Page 25 of Closer than Ever

“Anna?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you for having me stay. Really. I mean it.”

They held each other’s eyes at the foot of Anna’s bed, momentarily suspending time and reason. It was almost like the last ten years hadn’t happened when they orbited each other like this.

Anna crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s all good. No worries. Sleep well.”

Anna went back through to the living room and pulled out the sofa bed, feeling slightly shaken. The house was quiet. If she couldn’t remain unaffected from having Hayley to stay, how could she possibly live with her in a campervan? She couldn’t. She didn’t want the stress, which would mean their time together would be fleeting. Anna threw on her bedding and lay down on the sofa bed, thinking about Hayley in her actual bed only a short distance away. How did she feel about being in Anna’s space? Was Hayley thinking about her too?

Hayley would be leaving soon. That was a fact. Anna let out a heavy breath. She didn’t want that either.

The next day at work Anna took a call from her mum. She had a free moment, and it wasn’t like her mum to call her during the day. “Hi Mum, what’s up?”

There was some crackling on the line before her mum spoke. “Anna. There you are. How are you?”

“I’m fine. How are you?”

“I’m wondering how my daughter is. Did you go on that date last week? Or was it the week before last? I can’t remember. Anyway. How was it? Was she nice? Do you think you’ll see her again?”

“I didn’t go.”

“Anna! Why not?”

Anna sighed freely into the phone. Her mum and dad had taken to pestering her about her love life recently. They didn’t seem to approve of her being single for this long and made no attempt to hide it. “I couldn’t be bothered to travel.” This was only partly true. She had been talking to this girl she’d met on a dating app for a couple of weeks but when it came to meeting up, Anna just wasn’t feeling it. She wasn’t going to tell her mum that though. She had to preserve some boundaries. “We live too far away. It would never work.”

“You’ll never meet someone with that attitude. You do live in the middle of nowhere, sweetheart. Have you thought any more about moving back to Glasgow?”

“No, Mum. I like it here. I’m not planning on moving back.”

There was a long silence. Anna could practically hear her mum’s disapproval down the line.

“And can you please stop asking me who I’m dating; it makes me uncomfortable. It will happen when it happens. I’m not exactly a hermit.”

“Okay. Sorry. What about your friend. Did she come to visit?”

“Yep. She’s here.”

“And? How is Hayley?”

“She’s good. She wants me to go travelling around Scotland with her in a campervan for a couple of months. I’m thinking about it.”

“That’s a great idea! You should definitely go. It’ll be good for you.”

Her parents loved their holidays. It was nice to get some positive feedback for once.

“Let me know what you decide. I’ll go and tell your dad the big news.”

***

“Wow. This place is like something out of Downton Abbey,” Hayley said.

“Myla owns the distillery. This is her ancestral home.”

“No way!”

Anna and Hayley walked up the steps to the entrance of Myla and Kelly’s mansion. Even though she was going to be spending time with her friends tonight, Anna still felt nervous. She gripped the dessert dish tighter. She hovered by the oversized front door, balancing the dish in one hand so she could knock on the door.

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