Page 97 of The Sisters at the Last House Before the Sea

‘Uh-oh, it’s never a good sign when a woman says that.’ Paul looked up from his computer screen.

‘I’ve been thinking about what you said about not wanting to go on holiday.’

Paul gave a theatrical sigh. ‘Not this again, Isla.’

‘I know we’ve already discussed it but I really need a break and I think it would do our relationship good if we spent some time together.’

‘Which we can do very easily in Devon.’

‘Or in Paris or Berlin or…I don’t know…Krakow. Just for a few days.’

Paul ran his tongue across his bottom lip. ‘I have no urge to visit any of those places and I’m far too busy to go on holiday anyway, Isla. That’s the end of it. I don’t want to hear any more on the subject.’

He went back to his computer but looked up again when Isla didn’t move. Closing the lid of his laptop, he came out from behind his desk and knelt at her feet.

‘Look, sweetheart, I don’t mean to be harsh but sometimes you go off on flights of fancy and you need me to rein you in. We’re fine here, just the two of us. You don’t need to go abroad.’

Isla took a deep breath. ‘Ben suggested I should go to Peru and trek the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.’

Paul rocked back on his heels and got to his feet. ‘Did he? Well, that’s ridiculous, obviously.’

‘Why “obviously”?’

Paul laughed, as if the answer was patently clear. ‘Because you’re far too timid to go so far, especially without me. Face it, Isla. You’re glad your sister never came back for you all those years ago because you feel safer in Heaven’s Cove. It’s a big, dangerous world out there and you’d never cope with it.’

Isla glared at Paul, unfamiliar rebellion stirring in her soul. ‘How do you know I wouldn’t cope?’

‘I just do.’

‘I’ve coped with a lot in my life – Mum dying, Caitlin leaving and now losing Gran.’

‘I know, sweetie,’ said Paul, his voice soft and cloying, ‘and look at you. You’re a mess and you’d fall apart without me by your side.’ He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. ‘So let’s have no more talk about going to Peru.’ He walked back behind his desk and sat down. ‘Now, if you don’t mind, Isla, I have work to finish but we can talk later. I’ll come round at seven thirty and we’ll go to The Smugglers Haunt for a meal.’

‘I don’t feel like going out tonight.’

‘Of course you do. I’ll collect you at seven thirty and we’ll have a lovely time.’

It was a fait accompli as far as he was concerned. Isla shifted in her seat. It was like she was seeing Paul properly for the first time, and there was something she had to know.

‘When we had Gran’s birthday meal on Sunday and you knocked curry into my lap—’

‘Why on earth are you bringing that up now?’ demanded Paul. ‘I’ve already apologised profusely.’

‘Did you do it on purpose?’

Isla felt as if all the air was being sucked from the room when Paul stared at her, his eyes cold. Then he smiled.

‘Of course I didn’t do it on purpose. That’s a very strange idea. What have Ben and Caitlin been saying?’

‘Nothing,’ lied Isla, determined not to involve them. ‘But I’ve been thinking about what happened and it seems to me that you might have knocked the food container on purpose with your elbow.’

Paul gave a harsh laugh and glared at her. ‘I can’t believe you’re being so stupid. Why would I do that?’

‘You tell me,’ said Isla, holding his gaze even though every fibre in her body was screaming at her not to.

Paul was the first to blink and look away. He whistled through his teeth and slumped back in his chair. ‘All right, it’s a fair cop. You’ve got me. But it was for your own good, sweetheart. You should thank me, really.’

Outside in Reception, a phone had started ringing but it sounded to Isla as if it was underwater. There was a rushing in her ears and a lump in her throat.

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