The Beat of Safiri Bay (16 page)

“Calm down Matthew. Lane has a concussion from the fall but she will be fine. You should know that I will never hurt anyone. Now please hang up so I can phone her father to explain what happened.” Matt is breathing so loudly on the other line I don’t think I have ever heard him this upset. “Fine, you just keep your hands off her!” Alex sighs and dials my dad’s number while he is still holding on to my arm. I don’t know how he knew it but he seems to know things so I let it go. “Peter Rose,” my dad answers all but calmly. “Mr Rose, it is Alex speaking,”

“Mr Dover, where is my daughter?” My dad sounds furious. He must be very worried the way only he can worry about nothing. “We have arrived at Mr and Mrs Rayner’s farm a bit later than what we planned. There was a big storm which slowed us down tremendously.”

“I would like to speak to her now,” he couldn’t sound more in charge if he wanted to. “Lane is very confused, she fell and hit her head on cement and she has a concussion but you can speak to her now,” he holds the phone to my ear and try my best to concentrate so I wouldn’t sound the way I feel. “Hi dad,”

“Rosie, are you alright? What happened? I told you that this was a bad idea. Did that man hurt you?” this was second person in a minute that thought Alex was responsible for my injury, “Dad, please calm down, I am fine. I hit my head outside but I am fine now thanks to Alex.” I put a bit more emphasis on that last word.

“Okay then, I am glad that you are doing okay, please may I speak to your aunt now,”

“They are not here, they had to go help the neighbour with his sheep but I am sure they will be back soon, I will tell her to...”

“Are you alone in that house with him?” my dad says a bit louder than what was necessary. “Dad, stop being paranoid, I will ask Aunty Lee to phone you when she is back.” With that I look at Alex and he takes the phone away from my ear. “Mr Rose, I will make sure Mrs Rayner phones you when she arrives.”

“Very well,” my dad says and hangs up.

That phone call took all my energy and I feel fresh tears running down my face. I quickly rinse them off and Alex helps me out the bath. Wrapped up in a towel he carries me to his room again and leaves me lying on the bed but I sit up as soon as he leaves the room. He returns very quickly with my suitcase. He packs out my things in his wardrobe and puts my clean panties and t shirt on the bed next to me. I take my vanity case but Alex takes it from me, “What do you need?”

“Alex please, I can do this,” and he hands me the case again.

After applying all my lotions with the help of Alex and dressing in the clothes he put on the bed I hear my tummy grumbling.

“You need to eat something,” he smiles at me. Before he picks me up again I put on my best begging face, “please can I walk, I promise I will not fall again,” he pulls his mouth into a line but helps me up.

“And you need some pants,” he laughs.

“I only brought jeans, oh and shorts to sleep in, but it’s a bit cold,” I say.

He helps me down on the bed again and reaches for his still closed blue bag. “I am sure my sweat pants are way too big for you but it will do for dinner,” he says and opens the zipper on his bag. He takes out all the contents of the bag with one scoop and puts it next to me on the bed, the condom slides off the clothes and lies next to me. I stare down at it and a cold shiver runs down my spine. “Well, my little fall sure did put a stop to your plans for tonight,” I say and look up at him but the look of pain on his face made me regret that so much that I wish I could swallow those words down. “Lane, did you think that I would... I told you one step at a time,”

“No I remember, but how do you explain this?”

“It is one of the first things I pack, always.” I can’t stand looking at him anymore he confuses me so I turn my heavy head and look toward the window. “Lane, I pack it as a survival tool,” I start to laugh but he doesn’t seem amused at all, “If you would just let me finish. Think about it, it is water proof and will keep anything dry. I always have one handy for
that
reason only. Trust me.” I can see that he means it and I feel stupid for assuming things. But what was I supposed to think? “Okay, I believe you,” I say and he puts it back in his bag. I get up again and he helps me put on his sweat pants. It is too big for me but he pulls tightly on the rope and ties it. “Let’s go eat,” he says and walks me to the kitchen. 

