The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (152) A Miserable Week

 

As usual Molly and Danny attended Church on Sunday and it was a beautiful sunny morning and St Clara’s was very well attended, and it was as if they all knew it was to be the last bright day of the month.

 

On a rainy Monday morning Natasha Baker was paying a visit to Kingham’s Saddle and Tack makers, on Roman Road, or more specifically, she was paying a visit to Oliver Kingham.

There had long been something simmering between them but following Howard Nelson and Carolyn Livingston’s engagement party she had decided to be more proactive.

In her role as Horse Breeder on Woodside Farm she was accustomed to wearing a baggy sweater, jodhpurs and boots, but at the party she managed to turn a few heads wearing a dress and high heels, and she was sure that Oliver’s eye, was turned on her also.

So she visited Kingham’s wearing figure hugging jeans and a snug fitting top to make sure his eyes were on her again.

Her pretence for being there was a saddle in need of repair, they weren’t desperate for another saddle, and the one in question had been in need of attention for some time, but it gave her an excuse to go and see Oliver.

Unfortunately for both of them, he was not alone as his two apprentices, Jacqueline Craig and Matt Stearnes were present, so Natasha wasn’t able to use her womanly wiles on him.

So after a brief chat she said goodbye and went back out into the gloomy weather and resolved to get him on another day.

 

It was a grey damp Tuesday morning and when the early morning mist turned to heavy drizzle, Molly and Danny adjourned their writing session and took a coffee break. 

As Molly poured the coffee Danny said

“It’s St Andrews Day next week”

“Yes, I know”

“But do you know what that means?” he asked

“Erm no” she replied doubtfully

“I’ll give you a clue” he said “Emmaline’s Christmas Emporium”

“We’re going to Emmaline’s?” she asked excitedly

“Yes” he replied

“Oh goodie, I like Sharpington” Molly said excitedly.

“When can we go?”

“After the weekend” he replied

 

The following day the drizzle had given way to strong winds and persistent rain which kept everyone indoors for the rest of the week, at least all of those who didn’t need to venture out.

Natasha Baker was one of the islanders who felt compelled to brave the weather as she still had unfinished business with Oliver Kingham.

So on Friday she drove over to Kingham’s on the pretext of checking on the status of the saddle, as she was just passing.

However fabricated her ploy sounded she was going to run with it and take her chances, but when she got inside Jacqueline told her that Oliver wasn’t in as he’d gone to the mainland.

“Oh botheration” she muttered as she got back in the Landrover.

 

It had been almost a month since the storm deposited part of a tree through Deborah’s window and having her in the house with him, with her amiable manner, wicked sense of humour, joyous infectious laughter and the divine smell of her scent in his nostrils was both a blessing and a curse.

A blessing for all of the above and a curse, because living with her and wanting her so badly was absolute torture.

The last weekend in November they were both off duty, and ordinarily they would get out on one of their walks but with the weather being so bad they were confined to the house.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (151) Taking the Initiative

 

It was a busy night in Philips Folly on Friday night, but as the evening wore on and the crowd thinned out Michelle got to spend some time with Mark one on one, and they were getting on very well, and when the bell rang for “chucking out time” she very much fancied her chances, especially when he invited her to his place for a nightcap, and when she gauged his level of disappointment when she declined, Michelle knew she was in.

Michelle was still living with her parents and had arranged for her dad to pick her up from the bus stop.

About halfway between the pub and the bus stop it started to rain so they made a run for it and ducked into the bus shelter, and the moment they were undercover she pinned him in the corner and kissed him, and when she stopped, still pinning him in the corner she said

“Well, that was ok.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to come back for that nightcap?” he asked.

“I can’t” she said with real disappointment “next time though for sure.”

Then Michelle kissed him again and when she had finished the rain eased off and about a minute later there was the sound of a car horn and when she looked over her shoulder it was her dad.

He thanked Mark for looking after her, Michelle thanked him for the company and as she got in the car she said.

“Next time for sure”

 

Now considering it was only a song in a bus shelter the effect on them both after that kiss meant they couldn’t wait until the next time.

 

At Emma Jane Ratcliffe’s birthday dinner on Saturday night, there was just the Birthday girl, Blake Ramsey and four other guests who were also old friends chosen for their friendship and not their social standing.

April Portnall who was also one of the popular girls, but she started with them in nursery as well and she had no affectation either, her cousin Matt Stearnes who was 22, Phil Wilson and Eden Hills.

The party was at a Chinese restaurant called the Cherry Blossom which was Emma Jane’s favourite.

