‘Thank you,’ she said, and Ella knew Dolores meant it from the bottom of her heart.
Chapter Thirteen
‘A couple of cheese and onion pasties and chocolate flapjacks to keep us going, courtesy of Rona,’ Roman waltzed through the doorway and held up a carrier bag full of goodies before spilling them out on to the coffee table. ‘There’s enough Haribos to sink the Titanic and keep our sugar levels up. We have a busy few hours ahead of us.’
Ella noticed his mood was upbeat and she hoped it was because his meeting with Megan had gone well and not because he was trying to cover up a bad morning.
‘How did your interview go? I didn’t manage to catch it.’
‘Never mind that, how was your meeting? That is a little more important than my five minutes of fame.’ Ella gestured for Roman to sit down. ‘You don’t have to go into details; I just want to make sure you’re both okay.’
‘You’re lovely. I can’t remember the last time anyone asked me whether I was okay. On a positive note, Megan’s still there and yes, we are both doing okay. Apparently, at first she was a little feisty, as she doesn’t like rules and regulations, but her caseworker has said that is normal and she’ll probably butt heads for a few more days until she realises she’s not getting anywhere. She will have a shock being cut off from the outside world, but they confirmed that this morning she took part in a yoga class, which is great news. She’s in the four-week programme, so I’m just hoping she has the will-power to see it through.’
‘She wants this and she’s there, so that’s the first step. Take each day as it comes and remember, everyone is here for you both.’
‘Thank you, I really do appreciate that.’ Roman held her gaze for a moment before standing up and passing her a pasty in a white paper bag. ‘Tell me, how has Dolores reacted to the line-up so far? I was thinking about it driving over here. Is she happy?’
Ella blew out a breath as she stood up and retrieved two plates from the kitchen cupboard. ‘We’ve set the cat amongst the pigeons.’
‘Why? What have we done?’
‘Charlie Love… is the one that got away,’ replied Ella. ‘Dolores Henderson’s one true love, but they couldn’t be together.’
‘Are you serious?’
‘Absolutely serious. I’m not really sure of any of the details, but when I first arrived in Heartcross a letter was delivered here for Dolores by mistake. I gave it to her, but she literally hid it away from me. Anyway, it turns out that even though Dolores and Charlie couldn’t be together, they’ve written to each other every six months for over sixty years.’
Roman blew out a breath. ‘Sixty years! You’re kidding me, right?’
‘Dolores was actually tearful when I told her. She thought she would never see Charlie again, and now we are going to make that happen.’
‘She’s held a torch for Charlie for all this time?’
‘And that’s the reason why she never married anyone else. She never fell out of love. No one ever came close.’
‘It sounds tragic, and now, by accident, after all this time, they are going to be in the same room?’
‘Thanks to our phone call.’
‘Is this a good thing?’ Roman looked concerned. ‘We don’t want to throw Dolores into an emotional meltdown on the night. She needs to be on top form, especially if it’s being filmed.’
‘I asked Dolores if she wanted us to cancel Charlie’s invite but she said no, she’d hoped one day they would get to see each other one last time. I’m actually feeling quite emotional about it all, but she wants to meet him in private before the event. Maybe in the afternoon, if we can arrange that?’
Roman jotted it down on his list. ‘I’ll see to that.’
Ella was pensive for a second. ‘Can you imagine putting your life on hold and never falling in love again because you still loved that one person?’
‘I can relate to that in a way,’ admitted Roman, suddenly sounding sad.
‘Oh, Roman, I didn’t…’
‘I know you didn’t mean anything by it, but for years I threw myself into fatherhood, Megan always came first and…’ He took a breath. ‘I always felt guilty, that I wasn’t good enough for anyone else. I blamed myself for Hattie’s death. If only I hadn’t encouraged her to go out that night, if only I’d slept in the same room that night, things would have been okay. But over time I’ve begun to see things in a different light.’
‘Time is a good healer.’ Ella gave a quick thought to Alex. With all the planning for the event at The Lakehouse, she hadn’t given him much thought just lately.
