Page 87 of The Suitcase Swap

Noah smiled crookedly at him. ‘Accurate.’

‘Loooophole,’ Stella murmured, grabbing another strawberry.

‘Then,’ Amaya continued, ‘you’re going to shower and shave, because you look awful and smell worse and none of that is going to help your case. Then we’re going to help you figure this out.’

Stella peered up at her aunt.

‘Yes, darling, loophole,’ Amaya said, smoothing her hair. ‘I have a gigantic ouchie and it’s called Grandpa Mike.’

Stella nodded and went back to her strawberries.

‘I can’t just take off to New York,’ Mike said. ‘I have a job, you know.’

Amaya pinched her eyes shut and sighed. ‘For such a smart man . . . Dad. You have like eighty billion annual leave days saved up. You never take them. So take them. Tell your work it’s a family emergency or something. It’s not even really a lie. We’re your family and we’re declaring an emergency.’

Mike dropped his head. ‘That didn’t even occur to me.’

Noah sighed. ‘Men.’

Amaya reached across the table and grabbed Mike’s hand. ‘Look, I don’t know Sophie, but I’ve read her blog and I’ve listened to you talk about her a lot. Still, I can only guess at what she’s feeling, but my guess is that she’s pretty sensitive to rejection after her divorce. You already freaked out on her once. She needs someone to make some effort and pick her. Giveherthe chance to choose you.’

Mike nodded absently – not because he wasn’t listening, but because Amaya’s words made him think of that first dinner with Sophie. He needed to reach across the table, just on a much bigger scale. ‘I have no idea how to do any of that. Simply flying back isn’t going to cut it.’

Amaya looked at him patiently. ‘Doesn’t her best friend live in London? Isn’t she someone you can ask?’

Mike grimaced. ‘Yes, Edie, and right now she probably wants to put my body in an unmarked grave somewhere. Can’t say I blame her.’

‘Grovel,’ Noah said. ‘A lot. Eventually to Sophie, but start with Edie.’

Mike dropped his face back into his hands and groaned.

Stella frowned at her grandfather, concerned. ‘Is Grandpa okay?’

‘He’ll get over it,’ Rahul said. ‘As soon as he gets back to New York.’

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Edie peered up at Mike, and though she was a head shorter than him, this obviously didn’t faze her in the slightest. He wasn’t sure what to make of Edie. Her house was . . . well, it was bright orange, a colour he mentally referred to as nuclear Irn Bru. There were at least twenty wind chimes hung about the place, causing a good amount of ruckus even though it wasn’t very windy today. She seemed a little eccentric, but Sophie thought the world of her, and that was enough for him.

‘I’m not sure I like you much right now,’ Edie said, her mouth pressed into a thin line.

‘I’m not sure I like me much either right now,’ Mike said, raising his voice to be heard over the wind chimes as the breeze gusted. ‘But I need some help.’

Edie didn’t unfold at that; her arms stayed crossed, her chin up. ‘And why should I give it?’

‘Because I’m hoping that, in the long run, it will be good for Sophie.’

Edie dissected him with her gaze. ‘If you’re not out-of-your-mind, head over heels in love with my friend, you’re not stepping past this threshold. So let’s hear it.’

‘Whatever I am is for Sophie’s ears,’ Mike said, and as he moved forward, Edie stepped back, letting him into her home.

It was . . . not what he’d expected. While the outside was jarring to every one of his senses, the inside was beautifullyput together. Whatever else Edie was, she had an artist’s eye. ‘You have a lovely home.’

She smirked. ‘Surprised?’

Mike considered denying it out of politeness but decided that Edie wouldn’t appreciate that. ‘Yes.’

‘The outside has been temporarily sacrificed to an ongoing feud with my neighbour,’ she said, leading him into the kitchen. She filled a kettle and flicked it on, leaning against the counter. ‘Okay then, let’s hear your pitch.’

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