Chapter 17
Hannah tossed the pen onto the desk and flexed her stiff fingers before ripping the page she’d just completed from the pad.
‘Oh no,’ she sighed. ‘How is it the last sheet?!’
That was an easy question to answer. She’d been sitting at the desk in Aunty Millie’s little study ever since David had dropped her off at the house.
Initially, she’d just wanted somewhere safe to stash her sea urchin - somewhere it was least likely to get smashed while she was busy sorting through the house and cleaning from top to bottom.
The desk had seemed like the perfect place, and Hannah had made a beeline straight for it the moment she got back. She’d placed her precious treasure right at the centre in pride of place, and had then emptied her pockets of all her other finds.
‘And that’s when the problem started!’ she laughed, stretching her neck from side to side in a bid to ease the stiffness from sitting in one position for too long.
The sight of all those seaside shapes and colours together had ignited something in Hannah’s imagination. She’d quickly started to arrange the shells and pieces of glass as if she was going to use them to create a necklace… then a wide cuff bracelet… and a pair of earrings.
That’s when the sketching started.
Hannah had filled sheet after sheet, tearing them one at a time from the yellowed notepad and arranging them between her beach treasures. She stared at the drawings now—a complex tracery in blue and black biro, because that’s all she’d had to hand.
At some point in the process, honeycomb and bee motifs had worked their way into the mix. It didn’t take a genius to guess where that particular inspiration had come from!
Hannah’s mind had been full as she worked—of David, and the sea, and the bees, and Seabury. If she wasn’t very much mistaken, these scruffy drawings held the beginnings of the jewellery collection she’d always dreamed of.
Hannah stared at the chaos on the desk in wide-eyed wonder for several long moments before letting out a huge yawn.
‘How very arty!’ she chuckled, rolling her shoulders. All that sea air and exercise had clearly unlocked something, though…
Suddenly, Hannah realised she was gasping for that cuppa she’d never got as far as brewing. She checked her watch… and then checked it again.
‘Wait, what?!’
There was no way she’d been at this for three whole hours?! Three hours scribbling at the desk without even getting up for a drink… or a pee?
Hannah shook her head in wonder, and then the guilt kicked in. She should have been working on clearing the house, not sitting there doodling the day away.
‘Oh no you don’t,’ she said gently. Because that nasty little guilt trip wasn’t anything to do with her, was it? It was an echo of her ex—someone she never had to listen to again.
That said, maybe it was time for a little break.
Hannah had just turned to head for the kitchen and some much-needed sustenance when the shrill ring of the landline broke the silence.
She stared at it. Had she just managed to summon Gareth just by thinking about him? If so, she really didn’t want to talk to him. Then again, it could be David…
The thought brought a smile back to her face. Perhaps he was back from the bees and had decided to take her up on her offer of a cup of tea after all.
Hannah practically lunged for the receiver.
‘Hello?’
‘Hannah? It’s Grace again.’
The estate agent. Hannah felt her little bubble of excitement go pop.
‘Is this a good time?’
Hannah shrugged. Grace sounded excited… but perhaps that was simply her default setting. ‘Sure. What’s up?’
‘Well… I’ve got some exciting news.’
Hannah frowned. ‘Go on?’
‘I happened to have some very good clients on my books,’ said Grace, sounding smug. ‘People who are happy to wait for just the right property.’
‘O-kay?’ said Hannah, wishing the girl would get on with it.
Now that she’d surfaced from her accidental design marathon, she realised that she was desperate for the loo. If this was a sales call to get her to sign up for some kind of platinum package when it came to selling the house, it was going to have to wait.
‘I always make sure my private list hears about properties that are coming up before they’ve even hit the market,’ said Grace.
Hannah’s frown deepened. For some reason, she didn’t like where this was heading.
‘I’ve got a couple who want your house,’ said Grace, clearly reaching the reason she was practically vibrating with excitement.
‘Well… that’s… great?’ Hannah hedged, feeling like she wanted to say the exact opposite for some reason. ‘But, I explained the situation here, didn’t I? I can’t legally even begin the process until I’ve been here for two weeks.’
‘Yes,’ said Grace, ‘but the thing about this couple is that they’re willing to enter into a presale agreement with you.
They’re happy to wait until your two weeks are up, of course, but it would mean that your house never actually goes on the open market.
They’re willing to make it more than worth your while. ’
‘Erm. Right.’ Hannah shook her head, feeling a bit like she’d slipped into some kind of alternate reality. ‘When you say worth my while…?’
Grace rattled off a number that was more than three times the price Hannah would even dream of listing the house for.
‘Say that again?!’ she gasped.
Grace repeated the number, enunciating every digit.
Hannah felt sick.
