Page 105 of Ride the Wave

‘Fall for him?’ Mum suggests.

My eyes fall to my lap. I don’t need to answer for her to know that she’s hit the nail on the head.

She doesn’t say anything, waiting patiently for me to go on.

‘It had to end. It just had to.’ I sigh, bringing my eyes up to look at her. ‘He invited me out to Australia.’

Her eyebrows lift just a tad. I honestly have no idea if she’s surprised or not.

‘He said he’d pay for my ticket and everything.’ I sigh, a weak smile breaking through before I can stop it. ‘It was very sweet, what he said when he invited me. All these really lovely things about how he knew it was fast, but he didn’t care, he’d never felt so… happy. He asked me to think about it.’

‘And have you?’

‘I didn’t have anything to think about.’ I shrug glumly. ‘It’s a no, obviously.’

‘Why is that?’ she asks breezily.

I stare at her. She stares back.Is she out of her mind?

‘Mum, youknowwhy,’ I emphasise, utterly astounded by her calm demeanour. ‘I can’t casually pack my bag and hop off to Australia with a surfer for a bit.’

‘Personally, I think that sounds rather lovely.’

‘Mum.’

‘Iris, you travel all the time for work,’ she says, brushing aside my astonishment with a wave of her hand. ‘You’ve never really felt at home here in London, to be honest.’

I snort. ‘Leo would disagree with you there. Having met me, he’d be the first person to tell you that I’m a city-mode kind of person. I’m London born and bred; this is where I’m meant to be, it suits me and just because I like somewhere else, doesn’t mean—’

‘London is a part of you, of course, it always will be, but it’s not where you have to make your home if it doesn’t feel right,’ she cuts in impatiently.

Stunned at her abrupt statement, I shut my mouth.

‘You’ve never found your place here is what I mean,’ she continues brazenly. ‘You’ve searched, but it’s never been right, has it? But none of this really has anything to do with an invitation to join someone in Australia for a few weeks. You’re a freelance writer; you can work from anywhere. Would there be any harm in you joining him?’

‘Um,yes.’ I throw my hands up in exasperation. ‘You seem to be forgetting that he is the subject of an article. Think about what Toni would say! She would know that something was going on if Leo himself pays for me to go out there. Also, let’s not forget that Leo Silva is Michelle Martin’s son. Do you really think she’d allow this?’

‘You’re two consenting adults,’ Mum says in a blasé manner. ‘If anything, she might be pleased that her son is dating the brilliant and beautiful journalist she picked out.’

‘God, Mum, we’re not dating,’ I groan.

‘Sounds like he wants to.’ She gives me a pointed look. ‘You just told me he said you made him happy.’ She sighs. ‘Iris, doeshemakeyouhappy?’

I don’t know how to answer.

‘Being away from him has certainly made you unhappy,’ she remarks, quirking a brow. ‘I’ve never seen you so… deflated. It’s been alarming to witness you like this.’

Pressing my lips together, I close my eyes, admitting defeat. ‘I’ve missed him, yes,’ I say so quietly, I’m not sure she’ll be able to hear me across the room. ‘Maybe if things were different – if he wasn’t him and I wasn’t me – then yeah. He might make me… happy.’

‘Iris Gray, you’re making excuses and you know it.’

My eyes snap open at her. ‘What?’

‘You’re not Romeo and Juliet,’ she says wearily. ‘People meet at work all the time. Once the article is published, there’s no reason you can’t date. Toni might get a kick out of being the person who brought you together – it’s quite a nice story: the interviewer and the interviewee.’

‘It’s unprofessional.’

‘It’s life,’ Mum counters. ‘Sometimes, you don’t meet someone in the right place at the right time, but that doesn’t matter. When it happens, it happens. It’s too rare and special to shrug off and forget. As for Michelle Martin, if her son is happy, I’m sure she would be.’

---