‘I bet it’s always fully booked in the summer, it’s such a beautiful area.’ Libby took a bite of her sandwich. ‘Tell me about what you’ve been doing so far.’
‘I’ve been out every day with my easel and paints. I moved about quite a bit, sketching and drawing as I went, taking note of the changing light. It’s amazing how the sea changes under the sun; it has an almost macabre feel under cloud cover, but practically radiates light when the sun comes out. I feel very inspired here.’
‘That’s good. You’ve definitely chosen some amazing places so far.’
‘I certainly have. I feel as if I’ve almost run out of places in the UK, though. It might have to be somewhere abroad next time…’
‘Such a hard life! Are you happy with what you’ve got so far? Do you think you’ll need to do much more this week?’
‘I think I’ve made a very good start. I’ll definitely do a bit more here and there and take lots of photographs. But I won’t be slaving away. I want to spend time with you and Izzy.’
‘I’m glad to hear it.’ Izzy emitted a loud gurgle of pleasure. ‘And so is Izzy!’
His blue eyes softened as he looked at them both and Libby’s heart filled with affection. He looked very handsome; his face had tanned well in the sun. It always surprised her how brown he could get, despite his auburn hair. She noticed that his crow’s feet were ever so slightly paler than the rest of his skin. He must have been squinting as he painted; either that or smiling away to himself as he worked. She was pleased to see him looking so relaxed, so happy. She couldn’t think of the last time he had seemed so at ease with himself. Being away from Jules was having a wonderful, liberating effect on him. In that moment a tiny part of her was grateful for what had happened, for allowing Angus to move on and have a chance of real happiness without Jules.
‘OK, are you sure we’ve got everything we need?’ Angus was laden down with bags, an umbrella, and he also had Izzy strapped to his back.
‘I feel as if you’re carrying it all and I’ve got nothing!’ Libby said. She had a beach bag and that was about it.
‘Well that’s what I’m here for… your personal packhorse. Isn’t that right, Izzy?’ She gurgled on cue and they set off down the path towards the sea. They made a little camp below the dunes and spread out rugs, towels and the umbrella to give Izzy plenty of shade. Angus slathered sun cream on Libby’s back, and she rubbed it all over herself to make sure that she didn’t burn. The sun was lovely and hot, with a pleasant sea breeze ensuring it wasn’t unbearable.
‘Can you do mine?’ Angus asked. Libby squirted cream all over his freckly, tanned back, marvelling at how huge it was.
‘Have you been working out?’ she asked. ‘You’re so muscly!’
‘No more than usual,’ Angus replied. Perhaps she hadn’t noticed before, but he really was in impressive shape. He was built like a rugby player, tall and broad and muscular. She seemed incredibly petite standing next to him in her bikini, and she wasn’t short at five foot eight. As she rubbed the sun cream in she felt a peculiar stirring in the bottom of her stomach. She immediately checked herself, telling her mind not to be so ridiculous – this was Angus; how mortifying! But it was undeniable; she was definitely feeling the familiar flicker of desire. What was wrong with her?
She felt herself blush and sat down quickly; giving him back the sun cream and hoping that he wouldn’t notice her ridiculous reaction to his semi-naked body. She glanced at him as he bent over to pull his towel out of the bag. Now that her mind had started to go down that particular route, she couldn’t help but notice his enormous thighs, straining against his board shorts, and the blond hair that covered his tanned calves. It was as if she was suddenly seeing him for the first time. She looked away, studying the horizon with determination. She seriously needed to get some action soon – look what was happening to her, she was ogling her best friend.
‘Are you OK?’ Angus asked.
‘What? Yes fine, thanks… just soaking up the view.’ He looked at her quizzically, an amused expression on his face. She hoped he hadn’t noticed her blushing. What would he think?
‘You know that green really suits you,’ Angus said. ‘It matches your eyes.’
‘This old thing!’ she pinched the material of her bikini. ‘It’s probably lost its elastic completely; I haven’t got around to buying a new one for years.’
‘Right, I’m going for a dip,’ Angus said, standing up and stretching.
Libby watched him walk down to the sea and wade into the water. She remembered him saying that she had beautiful eyes once before, all those years ago, when they had kissed on the beach as teenagers. She wondered how much he had meant it when he had confessed his feelings for her, and what would have happened if neither of them had been so awkward about their kiss. What if they had given themselves a chance instead?
He got to waist-deep and then dived under, swimming quickly out into the deeper water before turning to wave at her. As she gave him a wave back, he turned to swim parallel to the shore. She lay back on her mat and reached for her book, soon losing herself in the words on the page, keeping half an eye on Izzy who was sleeping peacefully in the shade beside her.
Later they took Izzy down to the water and dipped her toes in the sea. She shrieked in surprise. The water was cold, so they paddled around in the shallows with her. Angus snapped photographs of them both on his camera. She imagined they looked like any other happy family on their summer holiday. At tea-time they packed up their belongings and walked back up to the house. Angus had bought scones, raspberry jam and clotted cream, so they indulged themselves with a cream tea while Izzy had her dinner. He helped Libby bath her and put her to bed, clearly enjoying every second of his godfatherly duties.
‘She is so gorgeous,’ he said as they turned off the light.
‘You’re so good with her. She really loves you,’ Libby told him.
‘Now why don’t you go and run a bath while I cook?’ he said.
‘I’m happy to cook tonight if you’d prefer?’
‘No, don’t worry, I’ve got it all lined up. Are you happy with fish? I got some lovely-looking sea bream at the fishmonger’s this morning. I thought we could have it with asparagus and new potatoes?’
Libby’s stomach rumbled at the thought. ‘That sounds utterly perfect. My turn tomorrow, though.’
‘Deal.’
