Page 28 of Suddenly Beck

‘Come on, Nat.’ I smile widely as I throw the curtains open and let in the pale rays of dawn.

He grunts again as he grabs a pillow and shoves it over his head.

‘Besides,’ I say brightly. ‘Mum asked me to take you into Newquay today. The farmers market is on at the Killacourt, and she wants us to source some new suppliers for the restaurant.’

‘Then come back and get me in four hours,’ comes the muffled reply from beneath the pillow.

I cross the room slowly, unable to hide how much he delights me, even all sleepy and grumpy. I drop down on my haunches beside the bed.

‘I’ll buy you a coffee,’ I croon in a low teasing voice.

For a moment there’s silence, then the pillow shifts, and his face slowly peeks out, locking those startling baby blues on me, which are framed with sooty black lashes. I’ve never seen him unshaven, but now he has a sexy dark stubble gracing his jaw that I’d love to trace the pads of my fingers over before brushing those soft, bee stung lips.

‘What sort of coffee?’ He pouts in reluctant interest.

‘Only the best for you, Nat.’ I smile slowly. ‘Hand roasted, freshly ground and as dark and bitter as the pits of hell.’

‘Sounds like my dad’s soul,’ he murmurs, and I lift a brow. ‘Fine,’ he huffs. ‘But I want a really big one.’

He stares at me, and I know he’s baiting me. I bite my lip refusing to give in and rise to the blatant innuendo. His mouth twitches slightly as he drags himself out of bed and heads toward the bathroom closing the door behind him.

I stand slowly and glance down at the rumbled bed, temped to bury my face in the warm sheets to see if they smell like him, and trying not to think about the words he’d slung at me in the restaurant the other night.

‘I’ve wanked over the thought of you every night…’

My dick instantly hardens, and I groan. Friends my arse. I am so fucked, and I damn well know it.

Chapter Nine

Nat

I’m certain that no matter what Historians would have us believe, BC really stands for Before Coffee. In fact, I’m sure the hundred years war would never have happened if they’d had coffee, unless it was decaf, then it probably would’ve dragged on for another hundred years.’

By the time we reach Newquay and Beck is pulling into the car park of the Killacourt, a lush green park overlooking the beach, I’m almost painfully awake and feel like I’ve been wired into the mains. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised to glance in the side mirror and find my hair standing on end. There are two very distinct reasons for this.

Firstly, because, despite my reservations, Beck did actually persuade me down to the beach to surf for a few hours. There’s nothing like wiping out fifteen times straight in freezing cold post dawn water to wake you up. Although, to be fair, I loved every minute of it. Despite trying to accidentally drown myself my first day in the bay, I’m discovering I’m actually a bit of a water baby. I love surfing, or in my case, attempting to surf.

And secondly, because I’m not sure what was in the very large coffee Beck bought me on the way here, but it was like main lining rocket fuel, and I’m currently tripping like I’m Ziggy fucking Stardust. I’m pretty certain my pupils are blown to hell right now, and my right leg appears to be river dancing completely independently of my left leg.

‘Are you alright there, Nat?’ Beck grins as he pulls the handbrake and switches the engine off.

‘Umm hmmm.’ I nod, my head jiggling on my neck like a bobblehead. ‘So, is this Newquay then? It’s very pretty, isn’t it? Have you noticed it’s pronounced new key, but it’s spelled new quay? Why isn’t it pronounced new quay, although it’s not really a quay is it? A quay is a long stone or metal platform projecting or lying alongside a body of water for loading or unloading ships, and this is a beach, unless it has docks, does it have docks? Why spell key with a q? Quaaay…quaaay… have you ever noticed if you keep saying it, that it sounds really weird?’ My words tumble over themselves rapidly, and I’m vaguely aware that I’m churning out an incredible amount of word vomit. I also appear to have lost the ability to pause and suck in a breath.

‘Alright, Rain Man,’ Beck chuckles. ‘I think we need to walk off some of that caffeine.’

We climb out of the car, and I get my first proper look at the Killacourt and of Newquay. It’s a bright and warm mid-morning and laid out in front of us is a wide grassy park filled with colourful stalls and stands. Beyond it, I can see the beach framed by the sparkling blue waves, and I inhale deeply, feeling the sense of peace and contentment steal into another deep dark corner of my soul and flood it with warmth and light.

‘Shall we?’ Beck nods his head toward the bustling farmers market as my over caffeinated eyeballs dart around taking everything in.

I nod vigorously as I turn and walk in the wrong direction, and he quickly darts after me and steers me the other way.

‘I may have to put a bell on you,’ he chuckles. ‘I probably should’ve warned you about Florrie’s coffee. There’s a reason her dark blend is called Lucifer.’

For a moment, he keeps his hand in mine, and I wonder if it’s because he enjoys the warmth of his skin against mine as much as I do, or if it’s simply to keep me from wandering off like an easily distracted two-year-old.

‘What’s in it?’ I frown.

‘I don’t like to ask,’ he laughs easily as he lets go of my hand and points to one of the stalls. ‘Mum wants us to see if we can source a new fish supplier and fresh produce, but I think there are some other stands you might be interested in.’