Chapter 24
The majority of the painting had been done and Sarah and Beth finally put down their brushes and rolled aching shoulders, smiling at each other in delight. The outside of the hut had been restored to its Ice Cream Sprinkle Pink glory whilst the inside shone beneath a coat of bright turquoise blue that looked like the Aegean Sea.
There was little furniture left but that was something Beth could address later. The windows needed painting, the kitchen was still mainly in pieces scattered around the floor waiting for Jake to have a free day and she still had to find a light. The old yellow pendant lampshade that had hung there ever since Beth could remember had been relegated to the beyond saving pile and Beth was still searching for a replacement. It would not be a chandelier.
The day after tomorrow the council would carry out its inspection and Beth would know if she had done enough to rescue Aunt Lizzie’s beloved hut.
‘It will be okay,’ came Sarah’s reassuring voice as she read the anxiety on Beth’s face.
‘Do you think so?’
‘I do. All you had to do was make it safe and secure and not present a hazard to other huts,’ quoted Sarah, ‘and you’ve done that.’
‘Let’s hope so,’ groaned Beth. ‘It's been such hard work. And I would feel so bad for everyone who has given their time and helped me along the way. I couldn’t have done it without you and Jake. And Sam,’ she admitted. ‘I would have lost Aunt Lizzie’s hut. I can’t thank you enough.’
‘You don’t need to,’ replied Sarah, her eyes suspiciously bright, ‘and in fairness, I did very little. It was Jake who made all the difference.’
Beth tried to smile.
‘Any news?’ asked Sarah casually.
‘Yes. He’s definitely back with Portia. He just hasn’t moved back into his house yet.’
‘Why? If they’re back together, why wouldn’t he go home?’
‘Oh, timing,’ sighed Beth. ‘Or something like that. Maybe they need time to come to terms with everything that’s happened. I’m not sure.’
Sarah raised her eyebrows doubtfully. ‘Well, if you say so but I think it’s strange. He loves her, has forgiven her but doesn’t want to move back in with her?’
But Beth shook her head. ‘They’re back together. And there was never anything between us.’
Sarah’s eyebrows travelled even further up her forehead and Beth had to smile at her look of disbelief.
‘I know your theory but I was recovering from Matthew and Jake was trying to rescue his relationship with Portia. He was very kind and helped me out but there was nothing more. Really.’
‘If you say so. I’m still not convinced,’ but she let the subject go and wiped her cheek, leaving a long smear of pink paint from forehead to chin which made Beth chuckle.
They heard a screech from outside and rolled their eyes. Jemima had been missing for most of the morning but it sounded as though she was back on the beach and not happy.
The door burst open and Jemima came hurtling inside. ‘You've painted it pink!’ she squealed angrily, glaring at the two women. ‘You’ve painted your hut pink!’
‘Yes, I have,’ agreed Beth calmly. ‘The colour it’s always been.’
‘But it's pink!’
‘I know. I painted it. And like I say, this is the colour it's always been.’
Sarah grabbed a tissue to wipe her face. ‘Oh, calm down, Jem. It looks lovely, exactly how a beach hut should look if you ask me.’
Jemima looked around at the cheerful blue walls and the scattering of furniture that had survived. It was as far removed from her oasis of chic as it was possible to get. Not a cream cushion in sight, no sparkling glass vases holding an artisan collection of pebbles and no chandeliers.
‘Is it?’ she asked doubtfully.
‘Yes! It is. And I agree with Beth, this is the colour it's always been and the colour it should remain.’
Beth could see the emotions racing across the young woman's face.
‘But it’s pink,’ she wailed. ‘Dominic will hate it!’
‘Well maybe it’s time you stood up to Dom and started thinking for yourself,’ snapped Sarah. ‘Beth has done what she needed to do, she’s made the hut safe and the council will let her keep it. Dom will always find something to complain about.’
‘But you don't understand,’ said Jemima, nibbling on her lower lip and destroying the Dior Poppy Red. ‘ It's not just about making it safe. Although I agree you have done a good job of that, Beth,’ she added magnanimously. ‘It looks like a different hut.’
Beth stopped wiping the smears of pink paint from her legs and frowned. ’What do you mean?’
Jemima was looking at them both, her face anxious.
‘Because of the new rule! It’s not enough just to make it safe, you have to make it acceptable.’
‘What are you talking about, Jem?’ asked Sarah, shaking her head in confusion. ‘What new rule?’
‘The one that Dominic proposed. It was approved by The Club,’ Jemima informed them impatiently. ‘The décor of each hut must meet with the approval of the club members. And if you contravene any of the club rules, your licence can be rescinded.’
She sighed as Beth and Sarah both stared uncomprehendingly at her.
‘If the appearance of your cabana isn’t approved, the Cabana Club will vote to remove your licence. Your hut…cabana will be forfeit,’ she added for clarity.
‘ Forfeit?’ whispered Beth, spinning around to look at a shocked Sarah and back to Jemima. ‘But the council…’
‘May pass it as safe but the club have to also agree to a continuation of your licence. And if they don't, you’ll still lose your cabana,’ Jemima admitted reluctantly. ‘I did tell you it had to look nice! I told you that Dominic would be upset if the cabana didn't meet expectations.’
