The Jersey Scene series box set

by Georgina Troy

  Paige took a forkful of egg and bacon and put it in her mouth.

  Sebastian finally joined her at the table. ‘So, did you manage to sort things out with your sister?’

  ‘Yes. I’m going to cook for her and Olly later this evening. They have issues that need to be sorted out, and I thought that the best way to make sure they both talk is to sit them down over a meal and see to it that they have no choice but to get everything out in to the open.’

  If only sitting down and discussing things over a meal had worked for them. He watched Paige, waiting for her to bring up their scenario, thankful when she didn’t. He didn’t want anything to mar this time with her. ‘What would you like to do this morning?’ Seb asked.

  Paige dabbed the corners of her mouth with the linen napkin. ‘Are you sure you’re not busy?’ she asked, as he poured her another cup of coffee.

  He wondered if she could be persuaded to do this again. She seemed to fit in to his home so naturally. Or maybe, he thought, it was simply that she fitted him so well.

  ‘I don’t know what you were thinking of doing.’ She placed her hands over her full stomach. ‘That was wonderful, thanks.’

  ‘Whatever you like,’ he said. ‘We could go for a walk through the woods.’

  ‘Where do they lead to?’

  He leant forward and pointing through the large kitchen window towards the towering pine trees said, ‘We have direct access to the beach through there. It’s only a five-minute walk, and very peaceful.’

  ‘I’d love that,’ she said. ‘I’m not sure I have the right clothes for walking down pathways though.

  Seb smiled. ‘Not a problem.’ He stood up and pulled her up to join him. Holding her slightly away from him he looked her up and down, enjoying being able to have an excuse to do so. ‘You’re very slim and probably the same size as Fiona. Sebastian took her by the hand. ‘Come with me, I’m sure we can set you up with a pair of her jeans and some boots.’ He led the way back up the stairs to his sister’s room.

  ‘Wow,’ she gasped. ‘This is so pretty.’

  ‘My uncle had it decorated especially for Fi about a year ago. He thought she’d love all the pink and frills and was hoping to make it as feminine as possible.’

  ‘And did she?’ Paige asked, stroking the plush velvet curtains. ‘Love it, I mean?’

  Seb shook his head, remembering with amusement how his sister had reacted when arriving home from university to find that her bohemian bedroom she’d taken years to mess up had been transformed into something more suited to a pop princess. ‘She loathed it and didn’t hold back when telling him.’

  ‘Poor man.’

  ‘He was tough in the boardroom, but a complete pushover where Fi was concerned.’ He squeezed her hand. ‘Now, of course, she refuses to have it redecorated because it’s the last big thing he did for her. She won’t even change that laced canopy over her four-poster bed because she feels that to do so would show some sort of disrespect to his memory.’

  ‘Poor Fiona,’ Paige said.

  Seb shrugged. ‘Yes. Now, how about we find you some clothes?’ He walked over to a double door and opened one side.

  ‘My idea of heaven,’ she said when he moved back. ‘A walk-in wardrobe.’ She stepped inside. ‘It’s probably the size of the entire first floor of my cottage.’

  He laughed. ‘I’ll leave you to get kitted out and meet you downstairs.’

  He waited impatiently for her, not wishing to waste a moment of their morning together, his heart pounding as he watched her come down the curved staircase moments later. ‘Perfect.’

  ‘Not quite,’ Paige giggled. ‘I had to turn up the bottoms of the jeans a couple of times and roll up the sleeves in this hoodie. How tall is your sister?’

  ‘Well, I’m 6’2, so let me see.’ He tried to picture how tall she was now. His sister never seemed to stop growing. ‘I suppose she must be about 5’10.’ Seb studied Paige once more. ‘I suppose she has a good five inches on you when it comes to height. You look gorgeous though.’

  ‘Thank you, but I feel like a kid playing dressing up in these clothes.’ Paige grimaced.

  Seb found an old pair of wellington boots for her to wear and led her across the manicured lawn towards the woods. ‘I used to build camps all over this wood with my friends during the school holidays. We thought we were Robin Hood.’

  ‘What a perfect place for children to grow up,’ Paige said, stumbling over a camouflaged log.

  Seb grabbed hold of her and managed to save her from falling over. ‘It’s like a minefield in places,’ he said pulling her to him. He breathed in her fresh soapy scent and had to hold back from losing what little self-control he still possessed whenever he was around her. ‘I’m pleased you agreed to spend some time here this morning.’

  ‘Me, too, Thanks for the invitation.’

  ‘Any time,’ he said, glancing over his shoulder and catching the questioning look on her face. He waited for her to get level with him. ‘Come along, I have something to show you.’

