Page 82 of A Cornish Love Story
‘Fuck.’ He looked at me again, his gaze intense. ‘But you came. I thought, after I’d left you my number and I didn’t hear from you …’
I ran my hands down the front of my shorts. I had so much to say, I didn’t know where to start. ‘Can we sit?’ I gestured to the step. ‘Unless – are the new owners in there?’
‘No, they left a while ago. They’re moving in after the summer, but they wanted another look, to measure up the spaces, plan some changes to the layout.’
‘They’re not keeping it all as it is?’ I couldn’t see how the house could be improved on, and was disappointed on Ethan’s behalf.
‘Everyone has different tastes,’ he said easily. ‘It’s going to be theirs, so they want it to be perfect for them. They’re keeping the sofas in the lounge, and the beer and wine fridges – of course.’
‘Of course.’ We exchanged a smile. ‘Do you like them? The new owners?’
He nodded. ‘The woman is CEO of a multinational company, and from what I can gather her husband is a stay-at-home dad, and a keen fisherman. I can’t tell you their names, but they have five children. It’s a big, sprawling family.’
‘Like the Rosevars.’
‘Like the Rosevars. We can go inside, if you like?’
I eyed the front door, and my throat tightened. ‘It’s a lovely evening. How about we sit on the step?’
‘Sure.’ He held out his hand, as if guiding me. Ididn’t think he intended to touch me, but his fingertips brushed the cotton of my T-shirt, and I had to resist the urge to lean into him.
We sat down, our bodies angled towards each other. Beyond Ethan I could see the manicured lawn, the redbrick wall and the cliffs on the opposite side of the bay. I couldn’t believe I’d been standing there only a couple of hours earlier. I focused on Ethan, who was staring at where his hands were clasped tightly in his lap.
‘I’m sorry I didn’t call you when you left me your number,’ I said, and he looked up. ‘That night was so … it changed everything for me. I wasangry with you, and Sarah, but only at first. I know you had nothing to do with what happened, and that she wasn’t really behind it, either.’
‘Spence?’ Ethan asked.
I nodded. ‘We were her new love story, apparently. She wanted to get us back together.’
‘Shit. I thought that was it, from what little Sarah told me, but there was no way I could prove it.’
‘She admitted it,’ I said. ‘She was proud of it, even. But I’ve told her she needs to focus on her fictional characters, not turn her friends into puppets. And I was wrong, about Sarah. Especially back then.’
Ethan let out a slow breath, but he didn’t interrupt me.
‘Looking after her was the right thing to do, and I guess I was just …’ I tried to think of the best way to put it. I had done a lot of thinking over the lastfew weeks. ‘I was angry because you weredoingsomething. You were trying to help her, and I wasn’t.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I wasn’t helping Mum. I was afraid to confront her, because I didn’t want to upset our relationship or make my escape to university less likely. I should have told her what I was worried about, not buried my head in the sand.’
‘Georgie.’ He put his hand on my knee, and my skin tingled at the contact.
‘Sarah got enough tough love from your parents, and you knew that she needed affection and encouragement, not the opposite. I didn’t get that until recently. And I know that what Sarah and Spence did was wrong, especially because it made you think Sterenlenn was compromised, but—’
‘Sarah’s shown me exactly how she did it, and now it’s out of Beta it can’t be operated manually. She’s too clever for her own good, but she’s assured me everything with Sparks will be above board from now on.’
‘I’m glad,’ I said. ‘But it wasn’t just Sarah or the messages that stopped me from calling you. It was because I needed to sort myself out. I realized that I’d pinned all my dissatisfactions – my lack of ambition and progress – on losing you, which is a big enough burden for anyone to have.’
‘You know I would have—’
‘I know,’ I cut in softly, and covered his hand with mine. ‘But I wanted to be certain that I could do it allwithout you, first. I wanted to know you again, but I didn’t want to rely on you.’
Ethan turned his hand over under mine and wrapped his thumb around my little finger. ‘So, your book?’
It wasn’t the first thing I’d expected him to ask about. ‘I’ve planned it all out,’ I said, the smile bunching my cheeks. ‘I know what I’m writing, and I’m ready to start.’
‘That’s the best news I’ve heard in weeks.’ He reached out to touch the tendrils of hair straggling on either side of my face.
