Page 25 of A Cornish Winter’s Kiss

‘Not unless they want a specialist in picking wrong ’uns.

’ Her mother started laughing, her father quickly following suit.

Emily might have been offended if it wasn’t so great to see them laughing together.

In any case, it was true; she’d developed a talent for dating the wrong sort of men over the years.

The trouble was a lot of them were so good at pretending to be something they weren’t at the start.

At least with Jude she knew who he was from the beginning.

The novels she loved might have given her high standards, but she wanted someone who believed that with the right person, love could last forever.

If she couldn’t have that, she’d rather be on her own, no matter what her mother or Jasmine might think about it.

Jude would have laughed at the concept of forever.

So it didn’t matter how attractive he was, they couldn’t have been more wrong for each other if they’d tried.

‘If you’ve both finished laughing your heads off at my expense, I’ll explain.

’ Emily couldn’t help smiling at the sight of her parents with their heads pressed together, still grinning in her direction.

‘I might not be a writer, but I doubt there are many people who’ve read as many romance novels as I have.

And Jude thinks I can help him create a relationship that his readers will become invested in, but which doesn’t make him want to repeatedly slam his head in the laptop. ’

Jude had said those exact words in an email when he outlined more about what he was trying to achieve after their initial meet up in Covent Garden. He didn’t want to alienate the readers who had no interest in DCI McGuigan’s relationship status, especially as he counted himself among them.

‘I’m sure you’ve given him some great pointers, and I don’t care what you say, I still think you could write a book yourself if you put your mind to it.

’ Her mother had been saying the same thing Jude had for years.

‘But why can’t he draw on his own experience of relationships?

Isn’t that what authors are supposed to do?

And his track record can’t be any worse than yours. ’

‘He doesn’t believe in love.’ Emily wasn’t surprised to see the disbelieving looks on her parents’ faces, and she was about to make it worse.

‘Not just the romantic kind either. He doesn’t really believe in any kind of love, unless there’s a transactional value to it.

According to Jude, people only give what society calls love if they receive something tangible in return. ’

‘That’s a pretty sad concept.’ Emily’s father shook his head. ‘He sounds a bit bitter.’

‘Jude’s a lot nicer than I’m making him out to be, and I think he’d call himself a realist. He’s been through a lot. He was adopted and?—’

‘ Adopted? ’ Patsy cut her off, and Emily nodded.

Her mother had been a counsellor before retiring, and it was no surprise to hear she had a theory about why Jude was the way he was.

‘His adoption could be at the heart of his inability to believe in love. If he has any unresolved feelings of rejection, he might not have the kind of solid foundation people need to form successful relationships. Depending on how well he got on with his adoptive parents, it’s possible he might even have a form of attachment disorder. ’

Emily had got used to her mother psychoanalysing every friend she brought home over the years, so she should have guessed her mother would do the same thing to Jude.

That didn’t stop Emily feeling strangely disloyal for even mentioning his adoption to her mum.

She had a feeling he didn’t talk about it a lot and it felt like she’d betrayed a confidence, even though he hadn’t asked her to keep it to herself.

‘I don’t think I’ll mention that next time I see him.

It might be overstepping the mark.’ Emily pulled a face.

Despite feeling uncomfortable talking about Jude, she realised she wasn’t finished.

What her mother had said made perfect sense, and it felt as if she knew him on a slightly deeper level.

‘Do you think it could affect him so much that he’d struggle to even create fictional relationships in his books? ’

‘If he had a tough time with the adoption, his norm when it comes to relationships probably doesn’t feel the same as yours or mine would.

If that’s true, he needs to work on resolving it.

Otherwise it probably won’t matter how much advice he gets.

He won’t really be able to believe in what he’s writing. ’

‘Can I ask you both something else?’ Emily looked at her parents, the two of them answering in unison, like they were perfectly attuned with one another.

‘Of course.’

‘If you’d adopted me, how would you have felt if I’d wanted to find my biological parents?’

‘I’d have been worried about the possibility of you getting hurt if you were rejected, but I’d want to support you and I’d understand why.’ Her mother’s response was no surprise, given her previous occupation, but when Emily turned to her father, he was frowning.

‘What about you, Dad?’

‘I’d want what was best for you, and if not knowing who your biological parents were was negatively affecting you, I’d want you to find them.

But I’d be scared of losing you to them, I’m not going to lie.

’ He looked so sad for a moment that Emily had to step forward to hug him.

Part of her wanted to tell her parents that Jude’s mother had died when he was ten, and that his father probably couldn’t care less whether Jude went in search of his biological parents, but that would have betrayed his trust in an even bigger way than she had already. It was time for a change of subject.

‘Thank you, both, that might help with one of the plot lines Jude is working on. But I’ve got a much more important question for you now. Brownies or doughnuts?’ Emily stepped back from her father and opened the bag of brownies, releasing the rich, chocolatey aroma.

‘Well, it is Christmas, so how about both?’ Her father smiled, and Emily wanted to hug him again.

She really was lucky to have the parents she had, and she wasn’t going to take that for granted.

With the progression of her mother’s illness, she was feeling the pull home to Port Agnes more and more.

What she hadn’t expected was the pull she was feeling to contact Jude again, to ask him when he next wanted to meet.

Her mother was probably right that there was very little she could do to make him understand the concept of love in a way that he could translate to his writing, but for some reason she still wanted to try.

Jude had been trying for two days to think of a reason to contact Emily. He’d told himself he didn’t want her help any more and that the uncanny ability she had to make him open up about himself wasn’t something he wanted in his life. So he had no explanation for his reaction when he got her text.

How’s Rufus coping with country life? I wondered if you fancied meeting up for a dog walk, although I should warn you about my parents’ dog’s name. It’s a bit embarrassing.

He found himself smiling at the thought of seeing Emily, and he responded straight away.

I think Rufus is missing lampposts and there are just too many trees to choose from. Do I have to guess your dog’s name?

Her response came through just as quickly.

You can try, but you’ll never guess it.

Rumpelstiltskin?

No.

Dog?

Wrong again. I’ll give you a clue. It’s two words.

The Dog?

This could go on a while… Maybe you should ask Rufus to guess. It might be quicker.

Jude laughed and looked at his fox red Labrador, who was far too busy dragging his bed around to send his master a telepathic message. He was going to have to buy more time.

Rufus said he needs another clue.

He’s the lead singer of Take That.

Bloody hell, is he? Rufus kept that really quiet.

You’re an idiot! Not Rufus, my parents’ dog.

Jude laughed again as he read the text. He’d never met Emily’s parents, but he liked them already.

Your parents’ dog is called Gary Barlow?

Uh huh. It’s a long story. I’ll explain when we go for our walk. If you’re up for it?

He hesitated for less than ten seconds before responding. It might not have been sensible, but he wanted to see Emily again, and what could possibly happen on a dog walk?

Rufus has always wanted to meet Gary Barlow, but he might get a bit star struck. Where and when do you want to meet?

By the harbour, in about half an hour?

Perfect. See you there.

As Jude put down his phone, he looked at Rufus.

‘Right then, boy, we’re off out for another a walk, and you better be on your best behaviour.’ If anyone had asked, Jude couldn’t have explained why he was putting on aftershave, or why he’d agreed to meet up with Emily in the first place. All he knew was that he wanted to.