As you would expect from such a great restaurant it was a really excellent meal and a quantity of wine was consumed with the meal so as they reminisced about their shared history they laughed until they cried.

 

As they left the Cherry Blossom and got down to street level, they had the usual hugs and kisses on the pavement and then Phil went across the road to where his Dads car was parked.

Then as April, Matt and Eden all lived in the same neck of the woods they went off to get a Taxi and as Emma Jane and Blake lived close by, they walked home.

 

As they walked away from the town square he said

“I had a really great time” 

“Yeh me too” she agreed

“Wasn’t it great to get the six of us together again?”

“We should do it more often” Blake suggested

““We” should get together more often” Emma Jane said

“What just the two of us?” he asked

“Yeh” she said coyly

“Just you and the geek?” he asked with surprise

“You’re not a geek” she said defensively “And anyway if you were that wouldn’t stop me fancying you,”
“You fancy me?” he asked pointing at himself
“Didn't you know?” she asked, and he shook his head
“What about you?” she asked shyly

“Do you fancy me?

“I don’t know about fancying you” he said, and she was clearly crestfallen for a second

“But I’ve been in love with you since we were 7 if that counts”

“Pig” she said and laughed before she kissed him softy on the lips which led to the most wonderful spine-tingling embrace that seemed to last forever.

When it ended, she looked at him with her soulful eyes and smiled the most loving smile.

Blake returned her smile and wanted to say something fitting for the moment, but he was lost for words.

“Wow” she said beating him to the punch then she giggled and ran off up the road and shouted over her shoulder

“You’ll have to marry me now”

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (150) Birthday Gift

 

Thursday was Dr Deborah Woodward’s 39th birthday so Stuart Cameron took her out for dinner to celebrate at the Orangery at the Beaumont Manor which was where he gave Deborah her present.

“I thought I said no present” she said

“I know but I already had this by then” he said, so under protest she opened it, and it took her breath away.

 

Back in June on one of their walks when they were crossing a stream, he caught sight of something glistening in the water, so he knelt on the bank and reached down and picked it up an irregular shaped piece of aviation Perspex about the size of a cigarette packet.

He assumed it originated from a German World War Two aircraft, a Messerschmitt probably, and likely fell to earth as a result of cannon fire or flak.

 

Following the find Stuart began fashioning it into two items, one of which he had given her and the other one he was keeping for Christmas. 

“It’s beautiful” she exclaimed as she took the perfectly crafted Dolphin from the box.

“What is it made of?” she asked

“The Aviation Perspex I found” he replied, and she gasped

“You made it?” she asked in disbelief as she studied the Dolphin.

“I needed help with the mounting” he replied

He had done everything he could do himself, but he needed help from one of his patients, Daniel White, at Longlake Farm, who made jewellery as a hobby, so one Sunday he drove out to his farm so that he could finish off the pieces with gold mountings so they could be worn on a chain.

“I’ve never received such a special present” she said and kissed him “Thank you”

She would have liked to give him a more special “thank you” but they hadn’t got past the friend’s stage, but she still had hopes.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (149) Beginnings

 

When Emma Jane Ratcliffe was approaching her twenty first birthday Blake Ramsey wasn’t at all surprised-on Monday to get an invitation, they had after all been friends since nursery school.

It had clearly been established that Emma Jane was one of the popular group, Blake was in no uncertain terms, not.

He was not athletic, artistic, or sexy but they did have intelligence in common and his forte was science, in particular Physics.   

So under normal circumstances, friendship and intelligence aside, why would one of the popular girls invite a Science geek to her 21st birthday party?

Anyone not close to her could be forgiven if they were surprised but Blake was not.

They would have been further surprised when it turned out he was only one of six guests at the party, one of those being Emma Jane herself.

Though for Blake it certainly wasn’t a surprise knowing her as he did, she was never a flashy person, so she didn’t want a big flashy party with lots of superficial friends.

 

In the days following the engagement party at the Beaumont, Dale Power couldn’t get Eden Hills out of his head, and by the Tuesday he was totally smitten.

His Dad was a massive Star Trek fan and when he was a child he watched the films with his Dad, and when he first saw Eden, he was taken back to his childhood when he watched the first Star Trek movie.

In the movie there was an alien character, Lieutenant Ilia, onboard the Enterprise, played by Persis Khambatta, and she was completely bald, and in his adolescent sexual awakening the sexy bald alien featured heavily in his fantasies.

