An estate agent had been to value Archie’s house, and they were now considering their options around renting it out or selling. Renting seemed a good way to create an income stream, so that was the clear favourite so far.
It was the Thursday before the wedding and Caitlin had met Jules, Ruby and Dexter at the Coxswain after work while Grace and Evin walked the dogs with Reid.
‘Have you heard about the local lottery winner?’ Jules asked in a theatrical whisper as they sat out the back of the pub in the newly renovated beer garden.
Ruby leaned closer with intrigue. ‘Ooh no! Anyone we know?’
Jules curled her lip. ‘Morag knows because the winner went into her shop to try to claim the couple of hundred quid they thought they had won. Apparently, she had to get a chair out for them because they thought they were going to collapse. But she won’t say who it was. Keeps making that zip sign over her lips.’
Dexter laughed. ‘Who took the real Morag? This one must be an imposter. Our Morag loves a bit of gossip.’
Jules shook her head. ‘Not this time. She’s being a pillar of discretion. We’ll get it out of her eventually though, eh?’ she said with a wink.
Dexter narrowed his eyes and turned to Caitlin. ‘It isn’t you, is it, Cait? You’ve been walking around all smiley and acting a bit suss.’
Caitlin felt her cheeks flush. ‘Pfft, don’t be daft! If I’d won the lottery, I’d be in here buying everyone drinks.’
Jules interjected, ‘No, this is what being head over heels looks like, Dex.’
He rolled his eyes. ‘Aye, Jetty, don’t worry, I remember it when you were all doe-eyed over Reid.’ He turned to Caitlin again. ‘So, you and Archie are all loved up, eh, Cait? It’s great to see and I’m glad you took our advice finally.’
Jules tilted her head. ‘Yes, and while we’re on that subject, what was going on last night? I was out with Chewie, and I spotted you and Archie carrying boxes down to yours.’
Oh, shit. Busted. ‘Erm…’ Caitlin winced; how much could she say without totally dropping herself in it?’
‘Caitlin Fraser, are you not telling us something?’ Ruby asked with a nudge to her arm.
Caitlin knew that at this point an egg would’ve fried nicely on her face. Sadly, she wasn’t as good as Sophie and Grace at keeping secrets.
‘Boxes, eh?’ Dexter said. ‘That can mean only two things… One, he’s run out of space for all his gadgets and comic collections… Or two, he’s moving into your place.’
All eyes were on Caitlin, this seemed to be a habit. She held up her hands. ‘Okay! Okay, Archie, Sophie and Bowie are moving in. There, now you know.’
Her three friends cheered, and she was enveloped in a strange group hug across the wooden bench table.
She shushed them and waved her hands. ‘Guys! Please, we just want to keep it quiet! We don’t want a fuss.’
Jules squeezed her arm. ‘I’m so bloody happy for you, Cait! Why didn’t you just tell us?’
Guilt niggled at her once more. ‘Like I said, neither of us is big on being the centre of attention and we just wanted it to be a kind of seamless transition rather than a big deal.’
‘Of course, we understand that, honey, but we’re your besties. You can tell us anything.’ There was a pause as if they were waiting for something else, but Caitlin wasn’t prepared to say anything further.
‘Thanks, guys. I really appreciate that. But we’re really good. We’re happy.’ She grinned because it was completely true. And she was head over heels in love for the first time in her life.
‘Ooh, hey did you hear that the Co-op is selling the tearoom?’ Jules announced and Caitlin was happy for the change of subject. ‘They’ve decided to concentrate on the village hall now. Morag was happy to tell me that snippet of gossip.’ She huffed.
Ruby’s eyes widened. ‘Really? Oh, wow! I wonder who’ll buy it. Maybe we’ll get someone new into the village.’
‘Aye, and maybe they’ll want to buy Archie’s house, eh?’ Dexter said with a wink at Caitlin.
Secretly she hoped they might.
* * *
The day of the wedding arrived, and Caitlin, Archie, Grace and Sophie all got ready in their pretty hotel room on the outskirts of Gretna. Even Bowie and Cleo seemed to be happy in their new outfits.
The journey down the day before had taken around six hours, including a toilet stop for everyone and a brief detour for snacks. They had travelled south through the bustling town of Fort William, by the glorious mountains at Glencoe and past the shores of Loch Lomond with its millpond-still surface, mirrorlike, reflecting the vivid blue sky. Both girls were fast asleep as they crossed the Erskine Bridge, but both awoke to watch the people of Glasgow rushing around on the outskirts of the city. It really was a totally different pace of life than Skye.
