Page 18 of Sailing Free at Loch Tunnagan (Loch Tunnagan #1)
J ess spent the next morning on her laptop, creating forms for the competitors to fill out prior to the race. Her muscles felt stiff from sitting in the same position for so long. She got up to stretch her legs and caught sight of her camera sitting on the coffee table.
She picked it up, enjoying the feeling of it in her hands. It felt like seeing an old friend after being apart for a long time.
She quickly saved her work on the laptop and flung a light cardigan on before heading out of the hotel.
She didn’t really have a plan in mind. She just walked; firstly, around the grounds of the hotel, stopping to take photos of some of Cal’s carvings.
She then made her way down to the village and snapped pictures of Olivia’s Cafe and then the boats.
She carried on as if in a dream. The place was peaceful, the few people that she passed smiled and said hello but carried on with their day at the pace of life you only saw in small villages.
Whether it was the warm sunshine on her face or the fact she was out with her camera again, she wasn’t sure; but she felt something akin to inner peace.
Something she hadn’t felt since she had been a child.
Taking a deep breath, she inhaled the fresh spring air as she sat on a bench that overlooked the village.
She let her eyes close and listened to the soft wind rustling the leaves in the treetops above her and the birds releasing the song from their breasts as they communicated their messages to each other.
Suddenly aware that somebody had sat down next to her she opened her eyes.
“Don’t mind me love,” said Edith smiling, “you looked a million miles away. I’m just stopping for a moment to catch my breath before carrying on up the hill.”
“Hi Edith,” smiled Jess, “How are you? I heard you and June are going away on a holiday soon.”
“Yes, we’re off to Iona next week,” Edith, looked excited. “We used to go there as young girls. Have you been?”
Jess shook her head, “No.”
“It’s a wonderful wee island, “exclaimed Edith, “just off the coast of Mull. You should visit it sometime. Only the locals are allowed cars because the island is so small. It’s all single-track roads and quaint little beaches. It reminds me of how the world was when I was growing up.”
“It sounds wonderful,” smiled Jess. “I hope you both have a brilliant time.” Then she added out of curiosity, “What’s it like having June back in your life after all these years?”
“Do you know, it’s funny. I feel years younger. The last time we saw each other we were in our early twenties and so it feels like we’ve reverted back to how we were then. It’s fun.”
“I bet it is,” agreed Jess.
“Anyway, I’ll leave you to it,” smiled Edith. She patted Jess’ leg lightly, “Sorry for disturbing you. You looked so peaceful sitting on the bench, soaking up the sun's rays.”
“Actually, I’d best be on my way too.” Jess stood, “I hope you have a great holiday if I don’t see you before you leave.”
“Thanks love,” called Edith waving her off.
Jess opened her laptop at dinner that evening to show Cal the forms she had put together. They were eating up in their room, both of them sprawled across opposite ends of the sofa. Jess curled her legs up under her as she took a bite out of her toastie.
“Can you have a look and let me know if there's anything else you can think of that might need to go on the forms?” she turned the laptop towards Cal.
Cal leaned closer, nodding his head in agreement as he read the information. “I reckon some of the teams might want to participate in a bid to raise money for charity. Maybe we should include a sponsorship form?”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll look for some templates online.”Jess addd a note to her ever-expanding list.
“Are you busy tomorrow morning?” asked Cal.
Jess shook her head.
“Good, I want to show you something.”
“Sounds intriguing,” smiled Jess before clearing away the dinner plates and wishing him a good night.
As she lay snuggled in bed that evening, she let herself become lost in the pages of the book that she was reading for the book club before drifting off in a peaceful night's sleep.
Jess awoke feeling fresh the next morning, the aroma of coffee from the next room drew her up out of bed.
“Morning,” smiled Cal as he handed her a mug of the freshly brewed latte.
This had become part of their ritual in the mornings now.
Cal would make her coffee and she would make up two bowls of yoghurt, topped with granola and berries before they both sat down at the table to discuss their plans for the day.
“Hi, where are we going this morning?”
“Up to the barn,” replied Cal.
“I thought only MacTavish was allowed in the barn,” smiled Jess.
Cal grinned and took a sip of his coffee, “I’ll make an exception for you today.”
