Secrets at the Last House Before the Sea

by Liz Eeles

  ‘I asked how the visit from the Eppings went. I heard from Belinda that they’d called round unannounced, which sounds just the kind of thing they’d do – turn up early and take their prey by surprise.’

  ‘I’m hardly prey, but I was surprised, all right.’

  ‘So how did it go?’

  ‘Not great and I’m sure the house will be demolished.’ Rosie glanced again at Matt, who had turned so all she could see was his back. ‘Charles Epping said almost nothing, and Cecilia Epping hates me.’

  ‘She hates everyone, by all accounts. She’s a right sour-faced bi—’ Nessa glanced at Lily’s upturned face and clamped her lips tightly together. ‘So where does that leave you?’

  ‘I’ll be heading back to Spain next Wednesday. There’s only so long I can take unpaid leave from my jobs without losing them both.’

  ‘That’s a shame. It’s been good having you around again. Me, Katrina, Belinda, and Liam… we’ll all miss you.’

  ‘I don’t think Katrina will even notice that I’ve gone.’

  Nessa gave her a grin. ‘Well, maybe not Katrina… Oh, it looks like your boyfriend’s finished his call. Hi, I’m Nessa.’

  Matt wandered over and shook the hand that Nessa proffered.

  ‘Rosie said you were on a work call. You can’t escape the office, even in the depths of Devon.’

  ‘I sometimes think the office would collapse without me,’ laughed Matt.

  ‘You said it was Carmen’s birthday today,’ interrupted Rosie.

  He hesitated. ‘That’s right.’

  ‘I thought, ’cos it’s her twenty-fifth, she was going to the water park to celebrate with friends.’

  ‘She is. She’s there now but she’s got a tricky viewing booked tomorrow and needed some advice.’

  ‘On her day off?’

  ‘That’s right.’

  ‘On her birthday?’

  ‘That’s how keen she is to get on. Carmen wants to do well and knows I can show her the ropes.’

  Did he sound defensive or was Rosie overreacting? The latter, probably. Her brain was frazzled with everything that had happened recently. And Matt wanted to be with her or he’d never have flown a thousand miles to help her with Driftwood House. She put her hand on his arm and squeezed. ‘Then she’s lucky to have a mentor like you.’

  ‘Are you two coming to the dance later?’ asked Nessa, being pulled by Lily towards the sweet shop.

  ‘What is this dance that everyone’s going on about?’

  ‘Hang on, Lily! It’s an eighties disco this evening in the village hall. You should both come. It’ll be a laugh,’ she shouted, before Lily dragged her through the shop door.

  ‘Do you know everyone around here?’ asked Matt as the door shut behind her.

  ‘Pretty much.’

  ‘Where do you know Nessa from?’

  ‘We were at school together.’

  ‘Like that farmer I met on the beach. I expect we’ll bump into him next.’

  ‘I doubt it. Liam will be busy working.’

  ‘I don’t know how he can bear to stay here and run a farm. It’s boring and lacking in ambition, if you ask me.’

  ‘It’s nothing of the sort. Liam cares for the land, like his family’s done for generations. He nurtures new life.’

  ‘Nurtures new life? There’s no need to get evangelical about it when all he’s doing is growing a few carrots.’ Matt sniffed. ‘So what about the disco? Do you fancy it?’

  ‘Maybe. I’m not sure.’

  ‘We might as well. There’s nothing else to do around here.’

  ‘Nothing apart from watching dolphins swim in the bay, enjoying awesome views from the cliffs, walking through beautiful countryside, and scoffing cream teas in cosy cafés.’

  ‘It’s still not Málaga, though, is it? Where did you say this old church was?’

  He wandered off, kicking at an empty drink can that someone had dropped in the street.

  Rosie watched him scuffing along, with his hands in his pockets. Heaven’s Cove certainly wasn’t southern Spain with its vibrant culture and endless hot sandy beaches. But this village had its own charm, and bigging it up to Matt was helping her to recognise and appreciate that more and more.

  CHAPTER 24

  Liam groaned as music thudded through his skull, colliding with the headache that had been brewing all afternoon. Now he remembered why he’d stopped coming to these village dances. He’d avoided several over the last year and, according to Alex, was fast turning into an old fart.

