Spring on the Little Cornish Isles: Flower Farm

by Phillipa Ashley

  ‘Yes. It’s much better to have my space rather than lodging in the hotel. The cottage gives me a little more privacy, not that there is much of it on Petroc.’ He nodded at the bar where a new group of customers were giving Jess and him the once-over.

  ‘You get used to the scrutiny after thirty years,’ said Jess.

  ‘Hmm. Maybe. It’s weird how we met in the garden restaurant isn’t it?’ he said, pouring some more wine into his glass. ‘I was horrified when Maisie tripped over my bag. I’d never have forgiven myself if she’d fallen.’

  ‘All’s well that ends well, eh?’ said Jess, her already warm cheeks heating up further at the reminder of Maisie’s subterfuge.

  ‘She seems like a good friend. Patrick too.’

  Jess’s cheeks were burning now. Luca was far more generous towards Patrick than the other way around. She wished he and Will wouldn’t call him a ‘tool’. Maybe she’d tell Will later, not that she dared say too much or Will would start to read more into their relationship. It was only one date, after all but she did like Luca and she would definitely repeat the occasion, if asked. Or perhaps she should ask him?

  She drained her glass faster than she’d wanted to.

  ‘Finish it off?’ Luca waggled the bottle and poured more in before she could even protest. ‘I think I’ll order a brandy with coffee. It’s great never having to drive and the Petroc water taxi’s picking me up later.’

  Jess was enjoying herself too much to think about the end of the evening at this stage but there was still plenty of time before Luca had to leave. As darkness fell outside, the band came on stage and started their set. They were a Cornish band who also occasionally played at the Driftwood too and they weren’t bad at all, mixing folky stuff with mellower chart hits. Luca’s arm snaked around her shoulders and Jess settled against him happily enough, although she still kept thinking how strange it was to have another man’s arm around her and that it felt like wearing a coat that didn’t quite fit, even though everyone said it looked great on you. Or was that her simply readjusting to the new ‘normal’?

  During the band’s break, they had a couple of coffees and Luca had his brandy. Jess had turned down a brandy herself, feeling she was mellow enough. They chatted easily about anything and everything. The farm, life on Scilly, Luca’s parents’ villa and his grandparents’ place on Sardinia. He told her a little about his work in London and with the Petroc Resort but didn’t mention a significant other or any recent relationships. If Luca knew about Adam, he didn’t let on either. Talking about ex-partners was meant to be a no-no on first dates anyway, and Jess was certain neither of them wanted to sour the mood.

  After the band had done their final number, Luca suggested they leave before last orders. Jess was feeling chilled and hopeful. If she could have a good time after the shock of seeing Adam with Keri and Emmy, she must be more resilient than she’d thought.

  As soon as they were outside on the pub terrace, Luca turned to her, his face lit by the light spilling out from the windows.

  ‘I hope you’ve enjoyed this evening … And if you can bear to repeat it, there’s an Italian Gourmet evening at the Rose & Crab on Saturday night.’

  Jess’s stomach fluttered, as she realised how much she’d subconsciously hoped there would be another date. ‘Sounds great.’

  He gave a wry smile. ‘I expect it’ll be about as Italian as a chicken tikka pizza but if you fancied joining me for dinner, that would be great.’

  Funnily enough, she couldn’t think of a single reason to say no to a handsome, fit Italian asking her for a gourmet dinner at one of the islands’ top restaurants.

  ‘OK,’ she said boldly. ‘But I’m not letting you pay.’

  He grinned. ‘Oh, I’ve no intention of paying. I’m the marketing manager. I’ll put it on expenses. And you can take this any way you want to, but please stay over if you want to instead of worrying about rushing to get the boat home. I can get you a room at the hotel,’ he added.

  ‘The hotel?’ She wasn’t quite sure what he meant but his next comment made it clearer.

  ‘If you’re more comfortable with that. Although there’s always the sofa bed in the cottage …’

  She went shivery. Wow. This handsome, sophisticated man was asking her to stay the night … in his own subtle, charming way. All she had to do was say yes.

  ‘Thanks. I’d love to come to dinner.’ Let him make of that what he would. It let him know she was interested in taking things further but not how far. She wasn’t certain herself yet.

