The Little Bed & Breakfast by the Sea

by Jennifer Joyce

  ‘Are you okay?’ Hugo, brow creased with concern, placed a gentle hand on her cheek, sweeping a tear away.

  Melody swallowed hard before taking a deep breath, gathering strength and mentally sorting through the jumble of emotions bombarding her. She wanted to run, to escape the pier, Hugo, the fun-filled day. She didn’t deserve this and the guilt that she was taking it all, greedily and readily, was making her chest ache. She reached behind her, grasping hold of the photo in the back pocket of her shorts. She didn’t take it out – she didn’t need to. Feeling its presence was reminder enough of why she’d come to Clifton-on-Sea.

  ‘I shouldn’t be here.’ Her voice was low, hoarse. Hugo had to bend closer to hear it and his face, his lips, were tantalisingly close. She could kiss him if she wanted to, just as he’d kissed her the previous evening. She could close her eyes and forget all about Ollie, feel something new, something other than the absolute misery she’d been living through.

  ‘Do you want me to walk you home?’ he asked and Melody shook her head. Home wasn’t the bed and breakfast. Home was the flat she’d shared with Ollie, a place she’d escaped from, if only for a little while.

  ‘Can we just…’ Melody shrugged. ‘Go? Somewhere else? Somewhere quieter?’ Somewhere she could clear her head of the mishmash of emotions clogging her thoughts.

  Hugo nodded, the corners of his mouth stretching into the beginnings of a smile. ‘Of course.’

  She expected him to take her hand again, so she placed it in the pocket of her shorts, out of the way. She attempted a smile of her own but it wasn’t forthcoming.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ she said once they’d battled their way through the queue that had grown behind them and made it back out onto the promenade. She wanted to explain, but couldn’t, so an apology was all she had.

  ‘It’s okay.’ Hugo shrugged and sneaked a sideways glance at her. ‘I’ve been on that thing a million times already.’

  ‘Have you?’

  Hugo scrunched up his nose, his right eye closing as he thought about it. ‘Actually, a million times may have been a slight exaggeration.’

  ‘How many times have you been on it?’ Melody asked. She was starting to feel a bit better with the sounds of the pier fading behind them.

  ‘Once.’

  Melody laughed. She couldn’t help it, but she shoved a hand over her mouth to stop it in its tracks. ‘Once? Just a slight exaggeration then.’

  Hugo shrugged. ‘Just a teeny one.’

  ‘Then I’m sorry I ruined your chance for a second go.’

  ‘The first time can’t have been that great,’ Hugo said. ‘It isn’t as though I’ve rushed back to repeat the experience.’

  ‘That’s true. Now I don’t feel so bad for spoiling your morning.’

  ‘Spoiling my morning?’ Hugo paused, placing his hands on Melody’s shoulders and solemnly turning her to face him. ‘Do you realise the moment I did that sneaky turn, expertly zipped past that kid in the yellow car, and shunted into you as revenge for smashing me into the barrier was one of the best moments of my life?’

  Melody giggled, remembering the dodgems and their momentary but fierce rivalry. ‘What about the moment that sweet little girl with pigtails rammed into you?’

  Hugo rubbed at his chest with one hand. The other remained on Melody’s shoulder. ‘That sweet little girl with pigtails winded me.’

  Melody pressed her lips together. She wouldn’t giggle again, no matter how hilariously shocked Hugo had looked at that moment. A smile flickered at her lips but she fought it. She wouldn’t think of the sweet little girl turning to high-five her mum as Hugo’s car performed a spectacular spin as that would send her over the edge.

  ‘I wasn’t expecting it,’ Hugo said, his voice lower now, less confident. ‘It took me by surprise.’

  ‘Don’t worry,’ Melody said. ‘It was just the dodgems. Your manly pride is still intact.’

  Hugo grinned now. ‘Glad to hear it.’

  His hand was still on her shoulder, Melody realised. Just sitting there as they stood facing each other. She remembered the previous evening as Hugo had pressed his lips against hers. She hadn’t been expecting that, and it had certainly taken her by surprise. A few minutes ago, waiting for the Ferris wheel, she’d been confused as she contemplated kissing Hugo, but her mind was clearer now and she wondered how she’d react if he kissed her again. Here. Right now.

