‘We can do that today if you want? There’s a great restaurant not far from here. We could go there for lunch, discuss what you’ve already thought about and come back for another look later. If that works for you?’
‘It does for me but I don’t want to keep you from anything.’
‘You’re not. This is my main project at the moment so it’s fine.’
‘Then that sounds great,’ I agreed, buzzing with the thoughts and ideas I’d already noted down.
‘I’ve emailed Gina, the previous designer I worked with, and asked her to send over a list of contacts and places she recommends in the area. I’m sure you’ll make your own but just to get you going, if you wanted. Obviously, you don’t have to use them if you don’t think they can offer what you want.’
‘No, that’d be really helpful, thanks. I’m not familiar with anywhere around here so it’d be great to start with a base.’
* * *
The restaurant was, as Jesse had promised, excellent. With a table at the window, overlooking the turquoise sea, life, for this moment in time at least, felt pretty good.
‘That was amazing!’ I said, laying my cutlery on the plate and feeling more myself than I had in ages.
‘Not bad, eh? This was one of the first places I ever worked on when I started my own business.’
‘The restaurant?’
‘Yeah. When the current owners bought it, it was in a right state. It was a case of ripping everything out and starting from scratch. Big job, but worth it. This window wasn’t here at all.’
‘That view was out there and people couldn’t see it?’
‘I know, right? That’s what I thought.’
‘Is that when you first worked with the interior designer you mentioned?’
‘Yes. She was a perfect fit from the start. Really seemed to have the same vision.’
‘That’s great. It’s certainly easier when that’s the case.’
‘What got you into design and staging, then?’
‘I’d always liked interiors and I’d been lucky enough to have experience of quite a lot of luxury homes and hotels so when a position came up, I persuaded them to give it to me.’
‘So you blagged it?’
I tried not to smile. ‘Not at all. I was there for years and did an excellent job, so I was clearly the right person for the position.’
Jesse lifted his glass to his lips. ‘You blagged it,’ he said again, amusement in his eyes as he took a sip.
I gave him a snooty look as I reached for my own glass but I knew my eyes had a smile in them too, despite my best efforts. ‘Yes. I blagged it. But I can show you pictures of my work to confirm I do actually know what I’m doing.’
‘I don’t doubt it. I know you’ll be great for this property.’
‘But you have no idea of my style.’
‘I’ve seen your bedroom.’
A woman walking past as he said these words gave me a look and a private smile that indicated she thought I was a lucky woman. In another life, I might have agreed with her, but not this one.
‘It looked a lot better before the roof fell in on it.’
‘Even so.’
‘Also, you might want to think about rephrasing how you approve of my style in future, in the event that someone asks. At present, it may give people the wrong idea. I’m sure quite a few people in the village already have a skewed version of the truth.’