Chapter 9

Alex helps me back to his bed after helping me to brush my teeth. My eyes are now so heavy I can hardly keep them open. As my head hits the pillow I drift off into a very deep sleep.

“Lay, wake up, Lay, come now, open your eyes,” I thought I was dreaming but it wasn’t a dream, Alex is calling me. It can’t possibly be morning already I still feel so tired. I open my eyes and try to sit up, “take it easy,” he says and I put my head back down on the pillow. “I am sorry to wake you up but with your concussion I will have to check on you every half hour for at least four hours,” he strokes my hair softly while saying this. “Can I go back to sleep now?” I mumble still very much asleep. “Not yet, just ten minutes okay?” Aunty Lee’s voice calls from the kitchen, “They’re back? My dad, did you...”

“Relax, it’s all taken care of and we won’t be going back tomorrow either.”

“But,”

“No buts, your dad is alright with the arrangements and in anyway, even if we wanted to, we wouldn’t be able to leave. The rain has been coming down hard and the road won’t be accessible.”

“Oh, okay.”  I look at his clothes then, he must have taken a shower during the time I was asleep. He is wearing a dark blue and white sweater, the one I am wearing the pants of. That reminded me, I don’t sleep very comfortably with pants. I wriggle out of them and hand it to him. He lifts an eyebrow at me but says nothing. “More comfortable this way,” I say and he nods. “How much longer?” I ask impatiently. I really want to get back to sleeping now. “You may sleep again,” he says and bends over to place a soft kiss on my cheek. “See you in a half hour,” he says and I slip away again.

This little routine happened two more times, him waking me up, chatting a bit and then kissing me good night. The fourth time he woke me up it was much darker and he was lying next to me. The only light was the battery operated lamp attached to the wall. This time he woke me up with a whisper. “Lay, love, wake up,” I just groaned and peeked out of one eye. “You have to wake up,” he says so softly. I open my eyes and slowly sit up against the headboard. “How many more times?” I ask with a very hoarse voice.

“Four more but then we are done and I promise I will leave you alone,”

“Where is Aunty Lee?” I ask softly mimicking him.

“Sleeping, they were very tired after the story at the neighbour’s.” I look at his hair which is flat on the one side from sleeping. “Alex,” I whisper, “Why am I still in your bed?” I feel suddenly awake then and look around me as if I have lost something. “I want to keep a close eye on you and I can’t do that when you are sleeping on the other side of the house,”

“But what will my family think if they see us sharing a bed? I don’t know if I am comfortable with this,”

“You don’t have to worry about that, we have your uncle’s blessing to share a bed, for tonight at least. Anyone in their right mind would know that you won’t be capable of doing anything but sleep tonight,” he chuckles. I slip down and put my head on the pillow again. I turn to look away from him but that is the side I hit my head so I am forced to turn and look toward him. “You may go back to sleep now,” he says softly. I close my eyes and he switches off the light but this time I don’t fall asleep straight away. I lie very still listening to him breathe next to me. Not only did he see me naked tonight but I am also sleeping with him and I am wearing nothing but a t shirt and panties. The Lane I know would never allow this, why on earth am I so calm about this now? Must be the head injury, I am sure I will be my normal self again in the morning. Very slowly I drift off into a self conscious sleep. Once again the soft whisper off my name wakes me up but this time there is no light in the room. I take a moment to figure out what is going on. My leg pins him down onto the bed and my hand is resting on the hair under his belly button. I move away from him too fast and breathe too hard. “Lay, are you alright?” How can I be alright with him in my bed? I try hard to gather my sleepy thoughts, “Yes, I think so,” I say a bit out of breath. He switches on the light and I squint even though it is not very bright. I lie there looking at the ceiling with the most delicious feeling spreading through my body. He has taken off his shirt during my sleeping time and he leans propped up on one elbow looking at me now. “How is your head?” he asks. “Its fine, really,” I cover myself even more with the duvet. “Are you sure?” he asks,

