Chapter Twenty-Eight
Iona
I ona lifted the boards out of the container. The beach was quiet this morning, but the waves rolled in with their steady rhythm. She loved the calm so much. It steadied her brain and kept her sane. Without this beautiful island to comfort her, she’d have gone insane the last few weeks. Because getting over Monty really wasn’t happening for her.
As she went to put her phone away, she glanced at it, and a text notification caught her eye.
Speak of the devil.
MONTY: How are you? Missing you. Hope to see you soon. X
Her heart did a little flip. She read the message again, trying to decipher any hidden meaning in his words. Was it just a casual sign-off? Did he really mean it? Was he coming back? What a tease sending a message like that… Or was it his way of asking her to come and visit him?
She wanted to see him too, but the thought of leaving Barra, her sanctuary, filled her with dread. A visit would be ok, but what about the long term? Was there even a long term? Had she already cut off the avenue? It wasn’t something she’d wanted or considered for a long time. She’d lived in Edinburgh before and had no desire to do so again. Would this be any different?
But this was Monty… Could she make the sacrifice for him? Maybe it would be worth it. Because anything might be better than the constant cutting pain in her chest. Choosing between him and her beloved island seemed a cruel choice. One she couldn’t even make unless she knew for sure that was what he wanted to.
She looked out at the Atlantic crashing against the shore. Could she give this up?
She thumbed out a message.
IONA: Are you hoping to see me here? Or are you hoping I’ll come visit? Not sure I’d cope in Edinburgh these days, but I do want to see you. A LOT! Wish I knew what to do. Do we have a future??? X
She held her breath. Should she delete it? Was it too needy? Oh hell. This was impossible and part of the reason long-term relationships scared her. She put down the phone and collected another set of surfboards. Her students for the day would be arriving soon, and she needed to be ready. No reply came in from Monty before the class and she left her phone in the container as she taught the lesson.
When she finally got back to it, she found a message.
MONTY: I’d love for us to have a future, but I’m acutely aware of the difficulties. As I always have been. You didn’t seem interested in a long-term relationship before and my work commitments make our situations difficult. Whatever happens, you belong in Barra. It’s as much a part of you as you are of it. Need to talk soon x
That looked almost ominous. He could call her and talk if he wanted, but she suspected he wouldn’t. This sounded like a face-to-face chat was needed, or she at least had to explain herself. He was right. She’d fobbed off the idea of a long-term relationship, but now she wanted that more than anything. Any time she had with Monty would always be too short.
IONA: I never wanted long term… Until I met you. We can talk anytime x
There. She’d said it, put it in writing, and she wasn’t taking it back. Monty reacted to the message with a heart, but said no more. Even after her surf class was done for the day, she hadn’t received any messages.
She returned to the farmhouse and went looking for Catriona. She didn’t really want to talk to her about anything in particular, but she didn’t want to be on her own. Resolving the turmoil in her heart was something she had to do herself, but she didn’t want to be alone. Catriona was in the kitchen prepping meals, looking somewhat frazzled, and Iona felt bad about disturbing her.
‘Do you need a hand?’ Iona asked.
‘If you like peeling tatties, then be my guest.’
Iona pulled a face indicating that she wished she’d never asked but washed her hands and located the potato peeler.
‘How was the surfing?’ Catriona stirred one pan, then another.
‘Yeah, fine. They were all pretty good today.’
‘What time is your class tomorrow?’
‘Afternoon, why?’
Catriona kept her eyes on the food and gave a weird little shrug. ‘I, um, just wondered if you’d be able to pick up some people from the ferry tomorrow evening. It would help me, but if you’re busy, it’s fine.’
‘Sure.’
‘Thanks, that’d be great. I’ll give you the details tomorrow when I get them.’
‘No worries.’ Iona frowned at her. Usually, Catriona got Alex to do jobs like that, but it was possible they’d fallen out. Catriona seemed to resent Alex’s being on the farm more and more every day, and she never wanted to talk about it. Iona thought it better just to do what she asked and not question it.
The following day, Iona finished up the surf class sharply and headed back towards the farm. On the beach, she spotted a lone figure with a dog. Both dog and man were easily recognisable. Scamp was bounding towards her at a hundred miles an hour while Ruaridh jogged along behind. He was so tall and muscly he looked like he should be a rugby player.
‘How’s it going?’ he called as he got closer.
Iona patted Scamp as he jumped around like he hadn’t seen her for days rather than just a few hours.
‘Ok. You?’