‘Right, let’s get to work,’ he said. ‘I have the rest of the day and evening to work on this event as much as possible, and then it’s back to sailing the boat tomorrow.’
Ella thought it was a good idea that Dolores would introduce each act herself, then spend a couple of minutes reminiscing about the past – how they met, with a short amusing anecdote thrown in for good measure, followed by the artist’s song, which they would sing together.
Twenty-four hours ago ringing an artist would have scared the life out of Ella but now, Roman and Flynn had boosted her confidence. They believed she was capable of organising this event and Ella was taking everything in her stride and proving them right.
She was scribbling on the pad in front of her, when she glanced up to see Roman smiling warmly at her. ‘Why are you smiling at me?’
‘Because you are really good at this, it’s like you’ve found your calling. You have an amazing way with people, Ella. And you have great organisational skills.’
‘Aww thanks, I’m learning from the best.’ She smiled back warmly, tapping her pen on the table then pointing to Roman’s phone, which had just started to ring.
‘It’s Callie,’ he said, taking the call. ‘Yes, she’s right here with me.’ He held his phone out towards Ella. ‘It’s Callie for you, your phone was constantly engaged so she tried mine.’
She took the phone from Roman. ‘Hi, Boss, we’re working like busy bees. Everything seems too good to be true, but it really is all slotting together with no hitches at all.’ After speaking with Callie for a further five minutes, she hung up and gave Roman his phone back.
‘Callie and Flynn are worried. For the next few days there’s severe weather warnings and a storm looming over us. The bookings at The Lakehouse are virtually non-existent, so Gianni has suggested we round up the locals to get a few bums on seats so he can do a practice run of Dolores’ menu for the big night. He’s literally charging for the cost of the ingredients in exchange for feedback, and asked if we can post about it in the community groups. He knows it’s short notice but hopefully we can entice a few of the villagers out into the dark dreary night.’
Taking a sip from her drink, Ella opened up her emails and spotted one from Flynn. She twizzled her screen towards Roman. ‘Look at all these old photos and stories that the locals have sent in. It’s amazing that everyone is getting on board. We need to go through all of these and put them into some sort of order.’ Ella meant business and she was really enjoying getting her teeth stuck into this project… and spending time with Roman was an added bonus.
For hours Ella and Roman were on and off the phone, listening to the songs that the artists were going to sing on the night and organising everyone’s memories into an order. All afternoon they laughed and joked and bounced off each other, and before they knew it Ella nudged Roman’s elbow. ‘Look!’ She nodded towards the French doors of the balcony. ‘It’s pitch black outside and just gone 7pm!’ exclaimed Ella, thinking the time had flown by. Her stomach growled with hunger and they both laughed. ‘Do you fancy some food, or have you got plans?’
‘The only plan I have is going home to an empty house and cooking for one. What do you suggest?’ he asked, putting his pen down and raking his fringe out of his eyes.
‘Shall I call Meredith and see if she will plate us a couple of pie and chips from the pub? I’ve still got a few things to do on this,’ she looked towards her lap
top, ‘before I completely down tools.’
‘That sounds like a perfect plan.’
Ella phoned across to Meredith, who was more than happy to plate up a couple of meals for the hard workers, and fifteen minutes later Ella hurried across to the pub leaving Roman to set the table. Callie was having tea at Julia’s this evening and wouldn’t be back until late, so that meant they could leave everything sprawled out over the table.
Five minutes later she was hurrying back up the stairwell clutching two hot plates. Roman had cleared a space and was sitting on the settee scrolling through his phone. ‘I wonder what Megan is having for her tea?’ he mused, as Ella placed the food on the table. ‘Look at the size of that pie!’
Ella had to agree it was ginormous, but she was absolutely starving and was going to devour every bit of it. ‘Tell me about Megan, what was she like as a little girl?’
