Isla stared at the ceiling with a huge smile on her face as she thought back to the moment that had led her here.
The night before had begun innocently enough. After dropping in to see her brother Matthew and his son Elliot as soon as she’d arrived in Sandcastle Bay for her nephew’s christening, she had then gone to the pub to meet Leo. And maybe the plan had been to have a few drinks with a good friend and return to her hotel room alone, but that had gone straight out of the window when he’d kissed her on the cheek and whispered, ‘God, I’ve missed you.’ Right then she’d been lost to him. They’d spent the whole night wrapped around each other; the sex even more incredible than she’d imagined it would be. They’d dozed occasionally before wandering hands had started them off all over again.
And here she was, lying in his bed in Maple Cottage. The early morning autumn sunshine was dusting his bedroom with gold, showing off the contours of his naked muscled back beautifully. Isla ran a hand down his spine, caressing his warm soft skin, and then slipped it up into his hair, cupping the back of his neck.
There was something wonderfully glorious about being pinned to the mattress by the weight of Leo Jackson, his heart thundering against his chest as he tried to catch his breath from their exertions moments before, his face buried in her neck, his warm breath racing against her skin.
Although she hadn’t expected this to happen between them when she had arrived in Sandcastle Bay, it wasn’t a total surprise that it had. This thing between her and Leo had been bubbling for a long time. Every time she had come to visit her brother, chemistry had sparked between them. Matthew had often teased them that they should get a room and last night they finally had.
Leo lifted his head and grinned as he stared down at her, looking carefree and happy. She stroked his face and he dipped his head and kissed her briefly on the lips.
‘Well, that was undoubtedly the best night of my life,’ Leo said, his eyes filled with affection as he gazed down at her warmly. She couldn’t help but smile, even though it was quite obviously a line. Leo Jackson was a charmer and his reputation with women definitely preceded him.
‘You’re so full of it,’ Isla laughed.
His caramel brown eyes twinkled. ‘What?’
‘I bet you say that to all the women.’
‘No, of course not.’ Leo pretended to be hurt and she arched an eyebrow. ‘Not all of them.’
She laughed and tried to push him off her to get up, but he held her in place, amusement fading from his eyes. ‘It was pretty incredible, wasn’t it?’ he said, softly.
She swallowed down the emotion that was sitting heavy in her chest. Because that had been the surprise. Not that they had ended up in bed together, she’d always known that something would happen between them, but that it had felt like a hell of a lot more than two friends having great sex. Something had passed between them, something so intimate and heartachingly real. The first time they’d had sex, they’d stared into each other’s eyes and it was as if she was reconnecting with a part of her that had always been missing. It felt like… coming home.
In the early hours of the morning, when he had dozed as he’d wrapped himself around her, she’d even let herself imagine a wonderful, rose-tinted future with him. Living here in Sandcastle Bay, raising their children together. It was ridiculous. She’d known that Leo Jackson didn’t do marriage and happy ever afters, he’d said as much himself, but it didn’t hurt to imagine it. Now, in the cold light of day, she felt the need to protect herself from a dream that seemed to be fading away fast.
‘It was…’ she floundered for the right words to try to play down what she’d shared with him. Nice. Lovely. Those were not words she could use to describe the night before. Her heart was striving to be honest with him, to let him know how special it had been for her, and the word slipped from her lips before she could stop it. ‘Magnificent.’
A look of surprise crossed his face. ‘Magnificent?’
Isla cursed herself. Way to play it down and be totally cool about what happened between them.
‘The sex,’ she said. ‘You were pretty good.’
‘Wow. Pretty good is a bit of a comedown from magnificent,’ Leo teased. ‘I think I’ll go with your first answer. You were pretty bloody spectacular yourself. But I was talking about…’ he trailed off and fell into silence.
‘Yes?’ she prompted when he didn’t seem to have anything else to say.
He frowned. ‘There was… something else.’
She suppressed a smile. Leo Jackson was not a man who could express his emotions easily. She waited patiently for him to elaborate further, but he was evidently hoping she would fill the gaps. She couldn’t do that. She’d just told him their night together had been magnificent and that was embarrassing enough.
She ran her thumb over his lips and he kissed it. His eyes were soft as he looked down at her. Was it crazy that she had fallen a little bit in love with him?
They stayed like that for the longest time, just staring at each other. She knew this night had been way more than just sex and, from the look in his eyes, he did too.
