‘Mm, maybe,’ said Bella doubtfully, then she stifled a giggle. Soon, the three of them were doubled over, laughing until tears ran down their faces.
* * *
Later that day, Bella was stretched out on a picnic blanket on the beach after sharing a delicious picnic provided by Rosie.Luke and Ash had offered to go and buy some little pots of the local dairy ice-cream and Coisty had trotted after them, hopeful that he might benefit from wherever they were going. Luke and Ash were getting on brilliantly and were like long-lost friends.
‘Bit of a bromance going on there,’ said Bella with a giggle as they walked off together.
‘There certainly is,’ said Rosie, fondly watching them go. ‘I’m almost expecting them to announce they’re off on a mini-break together.’
‘You mean a manmoon?’ said Isobel, chuckling. ‘You were always so good at this.’ She reached over and opened up a box of food which had been packed away when they all insisted they’d eaten enough. ‘I mean, look at your beautifully cut sandwiches. And your homemade sausage rolls are to die for.’
‘Yes, no offence, Mum, but your packed lunches were never the best. It was usually a squashed roll wrapped in tinfoil, with a bruised banana, which I never ate, and a wee carton of warm juice. Bleurgh.’
Isobel grinned. ‘Well, you can’t be good at everything, can you?’ Then she turned to Rosie. ‘How are things going then with lover boy?’ She nodded towards Luke who was now far enough away not to hear.
Rosie’s cheeks reddened. ‘Very well,’ she said coyly. ‘What’s even better though is that when I told Ben about it, he was fine and very chilled.’
Isobel smiled. ‘That’s a relief. What’s going to happen when he leaves though? Are you going to do the long-distance thing?’
Rosie shrugged her shoulders. ‘We’ve not yet hadthatchat. I’ve just decided to make the most of it while he is here. Life’s too short to worry, right?’
Bella slumped back on the rug and checked her phone wondering if Ben might have texted her. She wished she could be more like Rosie with her relaxed attitude. There were nomessages from him and she couldn’t help feeling disappointed. Then she reminded herself that he wasn’t officially her boyfriend so she didn’t really have any right to expect anything from him. The main thing to focus on was that she was here with some of her favourite people in the world who had made a huge effort to make her day special. Ash had given her some perfume and money for her travel fund, her mum had bought her the necklace to match her earrings from The Wee Trove and Rosie had gifted her a gorgeous blue handbag. And most importantly, they were together on a beautiful beach in the sunshine. What more could she want? If she saw Ben, that would be the icing on the cake. Bella lay back and dozed in the sunshine, enjoying listening to her mum and Rosie chatter and the sound of the waves gently lapping the shore. A wee while later she felt someone nudging her foot and her mum was whispering in her ear.
‘Wake up, love. There’s another birthday present just arrived.’
Bella sat up startled and saw a tall figure standing in front of her. She wondered if she was dreaming. The sun was high in the sky and she couldn’t quite make out who it was. She rubbed her eyes and stood up.
‘Happy birthday, Bella,’ said Ben from behind a huge bouquet of flowers. ‘Sorry I’m so late. It ended up being busier than expected.’
‘Ben!’ she said with a gasp. She could now feel herself blush especially as they had an audience on the sands next to them. She flicked her glance to where her mum and Rosie were. They were pretending to be absorbed with their ice-creams, which Luke and Ash must have returned with when she was dozing. Even Coisty was busy digging a huge hole in the sand and was otherwise engaged.
Ben handed her the flowers and then reached down and kissed her gently. His lips lingered for a moment on hers and he gazed at her.
Bella felt her legs turn to jelly. ‘Thank you,’ she managed to whisper. Then there was a bang. Coisty yelped and Bella jumped, leaning into Ben. He kissed her on the top of her head and held her tightly.
‘Oops, sorry about that,’ said her mum sheepishly. She then proceeded to fill up champagne flutes with the pale fizz.
A grinning Rosie appeared from behind with a pink cake which she must have kept hidden earlier. ‘Happy birthday, Bella,’ she said.
Bella felt overwhelmed as she took a step away from Ben and went towards Rosie to hug her. ‘Thank you so much, Rosie. Thank you, everyone,’ she said, then looking at her mum, Ash and Luke.
Isobel made sure everyone had a glass of something and Bella felt Ben’s eyes on her as her mum cleared her throat. ‘Here’s to a birthday and a year to remember,’ she said. ‘And thanks to Rosie’s secret journal for bringing us all here today.’ She paused to allow the ripple of laughter to pass. ‘You’re wonderful, Bella, and we wish you every happiness. We love you. Happy birthday!’ She raised her glass in the air.
Bella felt her eyes well up with tears of joy.
‘Cheers,’ chorused the group. ‘Happy birthday, Bella!’ As they started to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to her, she felt Ben clasp her hand tightly. She saw Ash looking at her knowingly and he gave her a wink. He was right. Things did have a way of working out as they should. It had been the most memorable summer for so many reasons. It had been a summer of secrets on Arran. But the truths had been transformational. It was a summer she would never forget and today was a birthday she would always cherish.
Epilogue
One Year Later
It was a beautiful summer’s evening and everyone had gathered together in the garden of Creel Cottage for a barbecue. Isobel glanced around and smiled as she saw the collection of smiling faces and listened to the hubbub of chatter and the peals of laughter from different corners. She had volunteered to be on bar duty and was busily topping up drinks while Ben, living up to the image of a stereotypical man, had insisted that he would keep an eye on the barbecue. Though, given the scent of burning sausages which now permeated the air, and the fact that Bella was standing next to him, it wasn’t hard to work out that his attentions were elsewhere.
Rosie’s garden looked even better than last year, with its new patio dotted with bright pots of shrubs. She caught a glimpse of Rosie who looked stunning this evening in a green dress. Her blonde hair had grown longer and she pinned it up, some wavy tendrils loose and framing her face. After last year’s drama, she had finally come to an agreement with Dermot that she would be keeping Creel Cottage and he could have the Edinburgh flat. Dermot had been in no position to argue. Isobel was glad he had finally seen sense as she had been extremely tempted to go and visit him in person and give him a piece of her mind.
Rosie was chatting to Bella, who looked lovely in denim shorts and a red vest. She seemed like a different daughter to the worried and anxious girl she had been at the start of last summer. Her hair was pulled back in high ponytail and her face was glowing. Isobel was pleased to see a few familiar faces including Ben’s boss, James, who ran the distillery and was here with his girlfriend, Amy. Bella’s friend from work, Becky, had come along with her twin brother, Tom, and their parents, Kirstyand Steve, who ran Meadowbank Guesthouse. Edie had even brought Maisie along and the pair were deep in conversation. Then, of course, there was her mother, who everyone seemed to know as Granny Margaret, who was holding court in the corner with her partner, Bill, and his daughter, Beth, and her partner, Callum, and Fergus from the outdoor centre with his fiancée, Amelia.
Earlier, Isobel had had a stern few words with her mother and Margaret had been sworn to secrecy about the details of Rosie’s new neighbour.
