The Little Bed & Breakfast by the Sea

‘You’re an idiot,’ Melody said, but she was smiling.

‘You’re not the first to make that observation,’ he said with a grin. ‘Luckily, I’m also thick-skinned.’ He reached down to give the dog some fuss. ‘His name’s Scoop Dog, in case you’re still wondering.’

The giggle erupted without warning and Melody pushed a hand to her mouth to muffle it. ‘Scoop Dog?’

‘Scoop to his friends. He seems to like you, so Scoop it is.’

‘Scoop as in ice-cream scoop?’ Melody asked.

‘We’ve found ourselves a clever one here, boy,’ he told the dog, giving his head a good scratch.

‘Hey.’ Melody folded her arms across her chest. ‘I could always zip you back up, you know.’

‘Sorry.’ He picked the dog up and sat him on his lap, giving his head another scratch. ‘Let’s start again. Meet Scoop, the bravest dog in Clifton-on-Sea, perhaps even the world.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Scoop.’ Melody gave the dog a stroke and received a lick in return. ‘What makes him so brave, other than being seen out in public with a madman?’

‘I’ll ignore that last comment,’ Scoop’s owner said. ‘And launch straight into the story of how Hugo – that’s me – met Scoop Dog.’

Scoop, Melody learned, was a rescue dog who’d been found cowering in a bush, bloody and collarless, five months ago. He’d been savaged so badly by another dog – perhaps more than one – the vet wasn’t sure the poor fella would make it. But after lots and lots of TLC – plus surgery and numerous stitches – Scoop had surprised the vet by making a full recovery.

‘He has a bit of scarring,’ Hugo said, lifting Scoop to show his underside. ‘And his fur is only just starting to grow back on his neck.’ He popped the dog back down and lifted the yellow bandana to show the patchy fur underneath. ‘But other than that, he’s on top physical form.’

‘So how did you come to own him?’ Melody asked.

‘The vet’s a mate of mine from the pub,’ Hugo said. ‘Scoop wasn’t tagged and nobody came forward to claim him, so once he was ready to be rehoused, I asked to meet the little guy and that’s how we became buddies.’

‘You are brave,’ Melody told the dog, stroking his golden fur. ‘And lucky to have found a good bloke to look after you.’

‘I thought I was an idiot,’ Hugo said.

Melody shrugged. ‘Against all the odds, you seem to have redeemed yourself.’

Chapter Ten (#u3662fc1d-138b-580a-812f-9b4b6ad10aaa)

Willow

Willow had been eighteen when she met Ethan in a bar close to the university where they were both studying. She was in her first year, Ethan in his second, and they’d hit it off immediately, though just as friends. Willow had a boyfriend back home and Ethan was seeing a girl on his course, but even when she split up with Alex, the boyfriend from back home, it was Ethan’s housemate she started seeing, beginning a not-very-serious five-month relationship. Through the relationship and subsequent break-up, Willow and Ethan remained good friends, and the friendship lasted until they went their separate ways after university. It was four or five years later that they met up again after one of the guys from their group of uni mates set up a reunion on Facebook. Willow hadn’t really thought about Ethan all that much, to be honest, but as soon as she saw him again in the arranged bar, she knew they were meant to be together.

It was supposed to be simple from that moment on. Both single this time round, they started dating, fell in love and got married. But fairy tales were for children’s books, and real life didn’t have a guaranteed happy ending. Willow was painfully aware of this fact as she looked up at her poor, scaffold-clad house, its fate unknown. They’d had such high hopes when they’d bought the house, when they’d moved their essential possessions into the little room at the back, the one requiring the least work that would become their living and sleeping quarters during the renovation. The little room Willow couldn’t wait to decorate and fill with furniture she’d lovingly upcycled.

But now?

Maybe we shouldn’t have bought this house. We should have thought about it more. Thought about us, our future.

Willow didn’t know what was in their future now. She’d been so sure, naive perhaps, but she’d assumed their wedding day was the start of the life they both wanted, this house the setting, the anchor, a place to fill with beautiful memories.

At the moment, we don’t even know what’s in the future for us.

Pushing Ethan’s words from her mind, Willow pulled away from the house, moving away from the dream home that was turning into a nightmare, and drove towards the harbour, where the new owners of the Monopoly table lived.

The shop had been pretty quiet for the rest of the afternoon, so Willow had managed to finish off her repurposed jam jars, though she’d really wanted to get stuck into the chest of drawers she was planning to update, as sanding it down would have been a great stress reliever. However, she couldn’t commit to any of the bigger jobs without Gary around to keep an eye on the shop. She’d also used the quiet time to scour the local newspaper for any houses – or even single rooms – up for a short-term lease in the next couple of weeks but hadn’t had any luck. She’d keep looking – she had little choice as she couldn’t stay at the bed and breakfast long-term. She’d been lucky to secure the room for a couple of weeks in the first place.

