Page 14 of Adrift in Iceland
‘I used to be. I guess it’s habit to say that when someone asks. It’s not been very long since that was true.’
‘So you haven’t done this before?’
He shook his head. ‘I’ve seen more than my fair share of whales over the years, but I’ve never gone out of my way to find them before.’
They stood awkwardly for a moment before Astrid said, ‘Shall we grab a coffee while we’re waiting?’
The friendly guy from the beach seemed to have disappeared. Leifur seemed a little offhand with her, and there was no sign of the back-and-forth banter they’d had yesterday. When she’d turned around and seen that it was him, she’d been thrilled. And for some reason, he wasn’t.
There was a cafe in the Harpa building, so they got takeout coffee and strolled towards the harbour. Astrid was at a loss as to how to find the vibe they’d had yesterday. She’d thought there might be something between them, and now he was behaving like a moody stranger.
‘Jonas said you’re a marine biologist?’ He said almost accusingly.
‘Yes, I’m between jobs. The last contract I had was fixed for four years.’
‘That’s tough.’
‘It was, but it goes with the territory when you’re a research scientist. You have to be really lucky to keep the same job for your entire career.’
He didn’t say anything, and another gulf of silence spread between them.
‘Is this a new career for you, or are you doing it in your spare time?’
He laughed. ‘A fisherman doesn’t have any spare time.’
‘But you’re not a fisherman.’ Astrid heard the belligerence in her tone. But she was annoyed with his manner and wanted to let him know he was being an arse.
‘No, I’m not a fisherman anymore. But I’d rather be doing that than this.’
Astrid didn’t know what to say. Was it because it was with her? Or because he didn’t want to spy on the competition. Perhaps that’s what the problem was. Maybe he felt bad about the espionage they were about to undertake.
‘You know we can just try to have a good time and forget that we’re on an information-gathering mission.’
‘I don’t know the first thing about how to run a boat tour, do you?’
Astrid was so taken aback that for a split second she thought she might burst into tears.
‘No. That’s the whole point of this, isn’t it?’ When he saidnothing but avoided her gaze, she decided she’d had enough of his nonsense. ‘I don’t know what’s happened between yesterday and today, but whatever it is, I’m pretty sure it’s nothing I’ve done.’ Satisfied that her words made him squirm a little, she finished by saying, ‘I’m looking forward to seeing the whales, but if you prefer, we don’t have to do that together.’ She stopped walking, his not saying anything emboldening her. ‘So what do you want to do? It’s best that we sort this out before we get on the boat.’
‘Let’s go our separate ways,’ he said, to her surprise. His eyes were flashing. Was he angry?
‘Fine. Enjoy it.’
Astrid marched ahead to the harbourside where the boat tour left from. She could hardly believe that this had happened. How had this happened? Had she overreacted? No, he’d been lovely yesterday, and today he was worse than indifferent. She’d been right to call him out on it, and she wasn’t sure whether she’d be able to see through the commitment she’d made to Jonas. If Leifur wasn’t even willing to spend a morning with her, how were they going to spend six days a week with each other?
8
LEIFUR STOOD ON the quay and watched Astrid check herself onto the boat tour. She accepted the waterproof overalls they offered her, and he watched while she pulled them on and then went to sit on the starboard side, looking out to sea.
He sighed. He already felt bad about upsetting her. Why hadn’t he just explained that he was struggling with the whole idea of the boat tours and he didn’t see why he needed to go through this charade of checking out one of their competitors? He knew how to drive a boat. He knew about the responsibilities he had for the safety of everyone on board, and he knew how to follow a sonar signal to help with finding a whale. Hell, he knew where the whales were without it. He’d spent enough time on these waters to know more than the captain of this boat knew.
But none of that was Astrid’s fault. It also wasn’t her fault that he didn’t particularly want anyone on his boat, despite knowing that it was necessary according to Jonas.
Against his better judgement, he checked himself in for the tour and managed not to bite the head off the tour guide who gave him safety instructions. He needed to make things right with Astrid. Keep hold of the feeling he’d had yesterday, before he knew who she was.
‘Hæ,’ he said, standing next to her but holding back from taking a seat on the bench beside her until he knew he was welcome.
‘Hæ.’
