Page 52 of Greek Island Fling to Forever

‘It’s my pleasure.’ Ben could hardly get the words out. The warm thrill he was feeling right now was familiar, but he hadn’t experienced it since Emma had died. It had taken a trip to Ilaria to find the one person who could show him the way back to finding this feeling of fulfilment. Arianna.

* * *

Jonas had taken to the idea of board games, and every evening after tea Ben sat down with him and played draughts. Tonight, the newly established ritual didn’t feel quite so painful.

‘Are you cheating again, Jonas?’

‘No, Dad.’ Jonas looked up at him with innocent eyes.

‘You’re sure about that? How did your counter get from there, to there?’

Jonas studied the board carefully, and then moved his counter back to the proper place. Ben usually allowed Jonas to win, but he tried to stay within the rules while doing so.

‘What do you reckon, mate?’ Ben took a sip from his glass, and Jonas picked up his juice and did the same.

‘What about, Dad?’

That was always the way they started up any conversation that might lead to a decision of importance. And this decision might just be the most important of Ben’s life.

‘You know what taking a risk means?’ Ben took two of the tiny apple cakes that his mother had brought for Jonas yesterday from the plate that lay between them on the table, putting them carefully on the table next to the draughts board. They were just beyond Jonas’s reach.

‘You can grab one of those easily, right out from under my nose. If you try for two, I might be able to stop you.’

Jonas thought for a moment, weighing the matter up. Then he lunged forward suddenly, grabbing an apple cake in each hand and whipping them out of Ben’s reach.

‘Gotcha, Dad!’

Ben smiled. There was nothing wrong with Jonas’s motor skills and he was constantly having to up his game if he wanted to outwit the boy. Soon enough he’d be applying his full concentration to their board games and Jonas would still beat him.

‘So you did. I’ll have to be a bit quicker next time, won’t I.’

‘Yes, you will.’ Jonas popped one of the cakes into his mouth.

It was an imperfect decision, but the same one that Ben had made when he’d plunged into the water after Arianna. Jonas was willing to take a risk, and set his eye on the greater prize. His actions weren’t tempered by the fear of loss, he was a little too young to know what that really meant, but maybe that wasn’t an entirely bad thing. Maybe it was the only way out of the dragging unhappiness that had followed Ben back from Ilaria, and wouldn’t let him go.

‘Your move, Dad.’

‘Oh. Yeah, sorry.’ Ben studied the board, his mind still buzzing. Was it really that simple? Later on tonight, when Jonas was in bed, he’d make his decision.

* * *

Life on Ilaria wasn’t all sunshine and sunsets. The sea around them held harsh realities beneath its sparkling surface. There would always be sickness and strife, disappointment and hardship. Arianna loved the slower pace of life and the beauty of her island home, along with the community who had taken her in and made her their doctor, not just the daughter of a man who had the money to make a difference to the island. The sunshine and sunsets weren’t bad either.

But now she hardly noticed them. Her body ached when she got up in the morning, even though she’d had a full night’s sleep. And the emptiness when she found that Ben wasn’t there was worse than any dream.

She’d kept going, though, working hard to dull the pain. And somehow a little of Ben stayed with her. Convincing her that her life had not been saved in exchange for Xander’s. His death was and always would be a tragedy, but her place in the world was hers by right.

But she was tired. It was late and it had been a busy week, and all she wanted to do now was to eat something and get an early night. Tomorrow was Saturday, and she had the whole weekend in front of her.

She felt her phone buzz in her pocket as she let herself into her house. Dropping her bag on the floor, she sent up a quick prayer that this wasn’t someone who needed a doctor tonight. She pulled out her phone, looking at the screen. Ben.

Right now, a text summoning her to visit a patient would have been more than welcome, as something to take her mind off the sudden, painful hope. The fear, because she knew that Ben wouldn’t get in contact with her unless it was something really urgent. The way that prickles travelled up her spine, just at the sight of his name on the small screen.

She should just del

ete the text without reading it. Impossible. Perhaps she’d read it and then delete it. Her fingers were trembling so much that the phone slipped through them and clattered onto the floor. Arianna retrieved it quickly, relieved to find that, although the screen had cracked, it was still working.

I want you to know that I love you. Without you I’ll always be drowning.

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