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“I think it’d be good for you too,” Emmy said, then reached for her phone, her attention shifting in an instant. “Can I go upstairs and hang out with Scarlett?”
“Aren’t you meeting up with your friends this afternoon?” Hugh frowned. “I thought you were going over to Charlotte’s house with the rest of the girls.”
“Scarlett invited me over and I’d rather hang out with her.”
Personally, he’d rather Emmy hung out with friends of her own age instead of the young woman who babysat for Emmy and who lived above the cafe.
“It’s fine, isn’t it?” Emmy asked as she stood.
“I suppose so.” Now that she was getting older, he couldn’t exactly dictate who she spent her time with. Especially since there was no particular reason she shouldn’t hang out with Scarlett. “You’ll be off to your mum’s next weekend,” he reminded her. “So you won’t be able to hang out with your friends then.” She’d spend two weeks at her mum’s house in Paris for the school holidays, and Hugh was already dreading the empty house.
“I know,” she said testily. “I’d just rather hang out with Scarlett today. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing. It’s fine.”
“See you later.” She kissed his cheek and darted away.
Left alone, Hugh stared out of the window. Boats and buoys occupied the crescent beach across the road. Several children scurried around them while a group of adults watched from a distance. Closer to the water, a sandpiper darted around and a woman walked slowly along, seemingly on the phone. She was too far away to make out properly, but Hugh had an inkling it was Allie.
On impulse, he moved to the door and left the cafe, feeling a brief tug of guilt for not saying goodbye to the owner, Verity. Wind whipped at him as he crossed the road and stepped onto the sand.
It was definitely Allie down by the shore.
And he had the overwhelming urge to talk to her.
CHAPTER 8
With her coffee still too hot to drink, Allie wandered down to the beach and pulled out her phone. This time her dad answered quickly and she felt tension leave her shoulders at the sound of his voice.
“Are you okay?” she asked. “Why didn’t you answer when I called earlier?”
“I was having a nap.”
“A nap?” The tension returned immediately. “Since when do you take naps?”
“Since you left me with your bossy cousin. Bella’s worse than you. It seemed easier to go and lie down than to argue with her.”
Allie smiled. “That’s all right then. You’re feeling okay?”
“I feel fine. How’s everything with you?”
She neared the shore and changed course to avoid getting her shoes wet. “So far, so good. I saw someone I knew today. An older gentleman. Bill. Do you know him?”
“Yes, of course. You know I usually catch up with Bill whenever I’m back there. He always asks after you.”
“You could have warned me that there are still people here who might know me from when I was a kid.”
“I didn’t think about it. I’m surprised Bill recognised you though. He hasn’t seen you since you were nine.”
“He didn’t recognise me.” She neared the end of the beach and turned back to continue wandering along the water’s edge. “He came up to the clubhouse with his dog and I remembered him.”
“So you do have memories from living there?”
“Apparently so.”
“And … how are you feeling about that?”
“Fine, actually.”