‘And you won’t have to go through all the photos and usual nonsense,’ said Grace. ‘Pass go, collect two hundred pounds. Or in this case, pass two weeks and collect—’
‘A shit ton more than two hundred pounds,’ said Hannah, shaking her head.
‘Well, quite!’
‘Can I think about it?’
‘Well… I mean… sure?’ said Grace. Her confusion was evident. ‘If you really need to? I’ll give you a call in the morning.’
Hannah took a deep breath. She was being daft—the right decision was obvious. There wasn’t any point in waiting.
‘Wait! Grace, are you still there?’
‘Yep.’
‘Great,’ Hannah took another deep breath. ‘I know what my answer is.’
Hannah hammered on the door.
‘Come on, come on,’ she muttered, pressing her ear against the wood and listening for footsteps inside.
It had been hours, surely David was home by now!
He’d better be. If ever there was a moment to call on her friend for a cup of tea, it was after a phone call like the one she just had! That said… perhaps she’d need something a bit stronger than a cup of tea to get over the shock.
Hannah was just about to give up and head through to the back garden just in case he was out there, when the front door opened.
‘Hey!’ Jason’s grinning face came into view, but the minute he spotted her, his smile vanished, and he looked at her in concern. ‘Are you alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost or something.’
Hannah nodded. ‘Thanks… I’m fine… I think. Is your dad home?’
Jason shook his head, still watching her closely as though she might collapse on his doorstep. Frankly, he might have a point. She wasn’t exactly feeling grounded after that phone call!
‘He’s down at the King’s Nose with the bees,’ said Jason.
‘Still?’ gasped Hannah. ‘He dropped me off hours ago, and he was going straight down there.’
‘Welcome to life with David Eaves in it!’ Jason laughed. ‘Dad kind of loses track of time when he’s working with the hives.’
Hannah nodded. After the time she’d just spent holed up in the study, she could definitely relate!
‘When he’s stirred up about something, he’s even worse than usual,’ added Jason, raising an eyebrow.
‘Stirred up?’ said Hannah. ‘What about?’
‘You tell me,’ said Jason.
Hannah shook her head. ‘He was fine when I saw him. He took me beachcombing down at Honeypot Cove. We had a nice time…’
Or at least, she’d thought they’d had a nice time.
Jason shook his head, smiling at her gently. ‘I didn’t mean there’s something wrong with him… I meant stirred up in a good way.’
‘Oh!’ said Hannah, as understanding dawned. ‘Wait… no… nothing happened!’
Jason snorted. ‘Your words say no, but your blush says yes!’
‘I… I…’ She quickly shut her mouth. She wasn’t about to get into her feelings about David Eaves on the doorstep of his house with his teenage son. Not that she had feelings.
Yeah. Right.
‘I told you he was getting all gooey,’ said Jason, looking smug.
‘Oh hush!’ said Hannah, trying to sound stern but failing miserably. ‘Anyway, thank you—I’ll head down and hunt for him.’
‘Wait!’ said Jason as she turned to leave.
‘Why?’
‘You can’t go to the King’s Nose.’
‘Why?!’ she said again.
‘Because he’s with the bees!’ said Jason, sounding like he was explaining something to a toddler.
‘What am I missing?’ said Hannah. ‘Is it his private time or something?’
‘No,’ chuckled Jason. ‘It’s just not such a great idea to go and play with the stinging little buggers without a suit.’
‘Oh,’ said Hannah. ‘Right. Good point.’
‘Lucky for you, I just happen to have one you can borrow.’
Hannah wasn’t sure she was ever going to be able to live this down. She’d already sent old Charlie into a fit of hysterics when she’d whizzed past him on her bike… and now she was heading towards Lou and her other half.
Sean appeared to have rooted to the spot at the sight of a woman wearing a full beekeeper’s suit hurtling along the seafront on the back of a push bike… but the same couldn’t be said for Lou.
‘Now I’ve seen everything!’ Lou hooted, holding up her mobile phone, clearly filming Hannah’s approach as tears of laughter rolled down her face.
Hannah rolled her eyes… not that it had any kind of effect, considering she was zipped into the veiled headpiece that went with the suit.
She couldn’t say that riding with it on was the most comfortable thing she’d ever done, but Jason had pointed out that the thing was practically impossible to zip yourself into unless you’d had a ton of practice.
Skidding to a halt next to Lou, Hannah clambered clumsily off the bike. ‘I need your help!’
‘Oh my god, it’s Bee Mummy!’ wheezed Lou. She was laughing so hard that she was gasping for air.
‘Forget it,’ sighed Hannah, turning to Sean instead. ‘I need your help.’
‘Sure,’ said Sean, blinking in surprise. ‘What’s up?’
‘How do I get onto the King’s Nose?’
Sean shrugged. ‘Sorry, no idea.’