‘Rubbish,’ said Sarah forcefully. ‘Who cares what colour we paint our huts? And besides, any changes have to be voted for unanimously and I didn’t vote for such a ridiculous rule.’
‘You didn’t have to,’ Jemima told her. ‘Darren voted on your behalf. The rule was passed, unanimously. A few weeks ago.’
‘Licence? What is she talking about? Can the Beach Hut Club take away Number 4?’ asked Beth through numb lips as she turned to a shocked Sarah.
‘I’m afraid so.’ Sarah’s face was pale, the scattering of freckles across her nose standing out clearly. ‘It used to be the council that administered anything to do with the beach huts but a couple of years ago we formed an independent club which took over. We now have the power to approve the licences for the huts. The club can remove your licence if you contravene any of the rules. Normally you would have time to address any problem before an inspection was arranged but…’
‘But my inspection is already set for the day after tomorrow,’ said Beth with a gasp.
‘It was meant to be to protect ourselves from any undesirable inhabitants, not to complain about the colour!’ said Sarah in distress. ‘I can’t believe that Darren would vote for such a ridiculous rule. He didn't even tell me!’
‘Maybe you should have let him know you’d become best friends with Beth,’ interjected Jemima childishly. ‘He probably didn’t think you cared.’
Beth felt as though her stomach had turned to lead.
She turned to Jemima. ‘Are you saying the club will rescind my licence because I’ve painted Number 4 pink?’ she asked, still unable to grasp that after everything she had done, she may still lose Aunt Lizzie’s hut.
Jemima shrugged her shoulders. ‘Dominic won't approve of a pink cabana,’ she said with a hint of apology.
‘How ridiculous,’ snapped Sarah. ‘There is nothing wrong with it!’
‘But Dominic won’t like it,’ insisted Jemima. ‘He really won't approve of a pink hut.’
‘I shouldn’t have painted it pink,’ whispered Beth. ‘I should have stuck to the same colour as the rest of the huts…’
‘You shouldn’t have to,’ muttered Sarah mutinously. ‘It’s outrageous that Dom should be able to persuade the entire club to vote you out over a coat of pink paint.’
‘He’s just trying to look out for us all,’ protested Jemina, looking earnest. ‘He said it’s really important to maintain standards and protect our interests…’
‘From a pink beach hut!’ shouted a scandalised Sarah. ‘That’s ridiculous. And why on earth didn’t you tell us before? When we started painting it pink.’
‘Because I was in Weymouth having my nails done,’ wailed Jemima. ‘I didn't know you were painting it such a silly colour!’
Beth had been busy calculating the cost of several more tins of paint and the time it would take to make Number 4 resemble one of the anonymous huts to either side of her.
‘Maybe I could start painting and at least they’ll know I’m changing the colour,’ she suggested hopefully, even as Sarah shook her head.
‘Oh, I can't imagine Dom letting you get away with that,’ said Jemima with feeling. ‘He will invoke the rule and take away the licence for Number 4.’
But,’ began Beth desperately as her phone began to ring, ‘there must be something I can do?’
Looking down she saw Matthew’s number flash up and she declined the call with a vicious push of the button.
‘Paint it any colour but pink,’ said Jemima, helpfully as Sarah glared at her. ‘I'm just saying! Dom has a thing about pink you see. He used to live next door to a pink house and I think it traumatised him.’
‘Losing Number 4 will traumatise me,’ yelled Beth angrily as her phone rang again and she declined the call. She really couldn't cope with Matthew right now.
‘I can’t believe Darren didn’t even tell me about the vote,’ said Sarah almost to herself and Beth spared a glance for her shaken friend.
‘It’s not Dominic’s fault,’ began Jemima only to flinch at the look of pure rage Beth sent her.
‘Of course it is! I've worked so hard to keep Aunt Lizzie’s hut and he’s going to take it away from me because he doesn’t like pink!’
‘Well, it's a silly colour to paint a beach hut,’ said Jemima sulkily. ‘Sarah should have told you not to do it- seeing as you’re such good friends.’
Beth glared at her. Was Jemima jealous?
Her phone rang again and she lifted it to her ear.
‘What?’ she screamed, the view of golden sand stretching into a sparkling bay failing for the first time to calm her frazzled nerves. ‘What do you want, Matthew?’
‘Beth? Is everything okay? What….’
He sounded concerned and Beth felt the tears begin to prick her eyes.
‘I’m just busy,’ she mumbled. ‘I can’t speak right now.’
‘I’m sorry to bother you,’ he said quickly. ‘But this is important.’
Nothing could be as important right now as the possibility that she had just wasted two weeks of hard work trying unsuccessfully to save the hut.
‘I haven't got time Matthew. It will have to wait.’
‘It can’t wait Beth. I’m in London, at the architectural conference, remember?’
Beth remembered. She had been planning on taking a few days off work and joining Matthew. He would be busy during the day but they had planned to see a show one night and go for a special meal.
‘I’ve just had a call from the neighbours. It’s the flat. There’s been a burst pipe or something, apparently water is pouring out of the door.’
Beth tried to make sense of what he was saying but it was a struggle, her mind was still on pink paint and a sulky Jemima.
‘What?’
‘I’ll get back as soon as I can but you’re closer. You need to go home, Beth. Straight away.’