Chapter 56
Alex watched as a couple of golden leaves fluttered onto the surface of the lake.
Despite the sun shining down on him, all around the signs of autumn were beginning to appear.
It had been an incredible summer, he thought, looking out at the swimmers making their way around the lake in front of him at the end of the late-afternoon session.
The water sports centre had been more of a success than he or the Jackson family could have ever dreamt of. The swimming sessions were still hugely popular, even though it was the middle of September already.
Of course, some swimmers would disappear when the colder months appeared.
But he and Ben had come up with a plan to keep the centre open.
Alex had an idea to add a sauna to help everyone warm up when the water temperature dipped.
He had been reading about the Nordic trend of adding a sauna session to a cold-water plunge.
They already had some tentative ideas about using one on wheels so that it could be moved on and off the beach for the changing seasons.
In addition, Dotty had had the idea to add a few special sessions to the normal schedule.
So as well as a night-time swim for the next full moon, they were going to add a night-time Halloween swim with everyone decorating their swimming hats.
The event was proving to be so popular already that there was a waiting list and Alex was contemplating adding an additional session to the evening.
Everyone remained enthusiastic for all the different sports on and in the lake and for that, he was hugely grateful.
Success had also filtered through to the hotel where more rooms were becoming booked throughout the week with so many more people discovering Maple Tree Lodge after visiting either the café or the water sports centre.
Good news had also arrived with planning permission granted for the individual lodges to be built on the other side of the lake and Alex was looking forward to helping Ben and Walter build them over the quieter months ahead.
His tentative relationship with his parents was also making huge strides forward. They were planning to come back and stay at the hotel in the autumn, with the idea to go out for dinner with both him and Hannah.
As always, the thought of Hannah made him smile.
He belonged somewhere and with someone now.
The family were more than happy for Hannah to move into the apartment above the Boathouse Café with him, thrilled that their relationship was going so well.
In turn, he loved that he had his surrogate family and friends living on his doorstep.
But he had made new friends too. He was part of something bigger now. A community of all ages and abilities with the water sports centre. He felt as if he were finally able to share and give back after his successes and it made life all the sweeter.
And he had Tiny too. He loved owning a dog and Tiny revelled in both the attention from all the people visiting Maple Tree Lodge and the lake.
He was the first port of call for most of the swimmers to greet as they had learnt to love the gentle giant sitting patiently at the water’s edge watching them all.
Walking Tiny around the lake each day had meant that Alex had finally been able to slow down and enjoy taking his time to enjoy nature in its most beautiful surroundings.
But best of all he had Hannah. The depth of her love continued to surprise and amaze him, along with the quiet strength of her support for him.
She was the love of his life and the apartment in the boathouse was a happy home for them both and Tiny too.
Each morning he woke up to find her snuggled into his arms, starting each day with as many of her soft kisses as they could make time for.
He trusted her wholeheartedly and couldn’t believe how lucky he was to be planning a future with her.
He smiled as he looked across the lake as the next session of swimmers waded in. He had the life he had always dreamt of and every dream he had always wanted had come true. He couldn’t believe how lucky he was.
* * *
Hannah had just finished tidying up the café and glanced around one last time before heading outside.
Even though summer was at an end, the café continued to be extremely popular, especially over the weekends.
She revelled in the success of the place, trying to remind herself that the accomplishment was all the sweeter because so much of it was hers alone.
With a little help from her family and friends, of course.
But these days she believed in herself more than she had ever done and was proud of all she had achieved over the summer.
In fact, it was so busy she had already hired a part-time waitress to help out with the hectic times such as the weekends.
For the quieter weekdays, Lily had suggested building it up as a venue for various clubs.
So there was already a schedule for an art club, a book club and even a menopause club.
It was a place for people to come together and it gave her joy to see friends being made, which she felt was so important to people in dealing with their isolation and loneliness.
She glanced at the new autumnal menu that she had just placed on the counter.
She was more confident now in her abilities.
She believed in herself. She could try out new flavours whenever she wanted to.
If they didn’t work then she didn’t take it personally, just moved on and tried something else.
She was strong in both mind and spirit and she loved feeling that way about herself.
The permanent licence for the Boathouse Café had been granted earlier that week.
Hannah loved the café but it also gave her a life away from the family lodge.
Maple Tree Lodge was Ben and Lily’s domain and she was happy for them.
But it was nice to have her own separate home, her own separate life with Alex.
At the thought of Alex, she smiled to herself and went outside to find him.
She loved him, body and soul. Best of all, it was a partnership built on trust and friendship.
When he was low, she picked him up and vice versa.
They had each other’s backs and she felt stronger for his support each and every day.
She and Alex were equal partners in life but also love.
She knew that he loved her as much as she loved him and that their future would be a long and happy one together.
She had finally moved on from Sean. She had not heard from him since he had fallen off the jetty and she didn’t care. He would never impact her life nor her happiness ever again. He was nothing to her now, whereas Alex was absolutely everything.
Alex was on the jetty, keeping a careful eye on the swimmers.
Smiling at those familiar wide shoulders, Hannah knew that he was every bit the hero that she had always dreamt of, both emotionally and physically.
Alex had taught her that she was special and that she deserved his love just as much as he deserved hers.
Tiny looked up at her as she walked up the jetty towards them both, wagging his tail in delight as usual. They were a little family, the three of them, and she had loved making the apartment above the café a happy home for them all.
Once she had reached the end of the jetty, she stroked Tiny before she wrapped her arms around Alex and held him close, looking around him at the swimmers still ploughing up and down.
‘Mmm,’ he murmured as she reached up to kiss the back of his neck. ‘There’s a law against distracting lifeguards, you know.’
‘Then you’d better come find me when you’re finished up here,’ she told him.
But she didn’t let go. She stood there, holding him close, feeling his hand cover hers as they both looked out across the lake.
Nearby she spotted a dragonfly, its jewel-like colour glinting in the sun as it hovered over the reeds. Her grandad had told her that dragonflies don’t live long so have to make the most of their limited time.
Hannah felt as if she too was making up for lost time. She had spent so many years hiding away, daydreaming of being in a loving, fulfilled relationship and over the summer her life had changed in the best possible way.
She smiled to herself, thinking that perhaps if you believed hard enough, dreams really will come true after all.
* * *