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He scuffed the sand with his foot. ‘And I’m sorry. Don’t you think I’ve regretted the hurt I caused you every day since? I was selfish and stupid. I made the situation a hundred times worse and I will never forgive myself for that.’

Zennor was so surprised at his frankness that she couldn’t reply.

He sighed. ‘But the last thing I want to do is make your life difficult now. We’re going to be spending more time together at your office and the club and we can’t arrange our whole lives around trying to avoid each other. Whether we like it or not, I think it would be better if we could get along without the drama.’

‘I think that’s something we can agree on,’ Zennor murmured, still processing his blunt confession about his feelings and guilt.

‘And we do have common goals,’ he added. ‘Your office and the Surf Club renovation. We both want those to succeed.’

‘They’re bricks and mortar,’ Zennor muttered. ‘They’re not emotions. Not feelings. Outside of’ – she struggled for the word – ‘buildings, we don’t have anything in common any longer, do we?’

She was on dangerous ground. She was challenging him to tell her how he felt, even though she didn’t know what she’d do if he did.

Was she imagining a conflict in his eyes? Was she hoping he’d tell her that he still felt the same now?

Turning away, he picked up the tail. ‘I think we should get out of here so we can both warm up. I hope you’re not going to stop me from carrying your tail up to the cliff for you?’

Her throat was clogged with so many emotions, she could barely answer. ‘Do what you want. I never want to see the bloody thing again.’

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

‘Kids heal so fast and bounce back,’ Roo said, watching Freddie kicking a ball about in the kids’ space at the Magic Lantern Festival the following Friday after school. ‘He’s already talking about playing cricket again and seeking revenge on the lad who broke his arm.’

‘Wow. I wouldn’t like to get in his way,’ Zennor replied, relieved to see Freddie feeling better, even if his arm was still in a sling. Her own scars from the rock pool had also healed but her confused feelings about being rescued by Matt had not.

It had been humiliating and disturbing and incredibly sexy to see him wading into that pool in his boxer shorts. The conversation afterwards had haunted her all week. She’d known from the moment he’d walked into the office that old hurts and emotions couldn’t be kept inside the bottle. Last weekend had uncorked them and now they were out, she feared they could never go back in.

She hadn’t fully realised how deeply Matt had felt about her when they were young and how badly he’d been scarred by his own behaviour at the wedding. She did feel a little more kindly towards him now, but also desperately sad that so many opportunities had been lost.

Roo winced as Freddie scored a direct hit on his dad’s stomach. ‘I have tried to tell him that revenge isn’t a healthy motivator … but if it helps his recovery …’

While Freddie slapped his winded father on the back, five-year-old Sierra flitted around them in pink tulle and silver wings. Zennor forced her attention back to the present, grateful for the distraction of the kids’ innocent joy.

‘That outfit is cool. I almost wish I’d booked into the Fairy Workshop too …’ she said wistfully.

‘She’s been buzzing with excitement for days,’ Roo said, smiling.

It was good to spend some normal time with Roo and her family, grounding herself after all the emotional drama recently.

While Jake kept an eye on the children, Zennor and Roo bought drinks and wandered around the festival, checking on their clients. Kernow Entz had supplied over twenty performers, including the wandering minstrels and stilt walkers who had greeted her as she walked through the wooded archway and into the festival.

With a theme of the ‘fabulous and fantastical’, the event featured storytellers, immersive theatre experiences, woodland crafts, fire-eaters, jugglers, archery and all manner of performers dressed as everything from wood nymphs to giant squirrels.

After Matt had dropped her at the hotel, she’d managed to change in the staff bathrooms without the kids seeing her. It was unlikely they would recognise her in jeans and a baseball cap but she’d assumed the drone footage would have been shown to the families and she couldn’t risk being spotted and therefore destroying the illusion.

She’d been knackered anyway and quite happy to crash back at the flat with a large glass of wine and a takeaway pizza.

Shilpa and Sybil had messaged to say that the kids had gone wild with excitement when Zennor had been spotted and they’d send over the footage as soon as possible. The drone operator had made such a brilliant video of the clips that even Zennor believed she was real.

On Sunday, Matt had also messaged her to ask how she was and then he phoned to discuss a list of the work that he proposed to do – or his contractors would do. Zennor had politely but firmly said she was fine and kept the conversation strictly to business. She’d resigned herself to his team – and Matt himself – being in her orbit for the foreseeable.

They’d agreed to rewire the office at a weekend when it was closed. The new windows would be an issue but that couldn’t be helped since it was weather dependent and would have to be done in stages. It felt as if the work was going to take the whole summer, but it had to be done while there was more daylight and the weather was more reliable.

‘Mummy! Come on,’ Zennor heard Sierra say, drawing her attention back to the present moment.

Jake and the kids caught up with them and Sierra tugged Roo by the hand.

‘Must go. Fairy Workshop starting any time,’ Roo squeaked, already being hauled away. ‘See you around.’