Annie felt uncomfortable. It felt as if someone was watching her, but when she looked around her, she saw no one doing that. It would be anyway challenging to find anyone in this crowd.
It wasn’t the first time it happened this week. Since the previous Saturday, when Marcus took her home after the night at O’Malley’s, Annie had this feeling. Annie turned again, just in time to see Marcus and the boys making their way towards them. Her heart tripped when their eyes met. He had known she and Maddie would be here today. She had told him last night. He, however, hadn’t mentioned that they were coming. She wondered if he had it planned.
“Hey,” was all he said when he reached them.
“Hey yourself,” Annie answered, and then they both smiled. It had been their greeting all those years ago.
Maddie and Cody fell into their own game and private conversation, excluding Samuel.
When one of Samuel’s friends appeared, Samuel begged Marcus to join Joshua and his parents. They were only sitting a few metres away, and Marcus relented. Marcus watched the boys until they reached the other group. Joshua’s father turned and raised his hand in greeting, which Marcus returned. Only then did he turn back to Annie, “Do you want coffee?”
Annie nodded. Coffee might warm her. The day was cold, but at least no rain was in the forecast. It would’ve disappointed Maddie and the rest of the children if they had to postpone this fun day, arranged by one of the local schools.
Marcus bent to the level of the two kids running around them, asking them if they wanted something. Both shook their heads and continued with their game. Annie watched Marcus walk away towards the stall selling hot beverages.
It had been a week since their last kiss, but Annie hadn’t forgotten it. It wasn’t as easy to forget, as somehow, apart from the daily messages, she seemed to run into Marcus more often than usual. It could be because she had been working from home this week, preparing for the Winelands Fashion Week.
Although Blue Mountain was not the only estate involved with the Fashion Week, Annie and Meghan had collaborated with an exclusive fashion show as part of the Estate’s contribution. Annie was grateful Meghan will do this, so close to Catherine Mason’s celebrity wedding only a few weeks away.
Annie shifted. Again she had that uncomfortable feeling of being watched, but it would be no use searching for that person. She was, however, grateful when Marcus returned. When he handed her the polystyrene cup with the warm liquid, his fingers stroking over hers, almost imperceptibly, before he took his hand away.
It hadn’t been an accident. Marcus did that deliberately because when she looked up at him, his eyes rested on her mouth at first before his heated gaze slid over her face to meet her eyes.
His voice sounded husky when he started, “Annie,” but then both Cody and Maddie chose that moment to ask, “Can we go on the jumping castle? Please, please, pretty please?” Maddie pleaded, fluttering her eyelashes at Marcus.
If Annie hadn’t seen it, she wouldn’t believe it. Her little girl was flirting with Marcus! Annie could only surmise that Maddie learned to do that from Melanie or Mackenzie or Meghan because Maddie could no way had seen her mother do that. Annie had stopped flirting when she was eighteen.
Annie looked at Marcus, and she saw the amusement on his face when he regarded the two kids. He tugged Maddie’s hair and said, “How can I say no to you when you ask so nicely, Pumpkin?”
Maddie giggled, “I’m not a pumpkin!”
“Hmm, sometimes I wonder,” Marcus teased back. He leaned down and kissed Maddie on the cheek, pretending to taste, “Hmm, definitely taste like pumpkin,” which had both kids in stitches.
Marcus stood up straight and said to them, “Come on, let’s go.”
The two children didn’t wait. They took off, but Marcus called them back, “Walk with us, otherwise no jumping castle.”
The two looked at each other and sighed, Maddie far more dramatically than Cody, but they did what Marcus asked. Annie could just shake her head, and Marcus chuckled.
They stopped at the other group to let Samuel know where they would be. It hadn’t been a long conversation, but the way the two younger kids reacted, it might have been hours.
When they reached the jumping castle, Maddie and Cody were on it in a flash, joining the group of smaller kids playing their hearts out. There was another jumping castle for the older kids, so both Annie and Marcus felt safe to let the kids play. There were also teachers and other parents supervising. Marcus and Annie found a place on the grass where they still had a view of the jumping castle, and they settled down to drink their coffee.
