'I don't know what to say. But I must say this. As lovely and as thoughtful as that is, it still wouldn't change our plans, Mum. You do know that, don't you?'
'You mean you're not going to come back here to live on the promise of money in the future? Of course I know that. We made the provisions half believing we would never see you again, so I'm hardly likely to insist you come back here or I'll cut you out of my will.'
'Well then. Thank you. That's very kind, but it's really not necessary. I'd rather you sell the house and enjoy the money doing things you've always wanted to.'
'And that's what I want to discuss. If I do decide to put the house on the market now, I'd like to know if there's anything here you want. If not, I'll sell what I can at auction, give some of it to charity, and throw out anything beyond hope. I don't need to know right now. But before you go would be good. And, although I had intended to do it all myself, now that you're both here and staying possibly for a week or two, is there any chance that you'd help me to sort things out? Go through the photos and albums, Granny Viola's papers, all the cupboards etc. I'd like to get as organised as possible. We were going to start it the day she had her fall. It would be a great help to both of us, whatever happens.'
'Of course we'll help, Mum.'
Without thinking, Cat reached out and touched Mary's hand and to her astonishment, Mary took Cat's in hers and squeezed it for a few seconds before releasing it and continuing to eat her dinner.
Chapter Ten
'I'm glad you finally called me,' Lorna said, leaning across the table towards Amias and provocatively but gently scraping her false, multi-coloured nails along the back of his hand.
He let go of his wine glass, moved his hand from the table and leant back against the high, padded seat. This was a mistake. He should've done this in the pub. Better yet, at her place. Agreeing to meet her at Bella Vista, her favourite Italian restaurant, wasn't a wise move. But it seemed he wasn't making any wise moves lately.
He cleared his throat. 'Yeah. About that, Lorna. I like you, you know I do. And we've had some fun, but I think it's best if we call it a day, don't you?'
She couldn't have looked more shocked if he'd punched her in the face. Not that he would ever do that. He'd never hit a woman in his life. Although once or twice in his youth he'd been really tempted to grab Cat Devon by the arm and ... and what? Shake some sense into her? Make her change her mind?
Lorna was talking and he hadn't heard a word she'd said.
'Sorry. What?'
She gasped and blinked several times. 'Sorry, what! Is that all you've got to say? I knew you could be a bit of a bastard, Amias, but I never thought you'd treat me like this.'
'Like what? I honestly didn't hear what you said. My mind was miles away.'
'Thanks. That just makes it worse. I asked if you were seriously breaking up with me?'
He furrowed his brows. Could he have been unclear in any way?
'Um. Yes. But I'm not sure 'breaking up' is the right term, exactly. That implies we had a relationship, and we didn't. We were just seeing one another from time to time and we both knew it wouldn't go anywhere. OK, we could drag it out for a few more weeks and see the summer out, but what's the point?'
'Drag it out? Drag. It. Out. Is that what you'd be doing? I'm so sorry dating me has been such a chore. You didn't seem to feel that way when we were having sex.'
He sighed. 'I'm a guy, Lorna. What can I say? But come on. Don't make me out to be the bad guy here. I think I made it pretty clear the first time we went out that I wasn't looking for a relationship. I told you that when you asked me out. I said I'd love to see you and have some fun, but that's all it would be. Fun. No promises. No commitments. No future. Just two people enjoying one another's company and bodies from time to time. You do remember me saying that, don't you, Lorna?'
She opened her mouth but quickly shut it again and lowered her eyes as she fiddled with her wine glass.
'Lorna? You do, don't you?'
She shrugged her shoulders but didn't meet his eyes.
'I didn't think you meant it. I thought that was just a guy thing.'
'You thought I'd made it up? That I was being reticent or playing hard to get or something? Why would you think that?'
Now she did look at him and she clearly wasn't happy.
'Because I thought you liked me, Amias.'
'I do like you, Lorna. That's why I agreed to meet you here tonight. I'd like us to be friends. We were friends before. We can be friends again.'
