Page 54 of The Stolen Child

Michael cupped her face in his hands and kissed her lips. ‘It’s crazy, I know. And while I want you to go, remember that you don’t know this guy. Keep your guard up.’

‘My gut tells me he’s a good guy,’ Lily said.

‘And I always trust your gut. You read people for a living. But, all the same, be a little wary.’

With one last kiss to her two boys, Lily took her small wheelie case and went to the departure gate. She’d not told Zach she was coming too. Mainly because there was little time, but also because she wanted to surprise him. There was no sign of him in the twenty-minute crawl through security, so she made her way to the departure gate, where boarding was due to begin in thirty minutes. And then she saw him. EarPods in, looking at his phone. Sitting close to the gate, his knee jiggling up and down. He looked stressed. And her heart swelled with something that felt like affection.

‘Hey, you,’ she said, gently kicking his foot.

He jumped up, startled, and his EarPods fell onto the tiled floor between them.

‘What are you doing here?’ he asked.

‘I thought you could do with the company,’ Lily said, feeling a flush run across her face. She’d not considered until this minute that he might not want her to tag along. ‘But if you’d rather go it alone, I can go back . . .’ She took a step away from him.

A smile broke out across his face, reaching his eyes, which crinkled at the sides.

‘This is the nicest thing . . .’ He came over and pulled her into a quick hug. ‘Thank you. Honestly, I never expected this.’

They weren’t sitting together on the flight, but that suited Lily, who was still a little sleepy from her restless night. Three hours later, their flight landed at Malaga airport.

‘I’ve hired a car already,’ Zach said as they queued for Passport Control.

Lily pointed to Zach’s blue passport. ‘It’s a little mad to think you might not be a Zach.’

He turned towards her. ‘Maybe keep that to yourself as we walk through, please. Don’t fancy being hauled into interrogation for name fraud!’ He pulled a face, half grimacing. ‘But I’ve thought about that a lot, too.’

‘Zach suits you no matter what,’ Lily said, trying to put herself into his shoes. She couldn’t imagine having to change her name now, after forty years of living with it.

‘I can’t conceive not being Zach. But, I have to tell you, Robert doesn’t feel wrong either.’

They each passed through Passport Control with little more than a perfunctory wave from the officer in charge, then walked into the busy Arrivals hall. A rush of warm air hit their faces.

‘Whoa. That’s hot!’ Lily said, fanning herself with her passport. ‘I’m going to get some water and sun cream while you get the car, okay? I’ll follow you over to the car hire area.’ She pointed to the sign that hung overhead a few feet away.

Once she’d bought her toiletries and refreshments, she found Zach, who was now ready to collect their vehicle.

‘Are you a nervous passenger?’ Zach asked as they buckled up into their red Jeep Renegade.

‘No. At least I wasn’t until you asked that question.’

‘I’m a good driver – I’ve never been in an accident – but the road to Ronda is windy.’ He handed Lily his phone. ‘I’ve set the satnav; your job is chief navigator! We’re heading for the E15 Autovia first of all, in the direction of Algeciras. Then we’ll drive down the coast.’

This was a job that Lily was more than happy to take control of.

‘Michael would get lost in a supermarket car park if I’m not there to direct him. You are in safe hands!’ Lily joked as she did a quick scan of the route. ‘From what I can see, we’ll pass through Benalmadena, Torremolinos, and Marbella en route. We could always stop in one of those for a coffee.’

‘I could eat. Fair warning: I’m always hungry,’ Zach said with his lopsided grin. ‘I had a couple of dates with a nice woman from Marbella the summer I lived in Spain. I know a few places we can hit.’

Lily looked at him in surprise. They’d never discussed romantic relationships in therapy, but they were in new territory now. They were moving quickly to the friendship area of town.

‘She was Spanish?’

‘No, she was Dutch. She was also on a summer vacation. It was one of those flings that spark fiercely but burn out fast.’

‘I remember those sparky relationships,’ Lily said with a smile, thinking about a year she’d backpacked around Australia after graduating from university.

‘Before Michael?’