‘And I get it,’ He continues, ‘I was that way after Sophia. I couldn’t imagine myself deserving anyone with half a brain. But, Millie, you’re making this so much harder than it needs to be. You are smart, and savvy, and witty, and opinionated. You are ruthlessly sexy. Why can’t you see that? Why can’t you let your guard down?’

Normally I would be thrilled Hugh said I was ruthlessly sexy. Instead, I feel stupid and exposed. ‘What is this?’ I say, through gritted teeth. ‘Hugh, you live in Australia. I live in Ohio, for crying out loud. This can’t be anything! It’s not a big deal, OK?’

‘It could be something if we want it to be,’ Hugh counters evenly, but then he stops himself. ‘But if you don’t feel the same way . . .’

I falter. I cross and uncross my legs. Hugh looks down at his feet. I know what I have to say, but I don’t want to say it. I know I can’t keep letting this play out. It won’t end up going anywhere, and it’s distracting me from what I need to focus on. I think of Millie. I think of Millie undergoing surgery, of all the things she has to go through while I get to lounge around on a boat.

‘I don’t,’ I force out. ‘I don’t feel the same way.’ Hugh’s face starts to crumple, and I bolt. Hurting him was bad enough, I can’t take watching it. I duck out of the room and into the bathroom, where I can cry in peace.

‘Millie?’ Pippa knocks softly on the bathroom door a couple minutes later. ‘Is that you in there? I’m so sorry but I really need the loo.’

I squeeze myself out of the bathroom and let Pippa inside. She takes one look at my red eyes and says, ‘Oh no.’

I sniffle.

‘Don’t go anywhere,’ she says, ducking into the bathroom, ‘I’ll be right back.’

Pippa leads me to her room with the energy of a mom dealing with her high school daughter’s first crisis. ‘Why don’t you sit down?’ she says, offering up her bed. Her room is hardly bigger than ours but sports a double bed instead of twin bunks. I can tell which corner is Pippa’s instantly, due to the array of brightly coloured scarf-like clothing items spilling out from a suitcase. ‘I told Andrew we needed the room. Girl emergency.’

I feel a surge of gratitude towards both of them.

‘Tell me everything,’ Pippa commands, perching on the edge of the bed next to me.

I do.

Chapter 23

One dive (and one day trip) left

It takes me over an hour to explain to Pippa everything that’s taken place over the past two weeks. Although fifteen minutes of it consisted strictly of Pippa gasping dramatically at everything I said.