Page 22 of Winter at Wishington Bay
‘Not going well?’
‘I’m undecided at the moment. Some days I read it back and it seems OK. Other days I feel like I may as well just chuck it all in the ocean.’
‘Well, don’t do that. We’re very proud of our Blue Flag award so adding pollution won’t be appreciated.’
‘Duly noted.’
‘Is this the first book you’ve written?’ I asked, mounting the bottom stairs as he followed me out to the hallway.
‘No. I’ve written a few textbooks before. This is the first time I’ve ever had to try and make one entertaining, though.’
‘What’s it about?’
‘Air crashes.’
‘Oh. Not exactly the jolliest of subjects.’
‘No. Not really.’
‘So that’s what you do all day?’ I asked, climbing the stairs as I noted Nate following behind me. ‘Study air crashes?’
‘Sort of. More study the best way to try to prevent them.’
‘That sounds like a pretty important job.’ I caught his shrug. ‘What’s that for?’
‘My wife used to say I should have been a pilot or something because it was more glamorous and exciting.’
I placed the caddy on the hall console and picked out an organic polish spray and cloth. ‘Glamour isn’t everything. Plus, I think airline pilots are overrated. I’ve dated one or two in my time.’
His mouth twitched.
‘I assume in your job you generally got to go home to her every night, unlike a pilot? That seems like a pretty good benefit to me,’ I said, giving the dresser in the master bedroom a quick spritz as Nate took a seat by the window and looked out at the sea, the sunlight making the wave crests sparkle as they broke on the sand.
‘Actually, I think that was one of the many downsides for her.’ His tone was laced with sarcasm.
I looked round and met his gaze. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.’
Nate shook his head and gave that pretend smile. ‘You didn’t.’ He made no attempt to move but I got the impression that a change of subject might be appreciated.
‘You know Holly meant for you to sleep in here as your trips clashed?’ I said, motioning to the room that had remained untouched since he’d arrived.
‘I know. I just felt a bit weird and the guest room is really nice. Certainly more homely than my apartment. Or a hotel room.’
I smiled without looking up, catching the reference I’d made in my little speech the first time we’d met about him being better off in some faceless hotel chain room.
‘She worked really hard on the whole house, so you’re right. Every room is lovely.’
‘Yeah, Gabe said something about her having transformed this place.’
‘Totally. I only came here a couple of times before Gigi passed away and it was really nice. Holly had had the bathroom and kitchen updated for her but the rest was stuck in a little bit of a time warp.’
Nate turned away from the window and back to me. ‘You’d never think so now.’
‘No. She really seemed to find her niche. She’s quite in demand for her interior design services now.’
‘Gabe worries about her working too hard.’
I gave a little head waggle. ‘It’s understandable. She was a total workaholic when she came back here. The only reason she finally returned was because her boss put her on an enforced sabbatical after she had a major panic attack in his office.’
