The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (086) Caring

Palm Sunday was the first service of the new incarnation of St Clara’s and despite the congregation being on the whole unaware of the significance of the day there was an incredible atmosphere that morning.

Molly thought to herself that it was like the Church itself was expressing its approval.

Arielle rose to the occasion and so many of the congregants commented on the quality of the service in general and her sermon in particular, which was clearly aided by Harry sitting in the front pew.

 

Molly began the week in a good frame of mind, after the success of the Palm Sunday service and the seamless transition from Church of England control, and it meant that she could proceed to the next level.

 

For Arielle getting through her first service was a great relief and having Harry there at her side had lightened her load.

As Monday was her day off, she and Harry took the Water Taxi to Cabot Town on St Giles, which was where they had their first kiss, and they had a very pleasant day and cosy evening until he had to get the early ferry back to the mainland on Tuesday morning.

The remainder of the week was to keep her very busy, but Harry had given her great strength.

 

School Teacher, Marion Monaghan, hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the thoughtful and kind Nurse, Kevin Holland, after he had driven her home following her accident.

When she was at the hospital, he said she had “stunning and shapely legs”, well in truth he only mentioned the one leg, but she thought properly attired he would like the other one just as well.

She hoped he might also think the rest of her up to snuff, so Marion thought she would just have to make sure she used her assets and her legs to maximum effect.

So on the day she was going to the Bellevue she had on a brand-new pair of silky smooth 70 denier black tights, with her shortest skirt and highest heels.

 

Kevin had been looking forward to seeing her again and he hoped he was on shift when she came back in to have her stitches out, there was no guarantee though, so he thought he would call round to her flat after Easter to enquire if he did miss her.

 

When she arrived at the hospital, she caught sight of Kevin while she was booking in with Heather Edwards so when she was ushered into a cubicle by a Nursing Assistant, she sat on the bed with her legs displayed to their fullest effect in time for his arrival.

“Hello Marion” he said very professionally

“So you’ve come to get your stitches out” he added although he knew very well why she was there.

“Yes please” she replied

“Do you want me to cut your tights off again?” He asked

“What? No, why?” she asked with alarm

“Because I can’t take the stiches out through the fabric” he said

“Ah I hadn’t thought about that” she said and giggled.

As she slithered off the bed, she forgot she was wearing heels and stumbled violently, luckily, she fell in Kevin’s direction and he caught her, and she was still giggling when she ended up face to face with the Nurse, so she stopped giggling and kissed him, and they were completely lost in the blissful embrace, but they were almost caught by the doctor and a jovial porter.

Fortunately, they were loud and boisterous which they gave the kissing couple time to separate unnoticed.

After giving her some privacy to remove her tights, he checked the wound and then took the stitches out, and they resumed their embrace later that evening in the privacy of her flat. 

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (085) Birthday Treat

 

Molly had so enjoyed their “research” trip to Paris that he persuaded him to extend it until Friday.

Which meant that they didn’t get back to the island until Friday evening, had Saturday not been so significant to her they would definitely have stayed longer. 

 

Lazarus of Bethany is a figure within the Christian Bible, whose life was restored by Jesus four days after his death. This is seen by Christians as one of the miracles of Jesus.

In the Catholic and Orthodox Church Lazarus is venerated, but in the Church of England, not so much.

But in Spaniards Creek the day would be forever remembered by those in Molly’s inner circle as the day St Clara’s Church was risen from the dead.

It was also the Saturday before Holy Week, which is the sixth and final week of Lent, beginning with Palm Sunday and concluding on Holy Saturday, and it’s the most significant week of the Christian calendar.

For the Vicar Arielle Nicholas it very much felt like she was starting at the beginning, and she was immensely grateful to Molly for having faith in her.

 

Johnny Lemon lived in a narrow boat moored in Spaniards Creek quite near to where the renovations were near completion.

He was originally from Finchbottom, and he was working as a supply teacher across the Finchbottom Vale but was offered a twelve-month contract covering the Deputy Head teachers maternity leave in St Pierre.

He didn’t normally do that length of time but he had never been to Beaumont Island before so he thought he would give it a go.

That had been five years earlier, and when the teacher he was covering for elected not to return, he was offered the position permanently, and after three years the Head retired, and he was promoted.

His accommodation aboard the “Island Rose” was only supposed to be temporary to cover his 12 months substitute stint but something unexpected happened, he loved it, so hence why he had been afloat for 5 years.

He met Rachel Hanson soon after he’d taken the permanent position at the school when he started to frequent the Galleon Coffee shop, and a friendship developed.

She had also managed to get him to set foot in Church again after many years absence because she was the Verger at St Clara’s.

However after four years he was no longer interested solely in her friendship, but if he made a romantic approach and she wasn’t interested he could screw up what they had.

 

He needn’t have worried because Rachel Hanson felt the same about him, but she was also in a similar mindset.

However she had set her heart on being his birthday treat, so she dressed accordingly.

