3. Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Oliver
I park in the small carpark behind the building just as my phone goes off.
Marisa
Better put your best leg forward tomorrow. A certain blogger will be on the canyoning trip at ten.
Fantastic . Of course, this could be a lifeline for my business but it also makes me nervous. What if she gives the trip a bad review? I might not be an expert but even I know that nothing kills business quicker than bad reviews from popular influencers.
“Hey,” Hannah greets me as I step into the office. The ground floor is split into three parts: the front where we meet with clients and get them booked in, the large garage next door where we store all of our equipment, and the back office where my desk is alongside a small table we use for our lunch with a whole lot of files and planners on the wall.
Hannah is perched in my chair with a spreadsheet up on the screen.
“Tell me you got the booking?” she asks.
“I think so. They want to see our proposal but it sounded like it’s just going to be a matter of finalising what tours they’ll do. I’ll work on it over the weekend and email it to Tommy on Monday after you’ve had a look.” I like Hannah to double check important proposals because she always has good ideas on how to improve them.
“That’s great.”
“I have some other news.”
“Oh, do tell,” she grins. My sister is an happy-go-lucky person which is why she struggles so much with Mum’s depression.
“There’s a blogger staying at Greenview Manor at the moment. Marisa booked her on the canyoning trip tomorrow mor—”
“That’s amazing!” Hannah cheers. “Fuck, Ols, that’s what we need. Is it a big blog?”
“I’m not sure,” I shrug. What do I know about blogs. “Her name is Keeley Hallett.”
Hannah types what I assume is Keeley’s name into the computer.
“Shut up, no way! This is one of the top travel blogs in the country. I’ve emailed them about a million times but it just goes to a generic email address.” She swivels the monitor around and I see a website with colourful photos of exotic locations. In two of them Keeley is visible. In the first one she is holding some monstrosity of a spider in her palm and in the second one she’s lying in a hammock on a tropical beach. Her hair is blowing in the wind and she looks relaxed and happy.
“So, she could really make a difference, I guess. I’ll give Kurt a heads up.” Kurt is one of our permanent climbing guides, and he’s also qualified to lead canyoning trips. Originally from Austria, Kurt has been climbing mountains since he was a child. When his parents insisted he study in England, he chose the small campus we have in Fellside, largely because it allowed him to continue climbing. He completed his degree two years ago and occasionally talks about moving back to Austria. But then he’ll fall for another girl in the village and his plans to return home get pushed aside again.
“Ahem, don’t you think you should go?” Hannah stares at me like I just said the craziest thing ever.
“Why? I can’t guide canyoning.”
“Ols,” she sighs, “I’m not talking about you guiding it. But don’t you want to tag along to make sure she has a good day?”
“I…,” it hadn’t really crossed my mind. Kurt is great with customers and I’m not sure it’s a good idea for me to spend more time with the woman who makes me hot under the collar.
“I think I have a flight booked for tomorrow. Why don’t you—"
“No flight booked, you’re free. I, on the other hand, have a school group from Manchester booked in,” she grins, “why are you being weird?”
“I’m not. You are right, I can go with Kurt. You better let him know though, otherwise he’ll think I’m checking up on him.”
“Hmmm,” she eyes me suspiciously. Time to take the spotlight off me.
“Mum called.” Hannah’s face falls. “She wants us over for lunch at the weekend.”
“Ols, I—”
“No, Hannah. She sounded better and she really wants to see you. Please?” I drop a tea bag in a mug and flip the switch on the kettle to reheat the remaining water.
“Fine. But I’ll bring Jake.”
“Is there something going on between you and Jake?” I’ve had a suspicion for a while.
“No, Ols. Guess what, a man and a woman can just be friends without humping each other.”
“I don’t want to know who you hump.” I stop her.
“Well, then why bring it up? And for your information, I have a date on Friday.” She sticks her tongue out at me, just like she used to when we were little. It’s a reminder that growing older doesn’t always mean growing up. If anyone thinks that hitting forty automatically makes people behave like grown-ups all the time, they couldn’t be more mistaken. No matter how old we get we can be as silly as children sometimes.
The bell above the front door chimes and I hold up my hand.
“I’ll take it.” Time to put my business hat on and practice charming a customer in preparation for tomorrow.
“Here you go,” I hold out a bag with a croissant and a takeaway cup with tea to Kurt, who is studying the list of participants.
“Thanks, man,” he still has a slight Germanic accent but it’s by far less noticeable now than when he started with me two years ago.
“No problem. And Hannah told you why I’m here?”
“Schmoozing some internet celebrity,” he grins.
“Kind of. What route are you taking today?” There are three options for canyoning close to Fellside and which one we use usually depends on the water level and general conditions. Too much water is too dangerous, not enough makes for a boring tour.
“Church Beck. I went with friends yesterday and the conditions are good. Also heard that Stocky’s team is taking his group to Esk Gorge, so we want to avoid that.”
Stocky is the owner of the second outdoor company in the area and naturally we are in competition with them. When we have a busy summer, there is more than enough business for both of us, but when it is quieter, like this year, it does become a fierce competition. It also doesn’t help that Stocky and I were rivals when we took part in paragliding competitions.
“Sounds good,” I nod as a car pulls into the car park. We’ll meet all ten participants here, get them fitted out with wetsuits and then drive them to the start point by minibus. One of Kurt’s mates will stay with the bus and follow us on the road down to the finish to collect everyone again.
Kurt and I spend the next thirty minutes kitting everyone out—well, the nine participants that arrived on time. There is no sign of Keeley and her lateness irks me. I glance at my watch again. It’s twenty past ten, she was supposed to be there by ten at the latest.
The last member of the group steps out from the changing room in her wetsuit and hands me a backpack with her change of clothes and what not. We tend to get changed into wetsuits here, just because it is easier than up in the hills. The woman scrambles into the bus and we’re ready to leave.
“So where is your VIP?” Kurt steps up to me.
“Maybe I don’t need to come alo—”
“Sorry, sorry, sorry!” Keeley shouts as she runs into the car park. She stops next to me and bends forward, propping herself up on her knees, desperately trying to suck in some air.
“Bus… didn’t… turn… up,” she pants.
“Did you run here from Greenview?”
Keeley straightens up and stares at me. “Of course not, don’t be ridiculous.”
“I was about to say, respect. I’m Kurt,” he holds out a hand to her.
“Hi,” she grins. There is a little pearl of sweat on her forehead and I’d like to wipe it away. Get a grip! She’s a customer!
“Well, we’re ready to leave so we better get you a wetsuit,” Kurt winks at Keeley.
“I’ll take her,” I place my hand on her back and gently guide her towards the garage.
“Yes, boss,” Kurt calls out after us with a laugh.
“Right, you better hurry up. Are you wearing a swimsuit?” I ask as we walk into the garage.
“No, do I need one?” I glance at her and there is a smirk on her face.
“Seriously? We’re already late. You’re not the only one who has paid for this trip,” I try not to sound cross.
“Jeez, you really can’t take a joke. Yes, I’m wearing a one piece and I’m a size twelve,” she throws back at me. She is quite tall—five foot nine at a guess—so I search through the rack and find a size Medium Tall.
I hold out the suit and she takes it from me without another word.
“Changing room is there,” I point towards the back.
Keeley heads towards the small cubicle. Before she pulls the curtain close, she turns towards me.
“Hey, boss man, whilst I get changed maybe you can change your attitude a bit.” She doesn’t give me the opportunity to reply and instead closes the curtain.
Fuck.