  He didn’t.

  ‘Why don’t we go and grab Scoop and take him for a walk?’ Hugo dropped his hand from Melody’s shoulder and resumed their stroll along the promenade. ‘I could show you some less touristy parts of town. The hidden gems.’

  Melody nodded, striding after Hugo. ‘Sounds good.’

  Hugo lived a short walk from the seafront, in a Georgian, three-storey property now divided up into six flats. He lived in a two-bedroomed flat on the ground floor, overlooking the slightly dishevelled garden at the front of the house, with his brother and Scoop Dog, who barked in excited greeting as Hugo pushed his key into the lock.

  ‘Hello, boy.’ Dropping to his knees, Hugo rubbed at the dog’s head, ears, and belly – whichever part was available as Scoop bounced around him like Tigger chomping on E numbers. ‘Did you miss me? Was I gone too long?’ He scooped up the dog, who wriggled and lapped at his chin. ‘Aren’t you going to say hello to our new friend? She’s come to see you and you’ve completely ignored her.’

  Melody stepped towards the dog and gave him a scratch behind the ears. ‘He clearly adores you.’

  ‘The feeling’s mutual.’ Hugo kissed the dog on his little furry head and placed him back on the ground. ‘I’ll just grab his lead and we’ll get going.’

  Scoop’s ears pricked at the word ‘lead’ and he trotted after Hugo as he headed into the kitchen. With the lead attached, they made their way out of the house and up the sloping street, moving further away from the beach.

  ‘So, you’re definitely moving on tomorrow?’ Hugo asked as they strolled along the pavement. Scoop seemed to know where they were headed, trotting slightly ahead of the pair.

  ‘Yes.’ Melody would be checked out of the bed and breakfast and on a train heading towards her next destination in the morning. ‘So many seaside towns, so little time.’

  Hugo quirked an eyebrow at her and she realised she hadn’t explained about the photo festival and her month-long sabbatical, which was coming to an end very soon.

  ‘You must have a very understanding boss to let you have so much time off,’ Hugo said and Melody nodded.

  ‘Work have been fantastic.’ She hadn’t been sure what her employers would say when she’d requested the month of unpaid leave, but she’d been leaning heavily towards a no. But they’d granted her request and wished her well as she set off on her adventure. She’d hoped her work hadn’t suffered over the past year, but perhaps it had and her employers were hoping the break would do her good and she’d return somewhat back to her old self.

  ‘You’re lucky,’ Hugo said. ‘I work with my brother and he’s a slave driver.’

  ‘I saw him earlier, at the ice-cream van. At least I think it was him. Looked a lot like you.’

  ‘He’s devastatingly handsome, huh?’

  Melody rolled her eyes and nudged Hugo with her elbow. ‘I see your pride wasn’t dented too much by the little girl on the dodgems.’

  ‘I have an ego the size of the whole of Britain. Or so I’ve been told.’

  ‘Something tells me you’re not quite as confident as you make out,’ Melody said.

  Hugo scoffed and pushed out his chest. ‘What are you talking about, woman?’

  ‘You’re overcompensating for something. Were you an ugly child?’

  Hugo barked out a laugh. ‘Oh God. The ugliest. I had cheeks like this.’ He puffed out his cheeks until they were straining. ‘And teeth like this.’ He did a good impression of Bugs Bunny. ‘And, to add insult to injury, I was considerably shorter than every kid in
my class until I shot up during the summer between years ten and eleven. Most of the kids – and some of the teachers – didn’t even recognise me and thought I was new to the school. To be fair, the new height had stretched out the puppy fat and I’d had my train-track braces removed, so I did look like a different kid.’

  Melody couldn’t help feeling a tad smug she’d seen through Hugo’s façade and spotted the cleverly hidden vulnerability beneath the surface. It made her warm to him more; he seemed more real, more like her, with his weaknesses.

  ‘So, where are we going?’ she asked as they rounded a corner and Scoop started to tug more insistently on his lead.

  ‘We’re going on one of our favourite walks,’ Hugo said.

  ‘Not the beach?’ Melody didn’t know the area, but she was sure they’d been walking away from the sea. The sounds of the waves and the raucous pier had faded so much you could only detect them if you strained.