They finished their breakfast before hopping in the truck. It wasn’t long before they had arrived at the barn and Cal was sliding the large door open. Jess stepped inside and inhaled the warm, earthy fragrances that she had now come to associate with Cal.
“It’s over here,” Cal beckoned her over.
She wandered over to where Cal was standing.
He held up a wooden trophy shield and flicked the stand at the back so it stood on the workbench.
She ran her fingers over it in awe, taking in the intricate waves that had been carved around the rim.
There was a metal plaque in the centre that had been engraved with two oars that crossed over each other in an ‘X’ shape.
The inscription below read ‘Loch Tunnagan Boat Race’.
Twelve small chrome shields were evenly spaced around the outside; these had been left blank to allow the names of the winning team to be engraved on each year.
“Wow, Cal this is amazing. It must have taken you ages.”
Cal shrugged off the compliment, “When you have the right tools it doesn’t take that long.
I asked around the village but nobody could trace where the old trophy was so I put this one together.
I wanted to make sure you were happy with it because if there are any changes you want made, I can easily throw together another one. ”
“No, don’t change it,” Jess pressed the shield protectively to her chest. “It’s perfect.”
“Ok,” laughed Cal, holding up his hands.
“What else are you working on?” asked Jess as she wandered around the barn taking in bits of wood that were in different stages of transformation.
The smell of varnish drifted over from a corner near the door and she went to investigate.
She looked in astonishment at the gleaming coffee table before her.
The table top had been made from a thick cross section of a tree, meaning you could still see the natural shape of the trunk.
Black, cast-iron legs supported it allowing the beauty of the wood to stand out. ”
“Cal, you know you could sell this stuff for a fortune!”
“I’m working on pieces for the hotel at the moment; that table is going to replace the one in our room. I might try and sell some stuff after I’ve finished the rooms in the hotel.”
“You should!” agreed Jess.
They headed back outside and Jess squinted in the bright light of the sun after being in the cool, dark barn.
Cal had already put MacTavish in the backseat of the truck and was opening the driver’s door when she called for him to come back over.
“I’m sure I heard something,” she said looking around.
“What did you hear?” asked Cal curiously.
“It was a sort of snuffling noise.”
“A snuffling?” questioned Cal. “Maybe if you make the actual noise, it'll help me understand what I’m listening for.”
Jess tried to make the snuffling noise which ended up coming out as a snort. It was only when she noticed Cal choking back laughter that she realised he'd been having her on.
“Cal,” she whispered indignantly, “I really think there's an animal or something nearby.”
“Sorry,” replied Cal, struggling to control the cheeky grin on his face.
They stood in silence for a few moments before they both heard it.
The noise was coming from around the side of the barn.
Quietly they tiptoed over to peer around the corner.
The source of the snuffling appeared to be coming from inside the remains of a bright pink helium balloon that was lying on the grass.
There was a slit in the balloon and whatever little creature was in there had clearly crawled in and couldn’t figure out how to get itself back out.
“Stay here,” whispered Cal, “I’ll go and get my gloves from the barn.”
Jess nodded in agreement and waited for him to return.
Cal reappeared wearing some thick gardening gloves. He bent down and carefully lifted the flap of the balloon. A small snout poked out and sniffed around, it was then closely followed by a round prickly body.
“Hedgehog!” whispered Cal.
He stood back, allowing the little hedgehog to emerge fully from the balloon. They both waited patiently for it to make its way into the bushes but the little creature didn’t move.
Jess looked at Cal concerned, “Do you think it’s ok?”
“I’m not sure, it looks really lethargic,” replied Cal.
They both bent down for a closer inspection. There was discharge coming from the poor thing’s nose and mouth.
“What do we do?” asked Jess, worried.
“I’ll call Lorna, the hedgehog lady.” Calpulled his phone from his back pocket and typed 'Lorna' into the search for his contact list.
“You have a hedgehog lady on speed dial,” exclaimed Jess.
Cal smiled as he waited for Lorna to answer, “She lives up the track road.” He pointed further up the hill.
Cal spoke to Lorna, describing the hedgehog’s symptoms. He nodded as he listened to her reply.
When he hung up, he turned to Jess, “We need to take the little guy up to the hedgehog sanctuary.”
He bent down and scooped the poor little critter up. The hedgehog fitted comfortably in one of Cal’s large hands. He placed his other hand protectively over the top to prevent it from falling.