Chapter Six
CHAPTER SIX
‘Good morning.’
Sam was aware how the brief banter of the previous evening had turned to dwindling enthusiasm when Lily slouched into the dining room the next day. They hadn’t spoken much after he rebuffed her offer of brainstorming branding and business ideas. She’d eaten half the dessert then disappeared off to her room with the rest of the bottle of wine. He could hardly blame her: he wasn’t sure his comments had come across as he’d intended.
‘Sleep well?’ he asked, his jaw aching with putting on a cheery face when he felt so grim inside. Lily’s comments had reminded him of how much he still had to do at the retreat and made him feel more than a little out of his depth.
‘Surprisingly, yes,’ she muttered, ‘Even though it’s still raining.’
‘Only a bit and not for long.’ He placed a platter of fresh fruit in front of her. ‘The storm front’s almost passed. We’ll be the first in the country to see the sunshine.’
She raised her eyebrows, disbelief etched on her face. ‘Can I get that in writing?’
‘I’ve seen the forecast. It’ll be better today. Would you like tea or coffee?’
‘Coffee. Please.’
Sam filled a cafetière. It was for the second time that morning, the first having been for himself as he needed the caffeine. Unlike Lily, he hadn’t slept well. He’d lain awake wondering if he’d gone too far in telling his guest she had to take a rest, and deciding that he had.
Not only had he turned down the invaluable advice of an expert, but he’d also made Lily think he was a chauvinistic pig. On the other hand, Richie had pleaded with him to ‘make sure’ she rested, and said that he’d ‘have a nightmare’ trying to stop her from working.
Sam had wondered if Lily’s need for a break, and brittle mood, might have anything to do with the sad associations that had been triggered by the Nina Simone track.
God knows, he knew how difficult – impossible – it was to come to terms with sadness. Hadn’t he also tried to blot out the pain of his own losses by throwing himself into work? Was creating Stark – trying to bring life back to a dead island – his way of clawing back what had slipped away from him so unexpectedly?
He’d no idea. He’d tried not to analyse his actions too deeply, until Lily had arrived.
Had last night been a cry for help – did she want to talk about what was upsetting her? Sam was no therapist; he’d barely got to grips with being a host. He’d also felt that interfering in Lily’s life in this way was too much of a burden to bear, so he’d listened, been vague, and joked that Stark was a place where he could guarantee complete quiet if nothing else.
He would have many guests in need of recuperation, peace and quiet – so long as Lily didn’t go home and spread the word that Stark was a dump and its owner a bully.
‘Is the fruit OK? Would you like a cooked breakfast or continental?’ he asked, trying to smile and be as helpful as possible. ‘I have bacon, eggs, sausage – vegetarian alternatives … Or pastries, which I baked fresh this morning.’
‘Continental is fine,’ Lily said, adding archly, ‘and stop trying too hard.’
Her amused tone took the sting out of her remark. She looked less exhausted this morning. He had to admit her eyes held a glint of mischief he found disturbingly attractive.
‘OK, I’ll fetch the croissants,’ he said, back in host mode.
While he arranged pastries in a basket, he heard a yelp and dashed into reception. Lily was standing in the porch with the door wide open.
‘What’s the matter?’ he said.
‘The sun’s out! And, oh my God, will you look at that view ?’
Sam followed her outside, blinking in the dazzling light of a June morning like a creature emerging above ground after a long winter. The full panorama of dozens of low islands and rocky skerries unfolded ahead of them, floating in a sea of azure, turquoise and deepest blue. Even though he’d known they were there all along, hidden by the veil of fog, he was seeing them through Lily’s eyes and experiencing the full impact on her.
She seemed to blossom under his eyes, holding her arms wide and saluting the dazzling orb in the sky.
Touched by her happiness, he stood by her side. ‘You can have breakfast out here if you like.’
‘Oh, I’d love to.’
He smiled, lifted by her lighter mood. ‘I’ll bring it outside with some fresh coffee.’
She switched her focus to him. ‘You will join me though? I’m dying to find out what all these other islands are. I can’t believe it’s the same place as yesterday. It looks like the Greek islands or the Caribbean.’
Sam had heard his home described that way before and it always gave him a glow of pride, though Scilly was, in his eyes, even more beautiful than those other glamorous destinations. ‘I’m glad it’s cleared up for you.’
‘I must have been very good.’ Her blue eyes sparkled, like a kid let out of school to go to the seaside.
Sam went back into the kitchen, thinking of how Lily had reminded him of himself, a young boy at the end of term, arriving back on Bryher from the Island Comp, knowing there would be no more lessons or boarding for six weeks. He’d enjoyed school and staying in dorms had been fun up to a point. He’d settled well unlike some of the other islands children, who’d found it hard to get used to boarding during the week because the daily journey would have been too disruptive.