'Friends? You're dumping me and you expect me to be friends with you? You're unbelievable, Amias Wells. Un-bloody-believable.'
'I don't understand. Why are you so upset? It's not like we were in love or anything.'
'Oh, isn't it? Well, you clearly weren't. But then I don't suppose you know the meaning of the word, do you? You've never been in love and probably never will be. No. Wait. You are in love. With yourself.'
Amias met her angry stare with a quelling look. 'I can assure you of two things, Lorna. One, I'm definitely not, never have been and never will be in love with myself. And two. I have been in love. Once. A long time ago. With the wrong woman. I got my heart broken and I won't be doing that again in a hurry. But that's neither here nor there. I'm sorry if you feel I've misled you in any way, because I never intended to do that. And I'm sorry if I've hurt you because I never intended to do that either. But you must know there's no point in us continuing this. You must realise we'll never be anything more than friends. Friends who've had sex a few times but won't in the future. I'm afraid I was never going to fall in love with you, if that's what you've been hoping.'
'Oh yes. I think you've made that abundantly clear. And I'm not in love with you either.'
He frowned. 'Then what's the problem? Am I missing something here?'
'We spend the night together. Have fantastic sex. And then you go for days without calling me. Then you call and we do it all again. That's the pattern for weeks. Then suddenly, the calls get further apart. Then you open your heart to me and tell me things I don't think you've told anyone. Things about your friend, Kyle, and about Cat Devon. And then you don't call me for days and I had to resort to calling your sister yesterday to find out if you're still alive.'
Amias bristled. 'You didn't have to do that. And please leave both Kyle and Cat out of this conversation. It works both ways, you know. You could've gone for days without calling me. I wouldn't have minded. Or you could've told me you were busy and to get lost. I wouldn't have minded that either. There were no commitments, remember? And yes. I did tell you things I hadn't told anyone. But I was drunk out of my head and I dearly wish I hadn't done that.'
'Well, as it happens, it was a good thing you did. I wasn't sure whether to tell Mary Devon or not, but I'm really glad I decided to, because just two days later, after Viola had her fall, Mary could get hold of Cat. You should be pleased about that. Perhaps that family will finally patch things up now that Cat's come back.'
Amias sat bolt upright. 'Cat's back? When? How do you know?'
'Because Mary popped in for coffee with my mum this morning and she told Mum to thank me. Cat and her daughter, Kyra turned up on her doorstep last night and they'll be staying for a while.'
'Shit.' He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.
'Is that a problem?' She looked as if she might be enjoying this.
'No. More of a slight irritation.'
'That's good. I'm glad something irritates you. It shows you have some feeling. And you know what, Amias? You asked me earlier what the problem was. I'll tell you what it is. The problem is you, Amias. You're the sodding problem. I'm suddenly not hungry.' She pushed her chair away from the table and glared at him. Then she picked up her glass of wine and threw the contents in his face. 'Thanks for the sex, the fun – and the drink. I won't be calling again.'
After the momentary shock, Amias smirked. He should be thanking her for the drink.
And perhaps she was right. He should be thanking
her for a lot of things.
Cat Devon was back in Merriment Bay. That meant he might get a chance to meet Kyle's daughter, face to face, without appearing to be some kind of stalker. That was definitely worth getting a glass of wine in the face for. Even in a packed Italian restaurant on a Saturday night where everyone was staring at him and whispering, and even if the entire village would be talking about this by lunchtime tomorrow.
Chapter Eleven
Cat didn't sleep so well the second night and neither did Kyra. They were both up early and in the kitchen long before Mary. Cat considered taking Mary a cup of coffee but the sun hadn't yet come up and it had been a hot and sticky night. When Kyra suggested a swim, Cat immediately agreed. No one else would be around at 5.30 in the morning, especially on a Sunday.
Twenty minutes later, after going back upstairs to get changed, and having a large cup of coffee each, they were on the shingle and sand beach opposite the house, as dawn broke over the horizon. What a sight that was. The slate blue of twilight turned to a deep red, easing into a soft pink and finally a golden hue. Rays of warm yellow filtered over the land mass of the bay as the sun rose to the east, spreading out until the sea sparkled and glistened as if all the stars from the night sky had fallen into the sea this morning.
