“And you can just change from working management jobs in hotels to working on cruise ships, just like that?”
“Because I worked in the cruise line industry for a year after I left university, I have experience which counts in my favour. Also, the cruise liner job is in exactly the same event and entertainment hospitality management field that I already work in. I always wanted to go back and work again on a liner at some point but got waylaid with so many other fantastic jobs around the world.”
“That sounds like a great problem to have.”
Gaby laughed. “Like I said, I know I’m lucky.”
“It sounds like you made your own luck. None of these jobs would come your way over and over again if you didn’t know what you were doing and had a great reputation.”
“I love what I do and that makes all the difference. I love the amazing hotels I get to work in. I love the cities and resorts where I get to stay. I love meeting new people and having newadventures. There’s absolutely nothing I’d change about any of it.”
She noticed the odd look that crossed Peter’s face as she said this and hoped he didn’t think she was boasting about her great life and amazing fortune. Maybe it was time to change the topic.
“Anyway, enough about me,” she said. “Tell me about your job as a teacher.”
He let out a low chuckle. “It’s nowhere near as exciting or glamorous as what you do, but I love it just the same. I really like being a teacher and I really like teaching maths. There’s nothing quite like the moment when one of my students finally gets the hang of something they’ve been struggling with and I see the look of understanding and triumph on their face.”
“I bet that’s pretty satisfying.”
“It’s what keeps me going when I’m wading through endless school admin and paperwork.”
“I don’t remember you talking about wanting to become a teacher back when we knew each other. Didn’t you want to go into finance or something like that?”
Peter nodded. “Maths graduates are hot property in the finance and investment worlds. I thought I wanted to work in the City and make a tonne of money. Turns out, I was wrong.”
“What changed your mind?”
“I landed a graduate job as an analyst with an investment company straight out of uni. By the time I reached the end of the six-month probationary period I knew it wasn’t the life for me and I quit.”
“That was brave.”
“Not really. I knew I’d be unhappy in that world if I stayed. I might’ve made a lot of money, in fact IknowI would have made a lot of money, but what’s the point if you’re miserable?”
“Agreed.”
“Also, while I’d been studying for my degree, I spent a summer working at a maths camp as a tutor and I loved it. That was the summer after you and I knew each other. The camp was part of an educational programme designed to help kids improve their numeracy skills during the summer holidays. My university department was involved in helping to run it and they recruited undergraduates to provide the tuition. We got extra credit for taking part, as well as paid a decent fee too. I only planned on working there for a couple of weeks before looking for a summer job elsewhere. But once I got started I loved it and decided to stay for the rest of the summer.”
“It sounds like a wonderful experience.”
“It really was. When I started the graduate job with the investment company, it wasn’t long before I was comparing how unhappy I was there to how happy I’d been the summer before when I was working at the maths camp. I started to wonder if maybe teaching might be my thing after all. Turns out, it was. Once I got my teaching qualification and started working in schools, I knew I’d made the right decision.”
Gaby liked hearing how Peter had found his perfect job and how he’d been willing to ditch his assumptions about what would make him happy in life. “And switching to a teaching career meant you could move back to Hamblehurst too.”
Peter nodded. “That wasn’t part of my thinking at the time, but life in London wasn’t right for me either. Once I was qualified I moved around for a couple of years before a job vacancy opened up at the secondary school here. I was happy to come back and be close to my family again.”
“I remember you were always a tight-knit bunch. It was sweet. I loved spending time with your family. Your parents were always so nice to me.”
She’d been invited to dinner at their family home on many occasions during that summer she’d known Peter. The fun andwarmth in the Bailey household was in stark contrast to the anger and gloom at her parents’ house.
Peter must have been able to read her mind because he gave her a thoughtful look. “So, how are your parents?”
“They’re okay. Both remarried. Both still complaining about each other to anyone who will listen.” She frowned and shook her head. “Sorry, that’s not a nice way to talk about my parents, is it?”
“If it’s true, it doesn’t matter if it’s not nice. I remember that summer we were together and how much their arguments hurt you, even though you weren’t even living in the same house as them.”
She’d gone to stay with her Aunt Jill that summer to escape her parents’ endless battles at home and temporarily moving to Hamblehurst had at least removed her physically from the war zone. But she’d still heard all about their constant arguments whenever they spoke on the phone. Her mother gave her chapter and verse of every shouting match and while her father had been more circumspect over the details, he’d still been happy to indulge in snide comments and character assassinations.
It was little wonder she’d kept her phone calls home to an absolute minimum during that summer.
