She wasn’t entirely sure how she found herself on the jetty on a windy February evening that Thursday. The sea was choppy and the tide was on the turn but they still had a few hours before they would have to have the borrowed boat moored up again. Guillaume was in the boat familiarising himself with the outboard controls. His initial excitement at learning Daisy had sourced a boat had quickly disappeared and he now seemed decidedly edgy. But Daisy had to admit she had similar feelings. Should she go with him or not? Could she handle being in a very confined space, for a romantic boat ride along the coast with a sexy Frenchman? She was pretty sure Guillaume was still trying to rekindle their affair. She didn’t want a full-blown relationship but it had been a long time since she’d had sex and what harm could one night of passion do? In a split second she made her decision.
‘Give me a hand,’ said Daisy, lifting a leg onto the edge of the small craft.
‘Uh? Non.’ Guillaume held his hand up to stop her and she stiffened.
‘What’s up?’ She was standing with her leg still cocked looking like Bug at a lamppost.
‘I am sorry Day-zee. I want to do this alone.’ His voice was melodic but the words were sharp. ‘You can wait for me at the pub if you like?’
‘What the hell is going on?’ asked Daisy, returning her foot to the jetty.
‘I am going for a boat ride. Like I explained I want to explore this beautiful place. I am an adventurer and I want to see—’
‘Quit the bollocks.’
Guillaume looked like he’d been slapped in the face. He laughed awkwardly. ‘Day-zee, what are you talking about?’
‘It is almost dark, the sea is getting choppy, you don’t know your starboard from your arse and you want to go out on your own to look at the coastline. Do you think I’m a total idiot?’
‘Not at all.’ His expression changed. ‘I need to do something for both of us.’
‘Like what?’ He gave the classic Gallic shrug. ‘Then tell me what it is?’
‘Trust me. It is a surprise.’ He fired up the outboard motor and the small boat purred into life. ‘Bye Day-zee. I will be back in a couple of hours. Go home, please.’
She thought about shouting some expletives at him but it was unlikely they would be heard over the engine. Where was he going? Perhaps he had arranged something as a way of saying goodbye to her. Just goodbye would have been enough and the sooner he said it and left the bay the happier she’d be. So much for her one last night of passion, she thought. She imagined she’d be cuddled up in Guillaume’s arms right about now, not marooned on the jetty with her hair billowing in the wind.
She watched the boat disappear out of the bay and continue to follow the coastline. Daisy made a snap decision and instead of going back to Aunt Coral’s she jogged up onto the headland to see if she could still see the boat. Perhaps he wasn’t going far – maybe Lyme Regis or Weymouth? She scanned the water until she spotted the small boat now far in the distance. She watched and unless she was very much mistaken Guillaume was no longer following the coastline – he was now heading directly out to sea.
END OF PART THREE
Acknowledgements
Firstly, thanks goes to my editor, Rachel Faulkner-Willcocks for a fabulous job editing this book and to Sabah Khan, Elon Woodman-Worrell and the amazing team at Avon for all their support. Thanks to my agent, Kate Nash, who is my constant safety net, and special thanks to Kim Leo for yet another stunning cover.
Special thanks to Henry Yates at Burleigh’s Gin and Graham Pound and staff at the Seven Stars Public House in Rugby for sharing their vast gin knowledge. Thanks also to everyone who has so enthusiastically supported me in my gin research – I feel we did a thorough job.
Thanks to the lovely people at the RNLI, Sarah at Devon Bat Group (she bears no resemblance to Tabitha in case you were wondering) and Christie from the National Bat Helpline – yes, there really is such a thing!
Thanks to Morton Gray for her knowledge of tarot cards and to my niece, Emma, for checking my terminology wasn’t getting old and past it.
As always, my heartfelt thanks to all my writerly friends – I hope you know who you are because there are far too many of you to fit in the acknowledgements!
Thank you to all the fabulous bloggers – you are amazing, as are all the lovely readers who continue to buy my books and write reviews. It really does mean the world.
Finally, the biggest thank you to my wonderful family for their unwavering support and acceptance of the voices in my head. I love you beyond reason.
Daisy Wickens is headed back to her childhood home … but can she survive twelve whole months there?
Escape to Devon in the first part of a gorgeous new four-part series from Bella Osborne.
Click here to buy.
Daisy’s Gin Bar is starting to take shape … but will everything go according to plan?
Part two is here and Daisy’s story continues.
Click here to buy.
Will Daisy finally make peace with the ghosts of her past?
Find out how it all ends in the final part of Ottercombe Bay.
Click here to buy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bella Osborne has been jotting down stories as far back as she can remember but decided that 2013 would be the year that she finished a full-length novel.
In 2016, her debut novel, It Started at Sunset Cottage, was shortlisted for the Contemporary Romantic Novel of the Year and RNA Joan Hessayon New Writers Award.
Bella’s stories are about friendship, love and coping with what life throws at you. She likes to find the humour in the darker moments of life and weaves these into her stories. Bella believes that writing your own story really is the best fun ever, closely followed by talking, eating chocolate, drinking fizz and planning holidays.
She lives in the Midlands, UK with her lovely husband and wonderful daughter, who, thankfully, both accept her as she is (with mad morning hair and a penchant for skipping).
Also by Bella Osborne
It Started at Sunset Cottage
A Family Holiday
Escape to Willow Cottage
About the Publisher
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Ottercombe Bay – Part Three Page 10
