One Perfect Day in Lovely Bay

Chapter 1

1

A s Cally de Pfeffer strolled up the driveway, she took her jumper off, tied it over her shoulders, and smiled at the magnificent sight of Lovely Manor perched on the landscape in front of her. Shaking her head as she took in the huge old house, she couldn’t believe how long it had now been part of her life. She’d take it for the team, though. Not a bad place for your boyfriend to live, right? Had me at manor house. The day she’d first walked onto the property by way of its enormous old main gates, there’d been no way then that she’d had any idea what was coming. She wouldn’t have thought that she would be in a serious relationship with one of the manor’s residents. But here she was doing just that. Head over heels, loved up to the eyeballs, in very deep, all that stuff. The world moved in mysterious ways. Its recent movement was better than the ride it had taken her on in the past, that she knew for sure.

Looking over the perfectly manicured stripes in the luscious lawn, a bright blue sky greeted from above and a little cluster of butterflies fluttered over a long line of rose bushes to her far right. She could see the fountain in the ornamental garden to her left and just about make out the sound of its water trickling from the top. She nodded her head and thanked anyone who would listen that her luck had changed when she’d met Logan Henry-Hicks. Then she stopped mid-nod and tutted. Her luck had not changed. His had. Best she remembered that. It was her much-chanted narrative in her new life. He was the one who should be counting his lucky stars that he had her in his life. Henry-Hicks was one lucky man, indeed.

Continuing up the long drive, instead of her usual turn to the left past the stables and around the back of the main house, she veered in the direction of the rose garden. Weaving in and out of the willow trees set near the pond, she took a little path down past one of the huge old greenhouses and approached Logan’s cottage from the back. Pushing open the gate, she loved what looked back at her; the little cottage garden was a picture. Tucked in the corner in a sunspot, a couple of vintage timber deck chairs with plump stripy cushions, sat on a terrace area with a table between them. On top of the table, a huge white wicker lantern was filled with candles, and in gigantic weathered terracotta pots, two large and well-established olive trees rustled in the breeze. Along the far side, the bricks of an old Victorian wall were covered in ivy, a weather vane turned on the top of a gorgeous old conservatory butted up to French doors, and a gravel-covered path led down to a small summer house. Cally de Pfeffer had undoubtedly come a long way. Not that she needed anyone or anything to reiterate that fact. She knew it well enough of her own accord. She welcomed it into her life every single day.

Logan, in a pair of jeans and a pale blue long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of sunglasses on his head, strolled out of the house and stepped into the sunshine. Cally swallowed. Not bad, not bad at all. Very, very, very nice, in fact. She revelled in being in love with Logan. To her, it felt as if she’d bagged the best-ever prize. Like ever, ever ever. Staggeringly good-looking, the broad shoulders and long legs weren’t bad, and he was nice to boot. Calvin Klein boxers. Say no more. Really good-looking and really nice. What the? Whatever… what more could a girl ask for? Sometimes, she had to pinch herself and hard. Sometimes, she felt as if she was living the dream, a dream, any dream. Her handsome and nice boyfriend, if that is what we are calling him, lived in an actual manor. Hello.

Logan leant on the architrave of the back door. The look on his face told her he felt the same way. ‘Hey. How are you?’

Cally pretended he wasn’t anywhere near as good-looking as he was and that she was nonchalant about rocking up to a manor house, even if it was one of its cottages, for the day. ‘Good.’

‘Looking good to me for sure.’

Cally giggled. ‘It’s such a lovely day.’

‘Yeah. I wondered if you fancied walking up the hill or not. The weather couldn’t be better, really.’ Logan jerked his thumb to the right. ‘I’ve packed up a bit of a picnic if you fancy it.’

Did she fancy it? Did she ever? ‘Sounds good. You know me too well. Who wouldn’t love a picnic on a day like this?’

‘I wasn’t sure whether or not you’d be up for a walk after walking here. We can just sit here…’

Cally shook her head. ‘No, no, I’m fine. I like the stroll up here from Lovely.’

Logan pointed into the far distance. ‘The view will be pretty special from the top there today.’

‘You’re right.’ Cally nodded and wriggled her lips. ‘We haven’t been up there for ages.’

Logan stepped back inside. ‘I’ll just grab the stuff.’

‘Did you get a picnic blanket?’ Cally asked.

‘Yeah.’

Cally chuckled to herself. A boyfriend who packed up picnics, too? Keeper. I’ll have two. Maybe forty-two. She followed Logan through the door and into the kitchen, where a couple of baskets and a rolled-up rug were ready on the table. Cally smiled and inhaled. ‘Ahh, a day of doing nothing. I need it. I might have to have a doze at the top of the hill there.’

Logan tilted his head in agreement. ‘I reckon. Perfect place for it.’

