Page 91 of Everything That Kills Me
Jack put a code into a box by the door to get a key, then they carried their bags inside.
“Oh, it’s lovely.” Zeph walked through the open plan room to the bank of windows at the rear. “Did you know that was there?”
Jack came up behind him and put his arms around him. Zeph sighed and leaned back.
“The sea?” Jack asked.
“Ha ha. The hot tub in the garden.”
“I might have done.”
“Turn it on,” Zeph said in a husky voice. “Now.”
Jack chuckled. “It’s already on. Let’s change into shorts and go and get something to eat. We can walk down to the town. I’ll put a couple of beers in the fridge for later.”
It seemed hardly possible that not long ago they were eating crisps in the Channel tunnel and now they were on holiday in another country.
They sat outside a seafront restaurant and decided on moules frites—mussels steamed in white wine, butter and shallots, served with Dijon mayonnaise and crispy frites. Sitting in a warm breeze, eating delicious food and looking out to sea as they ate, and most importantly with Jack’s leg pressed against his, was such an exquisite moment, that Zeph could have burst with happiness.
“This town is famous for a few things,” Jack said.
“The moules and the frites? Oh, and the shenanigans in the hot tub up the road? Do people come from miles around?”
Jack raised his eyebrows. “Who uses the wordshenanigans? I was referring to the long sandy beach, the Vaches-Noires cliffs and their Jurassic fossils, sand yachting and paragliding. And fine, possibly some shenanigans in a hot tub.”
“Can we go for a walk on the beach before we go back?”
“While we anticipate the excitement of the shenanigans to follow?”
“You’ve said it three times!”
Jack rubbed his foot against Zeph’s calf. “It’s catching. You’re catching.”
Zeph was impressed by Jack’s French. He spoke to the waiter in French and was so fast that Zeph only caught a little of the conversation.
When they’d finished eating, Jack paid in cash, though Zeph had taken out his card, and they made their way down onto the beach.
“The waiter said to look for fossils towards the black rocks area, that’s below where we’re staying. The tide’s going out sowe’re not going to get trapped. We’re not allowed to climb the cliffs or dig into them.”
It was mid-afternoon and the beach was still quite busy. They headed towards the rocky area occasionally brushing hands and each time that happened, Zeph’s heart did a little skip.
“You do realise we’re not going back until we’ve both found a fossil,” Zeph said.
Jack picked up a shell. “Oh look.”
“That’s not fossilised.”
He picked up another one. “This one is.”
“Oh, it is. Well done. Not very interesting though.”
“What are you hoping for?”
“A complete pliosaur, or maybe an ichthyosaur.”
“I’ll sit and watch while you search.”
“Fine.”
