‘Are you sure? I wasn’t—’
‘I know you weren’t asking, but Hans did say he would put you up till the competition. I’m sure we can manage to get through a week.’
‘The first one was pretty good. With the baby and everything, I guess it will be awkward at Hans’s.’
‘Yeah, you wouldn’t want that.’
‘Yeah, nothing worse than feeling awkward around someone you care about.’ He put his head down, and she took the opportunity to walk away.
‘You off to bed already?’
It was only early, but she was exhausted.
‘It’s been a hell of a day Luke.’
‘I know, I just …’
‘You’re here for the competition, right? That’s what matters. Doing it for your dad. Night Luke.’
She heard him sigh as she walked past him, but she kept walking. All she could focus on was getting to the other side of the door before she broke and begged him to stay. There was no point. He’d betrayed her trust, just like Robbie did, thinking he knew what was best for her. Everyone thought they knew best. Just because he was right on this occasion didn’t mean that it was forgotten. She wanted him, but she’d gone a month without him. She could live without him again. If she had to.
Seeing Hans and Holly together, cooing over their little bundle, that’s what she should be focusing on. They would have their hands full now, and she needed to focus too. On the café, on her parents, on taking the next steps in her own life. The trouble was, the man currently sighing outside her bathroom door keep popping into her head, making her plans feel pathetic and one dimensional. Now he was back, it hurt even more. It was going to be a hell of a long week. The competition was looming, and she was fast running out of places to hide.
*
‘She let me stay here, sure, but only because she loves you and Holly. She knows you need your space.’
Hans yawned into the phone. Luke was working on his laptop, debugging the website of a new client. The new sofa in the lodge looked really nice, but Luke found himself missing the old wine- and steak-stained one, and the sheets they’d draped over it. They owned furniture together, lived together again but this morning she had gone by the time he had woken up, and Eloise was working the café with a server he’d not seen before. No note, not that she had to tell him where she was. At this point, they weren’t even friends. It made his heart ache. When Frank had suggested he go back, finish the competition, he’d said no. He didn’t want to leave his side again, even if it was to see Rebecca. She hadn’t called, but she’d asked about Frank. She cared, just not about him anymore. He’d let her down, and she had cut him out of her life. She was quite good at that, it seemed.
‘I have had two hours’ sleep, my friend, but you are still slower on the uptake.’
‘What?’ Luke scratched his head.
‘Holly, tell him. Have … to …’ There was a rustling noise, and Holly came on the line.
‘Hi Luke, Hans is out cold. His son has a set of lungs on him.’
‘Our … son, our son …’
‘Go to sleep. Did you speak to her yet?’
‘No. She’s gone off somewhere. Do you know where?’
Holly didn’t answer.
‘Holly?’
‘Wha …? Sorry, dozed off. What did you say?’
‘Do you know where Becks went, she’s been gone all day.’
No answer.
‘Holly, did you fall asleep again?’
The line was quiet for a beat, and then Holly spoke again.
‘No, I just don’t know whether to tell you or not. I just gave birth, my girl code radar’s busted up.’
‘Please, Holly! I will babysit whenever you like. Whenever!’
‘You go home in a week!’
‘So, FedEx the little guy over. He’ll love it!’
‘That sounds awful. And actually quite tempting, which tells me my instincts are definitely off. I can’t do it Luke. Have you tried calling her?’
‘Yeah, but I’m pretty sure she blocked me.’
‘Typical Rebecca. Give her time, Luke. She’s working through some stuff.’
‘Did she say anything about me?’
‘BOOP BOOP BOOP BOOP! Girl code radar’s working again. I definitely can’t tell you that. Talk to her Luke! You live together. Write her a note on the bathroom mirror for God’s sake.’ The baby started crying in the background, and Luke could hear a man-sized baby start to sob too. ‘Listen, I have to go. Please, talk to each other. Try with Luke. No gestures, just talk! Hans, where are you going? Hans? HANS, THAT’S NOT THE TOILET! What the f—’
The line went dead, and Luke cringed. Thank God his ex-girlfriend had put him up. Awkward and heartbreaking as it was to be near her, it knocked spots off living anywhere else. It meant a chance, at least.
He tried to concentrate on his work again, before giving up and pulling some sticky notes out of his work bag. He picked up a pen and started to write. It was worth a shot. He was on his twentieth attempt when Hans sent him a text that had him running to the door.
*
‘My question is also to you, Becks,’ began Andy McNabb, the sports reporter for the Post. He gave her a courteous nod, and she nodded back. Andy was a good guy, she remembered him. Tough but fair. ‘Given that Alpine Challenge is a brand new event on the resort’s calendar, why this one? Why not one of the others, the ones you have already competed in, and won?’ She could see Robbie flinch from the corner of her eye.
‘Twice, in some cases,’ she said into the microphone. She always did have the slight edge on Robbie. Andy and a few of the others in the room chuckled. They were in the main conference room of the hub of the competition centre, giving their press conference ahead of the event.
‘Exactly,’ Andy continued. ‘Why this challenge, and why this year?’
A couple of latecomers