She could have gone full body Lycra, which would fit her like a second skin, taut and seamless leaving every contour revealed, but she was thinking something a little more subtle, so she went for a bra top and fitted shorts.

 

So on Saturday morning Johnny Lemon was up early for his 40^th Birthday and was at the Galleon half an hour later.

“Happy Birthday!” she exclaimed when he walked in and gave him a hug and kissed his cheek.

“Do you want to get going straight away?” she asked

“No I need sustenance” he replied

“I thought you’d say that” she said and put two bacon baps on the table in front of him.

“You are an angel” he said, “is this my birthday present?”

“No you can unwrap your present later” she said

 

After he finished both bacon baps and had drunk two coffees, he was ready to go, which coincided with Rachel arriving with a Cooler Backpack.

“I hope you are feeling refreshed after your breakfast because you’re carrying the pack” 

“There is always a price to pay” he said sagely

 

They set off on their bike ride and headed up the St Pierre road it was  supposed to a quiet relaxion cycle in the countryside, just a spot of fresh air and some exercise, and a picnic, and that’s what it was until Rachel over took him, but didn’t she didn’t try to leave him in her wake, she just kept perfect pace with him and that was a problem, because her shorts which fitted her like a glove, and that was all he saw, none of the countryside scenery or pastoral views, just the perfect curves and contours of her taut firm buttocks, and when she stood up in the saddle and the landscape changed he could think of nothing else.

When they left the St Pierre road and onto Halfway Lane she set off at breakneck speed and if he wanted to keep her buttocks in view, he needed to match her speed, which he did with some effort.

 

Rachel was feeling very pleased with herself when they stopped up on the crags for their picnic, he had kept his eye on the prize all the way.

“Well that was a good ride” she said “Great views”

“Really great views” he agreed

But she realised it was going to take much more than “great views” to get him in her arms, so a bit of sneaky subterfuge was in order.

 

They spent a very pleasant hour or so up on the crags eating their picnic and while they were eating lunch the solution came to her and she smiled to herself.

“What are you smiling about?” he asked

“Nothing” she replied “I’m just happy”

 

Gentler pace on a different route down off the crag and down to where the Beacon and Spanish rivers met and crossed over on the wide rocky shallows.

Then they negotiated the streams and rivulets on the outskirts of the woods before following the Spanish River all the way back to the village.

Eventually they ended up on the tow path that led to where the Island Rose was moored, and he came to a stop, from behind him he heard Rachel loudly exclaim.

“Oww!”

“What’s the matter?” he asked as he quickly dismounted and shed the backpack

“I think I’ve torn my calf muscle” she said

“Ok put your arms around my neck, and I’ll help you” he said and as soon as her arms locked around his neck, she took control of the situation and forced him backwards until they fell into the long grass where she snogged him.

Then almost as quickly as it had started, she disengaged her assault.

“Very acceptable” she said as she got to her feet, then she ran to her bike and cycled off and shouted over her shoulder

“Pick me up at 8”

And as he sat in the grass, she was racing down the tow path laughing her head off.

 

On the Eve of Palm Sunday Molly phoned the Vicar and invited her round for the evening, the next day was very significant for Arielle because it was her first service without the weight of the whole Church of England behind her and Molly knew that she was very nervous.

It was just after 6.30 when she knocked on the door and Danny opened it.

“Hello Vicar” he said, “Come in.”

“Thank you,” she replied a little forlornly

“Hi Arielle” Molly said “We thought you might need some moral support”

“I’m fine really” Arielle said

“Oh ok, so you won’t want to see our guest” Molly said and nodded to the door behind her, and when she turned around, she saw Harry Archer standing there and she ran into his arms. 

 

The Galleon was closed when Johnny arrived at 8 o’clock, so he went  and knocked on the back door and he only had to wait a few moments before it opened, and he saw Rachel standing there dressed up to the nines.

“Wow” he said as she stepped backwards to let him inside.

“That was very sneaky behaviour earlier” he said

“I was left with no alternative, I’ve been waiting ages for you to make your move, so I had to take matters into my own hands” she retorted and kissed him.

After the nerve tingling kiss ended, he said

“We’d better make a move”

“Not until after you’ve unwrapped your present” she replied and bolted the door.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (084) Life Begins at 40

 

After leaving the hospital Johnny Lemon indicated right, which would have taken him back to St Joan of Arc’s in St Pierre, but he hesitated and turned left which took him to Spaniards Creek, and the Galleon Coffee Shop. 

 

He parked down by the river and walked up and when he entered, he saw the reason he had come to the village, Rachel Hanson, the owner, and he was in love with her, and had been for some time.

But he was just about to turn 40, and as the saying goes, life begins at 40, and he wanted his to start with her.

She was a striking looking woman with a mass of flaming red hair, chemically aided as she was now 42 years old.

But she looked fabulous, and as she was about to take a bike ride, she was wearing a Lycra outfit which did nothing to hide her shapely assets.