  Hugo shook his head. ‘No, not the beach. Scoop doesn’t like it when there are a lot of people about – there’s a much higher chance of there being other dogs around when it’s busy, and he’s wary after the attack. That’s why we prefer Chapel Cove. It’s so secluded, we’re pretty much guaranteed free rein of the beach.’

  ‘I saw you on the beach this morning.’ Melody hadn’t meant to divulge that information, in case Hugo got the wrong idea and thought she’d been seeking him out. But there it was, out in the open.

  ‘We have to time it right,’ Hugo said. ‘Too early and people are walking their dogs before work. Too late and families have migrated down there for the day, taking their furry friends along too. We got it right this morning.’

  ‘You really love this dog, don’t you?’ Melody asked.

  Hugo nodded. ‘He’s my best mate. Wouldn’t know what to do without him. I do wish he wouldn’t piss in my favourite shoes, though.’ He grinned at Melody. ‘I bet you don’t have the same problem with your best friend, do you?’

  Melody shook her head. ‘Nope. Never had that problem.’ She shoved her hands into the pockets of her shorts. ‘You never actually said where we were going.’

  ‘Here.’ Hugo pointed just ahead, to a set of iron gates. With Scoop now tugging furiously, he led the way inside.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Mae

  As Hannah was spending the day with Frank and Corinne, Mae had already taken a child-free trip to the supermarket (and was almost giddy with the novelty of the fuss-free tour of the aisles) and was now taking the opportunity to whizz through the communal living areas while the house was empty to make sure the place was clean and tidy for when her guests arrived back. With the dishwasher taking care of the breakfast dishes, she ran the hoover over the downstairs rooms, gathering stray books, toys and wellies along the way. Once she’d wiped down the kitchen surfaces and mopped the floor, she moved through to her desk in the family room, using this rare alone time to get on top of her admin. Her website was given a long-overdue update and she sent out a quick newsletter to her mailing list. The Robertsons had booked the attic room for two weeks, so once Melody left, the room would be unoccupied for eleven days, which was a huge chunk of time in the B&B world. Mae needed to send out a gentle reminder of her presence and hopefully find some new occupants.

  The dishwasher had completed its cycle by the time she’d finished at her computer, so she wandered back into the kitchen to empty it.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ she asked with a sigh when she spotted the scruffy cat curled up on top of her freshly scrubbed table. ‘You don’t live here, so scram.’ She headed to the back door, opening it wide and indicating the cat should hop it. She hadn’t opened the door since arriving back, so the cat must have been lurking in the house since earlier that morning, no doubt let in by Hannah.

  ‘Come on, out.’ She wafted her hand towards the garden when the cat refused to budge, watching her through heavily lidded eyes from the table. When it still failed to budge, she crossed to the table and scooped it into her arms, noting it was pretty plump. Either it wasn’t a stray, as she suspected, or it was pushing its luck and snacking elsewhere too.

  ‘No,’ she said firmly when the cat mewled. ‘You’re not staying.’ She placed the cat on the grass before backing her way inside the kitchen and closing the door. She gave the table another scrub before locking up the house and heading to a café a couple of streets back from the seafront. It wasn’t often Mae and her mum were both free, so they were making the most of it and meeting for lunch.

  The café was smaller and quieter than those on the seafront, but it had a sun-trapped patio area outside, filled with parasol-covered tables. Mae was the first to arrive, so she chose one of the outdoor tables and ordered a coffee. With the sun warming her skin and the whole afternoon stretching ahead of her, Mae felt as though she were on holiday, pre-Hannah, in Italy, France or Spain. There were some fantastic memories of trips away stored in her brain, and she smiled as she remembered sitting outside a similar café in Barcelona, sipping coffee and trying her hardest to catch the eye of a neighbouring customer she thought was pretty cute. In the end, his girlfriend arrived, practically sitting in his lap, but it hadn’t spoiled the memory. Back then, anything was possible (as long as it didn’t have a girlfriend) and she sometimes ached for those times again. She would never wish Hannah away, would never regret her decisions, but she sometimes wished life was a little bit simpler. A little bit easier. And fun. Mae couldn’t remember the last time she’d let her hair down and allowed herself to enjoy life outside of motherhood.