  ‘Great. I think I have to leave. Keith the boatman texted me to say he’s on his way and if I miss the tides, even he can’t get me back to Petroc. I had a great time tonight. It was fun, even with the eyes of a whole island on us.’

  ‘So did I.’

  Smoothly and before she’d even realised it, he leaned in for a kiss and she was in his arms. She tried to relax into the kiss: no peck on the cheek this time but the full-on variety.

  Her first kiss in eight months.

  It was so different. So expert but maybe more insistent, more demanding, than she’d expected. He even cupped her face with his hands like they did in the movies. He made no attempt to end it, but pulled her closer against him. Jess tried to relax and enjoy the moment as much as she ought to have done: being kissed in the moonlight by a gorgeous Italian wasn’t a hardship after all. Just as she thought she needed time to breathe and think, his phone beeped.

  He swore softly, let her go and glanced at the screen.

  ‘That’s my carriage,’ he said with a rueful smile. ‘Sorry.’

  ‘Don’t want you turning into a pumpkin,’ she said, still reeling from the kiss, but trying to keep things light. She didn’t know how she felt about the way things were moving and she definitely didn’t want Luca to know.

  ‘I’ll be in touch about times when you’ve decided whether you want to stay over or not? Is that OK?’

  ‘Fine.’ She sounded far more blasé about the decision than she felt.

  ‘Goodnight then.’

  He walked swiftly off, but Jess lingered on the path that led up to the pub. The wine was wearing off as the cool night air hit her lungs and made her feel as if the whole situation was slightly more surreal than before. She doubted she’d sleep that night as she tried to make sense of the evening. The highs, the lows, one new experience after another, the kiss and the offer: come to my place, stay over, no pressure but I’d really like you to sleep with me. He may not have used those exact words but she wasn’t naïve.

  She had to think about it and even if she did stay, maybe he really did mean she could sleep on the sofa bed.

  Hey, get real, Jess. That’s what Maisie would say to her. For God’s sake, they were way more than grown-up and he was absolutely gorgeous. What possible reason could she have for not staying over with him? Or sleeping with him? She certainly didn’t care what anyone thought: it was none of their business. Not even Adam’s, not that he could have any idea how her evening had gone.

  She zipped up her jacket as the cool air chilled the exposed flesh of her cleavage. She deserved a bit of fun and Luca Parisi was surely the man to provide it?

  The clouds had parted to reveal the moon over the sea, laying a silver pathway to the other islands. The wind rustled the branches of the trees and a bird called from the shadows. Jess quickened her step, hoping to clear her head with the brisk walk home. She heard footsteps behind her and thought Luca had come back down the path or someone from the pub was out, but when she turned, a figure detached itself from the shadows.

  She’d lost count of the times she’d rehearsed what she was going to say to Adam if she ever came face to face with him again. She was going to be casual, relaxed, polite and as normal as it was possible to be. She was going to be fine with him having left without a reason and arriving back on the island with a woman and child in tow.

  All her resolve flew away in an instant to be replaced by an anger that seethed through her and made her
feel like a stranger to herself. Why did he still have the power to upset her like this, even after a lovely evening with a new date? She barely allowed herself a second’s glance at him before she almost ran off in the opposite direction.

  ‘Jess! Wait!’ Adam caught her up and took her arm.

  She was shaking and felt sick – and shocked too. My God, he was thinner and diminished somehow. She was almost too shocked to speak. Almost.

  ‘Please get out of my way,’ she said.

  ‘Jess. Please don’t do this. Let me explain.’

  ‘I think it’s a bit late for that. I’ve nothing to say to you and I don’t want to hear anything you have to say to me. I’m going home.’

  Adam stayed put. A shadow on her path to a new life.

  ‘Move out of my way,’ she said.

  ‘OK. OK. But you must understand I never—’

  ‘Please don’t say you never meant to hurt me. Please don’t be that disappointing. You did hurt me, but now I’m over it. Keep away from me.’

  He didn’t say anything and it was hard to see his face in the twilight. The moon slipped behind a cloud and only the lights from the pub cast any light at all. Jess hurried away, hoping she wouldn’t trip in the darkness.

