He beamed up at her. “I was told to look out for you.” He ran up the few steps. “I’m Jimmy. Let me take your luggage.”
Her suitcase went into the boat first, then he held out a hand to help her over the plank and into a seat. There were two other passengers, a professional-looking woman who struggled into the boat, and a small boy.
Of sexy seasick man there was no sign. Laura wasn’t even sure if he had come ashore here. Her cheeks heated when she remembered the way he had slipped his arm from under her touch. It was quite something to repel a man so instantaneously. Of course, she had repelled a lot of men in the past, but usually after she began talking about marriage. When men first met her, they usually liked her. A lot.
To be fair, seasick man was the first to see her new spinster look, the cropped hair and shapeless clothes. Good to know it was working. And if her pride didn’t like it, well, her pride would just have to get used to it.
The woman soon got talking to Jimmy about an event coming up at some cloth factory or something they called the Casemate, and apparently Lord Du Montfort was going to attend and speak at the opening. Everyone was very excited about that.
Laura tuned them out and tried to watch the shoreline. The island rose up from the coast but then levelled. Not much was visible from the boat, apart from a tall church spire. There had to be a town, or perhaps a village where the man might have gone. In the distance there was a hilltop, not too high to climb but Laura guessed it would offer spectacular views of the English Channel and surrounding islands.
“Excuse me.” She turned to Jimmy. “What’s that hill to the east over there?”
He looked where she was pointing, “Oh that’ll be East Hill.”
Imaginative.
A loud horn drew her attention to the ferry now sailing away across the grey sea, white foam frothing in its wake.
Seasick man might be on it, still leaning against the railings looking down into the water.
“Do all the passengers get off here?” she asked Jimmy, doing her best to sound casual.
Jimmy looked back over his shoulder. “Not all. The ferry will go on to Jersey and then Saint Malo in France.”
Anyway, she hadn’t looked for him as they docked earlier. Of course not; Project Spinster, remember?
She’d do well to remember the pain and humiliation of being dumped by every man she ever dated. Why was she even thinking about him? He wasn’t the first good-looking man to cross her path, surely. If the universe cared about her at all, seasick man would be on his way to Jersey, or France. Or better yet, Polynesia.
A few minutes later, the ferry disappeared from view as the Jimmy took the water taxi around the curve of the island. And almost instantly, Laura forgot the ferry and the man that might be on it because in front of her was the most astonishing view. The island narrowed to a thin causeway, a graceful arc. like the neck of a swan. At the end was a small headland, a tiny cliff that curled around a pretty cove with a white beach. Jimmy slowed down and took them into the cove. Even from a distance, she could see pretty flowers draped along the railings of the jetty all the way inland towards a charming blue-green cottage.
“That’s you, Miss.” Jimmy nodded at her.
Really? She was coming to this gorgeous place?
Jimmy skillfully docked the boat and helped her out. When she opened her handbag to pay him, he shook his head. “No charge. Lord Du Montfort pays for the water taxi.”
And with a final wave, he steered the boat out to sea with the two other passengers.
Laura looked around; a few steps led from the landing strip to the main part of the jetty. A large sign with rounded letters read, BLUE-SAGE BAY and underneath, in brackets, it said, (LE COU) which meant that, yes indeed, she was here.
For the first time since her breakup with Jacob, Laura felt excitement fizz and bubble inside her. She started towards the cottage. If she’d been younger, and not on her way to meeting a client, she would have skipped.
The air was warmer here, and fragrant with something lemony she couldn’t quite place. Pots and planters of all sizes and colours lined the edges, and even though most were not in flower yet, she recognized lavender, roses, geraniums and a multitude of herbs. As she got closer, she could see that the cottage was in fact some kind of restaurant or café. There were yellow and lilac tables outside, an orange bench that looked like it used to be a church pew. More flower and herb pots crowded against the walls of the cottage. She guessed this must be a real sun trap come spring. Whoever owned this place must really love colour.
The glass door opened, and a pretty woman with curling shoulder-length chestnut hair came out to greet her. “You must be Laura.” She smiled warmly. “I’m Millie.”
Oh, so this was the client. The bride for whom Laura had been hired to make a wedding gown.
“Welcome to the island.” Millie hugged her. “Joanie’s told me such wonderful things about you.”
Back in Brighton on that unhappy afternoon when Joanie explained the job, Laura hadn’t thought much about it. But now, looking into the face of this lovely welcoming woman…Oh God, she’s marrying the son of a lord, a wedding that will be attended by aristocrats, celebrities and the press.what if I mess this up?
Chapter Five
Adam stopped readingand put the medical journal on the grass beside him. A soft breeze ruffled the pages, but he didn’t care – in fact he never needed to read another medical article ever again. For the first time in years, he didn’tneedto do anything or care about anything. Already his life in London, the big house on Richmond Hill, the expensive clinic in Harley Street, the hundreds of people who cared about him, all of it was fading away. After only twenty-four hours on this tiny rustic island, he could feel himself changing. For one thing, he hadn’t felt like dying. Not once.
His hands kept straying to his pockets to check his phone. Somewhere at the bottom of the sea, his inbox would be filling up with texts and voicemails. The usual expressions of love and sympathy from people who didn’t even know him.How are you? Let me know if there is anything I can do to help.