The water was warm after weeks of baking sunshine, but still not clear. The English Channel never was apart from in the shallows. Cat remembered where the rocks were and led Kyra around them, before diving into the balmy waters and swimming away from the shore.
A flock of geese flew overhead, maybe getting a head start on migration, and as the world of Merriment Bay began to come to life, the silence was broken by the muffled sound of car engines starting and lorries rumbling along Coast Road to and from the supermarket, perhaps. Gulls squeaked and soared above Cat and Kyra and Cat suddenly became aware of how easily she could get used to this again. She could remember mornings just like this from all those years ago. And the thought of Devon Villa being sold hit her this morning, far harder than it had last night. Somehow she couldn't imagine anyone but a Devon living in Devon Villa. And that thought worried her far more than the thought of coming home to Merriment Bay ever had. Because for a Devon to live in the villa meant that she would have to stay. And that was something she wasn't sure she could do.
'I could get used to this, Mum.' Kyra voiced Cat's thoughts as she swam to her side. 'Waking up every morning and swimming in the sea isn't a bad way to start the day, is it?' She smiled, and she looked so much like Kyle it brought a lump to Cat's throat.
Kyle loved being in the sea. She remembered Amias joking that he was sure Kyle was half fish. And there wasn't a thing Kyle couldn't do both in and out of water. He sailed, surfed, kiteboarded, windsurfed, waterskied; could handle a jet ski like a racing driver, plus boats of any type or size. At school, he'd been in the swim team, the rowing club and the sailing squad. There was talk of him being Olympic material in more than one field, but competition didn't interest Kyle. He was the least competitive person she had ever met.
Apart from, maybe, Amias. Amias was one of those rare people who would let another person win if he thought it would make them feel good. And he always championed the loser; supported the kid who needed an extra boost in self-esteem. And yet, he had a chip on his shoulder the size of the bay when it came to where he was brought up. And he'd been far from pleasant to her.
He called Cat a stuck-up kid the first day they met. And when she'd asked if he could teach anyone to ride the waves like he did, he had told her that he could teach anyone but her. But he would never say why not.
Each day she had gone to the bay to see if he might change his mind – simply to see him. He was so good to look at even as an eighteen-year-old and just the sight of him made her body behave in ways she didn't fully understand and definitely couldn't control.
He made it perfectly clear that the feeling wasn't mutual. When she'd offered to pay him double, treble, even four times his usual price to teach her to windsurf, he'd sneered at her.
'You'll find money can't always buy you what you want, and no amount of money is going to get you on to anything of mine. Ever. So stop coming down here and getting in my way. I'm a busy man and I've got a business to build.'
'By turning away customers who are willing to pay any price for what you have to offer? I don't think that's a good way to build a business.'
'I don't care what you think. It's my business and I'll build it any way I want. Now get lost, kid.'
After weeks of being nice and taking all his insults, she had finally lost her temper with him that day.
'I'm not a kid. I'm sixteen. And I don't know what I've done to you to make you so rude and obnoxious to me. You're not like this with anyone else.'
'How do you know?'
'Because I've watched you.'
A strange smile had spread across his face but he wouldn't let it take hold and he turned it into a sneer as he raised his brows and looked her up and down with sheer contempt.
'You've. Watched. Me. I knew you were weird. Are you sure you're sixteen? You look about twelve to me. And you definitely behave like it.'
'God! If anyone behaves like a twelve-year-old, it's you, Amias Wells.'
She'd turned away and ran along the shore, so annoyed and hurt and heartbroken. Yes, heartbroken. She hadn't looked where she was going as she'd run towards the path leading from the bay up to Coast Road and the bridge and she'd crashed headlong into Kyle. He had been jogging towards the beach by the side of the Spitfire Café, and they'd both gone flying. He'd hurried to his feet, gently lifted her up and when he'd stared into her tear-laden eyes and asked her what was wrong, she'd blurted out that all she'd wanted to do was learn to windsurf. Was that really too much to ask?
