As she reached the road that led directly into Portree, she was greeted with a fabulous view of The Storr, a rocky hill facing east off Skye, in the distance. The vista before her was of the gnarled finger of the Old Man – a large, pointed peak of the rock formation – aiming skywards as if counting the fluffy white strips of cloud at its pinnacle. There was a wondrous sight to behold around every corner on her home island and even though she sometimes took it for granted, she knew that she would never want to live anywhere else.
The elderly lady was thrilled with the ornate cake she had commissioned for her granddaughter’s birthday and hugged Caitlin, telling her how grateful she was that she had made the trip all the way from Glentorrin. It was no problem really. As much as she loved her village, it was nice to travel further north on the island sometimes. Especially with her mother’s house now being sold and there being no real reason for her to regularly go to the island’s capital.
Before she made her journey home, Caitlin stopped at a florist and purchased a bunch of peonies, then she walked the few hundred yards to the cemetery, where a stone plaque marked her parents’ resting place. She slotted the flowers into the empty plastic receptacle attached to the stone by a metal ring and poured water in from the bottle she had brought from home.
She placed her hand over the engraving of their names and whispered, ‘I miss you both,’ before turning and heading for her car once more. Even though Caitlin visited the cemetery as often as she could to refresh the flowers, she preferred to think of her parents alive and in happier times; they weren’t in the cemetery but rather in her memory and her heart.
* * *
As she drove towards home, Caitlin admired the hedgerows filled with sunny yellow gorse and wildflowers against a backdrop of velvety-looking hills, and in the distance the Cuillin Hills rose out of the ground with dark and mysterious majesty. She was merrily singing along to KT Tunstall’s ‘Suddenly I See’ when the car pinged and a light on the dashboard illuminated to inform her that the pressure in one of the tyres was too low.
Oh, great. Trust it to happen as soon as I arrive in the middle of nowhere.
She pulled over, climbed out of the car, and inspected the tyre. The dull, metal end of a nail was just visible on the surface of the rubber, and Caitlin sighed in deep exasperation before collecting the spare tyre from the boot. She suddenly regretted her decision to wear a bright white T-shirt on this sunny day.
Now, Caitlin was no damsel in distress, but after several attempts to free the wheel nuts, she gave up and let out her frustration. She kicked at the flat tyre with as much venom as she could muster that wouldn’t result in broken toes. Then, after glancing at her watch, she called Jules and asked her to meet Grace off the school bus and take her to their house. This wasn’t something that normally occurred. She always made sure to be home for Grace.
As she stood there contemplating who she could call for help, she fired off a text to Dexter.
Where are you when I need you? Probably in another distillery! Just think of me sitting here at the side of the road hoping someone drives by to rescue me from my seized-up wheel nuts!
A reply came quickly.
You need to keep your nuts greased, Cait!
It was followed by a laughing emoji, and even in her annoyed state, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
Anyway, I hope the dating is going well. Jetty was telling me about Cora’s dad. Go get ’em tiger!
She smiled at his lifelong nickname for Jules.
Ugh, why couldn’t I have fancied Dexter? He’s bloody perfect for me. If only one could control the heart’s desires, Caitlin mused.
A car pulled up alongside her. ‘Tyre trouble?’
Recognising the familiar, husky voice, she turned. ‘Archie! Thank goodness. Can you give me a hand? I’ve got the blooming thing jacked up, but I can’t loosen the nuts.’
‘Ah, your nuts need greasing.’ He chuckled at his own joke. You could tell he was friends with Dex. He climbed out of his car. ‘Let me take a look.’ He crouched down to pick up the tyre iron. Attaching one of the holes over a nut, he began to apply pressure. He was wearing a T-shirt with a mountainscape graphic on the front and Caitlin watched as his biceps bulged with the effort. She’d never noticed how muscular he was until now. His angular, stubbled jaw clenched as he forced the nuts loose. ‘Bingo!’ he said as the first one released.
Caitlin felt a little voyeuristic as she was mesmerised by the masculinity of him as he carried out the task and wondered why on earth her libido had chosen that particular moment to get hot and bothered.
Once all the nuts were off, Archie stood, lifted the hem of his shirt and wiped his brow. Caitlin gulped as his stomach was exposed, flat and lean with a fuzzy line of hair that branched out at his chest.
Bloody hell, Cait, put your tongue away!
He lifted the spare tyre, and as he did so, Caitlin was reminded of those male model photos from calendars in the nineties, of the oiled-up hunks holding the rubber-clad circles as if they weighed next to nothing. She averted her gaze as he slipped the tyre into place, then began to tighten the nuts again.
I’m like a bloody dog in heat!
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had sex and she decided that was the problem – after all, she’d never looked at Archie in that way before. She also decided that Ruby and Jules had a lot to answer for, comparing him to that attractive actor, because no matter how many times she tried to conjure an image of the green-skinned, monosyllabic Hulk, all she could see, in reality, was the ruggedly handsome man who played him.
‘All done,’ Archie said with a clap of his hands.
‘Thank you so much. You’re a lifesaver,’ she told him. ‘I owe you some complimentary cake the next time you’re in the bakery.’
‘Aw, it’s nae bother. That’s what friends are for, eh?’ He smiled and her stomach flipped.I really need to get a boyfriend… and soon, she told herself. It was a hot day, and she blamed that fact for her warm cheeks and the beads of sweat on her upper lip. ‘I’ve put your flat in the boot.’
‘Thank you, Archie. I could’ve dealt with it myself usually.’
