Ice Creams at Emerald Cove: A heartwarming feel-good romantic comedy to escape with this summer

by Holly Martin

  He shook his head, angrily. ‘Christ, I thought my self-esteem was bad, but yours is pretty crap too. Oliver did a real number on you, didn’t he, for you to see the negative in all of this. All this time with the job and the cooking workshops you’ve been trying to get me to see my worth but you don’t see your own. I’m selling my house, moving countries, taking Bea out of school – do you honestly think I’d do all that for a job? I’m coming here for you, for us, so we can be a family.’

  She stared at him in shock. Oh god, then he must be proposing because of the baby, just like he did when Ginny had found out she was pregnant. ‘Did you speak to my sisters, or to Noah or Angel? Is that what this is?’

  ‘No, I haven’t seen them since this morning in the meeting,’ Jesse said in confusion.

  She didn’t believe him. This had come so completely out of the blue; getting married again hadn’t even been on her radar, so where had this sudden change of heart come from?

  ‘Getting married for the right reasons or to be noble didn’t exactly work out for you before, did it? Ginny felt trapped and you ended up hating each other. I don’t want that to happen to us.’

  He stared at her. ‘You think you would feel trapped being married to me?’

  ‘I think you would.’

  ‘Do you seriously have no idea how I feel for you? I’ve flown halfway across the world to help you with a stupid pudding parade.’

  She stepped back, feeling hurt by that. She had desperately wanted to do something for Cones at the Cove and the parade had seemed like the perfect solution. It might have been cute to hold the pudding parade all those years ago but was it silly to bring it back now? Maybe some things should stay forgotten. The fact that she only had five people signed up for the parade so far showed that the villagers weren’t exactly enthralled by it either.

  ‘You think it’s stupid?’

  He sighed. ‘Of course I don’t think it’s stupid. But why do you think I’m here, I wanted to be here for you.’

  ‘You want to be here for me? I needed you today, Jesse, I called you three times because I needed you and where were you? You were shutting me out because you’d had some bad news. You didn’t want to let me in and because of that I was left to deal with my news on my own.’

  He stepped forward, his hand on her shoulder, his eyes clouded with concern. ‘What happened?’

  She wanted to lean her head against his chest and feel his strength and warmth seep into her but she didn’t. She stepped back away from him, pressing her hands to her eyes. She didn’t have the energy to deal with this tonight – if he genuinely didn’t know, it was too big to drop on him now. Would he be angry, would he be worried about telling Bea, would he insist they got married for the sake of the baby, or, even worse, would he shut her out again?

  She looked at him. ‘It doesn’t matter now.’

  ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you. I have no idea where my phone is, I think I left it in the kitchen at the café when I walked out. But I’m here for you now.’

  She shook her head. ‘It works both ways, how can we ever be a team if you keep pushing me away? You talk about how you didn’t feel good enough for Ginny, but when you push me away that’s how I feel too.’

  ‘That’s what all this was about,’ Jesse said with exasperation, gesturing to the candles. ‘I want to show you I’m ready to be part of your team. Marry me.’

  She shook her head. ‘I would never agree to be part of a loveless marriage. I want more for you than that, and I want more for myself too. You said that you and Ginny just survived, well I deserve a hell of a lot more than that.’

  ‘Skye—’

  ‘Jesse, I’m going to bed. I’m so tired and hurt and confused right now. It has been the weirdest day of my life with some highs and lows and I have no idea where to place this proposal on that scale.’

  She turned and walked away, feeling empty inside. After everything they’d been through she deserved so much more than this.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Skye walked into the hotel restaurant to have breakfast with her sisters the next morning and stopped when she saw Angel and Clover cuddled up next to each other in one of the booths. His hand was on her flat stomach and the way they were staring at each other as they talked quietly was like a kick in the gut. They were so obviously completely in love with each other. Would she ever have that?

  Angel spotted her, gave Clover a quick kiss on the cheek and then climbed out of the booth, giving Skye a wink as he walked past.

