‘It does, I love it here.’
With a lull in customers, they took their mugs of tea and sat outside on a bench. The white cliffs towered behind them and the river was a spectacular sight. Bea burst out laughing and pointed to a cheeky seagull that had swooped down and stolen a man’s sandwich clean from his hand.
‘You have to watch those. I left my lunch on the bench once and came back to five seagulls fighting over it.’
‘Yes, I can imagine. Has this place really been up and running for over sixty years?’ Bea was looking at one of the posters for the River Festival.
‘It originally opened just over sixty years ago but on a much smaller scale. I’m not sure why it then closed down but The Little Blue Boathouse was shut for many years. Flynn bought it around five years ago, refurbished it, bought all new boats, paddleboards, et cetera, and set up the river taxis and excursions. I came across the original signing-in book when I was cleaning the attic room as part of the refurb. It was amongst the books on the shelf. Talking of the attic room, if you want to move in for the time you’re here, I’ll leave you the keys before I go.’
‘I love your B&B, but waking up to the view of the river and the mountains…’ Bea placed her hand on her heart. ‘It’s going to be amazing. This just doesn’t feel like work.’
‘Those types of jobs are the best jobs,’ said Julia, giving her a warm smile.
‘Thank you,’ added Bea.
They watched the river taxi making its way towards the jetty and Roman waved his cap in the air towards them. Julia saluted. ‘At the River Festival all the boats line up and parade on the water. There’s music, and the firework display is spectacular.’
‘It sounds like it’s going to be rock ’n’ roll on the river. I’m glad I’ve made the decision to stay longer.’ Bea’s eyes were fixed firmly on The Hemingway. Her decision definitely had something to do with Nolan being around, which she knew was daft, given that she barely knew the man, but there was something about him that excited her. She wanted to get to know him better.
‘I need to nip back to the B&B for a couple of hours. Are you going to be okay on your own? And would you like me to bring you back some lunch?’
‘I’m okay on all counts but thank you.’
Julia took both mugs back to the staff room and returned with a key. ‘For the attic room. You can move your stuff in whenever you want. At one o’clock, lock up the Boathouse for an hour and take your lunch. And here’s my mobile number in case any sudden emergencies or questions arise.’
It was half an hour until lunch and Bea took another glance towards The Hemingway but there was still no sign of life. She was wondering whether she should have asked Julia to bring her back some lunch or whether Nolan would actually turn up with food. Hearing a loud growl from her stomach she hoped it was the latter.
* * *
Bea breezed through the next hour and, right on time, grabbed the CLOSED sign from underneath the counter and walked towards the open door. Hearing footsteps approaching, she was just about to make her apologies when she was met by a grinning Nolan, causing an immediate flurry of goosebumps across her body. He held up a white paper bag. ‘Lunch!’
‘Right on cue! How did you know this was my lunch hour?’
‘Call yourself part of Hemingway and Fernsby?’ He rolled his eyes and shook his head in jest.
‘Fernsby and Hemingway,’ she corrected, watching him tap the wooden sign next to the door.
‘It says “closed between 1pm and 2pm”, and it doesn’t take a detective to know that must be when staff take their lunch hour.’
‘You’re very clever,’ she said, grinning and, after putting the sign on the door, pushed him playfully inside the Boathouse. She waggled the key in front of him.
‘What’s that, the key to your heart?’ Nolan teased.
‘You wish. It’s the key to my new room for the next month.’
‘Month? I thought you were only sticking around for two weeks?’ Nolan handed her a paper bag. ‘Sandwich and flapjack.’
‘Perfect, thank you,’ she said, leading him through to the back of the shop. ‘Two weeks was my initial plan but Flynn and Julia were feeling the pressure to recruit before the River Festival and it seems daft if I know the ropes to leave them in the lurch.’ Bea knew it was better she tell a little white lie and make out that they had asked her to stay on, rather than admit to Nolan that part of the reason she wanted to stay was him. ‘I’d already made the decision not to go back to the night shift, and this way I’ll have a little more time to work out what I’m doing and get paid in the meantime.’
‘It sounds like you have it all worked out.’ Nolan was now looking at the ladder in front of him. ‘You have to climb up there?’
‘I do, but wait till you see the view. It’s going to take your breath away.’
‘It already has,’ he replied with a mischievous glint in his eye. ‘Ladies first.’
After handing him her sandwich Bea began to climb the ladder, then looked back over her shoulder. ‘You just wanted to look at my backside!’
Nolan gave her a lopsided grin. ‘I’m saying nothing, except the view just got better!’
