Page 18 of Plot Twist

‘Ivy,’ Riley warned. ‘It’s time for bed.’

‘Daddy loves ladies, too,’ she said. ‘That’s why I got born.’

‘That’s why Iwasborn,’ Riley corrected her.

‘That’s what I said,’ she replied.

My mouth twitched at Riley’s exasperated expression as Ivy came to give me a hug before bed. Her tiny Little Mermaid nightdress smelled like minty toothpaste. Riley scooped her up and carried her into her room. She waved goodbye to me until I couldn’t see her any more.

‘Night night, Becca!’ she shouted from her room.

‘Night, Ivy, see you in the morning,’ I replied.

I heard her quizzing Riley on when she was allowed to get up, what time I would get up and whether she could come into my room or not. I wanted to call out to assure her that she could come and see me anytime, but I didn’t want to undermine Riley. He was the boss, after all.

I tapped some messages back on my phone until he reappeared. Riley. The sight of him took my breath away a little. He was off the freaking scale when it came to looks. Like, hall-of-fame worthy.

I moved forward a little as he sat at the end of the couch, stretching his long, tanned legs out in front of him.

‘Gawd, I still can’t believe how stupid I was,’ I replied, feeling my face getting hotter again.

‘Easy mistake to make. I didn’t pick up on how uber-feminine I sounded but I scrolled back through the messages and you’re right. I bloody well sound like a woman. I think the yoga maybe tipped it over the edge. I am the only man in the class.’

‘It’s because you use words like “uber”,’ I pointed out, laughing. ‘No, it was totally my mistake. Ivy is just adorable by the way. She’s so funny. And very articulate, especially for her age.’

I didn’t want to sound like a sycophant or a psychopath. I wanted everything to be normal between us. Easy. The way it had been when we’d messaged before. But it felt like it had all shifted, thanks to my stupid mistake. Ivy was the one saving grace. The safe topic we could stick to, without any tension.

‘She’s a right cracker, isn’t she?’ Riley’s whole face lit up at the mention of his daughter. ‘We’ve had some interesting conversations since you arrived actually, everything from gender confusion to smear tests and sexuality.’

I blushed. Again.

‘Sorry about that,’ I cringed.

He grinned. ‘I’m only having you on.’

‘So, one of her aunts that she mentioned, is that your sister?’

Aha. Another safe topic. I eased myself back into the couch and he lifted his glass of wine to his lips. He preferred beer, he confessed earlier, but had bought the bottle in for me. How could this man, who looked likethat, be so thoughtful?

‘My sister is Bridget and Ellie’s her partner. They’re the only gays in this very small village, as far as we know. But no one actually seems to give a shit, which is nice,’ he said. ‘You hear all sorts of stories about Ireland and how backward everything is, but she’s not had any of that since she came home with Ellie. They met while they were backpacking around South America years ago and have been together ever since.’

‘That’s lovely. You should write a story about that.’

‘Maybe. One day.’

A huge yawn escaped my mouth.

‘You must be knackered after all the travelling,’ he said.

‘It’s not the travelling,’ I said. ‘I haven’t been sleeping well, since, you know.’

He paused.

‘Since. . . your friend?’

‘Yeah.’

‘And that tool? Drew was his name, wasn’t it? I’m a good listener, you know. If you wanted to talk about it.’