Alexis scrunched up her nose in distaste. “Nothing sugary, please. All I seem to crave these days is salt. Like, I could literally eat crackers with cheese and olives all day long and not get sick of them.”
“I saw a little delicatessen on the way here. We could go grab some food to tide you over if you like?” I suggested.
“I’ll take her,” said King, placing his hand on the small of her back.
Alexis shot me a contented look. “He’s determined to be the perfect baby daddy since he wasn’t around the first time. If I want a sandwich in the middle of the night he’ll literally get out of bed to make it for me.”
I chuckled. “Living the dream, eh?”
She let out a swoony sigh. “Pretty much.”
Lee made a whipping sound, but King only shot him a look that said he wasn’t going to rise to it. He was way too Zen to be riled by that sort of teasing.
“I thought you lot weren’t arriving until tomorrow,” a voice exclaimed, and I turned to see Trev striding over.
“We wanted to surprise you,” said Karla, while Lee’s attention zoomed right in on his brother’s injured wrist, his expression that of a concerned parent.
“What happened to you?” he asked, eyeing Trev’s cast.
“I fell. It’s nothing serious.”
“We’ll see. How long’s it gonna take to heal?”
Trev shrugged. “A couple of weeks.” Turning his attention from his brother, he went to give Karla and Alexis a hug then shook hands with King. We all stood around chatting for a few minutes, then King took Alexis to go find food. Lee and Karla stayed to watch the shoot, and I went back to work.
“Reya!” Isaac whisper-hissed as I passed carrying a cardboard holder full of iced coffees. “Come here for a second.”
He was sitting on a bench fidgeting with the hem of his T-shirt and looking pretty much like a hot mess. “Isaac, what happened to you?”
He ran a hand over the top of his head and levelled me with a panicked expression. “I just had an interesting conversation with Barry.”
“Oh?” I said, arching a brow and suppressing a smile. I had a feeling I knew why he was so worked up.
“They’re considering offering me a one-year contract to star in the show. And they have this idea to film the next series in Johannesburg.”
At this my mouth fell open. I suspected they were going to offer him a part, but I had no clue they wanted to film the fourth season in South Africa. “They do?”
He nodded, a little frantic. “It was partly Trevor’s idea. You were right when you said Joburg was on his bucket list.”
I stepped closer, manoeuvred the tray into one hand and gave his shoulder a squeeze. “That’s such fantastic news, Isaac. I’m so happy for you.”
He half smiled, half grimaced. “Don’t congratulate me yet. I’m not sure Barry understands the challenge he’s up against. He wants to shoot on rooftops in the township where I grew up. He said the gritty aesthetic will appeal to viewers, whatever that means. He’ll be lucky if his equipment isn’t robbed by the end of the first day.”
I chuckled at this. “Well, if you do end up filming there, you just let Barry worry about that. If nothing else, having his equipment stolen will be a character-building exercise.”
That got a small grin out of him before his expression sobered again. “Mum is going to hit the roof. When we emigrated she never wanted me to go back. She . . . we left a lot of demons behind.”
I frowned, wondering what he meant by that. Instead I gave him an empathetic look. “I’m sure she’ll find a way to understand. This is a big opportunity for you, Isaac. One you might not get again.”
He blew out a breath. “I know. I guess that’s why I want to thank you.”
My eyebrows rose. “Me?”
“If it weren’t for you being kind to me when we first met, I wouldn’t even be here. Anyone else would’ve had me carted off that rooftop. But you didn’t, you stayed and talked to me, took an interest. You’re a good person, Reya.”
There was something about his simple expression of gratitude that had me welling up. “You’re a good person, too, Isaac. Just remember me when you’re taking over the world.”
He gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Right. If I ever win an award you can be sure I’ll include you in the acceptance speech.”
I smiled. “I’ll hold you to that.”
Twenty-Seven.
As soon as filming wrapped for the day we headed for food. On the walk to the restaurant I linked arms with Karla and told her all about the last few weeks and my recent reunion with Paula and Samuel. She expressed both shock and surprise at the turn of events. She was also unexpectedly supportive when I told her about mine and Trev’s reconciliation. I think she knew it was inevitable something would happen, with us spending so much time together.
I was touched when Trev pulled out my seat for me at the restaurant, unused to such boyfriend-ly gestures. In the past year, I’d missed out on things like having someone hold a door open for me or offer to carry my bags. It really was the small things that made a difference. The way he looked at me with such love and adoration somehow made me feel more comfortable in my own skin.
I felt accepted, and it was a new and pleasant feeling.
Trev’s and my reunion, combined with that of my brother and sister, made me realise something so basic that had always eluded me. I’d subconsciously felt unworthy. Although I sought love, there was some part of me that felt like I didn’t deserve it. After all, if the people who brought me into the world didn’t want me, then why would anyone else? Equally, if they could cast me aside, disown me . . . Well, now I have a better perspective.
Trev invited me to come on this trip because he wanted the chance to win me back. He’d gone out of his way to prove to me that we deserved another shot. It wasn’t the fact that I had his love that gave me this new sense of self-worth. It was that he’d worked for it, made the effort. Persisted.
I watched him talking to Lee, my heart so full of love I felt like it might burst. Trev’s eyes were a vivid blue against the hint of a tan he was developing. We’d been spending a lot of time outdoors, and though he was naturally pale, he was one of those lucky people who didn’t burn.
I couldn’t take my eyes off him the entire meal, how his forest-green shirt draped perfectly across his toned shoulders, how his belt fit around his trim waist. He was the opposite of me in every way and it had always been one of the main reasons why I was so attracted to him.
“So,” said King. “I’ve gotten us all ringside seats for the circus tonight.”
I perked up at this, because in the midst of my googly eyed Trev fixation, I’d forgotten all about the circus. There was a giddy five-year-old inside me that became excited about all things circus related, mainly because there was the chance I’d get to see elephants.
“Do we have time for a quick shower and change of clothes?” Trev asked, his arm draped around my shoulders.
“Of course,” King replied. “We’ll collect you and Reya around eight. Sound good?”