Page 43 of Ignited in Iceland
‘I wish I could switch out with someone, but I can’t ask them to do that now it’s starting to get busy again.
‘We could hang out together today and then I can work later when you’re working.’
‘You don’t want to come again tonight?’
‘I’d love to, but I have to try and fit some work in, so if we can both do that at the same time as each other, that kind of makes sense.’
Siggi murmured in agreement. They lay in silence for another couple of minutes, then he propped himself up on his elbow, eyes shining, and said, ‘I have an idea.’
‘What?’ Iris said, laughing at how excited he looked.
‘I’m going to take you camping!’
Iris wasn’t averse to camping at all. She was outdoorsy and loved that kind of thing. But in the temperamental weather of Iceland? Not so much. But how was she going to say that without bursting his bubble?
‘You don’t think it’s too cold? It did snow on the way back from the volcano the other day.’
‘Trust me. I think you will love it. Also, it is very close to Reykjavik so I can go to work tonight and you can bring yourwork to do, but it will be like a little holiday for us over the weekend.’
It sounded tempting. They had such a short amount of time together, a break away could make it feel like they’d had longer. And if she could work at the same time, what reason was there to say no?
‘Okay, let’s do it.’
‘Yes, Iris!’ Siggi put his arms around her in a bear hug and rolled them both around the bed.
Iris laughed harder than she had for a long time, fuelled by the rush of agreeing to a plan on the spur of the moment.
‘I need to make a call,’ Siggi said. ‘Perhaps I should not have made it sound like a sure thing because I have to check with a friend whether it is possible.’
‘You make the call while I shower,’ Iris said, shifting further towards the edge of the bed.
‘I am not ready to get up yet,’ said Siggi, placing an arm around her waist, pinning her to him. ‘You stay right there while I make the call and then we can make plans for the day while we relax in bed.’
By the time Siggi had made the call and organised whatever needed organising, and they’d finished relaxing in bed, it was almost lunchtime. It astounded Iris how quickly the time could go when you weren’t doing anything in particular.
‘I’ll go home and pack,’ Siggi said, pulling his clothes on while Iris watched appreciatively from the bed. ‘Shall I pick you up in an hour?’
‘Perfect,’ she said. ‘I’ll pick up some coffee and pastries for the road.’
He bent down to kiss her. ‘See you soon.’
Iris showered, dressed and packed, making sure she had her laptop charger, since Siggi had assured her that the camping wasn’t basic and that there was electricity and running water. Itwas exciting, heading off on an adventure without having really planned it and without knowing exactly what it was. This was the side of Siggi that took him off on his travels, Iris supposed. He probably liked spontaneity, whereas she was much more of a planner.
An hour later, she waited outside the hotel with her bags at her feet and the coffees and bags of food in her hands. Not knowing where they were going, as well as pastries, she’d bought fresh bread rolls from the bakery, and had popped into a deli and bought some cheese and cured meat of some sort, in an attempt at a makeshift picnic.
Siggi pulled up and left the engine running while he helped her get everything in the jeep, then they were off. It was a windy day, and grey clouds scudded across the sky with some speed, so the sun was in and out with regularity.
They headed out of the city on a road that Iris hadn’t been on before. Unsurprising, since she’d only been to the Reykjanes peninsula or the IMO offices. She sat back, sipping her coffee and enjoying a change of scenery, when Siggi pulled off the road.
‘Here we are,’ he announced.
‘Already?’ It couldn’t have been more than twenty minutes since they’d left.
‘I said it was close by.’
‘I know, I wasn’t quite expecting it to be just down the road.’
‘Let’s come back for the bags when we have seen where we are staying,’ he said, climbing out of the jeep and opening the back door to fetch his coat.