Since meeting Eden at the party his youthful yearning had been rekindled and he looked forward to seeing her again, and as she worked with the horses at Woodside Farm, and he worked for the only Blacksmith’s on the island the chances of them meeting again were very high.

 

While Dale was fantasizing about Eden, Michelle Kendal was doing the same about his older brother.

She was approaching twenty-four, was five feet two with brunette hair and an olive complexion and she had it bad for Mark Power.

He was a couple of years older than her, and they had known each other for a few years because she worked with horses and he shooed their horses, but she hadn’t been able to make that count.

Even when they both attended the same engagement party, she couldn’t get close enough to him, for long enough to seal the deal.

However, on Wednesday she found out that he had also been invited to a mutual friend’s birthday drinks in Spaniards Creek that Friday, and that offered her an opportunity that she wasn’t going to waste.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (148) The Hair of the Dog

 

Molly and Danny were among those who had decided to stay the night at the hotel after the engagement party as they were attending the Remembrance Service in St Pierre the next morning, so it just made sense to stay.    

 

When they were on the way to breakfast the next morning, they met Elisa coming out of her room

“Hello, you two” she said

“Hello Elisa” Molly said and kissed her just as Carolyn Livingston appeared bleary eyed from her room.

“My goodness you look a little green around the gills” 

“This is nothing, you should see Howard” Carolyn said

“But he’s supposed to be taking part in the remembrance parade” Molly said, “Is he going to be alright?”

“You’d better judge for yourselves” she said and unlocked the door to her room, and they saw Howard Nelson standing in front of them looking like death warmed over. 

“Good God” Molly said

“Heavens above” exclaimed Elisa, who after a moment took charge

“Right I think we can get you sorted out”

Elisa turned on her heels and went back into her room and returned a minute or two later, by which time they were all in the room, so she joined them and closed the door

“I have just the thing for what ails you Howard” she said

Elisa was a great believer in herbal remedies and concoctions, and she had in her hand a medicine bottle with an ominous coloured substance in it.

“This will sort you out” she said

“I’ll try anything” Howard said pitifully and was about to sit on the bed

“No don’t sit” Elisa commanded forcefully,

“Why?”

“You need to be ready to move” Elisa said and handed the glass bottle to Howard

“Take a good slug of that”

“And then what?” he asked

“You’ll know what” Elisa replied, and he took a good long slug on the bottle and then licked his lips before saying

“That’s not as bad as it lo….”

He never finished the sentence as he turned a funny shade of puce and headed for the toilet.

The noises that came from behind the bathroom door were their cue to leave, so they closed the door behind them and headed down to breakfast.

 

When Howard appeared in reception some fifty minutes after consuming the foul concoction he looked much more like his old self, and twenty minutes after that he was fit to be seen in church, or more precisely the church parade.

 

It was a bright sunny morning outside St Pierre’s church where the Townspeople were thronging around the war memorial as the Remembrance Day parade, with clergy from the three churches on the islands, St Pierre, St Joan of Arc and St Clara’s, representatives of all the services, both civil and Military, a proud bunch of Old soldiers, all arms of the scouting fraternity, local dignitaries et al, came to a halt.

A religious service followed and then the assembled duly paid its tribute to the fallen in the time-honoured fashion.

 

As he looked on, Danny felt a little humbled after honouring those men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice, and if they had known the outcome, their actions would not have differed.

He wondered if the modern generation would be so resolute faced with the same challenges, and sadly he thought it doubtful.

But the whole occasion had left him feeling that he had to further explore that theme in the book.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (147) The Engagement Party

 

After the Guy Fawkes weekend it was time to get back to writing, and after their Italian adventure they had plenty of ideas to weave into their story, which kept them gainfully employed right through to the weekend.

 

On Saturday night they were invited to a party at the Beaumont Manor to celebrate Church Warden Howard Nelson’s engagement to Architect Carolyn Livingston.

It was a big function as they were both in their forties and had a lot of friends on the island.

The party guests were a mixed bunch of the Godly and the heathen, the old and the young, the sublime and the ridiculous.

 

Among the guests were Dale and Mark Power who worked at their dad’s Blacksmiths business on Roman Road, and they were standing by the bar when the girls from Woodside Farm arrived.

Michelle Kendal, April Portnall and Eden Hills all worked at the Woodside Farm stables in one capacity or another and were all in their twenties. 

Michelle was five feet two with brunette hair and an olive complexion and her friend, April, was an inch shorter with Jet-black hair and alabaster skin, and the third girl Eden who was a new arrival to the farm, was five feet eight and was completely bald, and they were followed in by Horse Breeder Natasha Baker.

