Chapter 23
When they approached the island by boat the following day Lotta could see that the track leading from the jetty to the farmhouse was muddy to say the least. There were piles of old wood near the jetty waiting to be taken away and a few people milling around who Mats waved to, but he carried on along the fjord that went around the left of the island.
‘We’ll get off at the other end,’ he said. ’It’s not as muddy.’
It was interesting to view the island from the water, some of the cabins dotted amongst the trees were visible but the farmhouse was closer to the other side of the island and couldn’t be seen.
There were some flat grassy areas next to the water that although they didn’t have such a good view as at the top of the island, would be more secluded to sit near the water.
‘Have you ever walked around the edge of the island in one go?’
He shook his head. ’No, I’ve never thought about it.’
‘We should. This side is lovely.’
Mats jumped off first, lending a hand to Lotta after he’d tied the boat to the jetty.
She exhaled, feeling a sense of calm wash over her. It was surprising that her body had such a reaction since she’d only been here once before, but it felt like she’d come back to somewhere she knew. And now that she was here, the unease she’d started feeling in Oslo dissipated.
Mats grinned at her. ‘Good to be back?’
‘Yes. I already feel relaxed,’ she laughed, leaning against him and sliding her hand into his back pocket.
‘That’s a good sign. Let’s hope that happens to everyone. Can I show you our cabin first?’
Our cabin. That sounded good. And after feeling the pressure, admittedly from herself rather than from Mats, to think about moving here now that he was leaving Oslo, it was a relief that her mind didn’t leap to feeling uneasy when he said it.
‘I can’t wait to see it.’
‘It’s not finished but you’ll get an idea of how it’s going to be,’ he said. ‘And it’s not too late to change anything if you don’t like it.’
‘I’m going to love it, because you’ve made it.’
Aside from the scraps of wood and Mats’ muddy footsteps surrounding it, at first glance the cabin looked the same as it had two weeks ago. But when she went around the far side, there was a whole new cabin attached to it, set back slightly so that it disappeared into the trees.
‘You have to climb through the window to get inside,’ he said. ‘I didn’t have time to cut the hole through the cabin wall yet.’
Lotta climbed up the ladder that was leaning against the new part of the cabin so she could look through the window. She looked back at Mats who was watching for her reaction. He smiled bashfully when her eyes widened with delight at seeing the toilet.
‘How did you do this? It’s a real toilet!’
‘I promised you an ensuite,’ he said with a shrug.
‘It’s amazing. I love it. So we’ll have an ensuite bedroom and a lounge now.’
‘It sounds very fancy when you say it like that,’ he said laughing and catching her in his arms when she got to the bottom of the ladder.
‘Compared to what it was like before, it’s a hundred per cent fancier.’
‘I’m glad you like it.’
He pulled the door of the old cabin open and they went inside. The mattress was bare but otherwise it looked the same as it had before.
‘Where are the sheets?’ Lotta asked, her heart sinking.
‘I’ve been sleeping here most of the time, so I took them home to wash. I didn’t think to bring new ones,’ he said, groaning and running his hand over his face.
‘We have blankets. Let’s light the fire, then by the time we’ve walked round the island, it’ll be warm.’
Aside from looking at the building progress, the other reason that Lotta had looked forward to coming back to the island was fizzing between them.
More now that the lack of a made bed had thwarted them.
She felt like she hadn’t seen Mats properly even though they’d been together since last night, and found herself more aroused by Mats in his new builder’s clothes, unshaven and his hair tousled than she did by seeing him in a suit. And that was saying something.
But at this time in the morning, even in June, it was too cold to think about undressing. That didn’t stop them from making a start by kissing each other without taking a breath and by then, Lotta didn’t care so much about being cold.
‘I need you,’ Mats whispered in her ear before nuzzling into her neck, his stubble grazing her skin in the way she’d grown to love. His hands found their way underneath her layers and she gasped when they touched her skin.
‘Mats…’ She reached for the button on his trousers, undid it and pulled them down enough for what she needed herself.
It wasn’t slow, sensual lovemaking like they’d done before.
This was essential. After two weeks, the lovemaking could come later.
This was something more primal, sating a desire to be one again.
To wordlessly say how much they’d missed each other, in a place where they had time to devote to that and nothing else.