Roman smiled and put down his knife and fork. ‘From day one she was inquisitive, always looking around the room, smiling and gurgling. As soon as she learnt to speak, she wasn’t afraid to ask questions, but the second she began to sing… her voice is beautiful. Megan always wanted to be in the entertainment industry, she auditioned for every school play, went to drama and singing classes. I was one proud dad. We’ve always had a brilliant relationship with just each other to rely on, but in the last eighteen months it became a struggle. It seemed like my little girl had just disappeared overnight. Her drinking escalated and has just become out of control. It saddens me to say it, but at the moment I just don’t recognise her at all; my kind caring daughter has just vanished.’
‘She’ll be back, I just know it,’ Ella reassured. ‘Megan is in the best place.’
Five minutes later Ella leant back in her chair with her hands clutching her stomach. ‘I’m bursting, full to the brim, but that steak pie was to die for.’
With two empty plates in front of them, Ella looked at her laptop and shut down the lid. ‘I declare we’ve done enough work today. Do you fancy watching a film or something? But saying that, I’ve only noticed one DVD around this place,’ she scrunched up her face, ‘and it’s probably not your thing.’
‘Try me.’
Ella chewed her lip for a second. ‘Bridget Jones’ Diary it is, then.’ She watched for Roman’s reaction. ‘Did you just roll your eyes?’ She swiped his arm playfully.
‘No, no… I promise I didn’t roll my eyes; I can’t think of a better film to watch.’ He grinned, exaggerating an eye roll.
‘You did so! Make yourself comfy, I’ll get us some drinks.’
When Ella brought the drinks in, Roman had plumped up the cushions and made himself comfy on the settee, and had propped his feet up on the coffee table, causing Ella to burst out laughing. His multicoloured monster socks caught her eye. ‘Very classy.’
‘I love my socks.’ He pretended to look hurt by her laughter. ‘Socks say a lot about someone’s personality.’
‘You don’t say,’ she teased, sitting on the chair next to him and resting her feet next to his.
They both looked down at Ella’s boring white trainer socks.
‘Say no more,’ he said with a glint in his eye.
Ella playfully hit him with the cushion. ‘I am not boring.’
‘You don’t say,’ he joked, repeating her very words. He tapped his foot against Ella’s and sent a wave of shivers down her spine. Sitting next to Roman, they were only centimetres apart, and she folded her arms and fixed her eyes on the screen. Feeling comfortable in his company, they watched the film, sharing jokes and laughing, but after a while Ella realised that Roman had closed his eyes and fallen asleep.
She took the opportunity to study his face; he was more than handsome. She thought about how he’d uprooted himself, moved miles and sacrificed his own career to move Megan away from a situation to try and help her, which showed he had a huge heart. To be a single father and bring up his daughter by himself was commendable. Roman must be exhausted with everything that was going on in his life. Knowing she liked Roman, she watched him for a moment longer. The black cloud that had been hanging over Ella since Alex disappeared had begun to lift. She was feeling happy at home and at work, and all that was missing was that special something.
Even though Roman ticked all the boxes, Ella questioned whether she was ready to trust again. She just knew she could never be hurt again. Switching down the volume on the TV, she dimmed the lights and gently covered him up with a throw.
She let him sleep as she carried on watching the film.
Chapter Fourteen
A storm was looming over Heartcross, but the majority of villagers were heading towards The Lakehouse to sample Gianni’s taster menu for the big event. This was a dress rehearsal for Gianni as well as for the waiters, and all the members of staff selected to work on the night of the event had to sign a confidentiality agreement. No one was allowed to repeat any conversations that were overheard or ask for selfies, and the staff had to remain professional at all times.
Ella had joked that it was as crazy as signing the Official Secrets Act. Hamish had kindly offered to give Callie and Ella a lift to The Boathouse to catch the water taxi, as huge dollops of rain had already started to fall over Heartcross and the winds were wild. Weather warnings were broadcasting all over the news, but that hadn’t dampened anyone’s spirits, and everyone was looking forward to the night ahead.
On the way to the boat they picked up Felicity and Isla who were excited about Dolores’ big event. In preparation they’d taken the day off work together and had travelled into the city, looking for the perfect dress for the ‘Trip Down Memory Lane’.