  Skye sat down with her twin. There was already some food on the table waiting for them, toast, jams and fruit, although Skye rather fancied a full English.

  ‘Sorry to interrupt you two.’

  ‘You haven’t, you’re fine,’ Clover said, with a genuine smile, she reached across the table to take Skye’s hand. ‘How are you doing?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ She looked out over the sea.

  She’d had a terrible night’s sleep as she replayed the proposal over and over in her head. Was what Jesse had said true, had Oliver made her so insecure that she didn’t see her own value? She’d thought that their main problem was his insecurity but giving him the job had helped him to see his worth, to help him move past that. Was it now her own past that was holding her back?

  Oliver had only wanted her for a baby and when she couldn’t give him that he’d wanted a divorce. He’d made her feel so worthless, as if she had no redeeming features other than the ability to pop out a baby. She had loved him and she’d thought he loved her but that love had vanished overnight when she lost her first child. And she had never really dealt with those feelings – after the divorce she’d run away, buried all those feelings deep and then tried to forget that part of her life altogether. But were they now stopping her from moving forward?

  Aria arrived and slid into the booth next to Skye.

  ‘Did any of you lot tell Jesse about the baby yesterday?’

  ‘No of course not,’ Clover said. ‘Well, I know he didn’t hear anything from me or Angel.’

  Aria shook her head. ‘Absolutely not. That’s something that has to come from you, when you’re ready. Why, what happened?’

  Skye sighed. ‘Jesse proposed last night.’

  Clover let out a little involuntary squeal of excitement. ‘Wait, he proposed after you told him you were pregnant?’

  ‘I haven’t told him. I thought you lot might have.’

  ‘Definitely not,’ Clover said.

  ‘So if he didn’t propose because of the baby, did he propose because he loves you?’ Aria said.

  ‘Well, he never said those words either. I thought it might be so he could get a visa to work here.’

  ‘How did he propose?’ Clover said. ‘Because that’s important. Were you sitting on the sofa and he suggested you get married, or was it romantic?’

  Skye swallowed the emotions clogging the back of her throat. ‘He asked me to meet him in Emerald Cove and he had candles in jars and he got down on one knee.’

  Clover and Aria stared at Skye like she was crazy.

  ‘That sounds pretty real to me,’ Aria said.

  ‘But this job is so important to him,’ Skye said, trying to defend what she’d done.

  ‘You’re important to him,’ Clover said with exasperation. ‘He might not be good with words, and yes of course he should have told you he loved you when proposing, but he has shown you how he feels for you with his actions. He is coming here for you, not for the job, and maybe it took you breaking up with him the other day for him to realise what he was going to lose, but he loves you and I think he always has.’

  Skye stared at her sisters, her heart racing.

  ‘What makes you think that he’s not coming here for you?’ Aria said, gently. ‘Why are you so scared to believe in what you have?’

  Skye frowned and tapped a packet of sugar on her fingers. ‘Jesse thinks that Oliver made me feel worthless and that maybe I never got over that if I’m looking for th
e negative rather than the positive.’

  ‘I was just going to ask if these feelings came from Oliver,’ Clover said. ‘As someone whose own ex messed me up spectacularly, I know what you’re going through. When Angel told me he loved me, I pushed him away, I was too scared to take that step with him and I nearly lost it all.’

  ‘You had a crappy ex,’ Skye said.

  ‘So did you. He made you feel like you were only good for having babies, he didn’t love you, he told you losing your babies was your fault. Of course that’s going to leave its scars.’

  ‘I guess I am scared of putting my trust in Jesse,’ Skye said, trying to downplay it.

  Aria squeezed her hand. ‘He already broke your heart once and, as someone whose husband broke my heart straight after our first kiss, I know how hard it is to let go of the past and move on with your future.’

