‘It’s funny, I was having a similar conversation with my friend back in London. She’s got this epic, like totally unique look which sets her aside from other people and bags her some great roles, but she was saying her looks rule her out of so many other opportunities, like the love interest. The sort of stuff I get to audition for.’
‘Is that who you’re playing on this film?’
‘Sort of. There’s a group of three friends and I’m the one who catches the attention of the lead character. It’s a supporting role though, mostly scenes when we’re in the background or in a big group scene. But I do have some lines.’
‘Sounds like a big deal to me.’
‘Let’s just say I had the right look.’ She wiggled her toes in the grass, her red toenails glinting through the green blades. She blew hot air over her face. ‘We so should have sat in the shade.’ She couldn’t help glancing at his chest again, glistening in the sun, probably from the sunscreen he rubbed on himself earlier...
Finn sat up, his stomach muscles tensing as he did.
‘I’ve got a bit more to finish off, then I’m going to call it a day and stop early. It’s too hot to work round the front in this heat.’
‘Absolutely, finish early and go have that pint in a beer garden.’
‘Thanks for the ice cream and company.’
He leant his hand on the grass as if to push himself up but instead moved closer and kissed her cheek. His beard tickled her skin, sending a shiver through her. He lingered for a second too long and instead of pulling away, his lips brushed against hers.
‘Sorry.’ Within a heartbeat it was over. ‘I um, didn’t mean to... that was inappropriate.’
He stood up, shoving his hands in the pockets of his paint-splattered shorts.
Jenna didn’t know what to say; her senses were in overdrive. He tasted of chocolate mixed with a delicious smell of aftershave, sunscreen and hot skin.
She picked up the ice cream wrappers and scrambled to her feet. ‘Don’t worry about it; sun’s obviously gone to our heads.’
They set off across the grass together, Finn heading to the shade of the wall, and Jenna escaping around the side of the cottage.
The kitchen was dark and cool, a welcome respite from the mid-afternoon heat. Jenna dropped the wrappers in the bin, leant on the edge of the sink and gazed out of the window at the spot where they’d been sitting. With the kitchen window open, she could hear scraping. Finn was continuing to repair the cottage wall where the mortar had come away. All she could think about was that kiss, the lightest brush of his lips against hers, and yet it was so sensual. So unexpected. It seemed to take him by surprise too.
It was too hot to do any work in the garden, and she was too flustered to concentrate on anything else, mainly because her thoughts kept flitting back to Finn and his muscles flexing as he re-grouted the cottage wall. She planned on waiting until he finished for the day and then she’d take up Lily’s invitation of joining them at the hotel. She bit her lip; she could suggest to Finn that they go for a pint in a pub garden together, but somehow that seemed even more forward than that briefest of kisses. Anyway, she was certain he was planning on going with his mates. Feeling even more hot and flustered, Jenna decided to have that siesta she’d dreamt about earlier.
Lying on her bed, she listened to the scrape scrape scrape of Finn working on the wall. The image of his full lips, bearded chin, blue eyes and sandy hair made sleep impossible.
Chapter Eight
Jenna did eventually drift off. She woke to silence, the room darker than it had been when she’d come upstairs. She went over to the window and peered out. The sun had moved around the cottage leaving most of the grass now shaded. The scaffolding was in the way so she couldn’t make out if Finn was still there or not, but the rhythmic scraping had stopped. She walked across the landing in bare feet to the spare room. One of the windows overlooked the side of the house and drive, but only her car remained. She wondered if he’d tried to find her to tell her he was finishing for the day. Maybe he thought she’d been hiding away so there wasn’t any awkwardness over that kiss.
Oh God, thought Jenna, let it not make things awkward. All she’d been able to think about since she’d got back from work was Finn. She needed a distraction. The hotel, a pool and the rest of the cast was the simple answer to that. She’d been invited over nearly every day and it was about time she showed up.
The cast staying together at the hotel reminded Jenna of being a student at drama school, and even though she relished being on her own at Bramble Cottage, there was a certain appeal to that kind of camaraderie. After the ups and downs of the last few months, Cornwall and the cottage had been her escape, but as she drove into the grounds of the hotel she felt a pang of envy at the rest of the cast being in a place like this.
Jenna didn’t mind that Bramble Cottage wasn’t right on the coast; it was surrounded by trees and countryside, quiet and unspoilt. It was close enough to easily reach the sea but far enough away from the summertime crowds. She parked in the car park at the front of the hotel and walked around the side of the building, immediately understanding why Lily and Amanda, and even Milo, thought she was mad staying at the cottage. The hotel was breathtaking. Perched on a cliff top, its white walls gleamed in the sunshine and the large windows