A sudden thud at the window broke the spell between them. As she looked over she could see a large seagull on the windowsill outside, peering in at them.
She laughed. ‘You have to love life by the sea.’
‘It can wear pretty thin after a while,’ Leo growled.
She gently pushed him off her and this time he let her. She sat on the edge of the bed. ‘We need to get up. We have to be at the christening in a few hours and I need to go back to the hotel to get changed.’
Leo groaned. ‘Let’s just stay here instead, spend the whole day in bed.’
She turned round to face him in confusion. ‘I’m going to assume you said that because you enjoyed being with me so much and not because you don’t want to go to the christening.’
He let out a little sigh. ‘Let’s say it’s a bit of both.’
‘Leo! You’re Matthew’s best friend…’
‘I know.’
‘You’re going to be godfather to his son!’
‘I know, that’s the bit that’s bothering me. Why the hell would he choose me to be Elliot’s godfather?’
Suddenly his comments the night before about how nervous he was about today made sense. He wasn’t nervous about standing up in front of a room full of people, of saying the right words, he was nervous of the responsibility of this new role.
Her heart softened for him even more, this great big, cocky, beautiful man, with a sensitive heart.
‘This is very important to Matthew. This isn’t just a meaningless day to get gifts and have an excuse to celebrate and drink. After Sadie walked out and he was left to raise Elliot on his own, Matthew wants to make sure that, if anything happens to him, there would be someone there he trusts to look after Elliot. He chose you to be godfather for very good reasons.’
‘What reasons? After my dad died when I was a kid, I was a complete flake at school, played up in class, was suspended more times than I could count. Left school with almost zero qualifications. I used to smoke. I’d get into fights. Got caught graffitiing the bus stop and stealing beer from the local supermarket, all before I was eighteen years old. And OK, I’ve probably calmed down a lot since then, but I probably still drink a bit too much and, erm… enjoy the company of too many women. What kind of role model could I possibly be to Elliot?’
She smiled and rolled over and kissed him. He stroked his hand through her hair, letting out a heavy sigh against her lips.
‘You are a wonderful man. Kind, fiercely loyal, generous. I see how you are with Marigold and you have such a lovely way with her,’ Isla said, talking about his niece. ‘You’re patient, protective and fun. She might only be a year old but it’s clear she adores you. Matthew sees all these qualities in you. I’m sure he is judging you on the man you are now, not the boy you used to be.’
He smiled slightly. ‘I think you see more in me than I do.’
‘And Matthew does too or he wouldn’t have asked you.’
Leo sighed. ‘I can’t be a dad to Elliot. I see the way Matthew looks after him and I could never be as good as he is.’
‘You don’t need to be a dad to him. If, god forbid, anything was to happen to Matthew, I would be Elliot’s legal guardian. I will be his mum, dad, aunt and friend. You can be the fun uncle, play with him, take him out now and again, teach him how to play football, explain about shaving and other boy stuff when he gets older, just be there for him in the same way you’re there for Marigold. You can do that, can’t you?’
Leo clearly thought about that and then nodded.
He suddenly rolled her, pinning her to the mattress again. ‘Isla Rosewood, I think I’m a little bit in love with you.’
Her stupid hopeful heart soared at that comment, but she quickly pushed it back down. ‘Oh shush, I bet you say that to all the women.’
He kissed her, smiling against her lips. ‘Not all of them.’ He pulled back slightly, looking at her tenderly. ‘Stay here tonight.’
‘What’s this? Leo Jackson wants to spend two nights with the same woman?’
‘Well, it was pretty – what was the word you used? Magnificent. I’m not walking away from that any time soon.’
She smiled and nodded. ‘OK.’
He kissed her again and she let herself forget the world outside for a few moments. She didn’t know what was going to happen between them after this weekend. She was due to go back to London the following day, which was almost six hours away on the train, longer in the car. She had a job there, a life to return to. And Leo had promised her nothing more than a warm bed for the night. But in that moment, wrapped in his arms, him kissing her like his life depended on it, she was more than happy to take it.
‘Marry me?’ Leo said, watching her as he took a sip from his mug of tea.
Isla’s heart leapt, as it always did when he uttered those words, but then she pushed those silly hopeful emotions away.
‘Well, that escalated quickly. I make you a bacon sandwich and a cup of tea and you’re proposing to me,’ Isla said, picking up her empty plate and taking it over to the dishwasher so she wouldn’t have to look at him – this bloody beautiful, incredible, frustrating man.
