Effie glanced around the blank walls. ‘I like the idea of this being a bolt-hole for the needy.’
‘Hey! Well, maybe I was a little needy,’ he admitted. ‘But I’ve not done near half as much to this place as you have to yours. A lot of my stuff is still in our flat in Bristol.’
Effie chose to ignore the ‘our’ and asked, ‘Do you still have itchy feet?’ Tired of the caginess about his plans, she decided to try and probe further, so that she could make an informed decision about risking her heart.
‘A bit. I’m in touch with some of the guys. They’re travelling around Cambodia and it looks amazing, so I feel like I’m missing out, but I don’t currently have the funds to join them. Otherwise, yeah, maybe I’d be there,’ he admitted.
Effie let this sink in. The reality that, despite saying he was seventy per cent sure he’d stay in Polcarrow, the temptation to bolt was still running wild through his veins. ‘I’ve never been anywhere,’ Effie sighed, trying to push away the feeling that she was dull and boring creeping in.
‘There’s still plenty of time,’ Jake reminded her. ‘Where would you go?’
Effie laughed. ‘I don’t actually know. I’ve always had my head too much in a book to think about the outside world. It might sound weird because you’ve been everywhere, but I’d love to go to Scotland, right up to the other tip of the country. See the Highlands.’ She didn’t admit this dream had been born from readingOutlanderone too many times.
‘Confession time; I’ve been all over the Far East, Canada, Australia and if you can get a long haul flight, I’ve been, but never to Scotland properly, isn’t that terrible? Tara had a whistle-stop commission in Edinburgh, but we were in and out in twenty-four hours, although from the photos you’d think we’d been there a week.’
‘Was it really hard work?’
Jake nodded. ‘Yeah, sometimes. Early mornings. Lots of outfit changes,’ he groaned. ‘It really changed her. The woman I left was not the woman I fell in love with at uni. And I’m not the same person I was then, either. Coming back here has allowed me to reflect on it all. Sometimes I wonder if what I was searching for all along was always right under my nose. Other times I feel the pull to book a ticket and go far away. There’s still so many places I want to go. Do you get that?’
‘The travel thing? No, I’ve always felt happier in Cornwall. I realised that when I was twenty-one and now I’m worried I haven’t lived.’
Jake fixed her with a long look. ‘But are you happy, Eff? That’s what it boils down to.’
She met his eyes and rolled the answer around on her tongue. Had she been happy back then? Certainly not. Was she happy now? ‘Yes,’ she answered, ‘I am, or at least a lot happier than I thought I’d be. I didn’t know what to expect from Polcarrow. I thought I’d miss my family too much, but . . . I feel a bit bad saying this, I don’t. It’s like I’ve been forced to stand on my own two feet and I’m actually a lot better at it than I thought I’d be.’
‘I’m really pleased you’re here; shall we toast it? Us both ending up in Polcarrow at the same time?’ Jake held his glass out.
Effie caught the look in his eye, the warmth that lingered there like embers. Did he feel what she was feeling? An inexplicable tug forward, like there was a thread wound between them? Would their timing just be fleeting though? Standing up, she took a step forward and tapped her glass against his. ‘I’ll certainly drink to that.’
Feeling bold, she took a sip without breaking eye contact before a rumble from her stomach cracked through the intensity of the moment.
‘Oops.’ She giggled. ‘I’ve not had anything since a cheese and pickle sandwich at lunchtime,’ she confessed.
‘Good thing I’ve got everything prepped to start cooking. It’ll be minutes. Come through. I’ve got my laptop open – I need you to help me choose the photos.’
‘I still can’t believe you’re asking me.’
‘Fresh eyes,’ Jake said as he led the way into the kitchen where his laptop was open on the table. ‘Have a flick through whilst I get the food on the go.’
Effie slipped onto one of the chairs and couldn’t help but feel like she was prying as she tapped the mouse and the screen burst into life. A file full of photos was already loaded. ‘Do I just look through these?’
‘Yeah, go ahead.’
‘I feel like I’m prying,’ she told him as she opened the first one which revealed a peaceful pink dawn over a white sandy beach. Effie studied it. It could be Australia, but equally it could be Cornwall. She clicked onto the next, a beautiful autumnal scene that appealed to her cosy girl heart. ‘I like this.’ She turned the laptop towards him.
Jake peered over his shoulder. ‘That was in a cabin in Finland. We were off grid. The colours were amazing. That lake was freezing though. I only dipped my toe out of curiosity.’
‘Sounds like I’d love it. It’s beautiful, you should use this,’ Effie said after studying it for a moment longer, trying to imagine what it would feel like to plunge herself into a cold lake. As she clicked through the other photos, unravelling the itinerary of Jake’s life, a lump started to form in her throat. Had she missed out by staying put in Cornwall?
Effie clicked through the rest of the photos. All of them impressive travel shots – cherry blossom in Japan, boats washed up on a Thai beach, the water turquoise and inviting. Jake really had seen everything. They were beautiful yet none of them really stirred her. ‘Jake,’ she began as something started to sizzle in the pan, ‘can I be honest?’
‘Umm-hmm go ahead.’
‘These photos are all amazing and it’s fascinating to see where you’ve been but I’m not sure they’re going to touch the hearts of the locals. I think they’ll be impressed, but whether or not they’ll think anything deeper about them, I don’t know.’
Jake was still for a very long time. Effie watched him with trepidation as he stirred whatever was in the pan.
‘Sorry, Jake, I mean, what do I know?’