  ‘I saw you with him.’ Adam’s voice followed her down the path.

  Jess’s chest tightened and she turned back. The moon came out again, illuminating him in silver light.

  ‘And I saw you with them, Adam.’

  Before he could answer again, Jess was off, running down the road, by the light of the moon, towards home.

  Chapter 24

  ‘You won’t find the answers in that tea, you know.’

  Jess glanced up from the breakfast table the next morning as Will pushed a rack of toast towards her.

  ‘Eat up. We’ve a busy day ahead.’

  ‘Yeah.’ She sipped her tea and scraped butter onto the piece of toast, and nibbled the corner.

  Will lavished butter on another triangle and crunched a corner. He washed it down with a glug of tea and then speared a rasher of bacon from the dish to add to the fried egg and tomatoes on his plate. She’d noticed he’d cooked it how she liked: crispy, but she couldn’t face any of it and the excess of Prosecco from the previous evening wasn’t wholly to blame.

  Will started to cut up the bacon. ‘How was your date?’ he asked.

  ‘OK.’

  ‘Only OK?’

  Jess smiled. ‘It was good. Luca’s a lot nicer than you give him credit for. You should get to know him better.’

  ‘Yeah. Maybe. So, is he going to be my brother-in-law?’

  Jess rolled her eyes. ‘Don’t start that. I’m waiting for Mum to start planning the floral arrangements. Have you told her I saw Luca last night yet?’

  He grinned. ‘No. I thought I’d leave that pleasure to you.’

  ‘Thanks, dear brother. I love you too.’

  Jess nibbled her toast while Will tackled his full English, debating whether to tell him she’d seen Adam. She’d lain awake for ages after she’d got back to the farm with Adam’s words ringing in her ears. ‘I saw you with him.’ The irony and injustice of it had seared into her. How dare he judge her for seeing another man after he’d left with no explanation and turned up with an unknown woman and child? What kind of arrogance made him think he was entitled to do that? How could he care who she saw or what she did after such a betrayal of trust?

  Will was pouring out the remains of the tea from the pot. It was rusty orange and strong, but he didn’t seem to mind.

  ‘I think you ought to know that I saw Adam yesterday,’ he said. ‘I bumped into him walking from the quay to Thrift Cottage. I – um – was on my way for a pint in the hotel bar; I didn’t want to cramp your style by hanging round the Gannet.’

  Jess opened her mouth to speak but Will got in first.

  ‘Before you ask, he was on his own and, no, I didn’t ask him about this Keri and Emmy.’

  ‘Did you speak to him at all?’ Jess asked.

  ‘He muttered “hello”, I grunted something back and then I went on my way before things got any more complicated. Put yourself in my shoes. He was my mate once and then he dumped my sister and has apparently turned up with a wife and child in tow. Some people say that men have short memories when it comes to friends, but there’s no coming back from what he’s done. Family always comes first, Jess. No matter what you think.’

  ‘I do know that. Thanks.’

  ‘By the way, you looked very er … smart last night. Even though Luca doesn’t deserve you, either.’

  ‘Why don’t you like him?’ said Jess, amused and quite touched by Will’s attempts to be nice.

  ‘Because he likes himself too much. If that bloke was an ice cream, he’d lick himself to death.’

  Jess had to smile. ‘You’re only jealous that he beat us in the gig race.’

  ‘Yes I am. I’m completely pissed off. However, it gives me even more motivation to work you all extra hard. Don’t forget there’s a practice session for the Mixed tonight.’

  Jess groaned. ‘You really are cracking the whip. We’re all shattered.’

  ‘No excuses,’ said Will with a grin, then hesitated before adding, ‘For what it’s worth, I’m glad you’re seeing someone else, even if it is the Tool.’

  ‘Hey, thanks,’ said Jess, a little peeved at his comments about Luca but knowing that his heart was in the right place. ‘Now you can stop worrying that he’s seeing Gaby,’ she added.

  He snorted. ‘What gave you that idea?’

  ‘The delight on your face when you realised he’d come to take me out.’

  ‘Don’t be silly,’ he said but Jess knew he was squirming.

