The car felt very warm all of a sudden and she tugged at the prickly neck of her jumper as they started to move again.
“Not long now,” Will said. Lucy hoped that in the dim light of the car, he couldn’t see how flushed she was. “The cabin’s just a couple of miles out of town. Once we get to the outskirts, the traffic should free up. We may actually be able to do more than twenty!”
She expelled a breathy laugh at the irony of being so close to their destination but wanting to stay in the car longer.
*
“You’re here!” Jules’s mum burst out of the cabin and jogged down to the car just as Lucy climbed out. Even in the dim light coming from the cabin windows, Lucy could see right away that she and Jules could have easily passed for sisters, rather than mother and daughter.
Steph—she’d always been “Steph” to Lucy, right from when Lucy met her aged eleven—hugged her tightly and Lucy felt wrapped up in the welcome. Steph stepped back and looked at her. “It’s so good to have you here. Jules loves you just like a sister and that means you’re family to us too.”
The tears from earlier made another appearance. Lucy knew her parents loved her—of course they did—but she had never received such an effusive welcome from her mum. She beamed back at Steph and finally found her voice. “Thank you. I’m very happy to be here. And Breckenridge is just …” She had no adequate words.
“I know. I feel the same way, even after all these years.” Steph squeezed her shoulders.
“Hi, Mom.” They turned at Will’s voice and Lucy saw that he was laden with her case and his, with the strap of her carry-on over one shoulder.
“Oh, I can—” she started, reaching for the handle of her case.
“It’s all good. I got it.”
“Hi, honey.” Steph reached up to kiss her son on the cheek. “I’m glad you got here safely,” she added, then turned towards the cabin. “Come on! It’s freezing out here and your dad’s made hot chocolate,” she called as she jogged up the steps.
“After you,” said Lucy, “as you’re the one carrying everything.” He lifted the cases easily up the front steps and Lucy followed him inside, taking in the enormity of the home as she went. To call it a “cabin” was a gross understatement; it was a mansion by any measure of the word.
Standing in the double-storey foyer, Lucy couldn’t help but compare the grandeur of the Reinhardt’s holiday home to her family’s three-up-two-down terraced house with its postcard-sized back garden and a front door that opened practically onto the road.
She hoped Chloe wasn’t too disappointed.
Steph called forth her husbands. “Joe! Nate! They’re here.” The men appeared from different doorways and Lucy recognised Nate right away. Without hesitating, he enveloped her in a huge hug, lifting her off the ground.
“Welcome, sweetheart.” Lucy knew how much Jules loved her dad’s hugs and thought of her friend who was on the other side of the world.
“Thank you,” Lucy replied, her voice muffled against Nate’s shoulder.
“And this is my husband, Joe,” said Steph as Nate put her down.
The contrast between Steph’s two husbands was glaring. Nate—six-foot-one, burly with a broad open face, his blond hair tinged with grey—and Joe—only just taller than Steph, with a wiry build, black hair, and olive skin. While both were handsome in their own ways, Steph couldn’t have chosen two more distinct men—physically, at least.
Lucy stuck out her hand and Joe shook it warmly. “Welcome, Lucy. I’ve heard wonderful things about you.”
“You too,” she lied politely. She’d heard bits and pieces, and she knew that Jules got along with her stepdad, but that was about all.
“You must want to freshen up,” Steph offered.
The long flight followed by the long drive had taken its toll, and the thought of getting clean jumped to the forefront of Lucy’s mind. “Oh, yes please.”
“Will, can you take Lucy up, hon? I’ve put her in the room next to yours.” What? He’ll be sleeping next door?
“Sure thing.” She watched as Will carried her case and his up the stairs as though they weighed nothing, then picked up her carry-on and followed.
“Hot chocolate downstairs when you’re ready,” Steph called after them.
Hot chocolate sounded divine and so did some thick white toast slathered in butter and Marmite. Lucy was ravenous, and she really wished she’d brought some Marmite with her. She wondered what the Americans would have—peanut butter, she supposed.
“Here you go,” said Will, leaving his case on the landing and pulling hers into the second door on the left. She followed him. “Every room has its own bathroom; yours is in there.” He pointed to a closed door. “That’s the closet.” He pointed to an identical door on the opposite side of the room. “This place is sorta set up for short stays, so it’s not very big,” he added apologetically. Lucy didn’t know if he meant the bathroom or the closet, but either way, she didn’t care.
This was already a huge step up from her parents’ house with its one bathroom and second loo downstairs, and her own much-loved two-bedroom-one-bathroom flat, especially as she currently shared the flat with Val.
“No, this is lovely, really. Thank you. And for carrying my case.” She gestured to where Will had left it next to the door.
“Sure. So, why don’t you get situated and I’ll see you downstairs when you’re ready.”
“Thank you.”
“Oh, and Lucy?” Lucy stared up into his handsome face. “Take your time. It’s been a long drive.”
She found herself nodding as he pulled the door closed behind him.
She looked around the room. It was bigger than any bedroom she’d ever had and was dominated by a king-sized bed replete with fluffy duvet
