It Must Be Love - Jacob and Connie

Chapter Twenty Six

Sorry for the long wait, Im going to post two chapters together, and they were supposed to be going up last night!

"So what are we doing today?" Grace asked once they'd all got in the car. They had to go in Jacob's car, as Connie had arrived to work on her bike, and there obviously wasn't enough room for the three of them on there. Jacob was driving, and Connie sat in the front, while Grace was in the back. Connie had her hand on Jacob's thigh, and was running her fingernails along it gently.

"I thought we'd leave that up to you sweetheart," Connie replied. "Perhaps a shopping trip, or a drive out somewhere, or a trip to the beach?" Grace was one of those children who loved to drive and drive and drive, with no particular destination in mind, but she also loved shopping, and she loved the seaside too.

"Mum!" Grace cried. "You can't make me choose between my three favourite things!" Connie and Jacob laughed, and Jacob came up with a solution.

"How about we drive to a seaside town, and go shopping once we get there?" Grace broke out in to a huge smile.

"Thank you, you're the best!" Everyone laughed, and Connie got out her mobile to open the Satellite Navigation System. She typed in their destination - a town a fair distance away, that was well known for the extensive amount of shops, and she set her phone on the dashboard. "Do you mind if I put my headphones on?" Grace asked, pulling them out of her bag.

"Not at all sweetheart," Connie replied, and so Grace sat staring out of the window, listening to her music. "Thank you for doing this," Connie said, turning to Jacob.

"You're thanking me for wanting to spend time with the pair of you? It's a pleasure. I love having Grace around."

"There is obviously one downside," Connie smirked, squeezing his thigh a little tighter. "You'll get fewer opportunities to take me to a 'nine' now," she whispered.

"I'm sure we'll find a way." Jacob laughed. They drove in silence for the rest of the journey, entertained by the nature that surrounded them. Connie never moved her hand from his thigh, and kept caressing him the whole time he was driving. It was relaxing for both of them, knowing that they could be content in each other's company, without having to worry about the opinions of others, and so the massaging was just a little pleasure that meant so much more.

After roughly two hours of driving, they'd reached their destination. There were shops that lined the Promenade - New Look, Primark, Miss Selfridges. The town appeared to be very small, and the paths leading in to the main shopping area were cobbled, so no cars were allowed down. It looked like a very safe environment, and Connie felt obliged to let Grace go off on her own a little. They parked up in a small car park that was shrouded by a series of tall trees, and walked for about two minutes until they reached the main road, which they crossed, before sitting on a bench in the centre of the Market Square.

"Look at that Primark, mum! It's massive!" Connie smiled at her daughter, and took a moment to notice how happy she was to be back.

"Look, Gracie, I'm going to give you my mobile. If we let you go off on your own, you have to promise to follow these rules, okay?" Grace nodded, and Connie knew in her heart that Grace was responsible enough to be trusted. "Right, so don't leave the Market Square. If I find you have done, and you've gone off down the promenade or wherever, we won't be happy. Secondly, I'm going to give you £20. If you want to buy anything out of this, then that's okay, but after you've used that, or if it's something more expensive, then all you have to do is call us. Now, do you know how to do that?"

"Mum, I'm practically a teenager - I know how to work a mobile phone."

"Well, you'll have to call Jacob obviously, since you'll have my phone, so let's give it a test try." Grace unlocked her mother's phone, and opened the contacts.