But he thought she was too good for him, and he completely overlooked the fact that he was a man, and she was a woman and that bird’s bird and bee’s bee, and he convinced himself that his feelings were unrequited, he didn’t know that she felt the same way about him, which was why she gave him a beaming smile as he walked in.

“Hey Johnny, what’s this, the head teacher playing hooky?”

“I have permission, I can assure you” he retorted

“Well it’s nice to see you on a school day, sit down I’ll get your coffee”

“Thanks, I don’t want to hold you up though”

“Don’t be silly I’m the boss I can take my ride whenever I please” she said

 

She brought his coffee and joined him at the table

“What are you doing for your birthday?” she asked

“Nothing planned” he replied

“Nothing at all for the big 4 0?” she asked amazed

“Obviously there will be drink involved, but nothing out of the ordinary” he explained

“Scandalous” Rachel said “I’m not having that”

“What do you mean?”

“The weather is supposed to be good on Saturday, why not come mountain biking with me?”

“Mountain biking?” he retorted distaste

“It’ll be fun, we can make a day of it, I’ll pack a picnic” she said

“Ok I’d like that, but two conditions,” Johnny said

“Which are?”

“Firstly we finish up having dinner” he said “somewhere indoors”

“Agreed” she said, “And second?”

“I’m not wearing Lycra”

“Why not?”

“I won’t look as good as you do”

“Oh you think I look good, do you?” she said making him blush “that’s progress”

Then she added

“I agree to your terms”

 

Kevin put 12 stitches in the wound below her knee and applied a dressing.

“There you go, all done” Kevin said “Come back in 7 to 10 days and I’ll take the stitches out, or whoever is on duty” 

“Give me five minutes and I’ll get your discharge pack”

“So can I call my lift back?”

“Sure” he replied “Or I can drop you off”

“When do you finish?”

“About an hour ago” he replied

 

“Do you want another coffee?” Rachel asked

“I’d better not” he replied and then he received a text

“Oh it appears I’m not needed for a lift so yes I would love another coffee”

 

“So where do you want dropping?” he asked

“Just drop me at the school” she said

“You really need to keep off your feet” he said

“I know but my kids will be worried” Marion explained

“I won’t stay all day”

“Well I don’t think you should turn up at school looking like that” He said

“What do you mean? what’s wrong with me?”

“Well you have one leg that’s stunning and shapely, while the other one could easily belong to Nora Batty” he pointed out

She looked down at her semi naked leg with one of her tights legs settled around her ankle.

“Oh, I see what you mean” she said and giggled

 

So Kevin drove her home and she directed him to a small block of flats between St Pierre and Saxvirdan.

“Thanks for the lift” Marion said as she opened the car door

“I’ll wait for you” he said

“I should be ok now”

“No way, I'm not having you walking all the way to St Joan's and back again” he said “I’ll wait”

 

Johnny Lemon got back to the school about ten minutes before Marion did and he was feeling very pleased with himself, as he had been given an early birthday present.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (083) Hospital Visit

 

Abbottsford born Marion Monaghan moved to the Island the previous summer and immediately became infatuated with a young man twelve years younger than she was and they had a torrid Summer romance, until she came to her senses in the Autumn.

But not before she had been put through a long hot intimate summer workout by farmers son Derek Wilson which had kept her well limbered up, but in the end, she accepted the absurdity of dating a boy of 22.

 

She was a School Teacher at St Joan of Arc Junior School in St Pierre and on Monday morning she was walking towards the building carrying homework she had been marking over the weekend, when she tripped and fell on the steps, and got a rather nasty gash on her leg.

So Johnny Lemon, the School Head, offered to drive her to the Bellevue Cottage Hospital.

 

The hospital was originally built by the army during the Great War when Beaumont Manor was commandeered by the Medical Corp for convalescing officers before returning to the front, but as the war went on, they found they needed to expand beyond convalescence.

After the armistice it remained War Office property but fell into disuse between the wars but was quickly brought back into service following the outbreak of World War Two.

The island played a much more active role between 1940 and 1945 with a radar station at Spaniards Point and two anti-aircraft batteries, and barrage balloons outside St Pierre and Spaniards Creek and the hospital saw more action as a result.

Two years after the end of the war the military left the island, leaving the fully equipped hospital mothballed but intact behind them and the Manor house became the Beaumont Manor Hotel.

The hospital would have remained in mothballs indefinitely had it not been for an outbreak of poliomyelitis on the mainland during 1949 and again in 1950 meant that the powers that be decided to get the hospital running again, if only in the short term, but a polio outbreak, coupled with high numbers of TB patients, meant that the short term lasted into the 1960’s when it was decided to update and improve the main buildings and add on a large extension.     

The hospital and the attached medical centre catered well for the islanders’ basic needs, but for more important treatments and surgeries, patients needed to travel to the mainland, which they would need to do by ferry, water taxi or some other vessel or in extreme cases a helicopter.

