He pulled away. ‘You’ll enjoy it,’ he said, standing up and cricking his neck. He rubbed at his shoulder, and the awkwardness of it was the least self-assured I’d ever seen him. I wanted to reach for his hand, to tell him I was here, to go back five seconds in time so that I wouldn’t ruin the spell he’d been weaving. He gave me something I wanted more of – the nearness of him was intoxicating, the way the air shifted when he was teasing me lulled me into breathing deeper and smiling wider. I’d hated it the other morning, when he’d disappeared and acted odd. Sitting next to him was better than not sitting next to him. I couldn’t wait for it to be morning so that we had another full day together, and then another one after that. Saying goodnight was my least favourite part of the day.

‘Just trust me,’ he said, already back in the living room. ‘Sleep tight …’

‘Sleep tight,’ I called after him. ‘Remember it’s an 8 a.m. pick-up in the morning so we have plenty of time for the flight.’

I sat staring into the darkness long after he’d gone, my heart racing but not quite sure why.

21

The second leg of the trip was the east coast, so Bianca drove us to the airport and we headed from Perth to Sydney on another business-class flight.

‘You two are the cutest,’ she said as she pulled us into a three-way hug at departures. ‘I wish everything for you that you wish for yourself.’

‘Thanks, Bianca,’ Patrick said. ‘You’ve been the best tour guide.’

She waved a hand like it was nothing. ‘Just doing my job,’ she said. ‘Enjoy the rest of your non-honeymoon.’ Patrick had finally revealed the truth about our adventure as a parting gift for her, and she’d had hundreds of follow-up questions about it.

‘I’m going to tell this story to everyone I know!’ she declared. ‘You came on your honeymoon anyway, Annie! That’s so badass!’

It took just over four hours in the air, where we slipped into a calmer dynamic – there was less pressure to chat and keep each other entertained, and so we sat side by side in contented silence, occasionally pointing things out in the in-flight magazine, but otherwise amiably quiet. I found myself really enjoying those peaceful moments with him, where we didn’t scramble to make sure the other was having a good time. Patrick wasn’t always the ‘razzle-dazzle’ guy I’d first thought he was – he could be muted and thoughtful. I liked discovering that side of him. I liked peeling back the layers the rest of the world didn’t get to see, unearthing the depths of him and how he trusted me. Having Patrick’s trust was a coup. I was special because of it.