Chapter 19

It was late afternoon when Sam arrived to collect Josie. The drive over to Hope Cove was pleasant. He didn't mention the lost dog incident and Josie was grateful.  Conversation was easy and came in waves. Josie spent much of the journey lost in thought. She’d intended to call Jack in the afternoon, tell him that things were over – and for good this time. The day had got away from her, though, and she knew it wasn’t going to be a quick five-minute conversation. She’d nipped to the shops to get a few things for Annette and then walked the dogs and fed them.

She’d spent far too much time deciding what to wear for the visit to Lizzie and Max. In the end, she’d pulled on a pair of denim shorts and an old favourite T-shirt. Who was she trying to impress anyway? Well, Sam, obviously, but she shouldn’t be. Waiting for him to collect her had felt like waiting to go on a first date. She was excited and nervous, but then felt guilty for her feelings. She really should have found the time to call Jack.

“I love this place.” Sam broke her thoughts as they pulled up outside Seaside Cottage.

She hopped out of his van and took a deep breath. The sea air was wonderful. “Me too,” she said.

Lizzie opened the door when they were halfway up the front path. She greeted them happily and gave them both a big hug before ushering them through the cramped hallway and into the kitchen.

“Beer?” She opened the fridge and handed them a bottle each without waiting for an answer.

“Max showed me photos of the honeymoon,” Josie said. “It looked amazing.”

Lizzie pulled salad items from the fridge with her back to them. When Josie caught Sam’s eye, he looked pointedly at his beer, then nodded at Lizzie with raised eyebrows. Josie couldn’t help but be amused by his little mime act. He was still convinced Lizzie was pregnant. When Lizzie turned around, Sam smiled sweetly, revealing a dimple that Josie had never noticed before.

“I wanted to show you the photos myself,” Lizzie said. “I bet Max just let you skim through them with no explanation.”

“They seemed fairly self-explanatory,” Josie said. “Gorgeous beaches, wonderful sunsets, great food, happy couple, the usual honeymoon stuff …”

Lizzie whipped a tea towel in Josie’s direction, and she giggled as she jumped out of the way, almost crashing into Sam.

He reached a hand to steady her. “Where is Max?”

“He bought a new barbecue.” Lizzie nodded in the direction of the back door. “The honeymoon is officially over and he has a new love in his life. He’s been playing around with it for ages.”

“I better go and check out his new toy.” Sam wandered out into the back garden, and they heard him and Max exchange greetings.

Josie slumped into a chair and rested her head on the kitchen table.

“What’s wrong?” Lizzie asked.

She lifted her head. “It feels like a date.”

Lizzie frowned and shook her head in confusion.

“Me and Sam coming over here to hang out with you guys. It feels like a double date. Which would be fine if I didn’t have a boyfriend.”

Lizzie sat opposite her. “I’m confused. You’re going to have to get me up to speed. Last I heard, you and Jack were giving it another go and you were pretending the kiss with Sam never happened …”

“Except I can’t stop thinking about kissing Sam.” Josie let out a fake sob and buried her head in her arms. Her head shot quickly back up. “I can’t get Sam out of my head. I haven’t spoken to Jack all week. The only time I think about Jack is when I’m feeling guilty for all the time I spend thinking about Sam—” She stopped abruptly as Sam appeared in the doorway.

“The cook needs a beer.” He crossed the kitchen and grabbed a bottle from the fridge. If he’d heard the conversation, he did a good job of pretending he hadn’t. Josie was bright red when he smiled at them and went back outside.

“Oh my God,” Josie mouthed at Lizzie.

Lizzie pressed her lips together in an attempt not to laugh. Crossing the kitchen, she closed the window above the sink.

“Did he hear?” Josie whispered.

Lizzie made a poor attempt at hiding her amusement. “They’re sitting right outside the window.”

With a groan, Josie buried her head again.

“I was going to ask if Sam knows how you feel, but I guess if he didn’t before, he does now!” Lizzie moved back to the sink and started washing the salad. “Are you going to split up with Jack then?”

“Yes.” Josie went to help Lizzie, reaching for a knife to chop vegetables. “I shouldn’t have got back together with him after the wedding. It just seemed easier to keep plodding along as we were. I think we fell into just being friends and flatmates at some point, and neither of us wanted to admit it was really over.”

“It’s probably for the best.”

Josie stopped chopping the cucumber and glared at Lizzie. “Don’t start Jack-bashing.”

“I’m not! I don’t have a problem with Jack. I’m not sure why he always thought I didn’t like him.”

“Probably because you looked down your nose at him.” Josie resumed chopping. “And he never noticed you do that to everyone.”

“I do not,” Lizzie insisted. “I don’t mean to, anyway!”

***

Josie pretended her declaration of feelings for Sam hadn’t happened and soon got over her embarrassment. The four of them sat together on the patio, eating, drinking and chatting. It was all very relaxed.

“We should go down to the beach to watch the sunset,” Lizzie suggested as the sky became streaked with orange. When they began to move in that direction, Lizzie muttered something about tidying away the dinner things. She glared at Max as she said she’d catch them up. Max dutifully hung back to help. They weren’t particularly subtle about leaving Sam and Josie alone.

The trouble was, Josie didn’t want to be alone with him. At least not before she’d sorted things out with Jack. It was a stunning view, though. At the end of the garden there was an old wooden door through the high hedge. It led out onto the coastal path, and beyond that to a beautiful sandy cove. They stopped together on the dusty path. The grass lining it was dotted with purple wildflowers and was a beautiful sight in itself. It was slightly overshadowed by the craggy coastline, which stretched out in either direction. Then there was the little sandy beach which led the way to the sea. The sun sat on the horizon, gloriously throwing out reds and oranges across the sky and spilling down to sparkle on the surface of the water.

“Wow,” Josie whispered.

She followed Sam halfway down the lonely beach, all the while resisting the urge to slip her hand into his. When they sat side by side in the sand, she tried to focus on the breathtaking view and the wonderful smell of seaweed and salt, but her senses seemed to be only interested in Sam.

She wanted to lean closer and inhale the scent of him, feel his body against hers, gaze into his eyes and taste his lips on hers …

“Are you okay?” His voice snapped her from her trance, and he looked at her with concern.

“Yes.” She swallowed hard. “I was just thinking I should get back soon and check on Annette.”

What she really needed was to get back and call Jack.