The trouble was, Pippa, Oliver and Brett were all busy in the pub. They had a coachload of hikers booked in for lunch. That meant all hands-on deck and Morgan was supposed to be on kitchen duty today helping Declan.
The rooms couldn’t even wait until tomorrow because they had all been pre-booked by the group of hikers from the coach. Morgan wracked her brains to find a solution of who could help. Not even her friends were free. Katherine was out for the day visiting relatives. Christine had a full day booked at the salon with a bride and her bridesmaids preparing them for a wedding, and Pamela was busy catering for the wedding.
Morgan sat heavily on the bed and looked up at the ceiling, asking aloud for advice. ‘Who can I ask to help me?’ Ned’s face immediately came into her mind’s eye. She pulled her mobile out of her pocket and thumbed through her contacts until she came to his name. ‘Well, he did say he’d be available to help me whenever I needed it.’ She hit the dial button and lifted the phone to her ear. The ring tone went on and on without being answered and she grimaced. Maybe he’d looked at her name flashing on his screen and was ignoring her, wishing he’d never given his number to her. He was a busy man after all, always doing things around the bay for others.
Morgan was just about to end the call when a breathless Ned answered. ‘Hello? Morgan?’
‘Hello yes. It's me... I-I haven’t pulled you away from anything important, have I? You sound breathless.’
‘I was just helping the boat rescue boys to haul a boat in. They’re having trouble with the pulley line. Is everything okay with you?’
Morgan sighed. ‘I-I can see you’re already busy, it’s fine. I’ll sort it out.’
‘Morgan. It must be something urgent for you to ring me. I’m sure I’m at the bottom of your list as I know your family would do anything to help normally. What’s up? I’m finished here now.’
‘It’s so trivial Ned, yet such a big task for me with...’ she hated to say it out loud, ‘...my disability. But I need help changing eight beds in the hotel and cleaning the en-suits and rooms. Lizzie who normally does it has just left because of an emergency, and Pippa, Oliver and Brett have a coachload of hikers to cater for. I’d ask my friends, but they are all busy as well.’
‘You don’t have to say another word. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.’ The line went dead, and Morgan stared at the phone, her shoulders dropping with relief.
True to his word, Ned came walking into the hotel reception fifteen minutes later. Morgan smiled thinly at him. ‘I’m so sorry to have to ask this favour of you Ned.’
Ned held his hand up to stop her. ‘When you care for someone, you’ll move a mountain to help them.’
Morgan’s hand went to her chest, and she gasped. Ned’s admission had touched her. ‘Thank you. I hope I can return the favour one day.’
Ned clapped his hands together, rubbing them in a circular motion. ‘Okay, we need a system. We’ll change the beds first. I’ll strip the duvets and sheets; you can do the pillows. After that, I’ll clean the en-suits and you can clean the rooms.’
Morgan’s face lit up. Ned was involving her with the cleaning, giving her jobs he knew she’d be capable of doing. He wasn’t making a fuss about her limited abilities. He was treating her with respect, as if she were a fully abled person. ‘Perfect.’
They worked side-by-side in the first room in comfortable silence. Both of them stealing glances at each other as they unmade, and then remade the bed. It wasn’t until Ned was in theen-suite cleaning it, and Morgan was polishing around the room did they speak, their conversation flowing freely, as if they’d been working alongside each other like this for years.
‘Did the rescue crew get the boat pulley sorted out?’
‘There’s a maintenance man there with them now fixing it.’
Morgan stopped for a moment and listened to the passion in Ned’s voice as he sopke about the coastguard job he used to do. ‘You really loved that job, didn’t you? Why did you retire? ’
Morgan heard Ned sigh deeply. ‘It was a tough decision. I didn’t want to, but after sustaining an injury that was taking a long time to heal, and leaving the crew short-staffed, I decided to bow out for a younger man to replace me.’
Morgan could hear the edge of regret in his voice. ‘But you’re still serving the community. You don’t stop.’
Ned laughed. ‘I suppose I am.’ His head appeared around the door. ‘And I get to spend time with one of the prettiest, too.’ He ducked back behind the door.
Morgan felt a blush spread from her chest right up her neck to her cheeks. How could she reply to that bold statement?
‘Maybe pretty was a to describe me couple of decades ago when I was in my prime...but thank you for the compliment all the same.’ Morgan quickly switched on the vacuum in case Ned tried to embarrass her some more.
By the time they’d finished all the rooms, Ned’s stomach wouldn’t stop growling. Morgan couldn’t help but laugh. ‘Have I made you work up an appetite?’
Ned laughed. ‘I got the call to help with the boat before I ate breakfast.’
Morgan’s hands flew up to her mouth. ‘And here I am working you like a dog with no offer of a cup of tea or a biscuit either. Please, let me treat you to some lunch in the pub.’ Ned chewed on his bottom lip as if he was unsure whether to accept.‘There’s steak and ale pie on the special board today,’ Morgan enticed, rubbing her hands together with glee.
Ned threw his head back and laughed. ‘You sure know how to get to a man’s heart.’
Morgan’s brow lifted. ‘Through your stomach?’ Ned nodded and they both laughed.
THE CHEESE WEDGE ANDPickles was heaving, but they managed to grab a small table up a corner as soon as they entered. It still had the dirty plates on it from the previous customers, and Ned piled them on top of each other ready to take to the bar with him. ‘Usual?’ he asked, doing a drinking gesture.
