Page 15 of A Second Chance in Seabury
‘About what?’ said Hannah, raising an eyebrow. Was he apologising in advance for the company, or…
‘That!’ laughed Jason, pointing to Hannah’s lap.
She glanced down and let out a surprised laugh. While the three of them had been chatting, Stanley had hoovered up the remains of her honey cake and was now busily licking the cardboard box.
‘Stanley!’ gasped Sarah. ‘You’re a horror!’
Stanley glanced up at Hannah, but he didn’t look in the least bit guilty. In fact, if she didn’t know better, he was just disappointed that his snack had only consisted of a handful of crumbs.
‘Sorry mate,’ she laughed, stroking his ears. ‘I didn’t leave you much, did I?’
‘He’ll get over it,’ said Sarah. ‘Kate keeps saying he needs to be on a diet, but I reckon that would be practically impossible in this town!’
‘You have a point,’ said Hannah, patting her own stomach. ‘And on that note, I’d better fast for the rest of the day to make room for Hattie’s cooking!’
‘I can’t wait!’ said Jason, licking his lips as he wound back his pedals, clearly ready to set off again. ‘So, we’ll see you later, then?’
‘Seven at the hotel,’ said Hannah with a little nod. ‘Have a lovely birthday until then!’
‘He will!’ said Sarah with a grin.
Hannah waved the pair of them off and watched as Stanley dashed after them, his tail wagging as he lolloped along.
Right… it was time for her to head back into town. For one thing, she needed to find something to wear… and for another, she could do with finding out what Mr Eaves’s first name was if she was going to get through an entire evening in his company!
CHAPTER 8
Hannah paused at the doorway of the Pebble Street Hotel to peruse the current menu in its glass-fronted display case… and then promptly wished she hadn’t. Mainly because it set her stomach growling, despite its recent offering of honey cake and coffee.
Everything sounded mouth-wateringly delicious. Hannah recognised a couple of the dishes from the one time she’d convinced Gareth to eat there. The food had been sublime, but she couldn’t say she’d really enjoyed the evening. Gareth had been a stroppy, embarrassing nightmare, and they’d ended up leaving early.
‘Enough!’ she muttered.
Hadn’t she promised herself she wasn’t going to waste time thinking about him today? Unfortunately, that was easier said than done, though. That was the problem with Seabury—it was a place full of wonderful memories layered with totally crap memories… and Hannah wasn’t sure how to enjoy one part without disturbing the other.
Well… there wasn’t much point figuring it out now, was there? All she had to do was stay relatively sane for the next two weeks, and she’d never have to come back.
A wave of sadness threatened to overwhelm her, but Hannah shook her head. She didn’t have time for this particular rabbit hold right now. She was on a mission - she needed to find out Mr Eaves’s first name before this evening, otherwise things were going to be more than a little bit awkward.
‘Who better to ask than Lionel?!’ she said, glancing at the menu again, and clocking the prices. Not cheap, but given the restaurant’s stellar reputation, that wasn’t exactly a surprise.
Plus… it gave her an idea.
Straightening her shoulders, Hannah headed inside the gleaming reception, feeling decidedly underdressed in her jeans and tatty jumper.
Hmm… that was another thing she was going to have to sort out before this evening!
‘Ah, the wanderer returns!’
Lionel was up on his feet before Hannah had even taken three steps towards the reception desk. His beaming smile and arms—wide open with a greeting that felt like a hug—made Hannah grin right back.
‘Hi Lionel,’ she said. ‘It’s lovely to see you.’
‘You too, my dear,’ said Lionel. ‘I hear we have the pleasure of your company for dinner tonight?’
Hannah’s mouth dropped open. ‘I only got invited ten minutes ago. How on earth do you know already?’
‘The magic of mobile phones,’ chuckled Lionel.
