Page 14 of The Summer Escape

He shrugged. “Those two aren’t going to be any trouble. And the kid is so cute, how could we crush her dreams of an extended holiday?”

“Oh, so it’s the little one you found cute?” Mirren raised her eyebrows. “I knew you’d like Beth.”

“They both seem nice. What’s the deal with the girl’s dad?”

“I’ve no idea. He hasn’t been mentioned.”

Trystan hopped down from the counter. “I’m going to get changed and go for a swim.”

Standing, Mirren rubbed at a dirty mark on his shoulder. “You’re a right state. Where’s the dust come from?”

Trystan looked at his shoulder. “It’s the remains of Beth’s mother.”

“What?”

He explained the incident with the urn and how he’d helped Ellie clean up.

“It sounds as though she lost her mum recently,” Mirren remarked. “The poor love.”

“Yeah.” Trystan gave a cheeky grin. “Or she didn’t lose her recently and she’s a weirdo who takes her dead mother everywhere. And we’ve invited her to stay in the house with you!”

CHAPTERFIVE

“Can we stay in Mirren’s house, Mummy?” Ellie asked for about the twentieth time as they sat on the beach, eating their picnic of sandwiches and grapes.

“I’m still thinking about it.” Beth was barely listening to Ellie; she was too focused on the figure cutting through the turquoise water with a perfect front crawl. She suspected it was Trystan. Presumably he’d beaten them to the water when they’d stopped at the cottage for their picnic and beach essentials.

A family occupied the other end of the beach, far enough away that Beth felt as though they had a tiny piece of paradise all to themselves.

“I want to stay,” Ellie said as she chewed on a jam sandwich.

“I know you do.” Beth watched the swimmer head towards the shore until he was close enough for her to see that it was definitely Trystan. As he stood up in the shallow water and strode onto the beach, she averted her gaze.

Ellie jumped to her feet when she noticed him. “Hi, Trystan!”

“Hello,” he replied with a smile. “I haven’t seen you for a while.”

“You just saw us at Mirren’s house,” Ellie said, missing the joke.

“Oh, yes. I remember now.” He fetched his towel from the sand nearby and rubbed it over his face and hair before patting his torso. “How was your picnic?” he asked, wandering over to them.

“Yummy,” Ellie replied. “Do you want a grape?”

“Yes, please.” He took the single grape that Ellie handed him and popped it in his mouth. As he chewed, he crouched beside Ellie and pointed to the horizon. “Do you see that boat?”

“Which one?” Ellie asked.

“The white one with the mast.”

To avoid staring at the drips trailing down Trystan’s toned torso, Beth looked out to sea too. Boats were scattered in the bay and she had no idea which one they were supposed to be looking at.

“Whereabouts?” she asked, glancing back in time to catch Trystan stealing a grape from the bunch on the blanket.

“Out on the water.” He flashed a mischievous grin. “That big boat.”

“Is it your boat?” Ellie asked.

“No.” He popped another grape in his mouth. “It’s a nice boat though, isn’t it?”