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“No. I don’t come here with anybody. They all have their own things to play with. But it’s quiet here. A place to escape, so I thought you’d like it.”
He pulls his hand free from mine and starts to run at full pelt the length of the jetty, leaping off the edge. “Woohoo!” he cries before he splashes into the water.
I jog after him, laughing at his antics, and saunter to the edge. It’s a little bit of a jump to reach the water. If we sit on the edge, only our toes will tickle the surface. I keep looking for him below, but there’s no sign. The ripples his jump sent out across the water simmer down, but he still hasn’t emerged.
“Jeremy, come on,” I call. My heart starts to rush, beating faster in my chest, and then he surges up and out of the water.
“Hey! I haven’t done that in years.” His smile is infectious, and I choose to keep my little panic to myself. He flicks his hair from his eyes and pushes back, floating on his back. “Come on in.”
But I shake my head and sit down, happy to flick my toes through the water, and lean back, the sun warming my skin.
“Come on, Anna.” Jeremy splashes water at me before swimming around the end of the jetty and climbing up the steps at the side. He drips water over me and pulls me to my feet. “Your turn.”
“Um, okay.” I peer over. It’s only a few feet. No problem. I take a quick breath and psych myself up. But then, I feel the shove to my shoulder, sending me off balance and down into the water. I plunge under, and as I do, I hear another rush of sound in the water and feel bubbles racing all over my limbs.
As I frantically kick my legs to make my way to the surface, I look around for Jeremy before he pops up next to me, grinning. “You jerk,” I splutter at him.
“Not even close.”
I push over to him and wrap my arms around his neck to dunk him back under. He comes back up, and we start to laugh as he grabs for me. My legs wrap around his waist, and he holds us both afloat as he pulls me in for a kiss. His lips are cold and damp, but it doesn’t matter. It sets a fire racing through my veins. Nothing matters except for this moment. Being here — with him — without a care in the world except for each other.
We’re both grinning behind the kiss, unable to keep the sheer joy of the moment from our lips.
“I adore you, Anna Rose,” he breaks our kiss to say. His words spear my heart, ensuring their permanent mark on my flesh. There are three other words that most girls want to hear, but in a way, these are better.
I can wait for the others.
Chapter Nine
The next week follows the same pattern as the first: parties and bonfires on the beach and dinners at home with his family. The food is amazing — plates and dishes of salads and seafood and always dessert. It never stops. Mary — the chef — is a genius, but she doesn’t like any help in the kitchen. I try to offer, but she looks at me with some magical aloofness that tells me I wouldn’t be fit to work in her kitchen.
On her nights off, we all went out, but the only place they seemed interested in was The Bay — the seafood place I went to last year. While the food is great, if we keep going, I’ll be able to work my way down the entire menu.
There were a couple of bad weather days, and we decided to binge-watch films in the cinema room, our legs intertwined, drinking peach iced tea — something I’d never had but was always in the pantry here.
We fought over the opinion of the film endings — my pet hate — but Jeremy didn’t seem to care. I was ready to throw pillows at the screen when the titles rolled before a satisfactory conclusion, but he just laughed at me.
Today is no exception, and I chuck the pillow propping me up in the reclining chair in exacerbation. My arms follow the trajectory, pointing at the screen as if expecting a better explanation.
“Come on.” He shakes his head at me, clearly not sharing the same level of frustration. “We’re going to The Bay tonight.”
“Fine. Okay. I’ll go grab a shower.”
I offered to pay the first time we visited, but Mr Archer and Jeremy wouldn’t hear of it. Going with my mum last year was a special treat for us, and now it’s the fill-in when there’s nobody else to cook. It doesn’t change how delicious it is, but it does re-emphasise the difference between our families.
“What time are we all leaving?”
“No. Just us tonight.” He pulls me back to kiss me, this time a deep, knock-me-off-guard kiss. My breath catches, and I go to wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him to me. “Hmmm.” He breaks the kiss. “Later. Come on.”
He grins at me, and suddenly, the magic of going out on a date with just Jeremy hits me. Sparks ignite and dance with anticipation.
“Meet me here in half an hour.”
“I need a shower, Jere.”
“No, you don’t. You’re beautiful just how you are.”
“While I appreciate the sentiment, my hair would disagree.” I skip out of the cinema room and up to my bedroom and race to get ready. It’s amazing how fast you can be showered and finished with a little motivation.
