Page 52 of Clara's Secret Garden
‘And neither would I. It’s fantastic what you’re doing forher, Clara. I owe you big time.’
‘No, you don’t. I love doing it.’
‘That’s good, then.’
We exchange a knowing smile and my heart lifts at thetwinkle in his eye.
I love him. I can’t help it. And I couldn’t bear not tohave him in my life.
If only as a friend...
*****
I pop over to Gran’s later but she’s not in. I haven’tbrought her spare key with me, so I sit on the front doorstep, listening toShaun’s Latin American music booming out from the cottage next door.
I still feel shaken after my confrontation with Rory. Eventhough we parted as friends, there’s a heaviness in the pit of my stomach thatI can’t ignore.
I’m in love with him. Totally and utterly in love. Irealised that tonight.
And there’s not a single thing I can do about it.
I often dismissed my attraction to Rory as a silly crush –which it was when we were at school – but somewhere along the way, it changedinto something much stronger. Working alongside him in the garden, my feelingsfor him burst into life with the vibrancy of Gran’s favourite scarlet dahliasand with the stubbornness of those tenacious thistles I tackled in herwildflower bed.
However inconvenient my feelings for Rory might be, they’retoo powerful to ignore, and there’s absolutely nothing I can do to make them goaway...
‘Penny for them?’
It’s Shaun, looking at me from over the fence. I do adouble-take. Either he’s incredibly tall or he’s standing on something.
I stand up and walk over to the fence, forcing a smile. ‘Youreally don’t want to know. Your music always cheers me up, though. I can neverresist a cheeky little salsa over to the vegetable plot whenever it’s playing.’
Now I’m closer, I can see he’s standing on a ladder, pickingapples.
‘Ah, so you dance?’
‘A bit. Do you? Is that why you’re always playing that LatinAmerican stuff?’
He hesitates, looking a little sheepish. Then he smiles, andI notice what lovely green eyes he has. ‘I do as a matter of fact.’
‘What’s your favourite dance?’
‘The salsa.’
‘Yes?’ I look at him in surprise. ‘That’s funny. It’s myfavourite, too.’
‘Really? What a fantastic coincidence.’ He grins. ‘Maybeit’s Fate. Do you believe in Fate?’
‘Erm, I’m not sure. Maybe...’
‘We should do some salsa dancing together. What do youthink?’
I laugh. ‘I’m not really in a dancing mood at the moment.’
‘Hang on a sec.’ He folds his arms. ‘Two people passionateabout salsa meet over a garden fence? I’d say that was life giving us both abig nudge, wouldn’t you?’
‘Maybe.’
‘Too many maybes. How about: “Yes, I think you might beright, Shaun. So when are you free because there’s salsa dancing on at thevillage hall on Friday night.”’