“Um, maybe not, I think I might have hit it harder than what I thought,” he looks worried and sits up takes his little flash light and shines it in my eyes again. I blink and look the other way, “That’s not what I mean,” I say but he carries on examining me. His strong hands feel my neck and slowly work its way up my head. My eyes are frozen on his bare chest. “Lay,” he says and I gulp for air, I didn’t realise I was holding my breath. “Yes,” I say and look into his now royal blue eyes, oh boy, I shouldn’t have done that. I sit up slowly and take a sip of water from my bottle on the side of his bed. He lies back down on his elbow with a smile on his face. “You really are feeling better aren’t you?” he says and his blue eyes follow my every movement. “Yeah, well enough to sleep in my own bed,” I say and sit crossed legged facing him. “Don’t you like sleeping with me?” he asks playfully, “Um, too much, maybe that’s the problem,” I say and feel my face heat up from that confession. I quickly lie back down and cover all but my face but I’m too hot so I kick it off again. He laughs softly but I don’t dare look at him. “You are beautiful do you know that,” he says and reaches for my hand. I look at him and the love in his eyes make my head spin even more. This is all too much for me; I close my eyes and try to go to sleep. He switches off the light and lie back down but he doesn’t let go of my hand. Sleep doesn’t come easily this time but it does come eventually.

The next three times he woke me up happened very quickly and thankfully without any blushing. The last time he said goodnight and placed a soft kiss on my lips. I slept well since then and when I woke up late that morning he was up already. I got up and felt surprisingly good but sad. I would have liked waking up with him next to me. I get my things ready to take a bath but as I leave the room he is waiting for me outside the room. “Where are you going?” I roll my eyes at him and walk on to the bathroom, he follows. When I reach the door of the bathroom I turn around and look at him. “I think I can manage this today,” I say and start closing the door but he catches it with his hand. “I agree, I won’t sit with you again today,” and I could swear I heard him say ‘for your own good.’ “But I will be sitting here by the door talking to you all the time just to make sure.” I sigh and pull the door from his hands but he doesn’t let go, “With the door open,”

“I hope you never treated your other patients this way,” I snort and leave him standing at the door. I take off my shirt but I know he is still watching my back. When I look over my shoulder he is sitting in the door with his back to me. Good, that will teach him.

After dressing and making the most of my flat hair and a pin I walk back to his room with my little tail Alex, following. I pack up my things and he helps me to carry it to my room. I quickly unpack my things. Thank goodness I always pack more than what I need. I will have to phone Matt later to tell him I won’t be able to do music but I will wait for a time when Alex is not with me, I don’t know what the story is between them. In the kitchen Aunty Lee has made the best smelling breakfast muffins. She is so glad to see that I am better and she can’t stop smiling at us. Uncle Nick has gone out early to look up on the neighbours but he will be back before midday for coffee and a treat. “He will need some help with the gate later Alex, if you don’t mind,” she says and starts to wash the dishes we had just dirtied. We stay with her then and start chatting about our family. She asks a lot of questions about my dad and his girlfriend. I leave out the part where they are no longer together. We chat a bit about my cousins and then she starts talking about my mom. “My sister in law was the most beautiful woman, have you ever seen a picture of her Alex?” but before he answers she goes to fetch the family album. “Just look at that,” she says and points to the face I have only seen on photos for the past five years. “You look more like your mother everyday Rosie,” she says and wipes away a tear. My throat closes up but I fight the tears. I keep on paging through the album instead. “What is her name?” Alex asks and in unison we answer,

“Emily Mary Magdalene.” Aunty Lee points me out to Alex in several other pictures. “Lane spent almost every weekend here on the farm while she was at school.” And she smiles at me lovingly. “She is the daughter I never had,” There is a photo of me sitting upright and uncomfortably on a horse, one where I am playing the guitar and my three cousins are dancing wildly around the fire and one of me and Matt. “That was her eighteenth birthday. She didn’t want it anywhere else but right here. Her cousins made fun of her for months for bringing her ‘boyfriend’ here.” She laughs at the memory and leaves us to look through the rest of the album ourselves.