Page 33

THIRTY TWO

Noah

I get halfway to the baggage carousel before I realize Olivia is no longer walking right beside me. Looking around, I spot her at the top of the ramp staring at her phone in her hands.

“Hey, Liv, you good?”

She doesn’t look up and she’s still standing fixed in place, so with a sigh, I walk back to retrieve her.

“Babe.”

“Oh my god.” Her words are whispered in such a reverent tone that I look down at her phone screen myself.

“What?”

“That stupid video we posted before we left? It’s got three million views and still rising.”

“It does?”

She turns her screen toward me as if it means a lot.

I know enough to know that the red bubble with the stupidly high number of notifications is a pretty good sign.

Wrapping my arm around her, I give her a squeeze.

“That’s great. I’m glad. Come on, if we stand here any longer, the next flight will come through and it’ll take us forever to get through customs.”

“Huh? Oh right.” She follows me with her eyes still glued to the screen. So I steer her to pick up our bags and stack them on the trolley while she scrolls through messages.

“Oh wow,” she whispers under her breath.

I shake my head. “Come on. You can reply to your thousands of admirers later. My parents are waiting to meet us. To meet you.”

At this she lifts her eyes and grins at me. “I’m so excited. And also nervous. OK, I think I’m mostly nervous. Do you think they’ll like me?”

I press a swift kiss to the center of her forehead. “No. They’ll love you. Come on.”

In the end, the line for customs is short since we are the last ones from our flight to pick up our bags.

As soon as the sliding doors open to the arrivals terminal of Sydney airport, my eyes snap straight to my mom who lets out a little gasp of delight and lifts her hands to her mouth. “Oh, Rob, it’s them.”

The sight of my dad hits me like a sharp piece of coral in the tentacle. His skin looks somehow thin. All the veins show through in his two-legged form, and he rests with one hand on the balustrade which he would never have done before.

When he sees us, though, he straightens and gives us a big wave.

I find a spot to park the trolley and draw Olivia in front of me. I’ve told them about Olivia of course, but this is their first time meeting face to face. It’s adorable that Liv is nervous, but I couldn’t be more sure that my parents will adore her. Just like I do.

“Mom, Dad, meet Liv.”

In classic style, Mom opens her arms, tears filling her eyes. “Oh my love, it’s so good to meet you. Can I give you a hug?”

“Of course.”

Dad throws his arm around me. “Come here, kiddo. You’re not old enough to get out of giving your old man a hug.

” I don’t mind it. Not even when he ruffles my hair.

I’m just glad to feel the familiar strength in his arms, even if I can’t see it in his body.

The surgery really must have made a difference.

It’s only now that I see him in person I can believe he might be on the other side of this.

When I pull back Mom grabs me, and soon I’m ready to tell them all to leave me alone. I don’t, because I’m on my best beahviour today and from now on.

Liv gives me a little smile to let me know she can tell how I’m feeling.

“Right. Come on. I’ve had enough of airports for a lifetime.

Let’s get out of here.” I shoo Dad away from the handle of the trolley and lead the way.

“I’m starting to regret not just getting a hotel here overnight.

I don’t think I got a wink of sleep on the flight. ”

Liv yawns, but I know for a fact she got at least five hours. “Long haul flights are the worst. I’m starving.”

I laugh. “Of course you are. Let’s get you something to eat before you get hangry. Trust me, you do not want to see this girl hangry.”

She swats me with the back of her hand, but she’s laughing too.

On the drive back to Kraken Cove, I try to stay awake, but sheer determination only gets me as far as Nowra, and from there all I remember is the gentle hum of the engine and the low rumble of my dad getting to know my fated mate.

I wake in a dark room, unsure what time it is. When I roll over searching for Liv, I see her sitting up in bed, light from her phone screen illuminating her face. “Babe, what time is it?”

She turns to me. “Oh sorry. Did I wake you? It’s midnight, but I can’t sleep. It’s morning back home.” She stops herself with a laugh. “Back in the States. How strange. I’ll have to get used to this being my home now.”

I roll over and lay my head in her lap, enjoying the warmth of her body and the rich scent of her. “You know I’ll move back with you if you want to. It’s not too late to change your mind.” I’m already closing my eyes again. I can’t help it. I’m catching up on a whole night of sleep.

She strokes a hand absently through my hair. “Mmm, I know, but I like it here. It’s just a shame that I’ll have to travel so much for work.”

“Mmm. A problem for another day. Lie down.” I try unsuccessfully to tug her into her rightful little spoon position in front of me.

“Just a minute. I’m trying to answer all these messages, but I think it’s impossible. That video totally blew up. Like insane numbers. I might even get a big sponsorship deal if it keeps going.”

I chuckle. In the video she posted, we’re fooling around as I try to make her pick all the ingredients of a new dish I created. She filmed it on a whim and posted it as filler between projects. I’m still a bit stunned this is the one that’s gotten so much traction.

“Oh my god!” Olivia gasps. “Noah, I’ve got a message from someone claiming to be a producer at Food Network. They want to talk about a TV deal.”

Instantly I sit, putting my head close to hers to see. “No way! That’s amazing.”

“I know. It’s got to be a fake.”

“Knock it off. You’re brilliant. Your content is brilliant. I bet it’s real.”

She keeps scrolling, then turns to me with a smile. “Noah, look at this. They want both of us. They’d like us to make a food program together.”

“What? That’s impossible.” I grab the phone, and now she’s laughing at me as I stare at the words in the message for myself.

You two are dynamite together. You’d make great television. I’ve sent a DM. Let’s chat. I want to work with you.

A buzz runs through my whole body. I grin at Olivia. “I think we should go for it. This will be great for your channel.”

“But what about The Snapper?”

“Mate, if Jamie Oliver can write books, have his own TV show, and still run a bunch of restaurants, you bet I can do it too. Besides, you saw how well Billy ran things while I was gone. The reality is, it’s still a small town. He doesn’t need me breathing down his neck all the time.”

She answers the message, and we grin at each other for a moment. I’m half expecting an answer to pop up straight away. The anticipation dies a little after a few minutes, and Liv puts the phone aside and throws her arms around my neck. “There’s no way I’m getting back to sleep now.”

“Me neither.” I shiver as she presses soft kisses along my neck and over the lobe of my ear. “What were you thinking?”

“Let’s go for a swim.”