  Sipping at his warm beer, he stepped back, but not before Michaela had stomped on his toes in her silver ankle boots. For someone who ran a weekly keep-fit class in this hall, she was surprisingly sturdy.

  ‘Sorry,’ she yelled, before being whirled away by her husband to some eighties classic whose name Liam couldn’t recall. Belinda had booked the disco, and probably stipulated the music choices too.

  This evening was a throwback, rather like Heaven’s Cove itself, which often felt like a living museum, with its historic buildings and fishermen setting off from the quay, as they had done for centuries.

  Liam contemplated his love-hate relationship with the village while the music got faster and the dancing more frantic. He was no longer happy in Heaven’s Cove, but there was nowhere else he’d rather be. It was quite a conundrum.

  He stood on tiptoe and scoured the crowd bobbing up and down under the strobing lights. Alex was chatting up Coral’s daughter, Ella, and Nessa was throwing some moves on the edge of the dance floor. But Rosie wasn’t here.

  ‘You made it, then.’ When Liam turned, Katrina was standing very close to him. Her glossy dark hair brushed his shoulder when she tilted her head. ‘Actually, a little bird told me that you might be braving Belinda’s disco.’

  ‘Who was that?’

  ‘Morris, when I bumped into him in the bakery.’

  ‘Ah.’ Liam vaguely remembered mentioning to Morris that he might give the dance a go, and nothing remained a secret in Heaven’s Cove for long. Though Rosie’s bombshell about her dad not being her real father seemed to have slipped under people’s radar.

  What a secret for Rosie to uncover so soon after losing her mother. And she’d trusted him with it. For a moment, the pounding beat faded and he was on the beach again, his hand brushing the soft skin of her cheek.

  ‘Liam, I do believe you’re not listening to me,’ scolded Katrina, moving even closer. ‘I said that I was worried you’d totally given up on these sorts of dances.’

  ‘There’s nothing much else to do around here on Saturday nights.’

  ‘I’m sure I could think of something. Did I mention that Stephen is away at some boring conference in New York? He’s not back until Monday so I have the whole weekend to myself. What do you think of that?’

  The touch on Liam’s arm was light, but it spoke of heated kisses and company. They could slip back to her place and make out on the very expensive designer rug she’d told them all about. She looked amazing in her tight, shimmery blue dress and would no doubt look even more amazing out of it.

  ‘Well, look who’s here.’ Katrina was craning her perfect long neck towards the door. ‘And she’s brought an attractive man with her. Wonders will never cease. Hey, Rosie,’ she called, waving. ‘Over here.’

  Rosie weaved her way through the dancers, her fair hair falling loose to her shoulders. She smiled at Katrina but didn’t catch Liam’s eye.

  ‘Who’s this you’ve brought with you, Rosie?’

  ‘This is Matt, my boyfriend.’

  ‘Gosh, she’s kept you well hidden.’

  Matt, in tight jeans and black T-shirt, looked rather taken aback by the full Katrina dazzle. He took hold of her hand, raised it to his mouth and brushed his lips across her skin, right in front of Rosie. God, what a creep.

  ‘I live in Spain with Rosie,’ shouted Matt above the music, which seemed to be getting louder. ‘Well, we’re not actually living together.’

  May
be not, but they were definitely sleeping together. Not that it was any of his business. Liam took a large gulp of his warm beer and wished he’d stayed at home with Billy.

  ‘What kind of dance is this?’ laughed Matt, eyeing up the locals strutting their stuff.

  ‘Matt’s never been to a village disco before,’ said Rosie, smoothing down her shirt that was white as snow next to her golden skin. ‘He grew up in London.’

  ‘Very cosmopolitan,’ purred Katrina.

  Matt leaned closer to Rosie as ‘Thriller’ started playing. ‘Shall we give it a go?’

  ‘I don’t know. It feels weird being here so soon after Mum’s death.’

  ‘I know, babe. But she wouldn’t want you to be unhappy, would she? Come on.’

  Before Rosie could say anything more, Matt put his hand into the small of her back and propelled her into the gyrating crowd. He put his arms around her waist and started whirling her around the floor, almost bumping into Nessa.