 

The only one of the groups that Dale didn’t know was Eden. who was the youngest by a few years and was only in her early twenties, and he thought she was remarkably striking because she was not only bald but also appeared to be completely devoid of any hair at all, no eyebrows, arm hair and he couldn’t help wondering if there was nothing down there as well.

Obviously curious as to how or why and he thought he might ask her later once the booze began to flow, not necessarily about “down there” but if she were to volunteer the information he wouldn’t mind.

 

Also attending the party were Blake Ramsey and Emma Jane Ratcliffe.

Anyone who looked closely at Emma Jane Ratcliffe couldn’t help but see why she was one of the most popular girls at school.

Her Elphin face had a shape and symmetry that was easy on the eye and her figure was to die for.

Although there were girls who were more classically beautiful, they didn’t have any of the character of Emma Jane’s.

Her silky red hair shone and shimmered as she moved her head and her brown eyes bore into your soul when you met their gaze.

As if her unique beauty was not enough, she was also athletic, artistic, intelligent and sexy.

Everyone, boy or girl, that ever met her fell instantly in love with her.
But Blake had been in love with her since before she blossomed.

Despite all the attention though Emma Jane managed to keep everyone of the suitors at bay which led to the rumour that she played for the other side.

Blake never believed that for a moment and he had known her longer than anyone, because Emma Jane Ratcliffe was the girl next door and she had lived there since she was three and they had been best friends since the beginning, but they were never more than that.

 

While Dale was musing about Eden’s nether regions, Saddle maker Oliver Kingham’s eye, as always, was turned on Natasha Baker.

On the farm she always wore jodhpurs and boots but that night she was wearing a dress and high heels.

As she was not used to such footwear, when she walked, they forced her to lean forward from the waist and as a consequence she thrust her buttocks out behind her which he thought was rather delicious.

 

It was a good night and there was a lot of laughing, drinking and dancing during the evening, but it was quite loud and wasn’t the ideal place for chatting, although  connections were made, but at the end of the evening, they went their separate ways.  

Some of the guests were staying the night but most were either picked up or shared taxis.

 

While he was waiting his turn in reception, he watched Eden get in a taxi with some friends and Dale said

“Damn”

“What’s wrong?” Asked Michelle

“I never did ask Eden why she was bald” he replied

“She fell out of a tree when she was six” she stated

“Oh” he responded and was about to speak when Michelle interrupted

“And she’s bald down there as well”

“I wasn’t going to ask that” he protested

“But you were curious though, weren’t you” she continued, and Dale nodded.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (146) Guy Fawkes

 

November

On the first of November after a pleasant breakfast Molly and  walked slowly down Cliff Top Road until they reached Church Lane, and then they followed the lane that wound its way around the cottages for about 100 yards.

Molly was feeling very pleased with herself as they passed the renovated cottages, with new roofs, solar panels, double glazing, guttering and external decorations.

When they reached the plateau where St Clara’s Church stood, it was not as picturesque as it was the first time she saw it, as it was still clad in scaffolding, and she looked forward to seeing it at its best when the renovators had finished.

 

Natasha Baker was good to her word, she helped Sheridan Tilbrook fill in the form, and got her an interview, and she and the other girls at the stables helped her with her literacy and at the beginning of November when she started working at the Beaumont Manor Hotel which was when Leo Humphrey came into Sheridan’s life.

They had both spent their entire lives in Saxvirdan they had never met.

He was four years older than her, tall dark and handsome, whereas she had thick chestnut coloured hair, she was small at and skinny, but she was wiry and strong even though she was only 5ft 2.

Leo took her under his wing immediately and showed her how things were none.

“You’re a quick learner” Leo said

“Thank you” Sheridan said meekly

During her first week they got on really well although the conversations were fairly one sided as Sheridan was as quiet as a mouse, while Leo prattled on, about this and that, but she didn’t mind, she’d never had anyone that talked to her so much before.

 

On Thursday, Molly decided that they were still on holiday and as it was a lovely sunny autumn day, they took the Water Taxi over to St Giles du Cabot and explored the island which they really enjoyed.

Unfortunately, as is often the case in the autumn, the weather turned after lunch to such an extent that the Water Taxi had to cancel the last trip of the day.

They could have caught the ferry up to St Pierre, but instead chose to spend the night at the Seaview Hotel which meant they could spend the evening with Elisa and Henry.