Once she’d closed up at the end of the day, she’d loaded the Monopoly table and chairs into the van with the reluctant help of the bloke from across the road (who’d complained about missing his gaming time non-stop, right up until the moment Willow handed over a fiver for his help). She’d taken a massive detour to catch a glimpse of the house, desperate to cling on to a tiny shred of hope, to feel the same elation as when they’d bought the property. Instead, she’d been left feeling lost, confused and slightly sick.

The family were delighted with their new purchase and the children set up a game of Kerplunk as soon as the table was set down in the playroom. A smile twitched at Willow’s mouth as she watched them thread the straws through the holes, little tongues poking out from their lips in concentration, the smile spreading slowly across her face until her cheeks started to ache.

‘I think they approve,’ the mum said, also smiling as she watched her children. ‘Thank you so much.’

Willow cleared her throat and nodded, already backing out of the room. ‘It was a pleasure. I hope you have lots of fun with it.’

Saying goodbye to the family, Willow hopped back into the van and headed to the bed and breakfast. She usually kept the van near the shop, preferring to walk to and from work, but she was tired after a day of running around, and the thought of trekking through town didn’t fill her with any sort of enthusiasm. She’d go back to the B&B, enjoy a soak in the bath, phone Ethan and then have an early night. She yawned at the thought of crawling into the sumptuous bed at Mae’s place, at snuggling beneath the smooth sheets and sinking into the soft pillows.

Mae was in the kitchen, singing quietly to the radio as she stirred a pan of something delicious-smelling on the stove, when Willow arrived back at the bed and breakfast. Willow’s stomach growled at the hint of food and she suddenly realised she was ravenous. When was the last time she’d eaten? She’d had a pastry that morning during her walk to work, but had she eaten since? She thought back over the day and realised she hadn’t, so it was no wonder her stomach was protesting.

‘Oh, hello.’ Mae stopped stirring and placed a hand on her chest. ‘I didn’t hear you come in.’

‘Sorry, didn’t mean to make you jump,’ Willow said. ‘I was just wondering if it was okay to commandeer the bathroom? I could do with a soak after the stressful day I’ve had. I won’t hog it for too long, I promise.’

‘Of course,’ Mae said. ‘Would you like to join us for dinner first? It’ll be ready in a few minutes.’

‘That’s really kind, but I wouldn’t want to put you to any trouble.’ Willow ignored her stomach as it roared in protest.

‘It’s no trouble at all. It’s only spaghetti Bolognese and I always end up making way too much. I don’t know how it happens: I put the right amount of spaghetti in the pan, yet enough comes out to feed Italy.’ She shrugged and picked up the spoon to give the sauce another stir. ‘It’ll be nice to have some adult company, actually. That’s if you don’t mind eating with me and Hannah. I must warn you – she can be a bit of a chatterbox at times.’

‘I wouldn’t mind at all. It sounds lovely.’

‘Then sit down and relax.’ Mae indicated the table. ‘Shall I open a bottle?’ She grabbed a bottle of wine from the rack integrated into the kitchen units and held it up.

Willow waved her hands in front of her. ‘Not for me, thanks. Red wine always gives me a terrible headache.’

‘I can open white instead,’ Mae said, already slotting the red back into place.

‘I’m fine with water, really.’ Willow sat down at the table. ‘You go ahead, though. Don’t let me spoil your evening.’

‘I’m probably better sticking to water too, actually.’ Instead of reaching for the bottle of white, Mae moved across the kitchen and grabbed three plates from a cupboard. ‘A hangover with a child who seems to think jumping on your bed before dawn is acceptable isn’t such a good idea.’

‘No, I’d imagine not.’

‘She’s great, though,’ Mae said, opening a drawer and grabbing three sets of cutlery. ‘Drives me up the wall sometimes, but I wouldn’t be without her.’ She placed the cutlery on top of the plates and carried them over to the table.

‘Let me do that,’ Willow said, rising from her seat. She took the plates and cutlery and set them out on the table while Mae grabbed glasses and filled them with water, still chatting away.

‘I never really thought about having kids before Hannah came along. I was happy being free to go out there and do what I wanted, when I wanted. I suppose I thought I’d have a family one day, just so far into the future I didn’t have to think about it. I never thought for one minute I’d end up having a baby, on my own, at twenty-six.’

‘So Hannah’s dad isn’t around?’ Willow asked and Mae shook her head.

‘I haven’t heard from him since I broke the news I was pregnant.’