Although they had talked via messaging since Annie’s birthday, they hadn’t spoken to each other one to one. At first, the conversation was awkward. They spoke about the upcoming fashion show, then about Nathan and Meghan’s wedding. They talked about the children and the rest of the family. General stuff, but the conversation became more relaxed and comfortable.
They spoke about books they’ve read or wanted to read, and the movies they had seen.
Marcus laughed, the sound sending ripples down Annie’s spine, “I doubt if I’ve seen an adult movie in years.”
Annie realised it was true. Once she and Kathleen attempted to go to the movies while Anna took care of Maddie, but they first went out for cocktails and never got around to the theatre.
She also laughed, “You’re not the only one. It’s all princesses and Dr Seuss.”
“If you have a choice, what movie would you like to see?” Marcus fished.
“I don’t even know what’s on the circuit anymore,” Annie admitted.
By the time Maddie and Cody had exhausted themselves on the jumping castle, Marcus and Annie had finished their coffees. They had both leaned back on their hands, and their legs stretched out.
Somehow the distance between them had evaporated. Their shoulders and legs touched. Although Annie pretended not to notice, she was aware of Marcus’ warmth so close to her.
It was only when his fingers slid over hers, Annie could no longer ignore it. She looked up at Marcus. He had been watching her so he could gauge her reaction. He leaned in closer, not so close to kiss her, but close enough he could whisper, “Annie, I would…”
He stopped when the simultaneous shouts of Maddie and Cody calling “Mummy” and “Daddy,” reached them only seconds before the two children plopped down on Marcus’ and Annie’s legs. It didn’t surprise Annie when Cody ended up on her legs and Maddie on Marcus’. The two kids were so comfortable with each other, and the other one’s parent they had done it before at home.
Marcus reached down to wipe Maddie’s wind-swept and unruly hair from her sweaty face. Cody had just flopped down on his back, his face as red as Maddie’s. Annie sat up, slipping her hand from underneath Marcus’ and put her hands over the little boy. Cody gave her such a beautiful upside-down grin, so like Marcus’ own that Annie’s heart melted.
An older couple walked by. The woman stopped and smiled, “You are a lovely family.”
At that moment Annie wished it could be true. Before she could say they were not a family, Marcus smiled and said, “Thank you.”
The couple walked away, and Annie turned to Marcus to ask him why he said that but he didn’t give her a chance. He looked at her and shrugged, “What? We are a family. We had been for years.”
And Annie’s heart broke again.
Yes, Marcus was right. They were family. They had been a family for almost thirty years when her mother married his father. There was a time when she and Marcus were more than family, but that was over years ago. She shouldn’t think that a couple of kisses had changed anything.
She managed a stiff smile and said, “You’re right.”
She daren’t say anything else. Annie gently pushed Cody from her lap and stood up. Marcus frowned when Annie held out her hand to Maddie and said, “We got to go. We’re having lunch with Meghan and Jennifer.”
Marcus lifted Maddie to stand up and pushed himself to his feet. He looked and sounded confused when he held out his hand and asked, “Annie? Is something wrong?”
Yes, Marcus, there is something wrong. You’ve just broken my heart for the second time, and I was stupid enough to allow it.
She didn’t say the words, though. She took a breath and shook her head, “No, nothing’s wrong. And it is Anne-Marie now, remember.”
With that, she took Maddie’s hand and walked away, leaving a confused Marcus behind.
What the hell had just happened? Did he say something wrong? Marcus tried to think what he said while he stared at Annie’s back.
When Annie disappeared into the crowd, Marcus took Cody’s hand. The boy wanted to protest, but Marcus won him over when he promised Cody food. Marcus felt deflated now that Annie and Maddie had left. He had hoped that they could spend the rest of the day together as a family and do something tonight.
Marcus had hoped that if Annie could see how they could be as a family together, she might give him a chance. Now he doubts if that would happen.
They collected Samuel, and the two boys were chatting amongst themselves, giving Marcus a chance to reflect on their conversation. While they waited in the queue for their food, Marcus wondered why Annie retreated so fast.
Even after they had eaten and he had cleaned the boys up, Marcus still hadn’t figured it out.