Page 38 of The Christmas Holiday
Hunter glanced down. ‘Sure you were.’ His tone suggested absolute disbelief. ‘Do you want me to slow down?’
‘Nope. I’m fine.’
Admittedly,I’d probably have mugged a small child for a bottle of water right at that moment, but that was neither here nor there.
‘Here,’ he said, reaching into a side pocket of his bag and pulling out a water bottle, ‘you’re kind of going purple.’
‘Thanks,’ I said, taking the drink. ‘So long as Willy Wonka doesn’t rock up and take me off to the juicing room, I’m good,’ I huffed out, still keepingpace.
‘I’ll keep an eye out for Oompah Loompahs.’
I gave him a thumbs-up sign to save breath. Now in close sight of the others, I veered off and found a bench in the shade of a tree and sat on it heavily, signalling I was going to stay right there for a bit. I saw Hunter hesitate a moment, but the only way he was going to get me to shift now was by bodily lifting me, and that was mostdefinitely not going to happen. He nodded and finished his progress to Liv and Sandeep, then set about taking some more shots of them, the grounds and the monument in the dying embers of the setting sun. My eyes drifted to the camera he held and I shifted position a little. Although I felt like I was returning to a more normal colour, I made a conscious effort to ensure my hat’s wide brim was pointedin his direction the entire time. After the soft-porn cake shot, I wasn’t about to be caught out again.
We left the Taj behind and returned to the car, once again running the gauntlet of hawkers. Back inside the car we relaxed against the seats, ready for the short drive to the hotel, from which we would still have great views of India’s most famous landmark. Sandeep and Olivia invited usboth to dinner but a quick exchanged glance showed thatwe shared the same thought. Having just come from the world’s greatest monument to love, to then sit with a distinctly lovey-dovey, soon-to-be-married couple seemed like a perfect opportunity for Hunter and I to be two of the biggest gooseberries you ever did see. We thanked them anyway, and headed off to the bank of lifts.
Stepping in,I pressed the button for the floor where he and I were staying. The suites were all on the top floor so Liv and Sandeep were up there this time.
‘Got a minute?’ Hunter asked as the lift doors began to close.
‘Sure.’
He hit the open button and they slid apart again. I waited, unsure. ‘What did you want?’
‘Just come with me a minute.’
‘O… kay.’
He glanced back at me and rolledhis eyes. ‘Relax. You’ll like it.’
That was exactly what I was afraid of.
He strode out and began to cross the lobby. I stepped up my speed again until we came to a door at the end. He pushed it and we went through into the gardens. I followed him as we wound our way along the edge of carefully tended flower borders. The strong scent of old-fashioned English roses hung in the air, mixingheadily with the jasmine that covered the nearby wall, its white flowers almost luminous in the twilight.
‘Where are we going?’ I asked, noting suddenly that I was only taking one large stride now instead of the earlier one and a half. ‘And you don’t need to slow down for me. I already told you that.’
‘You’ll see,’ he replied, maintaining the steadier pace and ignoring my comment aboutit.
‘Hunter. Just tell me. I don’t like surprises, you know that.’
‘You’ll like this one. I promise.’
I mumbled something about him being impossible and gave in. We got to a narrow set of winding brick stairs and he headed up, checking that I was behind him. Which I was. Right behind arguably one of the best backsides on the planet. I really hoped we got to wherever it was we wereheading soon.
I wasn’t with Hunter any more, and I didn’t want to be. I knew he wasn’t right for me and I wasn’t right for him. We’d found that out painfully enough and I had no wish to revisit it, thanks very much. But there were moments… I knew it was nothing more than basic, honest-to-goodness lust, but still… For God’s sake, I might have split up from him but I wasn’t completely dead inside!
We reached the top of the stairs and he looked back at me, happiness radiating on his face – for a moment, totally unguarded. Like he used to be. I couldn’t help but smile back.
‘What do you think?’
I pulled my gaze away from him and looked around. We were on a tiny rooftop, just big enough for some pot plants and a two-seater metal swing chair. Brick walls came halfway up the sideand beyond it lay the city of Agra and the Taj, radiating white as a full moon in the night.
‘Hunter!’ I whispered, my smile broadening as I looked back at him, ‘this is wonderful! How did you know about this?’
‘I like to explore a hotel, know its ins and outs. I found it earlier. I don’t think many people know it’s here. It’s not very well signed and there’s nothing about a rooftop onthe website. Probably because the service doesn’t extend to up here. But I didn’t think you’d mind the lack of hot and cold running waiters for a few minutes.’
I laughed, relaxing in the quiet night as the flower scent drifted past on the gentle breeze that wrapped itself around us, teasing my hair and the soft fabric of my wide-legged trousers. Leaning on the wall, I looked out over the city,teeming with life, lights, death and celebration. Everything was there and yet, up here, all seemed perfect and serene. Hunter had stepped back and was now sitting on the swing chair, one leg lazily moving it to and fro. I stepped over his leg and took the other seat, pulling my feet up to my knees as I sat back.
‘Thank you for showing me this.’