A few minutes later, with a basket in her hands and the rug under her arm, Cally strolled along beside Logan. She smiled as they got further away from the manor and headed in the direction of Lovely. The sounds changed as they ambled alongside a small wooded area, followed a stream for a bit, and then turned to walk up the hill.

Logan stopped and pointed to a bench perched right at the top. ‘Not too far. Once we get there, we’ll just camp out there for the rest of the day and take in the view. Rest and recharge, I believe, is what it is called. Up for that?’

‘Oh, yes. Works for me. Music to my ears, in fact.’

Ambling along in easy silence except for the sound of the stream in the distance, a few birds chirping away here and there, and the wind in the trees, Cally was thoroughly enjoying herself. She loved the perks that came with being part of Lovey Manor and walking around in its grounds was one of them. Once at the top of the hill and slightly out of breath, she stood with her hand shading her eyes and looked out at Lovely's view below. Under the bright blue sky, the sea shimmered in the far distance and the tall white Lovely lighthouse stood as if guarding everything below. Cally passed Logan the picnic blanket, waited for him to smooth it out on the grass beside the bench, and plonked herself down. She shook her head and leant back on her hands. ‘It’s so nice up here. Honestly, we need to come here more often. It’s always so calming.’ Cally inhaled a deep, long breath. ‘The smell is something else and the view... I could sit here all day long and just stare out at the horizon. Free at half the price.’

‘Yup. Totally agree.’

Cally looked in the direction of the lighthouse. ‘That never fails to impress, does it? Always there, keeping everyone safe.’

‘You always say that. It doesn’t get old, no. It’s like an old friend.’

Cally gestured around her. ‘I need to do more of this. I’ve been charging around from one thing to the next these past few months.’

Logan pulled the wicker picnic basket over and began to unpack the food. He laid a small tea towel on top of the rug, added a cheese board, and whipped out two fabric napkins from inside the basket. ‘I hope you're hungry,’ he said, pulling out container after container. ‘I might have gone a bit overboard with my order at the deli.’

Cally's eyes widened as she took in the spread. ‘A bit? Logan, this looks like enough to feed an army!’ She joked, ‘You’re useless. Who on earth did you think you were catering for? I’m glad I wasn’t paying.’

Logan chuckled as he arranged the dishes between them. ‘Well, you know how Alice gets when you mention a picnic. I think she packed half the shop. I collected it yesterday when you were at Eloise’s.’

Logan unwrapped wax paper from a whole brie, popped it on the cheese board, and added a little cluster of red grapes and a small pot of what looked like chutney. Cally picked up the pot and unscrewed the lid. ‘Ooh, this looks fancy. What is it?’

‘Fig and something…’ Logan flicked his eyes upwards. ‘She did say. What was it? Fig and, oh, yeah, fennel. Someone local made it, but I can’t remember who.’

‘Nice. Oh, that brie looks divine, too,’ Cally sighed. ‘I love cheese. I think I could live on it. Give me all the cheese all the time.’

Logan gestured affirmatively, already opening another container. He pulled out a baguette, a dish of olives marinated in herbs and garlic, and a cherry tomato salad and started to unwrap a wide, shallow box. ‘Spinach and goat's cheese quiche. Alice said it’s the one you like. Is that right? I couldn’t remember.’

‘It is. Gosh, we'll be rolling down this hill by the time we're done.’

Laughing, Logan poured them each a glass of sparkling wine. ‘Well, we've got all afternoon to work our way through it. No rush.’ They clinked glasses. ‘Cheers,’ Logan held his glass up in the direction of the lighthouse.

Cally smiled. ‘Nice idea to come up here. Cheers.’

‘Yeah. Anyway, what’s been happening with you? I missed you yesterday.’

‘I have a bit of news. I was going to tell you last week, but I wanted to be sure before I said anything.’

‘What?’

‘I think I’ve got enough deposit saved up to start applying for a mortgage. Finally! It feels as if it’s taken me my whole life to get to this point. If I’m honest, I’m over the moon about it. ’

‘Fantastic. I'm so proud of you. You've worked hard for it.’

Cally smiled. ‘Thanks. It still doesn't feel quite real, to be honest. The idea that I might actually be able to buy my own place in Lovely Bay is a bit strange.’

‘But exciting, right?’

Cally nodded, taking a bite of the quiche. ‘Definitely exciting. But also a bit scary. It's a big step.’

Logan nodded as he spread some brie on a slice of baguette. ‘It is.’