‘Ah, you know.’ He slowed and stopped, leaning his hands on his knees as he caught his breath, then straightened up. ‘Training hard.’
Iona tightened her ponytail. ‘For what exactly?’
He gave a little shrug. ‘Just like to keep fit.’
Iona kept fit too, but she wasn’t as obsessive as him. He seemed to spend every free second working out.
‘I hope you’re holding up ok. You really had a thing for that Monty guy, didn’t you?’ Ruaridh caught her eye, and his expression was commiserative.
How could she even reply to that?
‘I guess I did. But we wanted different things, you know?’
‘I hear you loud and clear.’ He ran his hand through his hair, watching her. ‘The lack of single people on this island is probably the only reason I’d ever leave, which is sad, because I love it here.’
Iona smiled. ‘Well, there are usually quite a few travelling through. See if you can grab yourself a holiday fling.’
‘I’ll have to think about it.’
Iona patted him on the arm. ‘Someone will come along for you, I’m sure. Just have some fun while you wait.’ She checked her phone. ‘I need to get going. Catriona asked me to pick up some guests coming in on the ferry.’
‘Did she?’ Ruaridh frowned. ‘Dunno why she didn’t ask me. I was around to walk Scamp anyway.’
‘No idea, but I better head. See you later.’
‘Yeah, see you.’ He gave her a little wave, whistled to Scamp and ran off. When he did meet the right person, it’d hopefully be someone who loved sport and fitness as much as him.
Iona collected the car from the farmhouse and headed to Castlebay when the ferry was due. She watched it ease into the bay and go through the docking sequence. People who arrived this way had enjoyed – or endured – a four-and-a-half-hour sail from Oban. While the flight was dramatic, Iona preferred the sail. Well, she was a boat lover, after all. She’d not done it often since coming to live on the island, because she didn’t have much desire to leave, though she’d occasionally left to visit her parents. They, of course, never visited her. Barra was the edge of the world as far as they were concerned. Sometimes it felt like that, but Iona only saw joy in that fact.
She waited by the ferry terminal, scanning the crowd for anyone who resembled the description Catriona had given her. People bustled off the boat, greeting loved ones or hurrying off hauling cases or carrying backpacks. She tapped her foot, glancing at the castle in the bay. The sea glittered around it, making it look quite magical. What beautiful times she’d spent there with Monty. If only that sparkle was magic dust, and she could use its power to summon him. Perhaps he would rise from the sea like Neptune and wade forward, casting off his foam mantle to head straight for her arms. She almost laughed at the thought. Since when had she been into romantasy? Like never!
The crowd thinned, and still no sign of the guests. Seriously where were they? Surely if they’d missed the boat, they’d have contacted Catriona before now. Iona sighed and pulled out her phone.
The call connected to Catriona almost immediately. ‘I don’t see anyone who fits the description. Are you sure they’re on this ferry?’
‘Oh, um, they just called,’ Catriona said. ‘They’re waiting near the seat on the path. Can you head that way?’
Iona frowned. Why would they go there? ‘Ok, I’ll find them.’
She hung up and made her way along the path, wondering what had possessed them to wander off and how she’d missed them. As she walked, she took in the view of the castle again, and a pang of longing stabbed at her chest like a very pointy trident. What was with these bloody sea gods? If they existed, they should be delivering miracles, not sending her on a wild goose chase, and tormenting her with memories.
Scanning the area for any sign of the guests, she approached the seat. A memory surfaced like a message in a bottle bobbing on top of the waves. This was where she first met Monty and he’d stumbled, knocking her off her bike. She rubbed her shoulder absentmindedly. That had been bloody sore. What a dafty. She’d been so cross with him, thinking he was a crazy, clueless tourist, knowing nothing about the ashes, of course. She winced. How awful would it have been if he’d accidentally dropped the urn? His clothes had looked far too posh for a place like this, and he’d made her drop her chips. She quite fancied some of them right now… Though she’d much prefer him.
Even from here, she could see no one was at the seat. She frowned. Had she misunderstood Catriona’s directions? Or had Catriona misunderstood the guests? Maybe they were at a different seat. She scanned around. Was there another one close by? As her eyes drifted over the village towards the bay, they settled on a man walking towards her. For a second, her heart stilled. He looked just like Monty… But no way could it be him. Like really couldn’t. Because he couldn’t have got here. A plane hadn’t arrived. Unless he’d been on the boat. But Monty didn’t do boats. The man continued to walk towards her, and her heart leapt into action like it had been shocked. It was Monty alright, and he was heading straight for her.