  ‘Love is a risk, of course it is,’ Clover said. ‘But if Jesse can put his past behind him and come here for you, maybe you can give him a chance too. I’m not saying you have to marry him, just open your heart. You’ve been given this beautiful gift,’ she added, touching her belly. ‘And it’s everything you’ve ever wanted. Jesse and Bea are coming here. Surely he’s worth taking that chance, seeing how it goes.’

  Skye nodded. ‘You’re right. I always wanted a chance at having a proper relationship with him, one that was out in the open, not one that was hidden away. I deserve to have that.’

  ‘Don’t let your past define your future,’ Aria said. ‘Follow your heart.’

  ‘God, what if it’s too late though? He proposed and I pushed him away.’

  ‘If he loves you, he’s not going to be scared away by that.’

  ‘He didn’t come to bed last night and I didn’t see him this morning,’ Skye said.

  ‘If I know Jesse, he won’t be giving you up without a fight.’

  ‘I have to find him,’ she said, standing up.

  ‘You need to eat,’ Aria said. ‘You have to think of your baby now.’

  Clover grabbed a slice of toast and wrapped it up in a napkin, passing it over to her with a banana. ‘Go and find him.’

  Skye unwrapped the toast, slathered on some peanut butter and took a bite, then hurried out the restaurant with the slice still in her hand.

  Skye sat in the waiting area of the hospital, waiting to be called for her scan.

  She hadn’t found Jesse. She’d gone to the café and back to the cottage and down to Emerald Cove but there was no sign of him or Bea. No matter what happened between them, he deserved to know and he should be there to see his baby on the scan for the first time.

  She needed to talk to him. When he still hadn’t showed by the time she was getting ready to leave for the scan, she’d texted him to tell him where she was going, although not the reason why. He deserved better than finding out he was about to become a dad via a text. But he hadn’t replied and she hoped to God his phone wasn’t still in the café kitchen. She’d called Aria and Clover asking them to find him and tell him about the scan too, although again not the reason why. But what if he refused to come?

  Skye shook her head, angrily. She should have told him the night before; she shouldn’t have left this up to chance. He was going to miss his baby’s first scan and she felt gutted by that.

  ‘Skye Philips,’ a nurse called out.

  Skye stood up and walked over. ‘My boyfriend is supposed to be here – if he comes can you let him in? His name is Jesse Hamilton, big hairy Canadian, you can’t miss him.’

  The nurse smiled. ‘I’ll be sure to look out for him.’

  The nurse escorted her into a room, where a woman was waiting. It was dark in there, the only light coming from the monitor where she would soon see her baby.

  ‘Hello, Skye. I’m Emily, I’m your sonographer today. I hear you’ve only just found out you’re pregnant and your doctor thinks you could be around twelve weeks.’

  Skye nodded as Emily shut the door behind her.

  ‘Well, let’s have a look. We’ll be looking at the heartbeat and the size today, which will give us a much clearer idea of how far along you are and your due date. We can also look to see if baby is growing properly and any other health problems. Do you have a full bladder?’

  Skye nodded, she’d followed the instructions to the letter.

  ‘Yes, very full,’ Skye laughed nervously. She had to laugh, because if she didn’t she might cry. She needed Jesse here.

  Emily told her to lie down and lift her top and pull down her leggings a little.

  ‘OK, I’m going to put some gel on your stomach, it may be a little cool. And I’ll be using this transducer to look at your baby. I may have to press down quite firmly to get a good look. Let me know if it’s too uncomfortable.’

  Skye nodded.

  Emily squirted the gel on her belly and then placed the transducer over the top and started moving it over her stomach.

  Suddenly there was a knock on the door and the nurse Skye had seen earlier poked her head around the door. ‘Your boyfriend is here; do you want him to come in?’

  Skye’s heart soared. He was here. She felt like crying all over again.

  ‘Yes please,’ she said.

  Jesse appeared, looking worried. ‘I’m so sorry I’m late, I got here as quick as I could.’

  ‘You’re right on time,’ Emily said. ‘Please take a seat.’

