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“Come here, you.” She pulls my shoulder around and grabs me for a hug. “You’ll be fine. Have fun. You’ve got everything you need, and I’ve put some money in your account. I want regular updates, though — no ghosting me. I’m putting a lot of trust in you, so?—”
“I know. Respect it, and don’t push my boundaries.”
“Ready, Anna?” Jeremy calls.
Am I ready?
“Sure.” I squeeze Mum one last time, then wave her goodbye.
Jeremy pulls me over to him then goes to speak to his parents.
“Hi, Mr and Mrs Archer,” I greet. I’d never met them before and hadn’t realised they were waiting to leave. “It’s nice to meet you and thank you so much for inviting me to come along with you. It’s very kind.”
“You’re welcome, Anna. Jeremy has told us all about you,” Mr Archer starts. He sounds very… proper. Jeremy’s mum just keeps looking out of the window.
I pull Jeremy’s hand, point towards his mum, and mouth, “Is she okay?”
He nods.
“Ready then?” he checks.
“Sure.” But instead of letting me get in the car with his folks, he pulls me towards the garage.
A shiny black version of his parents’ car is behind the door.
“When did you get your own car?” I stare, agog.
“When I passed my test two days ago.”
“You didn’t say. Are you keeping any more secrets?” I narrow my eyes at him, a fizzle of frustration burning in my chest.
“Nothing from you. I thought it would be a surprise and good to have our own space.”
He opens the car door for me, and I see he’s already put our bags in the back. We get in and start to follow his parents out of the drive.
At every opportunity, Jeremy reaches for my hand, holding it in his. It makes my heart sing, and my head nearly explodes as I realise what I’m doing — driving down to spend the summer with my boyfriend. My grin can’t be controlled, and I enjoy watching the world slip by. The sun shines, and I feel excited and hopeful for a new adventure.
Several hours later, we finally arrive. Much like his house, the Archers’ place in Constance Cove is impressive — a work of art.
“Jeremy, this place… it’s amazing.” My eyes can’t take it all in as we pull up a few minutes behind his parents. There’s glass and white walls everywhere. An expanse of wooden floors leads us from the entryway and down into the kitchen area, which already smells delicious. I see a woman in her early thirties at the stove and assume she’s the chef. The space is too big to be called a room, and I admire the slide-away doors that lead to the outside deck and a pool beyond that.
“Want to see your room?”
I smile, lost for words that we’re here.
He leads me back the way we came and up a wooden staircase to the second floor. “I’m here.” He knocks on his door but doesn’t go in. “And you are in here.” He opens a door two more down from his.
It’s stunning, filled with light from the huge window overlooking the garden and a view of the cove beyond that.
This is unreal.
The room has a light wood beach vibe, which fits perfectly with the location, a white linen-dressed bed, a simple wardrobe, and a desk. The light wood floors make me feel like I could be stepping right off into the sand.
“Happy?” Jeremy nudges me.
“Are you kidding? This is amazing. Thank you.”
“Unpack, and we’ll meet downstairs for lunch. Then we can do whatever you want. Dinner will be at seven with my folks. We’re hosting a welcome party here tomorrow, so it will be pretty full-on. We’ll want to be out for most of the day, and the weather looks good,” he says everything with a grin on his face.
