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He was just tapping out a message when the door opened and his father and Hope walked in. ‘Hello. Did you see Tasha at lunchtime?’
‘Let me get my coat off before you start grilling me,’ his cousin replied with a laugh. ‘Yes, we had a great chat. Honestly, I’m so impressed with how quickly she’s getting to grips with everything. Last I saw of her she was heading back to the campsite to meet Graham. Is there a problem?’
Rhys shook his head. ‘No, I just haven’t spoken to her since first thing, and I was wondering how she was getting on. I’ve called her a couple of times, but the phone keeps going to voicemail.’
‘I’m sure she’s fine. She’s probably in the shower or something. I can check on her when I get back, though? I need to go over some figures with Ziggy and I was going to stay for dinner, but I don’t have to if you’re worried about her?’
‘I’m not worried, not really, but I’d rather make sure, especially as it’s her first day.’ Even as he said it, Rhys pictured the big shower stall in the lodge bathroom. The tiles were supposed to be non-slip but they weren’t infallible, and then there was the staircase with its wide wooden steps. He’d kept meaning to put non-slip grips on the edges of them, but it was another one of those little jobs that had got pushed further and further down the list of things to sort out.
You’re being ridiculous.
He knew he was catastrophising and Tasha was perfectly fine, but once he started he couldn’t stop picturing a dozen different hazards around the lodge he hadn’t thought to point out to her. Standing abruptly, he pulled his keys out of his pocket. ‘I’ll run over there and can be back in time for dinner.’
Hope reached for her coat. ‘Do you want me to come with you?’
Rhys shook his head. ‘I’m sure she’s fine. I’m probably making a fuss over nothing.’ He knew he was making a fuss over nothing and yet, and yet… He paused by the door and turned back. ‘Do you think I should leave it? I don’t want her to think I’m intruding.’
His father reached out and patted his shoulder. ‘Best to make sure and then everyone can relax for the evening.’ Rhys could relax for the evening was what he meant.
‘Thanks, Dad.’ Zap was the most chilled-out person Rhys had ever met, but he knew his own son well enough to understand that Rhys wasn’t made the same way.
It had always been in Rhys’s nature to protect, and he could remember the first time he’d felt that sense of responsibility. He’d been barely five years old when Stevie had returned home from hospital with tiny Hope wrapped in a soft pink blanket. Curious about this new edition to the family, Rhys had leaned over to say hello to his new cousin. Hope had reached out and grabbed his finger and something had snapped into place in his little mind. I’ll always look after you, he’d promised.
The feeling only grew with time, expanding to encompass anyone and everyone who Rhys regarded as belonging to him in some way. Amelia had hated it when they’d gone out together as teenagers, telling him he was an overbearing control freak, and that it wasn’t up to him to fix everything, but sometimes he couldn’t help himself. ‘I’ll only be five minutes.’
He wouldn’t hang around. Just in and out to make sure everything was okay and then he’d leave Tasha in peace. More than likely she’d get his message and call him back before he’d even driven the few minutes across the estate.
That prediction hadn’t come to pass by the time Rhys turned into the car park and stopped next to the only other vehicle there – Tasha’s shiny little red Toyota. The sun had almost completely set so he retrieved one of the powerful torches every member of the family carried with them and switched it on.
A flash of white under the beam caught his attention and Rhys trained it on the camping field. Neat lines of string criss-crossed at least half the field where Tasha and Graham must’ve started marking out that afternoon. The sight of it gave him some reassurance and he wondered about turning back. Well, he’d come this far…
It didn’t take more than a couple of minutes to cut through the woods, the path familiar to him even with the night closing in rapidly. All was quiet, but the lodges had been designed for maximum privacy so that wasn’t surprising. As he rounded the side of the building he was relieved to see a bright splash of light shining out into the garden. The dull thump-thump of some kind of dance music reached him as he jogged up the steps to the deck and froze.
The furniture had been rearranged – the sofa pushed forward, the table back towards the wall. In the middle of the room, clad in a T-shirt and a pair of shiny purple leggings, Tasha was jumping up and down. Her attention was fixed on the large TV, her movements mimicking those of the brightly dressed people on the screen.
Bloody hell. Feeling foolish, Rhys turned and quickly ran back down the steps, his torch arcing across the deck as he did so. He was just rounding the corner when music filled the air, and Tasha called out. ‘Hello?’
Damn. Edging back into the light, Rhys raised his hand. ‘Only me.’
‘Rhys? What are you doing lurking in the dark? Why didn’t you knock?’ Her red hair was pulled back from her face in a curly ponytail, her face pink from exertion, the front of her T-shirt a dark vee of sweat.
‘I didn’t want to interrupt you,’ he said, feeling even more foolish. ‘I left you a message, but you didn’t respond so I just thought I’d better check that everything’s okay.’ Saying it out loud only served to increase his embarrassment. ‘I’m sorry for intruding. I’ll leave you in peace.’
‘No, it’s fine. Come on up, I was nearly finished, anyway.’ Tasha backed towards the open door, clearly inviting him to follow her.
Wishing he’d listened to the rational part of his brain, Rhys followed her reluctantly. He pulled the door shut behind him to keep the cold out but remained just inside, uncomfortable about barging in. Most people worked normal office hours and Tasha absolutely had the right to expect the same. He had no business being there.
She grabbed the remote and paused the class she’d been following, the people on the screen frozen in mid-stretch as she turned and faced him with a smile. ‘I’m sorry I missed your call; I didn’t hear the phone over the music.’
‘You don’t need to apologise. You’re entitled to your personal time. I felt a bit bad about running out on you this morning, that’s all. You’ve had a good day? Hope said she saw you for lunch.’
Tasha nodded, the ponytail on her head bobbing. ‘She was really helpful.’ Unlike him. Something of that guilty thought must’ve shown on his face because she propped her hands on her hips. ‘You should be happy I managed so well without you.’
Rhys found himself shuffling his feet a bit nearer to the door. ‘I am. It’s great that you’re getting on so well and I shouldn’t have come over. Amelia was right, I am too much of a control freak.’ He said the last more to himself than Tasha as he pulled open the door.
‘Hey, I was only joking! Please, don’t feel you have to run away. I need to cool down a bit before I have a shower anyway so stay for a quick drink at least.’
He turned and glanced back over his shoulder, but Tasha was already walking over to the kitchen area. By the time he’d shut the door again, she’d pulled out a large jug from the fridge and was hunting in the cupboard for glasses. It was warm after being outside, so he pushed up the sleeves of his sweatshirt as he went to lean against the island in the centre of the kitchen. He took the offered glass with a smile. ‘Thank you.’
