Liv heard the weariness in his voice, and she felt it, too. Her body was as heavy as an anvil. She flopped her head back and stared at a mark on the ceiling, wondering what would work best to clean it off. She wriggled a shoulder to release the tension knotted there, and Jake reached out and gave it a rub.
‘Can we watch the rest of the film, please?’ he said. ‘I shouldn’t have answered the phone. All I want to do is sit next to you.’
She gave him nonchalant shrug.
‘There’s a pizza in the fridge,’ he said. ‘I’ll put the oven on.’
When Jake returned, he stretched out his arm and Liv hesitated before nudging under it again. It felt both heavy and secure at the same time.
‘Margherita in fifteen minutes,’ he said, dipping his head to catch her eye. ‘Sorry again about Katrina, and the raisins.’
They resumed watching the film and Liv hugged a cushion to her chest. Although they’d argued and made up, her body still felt as stiff as corrugated cardboard. At this moment in time, when she glanced at the grey bristles on his chin and ones that had sprung up in his ears, she didn’t know if she wanted to wake up with him for the rest of her life.
Words circled around in her head a few times before she released them out loud. ‘I think I’m going to go to Croatia with Essie,’ she said. ‘She needs me.’
Jake didn’t answer. He stared ahead without blinking.
Not that it mattered anyway. Because now Liv had set those words free, there was no going back.
Chapter 16
Grand Piano
‘Is it essential that you go?’ Jake asked Liv as he pulled onto the car park of Manningham Airport. ‘Can’t Essie go to Croatia on her own? Where are you meeting her?’
‘Yes, no, and in the departure lounge,’ Liv said, as patiently as she could. ‘Please don’t fuss.’
Since she’d told him she was going to Dubrovnik, Jake fired questions at her like a round of pellets from a BB gun. She detected a tang of jealousy in his concern. It caused her to toss and turn in bed, questioning herself, too. How could she pull this off? Was she being resourceful or deceptive or both?
It was all too late anyway. She had fire in her belly and Georgia’s sense of adventure running in her veins, urging her to try new things. Liv wanted to get to know the heroine even better, learning how she might act and feel, so she could really capture her character for Book Twenty.
She was halfway towards Essie’s death being formally announced to the world, but hadn’t yet reached the midpoint of reshaping the manuscript. The missing eight chapters loomed large in her head. She hoped an escape to Croatia would give her some much-needed material for the novel.It was also a unique opportunity to be part of Essie’s world and to discover more about the author, too. The trip might give Liv some of the answers she was looking for.
‘Mum’ll be fine,’ Johnny chipped in from the back of the car.
Jake turned and fixed him with a stare.
‘It’s only a short flight,’ Liv assured him. ‘There’ll be lots of other people at the book festival.’
‘Croatia’s supposed to be very hot in early August.’ He stretched out his neck. ‘Ring me when you get there.’
‘I will.’
After switching off the engine, Jake got out and Liv joined him behind the car. ‘I’ll carry your luggage,’ he said.
‘I can do it.’
They both reached for the handle at the same time. Liv got there first and heaved it out of the boot. It thudded onto the pavement. She’d packed two versions of the manuscript in her case, Essie’s handwritten original, and printed sheets of the work she’d done so far. They took up just as much space as her clothes.
‘What have you got in there?’ Jake said, letting his hand drop to his side. ‘Bricks?’
They studied each other for a while, as if reading each other’s thoughts and choosing to ignore them. Liv couldn’t deny she had a flutter in her stomach that was part excitement and part fear. ‘Well, this is it,’ she said.
‘It’s not too late to—’ Jake started. His words were interrupted by the back window of the car winding down.
‘Bring back sweets,’ Johnny called out.
‘Chewy ones,’ Mack yelled.
