Marguerite Kaye - Invitation To A Cornish Christmas

She wrinkled her nose. ‘It’s true, they don’t like change, and they are wary of strangers. In that sense, Porth Karrek is very like Lewis.’

‘And the scenery too, from what you’ve said.’

‘Oh, yes. I came here because it was as far south from London as I could get, but I have stayed because it is quite simply beautiful. On days like this, who would want to be anywhere else? I love the sea, as much as you do.’

They stopped to admire the view back to Mount’s Bay from Cudden Point. The causeway had disappeared under the incoming tide. A sudden gust of wind tugged a strand of Emily’s hair free from its ribbon. The sea below was a deep blue, turning to turquoise in the shallower water back at Perranuthnoe where it met the sands, and further out, where the swell was rising, the water was almost midnight blue.

‘But you have been lonely here.’ Treeve turned to her.

‘I have, but that’s partly because I’ve chosen to be. I wasn’t ready for company until you came along. Next April, I’ll have been here a year. I have high hopes that by then, Eliza Menhenick will offer me a loaf of bread without asking me which size I want. Maybe next summer, Kensa and Jack will persuade the Nancarrow boys to join them to swim. In ten years’ time, if I ask for a glass of cognac at the Ship, they might even serve it to me. You see,’ Emily said awkwardly, for the revelation had only just occurred to her, ‘unlike you, I’d like to make my home here. I don’t have any family now, and I can’t go back to Lewis, but this place is alike enough to remind me. I won’t be a stranger for ever.’

‘Shall I build a swimming pool in the rocks, so that you can give your lessons safely?’

‘I know you’re teasing, but I can’t help but feel that the children here are missing out on so much, not enjoying the sea.’

‘To say nothing of the fact that it’s depriving some of them of the ability to save their own life.’

‘Oh, Treeve, I’m so sorry. That was completely thoughtless of me.’

‘No, but you’re right. If Austol had learned to swim, there’s a chance he may not have perished. I’ve resolved to learn, thanks to you, and see if I can persuade some of my men to do so. Perhaps one day we can swim together at Karrek Sands.’

‘So you do intend to return?’

‘Occasionally, my naval duties permitting. I’ll have to. It’s horribly clear to me that there are a good many things I can’t delegate.’

‘You know, it sounds to me as if being the lord of the manor and being a naval captain are more similar than you think. Both require a steady hand on the tiller, a man who is not afraid to make tough decisions, who can inspire loyalty and command respect.’

‘What is demanded in Porth Karrek, is that the lord of the manor acts in the exact same way as his predecessors did. Austol essentially became my father, when he inherited. Acting the lord of the manor, is precisely what I’d have to do. I refuse to meekly follow in my father’s and brother’s footsteps.’

Emily dared to take his hand, pressing her lips to his knuckles. ‘I, for one, applaud you for that.’

A gust of wind sent her staggering back. Her ribbon was torn from her hair, whirling up into the sky. Instinctively she lunged to catch it, only to be yanked back hard against Treeve as she stepped off the path and dizzyingly close to the edge.

‘Thank you,’ she said, clutching gratefully at him. He put his other arm around her, putting himself between her and the cliff edge. The wind suddenly dropped and the sun came out from behind a cloud, and Emily smiled up at him. His eyes were made golden by the sunlight, his close-cut beard coal-black. His bottom lip was full, his answering smile reflecting not only her own delight in the wild coastal scenery and the glorious freshness of the day, but the latent desire which had quivered between them earlier.

Treeve brushed her hair back from her face, his fingers warm on her cheek, on her neck as he tucked the long tress behind her ear. Her heart began to race. She took a step closer, and he slipped his other arm under her cloak, around her waist. She reached up to touch his hair and felt him exhale sharply as her fingers smoothed the silky soft damp curls away from his forehead. And then the sun was blotted out and the earth seemed to tilt on its axis as he lowered his head and their lips met.

He tasted of salt. His lips were gentle, his beard soft yet prickly, rasping just enough on her skin to delight rather than grate. She sighed, opening her mouth to his kiss, nestling closer into his reassuringly solid bulk, and he brushed his tongue along her bottom lip, making her quiver, her quiver made him sigh, his mouth covering hers, deepening the kiss, until another gust of wind made them stagger backwards.

‘Are you all right?’

‘Luckily the wind blew us away from the cliff.’

‘You know that’s not what I meant, Emily.’ His eyes were lambent, heavy-lidded. It touched her that he needed reassurance. That he took nothing for granted.

‘I’m fine.’ Her words, so trite and so completely inadequate, made her shake her head at her own banality. ‘I’m perfectly fine.’ And free, she added silently to herself. Not that she’d tell Treeve, ever, but his kiss had freed her. ‘Truly,’ she said instead.

Treeve laughed, pulled her back into his arms and kissed her again. ‘I feel like I’ve been waiting for months to do that.’

‘Not even a week. I hope you’re not disappointed.’

‘You exceeded my very high expectations.’ He wanted to kiss her again, but this was hardly the place! His body was thrumming with desire. For the love of the gods, it was just a few kisses. Extremely enjoyable, enough for him to want more, but dammit, he was not in the habit of going around kissing virgins. Not that Emily kissed like a virgin, though how the hell he thought he knew what a virgin kissed like when he’d never kissed one…

He cursed under his breath, scanning first the horizon and then his watch. ‘I think we’d better turn back.’

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