‘Which are?’
‘To alleviate my guilt for scaring you half to death. Honestly, I feel awful.’
‘It’s okay. You didn’t mean to. You were there just waiting for your owl.’ I lift my tea to my lips and blow on it before taking a sip. ‘Although you were in full camouflage which is rather scary. Do you always dress like that?’
‘To photograph animals, I do. It helps me blend in with the surroundings, which is kind of the point of camouflage.’
‘Well, it works.’ I laugh. ‘I was just telling my mum about you actually, she said I shouldn’t be meeting strange men in forests when I’m on my own.’
‘That’s probably good advice. Your mum’s a wise woman.’
‘I told her how good you were though, and she’s very grateful.’
‘Anyone would have done the same.’
‘No, really, you went above and beyond. You didn’t have to stay with me in the hospital, nor bring me home.’
‘Of course I did.’
‘And you definitely didn’t need to go out of your way to bring my boot back and make my breakfast,’ I say, accepting a plate of toast from him. He goes back to the kitchen and pours the muesli into a bowl with some milk. ‘Feel free to help yourself to anything you fancy.’
‘I’ve already eaten, thank you.’
‘I feel like a pig eating all this in front of you.’
‘Don’t be daft. Eat up or I’ll be offended.’ He smiles as he sits in the armchair opposite. The sun coming through the window shines on his hair, making the soft frizzy bits glow like a halo around his head. ‘Did you sleep okay or did the pain keep you awake?’
‘I managed a bit of sleep, but I woke up a few times.’
‘I felt bad about leaving you here alone last night. I kept imagining you stranded in your bed. I gave you loads of liquids then offered you no assistance in getting to the loo.’
‘If it’s any consolation,’ I say, crunching through my toast, ‘I wouldn’t have let you take me to the loo.’
He laughs. ‘You know what I mean. I was just concerned about you. And I was hoping you’d have someone with you today.’
‘My mum’s coming later.’
‘I thought she was getting your car.’
‘She is, but she’s calling in first to see me.’
‘Well, make sure she knows you need help. You shouldn’t struggle on your own when I’m sure you have people around you that want to help.’
‘How do you know that people want to help?’ I wipe toast crumbs from my mouth with my pyjama sleeve before reaching for my mug of tea.
‘Why wouldn’t they?’
I shrug. ‘People have their own lives. You’re very kind, but I’m fine, really.’
‘Sure you are. Is that why you look so pale and tired?’
‘Cheers!’
‘Well, you do. You’ve got dark circles under your eyes.’
‘It’s probably yesterday’s mascara. I didn’t remove my make-up last night.’
He shakes his head and picks up a newspaper. ‘You look knackered.’
I laugh. ‘Any more compliments?’
‘Nice pyjamas?’
‘Thanks.’ I pick up my bowl of muesli and start spooning it into my mouth. I hadn’t realised how hungry I am until I started to eat. Milk dribbles down my chin and onto my pyjama top and I’m relieved that Aiden is reading the paper and not watching me. ‘Can you put the TV on?’ I ask, after a while of sitting in silence. Not that it’s uncomfortable, I just want to watch the news.
‘Of course.’
As he gets up, the doorbell rings. ‘Ah, would this be your mother, do you think?’
‘It’s a bit early. She said she wouldn’t be able to come until later.’ I sit up and try to peer through the window to see if there’s a car parked outside, but I can’t see one. ‘I bet it’s my friend Katie. Can you get it for me?’
Obediently, he goes and answers the door. Sure enough, it’s Katie. From my position on the sofa, I see her jaw drop as she stares up at Aiden in amazement.
‘Hi,’ he says easily. ‘If it’s Orla you’re wanting, she’s laid up on the couch with a badly sprained ankle.’
‘Oh no! Really?’ She peers around the door into the room and looks at me with big round eyes. ‘What happened?’
‘Some eejit jumped out and scared her half to death,’ Aiden says, making me laugh. Katie glances up at him, and I can see she’s wondering who he is.
‘I got my foot stuck in a rabbit hole,’ I tell her. ‘Come in, Katie. This is Aiden. He helped me when I fell and took me to the hospital.’
‘Oh good. At least you had someone with you!’ She comes into the room and sits in the chair that Aiden’s just vacated before leaning forward and peering at my bandaged ankle. ‘Look how big it is! Is that just loads and loads of bandage or is it really that huge?’
‘Bit of both, I expect.’ I spoon up another mouthful of muesli. ‘Katie lives upstairs, Aiden,’ I tell him, covering my mouth so he can’t see the food inside. ‘See, I’m not totally friendless.’
‘Glad to hear it,’ Aiden says, turning to Katie. ‘She needs help, though she won’t admit it or ask for it.’
‘No, she never does,’ Katie says.
‘Ah, a common theme then?’
‘Definitely.’
‘Hey!’ I say, annoyed they’re talking about me like I’m not in the room. ‘I’m okay. I can hop, it’s fine.’
‘I’d like to see you hop holding a cup of tea or a bowl of cereal,’ Aiden says.
‘Shut up and sit back down,’ I tell him. ‘You’re making the place look untidy.’
‘Ah no, you’ve got a friend to help now,’ he says. ‘And I’ve got some things to get from town so I better go. Here, I’ll leave you my number.’ He stoops to scribble his name on my notepad on the table. ‘Call me if you need anything.’ He smiles at me as he straightens up then turns to Katie. ‘Nice to meet you, Katie. Bye now.’
‘Oh my God, who was he?!’ Katie says once he’s gone. She goes to the window to watch him striding down the path towards his truck. ‘He was like … oh my God!’
‘Like what?’ I say, bristling defensively in case she says something negative about him.
‘Totally sexy.’
‘Really?’ Well, that was unexpected! I didn’t think she’d think that at all.
‘Hell yeah! Why? Don’t you think so?’ She turns and looks at me in surprise.
I shrug. ‘I haven’t really thought about him like that. He’s the guy who got me to hospital, watched me vomit, and now has seen me looking like death in my pyjamas.’
‘You don’t look like death! You look sexy and rumpled.’ Sitting back down in the armchair, she tucks her legs beneath her.
‘Well, he told me I did.’
‘I bet he didn’t. What did he say?’
‘He said I looked knackered.’
‘Knackered isn’t like death, Orla. Knackered is sexy and rumpled.’