Read Online A Proper Family Holiday by Chrissie Manby - Free Book Online

same island. She was so pleased with the thought that she even smiled at the steward when he clipped her elbow with his trolley.
    Adam continued. ‘Reading is massively important to me.’
    ‘Oh, me too,’ said Chelsea. ‘Me too.’
    ‘You can tell such a lot about a person from their bookshelves.’
    ‘You’re absolutely right.’
    ‘A shelf full of self-help is definitely a bad sign.’
    ‘Indeed,’ Chelsea nodded, as she thought of her shelves at home.
    ‘I really love being able to discuss a good book with friends. I know that might seem nerdy.’
    ‘Not at all.’
    With such a lovely face, Adam could be excused any amount of nerdiness. Chelsea wondered if she could download some crib-notes on Wolf Hall when they got to the island, just in case she bumped into him again. Just in case he asked to see her. Maybe she should just throw caution to the wind and ask to see him? Chelsea’s imagination raced ahead. She thought of that fabulous blue lagoon she’d seen on the Internet. Now that would be the perfect spot to share a passionate kiss. Assuming Adam was travelling alone with his daughter, of course. Surely he wouldn’t be making conversation like this if he wasn’t…
    But while Chelsea nodded enthusiastically and did her best to look charming and charmed as Adam extolled the virtues of Lionel Shriver, Lily was getting restless.
    About halfway through the flight, and long after the catering trolleys had been stowed, Lily insisted she needed another drink. Chelsea patiently stood in the aisle while Adam rifled in the overhead locker for the bag that contained the juice he’d bought after security. She took the opportunity to admire his back view, which was every bit as good as the front. At last Adam found the drink and sat back down. As he fitted a straw into the carton of blackcurrant juice, Chelsea sat down too, smiling at Lily as she did so. Lily narrowed her eyes in return. Then Adam handed the carton to Lily, who squeezed it as she took possession of it so that a fountain of sticky black juice escaped the straw and arched right over her father to land with a splatter on Chelsea’s Malcolm Gladwell book, from where it dripped onto the lap of the dress she had borrowed from the fashion cupboard.
    ‘Shit!’ Chelsea tried to get to her feet, only to be foiled by her seatbelt, which she always wore when sitting down on a plane.
    ‘That lady swore!’ Lily pointed out.
    As far as Chelsea was concerned, there was every reason to. There was a bright purple puddle in the middle of her borrowed dress’s skirt. Much flustered dabbing of paper towels and apologising by Adam followed. The book seemed relatively unscathed, but God knew what would become of the sundress.
    ‘It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s fine,’ said Chelsea, when Adam’s impulsively offered to buy her a new one. She was certain he had no idea he was offering to replace a dress that would cost more than a car when it hit the shops the following summer. She batted away his hands, sure that he was only spreading the mess with the wet-wipes he had pulled from his jacket pocket. ‘It can be dry-cleaned.’
    ‘I’ll pay for that, then,’ Adam insisted. He fished £20 out of his wallet. ‘Will this cover it?’
    ‘No. Really. Don’t worry about it. It’s OK. Accidents happen.’
    Chelsea pushed the money away. The juice spill was an accident. She knew she should be more laid-back about it, especially if she wanted to continue the good work she’d been doing with Adam so far. But she wouldn’t have been surprised if that child had squeezed the juice carton deliberately. Chelsea did a bit more cursing as she flapped her skirt about in an attempt to dry it off a little. In the window seat, Lily was wide-eyed.
    ‘She keeps on swearing.’
    ‘I can understand why,’ said Adam. He attempted another conciliatory smile. ‘It’s not OK, is it? That dress was new.’
    Chelsea assured him once again that accidents happen, but also knew that