‘Yeah, but I promise that I’ll get a date in the diary with Julie too.’

Dad puts his hands in his pockets.

‘Thanks, I know she’d like that. She really does want to get to know you and it would mean a lot to me. You both mean so much to me.’

I’m starting to feel a little sick, like the adrenaline that was keeping me going on stage is starting to ebb away. Julie walks back up to us and I force myself to smile.

‘I was just asking Edie about your shopping trip, but she’s busy this weekend; she’s throwing a party.’

‘Not a party per se, just some friends coming over. My flat’s too small for a proper party.’

‘Do you want me to make you some cupcakes for it?’

‘Julie’s an excellent baker,’ says Dad.

I think of her banoffee pie.

‘Um, I wouldn’t want you to go to any trouble.’

‘It’d be no trouble.’

She’s looking hopefully at me and I feel like the best thing to do is let her.

‘Thank you, that’s really kind.’

She’s beaming and so is Dad. I can see how much me letting her in, even if it is a little bit, means to him.

‘Shall we go and get a drink?’ I say.

The rest of the gang are delighted to see that my dad came to watch them and everyone makes a fuss meeting Julie. They spend a few minutes chatting and they’ve already made more of an effort to get to know her than I have. I must try harder.

‘No Miles tonight?’ asks Layla, coming to stand next to me.

‘No, he’s got a lot of work on this week.’

My dad’s not the only person that I’m avoiding at the moment. It might be true that Miles is working a lot of extra hours, but I didn’t even ask him to come tonight. Spending so much time with Joel has only highlighted the issues Miles and I have with communication. I know I have to talk to him but I’m worried what it’s going to mean for us when I do.

‘That’s a shame. He’ll be at the frisbee. Won’t he?’

‘He sure will.’

They’ll be no hiding from him then. Or Joel who’ll be there too. Joel whom, ever since that morning watching the sunrise on the beach, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about.

Chapter 25

THEN

After our near kiss, it was days before Joel and I found ourselves alone. I’d naively assumed that I’d speak to him the next day, but there was always someone around and it wasn’t like it was the kind of thing that I could bring up in front of Soph or Douglas or any of the other staff.