The sea was calm as two figures pushed the small boat out into the water, then hopped in. With the engine running low to minimise noise, they made their way slowly down the river from Richborough and into the Channel.
The night was pitch black, but it didn’t matter; Colin could have made this crossing blindfold. Jimmy came to stand beside him at the helm, and their shoulders touched.
‘Are you sure about this?’ Colin said. ‘You know that neither of us can go back home now.’
‘I don’t care.’ Jimmy took Colin’s hand. ‘As long as we’re together, we’ll always have a home of sorts.’
‘Will it be enough for you?’ Colin replied, unable to quite dispel the devastating pain that had cut through his heart when he’d discovered Jimmy was getting married.
‘Oh, love, I’m so sorry.’ Jim put a hand on either side of Colin’s face and kissed him softly. ‘If I’d known you were alive, I’d have come and found you long ago,’ he whispered against his lips. ‘The only thing that can separate us now is death.’
Colin stared into the face he thought he’d never see again and realised he had no choice but to trust him – not now he knew what a life without Jimmy was like.
‘France is dangerous,’ he said. ‘And we may not be able to stay together. Resistance fighters go where they’re told.’
‘No. We stay together,’ Jimmy said fiercely. ‘Or we don’t fight.’
Colin chuckled slightly. ‘Till death us do part, then,’ he murmured, putting his arm around Jimmy’s waist and pulling him close.
Jim rested his head on Colin’s shoulder. ‘To love and to cherish,’ he replied. ‘For ever and ever.’