It’s unnerving they both know me so well, but comfortable to know I can count on them. ‘Okay, you win, Diesel, but only because your stare is so soulful.’ I’m so grateful he saved me from the boat trip I’ll give him my last piece of pastry. Although when I hear what’s coming next from Joe I might wish I’d gone withGone with the Windafter all. My visible shudders are more about nerves than still being cold from the water.
Joe’s wiping his hands and he looks like he’s ready to talk.
As we all look at him expectantly he raises his eyebrows. ‘I’d better start by explaining – I’m here because of our grandmother, who we all call Laura.’
I glance at Charlie and try to ignore the knots in my tummy. ‘We call her that too, don’t we?’
‘We do.’ Charlie gives me a nod of encouragement.
Joe smiles at that, then presses on. ‘Laura was not only lovely she was also exceptionally knowing. When she found out she wasn’t going to grow old she went to great lengths to ensure her influence extended long after her life ended. She left everything to her grandchildren, but she wanted to keep the goodies out of our reach until we were old enough to handle them.’
I can’t help dabbing my eyes at this. ‘I’m just so sad she’s not here now. Spending the last few months at her place has made me remember so much more about her.’
Joe nods. ‘Thirty seems to be the crucial age when she thought we’d be mature.’ He turns to me. ‘I’m thirty but I’m not that sensible, I don’t know about you, Clemmie?’
I smile through my tears. ‘Me neither, but I’m better now than when I was eighteen.’ I can’t help noticing we’re staring at each other through identical curtains of wavy hair strands.
He flicks his back, sending a shower of diamond drips into the sunlight. ‘We actually only found out about you just before she died.’
‘Really?’ I’m not sure why I’ve cut in or why it comes as a shock.
He pulls down the corners of his mouth. ‘We’re all used to the idea now but hearing about you was a huge surprise at the time. Laura always longed for you to be part of our family, and she’s used her will, her grandchildren and a small amount of bribery to do that.’ He gives an uncomfortable squirm.
‘Okay.’ I’m intrigued now.
He pauses to give what looks like a nervous swallow. ‘I’ll put this bluntly – my brothers and I are old enough to get our hands on her cash, but the first catch is we can only spend it buying property in St Aidan.’
Plum joins in. ‘That’s harsh when you don’t live anywhere near.’
Joe nods. ‘It is. But without that clause I’d never have come. As it is I’ve just spent weeks of my holiday viewing houses and looking for you. So, I can see how Laura’s mind was working.’
I might as well come out with it. ‘So you haven’t come to contest the will and claim the flat she’s passing on to me?’ That first day in George’s office, I’d have been almost pleased to hand it over. Now I’m way more reluctant.
Joe frowns. ‘That was what you meant in the harbour? You thought that was why I was here?’
I have to be honest. ‘It crossed my mind. Not knowing about your conditions, I couldn’t see why else you’d suddenly appear.’
‘That was why you didn’t want to see me?’
I let out a long breath. ‘Notonlythat. Before I fell in love with the flat, I actually thought you deserved it more than me. But I’d never spoken to anyone in the family other than Laura.’ I’m reluctant to wave the word ‘rejection’ out in the open even if it is how I feel. ‘For thirty years I’d been fine without contact. I saw no advantage in changing that.’
He raises his eyebrows. ‘I get that, and I think Laura knew that too. That was why I wasn’t allowed to approach you, you had to agree to talk to me. My only hope was to hang around so if you saw enough of me, eventually you would.’ His brow wrinkles. ‘You did make the first move back there … didn’t you? You are okay with this?’
Plum’s laughing. ‘From the shore it looked a lot like you pursuing Clemmie across the harbour.’
I wrinkle my nose. ‘You jumped in after Diesel, that gets you a chat over a cup of tea.’
‘That’s a relief.’ He wipes his hand across his brow. ‘Basically, it sounds awful, but the second catch is that Laura’s legacy will only be released to us when you’ve agreed to see one of us brothers and we’ve delivered something on her behalf. This was Laura’s way of bringing us together.’
No wonder he was sounding so tentative in the water. ‘I’ll admit I was very reluctant to talk to you before, but now I have it’s not half as bad as I imagined. So, in that way Laura was right.’
He looks genuinely delighted. ‘I completely understand why you wouldn’t want contact, but when George Trenowden told me you’d refused, I was gutted. It wasn’t only about the money; it was more that I was sad for Laura.’
‘So what have you brought me? You said it got wet?’ I’m not being impatient, but the faster he hands it over the sooner he’ll complete his conditions. And I’m aching to know what’s so important.
He rolls his eyes. ‘It’s a letter. I’ve been carrying it round in case I met you so it’s very smudged. Laura definitely didn’t mean me to swim to deliver it, blunders go don’t get any more spectacular than this one.’
I wrinkle my nose. ‘If you hadn’t swum, I most probably wouldn’t ever have accepted it, so I’m happy to take the ink runs.’
