An Endless Summer(10)
I glared down at him. “Trust me, it didn’t do much for me either.”
He moved his hands away from his face to reveal a boyish grin.
He shook his head. “One minute I’m walking along, minding my own business, and the next thing I know the bloody pub falls down and I’m nearly pancaked by a screaming girl; I thought all my Christmases had come at once.” He continued to laugh. “Not the pub falling down part, but the damsel in distress thing wasn’t bad.”
I sat straight up and crossed my arms in distaste. “I see you haven’t changed.”
He lifted himself onto his elbows. “Honestly, Amy, you say that like it’s a bad thing.”
Matt’s cough interrupted my seething reply. Once I’d looked up at Matt, then back at Sean, I realised in a stroke of horror that not only was I still on top of Sean but I was straddling him rather inappropriately. I locked eyes with Sean, his brows raised in amusement. I stumbled to my feet like I had been struck by lightning and accidently stepped on him.
“Ah, Jesus, Amy!”
My cheeks were on fire as I manoeuvred myself to my feet. Matt offered Sean a helping hand off the ground and, as he dusted himself off, both sets of eyes froze on me. My eyes narrowed in confusion and I followed their gazes. I looked down to see my shirt had been torn clean in two. My black lace bra was exposed to the world, totally and utterly out there saying, Hello, boys!
I gasped and clenched the fabric together, mortified. Could this day get any worse?
Before I disgraced myself any further, I gingerly excused myself and turned towards the hotel door. I paused mid-step and spun around to face Sean.
“Is there something you wanted?”
Matt brushed past me, not even managing to look me in the eye.
Sean stepped forward, plunged his hands into his pockets, and shrugged. “I was just stopping by for a cold one. Say g’day to your dad.”
“Well, he’s not here,” I said, perhaps a bit too quickly.
Sean nodded. A wry smile formed on his lips. “Well, a cold one then?”
“Sorry, we’re closed.” And before he could ask another question, I stepped into the hotel, kicked the door closed, and leaned against it with a deep sigh.
Mortified!
I shifted to my left a little, leaning slowly to peer out through the dirty windowpane. Sean stood staring at the closed door, perplexed. He rubbed his stubbled chin and looked upwards to the newly formed skylight in the balcony. He smirked.
“Just go, just go,” I whispered under my breath.
“Are we really closed?”
I flinched at the unexpected voice right next to my ear, as Matt’s narrowed eyes followed what I was looking at outside.
We were closed all right; I just hoped we weren’t condemned.
Chapter Five
I studied my reflection in the bathroom mirror and surveyed the damage.
One grazed elbow, a few scratches, a torn shirt, amazingly no bloodshed, but just like my top, my dignity had been well and truly trashed. Groaning, I cupped my face and leaned against the sink; at least I hadn’t been in a skirt, wearing a G-banger …
Small miracles, I guess.
My fringe parted as I blew out a laboured breath, my hands falling at my sides, exhausted. I straightened, a new thought running through my mind.
“I could have died,” I said aloud to myself. “I could have totally died.”
I reached into my pocket for my phone, punching in the numbers with fierce intent.
The phone rang, one, two, three times … “Hello?” my mum’s upbeat voice answered.
“Mum!”
“Oh hi, honey, did you make it all right?”
“Yeah, well …”
“Oh, that’s wonderful. Guess where your dad’s taking me?”
The last of Mum’s voice was drowned out by the loud ear-bleeding burst of an engine; I winced away from the phone.
“What is that?”
Vroom… Vroom…
“Oh, that’s your dad’s new bike.” Mum’s voice held an excited thrill.
“Whaaaaat?” I said. “You have got to be kidding me, a motorbike?”
“A trike.”
Oh, this was getting worse.
Mum could barely contain her excitement. “He’s taking me for a ride!”
“Dear God …” The midlife crisis had reached a new level and now he was dragging Mum into it, down the Western Ring Road like a bat out of hell, no doubt. God they were so embarrassing.
“Mum, I don’t think …”
“Honey, I better go! Your dad’s got the motor running. Ooh, wish me luck!”
Before I could so much as think, the line went dead.
I looked at the phone, confused. There had been a pretty important point to my phone call, but I had been completely sidetracked by Mum’s erratic excitement. I envisioned them screaming up the highway, two middle-aged misfits getting their kicks, pulling over for a pit stop somewhere, pulling off their helmets and pashing madly …