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‘Whistler, you know the ski resort over in British Columbia?’
‘Yes, I know Whistler. It’s Jack’s favourite place to snowboard.’ She paused. ‘My mum actually lives in New Zealand now. How funny that you lived there too.’
He didn’t say anything.
‘How long were you away?’ she asked.
‘A few years.’
‘What made you come back?’
He didn’t answer immediately and Amelia wondered if she had said something to offend him.
‘It was just time.’ He flicked on the radio, clearly signalling that the conversation was over.
Amelia glanced sideways and could see the sadness on his face. ‘Where are we going first?’ she asked, trying to lighten the mood.
‘Well, in my capacity as your tour guide, I thought we would check out the castle first.’
Amelia admired the scenery as he drove up the winding drive to the castle, where he parked and insisted she walk around the grounds.
‘I used to play hide and seek here all the time as a kid,’ he said as they walked through the walled garden.
‘Is that a palm tree?’ Amelia looked in disbelief as she spotted one in the corner of the grounds.
‘It is indeed.’
‘But . . . how?’
‘Well, Arran is one of the few places in Scotland to have a climate that is temperate enough for palm trees to grow.’
Amelia was impressed. ‘You learn something new every day. Any other interesting facts?’
‘A person belonging to the island is known as an Arranach,’ he said, chuckling.
‘Not quite so impressive.’
‘Hey, I think that is pretty good for a random bit of information.’
‘I can tell you one.’
‘Oh, what’s that?’
‘Arran is described as Scotland in miniature.’
He nodded. ‘Very good. But do you know why?’
‘Erm, because it’s Scotland in miniature . . .’
‘Well, yes, but technically it’s because the island is divided into Highland and Lowland areas by the Highland Boundary Fault.’
Amelia sniggered. ‘You certainly know your stuff.’
‘It helps to when you’re mostly working with tourists during the summer.’
‘That’s true.’ Her face fell as she was reminded that he probably felt obliged to be doing this.
‘But you’re not a tourist. I can tell you’re here to stay.’
