Runaway Bride: A laugh out loud funny and feel good rom com. Mary Baker Jayne

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СКАЧАТЬ the distance. It felt like it was time for Rule One to kick in, so I quickly changed the subject.

      ‘So, um, where will you sleep?’

      ‘Got a fold-up camp bed and a sleeping bag under the seats. I’ll put it up in the side awning.’

      ‘Won’t you be cold?’

      He shrugged. ‘Couple of thick jumpers on and I’ll live.’

      ‘I’ll sleep in the awning. You have your bed.’

      ‘Won’t hear of it. Irish tradition of hospitality. Anyway, you need a decent bed after the day you’ve had.’

      ‘Thank you.’ I was too tired to argue. ‘So, er… bedtime?’

      I felt suddenly bashful. My cheeks and forehead were on fire.

      ‘First things first.’ He rummaged in the tall cupboard until he found a little green first aid kit. ‘Your hands. Let me take a look at them.’

      I sank dizzily onto the edge of the bed. Jack knelt in front of me to examine my inflamed palms.

      ‘The left isn’t so bad but the right’s looking nasty,’ he said. ‘Better get some antiseptic cream on them and bind them up.’

      ‘I’ll be okay,’ I mumbled. The world seemed a bit spinny suddenly.

      ‘Metal drainpipe, was it?’

      ‘Think so.’

      ‘Hmm. Have you had your tetanus jab?’

      ‘Yeah. Probably.’ A little giggle bubbled out of me. ‘Funny word, tetanus. Tet-anne-uz. Sounds like a… centurion. Brush on his head and all that.’

      He frowned. ‘You okay, Kitty?’

      ‘Tetanus,’ I repeated. ‘Tett-an-nuss.’

      He held one hand against my forehead. ‘Jesus, lass, you’re burning up.’

      ‘’M’okay. Sleepy.’

      Suddenly, everything was black.

      ***

      When I came to, a man’s silhouette was leaning over me, stroking my hair.

      ‘Ethan?’ I mumbled.

      ‘Morning, sleepyhead.’

      I blinked to get the fog out of my eyes. ‘You…’

      ‘That’s right, me. Who am I then?’

      ‘You’re… Jack. Jack Duffy.’

      I could see him clearly now, leaning over me as I lay in his bed in the camper. He smiled.

      ‘So you remember me. That’s a good sign.’

      ‘Did I fall asleep?’

      ‘Yeah. For two days.’

      ‘Two days!’

      ‘You passed out with a fever. You’ve been in out and of consciousness ever since, raging temperature. Don’t you remember?’

      ‘I remember… pub. And you. What happened?’

      ‘Oh, we’ve been having bags of fun together,’ he said. ‘Had to get you to A&E to start with, just in case it was tetanus. You had me worried sick.’

      ‘Was it tetanus?’

      ‘No, just a nasty dose of the flu. Not surprised, after what you’d been through. Your poor body must’ve been weakened past the point it could fight any more.’

      I tried to sit up, but my head throbbed so hard I sank back down with a groan.

      I put a palm to my forehead. It felt all fuzzy. When I glanced at my hand, I saw it was wrapped in a thick bandage.

      ‘That can come off soon,’ Jack said. ‘Your hands should be healed enough by now.’

      ‘You’ve been looking after me?’ I mumbled.

      ‘I have, yeah.’ He shook his head. ‘Good thing I found you. If you’d really tried sleeping rough in that flimsy dress, you could’ve killed yourself.’

      Sandy was sleeping in her bed on the floor nearby. I leaned over to tickle her ears, reflecting woozily on the surreal fact I seemed to share the same backstory as my rescuer’s pet dog.

      ‘Do you feel like you could eat?’ Jack said, standing up.

      The world was spinning so much, I knew I’d struggle to keep anything down. But my throat felt like it’d been sandblasted.

      ‘Drink,’ I managed. ‘Some water. Please.’

      While Jack filled a glass for me, I ran my hands over my body.

      ‘What am I wearing?’ I asked when he came to sit on the bed by me.

      ‘Here.’ He put his hand behind my back and supported me while I drank. I gulped the water down greedily. ‘No, not too fast. It’ll only come back up.’

      ‘My dress. Where…’

      ‘With my laundry. I thought you’d be more comfortable in pyjamas.’

      I squinted at him. ‘Did you see me with no clothes on?’

      ‘Yep. Very nice.’

      ‘Naughty,’ I said weakly, but I managed to smile. ‘Where’d you get ladies’ pyjamas?’

      ‘Just something I had lying around. Lucky they were your size.’

      My brain was spinning, but I still remembered Rule One. The first rule of campervan is you do not talk about campervan.

      ‘’K,’ I mumbled. ‘What happens now?’

      ‘You get well again. It’ll take at least a few days till you’re back to full strength, I’d guess.’

      ‘You mean I can stay here?’

      ‘Unless you’d rather go home? Your family must be worried about you by now.’

      I shuddered. The days of fever and delirium hadn’t weakened the image that’d been seared onto my brain the day of my wedding. That was as vivid as ever.

      ‘No. I want to stay with you. I don’t trust anyone else.’

      He reached out to squeeze my hand. ‘Then you’ll stay. And when you’re feeling better, we’ll work out what comes next.’

      ***

      It was nearly a week before I was feeling completely myself again. My body and my immune system really СКАЧАТЬ