 

Johnny drove her to the hospital, and he parked as close to the entrance as possible and walked her inside and after waiting for a few minutes they were attended to by Nurse Kevin Holland.

“Oh dear what have you been up to?” Kevin asked

“Not looking where I was going, I suppose” she replied.

“Well let’s take some details and then we can get you sorted out”

 

After booking her in with Heather Edwards they sat in the waiting area for about ten minutes before the Nurse called her and took them into a cubicle.

“You don’t need to stay” she said

“Are you sure?” Johnny asked

“Absolutely sure”

“Well call me when you’re done, and I’ll pick you up” Johnny said

 

After Johnny left, Kevin went through the basics with her, and ten minutes after that he was cutting the leg of her tights after which he irrigated the wound.

 

Kevin Holland was born and bred on the island and had worked at the Bellevue Hospital as a Nurse for five years, and he lived with his brother who was the St Pierre Harbour Master, and he had something in common with his patient because he too had dated someone considerably younger than him and, in his case, it lasted a year.

Stable girl Lisa Scott was a much younger woman than Kevin.

It was very flattering for him at the time to have a stunningly attractive girlfriend on his arm, and his mates were well impressed, and at the time he looked upon her merely in those terms.

At first, he couldn’t believe she would possibly be interested in an older man like him.

Even though they laughed and joked together, and she flicked at her hair flirtatiously, he was flattered but he never thought it would lead anywhere, to think it would, was the stuff of cheap fiction, or so he thought, but he was wrong.

But it could never last because they had absolutely nothing in common, except the sex, which was good, but it was the bits in between the sex where real relationships dwelt.

Lisa wasn’t happy when he broke up with her, but he knew she would find someone better than him.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (082) Redeeming a Raincheck

 

On Saturday morning Doctors Woodward and Cameron took advantage of what was to be the calm before the storm by getting out for a walk, they had got out early that morning to drive up to Stephenson’s Supermarket to do a weekly shop, and then left for their walk as soon after putting the shopping away as possible.

They followed the cliff path south as far as Norman Beach before heading inland along Beacon Farm road until they reached the Spanish River.

They were headed to where the Beacon and Spanish rivers met and as they got close, there were streams and rivulets to negotiate and as he was about to jump over one of the babbling brooks, he caught sight of something glistening in the water, so he knelt on the bank and reached down and picked it up.

It was irregular in shape and was about the size of a cigarette packet and was made of some kind of transparent plastic or Perspex.

Deborah was slightly ahead of him and looked back to see where he was.

“What have you got there?” she asked

“It looks like a bit of aviation Perspex” he replied

“And what’s that when it’s at home?”

“It was used on World War Two aircraft, German in this case I think, Messerschmitt probably” he replied

“How did it get here?” Deborah asked

“It would have dropped here after the plane was hit by either cannon fire or flak” he said and slipped it into his pocket as a souvenir of the expedition, he thought he might even do something with it when he had a spare minute of two on a cold winter evening.

 

It was early evening by the time they walked down Halfway Lane and as they crossed the road and approached Manor Row she said

“Thank you”

“What for?” he asked

“For another lovely day” she explained

“No need for thanks” he said “it was very enjoyable”

Stuart looked at his watch and was amazed to see how late it was, no wonder he was hungry.

“It’s later than I thought” he said

“Me too” Deborah agreed “And I forgot to leave something out for supper”

“Have supper with me then” he offered

“Can you cook?” she asked him suspiciously

“I can” he replied

“I don’t mean “can you microwave”“ she said with a chuckle

“No I really can cook” he insisted

“Ok then”

“Are you a fussy eater?” Stuart added

“No, I’ll eat anything” she said and laughed

“Ok then that’s settled”

“Good I’m starving” she said “So you’d better make sure there’s plenty of it”

 

Because everything was coming together in Spaniards Creek Danny suggested getting Molly out of her own head for a few days, so he booked them a short break to Paris.

“I’m not sure now is a good time” Molly said

“Everyone knows what they are doing, and we’ll be back well before Holy week” he said “Think of it as research for the new book, with a little romance thrown in”

“You make a very persuasive argument” Molly said and kissed him, and they left the island on the last ferry on Sunday.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (081) A Busy Month

 

April was going to be a busy month for Molly, a lot of things were coming to fruition.

At Midnight on Friday 8^th of April owner ship of St Clara’s Church ceased to be part of the Church of England and changed to the ownership of the Barrington estate.

Molly chose that date because she thought it appropriate because it was Lazarus Saturday, which was the day when Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead after he had lain in the grave four days.

She was metaphorically doing the same thing with the Church because if not for her intervention it would unquestionably have fallen into a state of disrepair from which it wouldn't have risen again.

 

Adam Jandrell and his team were on track to have the building renovation completed on the site over on the east side of the Spanish River, by the end of April and the west side by June 1^st.

Then the team could commence work on the Church Lane Cottages.

Which meant that Amelia Williamson needed to start looking for tenants, and the Parish Council helped with a list of suitable candidates.

