My hair is finally dry. He’s brushing it again when he freezes. “Shit,” he says. He leaps off the bed and runs for the door. I flinch as his leg catches the corner of his desk. He hobbles out of the room, holding his knee and cursing. I wonder what’s wrong; I get up to go find him. He’s in the kitchen, standing in front of the oven with a glum look on his face. I can smell something burning and then I see the pasties. They’re not too bad, just a little black around the edges. “I forgot about them, they’re burnt,” he says.
He looks so serious, I want to laugh. “They’ll be fine, we can cut the burnt bits off.”
He scowls. “They won’t taste as good.”
“Quit being such a perfectionist.” I punch him on the arm. “It will be the best pasty I’ve ever eaten.”
He stares at me and frowns. “You’ve never eaten a pasty.”
I smile. “Exactly.”
I find a knife and proceed to cut off the hard, burnt edges. Trey gets us both another beer and we take the food into the garden. As I hold the pasty to my mouth I can feel his eyes on me. He takes his cooking seriously; he’s waiting to see my reaction. I take a bite. Mmm, it tastes good; the pastry melts in my mouth. “It’s delicious, you should have some,” I tell him. He finally smiles and takes a bite; four mouthfuls later his pasty is gone. It’s a mystery to me how all the men I know are able to eat so fast, it’s a wonder they taste anything. I nibble the pastry. “When did your dad leave?” I ask.
He takes a long gulp of his beer. “When I was sixteen. He left on my last day of school.”
That sucks. I pick up my can and take a sip. “Does he help you out?”
He fiddles with his can. “He pays the mortgage on this place. Can we talk about something else? What are you doing tomorrow?”
Me and my big mouth, I didn’t mean to make him feel uncomfortable. “We’re going to Newquay and Mum and Dad want to go to a show in the evening.”
He pokes his bottom lip out. “That means I won’t get to see you tomorrow,” he says. It does and I’m going to miss him.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Pia
I hope Trey will be at the barbecue, I remember the guy who runs the grocery store asking if Trey’s mum was going along. If I do get to meet her, I wonder if she’ll even speak to me being as we upset her by making too much noise. It’s a warm night so I left my hoodie back at the cottage. I’m wearing my denim shorts and a white top with spaghetti straps. I wish I’d thought to use some fake tan, my legs look white and pale. The beach is lit by several large flashlights and it’s full of people, some are sitting on towels and blankets, others have brought fold up chairs with them. There’s a hum of chatter and the smell of meat cooking. I notice a large barbecue set up in the middle of the beach. The doors to the pub are open and the sound of music filters out, there are groups of people standing outside enjoying a drink. It seems like the entire village has come out tonight.
We find a vacant spot on the sand. There were no fold up chairs in the cottage but Mum has brought some beach towels for us all to sit on. Mum and I spread out the towels. Dad says he’s going to the pub to get drinks, and asks us what we want. Mum says she’ll have a glass of wine, Jake wants a coke¸ I tell him I’d like a beer. Jake stands up and stares at the barbecue. “Can I have a burger, Mum?” he asks.
“Wait until Dad gets back, he’ll want something to eat too,” I tell him.
Mum roots around in her purse, hands Jake some coins and tells him to go get a burger. She shrugs. “You know what his appetite is like, Pia, he’s got hollow legs.” I laugh because it’s true, Jake’s an eating machine. I sit down on my towel and watch as he joins the line for the barbecue. A blond haired boy who is just a little shorter than Jake lines up behind him, it looks like they’re having a conversation. A few minutes later Jake returns. He takes a big bite out of his burger, it smells good, I feel hungry. He wolfs down the burger and asks Mum if he can go and play. “Okay, but don’t leave the beach without telling us,” Mum says. He nods and runs off to join his new friend.
Dad returns holding a tray of drinks. He places the tray on the sand and looks across at Jake. “It’s amazing how easily kids make friends isn’t it?” he says as he sits next to Mum, and puts his arm around her. I reach for my beer, crack it open and take a sip. I scan the beach but I can’t see Trey, I wonder if there is anyone my age here. I notice the boy I saw sitting on the steps on my first day here, he’s standing by the water’s edge. There’s another guy with him, and a girl. I can’t see anyone else my age; they’re all older, or much younger. I wonder if all kids leave the village once they become teens.
