‘No one’s saying they don’t, but Jenna deserves better than that!’
Hmm. If you say so. Well, whatever will be will be.
‘Maybe,’ Jenna said with a sigh that brought him back to the present moment, ‘we should just give up. I’m sorry to have dragged you out on a wild goose chase.’
He felt ashamed for bringing her mood down and not supporting her more. ‘Look, we’ve got plenty of food to eat so why don’t we wait here at least until we’ve finished this picnic? We can keep watch in the meantime, and if we don’t see anything by the time we’ve eaten this little lot – well, then we’ll give up and go home. Deal?’
Jenna looked uncertain. ‘Are you sure? I know it’s a lot to ask.’
‘It’s fine. I’d only have been stuck behind the bar,’ he said. Okay, it was a lie, but it was a white lie. He didn’t want her to feel even worse.
She looked a bit happier and snuggled back in the passenger seat. ‘It’s really kind of you, Sam. I do appreciate it.’
‘Hey, you helped me out by offering to work at the pub,’ he reminded her. ‘I owe you a favour.’
‘No you don’t. To be honest…’ She hesitated a moment, then looked at him nervously. ‘I only took the job because I didn’t want to be sitting at home moping about Joel. I wanted a distraction. Sorry.’
‘Well,’ he said, with a wry smile, ‘I didn’t think you’d taken it for the good of your health. And it doesn’t exactly pay that much, does it? Considering you already have a very good job I figured there was an ulterior motive for helping me out.’
‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me,’ she said sadly. ‘Why can’t I just get over him and move on?’
It was a question Sam had asked himself many times over the last few hours, and ifshedidn’t know the answer, what chance didhehave of working it out?
‘It takes time,’ he said eventually. ‘It took me a while to get over my last relationship, and to be honest, when I look back at it now, I realise I wasn’t even really in love. I just thought I was.’
She looked interested. ‘When did it end?’
‘Oh, about two years ago now. When I moved back to Kelsea Sands in fact. She wasn’t happy about me moving in with Dad and taking over the running of the pub. She thought Dad should pull himself together and get on with things, and she hated Kelsea Sands. Thought it was the back of beyond.’
Jenna pulled a face. ‘Yeah, Joel thinks the same. He can’t see why anyone would want to visit, let alone live there.’
‘They just don’t get it, though,’ he said. ‘I suppose, if you look at it with an outsider’s eyes, there’s not much to it. I mean, there’s nothing there to visit for, is there? Not unless you’re a nature lover or a birdwatcher or something. For the everyday sort of person who wants a trip to the seaside, Kelsea Sands isn’t somewhere you’d choose, is it?’
‘I suppose not,’ Jenna agreed. ‘But then, they’re missing out, aren’t they? Because it may not have hills and dales and abbeys and castles and?—’
‘Shops!’
‘Or amusements.’
‘Or boat trips.’
‘Or…’ They both looked at each other and laughed. ‘Anything much, really,’ she admitted. ‘But it’s beautiful, isn’t it?’
Sam took a deep breath and closed his eyes, picturing Kelsea Sands in his mind. ‘Just so incredibly peaceful and remote.’
‘Where you can breathe.’
‘And think.’
‘And be.’ They smiled at each other. ‘Even thoughI’man outsider,’ she added.
‘You’re not an outsider,’ he said indignantly. ‘Your mum grew up there, just like mine, and your grandparents still live there. Your great-aunt and uncle, your cousin?—’
‘First cousin once removed actually,’ she pointed out.
He laughed. ‘Okay, well whatever Rosie is, she’s very much part of Kelsea Sands. The Wainwrights have been there for generations. It’s in your blood. In the twins’ blood.’
‘I can see it means a lot to you,’ she said. ‘No wonder you couldn’t bear the idea of giving up The North Star. I always questioned how you could give up your job and move back to take over the reins there, but now I understand. You just couldn’t stand to cut the connection with the village, could you?’