Molly had instructed Amelia that priority was to be given to local people or people with ties to the village at the very least or those who worked in some capacity on the island either in agriculture, the hotel or the hospital.

For the commercial units they could be rented to non-islanders, but the businesses had to employ local labour.

But the month was also tinged with a small amount of sadness because once the Church was under her full ownership, she could complete the plans for her grandfather’s reinterment, which obviously opened old wounds.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (080) Redeeming a Raincheck

 

April

On the first of April, Architect Carolyn Livingston was back on the island, but unlike her previous few visits she was not there in connection with the Spanish River renovations, she had other designs in mind.

On her previous trip she got a nearside front puncture and came to rest on the verge, and Howard Nelson came to her rescue and got her to her appointment, if not on time, then close enough.

Meeting Howard had shaken her a little when she saw him, because they were actually a thing, for about three years, but  they split up eight years before, because she got a job on the mainland, and he had just taken over his father’s Boat Yard in Spaniards Creek.

Not making it work had been her biggest regret and saw the  puncture as providential.

She was on the verge of her 40^th birthday and he was close behind.

So with the mindset that it was maybe their last chance she walked into the office at Nelson’s Boat Yard and invited him for coffee as a thank you for helping her out.

He declined, but only because he was on the way out, so he asked for a raincheck for the next time she was on the island.

Well she was back, and she was going to redeem the raincheck.

 

Carolyn phoned Howard the day before and suggested upgrading the coffee date to dinner and he agreed, so she proposed meeting at the Beaumont Manor at 7.30pm.

Howard was as eager to see her as she was to see him, so he arrived ten minutes early.

But by 7.45 when she hadn’t appeared he texted her.

“Hi Carolyn, I’m in reception”

Less than a minute later she texted him back.

“Sorry, I’m running late, come up and wait, I’m in room 223, I’ll leave the door on the latch”

 

He made his way upstairs and let himself in and he could hear movement in the bathroom, and he closed the door loudly to let her know he had arrived.

“Is that you Howard?” she called

“Why? Who else are you expecting?”

“Don’t be cheeky, go and take a seat, I’ll be out shortly”

“Ok no problem” he replied

It was about five minutes before she appeared, and when she stepped out of the bathroom, he gasped.

Carolyn was wearing matching black silk underwear, black stockings, high heeled shoes and a filthy expression.

“Can I assume that as you invited me to your room we are dining in?” he asked and pushed himself up out of the armchair

“Something like that” she replied as she walked slowly towards him, before pushing him onto the bed.

 

They never did get dinner that night, they had to make do with a room service sandwich and breakfast in bed the next morning, they did manage to make it to the restaurant on Saturday night.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (079) Exceeding Expectations

 

The Archer’s were on the early Monday morning ferry and once they left the harbour, the four siblings were all standing by the rail.

They were unmistakably siblings with their clear unblemished complexions and straw-coloured hair of various lengths and styles.

“Well Pan, we got to find out what’s so special about the place” Clarissa said

“It certainly exceeded my expectations” Pandora responded, as Peter Wilson and Kenny Woodward approached, and they smiled at one another.

 

Monday was also the day when Bucklebury and Brandywine took over the management of the Church Lane Properties.

Clive Crossfield had terminated Brown and Leigh’s contract for fraudulently invoicing for work that was never done, and legal action was still a distinct possibility and they had been ordered to supply all relevant documents to Amelia Williamson at their earliest convenience.

Brown and Leigh took the instruction literally and a Luton van arrived in Spaniards Creek at midday full to the gunwales with archive boxes.

Amelia was at St Clara’s, with Molly and the Vicar, when she took the phone call from the driver.  

After she explained the nature of the phone call, the Vicar suggested the Church Hall, but without knowing exactly when they would be able to actually open their own premises it would have been unfair to take her up on her offer, so Molly phoned Katie Harrison and she agreed to let them store the boxes in the Beacon Farm barn, so Amelia redirected the driver to the farm. 

 

The rest of the month for Amelia was spent in the barn sorting through the boxes searching for the most recent reports for the Church Lane Properties.  

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (078) The Morning After

The visit caused a great deal of chatter at dinner that night and that led to some overindulgence, so the next morning they were slow to surface and were sluggish and lethargic.

So after some reviving coffee they set off for a walk, with the exception of Harry, who was spending as much of the day as possible with the Vicar.  

Their first port of call was Beacon Farm where they picked up the rest of the walking dead and Hayley Stock who was the only clear-headed member of the party as she didn’t drink.

 

Also visiting the island that weekend was twenty-eight-year-old Peter White, who was staying on Long Lake Farm with his family for the weekend, he was also from Sharpington, but he arrived on the last ferry of the day on Friday.

He loved his family, and he loved the island, but he knew from an early age that farming wasn’t for him, and after a week at university he knew there was more to life than Beaumont island, so after getting his degree in hospitality he got a job at the Seaview Hotel where he was now the assistant manager.