Cally thought back to her early days in Lovely when Birdie had saved her from what was more or less imminent homelessness. She remembered how vulnerable, lost, and unsure she'd felt and how she’d primarily operated on adrenaline and a gigantic bubble of underlying stress. Things had changed significantly. The stress bubble had burst and the adrenaline now worked in a good way. Now here she was, working three good jobs, she had a healthy savings account, and on top of that, she had the stability of someone like Logan in her life. Oh, how she was in a better place. ‘It's a lot of responsibility. Owning a place, taking on a mortgage, but to be honest, I want it. I need to feel as if I have some roots. Do you know what I mean?’

Logan swigged his drink. ‘You wouldn't be doing it alone, Blackcurrant.’

Cally looked at him quizzically. ‘What do you mean by that?’

‘Well, I've been thinking. About us, about the future. At some point, we’d be looking for a place together, wouldn’t we?’

Cally felt as though all the air had been sucked out of her lungs. He’d pulled that out of the hat and surprised her. ‘Together? What? Moving in together? What? Do you mean like properly? Would we? Like, officially?’

Logan shrugged. ‘Yeah. I mean, we spend most of our time together anyway. You’re either here or I’m at your flat. Makes sense, right?’

‘True.’

‘You could rent out the place then.’

Cally wrinkled her nose and frowned. ‘Sorry. What?’

‘The flat you buy. Just have it as an investment.’ Logan gestured behind him in the direction of the manor. ‘As I said, you’re here a lot of the time anyway. No brainer. Am I right?’

Cally’s mind whirled or perhaps twirled. What in the name of goodness? Logan seemed very casual about the fact that he’d just more or less asked her to officially move in with him. She wasn’t really sure what to think. Buying a flat was a big, wild, gigantic deal for her. Absolutely massive. She’d worked towards getting her own place for years. Logan clearly wasn’t quite as daunted by it.

Logan cocked his head to the side. ‘It just seems like good timing to move in together, doesn't it? If you fancy it, that is?’

Cally couldn’t quite believe what Logan was saying. Moving in together, as far as she was concerned, was a significant step. Huge. ‘I don't know what to say,’ she managed finally.

‘No pressure. It's just something to think about, yeah? We don't have to decide anything right now. I must say your flat is quite small. I’m still bumping my head daily…’

Cally took a long sip of her drink. She faltered for words. ‘It's not that I don't want to. It's a big decision.’

Logan nodded. ‘Of course. I get it. Like I said, no pressure. I just love you, Cal. Simple as that, really.’

‘I love you, too.’

‘Think about it. I'm not going anywhere.’

As Cally looked out over Lovely Bay, she wasn’t quite sure what to think about what Logan had proposed. ‘I've worked so hard to get to this point, to be able to buy my own place. Part of me feels like I need to do this on my own, you know? To prove to myself that I can. It’s been my goal since, well, since you know when.’

‘Totally. You've accomplished loads.’

‘I've always been so independent, you know? Since I was very young.’

‘I know. That's one of the things I love about you. It doesn't mean giving up your independence, but yeah, it’s chill. Just do what you want to do. The offer's there. Whenever you're ready, if you're ever ready... I'm here.’

A little part of Cally was a bit put out. Or maybe a large part of her was. Logan was being very casual. It was hardly an earth-shattering proposal. He was so nonchalant about moving in together that she wasn’t sure what to think. Almost as if she was a mate of his or something. She didn’t like how it made her feel. There were no brass bands playing. Logan’s words were so casual they almost did the opposite of their intention. Off-putting. She took a sip of her drink and attempted to change the subject. ‘So much has changed since I first came to Lovely Bay. If someone had told me then that I'd be sitting here now, considering getting a mortgage and, well, everything else, I'd have thought they were absolutely bonkers.’

‘I know. Life goes its own way, doesn’t it?’

‘It certainly does. It surprised me with you that’s for sure.’ Cally joked and nudged Logan on the elbow. ‘I’m still trying to work out whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing.’

Logan laughed. ‘You are very lucky to have me.’

‘Same.’ Cally steered the subject further away as she held her head up to the sky and exhaled. She’d debrief the moving in together thing later. ‘This was a perfect idea. I'd almost forgotten how beautiful it is up here.’

‘We should do this more often. Get away from it all, just the two of us. Fresh air does wonders for the brain cells, or so they say.’

‘It does. Maybe we should bottle it and sell it. Make our fortunes.’

Logan frowned. ‘Why do we need to make our fortunes?’

Cally shook her head. She’d waited a long time to make her fortune and she’d certainly not come anywhere near yet. Of course, it wasn’t the same for the person sitting beside her. He didn’t have to worry about fortunes. He already had a nice, big, fat one under his belt. It wasn’t even in his vocabulary. She made a noncommittal sound.

Logan shook his head and surprised her with what came next. ‘I don’t really need to make a fortune. I’ve got what I want right here beside me. I already feel like I won the lottery, Cal.’

Well played, Henry-Hicks.

You can stay.

For now.