When her brother, Matthew, had chosen Leo to be Elliot’s godfather all those years before, he’d also asked him to take care of her if anything was to happen to him. Had Matthew known that Leo would take that request quite so literally? Did Matthew know that, a few months after his tragic death, Leo would propose to her and keep asking her every week, despite her repeatedly saying no? It had been a year since the first proposal and, no matter how many times she refused him, it didn’t seem to put him off.
‘You do make an amazing bacon sandwich,’ Leo said. He wasn’t taking this remotely seriously.
‘I’m not marrying you.’
‘Why not? We’d be great together.’
And that was true. Over the last year, since Isla had moved to Sandcastle Bay, Leo had become her best friend. He was round her house practically every day, they loved spending time together. Elliot adored him and the feeling was entirely mutual. She could not think of a better person to raise Elliot with.
She sighed and turned to face him. ‘Because we’re not actually together. Normally, people date for a while first before they walk up the aisle.’
He waved this fact away like it was an insignificant detail, but it mattered to her. She wasn’t going to get married just so she would be financially secure, which was the reason Leo had given when he’d first proposed, and she’d asked why he wanted to marry her. She wasn’t going to get married to give Elliot a father figure or because the two of them were great friends. Maybe it was soppy and overly romantic but she wanted love in her marriage, not companionship.
‘OK, what would happen if I was to say yes?’ Isla asked.
‘I’d take you down to the registry office right now and we could be married within the month.’
So no big white wedding for her then. Was it wrong that she wanted that too? She sat down opposite him. ‘And then what?’
Had he put any thought into this at all? Where would they live? Would she and Elliot live with him? And if that was his plan, did he really have any idea what it was like to suddenly live with a child full-time?
After Matthew had died in that horrible car accident, it had left a hole in all of their hearts but it had also brought her some joy. Having Elliot in her life made her so happy and she could never regret that. But her life had changed beyond recognition since she had taken custody of her brother’s son over a year ago.
Her world was now filled with millions of toys and TV programmes about dinosaurs. She’d get up in the mornings and make a packed lunch for Elliot in a T-Rex lunch box. She’d take him to school where she’d sometimes go in and listen to children read, or she’d go back to their little cottage overlooking the sea and try to find some order in the chaos of toys and books.
She glanced through the window at the little village of Sandcastle Bay as it stretched out in front of her, tumbling down the hill in a haphazard jumble of yellow houses until it reached the great expanse of sea that disappeared into the misty horizon. The sun had come out today, or at least it was trying, leaving whispers of glitter across the waves. Autumn was well and truly here, every tree dressed in cloaks of scarlet, bronze, terracotta or gold. Squirrels were out in force in the garden, busy collecting nuts and seeds for their winter hibernation.
This life was miles away from her busy one in London where she’d been a window dresser for Quentin’s, one of the biggest department stores in the world. She used to have meetings with several departments or in a boardroom filled with CEOs and executives, instead of meetings with teachers or social services about Elliot’s progress. She would spend her days dressed in a suit, instead of leggings and a long tunic. She would research different cultures, traditions and trends instead of looking through the internet to find autumnal crafty things she could do with an exuberant five-year-old. In her old life, most of her day had been spent creating fabulous colourful window displays which moved or danced, and made people literally stop and stare out on the street. It had made her feel proud and excited to go to work every day. She missed that. Some of her evenings had been spent socialising with clients and sponsors in some of the most exclusive restaurants and bars London had to offer. She would fly across the world several times a year and work in the stores in America, Japan or Dubai. In London, she’d go to theatres and shows with her ex-boyfriend Daniel or spend the night in their very large apartment overlooking the Thames. In the blink of an eye, everything had changed. She had gone from a very successful career in one of the biggest and liveliest cities in the world to being a single mum, unemployed and living in a tiny seaside village in the furthest corner of England.
Although she couldn’t be happier with her new life in Sandcastle Bay, it was a massive change. Part of her missed who she was before, being a career woman, having a job. Being a mum was one of the most rewarding and wonderful experiences of her life, but it was also the scariest and most exhausting too. There was no switching off at five and going home, and although her old job in London had never really been a nine-to-five occupation, this was twenty-four hours a day. What was the right food to feed Elliot? When was the best time for him to go to bed? What could she do about his nightmares? How did she answer most of his questions in a way that was appropriate for his age? How long was too long to let him watch TV? What was she going to buy him for Christmas? And, probably most importantly, how was she going to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies when she had no money coming in?