  Jesse took Skye’s hand.

  Emily tutted. ‘I’m sorry, I’ve been having problems with this machine all morning. Let me just go and see if any of the other rooms are free and we can pop in there instead. I won’t be a minute.’

  She got up and went out, shutting the door behind her.

  Skye immediately sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed to face Jesse. ‘I can’t believe you came. After last night, I wasn’t sure you would.’

  ‘Skye, you have every right to be pissed at me. I’ve messed you around for the last two or three years but, regardless what happens between us, I want you to know, I will always be here for you.’

  Tears filled her eyes.

  ‘Skye, I love you, I always have,’ Jesse said and Skye gasped at finally hearing those words. ‘I should have said that last night before I proposed, hell I should have said it a long time ago.’

  Skye couldn’t stop the tears pouring down her cheeks and he stood up and took her face in his hands, gently wiping away the tears before he kissed her and she kissed him back.

  After a while, she pulled away, leaning her head into his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight.

  She looked up at him. ‘Jesse Hamilton. I love you and to hear you say those words, well that’s all I’ve ever wanted.’

  ‘I was so scared I was going to lose you if I couldn’t come here. After that day on the beach when you said you were going to let me go, I knew I had to do everything in my power to come here. I spoke to immigration lawyers and experts and I wasn’t getting anywhere because of Bea. Aria persuaded me to apply for the job as it might be easier to get a visa if I had a job offer, but I would have taken any job if it meant I could come here, even if that was cleaning the hotel. I couldn’t lose you; I love you so much.’

  She wiped fresh tears from her cheeks. ‘Jesse, our relationship wasn’t hinging on you coming here. Of course I want you here, so I can stay at the hotel with my sisters, but if you hadn’t been able to come here, I would have come back to Canada to be with you. My sisters are important but you and Bea are my everything. When I said things needed to change, I meant I needed to know you loved me – I wanted a proper relationship, even if that was a long-distance one.’

  He stared at her and shook his head. ‘I guess I got scared. Everyone I’ve loved in my life – my mum, Ginny – they walked out on me and I vowed I would never give my heart to anyone ever again. And then you came along and, God, I loved you so much that I knew the potential to get hurt was so much greater. I kept you at arm’s length – if I never admitted those feelings to you
or to myself then I was safe. I divorced you, pushed you away before you could walk away. And I don’t blame you for resenting me for that. I hurt you and I hurt myself at the same time. I ruined the best thing that ever happened to me and I understand if we can never go back but I will always love you. And whatever you have to face today, or in the future, you will never be alone.’

  ‘Jesse, I’ve been waiting for over two years to be able to go back to how we were before, to be a family again. But going forward our family is going to be a little bit different.’

  He nodded. ‘Of course. I’ll tell you I love you every day for a start.’

  ‘No, I mean—’

  The door opened and Emily popped her head through. ‘OK, we can go next door, that’s free.’

  Skye smiled. ‘We’ll be right in.’

  Emily’s eyes flicked between them, obviously sensing that that she’d walked in on something. She nodded. ‘First door on the left, when you’re ready.’

  She left them alone.

  ‘Jesse—’

  ‘I don’t know what you found out yesterday but I presume we’re here because of the test results.’

  ‘Kind of.’

  ‘Look, whatever they tell us today, whatever they find, we can still have more kids, we can adopt just like Aria. That path doesn’t have to end for us,’ Jesse said.

  Skye smiled. ‘Jesse, I’m pregnant.’

  He went very still for a moment and then his face split into a huge smile. ‘What?’

  ‘I’m pregnant, probably around three months. I just found out yesterday. You’re going to be a dad again.’

  ‘You’re kidding me?’

  She shook her head and he glanced down to her bare belly, moving his hands gently over her stomach. ‘You’re pregnant.’

  She smiled and nodded.

  ‘Oh my god.’

  ‘Come on, let’s go and meet our baby.’

  She hopped down off the table and took his hand and they moved next door.