Page 78 of The Summer Escape

“Are you quietly considering it?” he asked, eyes still closed.

“No.” She smiled as she studied his face, committing every detail to memory. “Do you think you’ll move back here?”

He opened an eye, then closed it again. “What?”

“You seem very at home here. And you’re so close to your family. Do you plan on staying in London long term?”

His chest expanded as he inhaled deeply. “I have no idea.”

“I could imagine you living here.” Dragging her eyes away from him, she glanced up at the cottage, letting herself imagine it being home. She only realised she was frowning when Trystan nudged her leg.

“What are you looking so serious about?” he asked.

“I just thought …” She smiled at him. “Never mind.”

“What were you thinking?”

“I was wondering how you can afford to own a house here and a flat in London …” Her brows drew together. “Are you rich?”

He laughed loudly. “What kind of question is that?”

“Well you don’t seem to have any money worries … Your flat in London can’t have been cheap.”

He raised his arms, interlocking his fingers to a pillow behind his head. “It’s only a one-bedroom place. We bought at a good time and both Jenny and I had decent incomes.”

“But you also own the cottage here. How much does it pay to be a relocation specialist? Even if you have a great salary, that doesn’t seem to add up. Or do you have a huge mortgage or something?”

“The cottage was a good investment because the holiday rental market is thriving here.” He shifted his weight then sat up. “I also inherited some money, which was how I could afford to buy the cottage.”

Beth brushed sand from her calves. “Did you inherit money when your dad died?” she asked softly.

“No.” Creases appeared in his forehead. “It was a couple of years before he died … I didn’t reallyinheritthe money …” Trystan glanced around as though worried he might be overheard. “It’s kind of a weird story.”

“You’re being very mysterious,” Beth teased. “Do I even want to know? It’s starting to feel as though it’s dangerous information…”

He laughed again and the tension left his features. “The money was a gift from Lowen,” he said quietly.

“Your brother just gave you a load of money?”

He nodded. “A hundred and fifty thousand pounds.”

It took a moment for Beth to digest the information. “Why? How did Lowen have so much money? He just gave it to you?”

“He gave the same to all his brothers. Kit used his money to buy the train. Noah and I each bought a cottage from our parents. No one’s quite sure what Jago did with his, but I think a lot of it went to pay off debts.”

“Where did Lowen get the money from?”

“He inherited it from his maternal grandparents. He spent a lot of time with them when he was growing up. Every school holiday he went on these fancy holidays with them. When they died within a year of each other, Lowen inherited a lot.”

“How much?”

He shrugged. “He’d never say. Only that what he gave us was a drop in the ocean. He bought the pottery studio and his house on Bryher, but he’s never been very extravagant with the money, at least not for himself. One time Seren was complaining about not being able to afford a car and Lowen bought her a brand-new Mini and had it shipped over.”

“Wow.” Beth smiled lightly. “I don’t think I’ve ever cared about being an only child until now!”

Trystan dug a hand into the sand, then let it fall through his fingers. “When Lowen gave us the money, he insisted it was nothing to him and that we never need mention it again. He didn’t want any of us to feel indebted to him because of it. So we don’t really talk about it. There was a lot of speculation on the island about how we’d suddenly come into money, but most people don’t know about Lowen’s other family so we kept it quiet. Which likely just spurred more rumours.”

“Was Lowen close to his grandparents?”