Dad suggests we get something to eat, so we walk over to see what they have cooking. I hear the sound of meat sizzling and smoke wafts through the air. A middle aged man and woman are running the barbecue; they’re dressed in matching blue and white striped aprons. The woman cuts the buns and fills them, while the man cooks the sausages and burgers, which appears to be the only food they have on offer. Mum and Dad order a burger and a hot dog each; I go for two hot dogs. I squeeze the ketchup bottle but it comes out too fast and smothers my hot dog. Ketchup oozes onto my fingers when I bite into it. I lick my fingers and grimace, ketchup tastes sharp when you eat it on its own, the hot dog is yummy though. Why does food always taste better when you eat it in the open air?
I sit down and devour my dogs. Jake is now playing in the water with his new friends and the group of teens are now sitting on some rocks at the far side of the beach. Mum and Dad discuss where we should go tomorrow; Mum wants to go to a monkey sanctuary at a place called Looe.
My heart speeds up when I see Trey walk onto the beach. He’s wearing long denim shorts and a white sleeveless t-shirt, he looks hot. He’s barefoot; I don’t think he ever wears anything on his feet. He’s holding a bag, and carrying a couple of chairs under his arm. He’s with an older woman. His mum? She looks short, about my height and she’s thin. She’s wearing a sweater and jeans even though it’s warm tonight. I guess being so thin she must feel the cold. I watch as Trey unfolds the two chairs and his mum sits in one of them. He takes a small bottle of soda out of the bag, opens the cap and hands it to her, then he crouches down in front of her. They’re speaking but I’m too far away to hear what they’re saying. He stands and heads over to the barbecue where he buys two burgers. One of the guys who was sitting on the rocks walks over to Trey, I remember Trey saying that he knew him. They’re talking and laughing. Trey doesn’t appear to have noticed me, and I’m debating whether I should go and say hi when a middle aged man walks up to us. He’s holding a book of tickets in his hand. “Do you want to buy a raffle ticket?” he asks. “You can win a bottle of whisky, or a bottle of gin,” he looks over at a table set up not far from the barbecue, “or a bottle of wine. We also have boxes of chocolates, cookies, and a teddy bear for the kids.”
“We’ll have three strips,” Mum says as she delves into her purse for some money. Mum can never resist a raffle. He hands her the tickets and tells us the raffle will be drawn just before the barbecue ends. Mum hands a strip to me. “Keep hold of them, Pia. You never know, we might be lucky.” I fold the tickets and shove them into the pocket of my shorts. I glance around, Trey is back with his mum and the guy who was talking to him is lounging on the rocks, along with Jake and his friend, who are running and jumping around. “Pia,” Mum taps me on the shoulder. “Tell Jake to stop running around up there, he’s going to fall and hurt himself.” I head over and call out to Jake to come down.
“I’m not going to fall,” he says.
“He’ll be okay, I’ll look after him,” his friend says.
That’s absurd; Jake’s friend is smaller than he is. “Get down, now,” I tell him. He glares at me as he climbs down, then he and his friend run off towards the sea.
I’m about to go back over to Mum and Dad when someone calls out to me. “Hey, you’re the chick Trey was hitting on, aren’t you?”
I turn and see the voice belongs to the
guy who was talking to Trey. He has brown curly hair; it’s long and is falling over one of his eyes. I glare at him. “I’m not a chick and what’s it to you?”
“Ooh hostile.” He smiles and shows a row of straight, white teeth. “Care for a beer?” He reaches behind him and holds a can out to me.
I shake my head. “No, I’m good.”
He holds out his hand. “My name’s Asher, but my mates call me Ash.” I take his hand; it’s smooth like Trey’s.
“I’m Pia,” I say, as I look into his ice blue eyes.
Ash points to a guy who has long, straight black hair with a bright red streak running through it. “This here is my mate Liam.” Liam nods his head in greeting, and I notice he has his eyebrow and nose pieced. “And his girlfriend, Collette.” Collette’s hair is bright blue, and is topped with a grey knitted bobble hat.
“Hi Pia, nice to meet you, do you want to join us?” she asks.
