Page 29 of The Bookshop at the Cornish Cove

Maybe, while Dennis was starting to have an impact on me, in his world, I was starting to have an impact on him. If he could teach me something about forecasts and investments, and profit and loss accounts, then maybe I could teach him something about conservation and sustainability, and recycling and regeneration.

Struggling to think about anything else but this all the way through dinner, I pottered off upstairs after I’d loaded the dishwasher citing that I was going to have an early night and read in my room, but really, I wanted to consider how I could educate Dennis about the things that mattered to me. Maybe he could pass this on to the people within his company, so that instead of just thinking about the money side of the business, they also looked at the environmental issues too and how theycould incorporate them. I also thought about how I should use the opportunity of having someone in my life with the life skills that I was so clearly lacking, and how I could use those to start to shape my future more.

My last thoughts, as I put down the romance novel that I was reading, before turning off my bedside light, was whether Dennis was sitting up in bed reading the autobiography and whether I could persuade him to branch out into something a little different – he might think novels were about the lighter things in life, but they could be equally as inspiring and life-changing as the highly successful profiled autobiographies he chose.

17

Dennis was a bit later turning up at the shop the next day. As I handed him a mug of coffee, I noticed that he also looked a little less formal, this time dressed in a pair of denim blue jeans, and a sky-blue polo shirt. Still impeccable and clearly very good quality, and most probably all designer gear, but just a little less stiff. More casual. It suited him.

I looked down at my own clothes. Today, I’d chosen a vintage wrap dress in red and brown tones, which were perfect for autumn, along with a pair of knee-high brown suede boots which Mum had picked up at a charity shop in Truro.

Dennis smiled as he took the coffee from me and our hands touched briefly. Our eyes locked and I was the first to look away.

We both started speaking at the same time.

‘You look nice…’

‘I’ve been thinking…’

‘That sounds dangerous.’

‘Not really,’ I said, ‘but I have been thinking that I should have been, and should be, more grateful for the advice you’re offering me. I’d like to apologise. I suppose criticism is hard for me to take. I’ve always been the teacher and it’s hard for meto be the student, but I have had a word with myself and I am prepared to learn.’

‘Great. That’s great, Nance. I just want to help you, you know.’

‘I know and thank you.’

‘And you have so much to teach me too.’

‘You really think so?’

‘I do. I’ve never even thought about our environment before. It’s just all money, money, money with me. It’s been the one constant in my life and the one thing I can control. That might sound daft but…’

‘It doesn’t at all. I kind of know where you’re coming from.’

‘You are so talented, Nance, look at those amazing shell paintings you do. They’re incredible. And I’ve been thinking about how you can do more book-related things like that too.’

‘Now that would be fun.’

Dennis hesitated before taking a deep breath and blurting out his next words most unexpectedly.

‘You inspire me, you know, Nancy.’

‘Me? How so?’

‘You are doing something you’re totally passionate about. Running a bookshop. Living your dream. All I do is make money. And taking this time out from work is making me realise that maybe it’s not everything.’

A little light bulb went off in my head. I knew just the thing to make Dennis realise that there was more to life than work.

‘What are you doing on Sunday?’ I asked.

‘No plans. My life consists of no real plans at the moment.’

‘Does that bother you?’

‘It did at first. I didn’t know what to do with myself when I got up in the morning. I’m a get-up-at-six kind of guy and rarely lie in. But somehow, the Driftwood Bay air is getting to me and I’m having early nights and lie-ins. I’ve not done that since I wasa teenager. Nan has got me walking Gladys most days. Said it’s not right for Meredith to be doing it when she’s got a perfectly able-bodied person in the house and, to be honest, it’s been lovely. On the mornings that I’ve still got up reasonably early, Gladys and I have snuck out and strolled along the beach. I have to say, it’s a much nicer way to start the day than looking out over the rooftops of loads of other buildings and seeing the cloud of smog that sits across the city.’

‘I don’t think there’s a better place on earth than Driftwood Bay first thing in the morning. When the rest of the world is still in bed asleep. At this time of the year, I sometimes wrap up and come down here while it’s still dark. It’s lovely, and life-affirming to see Mother Nature do her thing, and watching the sun come up. I always think it’s really kind of special. You have to check on the weather forecast to see if it’ll be clear but it’s a sight for sore eyes. It really is. I know when we first met it was over a sunrise, but to see it from dark to light is incredible. Meredith’s mum is normally round the corner in her little bay doing her early morning yoga. And if you’re lucky you’ll see the Driftwood Babes paddleboarding out on the water.’

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