'I'll teach you to windsurf,' Kyle had said, smiling as if he was holding several bars of gold in his arms, not a sobbing sixteen-year-old. 'I'll teach you anything you want.'
'You will?'
'With pleasure. I'm Kyle. Kyle Morris.'
Cat sniffed and wiped her runny nose with the back of her hand in a manner that would've made both her mum and Granny Viola shudder.
'I'm Catherine Devon. Do you really mean that? I've got money. I'll pay you anything.'
An idea was forming in her head. If Kyle would teach her to windsurf that would show Amias Wells how determined she was. And if she got really good at it, perhaps then he'd look at her in a different light.
'Hi Catherine. Yes, I mean it. And I don't want your money. I'll make you a deal instead. I'll teach you to windsurf, if you'll agree to go out on a date with me once I get you standing upright on the board. Deal?'
'Oh. Um. Are you seriously asking me to go out with you? We don't know each other from Adam.' She'd tried to laugh and make it sound light-hearted.
'That's what dating's for. To get to know one another. And I already know I've fallen in love with you.'
'What?' She'd shrieked. 'You're kidding, of course.'
He'd fixed his gaze on her and his ginger curls had brushed his freckled cheeks as he'd slowly shaken his head to and fro.
'I'm not. I knew it the minute I touched your hand and looked into those gorgeous green eyes. It's love. No doubt about it.'
'How old are you?'
'Seventeen. You?'
'Sixteen. Don't you think you're a little young to be falling in love?'
What was she saying? She was in love with Amias. And she fell in love with him the first time she saw him. Maybe this guy was telling the truth.
'Does age matter? I can feel it here.' He touched his chest above his heart. 'I'm going to love you all my life. Please say yes, Catherine. Unless you can't stand the idea of dating me. In which case, say so. I'll still teach you to windsurf. And I'll still do it for free. But I'll ask you out every chance I get.'
He'd smiled at her and he looked so kind and caring. Yet so intense and determined that she'd said yes.
And now that she thought about it with the benefit of all the en
suing years, perhaps it wasn't just an attempt to make Amias see what he was missing. There was something about Kyle that made her feel as if she was going to be in good hands. And not just on a windsurfer.
'Mum?' Kyra said. 'You look miles away. I said I'm getting out now. My tummy's rumbling and I'm longing for poached egg on toast. Are you coming?'
'What? Oh yes. My tummy's rumbling too.'
But it wasn't due to longing for egg on toast. It was due to longing for what she'd lost. And also, partly perhaps, for something she had never had.
She'd told Kyra she didn't want to get married and she was happy as she was. But was that really true? Because suddenly all she wanted was to be in someone's arms and to feel loved again. Really loved. Not just in a semi-platonic fashion as Greg in Bonniemount, the friend she dated on and off, loved her. She wanted to be loved whole-heartedly like Kyle had loved her. And passionately. And at that moment, she wanted that so badly it was an actual, physical ache.
Chapter Twelve
Two days drifted into a little over a week and without realising, Cat and Kyra had started settling into life in Merriment Bay.
It was now August bank holiday Monday and each day, including this one, had been spent in a similar fashion. They swam early every morning, even on the one day it rained. Mary had joined them on Saturday, to Cat's complete amazement, and they'd laughed and had a swimming race, just as they had when Cat was young.
The heatwave was still going strong, and in the village market, Cat heard people loudly wishing for the cool breezes of autumn. She and Kyra went on shopping trips with Mary. Just to the supermarket, or the village market where local businesses had stalls twice a week, selling homemade or homegrown produce.
Today was slightly different though. Today there was the Monday Madness Market. It had been held on the August bank holiday Monday for as long as Cat could remember and as usual, it was packed, not just with stalls and shoppers, but also with entertainers of all varieties. There was a makeshift stage in the centre, where in the winter, an ice rink would be set up. Singers, dancers, musicians, poets and all sorts performed to cheering crowds.
A Reunion Page 6
