Grace opened the first of the bottles and took a sip of the dry Greek beer. It slipped down easily. It never got completely dark on the island, as the canopy of stars above her head in the pollution-free sky gave out plenty of light. Tonight, by coincidence, there was a full moon as well, which left a shining strip of gold on the sea, like a pathway to another world.
She got out the scented candle she’d bought the previous day in town and a box of matches. Luckily there was no wind tonight, and the candle burned strong, giving out wafts of bergamot and jasmine. Not that Phil had been a big candle fan, but she’d always scattered them around the house when he’d been alive, so the smell reminded her of cosy nights in by the fire.
Grace lay back on the sand with her beer and let her album of Phil photos run through her mind on a loop. She was tempted to put on some of Phil’s favourite music as well, but she’d forgotten her headphones and it probably wasn’t fair on other people. Not that she was letting other people intrude into her thoughts tonight.
A sudden noise to the right made her sit up.
Will’s face loomed up over the rock.
‘Grace? What the hell are you doing here? Is everything OK?’
Oh, yes, it had to be him. Why was he skulking around the beach at night? He had a perfectly good house just a few yards away. Maybe it hadn’t been such a brilliant idea to come here. Out of all the coves in all the world, she’d chosen this one.
He came round and knelt next to her. Again, his hair was wet and his chest was bare. He’d obviously just got out of the sea. Grace stared at the individual hairs on his chest until they blurred into one, unable to speak.
‘Grace, what is it? Are you hurt?’
She managed to shake her head.
‘Why are you here on the beach in the dark? I’ve been trying to get hold of you all day.’
It was true, he’d sent her several messages with different pictures of Karen, urging her to come over.
Will took her face in his hands.
‘You don’t want to talk. Is that it?’
Grace nodded.
‘Have you ever been moonlight swimming?’
What was he on about?
‘You swim along the line of the moon on the water. It’s very special. I think it might help you with whatever you’re struggling with.’
She had nothing to lose. The evening couldn’t possibly get any worse. She’d put her costume on underneath her shorts and T-shirt anyway in case she managed a swim before night fell.
He held out his hand, and Grace got to her feet and stripped off her clothes. They walked together to the sea’s edge, still holding hands. Will turned to face her.
‘Do you trust me?’
Weirdly, and she’d probably regret it, but she did. She nodded.
They entered the water slowly, Grace acclimatising her body to the still warm water, but slightly disorientated by the dark.
Once her eyes focused, it was easy. They swam along the light path, and then floated on their backs for a while, staring up at the stars, in complete silence. The beauty of the moon on the water did lift her spirits a tiny bit.
Will seemed to know when she’d started to feel chilly and took her hand again to pull her towards the shore. They flopped down on the sand together and Grace took two beers out of the bag and passed one to him. He hadn’t pushed her to say anything, for which she was grateful. It also helped that it was properly dark now. She didn’t need to look at his face.
Halfway down her beer, Grace stopped drinking, unable to stop the tears.
His arm went around her shoulders.
‘What is it, Grace? You can tell me anything.’
She probably could as well.
‘Today is the third’—Grace paused for a gulp—‘anniversary of Phil’s death.’
