by Anna Samuels
‘No!’ I exclaimed, ‘that you haven’t yet found better company! Company that values you!’
She looked at me with interest. ‘Well, you haven’t either…and you’re pretty nice, all things considered,’ she chuckled.
I grinned at her. ‘Did we just make up?’ I asked.
She nodded. ‘I think I need your friendship right now, Cass. Everything else just turned sour so I could use an ally.’
‘Well, you’ve got it in me,’ I told her, laying a hand over hers. ‘Friends?’ I suggested, even though the electricity coursing through my skin said that we should be more than that.
‘Friends,’ she agreed.
I smiled at her.
‘And…we’re sticking with that?’
I gave her a quizzical look.
‘I mean…friendship. That’s what you want from me?’ she asked.
I nodded. ‘For now, at least,’ I told her.
‘For now?’
‘Yes. I can’t say anything else about the future…I really don’t know, but for now, while you’re just getting over Katie, I’d rather we stayed as friends.’
‘I can do that,’ she smiled.
‘Good. Now, I’m starving! Do you want to stay for dinner?’ I wondered.
‘That sounds nice! And I’d love to see your house now we’ve become friendly again!’ she laughed.
‘Well let me put some dinner in the oven and then I’ll show you around.’
‘Great,’ she smiled.
I left the room smiling, feeling much more like myself again.
Allie and I shared dinner and then I showed her around my small, humble home. After taking her to each room, we ended up back in the lounge.
‘I like it,’ she commented.
‘Me too…bit it doesn’t have the same feel as Hope.’
‘No…it sure doesn’t,’ she commented. ‘Not that there’s anything wrong with here, I might add, I’m just so fond of my home village these days,’ she smiled.
‘Me too!’ I exclaimed. ‘It’s so beautiful.’
‘If only I could find a nice home there to buy…’
‘Yes…it must be frustrating,’ I commented.
‘It is…I have everything sorted with the gallery now so it would be the icing on the cake.’
I nodded. ‘Yeah…I keep thinking, if only I had met the right woman by now, all this would be different.’
‘Yeah,’ she sighed. ‘Two wages and two people putting into a mortgage would make a hell of a difference,’ she murmured.
‘Damn right. I could get a huge four-bedroom house if someone could match what I have put away! I could have such a lovely home if only I had a partner…and a future too…’
She nodded, her eyes on me. ‘Have you ever considered doing it in a different way?’ she asked.
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean like…well, going in with a friend or something,’ she said slowly.
I looked at her quizzically. Surely she didn’t mean…’What?’
‘Oh, I was just thinking out loud I suppose…’ she said, looking away, a tint of rose tinging her cheeks once more.
‘What were you thinking?’ I asked, pushing her to answer.
‘I was just thinking silly thoughts...I mean it occurs to me…you have the means and money to get a house and so do I…stranger things have happened…’
‘Allie!’ I exclaimed.
‘What?’
‘I’ve known you for two days! Not even that!’
‘I know…’ she murmured.
‘It would be crazy!’ I said passionately.
‘Yeah…you’re right.’
‘Crazy but brilliant!’ I exclaimed.
Her eyes immediately brightened at my words. ‘Hey?’
‘Well, it’s absolutely bonkers…we’d be mad to do it…but…’
‘But what?’
‘It’s downright tempting!’ I laughed.
‘It is right?’
‘In Hope?’ I questioned.
She nodded. ‘It’d have to be…’
‘I’d love it there…oh my goodness, to live there…it would be...well, it would be incredible…’
‘I know. It is,’ she told me.
‘But my work…it’d be a forty-five minute drive!’
‘Couldn’t you move roles? There must be estate agents near Hope too! So many people buy in our area.’
I nodded, thinking. ‘I’d never really considered moving areas.’
‘No…it’s all very impulsive and I don’t know if this is just a completely pie in the sky idea.’
