and her stockings were ripped. Her hair was dripping-wet, she had lost a shoe and all in all she looked a dishevelled mess.
Mari rushed forward faster than she thought possible and grabbed hold of Rosa around the waist. ‘What happened. Are you okay?’
‘It’s snowy. I slipped.’ And then Rosa’s legs collapsed under her and she slid towards the floor in an ungraceful faint as Mari tried to take her weight and failed.
It was Ethan who got there first and took Rosa in his arms before she hit the carpet, a fraction of a second before the entire crowd of people surged forward, pushing past her to help Rosa into a chair. Someone brought water. One of the lifeboat crew took a quick glance at Rosa’s arm, looked back at Mari and her aunt and mouthed,
‘broken wrist’
, then reached for his mobile phone to call the hospital.
A wave of nausea and dizziness hit Mari, forcing her to press her hand down on the nearest table for support. The wine. She should have eaten something before the wine. Now just the thought of food made her dizzier than ever, and she closed her eyes and fought air into her lungs.
She couldn’t believe it. Only a few seconds earlier Rosa had been laughing and jigging along to the jukebox. Her aunt Alice graspedhold of Mari’s arm for a second before rushing forwards from the bar to be with Rosa. Rosa had to be okay. She just had to.
Ethan stood back, watching the scene from the back of the room, as his place at Rosa’s side was taken by her family.
Rosa was surrounded by the people who loved her, while Ethan felt very much the outsider. Oh, the family were friendly and everyone here had welcomed him but, when it came to it, he was still just a visitor.
This was what he’d felt like after Kit had died. Mari had become even more withdrawn. Distant. Solitary. She had disappeared into her studies. Driven. Obsessive. Trying to take care of the family as best she could.
Mari had been sixteen going on thirty and on her own.
He had seen it and not had the skills and power to do anything about it.
How could he? His family were moving to Florida full-time, he was set for university in America and the world of sailing, and the happy summer holidays he had spent here as a boy were over for good.
Rosa had told him that Mari had decided to use her education to get out of Swanhaven. He recalled asking Rosa if she would do thesame, and she’d said she’d tried, she really had, but compared to Mari? No way. Besides, she loved Swanhaven and had wanted to stay with her mother and the aunts and cousins. This was where she felt she belonged.
And then he had to leave Swanhaven and Mari and her family.
Of course everything had come to a head on the night of her sixteenth birthday party. She had waited all day for her father to turn up. But it had been Ethan who’d followed her out onto the beach and held on to her as she’d raged against the unfairness and cruelty of what he had done, talking and shouting in an explosion of suppressed emotion and crying and hanging on to him for strength until the dawn. Then he’d kissed her goodbye.
And then he had watched her pale silent face grow smaller and smaller as his family had driven out of Swanhaven. It had been one of the hardest things he had ever done. For one night he had felt an unshakeable bond with Mari which was so special. So unique. And he hadn’t had the emotional tools he needed to talk to her about Kit and make her understand how truly devastated he was.
It had been easier to leave with his parents and start a new life. And he was sorry for that.
It had hurt to see her in pain then. And it hurt now.
Ignoring the other people moving towards Rosa with coats and offers of a car to the hospital, Ethan wound his way around the room, looped his arm around Mari’s waist and half carried her as far as the hall, where she had some hope of catching her breath, or at least passing out with some dignity.
She looked up at him in surprise, then, as though
Mari rushed forward faster than she thought possible and grabbed hold of Rosa around the waist. ‘What happened. Are you okay?’
‘It’s snowy. I slipped.’ And then Rosa’s legs collapsed under her and she slid towards the floor in an ungraceful faint as Mari tried to take her weight and failed.
It was Ethan who got there first and took Rosa in his arms before she hit the carpet, a fraction of a second before the entire crowd of people surged forward, pushing past her to help Rosa into a chair. Someone brought water. One of the lifeboat crew took a quick glance at Rosa’s arm, looked back at Mari and her aunt and mouthed,
‘broken wrist’
, then reached for his mobile phone to call the hospital.
A wave of nausea and dizziness hit Mari, forcing her to press her hand down on the nearest table for support. The wine. She should have eaten something before the wine. Now just the thought of food made her dizzier than ever, and she closed her eyes and fought air into her lungs.
She couldn’t believe it. Only a few seconds earlier Rosa had been laughing and jigging along to the jukebox. Her aunt Alice graspedhold of Mari’s arm for a second before rushing forwards from the bar to be with Rosa. Rosa had to be okay. She just had to.
Ethan stood back, watching the scene from the back of the room, as his place at Rosa’s side was taken by her family.
Rosa was surrounded by the people who loved her, while Ethan felt very much the outsider. Oh, the family were friendly and everyone here had welcomed him but, when it came to it, he was still just a visitor.
This was what he’d felt like after Kit had died. Mari had become even more withdrawn. Distant. Solitary. She had disappeared into her studies. Driven. Obsessive. Trying to take care of the family as best she could.
Mari had been sixteen going on thirty and on her own.
He had seen it and not had the skills and power to do anything about it.
How could he? His family were moving to Florida full-time, he was set for university in America and the world of sailing, and the happy summer holidays he had spent here as a boy were over for good.
Rosa had told him that Mari had decided to use her education to get out of Swanhaven. He recalled asking Rosa if she would do thesame, and she’d said she’d tried, she really had, but compared to Mari? No way. Besides, she loved Swanhaven and had wanted to stay with her mother and the aunts and cousins. This was where she felt she belonged.
And then he had to leave Swanhaven and Mari and her family.
Of course everything had come to a head on the night of her sixteenth birthday party. She had waited all day for her father to turn up. But it had been Ethan who’d followed her out onto the beach and held on to her as she’d raged against the unfairness and cruelty of what he had done, talking and shouting in an explosion of suppressed emotion and crying and hanging on to him for strength until the dawn. Then he’d kissed her goodbye.
And then he had watched her pale silent face grow smaller and smaller as his family had driven out of Swanhaven. It had been one of the hardest things he had ever done. For one night he had felt an unshakeable bond with Mari which was so special. So unique. And he hadn’t had the emotional tools he needed to talk to her about Kit and make her understand how truly devastated he was.
It had been easier to leave with his parents and start a new life. And he was sorry for that.
It had hurt to see her in pain then. And it hurt now.
Ignoring the other people moving towards Rosa with coats and offers of a car to the hospital, Ethan wound his way around the room, looped his arm around Mari’s waist and half carried her as far as the hall, where she had some hope of catching her breath, or at least passing out with some dignity.
She looked up at him in surprise, then, as though
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