  ‘Who knew that little mouse Rosie would land such a fit boyfriend?’ Katrina glanced up at Liam from under her long black lashes. ‘Aren’t you going to ask me to dance, Mr Satterley?’

  ‘Yeah, sure.’ Liam held out his hand. He was here after all, so there was no point in behaving like a boorish idiot.

  An hour and a half later, Liam leaned against the bar and stole a glance at his watch. He’d head for home soon and only Katrina would notice he’d gone.

  Rosie’s perfume, the delicate scent of an English country garden, suddenly mingled with the hall aroma of beer and sweat. She was behind him. He moved along a little, giving her enough space to reach the bar.

  ‘Hi, Liam.’ Her thin gold bracelet glittered in the light when she waved her hand, trying to attract barman Jim’s attention. Belinda never hesitated to volunteer her husband for a raft of different jobs.

  ‘Hi.’

  Rosie smiled and moved her head closer so he could hear her properly. ‘This disco is like a throwback to our school days. I keep expecting to fall over Year Twelves snogging in the corner.’

  ‘Did you come to the school discos?’

  ‘Sometimes. I stood on the sidelines, hoping someone would ask me to dance, but no one ever did.’

  ‘Not even me?’

  ‘Especially not you. You were far too busy getting off with all the cool girls.’

  ‘What can I say? I was irresistible.’

  ‘Yeah, you’ve always been the local heart-throb.’

  ‘That’s me.’ He swirled the remains of his pint around his plastic glass. ‘Where’s your boyfriend?’

  ‘He’s been dancing with Katrina. She ambushed him, though he didn’t look too upset about it. But he’s just had a phone call from a work colleague and has gone outside to answer it.’

  Pinpricks of light from the disco danced across her pretty face when she turned to the crowd and started tapping her foot. The years fell away and Liam could imagine her watching and waiting for an invitation that never came.

  ‘Would you like to dance?’ He held out his hand.

  ‘What did you say?’

  He put his mouth closer to her ear. ‘I said, would you like to have a dance?’

  She looked round at that. ‘Why? To make up for all the times you never asked me?’

  ‘Sort of.’ Liam grinned. ‘Not really. I just thought you might like to dance. With me. Though it’s fine if you’re waiting for Matt to come back and—’

  ‘All right.’ She placed her hand in his. Her skin was cool despite the stifling heat in the packed hall.

  After putting down his beer, he led her into the middle of the dance floor and began to move to the beat. A few years ago, he would have danced unselfconsciously, knowing that he looked good and people were watching him admiringly. What was it Alex once told him disconsolately after a few too many beers? All the women want to cop off with you and the men want to be you. Or rather more Anglo-Saxon words to that effect.

  But more recently his confidence had done a runner. He wasn’t the catch he used to be – before the farm began to fail, before his cheeks reddened from working outdoors in all weathers, before he was dumped and became, to use another of Alex’s phrases, no feckin’ fun at all.

  ‘This is great,’ shouted Rosie, her hips swaying in time to the music. She closed her eyes and the stress etched across her face fell away as the beat pounded through their bodies.

  ‘That was Madonna’s “Material Girl”,’ said the DJ with an American accent, even though it was Clive who drove delivery vans by day and had probably never been farther than France in his life. ‘Now, let’s slow it down with some romantic vibes from eighties classic “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper. This is for all you Heaven’s Cove lovers out there.’

  ‘Cheesy, or what?’ groaned Rosie.

  ‘Mega cheesy.’ Liam laughed. ‘Clive’s an eighties throwback himself.’

  All around them, couples, bodies entwined, started swaying to the beat while he and Rosie stood stock still in the middle of the dance floor. This was getting awkward. Rosie, cheeks flaming, turned to go but Liam put his hand on her waist and pulled her towards him.

  ‘To make up for all those times I never asked you,’ he said into her ear, feeling the soft brush of her hair against his skin.

  ‘You old charmer,’ laughed Rosie, against his chest.

  At first, they moved to the music woodenly, his hands on her waist and her hands on his shoulders. Acquaintances from years back. Old friends, or maybe new ones. But as more dancers packed in around them, his hands moved across her back and she slid her arms around his neck until their bodies met. He tightened his arms around her and their bodies moved in sync to the music as she rested her cheek against his shoulder.

