Ivy’s boyfriend was supposed to be different.
Charles shut the boot of Mr Abbott’s car. He surveyed the luggage piled on the pavement as a plane roared overhead. ‘I think that’s everything.’
‘Literally,’ Ivy muttered, her eyebrows raised. Leave it to Olivia to pack our entire wardrobes!
Olivia smiled sheepishly. ‘Hey, a girl’s got to have options.’
Police officers were directing traffic and luggage wheels slid across the pavement with regular thuds. The terminal was a hub of activity.
Mr Abbott extended his hand to Horatio, who looked at it, blinking. Ivy stifled a giggle. Horatio’s giant hand daintily gripped Mr Abbott’s fingers and he gave them a gentle shake. Poor Horatio really did not know how to handle being treated like an equal.
‘Well then,’ Mr Abbott said. ‘I wouldn’t want you all to miss your flight.’
Olivia reached up to give her adoptive dad a long hug. ‘I’ll miss you. Take care of Mom, OK?’
Mr Abbott kissed her on top of the head. ‘Would you like me to come in with you?’ he asked.
Olivia shook her head. ‘That’s OK. Horatio can help us.’ Ivy thought she saw Horatio perk up with that comment. The Lazar family butler took the phrase ‘aim to please’ to a whole new level!
‘Right, well . . . In that case, I might just make my tai chi class.’ He started to smile, then threw his arms wide. ‘Oh, who am I kidding? Who cares about tai chi? Come here and give me a hug!’ He swooped the twins up in his arms, crushing them tight to his chest. Eventually, he pulled away, his face red. ‘I know I shouldn’t get emotional. It’s only for a week.’
‘Not to worry.’ Charles cleared his throat and shook Mr Abbott’s hand. ‘Horatio is anxious to lend a helping hand, I’m sure.’ The already massive butler straightened up – so tall, Ivy feared a plane might fly into his head. Even by vamp standards, Horatio was pretty freaky.
Mr Abbott had recovered his composure. He put his palms together as if praying and bowed. ‘In that case, I bid you, yī lù shùn fēng.’
‘Xiè xiè,’ replied Horatio, bowing in return.
‘Bye, Dad!’ Olivia turned to wave one last time to Mr Abbott and then the four of them trooped through the whooshing sliding glass doors and into the airport.
‘Horatio, I didn’t know you spoke Chinese,’ Charles remarked.
He bowed slightly, with a faint smile. ‘There is a lot you do not know about me, Master Karl. Now if you’ll excuse me . . .’ He took Ivy and Olivia’s duffel bags. ‘I want to make myself useful at last.’
All around them, passengers were bustling about, dragging suitcases and sprinting to gates. Ticket personnel were calling for the next person in line. Departure and arrival times scrolled down the monitors. Ivy’s chest squeezed as she saw a young couple kissing goodbye at the entrance to the security line. She would have felt much better if Brendan had given her one last kiss before she’d left, but it was too late now. She would have to wait until she got back – whenever that was.
She trailed behind her father. ‘The Lazar family, checking in,’ Ivy heard him say at the ticket desk, but she was hardly paying attention. Olivia handed her a boarding pass with her name stamped on it. The check-in, the walk through the giant metal detectors at security, the approach to the terminal – they all passed in one muffled blur as if everything was happening at a distance.
‘Ivy?’ Lillian tapped her shoulder, her gold-and-blue eyes searching Ivy’s face. ‘Are you looking forward to the trip?’
Whoa, where did Lillian come from? Ivy hadn’t even noticed her joining up with them at the gate.
Ivy blinked and channelled her best Olivia impression. ‘Absolutely!’ she replied, a peppy smile plastered on her lips.
Actually, Ivy was pleased that Lillian was coming along as her father’s date. She and Olivia agreed that the two vamps made a perfect pair. Plus, Lillian always let Ivy borrow her most on-trend vamp make-up. As a Hollywood insider, Lillian had Midnight Marauder eyeshadow months before it was out in the shops!
‘Is everything OK?’ Lillian leaned on the armrest of one of the grey plastic chairs in Departures. She wore a deep-plum tunic over black leggings. Her fashionable flats tapped the floor. Olivia was on the other side of her, flipping through a tabloid magazine. Which is not that sensible if she’s trying to avoid thinking about the J-word, Ivy thought.
Ivy straightened up. ‘Sure, yeah, I’m fine. Everything’s totally fine.’ She sounded like Olivia! The truth was that Ivy’s head felt fuzzy and she couldn’t seem to focus on what was going on in the airport. The only thing she was aware of was the object in the pocket of her jeans – her cell phone.
Her very silent cell phone.
Then, as if Ivy had psychic powers, she felt a tingle against her leg. Please be Brendan, please be Brendan. She wriggled her phone out from her pocket.
‘Brendan?’ she asked, breathless.
Her boyfriend’s slow, warm voice came over the line. ‘Hey! I was worried I’d miss you! I was in the mall and couldn’t get phone reception. I’ve come outside to call.’
At last, a real smile stretched across Ivy’s lips, so wide it hurt her cheeks. ‘Thank you,’ she said, wishing she could wrap him in a hug. ‘Save a spot at the Meat and Greet for me?’