‘Come on, Bee Mummy,’ said Lou, wiping her eyes before grabbing Hannah’s gloved hand. ‘Follow me.’
Hannah stood quietly, watching as David replaced a large frame inside one of the hives.
He hadn’t noticed her yet, even though she’d been standing there for several long minutes.
Not that it bothered Hannah in the slightest. She was completely mesmerised by his fluid movements as he worked, with the bees flying around him in a constantly shifting, docile vortex.
Hannah didn’t think she’d ever seen anything quite so beautiful. In fact, she had a feeling she could happily stand and watch him work all day… if it wasn’t for the fact that she had such huge news to share!
Fidgeting slightly, Hannah took a couple of steps forwards across the grassy, uneven ground. She moved slowly towards David—not wanting to startle him or the bees. She had to admit, despite the fact that she was wearing this get-up, she was still a bit nervous about getting too close to the hives.
Just as she was starting to regret setting out on this completely insane quest, David straightened up. She caught a few words on the wind, though she didn’t quite catch what they were.
David turned towards her, paused for a few seconds and then waved.
‘Jase? Everything okay?’
Of course he thought she was Jason. She was wearing his suit after all, and it was practically impossible to see anything through the headpiece.
‘It’s… I’m…’ Hannah stammered, and then she laughed. ‘Jason’s fine. He lent me his suit!’
‘Hannah?!’
Hannah might not be able to see much other than the vague outline of David’s face, but there was no mistaking the joy in his voice. It made her stomach flip.
‘Are you okay?’ he said, moving towards her.
Hannah nodded, then realised the movement might not translate in this get-up. ‘I’m great. Perfect in fact!’ She was practically bursting with excitement now. ‘I’ve got something to tell you.’
‘Me too,’ said David.
‘Oh?’
He gently wafted his hand through the air, brushing a few bees aside as though he was chivvying curious children away.
‘Ladies first,’ he said.
‘Okay…’ Hannah paused, doing her best to gather herself. ‘I just got a call from the estate agent. They’ve got someone who wants to give me an obscene amount of money for the house, as long as I don’t offer it to anyone else.’
‘Oh. Well, that’s… wow.’
David’s voice sounded flat inside his suit, and Hannah wished that she could see his face. In fact…
‘Hey, I don’t suppose it’s safe for us to take these mask bits off, is it?’ she said. ‘I’m roasting!’
‘Completely safe,’ said David. ‘Need a hand?’
‘Yes please!’ she laughed. ‘Jason clipped me in back up at the house.’
‘Wait—you walked all the way down in the suit?
‘Worse,’ she chuckled. ‘I rode down on the bike.’
‘Now that’s something I wish I’d seen!’
‘Well, you might be in luck,’ tutted Hannah. ‘I’m pretty sure Lou caught the whole thing on her phone.’
‘You,’ said David, releasing the last of her clips and gently lowering her head covering, ‘are a legend in your own lunchtime.’
Hannah grinned. ‘You make that sound like a compliment.’
‘Oh, it definitely is,’ he said, his smiling face appearing right in front of her as he dropped his own hood. ‘Hi.’
‘Hi yourself,’ she said. ‘And thank you, that was getting very hot in there.’
David smiled again, but his eyes looked sad. ‘I wish you weren’t leaving. I rather like you in this get-up.’
Hannah’s heart did a little flip, and she felt herself go pink. ‘I didn’t quite get to the end of my bit of news.’
‘Oh,’ said David.
‘So… that obscene amount of money they offered me?’ she said. ‘I turned it down.’
David’s eyebrows flew up. ‘Wait, what?!’
Hanah shrugged. ‘It wasn’t enough.’
‘So… what? Are you trying to get them to raise their offer?’
‘No,’ said Hannah, unable to keep a smile off her face. ‘I told them that the house isn’t going to be for sale after all.’
‘I… don’t understand.’
‘Every time I thought of leaving it behind… of leaving Seabury behind…’ She paused and shook her head. ‘It just didn’t feel right. I realised that no offer was ever going to be high enough to tempt me to part with the place. So I’m keeping Millie’s house.’
‘You are?’ said David, his eyes wide.
Hannah nodded. ‘Yep. In fact, I’m going to be moving in.’
‘Really?’
‘Really,’ said Hannah, returning David’s beaming smile. ‘Anyway, that’s my news. What’s yours?’
‘I want to kiss you,’ said David.
Hannah blinked. ‘That’s your news?’
‘I’ve wanted to kiss you all day,’ he amended.
‘Can I tell you a secret?’ said Hannah, reaching out and taking his gloved hand in hers.
David nodded.
‘I want to kiss you too,’ she said in a low voice.
‘I know.’
‘But… how?’ she laughed.
‘The bees told me.’
THE END
Join me back in Seabury for a cosy autumn visit to Hillside Farm in
Warm and Toasty in Seabury