On Sunday morning his brother Jamie got a call from his girlfriend Hayley so he was walking over to meet up with her so Peter said he would tag along with him as far as the river.

 

Roughly about two hours before the party set off from Beacon Farm Kenny Woodward was leaving his sister’s house in Manor Row with a packed lunch in his backpack and a crudely drawn map courtesy of his sister Deborah.

They were supposed to be walking together but she had been unexpectedly called in to the hospital at stupid o’clock.

 

Before leaving the farm George held a straw poll, to see where everyone wanted to go, and it appeared no one had a particular preference, but no one fancied climbing anything.

So they settled on following the river up towards the lake.

Katie Harrison had made sandwiches for everyone and made sure everyone had plenty of water and then they set off, leaving Katie’s sister Louise and her husband Neil and their twins to hold the fort.

 

You could not describe what they were doing as a yomp, it was more of a slow amble for the nine of them, as the newbies to the island appreciated the woods and some of the hidden treasures on view.

Hayley was the only one who wanted to press on at pace, but that was because she was eager to see Jamie, who she was meeting where the Beacon and Spanish rivers meet.

 

When they eventually arrived, Hayley could see Jamie and his brother on the far side of the river, but before she got there, there were streams and rivulets to negotiate.

Jamie and Peter moved further upstream and crossed at the widest point, using the boulders as steppingstones, while Hayley jumped another stream and one by one the others jumped across the stream behind her.

George, the gentle giant leapt it with ease, then Katie, Nikki, Sam, Molly, and by the time Danny cleared the obstacle, Peter and Jamie White had reached the party along with the Kenny Woodward, who had emerged from the woods and who the Archer’s recognized as the guy who asked for directions on the ferry.

Then Clarissa made her jump and got it wrong and ended up losing her footing on landing and fell on her backside with one foot in the brook and got a bootie.

Pandora laughed so much that when she jumped, she ended up in the water and got two booties and all of them laughed.

“Come on let’s get you out of there” Peter said reaching his hand out to Clarissa.

She took it gladly as she looked up at the gorgeous raven-haired young man and he pulled her effortlessly up to his level and she thought he was even more striking up close.

“Thank you”

“Ok, your turn” Kenny said and pulled Pandora up onto the bank.

“Thanks, that was worth getting my feet wet for.”

she said and giggled.

She and Clarissa were still giggling as they sat on a rock and tipped the water from their shoes.

“Well, I think this is as good a place as any to have lunch” Katie said, and everyone agreed.

 

After lunch Hayley and Jamie went off on their own, and five minutes later Sam and Nikki did the same, and the remaining 8 followed the path into Riverside Woods, Danny and Molly were at the back holding hands and they watched the others as they formed into pairs, the lithe Clarissa and her raven haired adonis and curvaceous Pandora and her bearded rescuer, with gentle giant George and Katie up front.

“There’s definitely something about this island” Molly said and squeezed Danny’s hand. “Something magical”

“You had already worked your magic on me before we even got to the island” Danny pointed out and she kissed him.

 

They emerged from the wood by the bridge and Kenny said.

“This is where I need to say goodbye.”

“So soon?” Pandora said rather too fervently.

“I’m afraid so” he replied, “My sister will be back from the hospital shortly.”

“We’re only five minutes from the farm” Katie said, “Come back for a hot drink.”

“Yes, please do” Pandora implored.

“I’ll run you back up the road after” George said.

“Then you I would love to” he replied.

 

About the same time Deborah arrived home from the hospital and Stuart was working in his front garden and he was pleased to see her and said “Hello”

“Hello Stuart” she replied, “Where did you walk today?”

“I haven’t been,” he replied “it’s more fun with company”

“Well if you’re up for it I’m happy to do a walk” she offered “it’ll have to be a little one as I’ve had a bit of a day”

“Well if you’re sure you wouldn’t rather have a good soak in the bath” he said “I’ll just change my shoes”

“Don’t worry I will have that soak, but later will do” she said “Just give me five minutes and I’ll be with you”

 

Five minutes later they did a short walk down to Manor Cliff  beach and spent a pleasant hour walking along the wet sands before returning to the Cliff Top and as they entered Manor Row at the Cliffs end, Kenny entered it from the other. 

“Hi Debs” he said

“Kenny! Meet Stuart”

“Stuart this is my kid brother Kenny”

“Nice to meet you” Kenny said shaking his hand

“Likewise” he replied and then added “Well I’ll say goodbye, thanks for your company”

“Bye Stuart” she chirped before addressing her brother

“How did you get on?”  

“Great”

“And you didn’t get lost?” she asked as she opened the front door

“No, far from it” he replied

“Tell me more” she said and closed the door 

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (077) The Arrival of the Archer’s

 

The Archer’s were on the 8 o’clock ferry on Saturday morning and once they were out in open water the four siblings were all standing by the rail and Clarissa and Pandora got their first proper look at the Pepperstock Bay Islands.