I glance across at Mum and Dad, they’re snuggled up together, they aren’t going to miss me. I climb up onto the rock. “I will have a beer if the offer is still open,” I say. Ash hands me a can. I look across at Trey, he’s staring right at me, I wave at him. He waves back but makes no move to come over.
Ash sweeps his hair away from his eyes. “Are you here on vacation?” he asks.
There’s a hiss as I open my can. “Yes, we go back home in a week.” I put the can to my lips and take a large mouthful of beer.
Liam turns so he’s facing in my direction. I glance at the design on his t-shirt; it looks like the face of a decaying zombie. “Where are you from?” he asks.
“London.”
“You’re lucky, it’s dead here,” Ash says.
“This place is starting to grow on me,” I tell them. “It’s pretty, and there are lots of interesting places to visit.” I gesture towards the barbecue. “You wouldn’t get anything like this in London; we live miles from a beach.”
Ash laughs. “And the men are sexier here too, right?” He’s lying down with his hands behind his head.
I think of Trey and smile, yeah they definitely are. The hard rock has made my butt numb, so I shift position. “Are you all Cornish?” I ask.
Collette fiddles with her gold lip piercing. “I’m originally from York,” she says. She fiddles with Liam’s hair, styling it with her fingers. “Liam’s from the midlands, and Ash lived in Devon until last year.”
I tuck my hair behind my ear. “There isn’t much difference between Devon and Cornwall,” I say.
Ash laughs. “Don’t let the Cornish hear you say that, you’ll make enemies for life. We make better cream teas in Devon,” he says. I look towards the sea; Jake is burying his friend in the sand.
“I wish we had some music,” Ash says.
“I could run home and get my ipod,” Liam says. Collette rests her head on his shoulder. I twirl the beer can in my hands, raise it to my lips and take another sip.
“What do you do back in London, Pia?” Ash asks.
“I’ll be starting university next month,” I tell him.
The man selling the raffle tickets calls up to us, asking if we want to buy any, we all shake our heads and he moves onto his next target.
Collette pulls off her knitted hat, ruffles her hair and then puts her hat back on again. “I’ll be going to university in Exeter to study drama,” she says.
I’m not surprised, she looks the artistic type. I drain the last of the beer and place the empty can between my feet. “What about the rest of you?” I ask.
“Were all going to Exeter,” Collette says. “Ash is a science geek, and Liam is taking sociology.”
I look over at Jake; he’s buried his friend up to his neck. “I don’t imagine there’s much work around here,” I say.
Liam crushes an empty beer can in his hand. “There’s none, unless you want to work in the tourist industry, you know, cottage rentals, or run a pub or restaurant,” he says.
I nod my head. “Trey would be good at that.”
“Trey would be good at what?” I jump at the sound of Trey’s voice. He sits down behind me and slides his arms around my waist. I turn my head and smile up at him, then I lean back into his warm, hard body. His bare legs rest against mine and I start to feel tingly. He doesn’t have much hair on his legs and they’re tanned, my skin looks so pale next to his. His feet are much bigger than mine and I notice that his second toe is longer than his big toe. He has nice feet; they’re not gnarled, which is a surprise, considering he goes around barefoot all the time. He leans in and whispers in my ear. “You can suck my toes when we’re alone, Precious.” I feel my cheeks reddening. I punch him on his knee, and I guess I hit a nerve because his leg jerks. He begins to laugh, and I feel his body shaking against mine. I glance over towards his mum, she’s now been joined by the man who runs the grocery store, and an elderly woman.
Ash sits up and rests his arms on his knees. “Are you two an item now?” he asks.
“What does it look like?” Trey says. I shiver as his lips brush against my ear. “My neighbour’s going to take care of my mum tomorrow, so I can take you and Jake to Bodmin, if you still want to go,” he says.
I reach up and run my finger along his jawline, it’s soft and smooth. “Jake will be thrilled.”
Trey smiles and his eyes gleam. “So will I, because I get to spend the whole day with you.” He presses his lips against mine and slips his tongue into my mouth. I reach up and place my hand at the back of his head. I hear Liam’s voice telling us to get a room. I prise my lips from Trey’s, rest my head against his shoulder and trace my finger along his collarbone, underneath the leather cord of his pendant.