‘It probably is,’ I said slowly, ‘but it is an idea…’
‘Yeah…’
‘I’ve never come up with any better ones,’ I told her.
‘Me neither!’
‘And I am thirty now…something needs to change if I’m ever going to sort my life out and get anywhere.’
‘I don’t know,’ she said then, ‘it’s probably crazy and we should definitely spend some more time being friends for now.’
I nodded. ‘Absolutely.’
‘I mean, it’s like you said…it’s been two days!’
‘Yeah…we click though, don’t we?’ I smiled. ‘Like some friendships just work from the word go?’
She smiled back at me. ‘Actually yes…I know exactly what you mean. With you it’s just easy…no effort, and I mean that in the nicest possible way.’
‘No, I understand what you mean. With many of my other friends it’s a bit too much like hard work!’ I laughed. ‘As you said, we’ve just got on well since we met.’
‘And I like spending time with you,’ she told me.
‘Ditto,’ I murmured.
Allie laughed. ‘Patrick Swayze, ha!’
‘Yeah! What a classic.’
‘It sure is…’
‘So, what’s our plan?’ she asked me.
‘I don’t know…I think we spend some time being friends and then who knows? Something might change or an opportunity may arise…’
‘Good idea. Well, what are you doing this weekend?’ she asked.
‘I…I don’t know! Nothing, I guess!’
‘Spend it with me then,’ she suggested.
‘Spend it with…’
‘Yeah…come over Saturday afternoon and we’ll spend some time on the beach; we could even borrow my friends boat and go out around the cove.’
‘That would be amazing!’
‘Yes, it would…and then we could chill at mine in the evening. I’m sure I can find another good film for us to watch.’
‘I…that sounds wonderful! I grinned.
‘It does. It’ll give me something to look forward to this week as well.’
‘Me too,’ I replied, thinking that my week would now be really good as I had Allie to look forward to seeing at the weekend.
‘Great! Well, I’ll make a move now, but see you on Saturday?’
‘Yes. What time?’ I asked.
‘Come over at three?’ she suggested.
‘I’ll be there,’ I smiled.
‘Brilliant.’
Chapter 9
A Saturday to remember
The rest of my week stretched out endlessly. Each day seemed to go on forever and I was anxious for Saturday to come so that I would see Allie again.
When Friday evening finally came around, I tidied my desk and headed home with a sigh of relief. It had been one hell of a week and I was tired.
At home I made some dinner and then sat down in front of the television to relax. After that I read for a while before bed. I went to sleep feeling excited about the following day and therefore tossed and turned for much of the night.
On Saturday morning, I busied myself around the house because I was so keen to see Allie I knew I needed to keep occupied until afternoon. I cleaned the house from top to bottom, did a load of washing, hoovered and even sorted out a bag of old clothes to go to charity. Once I had finished all that, it was still only eleven so I took a
long bath before dressing with care. I wanted to look nice for Allie and I was well aware of those feelings.
By twelve I was more than ready to leave. Part of the appeal was going back to the bay again so I decided to head out early and spend some time on the beach before seeing Allie. The drive was uneventful aside from a lot of traffic on the roads. It was heavy and I assumed this was because it was such a nice, sunny day.
When I arrived at Hope Bay, I parked in the little car park by the sea front and gathered my bag. I then wandered down to the beach and onto the sand. Although it was quickly filling up with people enjoying the weather, I found a quiet spot by a rock and sat down on my towel to relax. Mindless of the people around me, I drank in the wonderful atmosphere and felt peaceful inside. What a wonderful place, I thought to myself.
I lost time sat there on the beach watching the waves. The sun was shining down and creating a sea of diamonds before me. It was beautiful. I didn’t move until I felt myself growing too hot, and considering the prospect of getting burnt, I decided to get up.
I wondered up the beach and then walked through the village. After buying an ice-cream with a flake, I walked slowly off up past the main hotel in the bay and beyond, to where most of the houses were situated in Hope.