They were unmistakably siblings with their clear unblemished complexions and straw-coloured hair of various lengths and styles.

“Well Pan, we’ll soon see what’s so special about the place” Clarissa said

“I have very low expectations” Pandora responded

“Relax and enjoy it, it’s the place where dreams come true” Sam said, and Harry smiled, but Clarissa just huffed.

 

Also aboard the early ferry was Kenny Woodward the younger brother of Dr Deborah Woodward who was spending the weekend with her.

He had never been to Beaumont Island before, but his sister waxed lyrical about it.

He had travelled from Sharpington, where he owned and ran the Bluebird Theatre and seldom left the town, but he loved his sister and as they were the only family they had they both made sure they stayed in each other’s lives.

But it suddenly occurred to him that he didn’t know where he was going, so he decided to ask someone.

There were a group standing by the rail a few yards away, so he decided to amble over and ask.

“Excuse me” he said, and they all turned towards him

“I was wondering if you could help”

“If we can” Harry said

“Great, have any of you been to the island before?”

“Yes, we have” Sam replied gesturing between him and Harry

“Brilliant, would you happen to know how to get to Manor Row?”

“Yes, we can help with that” Sam said

“Once you leave the dock, follow the signs for “Spaniards Creek” and you’ll pass the Bellevue Hospital, then the Beaumont Manor Hotel and Manor Row is the next left”

“That’s great, thank you” Kenny said

“No problem” Sam said, and Kenny walked away

 

It wasn’t long before the ferry had lined up with the jetty, so the Archer’s walked briskly back to the car.

Harry pointed out that the guy asking directions was in the car ahead of them.

As soon as the ramp was lowered, they began disembarking and the car ahead pulled away.

“Now we get to see if he was paying attention” Harry said and when their turn came Sam followed it down the ramp and out of the dock, onto the Spaniards Creek road, past the Bellevue Cottage Hospital, likewise the Beaumont Manor Hotel, and then the car ahead indicated left and turned off.

“So did he pay attention?” Clarissa asked from the back

“Yes, that’s Manor Row” Sam said

They drove on and went directly to Cliff Haven

“I can’t believe we’re staying at Danny Nightingale’s house” Pandora said

“Well technically its Molly Barrington’s house” Harry pointed out

“Even so, Danny Nightingale” she said as they pulled up on the drive.

 

Clarissa, Pandora and Harry were staying at Cliff Haven, but Sam was staying with the Harrison’s at Beacon Farm that night, where they were all headed once everyone else had settled in.

 

Katie Harrison put on a simple buffet lunch for everyone, nothing too heavy as they were all dining at the Orangery  that evening. 

After lunch the talk turned to, Archer’s Ornamental, which was started by Sam, and elder brother Harry, after Sam left university.

The business specialized in handmade snow globes, but amongst other things they also made decorative lights from recycled wine bottles, some bespoke, others mass-produced for the tourist season, and Christmas decorations for Emmaline’s Christmas Emporium in Sharpington.

Sam was the artist of the family business, he was the creator, the carver, modeller, and painter.

Harry was more practical, doing the technical stuff, 3D Printing, acrylic injection moulding, and impact moulding.

He also managed the production staff who assembled finished and packed the completed articles.

Clarissa and Pandora were later to the party and did the ordering, invoicing, and accounts, remotely while their mother was ill, and attended the factory one day a week.

Pandora and Clarissa had given up a lot to look after their mum, they both gave up good careers and both of them suffered relationship breakdowns as a result.

Their other halves not understanding why their lives should have to change, and Pandora was engaged to her partner.

However following their mother’s death,

Rather than return to their former career paths they wanted to become more involved in the business as they found themselves with time on their hands and their one day a week in Sharpington could now become more. This also coincided with changes in their brothers lives as their hearts now resided on Beaumont Island.

The business was also at the point where it needed to expand, but they were unable to expand the premises in Sharpington.

“So, we either need to move to larger premises or split the business between two premises”

Sam said

“But where?” Clarissa asked

“Ideally, for me” Harry said “I’d like to split the business between the Sharpington and the Island”

“Unfortunately good premises are even more difficult to find here than they are in Sharpington” Sam added

“Well….” Molly began and half an hour later they drove onto the old brewery site.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (076) An Inspector Calls

 

On the last Friday in March, Daryn Goldsmith was back in Spaniards Creek to perform another inspection on the Spanish River site.

He was a stonemason by trade but doubled up as the Islands Building inspector, which was scarcely even a part time occupation.

He was forty-eight years old and was widowed, and on his last visit to the island, fifty-year-old farmer Debbie Wilson reversed her car into his in the Stephenson’s Supermarket carpark.

She was deeply apologetic and insisted on exchanging details, even though he was satisfied there was no damage.

Later that day she phoned him and offered to buy him a coffee on the pretence of an apology.

In truth she wanted some romance back in her life whether out of desperation or loneliness, so had decided to dip her toe back in the water and begin dating and she saw the accident as providence.