“Did you enjoy your burger?” I ask him.
He screws his face up. “It was burnt.”
Ash lets out a loud laugh. “I hope to God you never have to cook for him, Pia. He’s the fussiest eater I’ve ever met. I made him a sandwich once and he even complained about that, said I didn’t put enough butter on it and that the filling was too dry.”
Trey busts up laughing. I turn, kneel between his legs and throw my arms around his neck. “He can’t help being picky, good cooks always are,” I say.
Trey rubs his nose against mine. “Thanks, Precious.”
I brush my hand over his short, fuzzy hair. “And talking of food, I must try a cream tea while I’m here.”
Ash scrapes his curls away from his eyes, and I notice a gold signet ring on his middle finger. “Devon cream teas are better,” he says.
Trey rolls his eyes and reaches out to tuck my hair behind my ear. “There’s no difference,” he says.
I glance from Trey to Ash. “So there’s no difference?”
Trey cups my face in his big soft hands. “The Cornish put…,” he plants a kiss on my forehead, “the jam on first.” He presses his lips against my left eyelid. “Then they add the cream.” His lips travel across to my right eyelid. “In Devon…,” he kisses the tip of my nose, “they put the cream…,” he moves to my right cheek, “on first and…,” I feel his warm breath on my face as he sweeps across to kiss my left cheek, “the jam on second.” He locks eyes with me and my lips part as he presses his lips against mine.
My head dips and I plant little kisses all along his neck, which smells of spice and leather. He tips his head to one side to allow me easier access, his hands rest on my waist. “I trust the chef on this one,” I say.
“Trey.” I turn to see who has called him, it’s the grocery shop owner, he’s clutching a glass of red wine. “Your mum would like you to get her a hot dog,” he says.
“Can I come with you, and meet your mum?” I ask.
He lets out a gentle sigh that makes his nostrils flare. He reaches for my hand. “Okay.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Pia
His mum’s shoulders are hunched up; she looks cold despite the fact that she’s wearing a thick woollen sweater. She has a deep frown line between her eyes. Trey keeps hold of my hand. “Mum, this is my friend, Pia
, and this is my mum, Alison,” he says.
She looks me square in the eyes. Her eyes are the same green as Trey’s, but laughter lines are etched into the corners and her eyelashes are shorter and thinner. “Are you the girl that was screeching in my house?” she says.
Trey frowns at her. “Mum.”
I bite my lip and avert my eyes, her stare makes me uncomfortable. “Yes that was me. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
Trey squeezes my hand. “It was my fault anyway,” he says.
I sit in the chair next to Alison; Trey sits on the sand in front of us. Alison has long brown hair, with a few flecks of grey; it’s tied back in a ponytail. “Are you enjoying the barbecue?” I ask, smiling at her.
“I come here every year, but this time they burnt the burgers.” She nibbles at her hot dog. I catch Trey’s eye, he mouths I told you so. “My husband used to do the barbecue,” Alison says. “He’s a good cook. If he’d been doing it this year he wouldn’t have burnt anything.”
I smile. “Now I know where Trey gets his kitchen skills from.”
Alison twists her hair around her index finger and gazes out towards the sea. “He’s always forcing me to eat,” she says.
I assume she must be talking about Trey. “That’s because he cares about you.”
She frowns and continues twisting her hair. “He’s got a funny way of showing it, forcing me to eat when I don’t want to, and I’m not hungry.”
Trey is gazing down at the sand, and turning his friendship bracelet around and around on his wrist. I bite my lip and try to think of a safe subject to talk about. I can see the lights from the boats that are moored out at sea. “We went to Newquay yesterday, I saw lots of people surfing.”.
Trey’s eyes meet mine. “Can you surf?” he asks.
I shake my head. “It looks fun but I can’t swim very well, I’d be afraid of drowning.”
He smiles at me. “I’ve got a board, I’ll teach you.”
Alison turns her head and glares at Trey. “It’s not your board, it’s Jowan’s.” Trey’s gaze falls back to the sand, and Alison looks back out to sea. Her voice softens. “Jowan loved surfing.”
Just Stay Page 7