Page 44 of A Second Chance in Seabury
‘Because he’s with the bees!’ said Jason, sounding like he was explaining something to a toddler.
‘What am I missing?’ said Hannah. ‘Is it his private time or something?’
‘No,’ chuckled Jason. ‘It’s just not such a great idea to go and play with the stinging little buggers without a suit.’
‘Oh,’ said Hannah. ‘Right. Good point.’
‘Lucky for you, I just happen to have one you can borrow.’
Hannah wasn’t sure she was ever going to be able to live this down. She’d already sent old Charlie into a fit of hysterics when she’d whizzed past him on her bike… and now she was heading towards Lou and her other half.
Sean appeared to have rooted to the spot at the sight of a woman wearing a full beekeeper’s suit hurtling along the seafront on the back of a push bike… but the same couldn’t be said for Lou.
‘Now I’ve seen everything!’ Lou hooted, holding up her mobile phone, clearly filming Hannah’s approach as tears of laughter rolled down her face.
Hannah rolled her eyes… not that it had any kind of effect, considering she was zipped into the veiled headpiece that went with the suit. She couldn’t say that riding with it on was the most comfortable thing she’d ever done, but Jason had pointed out that the thing was practically impossible to zip yourself into unless you’d had a ton of practice.
Skidding to a halt next to Lou, Hannah clambered clumsily off the bike. ‘I need your help!’
‘Oh my god, it’s Bee Mummy!’ wheezed Lou. She was laughing so hard that she was gasping for air.
‘Forget it,’ sighed Hannah, turning to Sean instead. ‘I needyourhelp.’
‘Sure,’ said Sean, blinking in surprise. ‘What’s up?’
‘How do I get onto the King’s Nose?’
Sean shrugged. ‘Sorry, no idea.’
‘Come on, Bee Mummy,’ said Lou, wiping her eyes before grabbing Hannah’s gloved hand. ‘Follow me.’
Hannah stood quietly, watching as David replaced a large frame inside one of the hives. He hadn’t noticed her yet, even though she’d been standing there for several long minutes. Not that it bothered Hannah in the slightest. She was completely mesmerised by his fluid movements as he worked, with the bees flying around him in a constantly shifting, docile vortex.
Hannah didn’t think she’d ever seen anything quite so beautiful. In fact, she had a feeling she could happily stand and watch him work all day… if it wasn’t for the fact that she had such huge news to share!
Fidgeting slightly, Hannah took a couple of steps forwards across the grassy, uneven ground. She moved slowly towards David—not wanting to startle himorthe bees. She had to admit, despite the fact that she was wearing this get-up, she was still a bit nervous about getting too close to the hives.
Just as she was starting to regret setting out on this completely insane quest, David straightened up. She caught a few words on the wind, though she didn’t quite catch what they were.
David turned towards her, paused for a few seconds and then waved.
‘Jase? Everything okay?’
Of coursehe thought she was Jason. Shewaswearing his suit after all, and it was practically impossible to see anything through the headpiece.
‘It’s… I’m…’ Hannah stammered, and then she laughed. ‘Jason’s fine. He lent me his suit!’
‘Hannah?!’
Hannah might not be able to see much other than the vague outline of David’s face, but there was no mistaking the joy in his voice. It made her stomach flip.
‘Areyouokay?’ he said, moving towards her.
Hannah nodded, then realised the movement might not translate in this get-up. ‘I’m great. Perfect in fact!’ She was practically bursting with excitement now. ‘I’ve got something to tell you.’
‘Me too,’ said David.
‘Oh?’
