“Well, now I’m worried. Tell me what you were going to say.”
“Fine.” He dropped his chin to his chest. “Mum’s got it into her head that you’ll move here at some point. The three of you.”
“Why does she think that?”
Kit shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“Okay.” That didn’t seem like such a huge confession. “Wait … you’re not telling me everything, are you?”
He winced. “She hasn’t taken any bookings for Peswera Cottage for this year in case you decide you want to move here.”
“Are you serious?” Beth asked. “Trystan’s completely chilled about job hunting because he’ll have the rental income.”
“The money isn’t an issue. Mum can advertise the place at the last minute and still have it booked out for the entire tourist season. That’s her plan. Trystan will be none the wiser. I should never have said anything.”
“It’s fine.” Beth let out a breath. She should probably be annoyed with Mirren, but secretly she felt an odd sense of comfort that the cottage didn’t have any bookings. “Mirren must be desperate for Trystan to move back here.”
“She’d be over the moon if he moved back here. But it’s also you and Ellie that she’d love to have around more. Especially Ellie. No offence.”
“None taken.”
“She loved having you here last summer.” Kit sighed heavily. “I’ll talk to her about the cottage though. Get her to start taking bookings for it.”
Beth flashed him a grateful smile as she stood up, then stopped in her tracks halfway to the door. “Maybe you could wait a little while.”
“How do you mean?”
Her thoughts were all over the place and she wasn’t entirely sure what she meant. “Don’t say anything to her yet … wait a few weeks so I have time to get everything straight in my head.”
“I’m confused … are you thinking what I think you are?”
“I have no idea.” She grimaced as she looked at him. “I can’t leave my dad … but I’m also really confused. Don’t say anything to anyone, please. But don’t encourage your mum to take bookings just yet.”
NEW YEAR’S DAY
While the rest of the Treneary family had taken themselves off to the Mermaid Inn to see in the New Year, Trystan and Beth had opted for a quiet evening at Peswera Cottage. Once Ellie was settled in bed, they’d had an early night themselves, and Beth only briefly stirred when fireworks erupted at midnight.
When she woke again it was shortly before dawn. Lying in the dark, she reflected on the highs and lows of the previous year until the first hint of daylight crept around the curtains. Slipping out of bed, she pulled her thick knitted cardigan on over her pyjamas and drew the suitcase out from under the bed, feeling around inside until her hand landed on the only item in it.
Bringing her mum’s ashes to St Marys had been a last-minute impulse, and up until then she hadn’t even thought about scattering them. Now she felt a warm glow of hopefulness about the future and a compulsion to start the year looking forward instead of back.
As she stepped out of the cottage, dawn was arriving over Old Town Bay, and the clarity she felt in the gusty air was invigorating.
Walking to the end of the beach, she disturbed two sandpipers who screeched in annoyance as they scuttled away along the water’s edge. Beth clambered onto the rocks which marked the start of the jagged headland. High tide lapped at the seaweed-covered stones, and Beth matched her breathing to the gentle swell of the waves before unscrewing the lid of the urn.
She only hesitated for a moment before pouring out the ashes. Caught on a light breeze, they sparkled in the early rays of sunshine, then rested on the surface of the water for a moment before sinking below. Tears rolled down Beth’s cheeks as she watched them disappear from sight.
Despite the rush of sadness, the stillness of her surroundings filled her with a sense of calm and she remained where she was, looking out at the warm hues of sunrise that seemed to change the colour of the sky and water from one moment to the next.
A sudden gust lifted her hair from her shoulders and drove a fine mist of sea spray into her face. She smiled to herself, imagining it was her mum, telling her not to stand around being maudlin.
Turning to move back to the beach, she caught sight of Trystan standing on the sand, his eyebrows knitted as he looked at her. Carefully, she picked her way back over the rocks, then took his hand to steady herself as she hopped back onto the sand.
“I did it.” She set the urn down and draped her arms around his neck. “I scattered Mum’s ashes.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yes. It felt like the right time. And this was definitely the right place.” A tumult of emotions whirred inside of her, but it was the feeling of hopefulness that she clung to. “Losing Mum was so incredibly hard, but I’m so grateful that she brought me here. To you.”