  He held on tightly to her hand and led her through the woods trying not to dwell on her words about this being the perfect place for children to grow up. He glanced up at the powder blue sky over the wood in front of them; it was like something out of a Victorian painting. He’d never considered this place as a family home before, especially not one where he was the father. Her throwaway remark sparked something inside him.

  ‘Why so serious?’ Paige asked, stepping carefully over a rotting log.

  Sebastian shook his head. ‘It’s nothing,’ he fibbed. ‘I’m concentrating on getting you down in one piece.’

  Paige laughed. ‘I’m not as clumsy as Olly likes to make out, you know.’

  ‘I’ll be the judge of that.’ He squeezed her hand and pulled her forward. ‘It’s this way.’ As they neared the clearing in the woodland, Sebastian heard Paige sigh.

  ‘It’s beautiful,’ she whispered.

  ‘You haven’t seen anything yet.’ He led her through to the edge of a small clump of mossy rocks, stepping over a narrow waterfall and stopped. ‘Down there,’ he pointed to their private beach, where he vaguely remembered his mother tanning herself when she was pregnant with Fi. How she ever got down here without hurting herself was a mystery, he wondered.

  ‘Is this your own beach?’ Paige asked.

  ‘It is. Wait there.’ He jumped down and put his arms up to take hold of her. ‘It’s OK, I won’t drop you.’

  Paige grimaced. ‘You’d better not,’ she said stepping forward and allowing him to catch her. He placed her down on the pale golden sand next to him. ‘Seb, it’s heavenly here.’

  He was glad he’d thought to share this special place with her. ‘I’m glad you like it.’

  ‘How could I not?’ They walked towards where the waves lapped gently against the shoreline, a couple of seagulls swooping around overhead.

  ‘Is that a cave over there?’

  Seb couldn’t help smiling at her childlike excitement. ‘It is. I thought you’d like to have a look inside.’

  ‘I’d love to. Come along.’ She kicked off the boots. ‘I’ll race you.’ She laughed and ran along the soft sand towards the opening of the small cave.

  ‘You cheat,’ Seb shouted, chasing after her but letting her stay a few steps ahead of him until they reached the ragged mouth of the rocks. He grabbed hold of her round her waist.

  ‘Hey, that’s not fair,’ she giggled, trying to wriggle out of his grasp.

  ‘Too bad.’ He placed her down so that her feet touched the sand and turned her to face him. Paige lifted her chin to try and kiss him, but Seb smiled. ‘Not yet, I want to show you inside first.’ He took her hand. ‘Careful now, it can be slippery.’

  He bent so that he didn’t hit his head and led her into the damp, shadowy darkness marvelling at the reflections of light bouncing off the wet sides of the granite.

  ‘The water’s cool in these rock pools,’ she whispered.

  ‘They can
’t get warmed by the sun in here. Watch your step.’

  ‘How far are we going in?’ Her voice wavered a little when she slipped.

  Sebastian put an arm round her waist until she regained her balance. ‘It’s not quite the same as the grotto in Capri, is it?’

  ‘No, but it’s very lovely, and it’s at the bottom of your garden.’

  They rounded a bend. ‘Wow,’ Paige sighed as a shaft of light piercing through a crack in the rocks above enveloped them.

  ‘Did you ever camp here when you were small?’

  Seb thought back to the many times he’d asked his uncle if he could do just that. ‘No, it was too dangerous. The tide rises up to the edge of the rocks twice a day, but occasionally we were allowed to camp at the edge of the woods.’

  ‘So, what do you think?’

  Paige sighed and hugged him tightly. ‘I love it. I can’t believe you’re lucky enough to have had this beach all to yourselves when you were growing up. Most of us have to find a free spot on St Brelades Beach, if we’re lucky.’

  ‘It was only when we stayed with my uncle in the holidays,’ he explained. ‘And when the tide is very low you can get here from one of the nearby beaches, but most of the time it’s cut off from everywhere else.’

  ‘Thank you for bringing me down to see this slice of heaven.’

  ‘I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it,’ he said delighted that she’d love this place so much. Hopefully we’ll have more mornings like these.’

  ‘I hope so,’ she said.

  As Paige waved goodbye to Seb from her doorstep, she couldn’t help thinking how different he looked dressed in a faded AC/DC T-shirt and ancient jeans.

  ‘He looks almost like an ordinary person, younger and not so fierce,’ Clem said, from behind her.

  Paige agreed with her, but said nothing, following her sister into the cottage.

  ‘So, what did you do this morning?’ Clem asked, stroking her bump and flinching. ‘Kicks like a ruddy mule.’

  ‘Maybe it is a boy then?’