‘Look at this storm,’ exclaimed Callie from the passenger seat as a fork of lightning lit up the sky in front of Hamish’s car.
‘Let’s hope it calms down a little,’ added Felicity, as Hamish parked right at the end of the jetty. Making a run for it, they shouted thank you to Hamish and sprinted towards the boat. The thunder rolled overhead like the fury of the Gods and tumbled towards them through the darkened clouds. The gangplank was down and all four on them ran straight on board and shielded undercover.
Roman gave Ella a huge beaming smile the second he spotted her. Last night he’d been out for the count and Ella had debated whether to leave him where he was. But just after 11pm she’d given him a little shake to wake him, and he’d been mortified he’d fallen asleep.
‘Anything to get out of watching Bridget Jones,’ she’d joked, and he’d agreed with a cheeky grin.
As Roman had packed up his stuff and headed to the front door, he’d hesitated and Ella had been sure he wanted to say something, or maybe even give her a goodnight kiss. Her heart gave a little skip, but the moment had passed, and he’d simply bid her a friendly goodnight. Ella knew once they’d crossed that line it would change everything, and although she was willing for that happen, there was a tiny part of her that was still uncertain.
‘Do we get to sample the cocktails tonight?’ joked Isla, looking towards Callie.
‘Only if you’re paying for them – do you want us to go bankrupt?’ she teased.
Everyone was in good spirits despite the rain and Roman tipped his cap and started the engine. ‘This isn’t the best weather, so sit back and if you stay in the seats in the middle of the boat, it won’t seem as rocky.’ Straight away Ella noticed that Roman wasn’t dressed in his usual uniform, but instead wore a more upmarket jacket accessorised with a pair of white gloves. It oozed ‘designer’, along with his aftershave. He really did look the part.
‘New uniform?’ Ella asked, admiring what she saw.
He nodded. ‘My winter attire. Do you like it?’
‘I do,’ she replied, giving him a darting glance, followed by a silly grin before following Callie to the seats in the middle of the boat. Feeling a fast pulse, Ella knew they were flirting and she liked it.
‘Look at this boat,’ Felicity spun round.
The open-plan saloon and galley had a light and airy feel with a
split sliding canopy allowing each side to be opened separately. It was heated, the seats were plush red velvet around circular tables and fairy lights decorated the roof of the boat. The bar at the end came with waiter service, and the whole feel of the boat was magical.
‘It feels like Christmas to me,’ added Isla, taking her first glass of champagne from the waiter.
As they set off, the rain could be heard thrashing down on the roof of the boat but that didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits; they couldn’t wait for their evening to start. Ella ducked with each thunderous boom, causing everyone to laugh. She knew it was silly but she couldn’t help it.
Very soon The Lakehouse was in sight, and on the whole the crossing had been a little bumpy but nothing too scary. As Roman steered the boat in to calmer waters, Ella gasped; there were lights guiding the boat along the riverbank and the weeping willows sparkled in multiple colours.
‘You’ve not seen anything yet.’ Roman looked over his shoulder and Ella joined him at the helm. ‘Look, what do you think?’
‘I think it’s the most romantic thing I’ve seen in a long, long time.’ The restaurant looked like a magical wonderland. The lights were draped across the front of the restaurant, giving it very much a Christmas feel, and there were roaring fire pits burning under huge canopies. Despite the wind and the rain, the whole place looked magnificent.
‘We are going for the full dress rehearsal tonight, aren’t we? I’m surprised the rain doesn’t put the fires out,’ remarked Ella, thinking how dramatic yet beautiful it all looked.
‘I think it’s artificial flames just for effect, but on the night, there will be a red carpet trailing all the way up the jetty to the entrance,’ added Callie. ‘The left-hand side of the bay will be cordoned off for the paparazzi and the TV cameras, whilst the guests can line up on the right-hand side where they can say hello, shake hands with the stars etc. on the way into the restaurant.’
‘It’s all coming together!’ Ella felt a tiny thrill of excitement. If it felt as spectacular as this on the night, it would definitely be a night to remember.
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