Page 23 of The Island in Bramble Bay
‘We used to go to Cornwall every year when I was a kid. I loved it and it never occurred to me to wish I was going somewhere else. Lately, I’ve been to Greece a couple of times but I still love exploring Britain, especially the coast. I still can’t believe I actually live by the seaside.’
‘And what brought you to the seaside?’ He raised his eyebrows as he said ‘seaside’ and Maggie wondered if she’d ever get tired of him thinking that her accent and colloquialisms were amusing.
‘I got offered the job, you know, and it seemed like the right time…’
‘Right time for…?’
Perhaps now was the time to impart just a little bit of her story. But it was technically their first date and she didn’t want it to be the last.
‘Well, I’d set up the Trust Treks and was working away from home more and more and things sort of fell apart. I was away so much that I drove a wedge between everything that was at home and the comparatively glitzy life I had while I was working for head office. Some of the people treated me like a VIP, I suppose, and it was quite flattering.’
One person had done that. One person who seemed to be everything Maggie had thought she’d needed in her life but who had turned out to be using her to his advantage and before she’d realised, everything was ruined. The regret crept across her. She pulled her hand away from Charlie’s.
‘Hey, it’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it, honey.’ He reached out and stroked her cheek but she couldn’t let him be kind to her and she leaned back to avoid his touch. He looked surprised but she was relieved to see there was no hurt in his eyes. Maybe he understood, somehow. She couldn’t bear to see hurt in anyone’s eyes again after how she’d treated Ben.
‘Sorry. Bad combination of wine and reminiscing.’ She tried to smile.
‘How about some fresh air?’
They walked across the deck and down the steps onto the lawn. The moon was bright enough to see by until they went into the woods at the edge of the garden. The trees weren’t too dense and there was a path of sorts for them to follow. Charlie was leading the way and they held hands but didn’t talk. He seemed to know that the evening had taken a nosedive and was trying to pull it back.
Being in the wood at night lifted her mood. The smells were heightened and she could hear the sounds of the nocturnal animals. The feelings that had been briefly resurrected sank back to their proper place — hidden.
When the trees thinned, they emerged onto a small beach. There was nothing to see apart from the sea which faded into the dark and to the uninhabited Studland nature reserve beyond.
‘I knew you lived on an island but I’m still impressed that you have your own beach.’
Charlie stood behind her, his arms around her waist as they looked out over the moonlit sea together.
‘You’re easily impressed. Beaches are a dime a dozen around here.’
‘Not if you want one to yourself. This is amazing.’ She turned to face him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his warm chest. ‘I’m sorry,’ she murmured into him. He replied with a squeeze, then touched his fingers to her chin and lifted her mouth to his.
His kiss was tender but almost immediately filled Maggie with an intense physical desire. She pushed her hands up under his shirt, caressing his back and sides, beginning with featherlight touches and then as she lost control, pressing her fingers into his skin, kneading it, rubbing it, conveying without words how much she wanted him.
They both fell to their knees, pulling each other’s clothes over their heads then pressing their naked torsos together, kissing each other everywhere, until they fell onto the sand where Charlie made his kisses gentler, teasing her until she was writhing, begging him to take her.
They lay in each other’s arms, still naked, with the heat from their lovemaking keeping them warm.
‘Do you think that’s ever happened on this beach before?’ Maggie asked.
‘It’s never happened anywhere on the island, at least not involving me,’ said Charlie.
‘We just christened the island.’
‘Uh-huh, I guess we did. That’s pretty special.’
‘You’re pretty special, Charlie. I just can’t believe I found you on Bramble Island.’
20
FROM: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Hi (5) from the Valley
Jared,