  ‘Don’t change the subject. In fact, I’m still a little stunned at how tasty Sebastian looked in his chill-out gear.’

  Paige rolled her eyes, secretly thinking the same thing.

  ‘Tell me everything. Come on, spill.’

  ‘He made me a fantastic fry-up and then we went for a long walk through his woods and down to the beach. Then he brought me home.’

  ‘And?’

  ‘And, nothing, so stop bugging me.’

  ‘Stop being so defensive,’ Clem giggled. ‘You’re always like that when you’re feeling guilty.’ She raised an eyebrow and leant closer to her sister. ‘So, how was it?’

  Paige groaned. ‘How was what?’

  Clem ruffled Paige’s hair. ‘I’m talking about your night with that impossibly gorgeous man, what else?’

  ‘None of your business.’ Paige never understood her sister’s penchant for discussing all aspects of her relationships with others.

  ‘I know you were speaking about me just then, so don’t stop,’ Olly said from the hallway.

  ‘Strange as it may seem,’ Clem laughed, her face turning a delicate shade of pink. ‘We were discussing Sir Sebastian.’

  Paige couldn’t miss the subtle change in the atmosphere between her sister and Olly. She watched in silence as he stepped up behind Clem, wrapping his arms around her waist. He winked at her over Clemmie’s shoulder at her.

  ‘Hello, sweet thing, and before you start with your denials, we both know where you’ve been all night. Don’t bother denying it.’

  ‘Hang on a sec,’ Paige said, frowning in confusion. ‘Did I just miss something?’ She looked from one to the other. ‘I don’t suppose I need to cook a special supper for you now, do I?’ she asked, smiling as she went upstairs to her bedroom to change.

  ‘Not for the reasons you were originally going to,’ Olly shouted after her. ‘But you did invite us, so we’re still expecting to be fed.’

  ‘We’ll tell you everything then,’ Clem said.

  Paige turned to look down at them, smiling.

  ‘Not everything,’ Olly argued, before Clem silenced him with a pinch on his waist.

  They finished eating and Paige put her fork down. ‘Right, what happened between you last night?’

  Clem nodded. ‘Dad phoned just after I arrived at home. He’d seen the accident at the racetrack on the news and spotted you in the crowd being filmed getting into Sebastian’s car. He was furious and wanted to know what the hell was going on.’

  Paige sighed. ‘I’ll bet he did. Go on.’

  ‘He must have been in a particularly grumpy mood because when Olly arrived, I let him in and Dad demanded to talk to him.’

  Paige pulled a face at Olly. ‘He gave you the third degree, I suppose?’

  ‘Could say that. He told me how unimpressed he was that his daughter had seen fit to give up university to have a baby. He told me she was far too young to become a mother. He said how he could throttle me for being so irresponsible.’ Olly waved his fork in the air. ‘It’s not as if there was only one of us there at the time of conception.’

  ‘Carry on,’ Paige said.

  ‘He told me that he expects me to step up and do the right thing. I tried to explain that I’d be only too happy to do so, but he interrupted me and said that I should be a man and not let Clem brush me off so easily.’

  ‘Bloody hell.’ Paige glanced at Clem, who was making a point of concentrating on her supper. ‘So what did you say next?’

  ‘I told him I’d speak with her and we’d sort it out somehow.’

  ‘Was he happy with that?’ Paige knew the answer before he had time to tell her.

  Olly rolled his eyes. ‘He told us, we had one hour to talk things through and if we hadn’t come to any satisfactory conclusion in that time, he would come round here and make the decision for us.’

  Clem slammed down her fork. ‘Honestly, Paige, who does he think he is? We’re two grown people, not a couple of kids.’

  Paige shrugged. She understood how indignant her sister must feel, but knew it was only her father’s way of looking out for her. ‘Maybe, but you’re still his daughter, still a student in fact, and he feels it’s up to him to make sure Olly does the right thing.’

  ‘I’ve been trying to do that all along,’ argued Olly.

  ‘I know, babe,’ Clem smiled at him, then turning her attention back to Paige, she added. ‘We’ve decided that I’ll stay in Jersey and have the baby here. Then in a few years, if I still want to carry on with my degree, I can go back as a mature student.’

  ‘Sounds OK to me,’ Paige narrowed her eyes. ‘I can hear a “but” in there somewhere.’

  Clem pursed her lips. ‘We were hoping you’d let me stay here.’

  ‘With a baby?’

  ‘Er, yes, of course with a baby.’

  Paige groaned. ‘Can I think about it for a bit?’ She hated the thought of sharing her cottage for any longer than was necessary. She didn’t have the heart to cause them any additional problems and would have to think of some way round their living arrangements.