Elizabeth called through from the sitting room, ‘You can’t see this sort of view in London! Not even from a penthouse and I’ve been in a penthouse or two in my time.’
Daisy smiled. ‘It’s a different pace, that’s for sure.’
‘Exactly what I need.’
Daisy glanced back at Miles, who was looking around the kitchen and rolling his shoulders in an attempt to let go of the long drive. There was a tiredness about him, not sleep tired, but more the stressed sort that came from holding everything up. Daisy handed him a cup of tea and opened a small white paper bag in which a box held cinnamon buns. She popped them onto a plate. ‘Are you okay? You look tired.’
Miles nodded. ‘Just catching up with myself.’
Daisy gestured to the sitting room. ‘You go and sit with her. I’ll bring the tea and buns in. It looks like you need to rest nearly as much as your mum does.’
By the time Daisy went through with a tray, Elizabeth had pulled a cushion behind her back and was looking around the room like she was sizing it up for a few weeks of serious recovery.
Daisy chuckled. ‘You’re going to be very spoilt here.’
‘So, I’ve gathered. I thought I’d hate the idea of being looked after, but it turns out I’m not above it.’
Miles smiled. ‘See? You’re in good hands. I knew you’d like it here.’
Elizabeth took a sip of tea, sighed and sank further into the chair. ‘What a treat. You’ll have to give me a list of local walks I can do once I’m back on my feet. I’ll need something to aim for.’
Daisy nodded and pointed out the window. ‘There’s a loop from here that goes down a little back lane, past the old cricket pitch and through a lovely orchard which is gorgeous at this time of year. It’s mostly flat and you can see the sea almost the whole way. You’ll love it.’
‘That sounds heavenly. I am so glad I came now, Miles. Thank you for suggesting it and for looking after me. I don’t want to be a burden on you, darling. I cannot stand the thought of being a burden on my two boys.’
Miles brushed the comment off. ‘A burden? Don’t be silly.’
The room went quiet for a moment. Daisy sat on the arm of the sofa, watching as Elizabeth blinked at the view as if she was absorbing it in pieces.
‘I think being somewhere that doesn’t smell mildly of food smells, antiseptic and bleach will help me enormously.’ Elizabeth joked.
Daisy chuckled. ‘Give it a few days and you’ll be sick of fresh air and coastal kindness.’
‘Not possible.’
Once they’d finished their tea, Daisy grabbed the mugs and went back into the kitchen to put them in the dishwasher. Miles followed her, Daisy smiled, jerked her thumb in the direction of the sitting room and lowered her voice. ‘She seems to like the view, but gosh, she looks so tiny and frail, and the bruising is still visible on her face! Honestly, it’s disgusting! I can’t believe what those hideous excuses for human beings did to her. She seems to be just sitting there getting on with it. Grrr.’
‘I needed to get her away from that flat. There is no way she could go through that again. I don’t think her body would cope with it again.’
‘You’ve done the right thing.’
Miles gestured at the kitchen. ‘You didn’t need to do any of this.’
‘I didn’tneedto, Iwantedto. That’s different. Your poor mum has been through so much. She needs home-cooked food and real care by the looks of it.’
Miles looked around at the fresh bread, the apple pie in the tea towel and then looked out the window. ‘I get now why you don't ever want to leave this place. There’s something about Pretty Beach that just makes you feel like there’s room to think or something. As soon as we passed the town sign, I thought that. I can’t believe GayesBooks think they can be part of it.’
Daisy nodded. ‘Exactly.’
‘I think it’s going to help her, being here even if she complains that she misses her flat.’
‘Let her. There’s good complaining and there’s bad complaining.’
‘I’ve missed you. It’s so good to see you.’
‘Same.’
‘So, how does the next few weeks pan out? Have you got a lot on?’