I wandered along the top of the cliff road and thought to myself that from this position, I was afforded the most wonderful view of the scenery. I walked along a little further and found a bench to sit on. I sat down and looked out to sea. It was tranquil and still; relaxing and peaceful.
As I sat there, my thoughts drifted to Allie. I looked down the cliff towards where her little gallery sat nestled in the rocks below. I wondered what she was doing and checked my watch once again. Only two o clock. Still not time to see her.
As I sat there, a van came driving along the road slowly. It caught my eye because of the sign on the side of it. It read ‘Homes of distinction. Luxury homes estate agents.’ The van stopped behind where I sat and parked up on the gravel. I turned and watched with curiosity as an older gentleman came out of the driving seat and around to the back of the van. He heaved out a ‘For Sale’ sign and carried it over to the bottom of the property behind me. I looked up to the house he was labelling as available. It was beautiful. It was captivating. It was so lovely that I rose to my feet and wandered across the road in something of a stupor to see it closer.
‘Can I help you?’ a voice asked.
I blinked in surprise and turned to see the man from the van addressing me.
‘Oh, no…I was just…looking,’ I murmured, smiling over at him. ‘Is this house for sale?’
‘Just on the market as of today,’ he told me, smiling widely. ‘Are you interested?’
‘No, no…’ I told him laughing, ‘I wish I was! I’m actually an estate agent too,’ I revealed, ‘I was just enjoying the beauty of the property for a moment,’ I explained.
‘Oh, I see! Do you work locally then?’ he asked.
‘No…forty-five minutes away actually…’ I told him.
‘Ah, never mind…’
I frowned at him. ‘Never mind what?’ I wondered.
‘I was just going to ask if you were working, you see I’ve just lost one of my best estate agents to a maternity leave,’ he told me, ‘I need someone as soon as possible!’
I stared at him. ‘Really?’
‘Yes…but if you’re happy and content in your job then never mind…’
‘Well, I…I would be interested in finding out more,’ I told him. ‘I…well, I’ve considered a change of roles. Are you based near here?’
‘Yes…five minutes down the road,’ he told me.
‘Wow. What a beautiful place to work.’
‘It is. So, would you be interested in me sending you over the details of the post?’
‘Yes please,’ I told him, digging in my purse for my card. ‘Here…my information is on there.’
‘I’ll get someone to email the application pack and information over to you then.’
‘Thank you so much…oh, I didn’t catch your name!’ I apologised with a laugh.
‘Pete,’ he told me, extending his hand. ‘Pete Murphy.’
‘It’s been nice to meet you. I’m Cass Delaware.’
‘Good meeting you, Cass.’
I smiled, and headed off before he began thinking I was odd. Fate seemed to be stepping in my path. It seemed fortuitous to have met a fellow estate agent with a job on offer. Maybe my luck was changing, I mused. Maybe it was time for a life change which would make me even happier than I had been lately.
I walked along the cliff top and then down some steps towards a little, old church. After looking around a little, I then followed the coastal path along towards the gallery. Despite it only being two forty, I decided to go and see Allie.
The gallery was busy when I walked in. Customers browsed contentedly while Allie packed up a sale she had just made. I wandered myself, not wanting to disturb her while she was working.
One by one, people bought items and then left. Eventually, there was just Allie and I in the shop.
‘Hey!’ she exclaimed, beaming at me with a bright smile.
‘Hey! Great to see you!’ I said, walking over.
‘And you,’ she grinned, bending to kiss me cheek warmly. ‘You look gorgeous today, Cass!’
I felt myself flush with pleasure. ‘Ah, thanks…summer has arrived I think!’
‘It sure has! And customers too!’ she exclaimed. ‘It’s been so busy!’
‘That’s good, right?’
‘It’s great! The more customers I get, the more money I take.’
‘That’s what I thought. You must do well here,’ I smiled.
She shrugged, humbly, ‘I do alright.’
I just smiled.
‘So, you’re early!’