She didn’t think Leo fully appreciated how it would disrupt his life too. Leo was wonderful with Elliot, taking him out, playing with him, explaining things in ways that Isla never could. He seemed to have endless patience, but there was a big difference between being the fun uncle figure and being a permanent live-in dad.
And what of her friendship with Leo? Would that continue just as it was now? Would they be friends who slept in separate bedrooms? Nothing had ever happened between them apart from that one and only incredible night they’d spent together before Elliot’s christening. The next day at the christening, she’d heard him talking to some girl he’d slept with the night before he’d been with Isla, and she had realised she was just one of many. She had returned to her life in London and tried to forget how utterly spectacular the evening had been. She had started dating Daniel and that had lasted two and a half years. Leo had probably continued shagging anything that moved. When she had visited Matthew, she’d seen Leo too of course, and they had chatted and been friendly as always, but it had never progressed beyond friendship. Even now, after a year of living in Sandcastle Bay, their relationship remained strictly platonic. It was tactile sometimes, a hug, a kiss on the cheek, and she got the feeling that he wouldn’t mind a round two, but they had never talked about it. Would they suddenly go from being just friends to having sex every night purely because they were married?
‘You’d sell this place and come and live with me,’ Leo said, simply. He was so practical about this, there didn’t seem to be the slightest hint of romance about this particular proposal. Nor had there been with any of the others.
‘Honeymoon?’ Isla teased, but at the same time wanting to test the waters.
For the briefest moment, there was a flash of lust and need in his eyes. He did want her like that.
He cleared his throat. ‘If you want.’
God, she wanted to ask him what that honeymoon would be like, whether they’d spend the entire time lying in bed having crazy, wonderful sex.
She dismissed that thought before she could get too carried away with thoughts of what that amazing holiday could be like. Elliot would probably come with them anyway, which would certainly put a stop to the two-week sexathon.
She glanced over into the conservatory where Elliot was occupied with building a castle out of Lego that was almost as big as the room. Another project that Leo had started with him. It was going to be so big that Elliot intended to sleep inside it with their puppy, Luke, who was currently curled up in the corner of the room, like a black furry dragon, one golden eye keeping apprised of what was going on. She smiled at Elliot as he played happily by himself. She couldn’t imagine leaving him behind just so she could have hot passionate sex with Leo Jackson for a few weeks. Her heart ached even at the thought of not seeing him every day. If they were to have a honeymoon, it would probably have to be to somewhere like Disneyland.
She turned her attention back to Leo, who was still watching her carefully.
‘Why do you want to marry me?’ Isla said. She asked him this occasionally, always half hoping that, after months of being very close friends, of seeing each other and spending time together for most of the day, that one day his answer would change.
‘You know why.’
‘Remind me.’
Leo paused. ‘Because…’
For a moment she wondered if he was gearing up to say those three all-important little words.
‘Because this situation with Sadie and the house worries me. Because the fact that she still has a parental claim on Elliot, despite abandoning him when he was only one, scares me to death. If she comes back, I can’t do anything about Elliot, other than bundle you both in the back of my car and go on the run together for the rest of our lives. But I can do something about the house.’
This was a different answer to the ones he’d given before. Normally he stopped at, ‘I want to take care of you and Elliot.’ She had no idea he worried about stuff like this.
‘Why are you worried about the house?’
He stared at her incredulously. ‘Because Sadie still owns half of it. Despite the fact that she walked out on Matthew and Elliot just a few months after they bought the house, and even though he lived in it alone for three years, raising their child by himself, and it was his life insurance that helped pay off the mortgage after he died, she still has a claim to it. Thank god that, when they bought it, they weren’t joint tenants, otherwise she’d own the house outright after his death. Thankfully Matthew had the good sense to make sure they were named as tenants in common, which means she only has a claim to half the house. But that’s still half your home, how can you not be worried about that?’
She shrugged. ‘I honestly don’t think Sadie is ever coming back. She’s in deepest Australia or Thailand somewhere, probably having the time of her life. No one knows where she is, no one can contact her. The courts have tried everything to find her, to try to get her to sign over parental responsibility of Elliot to me, and they have been unable to trace her. She probably doesn’t want to be found. . . .
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