Page 11 of Kissing Games
She turned her head away but he could see her jaw trembling.
It’s only a suitcase!He bit his lip to stop the words tumbling out and knelt to look at the damage. He’d been to some poor places in the world but had never seen such a sad-looking piece of luggage. The side handle was missing, the zip held together in one place with a cable tie. The fabric was stained and scuffed and now the wheels were gone. This was not the suitcase of a movie star. When he looked up her face was still turned away. He cleared his throat and she looked at him, her smoky eyes liquid, her lips pressed tightly shut.
‘I can’t fix this here, but I do have a solution,’ he said.
She blinked and a small tear ran down her cheek. She swiped it away as if angry with herself.
‘Option one,’ he continued. ‘We swap the contents of our bags. You take my bag; I take yours and we walk away and never see each other again.’ Her eyes widened. ‘Option two: we swap contents, you take my bag and I try to fix yours over the next few days, then drop it back to wherever you’re staying.’
‘Unpack my bag here? In front of you?’ Her voice was soft and husky. ‘Is there an option three?’
‘I won’t look, if that’s what you’re worried about,’ said Charlie. She blushed. ‘I suppose with option three, I help you carry your bag to wherever you’re going and then we call it quits? It’s not my preferred option. To be fair, it should really be option five or six.’
The corners of her mouth lifted in a hesitant smile. ‘If you could help me get it outside, I have a car waiting and the driver can help from there.’
Charlie stood, threw his bag over his shoulder and picked up her suitcase with the other hand. Valentina’s gaze flicked to his muscled arms, then away. Charlie swallowed his grin. This was exactly what all the hours in the gym were for. He did slow bicep curls with her suitcase. It was heavy, but he’d lifted far more.
‘Are you sure you’ve even got anything in here?’ he asked sceptically.
She looked up at him, her smile spreading. ‘Are you trying to show off?’
‘Yes. Is it working?’
She laughed. ‘Come on then, Mr Muscle. Let’s get out of here.’ He walked beside her, still bicep curling her suitcase. ‘Oh my god, will you stop! There are no more women left to impress.’
Charlie shrugged. ‘I’m only trying to impress one.’
The doors to arrivals slid open. They were the last to exit and there were only two people waiting: the first, a man in a chauffeur’s uniform and cap, holding a small sign which read: ‘V Valverde’.
The second, a man with a beetroot-red face holding up a giant sign that read: ‘Charlie Hamilton! Congratulations on being two weeks syphilis free!’.
Charlie dropped his bag and looked at the ceiling.
Rory.
Valentina looked between the sign and Charlie, then started laughing. The sound was so joyous, so infectious, he couldn’t help but grin back. He handed her suitcase to the chauffeur.
‘That isnottrue,’ he told her. ‘My mate just thinks he’s a comedian.’
‘It worked for me,’ she giggled.
There was a pause as they stared at each other. His stomach did another flip. He stayed quiet, not wanting to ruin the moment by speaking. He watched her pupils dilate and her cheeks flush.
She looked away. ‘I have to go. Thank you for fixing my rucksack.’
Charlie stepped back, shrugged and smiled. Everything was okay. He may never see her again but at least they would part like this. He gave her a little bow and went to the man holding Rory’s homemade sign.
‘You Charlie?’
‘Yep, that’s me.’
The man thrust the sign at him. ‘Take this and I’ll get your bags. I’m not holding that a second longer.’
Charlie took the sign and turned back to look at Valentina. He pointed at his name, then at himself. Valentina grinned and gave him a thumbs up.
They stared at each other for a moment, then Valentina turned and walked away.
As the taxiwound its way through the Scottish Highlands, Charlie rested his head back and stared out the window. The rain pelted down and the world was full of greys, browns and greens. Compared to London everything seemed so big, so empty. He wound down the window an inch and breathed in the cool, damp, peaty air. It took him back to army training when he and Rory had been dumped in the middle of nowhere and left to find their way back.This is the right place to be. He needed distance from the rest of his life. The only thoughts of home he allowed were of his family.
