Epilogue
‘I can’t believe you forgot to mention one vital detail.’
Meg stood on the grass by the entrance to the visitor centre. Helen grinned at her, swinging the hand of a tall, tanned man who looked down at her with affection. He was wearing a thick sweater, despite baking hot weather, which was almost unheard of for summer in Applemore. The shiny new hire car they’d picked up at Inverness Airport was parked in the space outside the cottage, alongside Helen’s beaten-up old Fiesta, which had been Meg’s only mode of transport since Rilla and Lachlan had bought the campervan. Now they were somewhere on a beach in Portugal, according to Miranda, and their daughter Kitty was having the time of her little life.
Meg looked across at the crowds of people who were milling about outside the lighthouse visitor centre, waiting for the official opening. They’d had to wait for approval from the tourist board (Kenny had muttered about his work being of a high enough standard that it was a load of old nonsense, if you asked him), but now it was official.
‘Not that they haven’t had it open unofficially,’ explained Meg, laughing. ‘But you didn’t hear me saying that.’
‘Said like a born and bred Applemore resident,’ said Helen, tucking her arm around Meg’s waist. ‘Sorry for springing Luis on you,’ she said as they wandered across towards the crowds. ‘I thought I’d surprise you.’
Meg looked over at Luis, who’d dropped a kiss on the top of Helen’s head and strolled off to take a look at the lighthouse.
‘Well, you’ve done that. There I was thinking you were having a lovely time being a grandma and enjoying some painting in Santiago.’
‘I was,’ said Helen, waggling her eyebrows and making Meg giggle. ‘I was also having a lovely time not being grandma, but being Helen again. I’d forgotten how nice it was.’
‘So what’s the plan?’ Meg, who’d deliberately not let herself worry about the future, looked at her friend for a moment. She looked at the newly cut grass that rolled down towards the sea, and the huge sky overhead which could change in minutes, and across to the little white cottage she’d grown to love while she’d been house-sitting for her oldest friend. Helen turned to follow her gaze, letting go of her waist and standing close by her side, as if she was reading her thoughts.
‘I’m going to stay for a while. I’m not sure how long. At least a year?’ Helen lifted both hands in a vague gesture.
‘I can’t believe you’ve just gone and found yourself a whole new life in –’
Meg stopped mid-sentence and Helen stared pointedly across towards the visitor centre. Her heart gave the same skip of excitement that it did whenever she saw Gabe, and he turned – as if sensing her presence – and waved in their direction.
‘– Found myself a new life,’ said Helen, with a teasing expression, ‘In a completely unexpected place?’
‘Meg,’ called Greta from the doorway of the visitor centre, ‘can you come and double check this with me?’
‘Duty calls,’ said Helen, laughing.
Meg set off to find a harried looking Greta, who was frowning at the interactive screens that lined one wall of the visitor centre. Two out of the three were working, but the third was blank.
‘We’re ready to go, but this blooming thing is refusing to come to life. I don’t know what I’ve done to it.’
Kathleen appeared, calm and unruffled as ever, dressed in a grey and white striped blouse and a pair of elegant wide-legged grey linen trousers.
‘What’s going on here?’
‘It’s this interactive thing. I swear it’ll be the death of me.’ Greta closed her eyes and tried to take a calming breath.
‘Have you tried switching it off and on again?’ asked Kathleen, peering behind the screen. She flicked a switch and the screen obediently flashed into life.
Greta’s shoulders dropped.
‘Okay,’ she said with a short laugh. ‘Let’s get out of here and get this thing officially open before I go completely crazy.’
Outside, Helen had caught up with Luis and they were standing by the new fencing, surrounded by a group of Applemore locals. Miranda waved from their midst. Beth, who was carrying a huge bouquet wrapped in the flower farm’s signature brown paper, rushed over.
‘I thought I was going to be late. These are for the guest of honour.’
‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ Greta began, after clapping her hands. ‘We are here today with a very special guest, who has come all the way from Applemore’s twin village, La Mardelle, in the middle of the Loire Valley.’
A petite, dark-haired woman in a chic blue shirt dress and cream espadrilles gave a little wave.
‘Merci de votre visite,’ said Greta, in an accent which could only be described as Mrs Doubtfire visits Paris.
Meg noticed Laurel in the crowd, standing beside Jamie, one of the fencing lads. He hoisted a delighted Kai on his shoulders, and Laurel looked up at him with a smile. Jamie leaned over and kissed her, making her giggle. She looked up a second later and caught Meg’s eye, giving a wave. Meg, who was babysitting later in the week so they could go out for the evening together, smiled and waved back.
Greta’s speech went on, thanking everyone for coming and telling them how delighted they were to have an opportunity for everyone in the village to gather and celebrate such a wonderful event.
‘There’s one consolation,’ said Gabe, his voice low as he whispered in her ear.
Meg turned, delighted, as he pulled her close and kissed her briefly for a moment.
‘Go on,’ she said, looking up at his eyes, which sparkled with amusement.
‘With all this going on, we’ve dropped right down the Applemore gossip list.’
Meg looked around. Everyone was listening intently to Greta’s speech.
‘Which means,’ said Gabe, taking her hand and leading her away, around the back of the cottage and through the long sea-grass at the back of the cottage garden wall, ‘that nobody will notice we’re gone.’
‘You are impossible,’ said Meg, laughing. ‘We’re supposed to be there doing our bit.’
He led her down towards the library, where a newly printed sign explained that the brand-new expanded community cupboard could now be found up at the Applemore Village Hall.
‘You did that,’ Gabe said, squeezing her hand. ‘If we’re talking about doing your bit. And you’ve looked after the library, and been the keeper of its secrets.’
Meg pressed her lips together, feeling a wave of unexpected emotion.
Gabe tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and let the back of his fingers trail down her neck for a moment. He’d been doing some last-minute repairs on the fencing and smelled of pine wood and fresh air.
She took an unsteady breath.
‘And you did all the interactive stuff, not to mention building the website.’ Gabe held her gaze. ‘So I think we can be excused for sloping off for a moment alone.’
Meg looked up at the lighthouse and back at Gabe for a moment.
‘It’s weird, isn’t it?’
Gabe cocked his head to one side and looked at her for a second with a curious expression. ‘What is?’
‘The lighthouse. All those years of guiding people safely home.’
She watched as his face lit up with that gorgeous, lopsided smile she loved.
‘And here we are.’ He drew her close.
She reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck.
‘And here we are,’ she echoed - but her words were stolen by a kiss.
* * *