Yet nothing compared to home, to the freedom of running free on Bryher; sailing to Samson with his father and Nate and, later, with his friends Aaron and Ben. More recently, he’d loved exploring with someone else, sitting on deserted beaches or swimming together in the crystal waters. Once again, his desire to share that passion with others came back to him.
When he returned, Lily was pointing across the ocean under shaded eyes. ‘What’s that island there, with the square building and the waves breaking over it?’
‘St Helen’s.’
‘And the lighthouse in the distance. That’s the Bishop that we heard last night, I presume?’
‘Yes.’ He seemed surprised she knew.
‘And beyond?’
‘Nothing until Newfoundland.’
She swung round to look at him. ‘Wow. I’d no idea that it would be like this.’
‘Despite the website?’
‘I had a quick look after Richie booked, but not in detail. I was too busy trying to tie up loose ends before I came away.’
He shook his head. ‘I thought you were supposed to have a complete break.’
‘I couldn’t just leave . Not without letting key people know I’d be back.’
‘Well, you’ll be back with them tomorrow.’
‘Yes, but I think I can allow myself today off. As I’m stuck here.’
Her eyes challenged him but he wasn’t fazed. ‘How long has it actually been since you took a proper holiday?’
‘Oh … I’m not sure.’ Lily appeared to be dredging a corner of her mind. ‘I went on a hen weekend to Barcelona last May, though I flew back earlier than everyone else to prepare for the team’s mid-year reviews. I was in France on business earlier this year.’ She sighed. ‘I missed my parents’ Ruby Wedding party. I regret that.’
Sam’s interest was piqued by this admission. ‘What happened?’
‘I was all set to go to the party. I even had my bags packed in the office – but a potential client asked me to fly urgently to Paris for a meeting.’
‘Couldn’t you have put them off?’ Sam said.
‘No.’ She sighed. ‘Well, I didn’t think so at the time, but afterwards … I wish I’d gone to the party. My auntie Tina had flown over from Australia and I missed that. And my great-uncle Matthew was there. He was a hundred and two.’ Her voice faltered. ‘Unfortunately he passed away the week after.’
‘That’s such a shame. I am sorry,’ Sam murmured, seeing the genuine regret in Lily’s eyes.
‘We all were, even though he’d had a wonderful life. He just keeled over while he was feeding the ducks in the grounds of his nursing home. I hadn’t seen him for a long time and because I missed the party … well, I never got to talk to him again. To tell him how much he’d inspired me. He used to love making things. He did wood turning and carving.’
Sam listened, surprised and moved to see her lift the corner of this veil on her private life.
‘Maybe that’s where you got your creative side from.’
‘Maybe.’ She shrugged and then declared, ‘So I’m going to make the most of this opportunity. Even though it will be short.’
‘I’ll try to make sure it’s not too awful,’ Sam said wryly, noting the reminder that she expected to leave the next morning. ‘Would you like to see the island with me after breakfast or explore on your own?’
‘Both, please. A tour and then a solo adventure.’ She stopped and rolled her eyes. ‘How embarrassing. Will you listen to me, sounding like a little kid?’
‘We all need to be kids again from time to time,’ he said, wondering when he’d last enjoyed a carefree day himself. ‘Though it may surprise you, I do plan on offering activities to guests. Nature and history walks, beachcombing …’
‘All of which sound great,’ Lily said.
He smiled, feeling genuine pleasure. ‘Before I leave you to enjoy the rest of your breakfast, I’d like to check this evening’s menu with you.’
She seemed more than happy with most of it: goat’s cheese salad, with a key lime cheesecake he’d brought over from the bakery. It was just as well, as the only dessert alternative he could have offered was cheese and biscuits.
However, she hesitated over the lamb shank he’d intended to braise for the main course.
‘Do you have any more of Rory’s fish?’ she asked. ‘It seems a shame not to eat more seafood when it’s so delicious and fresh.’
‘I could probably rustle up some sea bass,’ Sam said, thinking that while she was off exploring he could take out the fishing kayak and catch some. Not that he would admit to Lily that he’d have to go out ’specially.
‘Great.’ She rewarded him with a smile that almost made the effort worthwhile. ‘That’s one of my favourites.’
Sam left her, basking in her approval of his ideas for activities – when he could get them sorted – and of his plans for the evening menu. Even though these small aspects had gone well, he needed to get his supplies and logistics sorted. There were two big freezers in the utility building behind the kitchen, but they were virtually empty. It was one more sign of how badly he’d underestimated the amount of work and staff needed to run the retreat. One guest and one night had made him feel completely exposed.
And it had to be this guest: a celebrity business owner with a big online presence. If she did choose to go public with her opinion of the retreat, any review could be shared far and wide. Perhaps he should thank Lily for shining a light on its – and his – failings so he could take steps to improve things.
At least the weather was on his side now and Lily looked happier than she had at any moment since he’d collected her from the heliport.
With the sun shining, and his guest warming to her island ‘prison’, today was his last chance to make a good impression before she flew home and offered her verdict.