‘I need to find my way, Jerico. With what I want to do with my career, too. I’d worked in Ray’s office for ten years. I was frustrated with myself, more than with Nate – that’s my ex. Who now wants me back, as it happens.’ Victoria couldn’t seem to shut herself up. Perhaps if she kept talking, she couldconvince herself that she had no feelings for this amazing man in front of her.
‘We are grown-ups, we kissed, we move on.’ Jerico looked out over the sea, the tops of the waves twinkling in the still-warm evening sunshine. ‘So are you staying down here as well as working here, then?’ He turned to Vic.
‘Yes. I’ve said I’d help Danny out during the summer. I love being by the sea. Like you said, the joy of being close to nature is really helping me clear my head, and I’m sharing his apartment above the gallery on a work-for-rent basis.’
‘Wow, that’s a good deal.’
‘He’s a good friend,’ Vic added, really hoping that the Danny chat would be over soon, but alas, no.
‘Sounds like it. How do you know him? Gallery-owner-meets-artist sounds like a match made in heaven.’
‘He’s a new friend, or yes, I would have muscled in long ago.’ Vic took a sharp intake of breath as she got ready to slightly distort the truth. ‘We met at my mate Mandy’s hen weekend last year. I adore his boyfriend, too.’
Jerico’s shoulders dropped at her last comment. ‘Well, I’m glad you are starting to find your way.’ He lifted Vic’s hand to his lips. The brush of his kiss against her skin was softer than a whisper, yet it reverberated through her entire being like a thunderclap.
Her breath hitched in her throat. ‘You love a kiss, don’t you?’ was all she could muster in reply.
Jerico looked right at her. ‘I’ve always thought that if the eyes are the windows to the soul, then a kiss is surely the key to open it.’
Vic’s memory bank flashed to their picnic at the riverbank. The butterflies were back. Because even without that first kiss, she was beginning to realise just how important this eccentric, clever, funny, empathetic and charismatic man was to her.
Vic verbalised her thoughts, ‘Maybe it’s time I cleaned the lock out then, eh?’
Jerico reached for the large, carefully wrapped parcel containing his new purchases. ‘On that note…’ he slipped into Scots for a second, ‘I really must awa’.’ Then back to posh southern. ‘I’m having dinner with my friend in Hove.’ He grasped the large package to his chest. ‘And thank you for these. They are as extraordinary as the woman who painted them.’
‘You’re too kind.’ Vic’s voice wobbled slightly.
‘Nobody can ever betookind, Queen Victoria.’ His voice lowered slightly as he tried to be casual. ‘So, are you… are you contemplating going back to your ex?’
Vic thought for a second. ‘At this moment, I’m not ruling anything in or out.’
Jerico coughed loudly to clear his throat of emotion. ‘Can you please just assure Mr Pigeons that whatever happens, you will continue to illustrate his adventures?’
Vic smiled. ‘You can, of course, reliably inform Mr Pigeons that that is a given.’
THIRTY
BRIGHTON
The Father
Two days later, Vic greeted a smiling Joti at Brighton train station, both wearing flowing summer dresses and flip-flops.
‘Look at you, all summery and gorgeous.’ Vic kissed her friend on the cheek.
‘I’m making the most of the sunshineandbeing by the sea.’ Joti grinned as, on cue, a seagull squawked overhead. ‘It’s so good to see you, Vicki.’
Vic smiled to herself: it was too late for correction. To Joti Adams-Johnson-now-Turner, she would always be Vicki, and that was just fine.
They were soon sitting in a café overlooking the shingle beach, with long glasses of orange juice and lemonade in front of them. It being Sunday, the beach and pier were rammed with day trippers and locals alike, making for a buzzy, fun atmosphere.
‘Your text sounded very ominous.’ Vic took a sip of her fruity drink and, hoping that she’d got the right end of the stick, asked tentatively, ‘I’m guessing you’ve spoken to Jake?’
Joti took a big glug of her drink. ‘I don’t know how to thank you enough, but what a shocker!’
‘I know, and I’m sorry I didn’t say anything to you. I just didn’t feel it was my place to. I really hope you understand that.’ Vic looked awkward for a second. ‘You could do a whole lot worse than Jake Turner, though. Tell me what happened. He must have been so overwhelmed. Actually, the pair of you must have been.’
‘Totally. He had to want to come to me and, well, without you telling him about my letter, I would never have found him. I mean, Jake, in Windsor, of no real fixed abode. It would have been like trying to find a needle in a houseboat.’ They both laughed. ‘Honestly, a scene fromEastEnderscouldn’t have been more dramatic.’ Joti was wide-eyed.
