Page 32 of A Summer of Secrets on Arran (Scottish Romances #5)

Earlier that morning, Bella’s alarm woke her with its rude screech.

She sat up, rubbing her eyes and yawned.

Then, when she realised she didn’t start work until two, she lay back down again.

She should have switched the alarm off last night.

There was no rush for her to pull on her uniform and race over to the spa.

She let herself doze for a while longer and then eventually stretched her arms above her head and sat up as she thought about her plans for the day.

Work had been really busy since she started and she was loving it.

She had made it clear she was happy to take on extra shifts when needed, knowing that things would soon quieten down after the busy summer rush.

It also meant she would be able to take some time off, hopefully, over her birthday next month.

Glancing out the window, she could see that it was a bright day and she had been planning to explore Brodick a bit more and perhaps take the bus round to the café in Lamlash.

She had been longing to go back to the place she had been to briefly with her mum, especially as she and Rosie kept raving about their homemade cakes.

An hour later, Bella walked along the promenade in Brodick, breathing in the fresh and salty air.

She passed a few familiar faces from the spa and waved when she saw Becky from work with her mum, Kirsty, and her Aunt Amy on the other side of the road.

When she saw the large black and white Caledonian MacBrayne ferry berthed at the terminal, she knew the bus would be leaving soon for Lamlash, so she made the decision to jump on it and go round to the next village to treat herself to breakfast at Cèic.

As the bus turned left, to follow the road to Lamlash, she gasped when she saw what she thought was Rosie’s car passing by.

She squinted to look and waved when she realised it was Rosie with someone else, most probably Luke, sitting in the passenger seat.

She could just about make out her mum in the back seat. She quickly sent her a text.

Just going to Lamlash for a wander and was on bus leaving Brodick as I saw you driving past. Let me know if you have time to meet for a coffee? Could meet you at Cèic xx

A few minutes later, she felt her phone vibrate.

Great! We have a few errands to do in Brodick. Will text when near. Mum xx

Bella read the reply from her mum and smiled.

She was more than happy to stroll around Lamlash for a while until it was time to go to the café as it was such a beautiful morning.

It would be nice to get outside and get some fresh air and explore.

Whenever she passed through Lamlash, she was very taken with its pretty cottages which overlooked the sheltered bay.

She was also intrigued by the Holy Isle which Rosie had told her was owned by Tibetan monks who ran retreats at the lighthouse there.

Although she had visited Cèic with her mum, she didn’t appreciate what a stunning spot it was as her mind had been elsewhere worrying about being unemployed.

She pottered around some of the gift shops making a point of going into The Wee Trove that her gran and Mum had told her about.

Her gran had gifted her some beautiful earrings from there at Christmas and she wore them all the time.

She made a point of telling the owner, Thea, how much she loved them.

Then, when she noticed the time, she realised she should head over to Cèic.

She stopped to take a quick selfie with the beach in the background and then quickly sent a message to her gran.

Although they had spoken a couple of times since Bella had started her new job, Bella felt a pang of guilt that she hadn’t spoken to her as much as usual.

When she saw an empty table outside the café, she decided to grab it. Sitting down, she sent a text to her mum to let her know she was outside waiting. Then she placed her phone on the table and closed her eyes for a moment, to allow the sunshine to bathe her face.

‘Bella,’ called Isobel, in a sing-song voice.

Bella opened her eyes and looked up. She jumped up smiling and gave her mum and then Rosie a hug. ‘Hello,’ she said merrily. ‘Oh, I thought you might have brought Luke?’ Then Bella noticed Rosie’s knowing smile over her shoulder and turned round to see who she was smiling at.

‘Ben,’ said Bella, shocked. ‘Ben,’ she repeated, this time a bit more incredulously. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘Hey, Bella,’ said Ben, beaming. ‘Surprise, eh?’ He reached over to hug her.

She hugged him tightly and then took a step back to look at him. ‘It certainly is. When did you get here? Why . . . how?’ She was breathless as she looked at him and could feel herself blushing.

‘You two sit down and have a quick debrief,’ said Rosie in an excited voice. ‘Your mum and I will go and get the coffees. Just the usual? And don’t worry, we will get scones too.’

Bella and Ben managed a nod before Rosie and Isobel disappeared inside the café.

Ben sat down on the chair next to her. ‘I still can’t believe you’re here.

’ Her heart was now racing and she felt slightly giddy with excitement, which she could pretend was down to her not eating breakfast. However, Ben really did look as good in the flesh as he did in his pictures, which had more to do with it.

His piercing blue eyes lingered on her face and she felt her body stiffen when his arm brushed hers.

‘This is wild.’ She shook her head, unable to pull her eyes from his face. ‘I don’t know what to say.’

Ben raised an eyebrow. ‘That’s a first. You’ve usually got plenty to say about things . . .’

