‘ARGHHHHHHHHHHH,’ I splutter as I surface.
Zach swims over. ‘I probably should have said that getting your head wet isn’t the best idea.’
‘I. Can’t. Feel. My. Limbs,’ I gasp.
Zach wraps his arms around me as he treads water.
‘Is my bikini still on?’
‘Sadly, yes,’ he grins. ‘Are you warming up?’
‘I think so. Either that or hypothermia has set in.’
‘Follow me,’ he says, taking long, strong strides out into the lake. I splash along behind him, mesmerised by the grass-covered mountains all lit up with the morning’s golden glow. The water’s a dazzling blue as it reflects the cloudless sky above.
‘This is actually very refreshing,’ I announce after a while, flipping onto my back and staring at the birds of prey soaring overhead. He does the same and we hold hands like otters and my heart feels full.
‘I think it’s illegal to visit the Lakes without eating sticky toffee pudding,’ I explain to Zach as we stumble upon a shop selling very little else. After drying off this morning, we warmed up with a long, hot shower together before hopping in the car, driving alongside the majestic lake until we reached Ambleside, where outdoorsy shops nestle next to chic delis.
‘I wouldn’t want to break the law,’ he says, grabbing a basket and promptlyfilling itwith puddings. I definitely like this guy. ‘Perhaps we should get something else for dinner though?’
I blink.
‘It’s just a suggestion,’ he says, the lines around his green eyes creasing in amusement. ‘But a main course wouldn’t go amiss. Or are we really just going to eat a sticky toffee pudding each tonight?’
Now he’s said it out loud I realise it’s perhaps not the sexiest plan I’ve ever had. So much stodge. ‘Okay fine,’ I concede. ‘There’s a deli over there to sate your savoury tastes.’
After paying for our puds, we walk hand-in-hand across the road and spend a lot of time admiring everything behind the deli counter. Sensing that we’re in no rush, the shop assistant offers us a selection of cheeses to try and when we both like the blue one best, Zach seems genuinely thrilled. I find myself chuckling at his reaction. ‘One of the things I love about you is how into food you are,’ he says. Then he stops talking and stares immediately at the ground.
He definitely just used the word love.
Do not panic Alice.
‘I will basically eat anything,’ I say, trying to ease how awkward we both feel. But seriously, love? We’re not there yet, I tell myself. I think back to the first time we met at Zach’s exhibition, to how he told me that he’s an ‘I love love’ kind of guy right before he asked me on twenty-six dates. I’d fully believed we wouldn’t get past date three and yet here we are, on a mini-break for our M date. Just last week he asked me to be his girlfriend and now he’s talking about love? I pretend to be fascinated by the cheese counter while suddenly feeling like our relationship has gone from zero to 100 in the space of seven days. I like hanging out with Zach but I can’t help but feeling like I’m on the verge of a freak-out.
The rain comes down in fat droplets just as we finish dinner on the jetty. Zach piles the plates up on his toned arms while I grab the wine glasses and we dash inside, laughing. ‘That one was like a missile,’ I shout as a raindrop splashes on my nose. Inside he’s wiping his glasses on his T-shirt, a glimpse of torso on show. He hands me a tea towel with a lopsided grin and we busy ourselves making things cosy inside the little living room. It’s too hot to light the fire but we dot more candles around and keep the lights down low, snuggling up on the sofa and gazing out of the vast windows. Every time I look at the lake something has changed. It’s magical.
I top up our wine glasses up. An Italian red becauseobviously.
‘I don’t think I’ve told you how much I enjoyed meeting Ellie, Raff and the girls at lunch,’ I say as I curl back into his body.
Zach turns his head to listen.
‘Really? They can be quite full on,’ he says.
‘In the best kind of way. I especially enjoyed it when Raff challenged Ellie to a washing up competition at the end of the night. They’re like a pair of kids.’
‘So competitive,’ Zach grins. ‘And I think they wanted to give us time to ourselves.’
‘They wouldn’t let me help! After I’d eaten all their food and lounged around in their garden all day. It was bliss.’
I can see Zach smile at this.
‘It’s lovely that you’re so close,’ I add.
‘We always have been. After my parents divorced it was pretty much just the two of us. Mum and Dad have always been career driven and I admire that, you know? But Raff and I always felt like an obligation to them, rather than anything else.’
I run my hand across his chest in sympathy.
