I run my hand through my hair. I’ve been so stupid.
“Shall we move this boys’ trip to Dubai?” Jasper asks. What? “I mean, your place is nice, but …”
“We could check out offices, make it a work trip,” Matthieu adds.
“I can’t crash the girls’ trip?” I tell my insane friends and the table falls silent.
“My plane is fueled and just sitting at the airport.” Nate smirks.
“We’ve been looking at expanding our hotels into the Middle East,” Sam Rose adds.
“I have clients I could catch up with,” Jasper adds.
“Dubai is the hot spot for clubs, so I wouldn’t mind checking out the scene and looking at expansion,” Alistair adds.
“You are all insane.”
“We also miss our women, but they aren’t going to say that,” Alex adds, chuckling.
“What if I get there and she doesn’t want to see me?” I ask them.
“Or what happens if she sees you and realizes how much she’s missed you?” Alex suggests.
“Fine. Fuck it, let’s go,” I say.
The entire table erupts.
Guess tomorrow we are heading to Dubai.
We’reall sitting around the fire pit drinking and talking smack when Alex’s phone starts ringing, then all the others. It has me on high alert. Then when Alex turns to me, I can see it on his face.
“What?”
“It’s Rosie, there’s been an accident,” Alex says.
I stand up. “No, no,” I scream at him.
“They were quad biking in the sand dunes and Rosie’s flipped and rolled.” I shake my head. This can’t be happening. “She’s been rushed to hospital.”
“No,” I scream.
“Pack up, guys. We’re going to Dubai,” Alistair calls out.
Everyone is on their phones, and there is a lot of talking and movement around me, but I’m left standing there frozen.
“She’s going to be all right, okay,” Alex says, trying to console me.
“I can’t lose her, I can’t,” I yell at him.
“You won’t, I promise you,” he says, grabbing my shoulders and giving me a shake. “Nate is organizing the plane. We’re all packing up. Matthieu is messaging Delphine to let her know what’s going on, she will get her to organize cleaners for thehouse as it’s a mess after us partying. We’ve got you, man, okay.” I nod as he leads me away in a daze.
It doesn’t take us long to pack up. Someone has organized for a bus to pick us all up and take us to Gatwick as it has a twenty-four-hour runway, and we can launch Nate’s plane which is thankfully still there as soon as we arrive. All I can think about is getting there. My mind keeps running over worst-case scenarios.
I can’t lose her.
42
ROSIE