She nudged him and tutted. ‘Right, hang on a minute and start from the beginning. What has happened and when did you get back?’

Ben gave her a potted version of wanting to come home to see his mum. ‘She’s doing surprisingly well,’ said Ben, sitting back in his chair, ‘which is great but . . . she looks fantastic and seems really happy so perhaps the single life is suiting her.’

Ah right , thought Bella. Rosie obviously hadn’t told him about Luke yet so she reminded herself not to put her foot in it. Just then, Rosie and Isobel arrived back at the table.

‘Cano will bring the stuff out in a minute,’ Rosie said.

‘Isn’t this amazing to have you both here like this?’ said Isobel, chatting quickly. ‘Who would have thought you would both be on Arran like this and working nearby?’

Bella felt as though her jaw was about to hit the ground for the second time in ten minutes. ‘Working?’ she said to Ben in surprise.

He looked sheepish. ‘That was going to be my next piece of news. I’ve been offered a job round at the distillery in Brodick.

They’re short-staffed and I can start straightaway.

’ He glanced over at his mum. ‘James also said that if I want, I can use his flat. He lives with his girlfriend now and it’s empty apart from when his friend is over doing walking tours. Is that okay?’

Bella watched Rosie’s face. Did she notice a look of relief pass over it?

‘Yes, of course, that’s great, Ben. Makes sense for you to be nearer work and there’s more happening for you young things in Brodick.’ She looked up and thanked Cano for bringing out their coffees and scones. ‘I’m just going to go inside and get some napkins,’ she said. ‘Back in a moment.’

Ben frowned. ‘That went better than expected. I thought she would be wanting me at Creel Cottage with her.’

Bella looked at her mum as she raised an eyebrow and they both quickly took a sip of coffee.

‘Um, well, I’m sure it will all work out, what with Ash arriving soon as well.’

‘Of course,’ said Ben, steepling his hands together. ‘Things might have been a bit cosy anyway if I had stayed. I’m not sure Ash would be happy to share a room with any of us. Or vice versa.’

Isobel grinned. ‘I know. Ash tends to be a tad messy.’

‘By the way. I don’t want you to think I’m being a total stalker or anything like that – with the job in Brodick.’ He shrugged. ‘It’s just that I spent all my savings on the flight home and I need to save up now before I go back.’

This piqued Bella’s interest. ‘Don’t be daft. I am just still fairly gobsmacked that you are here at all. But won’t your friends miss you?’ She did of course mean Mabel in particular.

‘Nah,’ he said, taking a sip of his coffee. ‘They’re all away now anyway. People are always moving. It’s fine.’ He looked at her meaningfully. ‘It’s good to be back.’

She smiled at him, feeling her cheeks flush again. Now she was starting to understand what her mum was talking about when she spoke about hot flushes and why they annoyed her so much.

‘Here we are,’ said Rosie, arriving back with a pile of napkins.

‘Hey, there’s Fergus,’ said Ben pointing to the café entrance. ‘Let me run over and say hello.’

Bella watched him as he lightly jogged over to a man who had just come out the café. They hugged.

‘Oh God, Bella, you didn’t say anything about Luke, did you? I will tell him, I just haven’t had a chance and then I hoped you hadn’t said anything.’

‘Sorry, I completely put my foot in it when you arrived and I said I thought you were bringing Luke. I could tell you from your face that you hadn’t mentioned him to Ben.’

‘He didn’t hear that don’t worry. And no, not yet . . .’

Bella gave her a reassuring smile. ‘No, don’t worry. I didn’t say a thing.’

‘When are you going to tell him?’ asked Isobel.

Rosie sighed loudly and her shoulders visibly slumped. ‘I just wasn’t quite expecting all of this. It’s all been a bit of a surprise.’

She glanced over at Ben standing with Fergus, who then pulled something from his pocket, handed Ben his coffee cup and started to run. That was strange , thought Bella.

‘I don’t mean to be so secretive but, well, I suppose I will have to talk to him soon,’ said Rosie.

‘Talk to me about what?’ said Ben, arriving back at the table.

‘Um, about what you said to Fergus to make him dash off like that,’ said Bella hastily. ‘Did he not rate your chat?’

Ben grinned. ‘Ah, that was his pager. He got a shout. He’s a volunteer with the lifeboat crew.’

‘I hope it isn’t anything too serious,’ she said.

He shrugged and picked up his coffee. ‘Time will tell. He just has to drop everything when it goes off. I got used to drinking a lot of his coffees when I worked with him last summer at the outdoor centre. It always used to happen just when he had been in to buy his flat white.’

Bella chuckled, relieved that Ben was now more focused on eating his scone than what she and their mums had been talking about. She looked at Rosie who threw her a grateful look.