 

On Friday they enjoyed one of Elisa’s wonderful breakfasts and as the weather had calmed down a bit, they took the long route back to Cabot Town via Hastings Lake and caught the midday ferry up to St Pierre where they did a little shopping before having lunch at the Gondolier.

 

After an enjoyably long relaxing and overly indulgent lunch they got a taxi back to Spaniards Creek and spent the afternoon asleep on the sofa.

 

Deborah Woodward and Stuart Cameran were up early on Saturday and drove up to Stephenson’s Supermarket in St Pierre, then after lunch they went to her house to clear Deborah’s bedroom.

“Let me go in first in case I’ve left any unmentionables laying around” she said

“If there are, then half the tradesmen on the island will have seen them already” Stuart said and chuckled

“Oh that’s reassuring” she retorted and laughed

 

On Saturday night there was a firework’s display in the village, but Molly didn’t understand Guy Fawkes Night, it wasn’t a thing in America, and it made no sense to her.

“So he tried to blow up King James” she said “and got caught”

“That’s correct”

“So is the celebration because he tried or because he failed?” she asked “I don’t understand what it’s about”

Then Danny explained that it was a Catholic plot against a Protestant King, and she understood it even less.

However she did enjoy the fireworks immensely.

 

Nicole Wilson went to the University of Downshire where she did Business Studies in Abbottsford and it was for her, like many girls of her age, a life-defining time.

She was in halls for the first year and she shared with three other girls from Beaumont Island, Stacey Jackson, a tall, beautiful and kindly brunette girl, her cousin Paige Chapman, a skinny flat chested girl, who was beautiful but painfully shy and curvy redhead Poppy Nunthorpe.

All four of the girls were studying different subjects, but their strong friendship resulted from their shared history as islanders, and as they got on so well the four of them decided very early on to rent a house between them for the second and third years.

 

Nicole was five foot five, and a quiet and reserved busty brunette and she lived at Roman Water Farm which is the second largest of the five farms on the island covering the area from Beaumont head in the north to Bellevue Woods in the south, the rugged coast to the west and Saxvirdan in the east.

 

Jordan Lawrence was a postman, and his round took him out to the farms and on Saturday night he attended the Guy Fawkes Bash, at the Beaumont Manor, which was a fancy dress party, but in addition it was also a masquerade.

Jordan was staring up at the starry November sky when he was approached by a busty brunette wench wearing a satin mask across her eyes, who sauntered up to him and without saying a word kissed him wetly on the mouth, which took him by surprise at first, but he soon recovered and returned her passionate kiss with interest and as the pyrotechnic display began it grew in intensity.  

 

When the kiss was at an end, she stepped back and removed the mask and he gasped

“You?”

“Disappointed?” Nicole asked

“No, but this has been a surprise” he said “I didn’t think you liked me like that”

“I know” she replied “but I’ve fancied you for ages”

“I had no idea” he said

“I know that too, clueless aren’t you” she said

“That’s why I had to take you by surprise to get your attention”

“Well, it worked”

“So, can I take it that I now have your full attention?”

“Oh yes” he said “But…”

“But what?” she asked with concern

“I’d like to be one hundred percent sure” he said

“Oh, I think that can be arranged” she said and moved in close for another kiss, and they never did see the fireworks.

 

There were more firework’s the next day on the 5^th mainly private and domestic, but there was one organised display up in Saxvirdan, with a bonfire on the village green.  

Two of the crowd watching proceedings at that display were teenagers John Rawling and Lucy Nuttall, who were on their first date. 

The two of them lived on the outskirts of St Pierre and after the display was over, they headed slowly home down the lane. 

It was dark along the path and just ahead of them they could see there was a dog walker smoking a cigarette as some kind of dog snuffled in the undergrowth.

The man took one last drag on the butt and it glowed red on his face and then he flicked it into the darkness, and it span through the air like a Catherine wheel.

Which was quite appropriate as they had just been to a firework’s display.

The smell of the gun powder was still thick in the damp night air.  

But despite the cold and damp neither John nor Lucy were in any hurry to get home as it was their very first date.

However it was not only their first date together, but it was also the first date for either of them.

John was fifteen and Lucy was a year younger and quite naturally they wanted their date to last forever and they both walked as slowly as it was possible to go without actually standing still.

However they eventually arrived in the street outside her house.

An awkward silence ensued as John shuffled his feet and tried to think what to do next and Lucy waited patiently for John’s next move, but when she realized he didn’t have one, she took decisive action and reach up and kissed him and then the fireworks truly began.

Their first magical kiss, a kiss that neither of them wanted to end, sent their heart soaring into the heavens.