Chapter 12

Leah awoke early the next morning. She had set her alarm so that she would be ready in time for the boat trip but woke hours before it. Getting out of bed, she showered and got dressed before making her way to the kitchen for some breakfast. Deciding she would be bored waiting on the others to get up she wrote a note telling them she would meet them at the boat as she was planning on going into town first. Leaving the house quietly so not to wake anyone, Leah crept down the stairs and started walking towards the town. She didn’t realise the walk was so long and was glad when she heard a car pull up beside her with Tico and his wife in it. On the drive into town Leah invited them along on the boat trip but they already had plans for the day. Saying good-bye Leah left them and made her way to the shops.


“Well hello stranger!” Leah jumped at hearing Richie’s voice. He had appeared from nowhere while Leah was reading a magazine on a park bench. He chuckled softly at her fright, “Haven’t seen you in a while, where you been hiding?” Leah turned to face him, “Hiding? Nowhere. Just been busy is all. What you doing up so early anyway?” Richie pointed towards the swings in the park, where his daughter was sitting. “She likes to keep me on my toes,” he said smiling. Leah couldn’t help but smile back, the man really was contagious. “Sorry I missed your dinner last night, lost track of the time but I heard it was really good,” Leah mumbled, looking for something to say. “Well you better be there for the next one. Having a BBQ tomorrow so be on time, I’ll cook you up a dream,” Richie informed her. Leah couldn’t help but grin, she was dreaming all right but it didn’t involve cooking. The man did something to her whenever he was near, she never seemed to be totally in control when she was with him. “I’ll be on time, I promise. Are you going on the boat trip today?” Leah asked, so much for avoiding him, she thought. He then explained that he would have gone but had already promised Ava they would go to the zoo. He kissed her on the cheek before bidding good-bye and their eyes met once again in the same longing way they had the first night they met. Leah managed to break the stare, telling him to enjoy himself and waved to Ava. Watching Richie leave with his daughter, she found herself looking forward to the BBQ.


Leah arrived at the boat on time, slightly confused as to why no-one else had arrived yet. The man who was sailing the boat for them was starting to get restless when after the departure time there was still no sign of anyone. Eventually Leah saw Jon approach the boat alone not looking too happy. He instructed the man that they could now leave, much to Leah’s confusion. Seeing the look on her face Jon began to speak, “Dot isn’t feeling great and David and Katie changed their minds about coming.” Leah was still confused, “You know you could have just called me and cancelled it, I wouldn’t mind.” Jon smiled for the first time, “But I would have. Wouldn’t be much fun on here on my own.” Leah felt uncomfortable at the thought of spending the next few hours on the boat alone with Jon but forced a smile adding, “Well lets have some fun then.” She made her way to where the man was steering the boat, hoping he would be kind enough to teach her a little about sailing and also as an excuse to not spend the whole time with Jon.


Jon watched her closely while she took in the information the sailor was giving her. She really was interested in it, unlike the many people Jon had seen enter a conversation just for the sake of having something to say. He couldn’t help but think about the times where it was Dot who would grab his attention in this way, he missed those days and wanted them back badly but the way things were going he wasn’t sure they would ever be the same. He couldn’t stand the way she was behaving lately, almost like a different person every morning she woke up. The independence, strong willed nature and love for life that he had once admired in Dot, he was now seeing in Leah. He jumped at hearing a splash, bringing him out of his thoughts. He had been so wrapped up in them that he didn’t notice Leah dive into the sea. “You coming in?” Leah shouted as she saw Jon’s head appear at the side of the boat. “Are you nuts? There’s sharks in there!” Jon replied amazed. “I don’t see any. It’s beautiful in here,” she said hoping it would change his mind. She didn’t know what the problem was but he had been moping about since they got on the boat and needed some serious cheering up. “No thanks! I’ll probably get eaten!” Jon replied while closely investigating the water for anything he thought could bite. Leah laughed, “Do you know what the chances of getting attacked by a shark are? You’re safe. Look at it this way, we’re guests in their home, if we behave ourselves then there’s no problem. Don’t know about you but I don’t make a habit of eating my guests.” Jon laughed, she had managed to talk him round and before she could blink he had whipped off his clothes and was diving in wearing his trunks. The idea had definitely worked for cheering him up, carrying on in the water both of them had stomach ache unsure of whether it was the swimming or the laughing that had caused it. On leaving the boat Jon felt sad. He would give anything to stay a little longer but he knew he would have to face Dot sooner or later.


On the journey back to the house they had laughed all the way until they arrived at the front door. Leah felt the atmosphere change immediately, sensing that Jon and Dot weren’t on the best terms she excused herself saying she was going for a walk, hoping the time they had alone would get things sorted. Standing on the top of a hill overlooking the ocean, Leah heard someone crying. Looking around she found a woman at the bottom of the hill sitting on a rock, it was Dot. Making her way towards her Leah spoke gently, “Dot, are you okay? What’s wrong?” Her reaction surprised Leah, she jumped from the rock throwing her arms around her before falling to her knees crying again. Unsure of how to handle the situation, Leah sat on the sand beside her placing an arm around her to comfort her. They never spoke for a long time but Dot’s crying began to ease up. Eventually she spoke, “I’m so sorry, we were supposed to be having a nice holiday down here and I go and ruin things.” Leah didn’t know what to say, settling on, “You haven’t ruined anything and if you apologise one more time it’s going to drive me mad.” Dot managed a small laugh before saying sorry again which caused them both to laugh softly. Dot turned to face Leah, “It’s just since I lost the baby, nothing’s been the same. I’ve lost myself and I’m losing Jon. I just don’t know what to do. He dealt with it much better than me. I’m just so scared, Leah.” It was all Leah could do to pull her into a hug, she wasn’t prepared for the news and didn’t have the slightest idea how to deal with it. “I’m scared he’s going to leave me. I love him so much but I just can’t help being like this,” Dot continued through tears, “I try so hard to be the woman I was but I keep failing.” Leah spoke gently, “Your not failing at anything, you just haven’t fully accepted what happened. Lots of women have miscarriages and their marriages make it through. I’ve seen the way you and Jon look at each other, you’ll make it through it will just take some work.” Dot thanked her for being there for her which caught Leah off guard as she tried to wipe away the silent tears on her face before Dot saw them.