So they met at the Galleon Coffee shop in Spaniards Creek and made a very strong connection, and apart from being attracted to each other they also discovered a shared love of sailing.

So on the ferry on the way to the island he phoned her

“Debbie speaking” she said

“Hi Debbie, its Daryn Goldsmith”

“Oh hello Daryn” she said “It’s good to hear from you”

“I’m on my way to the island and I was hoping we could meet for coffee again” he said

“Oh I would love to but I’m afraid I can’t get away from the farm” she responded

“Oh that’s a shame” he said “Maybe next time”

“If you’re here all day, I could meet you in St Pierre about 4.30” She suggested

He was planning to catch the 2 o’clock ferry and be home by 4.30 but he had been looking forward to seeing her again very much, so he said

“I can make that work”

“Fab” she said “Theres a coffee shop overlooking the harbour called Gilbert’s, I’ll meet you there as close to 4.30 as I can get”

“Looking forward to it” he said and hoped he hadn’t sounded too keen.

 

Debbie was highly motivated to get finished in time to make herself look presentable, because she thought Daryn sounded as keen as she was so she worked like a trojan all morning, muck spreading, and ate lunch in the tractor cab and at 3 o’clock she stopped and left her brother’s Duncan and James to finish off, so she could get back to the farm to make herself at least half decent, she didn’t have time for the full works, he would just have to take her as he found her.

 

Daryn spent more time on site in Spaniards Creek than he otherwise would, and he even had time to do his first inspection of the property on the west side of the river  with project manager Adam Jandrell for about an hour and gleaned some useful information when they were chewing the fat, about a potential renovation of the Norman Church, which was right up his street.

“If it comes to fruition” Daryn said handing him a business card “I would be interested in tendering”

“No problem” Adam said

 

Debbie left her home moderately happy with how she looked, but it was the best she could do in the time allowed, and got in her car, and at that precise moment Daryn was getting in his car in Spaniards Creek.

 

They both arrived in St Pierre at the same time but parked in separate carparks, so when they emerged onto the square.

They were on different trajectories to Gilbert’s which took them either side of the war memorial and when they passed it their paths converged, and they were both so focused on their destination they bumped into each other.

It happened so quickly they didn’t realise who the other person was until they got to the apologies, and they laughed.  

“We seem destined to have collisions” Daryn said and then they kissed each other’s cheeks and made their way, arm in arm, to the Coffee House.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (075) Bucklebury and Brandywine Beginnings

 

Monday was Amelia Williamson's first day working for Bucklebury and Brandywine, but with no official office as yet she reported for work at 9am prompt at Cliff Haven, and Molly had set up in the conservatory while Danny had gone off to Beacon Farm to do man stuff with George.

Amelia couldn’t do any actual property management because the company didn’t actually have any properties to manage until the following Monday, so day one was about setting up.

As part of the interview Molly had asked her what her preference was regarding a laptop and following that when she was at the  Bramstock, Goodman, Crossfield, and Bushe solicitor’s offices she met with Clive Crossfield who handled her affairs and tasked him with acquiring the make and model Amelia specified.

Following that she dealt with Amelia directly via email and teams to establish her software requirement and the upshot of that was the laptop that Molly presented her with in a backpack, also of her choice.

So next on the agenda was a team’s meeting with Clive on Amelia’s machine, where they discussed setting up a new business from scratch.

 

“Firstly we need a logo” Clive said, “Any thoughts?” 

“Well I did have an idea” Amelia said and shared an image off her google account, which was of two capital letter B’s facing each other with a small ampersand, the first B had the blue and gold of the Beaumont island flag and the second one had the red and white of the St Georges cross, and in between the two, in the upper half was a silver ampersand.   

“The colours are optional”

“I love the design” Molly said “But I think if you have one blue and the other gold, it will look less like a sports badge”

“Like this you mean?” she said, and a new image appeared as described by Molly

“That was sneaky” Molly said and chuckled  

“What do you think Clive?”

“I think that’s the one” he agreed

“Ok, so the letter head would look something like this” she said and showed another image “Obviously the address and postcode still need to be confirmed”

“I should have that by the end of the week” Clive said

“That’s good news” Amelia replied “I can start drafting the letters to the tenants, and I can have them for your approval by Friday”   

“No need” Molly retorted “I can see already that I am redundant, you don’t need my approval, you manage the business and Clive has financial overview”

“So you don’t need me to report to you?” Amelia asked

“No you’re in charge” Molly said “Now you two carry on and I’ll get lunch sorted”

 

With their “Friday” in place and working well with Clive, Molly and Danny concentrated on pleasure for the rest of the week and enjoying the calm before the storm.

As the weather was in the main benign, they spent the mornings exploring parts of the island which they hadn’t visited yet.

In the afternoons they divided their time equally between watching movies and canoodling.

They wanted to make the most of their time because they were playing host to three of the Archer clan for the weekend.