Bea looked down at her ankle. ‘I’m sure I’m going to be all right in the next forty-eight hours or so, but how about in the meantime we do a job swap? I’ll sit here and try and sell your paintings whilst you man The Little Blue Boathouse. It’s a win-win situation.’
Nolan thought about it for a second then thrust out his hand and shook Bea’s. There it was again, that electrifying feeling that sent shock waves through her body. How did he do that to her every time? ‘Deal. Now let me get you a sandwich. I made some earlier in case you were hungry when you got back from the hospital.’
‘You’re a keeper, aren’t you?’ she joked, as he disappeared into the galley and returned with two cheese and ham sandwiches on delicious chunky granary bread, along with a custard tart and a glass of lemonade each.
‘This is just what I needed,’ said Bea, tucking into her food. ‘What’s the plan with Martha?’ she asked.
‘After I’ve dropped you off at the B&B tonight, I think I’m going to cycle over to Foxglove Farm and pay her a visit. See if I can get myself a reading and have a look at the painting on the wall.’ Nolan was thoughtful for a second whilst he took a bite of his sandwich. ‘I know I’ll recognise my grandfather’s style. I’m so curious to know if he could have painted that picture of Castaway Bay.’
‘Ooo, I never thought of that. What if it is his painting?’
‘Then I can be quite honest and say the artist was my grandfather and ask if she knew him or Patsy. You never know, I might even get my future predicted.’
‘I can predict your future,’ she replied, looking at the paintings displayed. ‘You’re going to become famous as the artist on the floating boat and travel all over the world selling your paintings.’ She smiled, but a tiny part of her hoped the last part wasn’t true. Even though this was Nolan’s dream and he was already putting his plan into action, Bea wasn’t looking forward to saying goodbye.
When they finished their lunch, Nolan checked his watch. ‘I best get back over to the Boathouse. All of Roman’s excursions are full this afternoon and I don’t think there’s a paddleboard or kayak free until gone three-thirty.’
‘Why don’t I start here this afternoon? With the sign standing on the jetty, you might get people on board. Tourists like a good mooch. Then everyone’s a winner.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘Absolutely. I may as well be sat here trying to make you money whilst you’re working my shift.’
A huge smile hitched on Nolan’s face. ‘That would be great. What really excites me is the thought of my paintings hanging in people’s homes and them taking pleasure from looking at them. It sounds daft really.’
‘It doesn’t. You have such a talent and it’s cool to think of them hanging in people’s homes.’
‘If you sell out there are more stacked up in the corner.’
Nolan had been busy; there were paintings of Heartcross Castle, Heartcross Mountain, Primrose Park, The Old Bakehouse and even one of the pub, The Grouse and Haggis.
‘I’ll do my best to sell them all,’ enthused Bea.
‘I’ll get you a jug of water, and there’s books and magazines too, in case it’s quiet.’
‘Honestly, I’ll be okay, I’m going to sit here and watch the world go by.’
‘That sounds like a perfect afternoon.’
Tucking the sign under his arm, Nolan jumped back onto dry land and Bea watched as he placed it at the bottom of the jetty. It readHemingway’s Floating Art Galleywith an arrow pointing towards the boat. He turned and gave her a thumbs-up before strolling over and opening up The Little Blue Boathouse.
As soon as Nolan was out of sight, Bea made herself comfy. She was glad the calmer, warmer weather was back again. With her perfect view of the river, she watched Roman sail the water taxi back towards the jetty, ready to take the next load of diners to The Lakehouse restaurant. Flynn also had other boats out on the water with their own captains ready to take the tourists out on their excursions. The rest of the river was full of boats, and further upstream were the kayaks and paddleboards. Walking along the river path eating ice-creams were hordes of tourists, and Bea hoped they would step on board and take a look at the paintings.
Her phoned pinged, Emmie’s name staring back at her from the screen. For the last hour she’d managed not to think about their visit this morning and she hesitated to read the message now. All Bea wanted was an afternoon of calm. She was going to take the opportunity to plan her speech for the Heartcross Rescue meeting. Julia had added her to the community WhatsApp group and, judging by the response, it was possible that over a hundred residents might attend the meeting. Rona and Felicity had said they were going to bring big aluminium urns to serve tea and coffee and bake a selection of refreshments too. Bea was feeling nervous but she reflected that all the villagers who had crossed her path so far were friendly and welcoming and everyone was going to benefit from the cause. Still, the volunteers she would need would have to come from the community. Would they have the time to spare from their busy lives?
‘Bea!’
She looked over towards the bank and saw Lucas and Amy waving madly at her. She waved back.
‘We’re off to visit Heartcross Castle,’ shouted Amy.
Bea could see by the look on Lucas’s face that he was excited as he skipped along the riverbank. Knowing that yesterday could have had fatal consequences just increased Bea’s conviction that the community needed a rescue team, a lifeboat and equipment, along with a small headquarters. Noticing a pen and pad on the table, Bea hobbled across and grabbed them before sitting down again. She was going to research the villagers and their businesses and see what she could do to persuade them to get involved. Then she was going to work out numbers, like how many volunteers they would need on a rota at any time. Bea knew it was a huge ask as the rota would be twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, but it would be worth it if they could save even one life.
Her phone pinged and once again Emmie’s name was on the screen. She read the message and sighed. Carl was on his way back down to speak with her. Just when she thought she was in for a pleasant, quiet afternoon.
* * *
Five minutes later, Bea couldn’t quite believe it. An excursion boat had sailed into the jetty and the majority of the tourists were wandering in her direction. She felt a twinge of excitement at the possibility of making her first sale. Then she saw him – following the crowd was Carl, who’d spotted her sitting on the boat. The timing couldn’t be worse.
