Страница 42 из 89
until she had.”
“She’d been there all night?”
“That’s what she said. At least, she’d been out all
night. doubt she’d got all dressed up to go to the beach.”
Jack blows on his hot chocolate, clasps the mug tightly.
“Actually, she seemed sort of upset, so decided to wait
with her, make sure she was all right.”
“What happened?”
“She told me to sod off!” Jack laughs. “You can’t
blame her, really—middle of the night, some stranger
chatting her up—but
wasn’t going anywhere, and
250
neither was she. We were stubborn as mules, the pair of
us. And eventually we got talking.” He smiles, staring at
the table.
“I kept asking her name, but she wouldn’t tell me,
wouldn’t tell me anything about herself. She said the night
was too beautiful to talk about ordinary daytime things—
anything serious or personal or real. So we just
talked
about nothing, really. Star signs and dreams …”
He trails off, sips his hot chocolate. “Then, before we knew
it, the sun had come up. She had to go and was late with
the fish. gave her my number, hoped she’d call, but to be
honest, didn’t think I’d ever see her again. But the next
morning, when
went down to the market—there she
was.”
smile, the cup warm in my hands.
“Well, after that it became kind of
ritual. Every
night I’d go to the beach, earlier and earlier, and she was
always there, staring at the sea.
took warm clothes,
coffee, sleeping bags and blankets, even, anything to keep
her warm—she seemed so cold all the time, her skin like
ice inside her fluffy jacket. And we’d just lie there on the
beach, staring at the stars, talking about nothing, or not
talking at all, till the sun came up.” He grins at me
suddenly. “I got last pick of the fish for two whole weeks,
but you know what? No one noticed,” he laughs. “They
didn’t even care.”
look at him. “Two weeks?”
“Two wonderful weeks …” He sighs, swirling his
cup. “And then one night turned up and she wasn’t there.
251
waited for her all night and well into the next morning.
But she didn’t come. She never came again. She just
disappeared.”
“Did you try to find her?”
“How could I? didn’t know her name, where she
lived, her phone number—I didn’t know anything about
her. Only her star sign. Scorpio.” He sighs. “It was like
she’d never existed, like I’d dreamed her up—the girl of
my dreams
“And then, the following winter, in the middle of the
night,
get this phone call. It’s Kathy, she’s having our
baby, she’s scared. Can come? didn’t think twice—I just
dropped everything and jumped in the car.
drove for
hours in the dark, hitting this dreadful storm on the way—
didn’t think I’d make it. Finally, just as was approaching
the hospital, saw Kathy ru
exactly the same, the same fragile beauty, the same
frightened, haunted look in her eyes, except this time
there was something else—an urgency about her.
“I pulled over and she just stared at me for
moment, frozen. Then she burst into tears. opened the
car door and she climbed inside, crumpled over in the
seat, and sobbed her heart out.
asked her about the
baby—what had happened, why she’d left the hospital—
but she wouldn’t answer, just begged me to drive—to take
her away somewhere, anywhere. So did. drove us to
little park and pulled over. But still Kathy couldn’t stop
crying. She kept saying over and over how she’d thought
wasn’t coming, that I’d left her. tried to comfort her, told
252
her I’d never leave her—that I’d do anything for her. She
stared at me then. Just stared at me, for the longest time.
“Then she smiled, her beautiful face streaked and
blotched with tears as she took my hand. ‘You’re father,’
she whispered, the words filling the air around us, tingling
in my ears. ‘You’re daddy.’
His eyes fill and swallow hard.
“We drove back to the hospital and Kathy took me
inside, but the baby had been moved—taken to
bigger
hospital for special care.”
stare at him, the breath caught in my throat. She
came back …
“So we followed,” Jack says, his expression
softening. “I couldn’t believe it when saw her—this tiny
precious little person, so small, so fragile inside her
incubator, fighting for her life.
‘She’s yours,’ Kathy told me, showing me the
identity bracelet—the name she’d chosen. Holly Woods
‘She’s all yours.’ just stared at her, at this tiny miracle
with my name, and the earth moved beneath me. It was
the most incredible moment of my life. Suddenly was
father.” He looks at me and smiles. My insides glow.
“Kathy seemed so relieved. She started collecting
her things, giving me instructions. was confused, didn’t
understand. Then it dawned on me. She was leaving—and
she wanted to leave the baby with me.
“I tried to convince her that everything would be all
right, that I’d look after her and the baby, but she
refused—she couldn’t be mother, she said, she was only
253
seventeen. hadn’t known she was that young
She grew
hysterical, saying no one knew, no one could know—that it was our secret. That she was relying on me.
“Nothing said made any difference. The baby was
mine, Kathy said, or else she’d give her up for adoption—
end of story. She was so upset, agreed. Of course I’d take
the baby, look after her, love her. was convinced Kathy
would change her mind, you see. thought if just stuck
around long enough she’d have
change of heart—that
we’d be family
“And for
while it seemed to work. Holly had to
stay in the special unit at the hospital, so booked us into
nearby hotel in town, and the next day Kathy seemed
much calmer, we even registered the birth together, that’s
how finally discovered her name. Katharine.” He smiles.
“I always think of her as Kathy—like Cathy from
Wuthering Heights—so wild and untameable, so fragile
“I visited Holly in the Unit every day, and
sometimes Kathy would come with me. She seemed to be
getting much better—I was convinced that once the shock
wore off, that once Holly was fully recovered and we could
bring her home …”
Jack sighs suddenly. “But the day brought Holly
back from the hospital, Kathy was gone.”
stare at him, frozen.
“She left
note—she was sorry, she’d gone to
California,
shouldn’t try to find her, please look after
Holly.” He rubs his brow. “I
didn’t know what to do.
took Holly home to my parents, and they went ballistic,
254
told me
was an idiot—how did
know she was even
mine?—that
shouldn’t let some slapper ruin my life.
Then, when
told them
was keeping the baby, they
threw me out.”
gasp.
Jack shrugs. “They didn’t understand. Holly was my
daughter—I loved her more than anything in the world,
except—” He swallows. “So left. My grandparents lived in
San Francisco, so Holly and got on plane, stayed with
them, and got job in fish restaurant while tried to
find Katharine. was sure she’d have come to her senses
by now, knew she’d regret abandoning her baby for the
rest of her life …” He sighs. “But it was hopeless. She’d