  Not that she would ever admit this to anyone else. She was fine as she was, that was what she told people, because it was safer that way. Her fun and carefree life had led to heartbreak, and she wasn’t ready to put herself through that again.

  ‘I’m so sorry I’m late,’ Eloise said as she scurried over to the table, dropping a kiss on Mae’s cheek before plonking herself down in the opposite chair. ‘I was watching Jeremy Kyle and must have dropped off. I never found out which one was the dad.’ She tucked her handbag under the table and smiled across at her daughter. ‘This is a nice treat, isn’t it? I can’t remember the last time we had lunch, just the two of us.’

  Mae frowned, shaking her head. ‘No, me neither. I’ve usually got Hannah or one of us is working.’

  ‘Speaking of work,’ Eloise said, raising her hand to catch the attention of a waitress. ‘Did your guest get settled in?’

  Mae nodded and took a sip of her coffee. ‘I managed to fill the other room for a couple of days too. They both seem nice.’

  Mae usually spent her evenings in the family room, her only company the television or a book once Hannah was tucked up in bed, the hours leading up to her own bedtime stretching ahead of her, but last night she and Melody had shared a bottle of wine, chatting as they curled up on the sofa until nearly midnight. She’d been great company, chatting without probing too deeply, and they’d had a giggle. Most of Mae’s friends from Clifton-on-Sea had moved on by the time she returned to the town – either physically or having forged new lives that no longer included her – so it had been like starting afresh. With two jobs and the restraints of motherhood, Mae didn’t have much free time for building friendships, so most of her interactions came from working in the Fisherman and rarely made it beyond the pub’s walls. Only Alfie had breached the bar staff/customer connection and become an actual friend, but she’d never invite him to curl up on her sofa during the evenings. They had a good rapport and Alfie was a great support, but there was always the issue of his feelings for Mae in the background. Feelings Mae just couldn’t return, no matter how kind and sweet – and, yes, attractive, extremely attractive – he was.

  ‘So the bed and breakfast is doing well then?’ Eloise asked as the waitress headed back into the café with their order.

  Mae nodded. ‘It’s doing okay, especially now it’s summer, and one of the rooms is already booked for the autumn term.’

  ‘Your grandparen
ts would be so proud of you, you know,’ Eloise said. ‘It’s a lovely house and should be filled with people, but it was awfully quiet once your uncles and I moved out. I think that’s why they liked having you to stay so often, even though we were only a short drive away. You kept the house alive, and you’re certainly doing that now.’

  ‘I sometimes worry they wouldn’t approve of my turning their home into a business,’ Mae admitted. It hadn’t been the plan when she and Hannah first moved in, but with rising bills and nursery fees Mae just couldn’t afford, she’d needed to find a way to bring more money in, and having Hannah at home while she brought in an income from the house seemed the perfect solution, especially as it had been Mae’s childhood dream to run her own bed and breakfast.

  ‘They wanted you to be happy,’ Eloise said. ‘That’s all that mattered to them.’ Eloise traced a pattern on the tabletop. ‘And are you?’

  ‘Am I what?’

  Eloise tilted her head to one side as she observed her daughter. ‘Are you happy?’

  ‘Of course I’m happy.’ Mae gave a little laugh, just to prove it. ‘Why wouldn’t I be?’

  Eloise reached across the table to place her hand on Mae’s. ‘I sometimes worry you’re lonely.’

  ‘Lonely?’ Mae scoffed. ‘How could I be lonely? I’ve got Hannah and my guests. I barely get a moment to myself.’

  ‘That isn’t the same thing as not being lonely,’ Eloise said. ‘I’ve been there, remember? The single mum. Yes, you’re kept busy enough, but what about fun? Companionship? When was the last time you had sex?’

  Mae’s eyes widened as they darted around the outdoor space, praying nobody had overheard. There wasn’t so much as a flicker from the other customers, but still her cheeks turned a rosy pink.

  ‘Mum!’ she hissed, leaning across the table.

  ‘Well?’ Eloise asked. ‘When was the last time you…?’

  Mae held up a hand to silence her mum before the question was repeated and her cheeks burst into actual flames. ‘Does it matter? I’m not interested in relationships right now, and I’m certainly not interested in one-night stands. Never have been, never will be.’