  ‘You can’t fool me. I’m your twin sister, remember.’ Jess took an inner breath before she spoke again, worried about Will’s reaction. ‘By the way, you’re not the only one who saw Adam last night.’

  Will’s mug paused halfway to his mouth. ‘Where?’

  ‘Outside the Gannet after Luca had gone. He was in the bushes and stepped out in front of me.’

  ‘Jesus. He hasn’t hurt you, has he?’

  ‘Of course not!’

  Will thumped his mug onto the table. ‘He’d better not come near the farm. Do you want me to warn him off?’

  ‘No. I can fight my own battles, though thanks for the thought. Adam would never hurt me – not in that way – but he didn’t like seeing me with Luca. He made that plain enough.’

  ‘It’s none of his fucking business.’

  ‘That’s what I told him.’ Jess winced as she remembered her exchange with Adam. ‘Sort of. Neither of our love lives are perfect, are they?’

  ‘Mine’s non-existent.’ Will put a piece of toast on her plate. ‘Eat up. I agree with Mum on one thing. You need feeding up. You deserve to be happy.’

  She was touched. ‘Thanks. I mean it but sadly the world doesn’t owe us happiness. We have to go out and find it … not so easy when your world is as small as ours, no matter how idyllic other people may think it is.’

  *

  Jess was relieved to have no more sightings of Adam before her date with Luca at the Rose & Crab. Despite its name, the place was far more like a posh restaurant than a pub, so she’d decided to go for the short-sleeved wrap dress that she’d bought for her cousin’s wedding. With a leather jacket over the top instead of the cropped cardigan she’d worn to the wedding, it was a good compromise between smart and casual.

  She’d accepted Luca’s offer to have the Petroc jet boat meet her at the jetty and as she waited on the quay, alone, butterflies stirred in the pit of her stomach. This wasn’t her first date with Luca so she knew what to expect, but there was also a big difference: her overnight bag sat on the quay beside her, reminding her that she wouldn’t be home that night.

  She tried to calm her nerves by walking up and down in the evening sun, enjoying the sight of seals playing just off shore. They popped up their heads and watched her curiously before diving
back down under the waves, almost as if they knew where she was going and how she was feeling. The only signs of human life were a fishing boat out in the bay and the chug of a tractor from one of the fields behind the beach.

  Jess checked her phone and strained her ears: the jet boat would be here soon. She’d feel better once she was on her way.

  She picked up her bag, anticipating the low throb of the high-powered engine barrelling across the sea, but her heart sank when Adam appeared from between the gig sheds. It was inevitable she’d see him again, but why did it have to be now?

  ‘Jess …’ He waited a few feet away from her and the evening sun highlighted how gaunt he looked in his face.

  ‘Adam, I don’t want a row.’

  ‘I’m not looking for one.’ His eyes strayed to her bag and back to her face. ‘Are you going out?’ he said warily.

  ‘Isn’t it obvious?’ Jess gripped her overnight case. She felt like a criminal trying to get away with the loot. ‘I don’t think that’s any of your business.’

  He nodded then took an interest in the cobbles on the quay for a few seconds. ‘I’m sorry for the way I kicked off the other night. It was wrong of me.’

  ‘I don’t care. What’s past is past.’ Jess tried to keep her tone firm but calm. The jet boat was now in sight and she didn’t have long before she could escape. What a horrible thought that was: yearning to escape from the man she used to long to be with.

  ‘I can see that.’ He inclined his head to her overnight bag,

  She cracked. ‘If you had something to say to me, you should have said it long ago. No matter what your reasons for going, and it’s obvious what they were, it doesn’t matter now. If you’d told me you had a partner and a child, I’d have hated it, but I’d have accepted it. It was the … the silence that did the real damage. There’s no coming back from that. Your place is with Keri and Emmy now. They need you and and I need to move on.’

  The jet boat engine quietened as it approached the quay.

  ‘Sounds as if you’ve already made up your mind about me,’ he said.

  He sounded so forlorn that she almost felt sorry for him but her pity passed quickly. ‘Leave me alone, Adam. I’m going for dinner and I don’t want my evening ruined.’