Chapter 18
18
As I heard the knock at the door, my heart did another little skip and I took a deep breath. I let Mum open the door, while I put the finishing touches to my make-up, telling myself that I was an idiot and not to get carried away with feeling anything more than friendship for Dennis. He wouldn’t be sticking around long term, so even if I was interested in him in that way, which I wasn’t of course, there was no point.
He winked at me when I went down to the hall, where he and Vi, Mum and Dad were waiting. We all fell into step, Vi between Mum and Dad, with an arm hooked through each of theirs. Dennis and I walked next to each other.
‘You look nice, Nance.’
‘Thanks,’ I mumbled and could feel my cheeks warming up in the cool night air. ‘You any good at quizzes?’
‘I can hold my own. How about you? As an ex-teacher, you must have expectations that your team has a good chance of winning.’
‘I can get by. Don’t forget that I was an art teacher though, not maths, so if there are any number questions, it’ll be all down to you.’
‘No pressure there then, thanks, Nance!’
Dennis was the first at the bar and offered to get a round in. We were lucky enough that someone got up and left the window seating area as we arrived, so we took over that area, which was my favourite space in the whole pub with a huge picture window that overlooked the harbour.
After a lot of laughs and a great deal of good-natured shouting at each other, in the spirit of winning, we were delighted to have come second, only pipped to the post by Clem and Meredith, Lucy and James and Gemma and Jude, all locals, and our protests that they had six in their group and we only had five, fell on deaf ears. Mum, Dad and Vi all said that they wanted to go home after the quiz had finished, but I was having a really nice time. Dennis said he’d stick around and make sure I got back safely if I wanted to stay, if Mum and Dad would make sure his Nan got back OK. I did notice that Mum and Vi pulled strange faces at each other and grinned, and I pretended I hadn’t noticed.
‘Right, you ’orrible lot,’ the landlord, Geoff, shouted at the customers across the bar an hour or so later. ‘Time you all buggered off home and let me lock up. I need my beauty sleep.’
I felt quite light-headed as I stood, and Dennis steadied me. I wasn’t a big drinker and I’d had a couple of glasses of wine which I really wasn’t used to. I’d noticed that Dennis had had a couple of pints though he was looking quite relaxed.
‘I’ve really enjoyed myself tonight,’ he said. ‘Thanks for asking me.’
‘You’re welcome. It’s been a really nice night. Fun too.’
He grinned back. That grin. Wow.
We didn’t have far to walk but spending time with Dennis had been lovely. And if I could get over this silly little crush, which I appeared to have, it seemed like we could become good friends. I didn’t really want the night to end, though, not just yet.
‘It’s a lovely clear night,’ he said. ‘Fancy a walk along the beach?’
‘Yeah, go on then.’
Because there was hardly any light pollution, Driftwood Bay on a clear night was amazing. The myriad of silver sparkling stars above us looked like someone had cast a net of fairy lights across the sky. Even the sand looked like it was scattered with glitter and the moonlight made the sea look like it was shimmering away. We approached a flat rock at the back of the beach.
‘Shall we sit?’ he suggested.
I nodded and he shouted out loud before my backside hit the rock.
‘Wait, sit on this.’ He took his jacket off and let me sit on it. ‘Nan always says you’ll get piles if you sit on something cold.’
‘How thoughtful of you to bring piles into the conversation, Dennie, but thank you.’
We smiled at each other before staring out at the sea; its spellbinding beauty still at times took my breath away, never ceasing to amaze me even after all the years of living here. Being in Driftwood Bay made my heart happy and filled me with joy.
‘What’s it like living in London?’ I asked, fascinated at why anyone would want to.
A loud sigh escaped him.
‘I used to love it. The city that never sleeps. There’s always something going on. No one in your business. People leave you alone. It’s fast paced. Everyone rushing around.’
‘I feel like there’s a but.’
He turned and looked at me intently before whispering, ‘But being back here this time feels like I’ve come home.’
I smiled. It appeared that Driftwood Bay had weaved its magical spell on him, like it had on many others.
‘How so?’
He held my gaze before looking back out to sea.
‘I used to like the fact that London was quite anonymous. Now I love that here people really care about each other. Look at what you all did for Nan. It’s a real sense of community spirit. All the things I loved about London in the past seem to be the things I can’t bear about it now.’
The silence between us wasn’t in the least bit awkward. It was needed for us both to process what he’d said.
‘I like being part of a community,’ he continued. ‘I feel like it gives me a sense of purpose, which is something that I didn’t realise I was missing. Now when I head back, it feels dirty and the air doesn’t feel clean. I get off the train at Paddington and everyone is so focused on where they’re going, they cut across you or bump into you. No one has manners, it’s almost every man or woman for themself. Nobody makes eye contact with you. You’re constantly checking that you’ve still got your wallet in your back pocket in case someone’s swiped it, and hold on to your laptop bag like it holds the crown jewels for the same reason. I suppose I’d lived in that for so long that I never really noticed.’
I shuddered at the thought.
‘I’ve hardly left this part of the world apart from uni in Exeter which isn’t that far away, although I suppose it is a different county,’ I said. ‘I feel like I’ve hardly seen the world, but I’ve never felt like I needed to. Everything I want is here.’ I scanned the beach, looked across to the harbour and leaned back to take in the hills. ‘I love it.’
Dennie’s eyes locked onto mine. ‘Yeah, I’m beginning to love it too.’
We both sat quietly, together, but alone in our thoughts.
‘We should get off,’ Dennis said eventually. ‘We’ve got a busy day ahead of us tomorrow. I’ve got some brilliant ideas that I want to run by you.’
‘OK.’ I heaved myself off the bench, reluctantly tearing myself away. ‘I’ve got some of my own to share with you too.’
Dennis nudged my shoulder gently. ‘We’ll make a businesswoman of you yet!’
‘You are quite annoying you know, Dennie!’
‘Rubbish. You’re growing quite fond of me, I reckon.’
I shook my head and laughed his words off. ‘Whatever.’
If only he knew.