It was fast and intense in a way they’d never been before, and Lotta felt overwhelmed by how her body responded to Mats.
It was as if she had no control; she gave herself up to him in a way she’d never done with anyone else before.
They lay on the bed afterwards, both trying to get their breath, their fingers linked, in the still chilly cabin that the fire hadn’t had chance to warm yet. But it didn’t matter. Not anymore.
‘Where did that come from,’ she said, looking at Mats who was lying with his forearm across his eyes and a lazy smile on his lips.
He just shook his head as if he were still trying to gather himself.
A minute or so later, he exhaled and turned to her, propping himself up on his elbow so he could kiss her.
‘Lotta. That has never happened to me before.’
‘Must be the island air. Perhaps you need to rethink and open a sex hotel.’
‘What’s a sex hotel?’ Mats said laughing.
‘I don’t know, maybe it’s a thing.’
‘My gut feeling is it’s nothing to do with the island. I think it’s this thing called chemistry.’
Lotta giggled. ‘Oh, chemistry? Like some kind of magic has happened because of your sexy builder clothes.’
‘It never happened when I wore a suit.’
‘They give you a capable vibe. That’s quite sexy.’
‘Mmm. Capable. I like that.’
‘Not capable of remembering bed linen though.’
Mats guffawed and watched Lotta push herself off the bed and reassemble her clothes.
‘Come on, we’ll get cold lying here for much longer,’ she said.
There had been more progress than Lotta had expected on the island over the past two weeks. The farmhouse was unrecognisable; its roof removed and in the process of being rebuilt, while the veranda had disappeared making the place seem smaller.
‘They’re rebuilding the veranda?’
‘Yes. Bigger and better than before.’
There were builders everywhere greeting Mats as they passed, treating him like one of their own rather than the boss.
He introduced Lotta as his girlfriend to everyone they came across.
Her stomach clenched a little each time.
It felt so amazing to be called Mats’ girlfriend, and it was the first time she’d heard him refer to her like that.
It was more intimate than partner, which is how they’d referred to each other last night.
After they walked around the farmhouse clearing, they headed for the edge of the island and took a walk around it.
Every side gave something different. The long edge behind the farmhouse had trees that grew close to the water.
They were part of the intentional timber forest planted decades ago by Mats’ ancestors, and the woodland they created had a different feel to the natural tree-covered areas of the island.
This was more uniform, spaced out equally with very little growing around them, perhaps for having been tended until whenever that had stopped.
A handful of cabins that were quite rotten compared to the ones in the woods, their roofs and windows missing and even some walls, ran along the water’s edge.
‘These are in a lovely spot,’ said Lotta. ‘Imagine if you had one of these with a little veranda of your own where you could watch the water and daydream.’
‘Would you like that more than where ours is?’
‘No. I will never want a different cabin. That’s our cabin. But I’d love a veranda.’
‘Your wish is my command.’ He swept his hand down as if he was bowing. ‘Also, look at the state of them. They must get the worst of the weather on this side of the island.’
‘True. And we’re tucked away in the trees.’
They circled the rest of the island, with Mats noting that it took around an hour at a leisurely pace.
‘Shall we have a coffee and then think about heading back?’ he said.
‘The cabin should be warm by now.’ Lotta wanted to make the most of the time they were alone. Not that she’d said to Mats, but the idea of making love in his teenage bedroom was weird, especially with Ida in the room next door. And she hadn’t had enough of him yet.
They headed back to the boat in time to have dinner with Ida.
She’d invited Fredrik and Emil too, and Lotta was looking forward to a family dinner.
She’d met all of Mats’ siblings now except for Thea, who worked on the post boats that travelled up and down the coast, and she never heard anything about her coming home or meeting up with any of the others at all.
‘How did your week go in Oslo?’ Fredrik asked over dinner.
‘Good, thanks. I think that was probably the last visit I’ll have over here for work,’ she said carefully, since she and Mats hadn’t had chance to discuss their next steps yet.
‘It’s probably Mats’ turn to come to London, isn’t it?’ Fredrik said.
‘If he wants to,’ Lotta said, smiling. She’d love Mats to visit, but it was something they hadn’t discussed. There were quite a few things they ought to discuss now. ‘Now he has more time.’
‘What do you mean?’ Ida asked.