Page 67 of An Island in the Sun

Julie frowned. ’And yet you were pregnant?’

‘I know how that seems. I still fancied him, that wasn’t the problem.’ Sadness wrapped around her words, but accepting it still hurt after bottling everything up was a relief. ‘We just weren’t compatible on any other level. We wanted different things and he wanted me to change to fit into his life. I had changed for him – my career, my passion for travel. I’d been stuck in one place for far longer than I was comfortable and it had got to the point where I’d had enough. I knew we’d be better off apart and I’d been building up the courage to talk to him when—’

‘You discovered you were pregnant,’ Julie said quietly.

Raff and Anton emerging from the house cut the conversation short.

Julie leaned close to Tabitha and whispered, ‘Thank you for sharing that with me.’

‘I now know how to brew my own beer,’ Raff announced proudly as he reached them. He glanced between Tabitha and Julie. ‘You two all right?’

‘Just a heart-to-heart,’ Julie said firmly.

Tabitha scraped back her chair and stood up. ‘It’s probably time we were going.’

She felt flustered, trying to cover her discomfort and conscious of Raff’s worried look.

Julie nodded and caught Tabitha’s eye. ‘Of course. Although you might have trouble waking the dogs.’ She glanced down at Fudge sprawled next to her chair.

Fudge actually woke the second everyone left the patio and headed inside. Bailey was having none of it, though, snoring away on the wooden floor as Tabitha tried to stir him.

‘You can always leave him here,’ Julie said, laughing as Bailey briefly raised his head and slumped back down. ‘Although he might wonder where Fudge and you two are if he wakes later.’

‘Come on, Bailey,’ Tabitha said, gently shaking his shoulder.

He lifted his head again and, at the sight of Fudge, scampered to his feet, shaking himself awake, his clipped nails clacking on the wood.

Tabitha hooked the lead onto his collar and turned to Julie. ‘Thank you, both, for a lovely evening.’

‘No, thank you,’ Julie said as she gripped Tabitha’s hands. ‘We’ve enjoyed your company immensely.’ She looked at Raff. ‘Don’t leave it so long next time.’

30

Tabitha and Raff waved goodbye to Julie and Anton and walked up the lane with the dogs, both lost in their own thoughts. Darkness had crept up on them and, after an enjoyable few hours filled with good food, wine and conversation, Tabitha was wrung out and longed to be back in the villa. They went inside, made coffee and settled themselves in the living room, Fudge immediately jumping up and squeezing between them on the sofa, incessantly turning around until he found a comfortable position.

‘It’s been an odd evening, hasn’t it?’ Raff said softly, stroking Fudge. ‘Odd but nice.’

‘Yeah, I get what you mean. It’s been quite a day all round.’ Her thoughts flipped from the deliciousness of waking up next to Raff, to ending the day having a heart-to-heart with Julie, someone she hadn’t even known three weeks ago. Then again, she’d known Raff for even less time, which was hard to believe. Tabitha rested her hand on Fudge too, gently smoothing his soft fur as she reflected on the day.

Raff’s fingers brushed against hers. ‘It looked like you’d been crying when we left.’

‘That’s because I had.’

‘Why?’ His voice was gentle and full of concern.

‘Because Julie opened up about some of the things she’d been through, asked some pertinent questions, which, um, kinda made me open up about stuff too. Did you know about Julie and Anton’s struggle to have a family?’

‘Not explicitly, no, although I guess on some level I sensed there was something wrong.’ Raff rubbed his thumb against her finger as he continued stroking Fudge, keeping his eyes fixed on the dog instead of her. ‘I’ve been rather self-absorbed whenever I’ve been back here.’

‘She doesn’t blame you for that.’

‘I know, it’s just she’s always been so lovely; I feel bad that I’ve not seen her recently or really kept in touch at all. She’s shown me such kindness over the years.’

‘Julie totally understands. I mean, there’s a big age gap, it’s not like you’re friends in the buddy sense. I get the feeling she thinks of you like the son she was never able to have. There’s unconditional love there.’

Raff nodded, his attention still on Fudge. He swallowed hard and his jaw clenched. Tabitha realised that he was trying to control his emotions, much like she’d been trying and failing to do during the latter part of the evening. She’d opened up to Julie; she could certainly be honest with Raff.

‘I got upset because I told Julie about the miscarriage I suffered a year ago.’ Although she said it quietly, somehow her voice filled the room with big words, words she’d been fearful of saying out loud to anyone, finding it easier to run away and pretend it had never happened.

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