‘I am! I was pacing the house this morning so I decided to come out earlier than planned. I’ve been on the beach and chatting with random people!’ I laughed.
‘You have? What random people?’
‘Oh, a guy I met up on the cliff top.’
‘Huh…here I was thinking you were interested in women!’
I gave her a look. ‘Allie!’
‘Well who was he then?’ she wondered.
‘He was a fellow estate agent actually!’ I told her, wonder creeping into my voice.
‘No way!’
‘Yes…he was putting a ‘For Sale’ sign up so I went over to speak to him. The house was simply gorgeous so I couldn’t resist.’
‘Which house?’ she asked suddenly, looking anxious.
‘It’s up on the clifftop, overlooking the bay. It’s big and white…I think it was called ‘Hope House,’ I told her frowning.
Allie’s mouth dropped open and she stared at me, looking astonished.
‘What?’ I asked, curious about her reaction.
‘Hope House?’
‘I think so…I mean, I could be wrong…’
‘Oh, my goodness…you don’t know what this means, Cass!’
‘What does it mean?’ I asked her.
‘It’s Hope House, Cass! That house…to me it’s like…well, it’s everything! It’s the house I dream of! It’s the house I’ve wanted since being here.’
My eyebrows rose. ‘Ah, I see…and now it’s for sale.’
She nodded slowly. ‘It’s been used as a holiday home for years. Independent owners have come and gone but since I’ve been here, it’s never been on the market.’
‘No…I can see why not. It’s amazing! You’d hold on to it, right?’
She nodded, thoughtfully. ‘I wonder what’s changed…oh, this is so exciting! So, what did the man say?’
‘It was weird actually,’ I told her.
‘Was it?’
‘Yeah…I told him I was an estate agent and he told me he has a job opening!’
‘No!’
‘Yes!’ I exclaimed. ‘He works five minutes from here…it’s his business. Anyway, one of his female es
tate agents has just left on maternity leave and so he asked me if I wanted to apply for the role!’
‘That’s amazing! What did you say?’
‘I said send me the information! It was bizarre because I’d been thinking about a possible change of job…you know, try something new for a change and then this lands in my lap! It’s like fate is handing me a second chance!’
‘Will you apply?’ she asked.
‘I don’t know…they’re a posh estate agents. They specialise in luxury houses. I don’t know how I’d get on!’
‘Oh, you should go for it!’ she told me excitedly.
‘I should?’
‘Yes! It’d mean a new job and exciting new role alongside the other positive…’
‘What would that be?’ I wondered.
‘You’d be near me!’ she smiled.
‘Oh yes! Well, there is that…’ I mused, returning her smile.
‘I’m enjoying having you around anyway but for you to work close to here…well, it’d be great!’
‘No so much for the travelling though,’ I murmured, thinking through the logistics.
‘Oh…well, you’ll have to move here too then,’ she told me in a matter of fact way.
‘Yeah right. That’s really going to happen!’ I laughed.
‘Stranger things have happened!’ she smiled.
‘Maybe…but it sounds a bit pie in the sky right now.’
‘Perhaps.’
‘So, you’re interested in this Hope House being for sale then?’ I asked, changing the subject.
‘I am, yes. I need to look into it quickly because it’s a house I’ve been watching for years now. I may look it up online when I get home…find out how it’s priced.’
‘Yeah, that would be interesting. I bet it’s pricey though! It’s quite a grand place.’
‘I know…I’m reckoning about £600,000.’
‘Wow,’ I breathed.
‘Yeah…’
‘Could you buy that?’ I asked her.
‘No…no way…’ she said sadly.
‘What is your budget…if you don’t mind me asking?’ I wondered.
‘I don’t mind at all,’ she replied. ‘I’m looking in the £250,000 mark…tops £300,000 really.’
I nodded. ‘That’s my kind of range,’ I nodded.
She glanced at me from under her lashes and looked like she was going to say something for a moment. She hesitated and then remained quiet.