Beth warmed to her immediately as she followed her into a bright hallway where she kicked off her boots.
‘Och, you don’t have to do that Beth,’ said Freya, who was wearing just warm socks on her feet. ‘But I appreciate it. I feel as though I spend all my time mopping the floors at the moment, especially with all this rain. As you can imagine the boys tramp in and out with muddy boots and don’t give it a second thought. Come on through here.’ She walked into a huge open-plan kitchen with a large island and barstools.
‘This is Rory, our younger son.’ She pointed to a shy-looking boy who was sitting on a stool swinging his legs.
‘Hi Rory, nice to meet you,’ said Beth.
‘Hello.’ His cheeks flushed.
‘Where’s your brother?’ asked Freya.
Rory shrugged. ‘I’ll go find him.’ He slipped off the stool and went to look for him.
Beth handed the flowers and chocolates to Freya. ‘These are for you.’
‘They’re gorgeous,’ said Freya. ‘Though there was no need.’
‘I wanted you to know I appreciate you having me.’
Freya gave her a reassuring smile. ‘Thank you.’ She took the flowers to the sink and reached for a vase from a cupboard. ‘It’s great to have you here, and I know Jim is just relieved that it’s no longer just down to him.’
‘I’m excited about it.’ Beth watched as Freya snipped the end of the flowers, then poured boiling water over the ends.
‘Just a wee tip I picked up along the way. It makes them last longer.’ Freya had seen Beth watching.
Beth smiled. ‘Thanks for that. I will try and remember the next time I have flowers.’ She gestured around the room andtowards the window that framed the bay. ‘You have a beautiful home. And what an amazing view.’
‘Thank you.’ Freya smiled and put the vase of flowers on the window ledge. ‘I do love sitting there and just looking out when I’m in the house on my own and all is quiet. It changes every day. I often think of it as being like a live picture frame.’
Beth nodded in agreement. ‘I can see how that would appeal.’
Freya pointed to one of the stools at the breakfast bar. ‘Take a seat while we wait for the boys to come down. I have to say, I do think you’re very brave to come here.’
Beth shrugged as she perched on the barstool. ‘At least it’s not completely new to me. I think that would be much scarier. I’m not quite sure I could go somewhere I don’t know at all. And it’s actually really nice to be back.’
‘Of course, that’s right. Jim said that you worked here when you were a student?’
‘Yes, that was a very long time ago. But it was a really happy time. I’ve got some great memories.’
‘I’m not surprised. That time in your life when you have no worries and everything is carefree. Then it all goes downhill.’ Her tone was knowing, but she smiled. ‘It has been a great place to raise the boys, and they love the summers here. But I have a feeling they’ll be off to the mainland as soon as they can.’ Freya took a seat opposite her. ‘Did you keep in touch with anyone from your time here?’
‘Not really. We all had good intentions to begin with, and then things kind of fizzled out. Life happened, I guess. I don’t know anyone here anymore. I suspect most people will have left and gone on to other things.’
‘Yes, I know what you mean. We didn’t have Facebook back in the day did we? It was harder to stay in touch, as I keep telling the boys. Mind you, it was also easier to be a bit more elusive,which I have to say I prefer. I will never get used to everyone feeling the need to share every minute detail of their lives.’
Beth nodded thoughtfully. Even now some people avoided social media like the plague. They clearly just didn’t want to be found.
Chapter Eleven
After Freya and Beth chatted for a while, Jim appeared with who Beth assumed was their older son.
‘Hi there,’ she said brightly.
‘Good to see you Beth,’ said Jim. ‘This is Murray. We were just trying to get some maths homework done.’
Murray was less shy than his brother — he stepped forward and held out his hand. ‘Nice to meet you, Beth.’
‘Oh, I don’t envy you. Maths was never my strong point,’ admitted Beth.
