Eva watched in disbelief as Hamish trotted over, the very model of obedience, and looked up adoringly at Ben.
‘I don’t believe it!’ Eva rolled her eyes. She clasped the lead to his collar just as a deluge of frozen rock-like hailstones started pelting down from the dark sky.
‘We should get back.’ They walked in silence, Eva aware of Ben’s hand on the small of her back as he guided them away from the beach. By the time they reached the row of houses, Eva’s face was stinging with cold and she was shivering although she was sure she couldn’t attribute that all to the weather. They came to Ben’s house first and Hamish scuttled up his path. Ben turned questioningly to Eva and saw her shaking.
‘You’re frozen; we’d better get you inside.’
In the hall they shook themselves out and Ben gestured for Eva to go through to the living room while he made something hot to drink. Eva took off her boots, feeling suddenly more relaxed as she walked into the familiar room, almost a sense of belonging enveloping her.
A few brochures sitting on the coffee table caught her attention and she instantly recognized them as estate agent brochures and she felt her heart drop. She skimmed the glossy pages of properties being sold in St Andrews, the clever angles showing the staged interiors to their best advantage. Ben came in carrying two mugs and she turned to him, holding up the brochures with a questioning eyebrow.
‘Why do you have these?’ she asked, attempting to sound casual, dreading what the answer might be.
‘Oh, right. I went to see an estate agent when I came back yesterday – he gave me these.’ He handed her a mug and then lit the fire, which cast a warm glow around the room.
‘Are – are you thinking of selling?’ Eva swallowed.
He shrugged. ‘I thought I should at least do the exercise. If I did sell and look for a smaller place, I wanted to see what was out there and how easy it would be to sell this place.’
Eva bit her lip, taking her mug over to the window, composing herself before turning to face Ben. ‘I’ve heard January isn’t a good time to sell.’
Ben’s mug stopped halfway to his mouth and he stared at Eva for a moment before his expression changed. ‘Really?’ he said, continuing with his drink. ‘The estate agent seemed to think it was the perfect time to sell.’
‘Well he would, wouldn’t he? You know what estate agents are like – they always find a way of pitching it. You can’t trust them.’
‘Is that right?’ he mused.
Eva nodded. ‘Uh-huh, definitely,’ she confirmed. ‘And at the very least you should probably get the kitchen done – kitchens really help to sell a house.’
Ben quirked an eyebrow. ‘I don’t know, that sounds like a lot of work. I’d need to find the right person for the job and I know how difficult that can be.’
Eva felt her heart thumping as she walked across the room to Ben. Slowly she placed her untouched tea down on the table and stood in front of him and looked into his eyes.
‘Stay,’ she said, her voice almost a whisper. Ben fixed her with a look, his eyes never leaving hers.
‘Say that again,’ he said quietly.
Feeling suddenly brave she moved closer to him so they were almost touching and tiptoed so that her mouth was close to Ben’s ear.
‘Stay,’ she repeated. ‘Stay with me and Jamie and Hamish. I want you to be part of our family, Ben.’ He pulled back just enough so his eyes could search her face.
‘Last time we spoke you didn’t seem to think that was such a good idea.’
‘I know. But I got it wrong. I panicked – I can see that now. I’ve done such a good job of protecting myself, of convincing myself that I can manage on my own, it was difficult to let go of that. But I’ve had time to think and I don’t want to live in fear any more. I can’t control every little thing about Jamie’s life. I’ve missed you so much … I love you so much. I want to take this chance to be happy with you.’
Time seemed to stop as Ben stood silently and Eva could hear her own heart thundering in her chest. ‘Aren’t you … going to say anything?’ She swallowed.
Ben stared at her for a long moment and then held out his hand. ‘Will Hamish be all right here on his own?’ he asked, the gruffness in his voice and the expression on his face sending a shock of heat through her body.
Eva glanced at Hamish who she could swear was smiling. ‘I think he’ll be okay for a little while,’ she stammered before taking Ben’s hand.
A little while turned into a long while and Hamish was stretched out in a deep sleep in front of the fire when Ben and Eva padded back downstairs hand in hand. Eva ambled over to the window and gazed out to the familiar setting, except that everything looked shiny and new somehow. The dark clouds were starting to drift away and Eva shook her head slightly, thinking of all the stormy weather recently, wondering where it had all come from. But the worst of it seemed to be over, she thought, seeing the patches of blue sky beginning to appear on the horizon.
She turned to look at Ben who was sitting on the sofa watching her. Eva thought he looked how she felt: a bit dazed and deliriously happy. He patted the space beside him and Eva tucked herself in close beside him, feeling the warmth and strength of his body beside her as he wrapped an arm around her.
‘So does that mean you’re staying?’
‘I’m definitely staying.’ He smiled, planting a kiss on the side of her head. Eva sighed happily, letting her body sink further into his arms.
‘It’s still a big house for one person though,’ she mused.
‘Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that.’
‘And?’
‘And that’s where you come in.’
‘Oh?’
‘I was kind of hoping you’d like to decorate it …’
Eva swivelled round to face him, her eyes shining. ‘I’d love to decorate it! I have a million ideas …’
‘I’m counting on it.’ Ben smiled. ‘And I was hoping it could become our family home, Eva. For you, me, and Jamie. And Hamish of course.’
‘We move in here?’
‘Only if you wanted, when you were ready.’ His voice sounded tentative now, his beautiful dark eyes studying her face so intently that in that moment Eva knew she trusted Ben totally, knew that he would love and cherish their new family as much as she would. Because that’s what they would be, a family. She met his gaze, feeling a rush of happiness.
‘I’m ready … we’re ready.’ She smiled. There was so much to think about and she paused as she tried to process the thoughts tumbling about her head, the feel of Ben’s fingers running through her hair almost making it impossible to think at all.
‘You’ve gone quiet,’ Ben said.
‘I was thinking about the guest house, how I’d be able to still run it.’
‘Well, I’ve given that some thought too.’
‘You have been doing a lot of thinking.’ She grinned.
‘I wondered … how you’d feel about running your house as self-catering accommodation. That way you’d still have your business but you’d have more time for other projects – you have such a talent for interiors I thought you might be interested in taking an interior design course.’
Eva was beginning to feel wonderfully dizzy, hardly believing Ben had thought of all that for her.
‘I’ve also decided to rent out my old London home again but it’s going to need a total makeover, if