Page 89 of Riding the Waves

“Oh.” Damian’s eyes widened. “So like a whole meal together?”

“Yeah.” Amy scratched at her forehead. “He thinks it would be good for Billy and Marty to see us all spending time together.”

“Right.” Damian grinned widely.

“What’s so funny?”

“The idea of having dinner with your ex-husband and his new girlfriend. That’s what’s funny. It’s the weirdest double date ever.”

“It’s not a double date,” Amy insisted. “It’s the four of us having dinner together for the sake of the kids.”

“It’s still kind of funny.” He slipped his arms around her waist.

“You’re okay with it?” She asked, frowning.

“Yeah.” He shrugged. “Why not? It might be interesting to see who he’s replaced you with.”

“Damian!” she growled while giving him a playful shove.

He clamped his arms around her so she couldn’t wriggle away. “It was a joke.”

“You have a very inappropriate sense of humour,” she told him, but relaxed into his embrace. “So, I’ll tell Anthony that’s fine.”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.” She gave him a quick peck, then raised her phone as she moved away from him. “Oh, I also have a reply from the estate agent. We can look at the house tomorrow.”

“So that’s two houses we’re viewing tomorrow?”

“Yes. Is that okay for you?” She went to retrieve her coffee then headed for her office.

“That’s great for me,” he replied as his gaze snagged on the world’s worst painting once again.

As far as he was concerned the sooner they found somewhere else the better. Then maybe he’d stop feeling as though he was living in another man’s space.

CHAPTER 44

It was a long time since Amy had felt so content with her life. Having Damian around was wonderful, and her new job left her feeling utterly refreshed. With Emily now officially on maternity leave, there were an increasing number of tasks assigned to her, and she felt like a necessary cog in the business.

Her only niggling concern was that Damian was the one making all the sacrifices for their relationship. He swore he’d be happy working at the cafe so she supposed she just needed to accept that.

There was also the house issue hanging over them but she tried to think positively. All she had to do was find a place that she vaguely liked and make the leap.

But the first place they looked around on Saturday left her feeling utterly flat. Which meant she really had to like the place they were viewing late that afternoon.

In terms of layout, the end-of-terrace house wasn’t dissimilar to Damian’s house in Hope Cove. But it was a little bigger, with three bedrooms, an extra bathroom and a more spacious kitchen, so that should all have been positives for Amy. The vibe was nothing like Damian’s house, though. The current owners were either minimalists or had done a great job of hiding their knickknacks.

Following the estate agent around, Amy nodded frequently and made the odd noise of approval. She wasn’t really listening. What was the point when she’d had a bad feeling about the house before she’d even stepped inside? The vibe was all wrong, and if the vibe was wrong how could she live there? It had been the same with all the other houses.

“This room would be good for Billy and Marty,” Damian said when they entered the second bedroom.

Amy drifted to the window, checking out the view of other people’s gardens. Not as good as a sea view, that was for sure, but she supposed it wasn’t terrible.

“What do you think?” Damian asked, slipping an arm around her waist while the estate agent wandered back to the landing.

Amy scrunched her nose up. “I don’t know.” Except, she did know. She hated it. She just didn’t want to say that since Damian seemed quite taken with it.

“The boys could have their own rooms eventually,” Damian said. “Though I guess there’ll be some arguments over who gets the bigger one.”