
‘I know we don’t know each other that well,’ said Hannah, looking at each of the women in turn. ‘But this trip was all about self-discovery, remember? Those were YOUR words, Gaynor.’
‘Yeah,’ said Gaynor. ‘But I wasn’t thinking you’d get your tennis coach fired, then bundle him into a hire car for a road trip around fucking Spain.’
‘Obviously I didn’t plan this,’ said Hannah. ‘But it feels like the right thing to do.’ Trish raised her eyebrows and Hannah glared back. ‘I’m being adventurous and spontaneous for the first time in my life.’
‘Let’s leave it there,’ said Jess. ‘Hannah can do what she likes.’
‘Thank you,’ said Hannah, relieved. She hoped Rob might be off the hook, but then Trish cleared her throat and fixed her eyes on him.
‘And what about you?’ she asked, her voice cracking like she was trying not to cry. ‘How do we know you’re not going to be a total dick?’
Rob turned to face her, holding her gaze. ‘Because that isn’t who I am,’ he said firmly. ‘And if this trip isn’t working out for Hannah, I’ll leave. This was her suggestion, not mine.’
‘Hmph,’ Trish said grudgingly. ‘But will you check in with us, Han? Just to let us know you’re OK?’
‘I promise,’ said Hannah. ‘I’ll post on the group WhatsApp every day.’
‘OK then,’ said Trish, nodding at them both like she was bestowing some kind of blessing on behalf of all of them.
‘It means a lot,’ Hannah added quickly. ‘You girls looking out for me. I appreciate it.’
‘Well,’ said Jess, reaching out to squeeze her hand. ‘We’re a team now. You’re officially one of the Club Colina TITS. Tennis in the sun,’ she said as an aside to Rob, in response to his furrowed brow.
‘OK, now I’m jealous,’ said Rob. ‘Can I be one of the TITS?’
‘You got fired,’ said Gaynor playfully. ‘And if you mess with our friend, we’ll actually kill you.’
‘Noted,’ said Rob.
‘Right, come on,’ said Jess. ‘We’ve got an airport bus to catch.’
Hannah noticed Rob hold back as she hugged them all, clearly not wanting to get in the way of the heartfelt goodbyes. She watched them wheel their bags off towards the bus, a mix of excitement and trepidation buzzing through her veins. She didn’t move for what felt like ages, just taking a minute to soak up the morning sun and mentally prepare herself for whatever was coming next.
‘You OK?’ asked Rob, walking up behind her.
‘I’m fine,’ she said, turning to face him. ‘You ready to go?’ She scanned his face for traces of doubt, but there was nothing but a reflection of her own eagerness to hit the road.
‘Absolutely,’ he said. ‘Let’s get the hell out of here.’
PART THREE
Wild Card