  Tears prickled Liam’s eyes and he blinked furiously. What on earth was the matter with him? Slow dancing with women was what he did. Everyone expected Liam Satterley to get off with someone by the end of the evening. But Deanna had changed him when she arrived in his life. And she’d changed him even more when she’d left him at the altar.

  After that, he believed he’d never trust his heart to anyone ever again. But with Rosie, it felt safe. Right, somehow, and he was attracted to her. That was the truth, however much he tried to ignore it. But she was going to disappear too: back to her life in Spain, with Matt.

  At least he had this moment of comfort. Liam closed his eyes and enjoyed the feel of Rosie in his arms, her forehead nestling against his neck.

  All too soon, the song came to an end and the beat picked up. Rosie pulled away and smiled up at him.

  ‘Thank you,’ she shouted into his ear. ‘You are now absolved of all guilt for leaving me snivelling on the sidelines at the school disco.’

  ‘Happy to oblige.’

  Jeez, did he just give a mock salute? What an idiot he was. No wonder Rosie frowned before heading off the dance floor. He followed her back to the bar.

  ‘What have you two been up to?’ asked Matt, walking towards them and shoving his phone into his jeans pocket.

  ‘Dancing, for old times’ sake. Was that Carmen on the phone?’

  ‘Yeah.’

  Did Liam imagine it or was Matt looking shifty?

  Rosie picked at the pearl buttons on her shirt. ‘She must be really spooked about her viewing tomorrow if she’s ringing you at this time of night, on her birthday.’

  ‘She is. Don’t forget that everyone’s feeling the strain because neither of us are in the office at the moment.’

  Clever, thought Liam, putting Rosie on the back foot by making her feel guilty for being away.

  ‘Do you fancy another dance?’ asked Matt, taking hold of Rosie’s hand.

  She shook her head. ‘Do you mind if we head back to Driftwood House? I’m tired and it still feels a bit odd being here.’

  ‘Of course, if that’s what you want. We could both do with an early night.’

  Liam definitely didn’t imagine the look of triumph that Matt gave him.

  After Rosie and
her annoying boyfriend had gone, Liam downed the dregs of his pint and wiped the back of his mouth with his hand. He retrieved his jacket from the back of a chair and stepped out of the village hall into a still evening. There was no point in saying goodbye to Alex because he was snogging Ella in the corner.

  At the junction of Church Lane, where the church tower rose above the trees, he heard footsteps behind him on the cobbled path.

  ‘Are you going so soon, Liam? You didn’t say goodbye to me.’

  Liam turned, groaning inside. ‘I couldn’t see you, Katrina.’

  ‘Am I that easy to miss?’ She tossed her hair over her shoulder and gave Liam her best smouldering smile.

  ‘You’re not the kind of woman who can be overlooked.’

  ‘The disco won’t go on for too much longer. Aren’t you going to stay for the last few dances?’

  Liam shook his head. ‘Sorry to be boring but I’ve got to be up early tomorrow morning. Every morning, in fact.’

  He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a lie-in. There was always a long list of tasks to be done, and Billy howled as though his heart would break if he wasn’t let out into the yard soon after sunrise.

  ‘That’s a shame.’ Katrina stepped closer, breathing out gin fumes. ‘Are you all right, Liam?’

  ‘Of course. I’m always all right.’

  ‘Hmm. Has Rosie skittered off too?’

  ‘She and Matt have gone back to Driftwood House to get an early night.’

  ‘I dare say they’ll be heading back to Spain soon.’

  ‘Next Wednesday, I think.’

  ‘That’s a shame. I’m sure we’ll all miss her.’ Katrina’s mouth settled into a thin line. ‘Are you quite sure you’re all right, Liam?’ Draping her arms around his neck, she pulled herself tightly against him. ‘You can tell me if you’re lonely. I get lonely sometimes.’

  Standing on tiptoe, she pushed her face towards him until their lips met and she kissed him. It was a long, deep kiss and, after a few seconds, he began to kiss her back, pushing his fingers through her long hair. The distant beat of the disco faded and his world shrank to her lips that tasted of gin and her body moulding to his. This was all right. This was what he’d been missing all these months.