‘You’ve noticed too?’
‘What else do they need? Candles, music…?’ Rick smiled and pretended to play an air violin.
‘No. With the piano and guitar they should be providing the latter themselves. Just some privacy, I guess. That’s hard to find, amongst the shacks. And this house is a gorgeous setting.’
‘No worries. We all need a hand in the romance department – unless you are totally enchanting, like me.’
‘Don’t kid yourself,’ I said but nevertheless blushed.
Rick took my hand. His tone turned serious. ‘This… this… whatever it is between us…’
‘We don’t need to label it, do we?’
‘No.’ He squeezed my fingers.
Thank goodness because I found the whole dating scene confusing.Love Islandkept me reasonably up to date – along with Amy’s input. There was casual dating, dating exclusively, officially being boyfriend and girlfriend… but it was best to keep this simple, especially as I’d been going home in three weeks.
‘I just want you to know…’ He cleared his throat. ‘I’m not like some holiday rep who goes for a different woman out of every new bunch of arrivals. In fact, this is the first…’
‘Whatever it is,’ I chipped in helpfully.
‘Yes. The firstwhatever it iswith any volunteer. I like you Sarah. You’ve got guts. And family is important to you. I can tell by the way you’ve spoken about your late mum and it’s obvious how much you care for Amy. It’s like me. My brother, Lee, drives me to distraction but I’d be there for him, like a shot, if he had an emergency. And I’ve worked my guts out getting this house restored partly because I’ll never forget the hurt on Gran’s face, when she saw it crushed, and I’d do anything to make her happy. She’s given my parents, Lee and me so much. I love her to bits.’ He grinned. ‘And there are other things about you I just can’t ignore… such as coming to this conservation project with such a unique dress sense. You had me at that Audrey Hepburn hat.’ He gave me a little push and went to stand up.
Before I could reply Chatty gave a series of impatient whistles and squeaks and bared his teeth against Rick’s shirt. His dinner time was looming.
‘Oh wait… I had another idea I wanted to run past you – about how you could raise more money to keep the island in your family. You see…’
But Rick was already on his feet. ‘Can it wait? I bet it’s great but…’ He rolled his eyes. ‘His lordship, here, is hungry.’
‘It won’t take long.’ I clenched my hands together, adrenaline running through me. It was an ambitious project but could turn Seagrass Island around.
‘Why rush?’ he said. ‘Time’s a bit tight now. How about later? I really look forward to it.’
‘Oh…’ My face dropped. ‘Okay…’
He glanced at me. Looked at his watch. ‘Go on, then. I suppose I’ve got five minutes.’
I sat upright again, an adrenaline surge returning. ‘I’ll try to sum it up.’ I shuffled to get more comfortable as he sat down again. ‘I believe you should turn this place into a luxury getaway destination.’
Silence.
‘You mean havestrangersstay in our house?’ he asked eventually.
‘No.’ I leant forwards. ‘In the beach huts. Each can accommodate a couple. You could take individual bookings or small groups. This location is stunning. The beach wouldn’t take long to tidy up. Malik could run weekly boat trips. Your family’s chef could do the catering. Seagrass Conservation could still run and guests might like to visit the animal enclosures. That could be an added attraction.’
‘That would mean never living in our home again.’
‘You might not anyway, if you have to sell up. And actually, with this plan, not that much would change. You and your family would have your own bedrooms in the house and could cherry-pick guests. Plus once things are up and running you wouldn’t need to rent out the huts all summer long. I’ve looked at luxury stays on other Virgin Islands. The amounts people are prepared to pay are astronomical and you’d soon be raking in thousands and—’
Rick held up his hand. ‘Sarah. No. Loud guests upsetting the animals? Music at all hours? Litter? The whole thing would be an act of lunacy.’
I blinked several times. ‘But Rick, this could be the answer to all your problems.’
‘I’m sorry, Sarah. There’s no point discussing it.’ His face hardened as he stood up. ‘I appreciate the thought you’ve put into this. It would probably suit anywhere else. But I’ve seen the damage tourists have done to the natural world.’
‘It wouldn’t be like that.’
‘With all due respect, I think I know more about this subject than you.’ He gave an exasperated sigh.
