Page 57 of The Little Greek Guesthouse

He grunted his agreement, perhaps thinking, as she was, of the terrible way both Sam and Vassilis had treated her.

‘Yes, well. You go have the fun day, then.’

She kissed his cheek, gulped down her coffee and skipped out of the house. ‘I will, Baba.’

George drove them to the cliff in Maria’s Yaris, the windows down and the early-morning sun streaming in. Despite the bitter aftertaste of thinking about Sam and Vassilis, Nina felt herself relax. George was a confident, calm driver and easy company; she felt safe in his hands.

‘I checked up on the hotel,’ she said. ‘As much as I could, my Greek’s not exactly –’

He gave her a wry look. ‘Existent?’

She laughed. ‘Well, yes. Must work on that. But anyway, I think it’ll be okay, Baba’s right, they have this sustainability thing, so . . . nothing to worry about.’

She beamed at George. He frowned, focused on the road, looking distinctly worried.

‘I’m just not – you can’t really trust what they say.’ He glanced at her, taking in her slightly bemused expression. He was beginning to sound paranoid, she thought. But she didn’t want to start an argument; she’d been looking forward to this trip. He seemed to make the same decision, relenting in his protests. For now, at least, ‘Thanks for checking though,’ he said. ‘Excited for this?’

‘It’s a while since I’ve properly climbed, you know, full disclosure,’ she said. ‘I might be kind of rusty! I mean – it’s like riding a bike, right, just get back on and it all comes back to you? Must be. I’ve got all the kit, anyway, my shoes and chalk and everything so . . .’

George glanced at her and grinned. ‘You okay?’

‘Yep. Why?’

‘You’re kind of – gabbling.’

‘Oh.’ Nina took a breath and breathed out slowly. She laughed. ‘I think I’m nervous. No, excited. Well, maybe a bit nervous and a bit excited.’

He laughed. ‘I get it. There’s always that bit of adrenalin, right? But don’t worry. I’ve climbed a lot round here; I’ll make sure you’re safe. It’ll be fun!’

He glanced at her, his eyes bright in the sunlight, and Nina’s stomach flipped. Adrenalin for the climb, that was all.

He parked up and Nina looked around, feeling a little dubious. There was a beach ahead, a gorgeous stretch of golden sand leading to clear still waters, where a few tourists were already beginning to gather. The breeze carried the sound of gulls crying and children laughing. But the cliff edge George led them to was behind the car park; not the salubrious location she’d been imagining.

Still, it beat the climbing wall at her local gym in Manchester, she thought, tasting salt on the breeze. The view from the top would be pretty satisfying.

At the bottom of the cliff face they sat and put on their climbing shoes and helmets. Nina stared up at the creviced surface, planning a route, picking out footholds and tiny indents where she could grip on. A goat stood at the top, chewing nonchalantly on a patch of grass. Her heartbeat steadied as she focused on the business at hand; this was one of the aspects of climbing that she loved, the analysing and planning. It left no room in her mind for anything else.

Nina climbed first, George belaying her, checking her rope was secure and standing on the ground holding it to anchor her. As soon as she found her first foothold, she thought of nothing else; just the stretch and reach of her body as she secured herself time after time, clinging to the surface by the handholds she’d identified, rock crumbling under her fingernails, fitting her toes into the footholds she’d spotted. Stretching, reaching, pushing, leaning. On and on. Her muscles burning, her mind sharp.

At last she reached her target, breath coming fast with the effort, her heart soaring as she gazed out over the view of the sea below. She laughed aloud, engulfed with a feeling of strength and power, of joy. There was no substitute for this sense of achievement, this carefree feeling.

She looked down at George, grinning at her from the ground. He gave a thumbs up and she nodded, and then began her swooping descent as he carefully let the rope out so she could abseil down to the ground.

They both laughed as she landed, and in a surge of happiness she reached out to hug him. His arms closed around her, a strong and comforting embrace.

‘That was amazing,’ he said as they separated. ‘You’re a natural.’

Nina smiled, still buzzing. ‘It was great, oh my god – it’s been so long. That feeling when you get to your target, you know?’

He nodded. He did know. He understood the urge to climb, to push yourself, to conquer, in a way no one had since she’d lost her mum.

They swapped roles, and Nina felt her heartbeat settle, her mind focus, the beat of her blood steady as she held the rope for George. Her mind was still singing with joy from the climb, revelling in the sense of freedom that it gave her. She hadn’t realised how much she’d missed it.

But now, the world shrank. There was nothing but George, her and the rope. She held firm, releasing the rope as he needed it, watching as he climbed steadily, higher and higher.

She was so focused that she barely noticed the flexing of George’s strong arms as he reached and pulled himself up, the shape of his muscled calves as he balanced.

They climbed until the midday sun began to beat harshly. Until their arms and legs burned with effort, their hands were red-raw and stinging, their water gulped down.