Page 108 of Should Our Hearts Catch Fire

“She wants to meet you.”

Ellis chokes on air, wheezing as he struggles for a breath.

“Hello? Ellis?”

“I’m here,” he coughs, gripping the edge of the desk for support. “I…uh…okay? Yeah, that’s fine,” he lies.

“Tomorrow.”

“What?”

“She’s flying down from Cairns.”

“What?”

“I did try to stop her, but…” Gabriel huffs. “She’s like me, times ten.”

“God help us all.”

“Rude. But accurate. Look, I get that it’s crazy soon, so if you don’t feel up for it I’ll just distract her by taking her around the Coast. She’s a huge fan of bodyboarding.”

Despite his previous shock, Ellis smiles. He can almost see it—Gabriel’s personality, amplified and wrapped in the body of a fifty-something-year-old woman as she rides the waves and screams excitedly. Ellis already likes her just for raising a man like Gabriel.

He shakes off a pang of yearning in his chest.

“No, don’t do that. She’s your mum.” Knowing he’ll probably regret it, he says, “It’s fine. Yeah, it’s soon, but…I’d be happy to meet her.”

Gabriel is quiet for a moment. “Really?”

“Really. I told you, I want to get to know the people in your life.”

Gabriel snorts. “You’ll change your mind after tomorrow.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Ellis says drily. “Your dad’s not coming?”

“Nah. We don’t really keep in contact.”

That gives Ellis a pause. Gabriel doesn’t sound particularly upset about the fact, but it makes Ellis wonder why it’s never been talked about before. The only thing he knows is that Gabriel’s dad is an empath too.

“Ah, okay. When does she land?”

“Around noon, I think. She’ll take an Uber to the café, and then we’ll go from there. I’ll finish early. Zeke will handle it by himself once the lunch rush is over.”

Suddenly possessed by an altruistic spirit, Ellis says, “I can pick her up if you want.”

Gabriel’s voice is very soft. “That’s sweet of you, but you don’t have to. She’s a Gen X, but she can operate a smartphone.”

“I know,” he says with a chuckle. “But there’s no reason to when I can just drive down.”

“Okay, but only if you’re sure,” Gabriel checks again. “Thank you. It means a lot.”

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s a lot,” Gabriel insists, then laughs. “I kind of wish you’d said you didn’t want to meet.”

“Why?”

“Because I have a possessive streak a mile long when it comes to you and I’m not quite ready to share you yet.”