The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (171) Ava and Max

 

At Terrell’s Acre’s down in Spaniards Creek 30-year-old widow Ava Adderley was on notice from her sister Sarah to allow herself to be courted again, after spending too long in virtual “widows weeds”.

Ava was the younger sister at thirty and the tallest at 5ft 8, but she was also the least confident, and was oblivious to how attractive she was, with her willowy figure and long brown hair.

Unlike her sibling she was painfully shy, and was a quiet studious girl, who never went out, preferring to immerse herself in books, in fact she only ever left the home for deliveries and Church, and she hadn’t left the island since her husband died.

She had attracted the attention of Courier Driver Max Dickinson who was a regular visitor to the Acre’s picking up packages of plants and seeds for delivery.

He had asked Ava out a number of times and she had always said no, but Sarah insisted

“The next time he asks you out, say yes”

The problem was since she had resolved to follow her sister’s advice, he hadn’t asked her again.

So when he called for the parcels on Friday afternoon, she acted completely out of character by taking the initiative and when he knocked on the door, she greeted him by standing in the doorway brandishing a sprig of mistletoe above her head.

Her boldness took him completely by surprise, so he stuttered, blushed and basically ignored her as her brushed past her and went to find the packages.

“Merry sodding Christmas” she exclaimed and threw the mistletoe across the room.

 

Ava slammed the door and went to find Sarah and was on the verge of tears when she found her

“What’s happened?”

Sarah asked and Ava blurted out the full story out of her.

“He ignored you?” Sarah asked

“Yes”

“But he’s crazy about you” Sarah said

“Not so much apparently” Ava said

 

When she left her, Sarah went in search of Max and when she tracked him down, she read him the riot act.

“I thought you liked her”

“I do”

“So why did you ignore her?” Sarah asked

“I panicked” he admitted “She took me by surprise”

“You’re an idiot” Sarah rebuked him

“I know” he said and after a minute or two Sarah asked

“Do you want her or not?”

“More than anything” he admitted

“Then come with me” She ordered and took him to the poly tunnel she was working in, where Ava was watering, then she gestured to him with her head to go in.

He walked in and after a moment he said

“I came to apologize”

He saw her bristle at his words and then she replied

“I’m not bothered”

“But I am” he said 

“I don’t care” she insisted

 

Max walked back out of the tunnel and was immediately confronted by Sarah

“What are you doing out here you idiot?”

“I said I was sorry, but she said she didn’t care” he replied

“You have a lot to learn about women” she said shaking her head and thrust a sprig of mistletoe into his hand

“Now get back in there and kiss her”

“But…” Max protested

“Do you like her or not?” she asked

“Well yes” he replied

“Then get back in there” Sarah instructed “trust me”

 

Max pushed open the door and walked in

“You don’t have to apologize again” she snapped “I really don’t care”

“I’m not here to apologize” he said, and he held up the mistletoe and then his voice cracked as he said

“I’ve come for a kiss”

“A what?” she asked and turned around “Oh”

And then he stepped towards her and when they stood facing each other, there was a moment of hesitation but then Max kissed her, and it was a perfect kiss that brought all the feelings that she had been suppressing bubbling to the surface and Max felt the love that filled her generous heart spill out from her every pore and gratefully gathered it up and wrapped her in his everlasting love.

 

Molly and Danny arrived back on the island with their Christmas shopping mid-afternoon which gave them plenty of time to freshen up before walking to St Clara’s for the Christingle.

 

All three main Churches on the island where holding their Christingle Service’s on Friday evening.

Christingle has become ingrained in Anglican worship though it has its origins in Eastern Europe and the Christingle Service is a Service of candle lights, where very many years ago people gathered in the street, sang carols and collected gifts to help the less fortunate in the community.

It is a beautiful candle lit service of hymns, carols, recitations and bible readings, but Christingle goes beyond a candlelight service, and it tells a story.

A story is told with the symbolic use of the following items:
An orange representing the world.
A red ribbon tied around the orange to symbolize the blood of Jesus shed for his people.
Toothpicks decorated with dried fruits and sweets are placed at the four corners of the orange representing all the people of the world.
A lighted candle in the centre of the orange represents the gift of the light of Christ to the world.

Firstly the children make the Christingle lights in Sunday school, and then they carry them proudly in procession into the church where they are lit for the service.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (170) Emmaline’s Christmas Emporium

On Thursday morning, fortified by a good breakfast, Molly and Danny drove to the multistorey car park at the Phoenix Shopping Centre, and it was jammed and when they reached the main concourse that was busy too.

“Oh wow” Molly said, “It’s even busier than last year.”

“It really is” Danny agreed.

So they braved the crowds and joined the melee for about an hour then they split up to look for gifts for each other.

They met up back by where they had come in and went back to the hotel for lunch.

 

Back at Woodside Farm, Eden Hills could barely contain her excited anticipation when she walked into the yard, but then her heart sank when there was no sign of Dale Power.

After a few minutes of shuffling around staring at her feet, she was interrupted.

“Hello Bliss” a voice said from behind her and when she turned around it was Dale.

“Oh hello” she responded, “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming today.”

“No, it’s tomorrow that I’m not coming” he replied.

“Oh, I see” Eden said, “So why are you not coming in?”

“I need to go and do my Christmas shopping” he said, “I’m going to the mainland.”

“Oh, lucky you”

“Why don’t you come with me?” he asked.

“Me?”

“Yes” he said.

“I won’t be able to get the day off at short notice” she said.

“You won’t know if you don’t ask” he remarked.

“Natasha would never agree” she said resignedly.

“What would Natasha never agree to?” Natasha Baker asked, after entering the yard.

“Dale just asked if I wanted to go Christmas Shopping on the mainland” Eden explained “But I said it was too short notice to take a day off.”

“Nonsense” Natasha said, “Of course you can go, as long as Dale looks after you.”

“Absolutely” he assured her and then Natasha nodded and left them alone.

“So that’s settled then” he said, “I’ll pick you up in the morning.”

“That’s a date then” she said and immediately got flustered.

“I mean…sorry… I didn’t mean date.”

“Really?” Dale said “I did”

 

Danny and Molly were planning to leave after breakfast on Friday morning Danny was the first to rise and showered first, leaving Molly sleeping and reflected, as he showered, on the delightful events of the two years since they met and was thinking about how he would begin the day with another delight before breakfast.

So, he got out of the shower and hastily dried himself and was just about to open the bathroom door and put his plan into action when the door burst open, and Molly rushed in.

“Morning” she said and kissed him

“Hi Moll” he replied, and she bustled him out of the door and closed it.

When he heard the toilet seat go down with a bang, he shuffled away disappointed at not being able to put his plan into action, so he dried off and with the towel wrapped around his waist he sat on the bed in front of the TV while he waited for the object of his lust to emerge clean and fresh from the bathroom.

 

When Molly finally appeared pink and pristine from the bathroom wrapped in towels she said

“Are you not getting dressed?”

“In a minute, I’m just watching the news” he lied as his eyes surveyed every curve of her beneath her towelling sarong.

A curvaceous form he had become very familiar with in the short time they had known each other.

As Molly stooped over her bag and fished out a pink bra and matching pants, Danny walked up behind her and as she stood up, she gasped and leant back in his arms, her red hair, still wet against his skin

“You made me jump” she gasped

“I thought you might want some help” he lied

“Help with what?” she asked suspiciously

“To get you dry of course” Danny said innocently

“Really?” she asked doubtfully

“You are such a cynic,” he said as he wrapped his arms around her.

“I know it’s a character flaw” she said as he nibbled her ear, and then

Molly breathed sharply in and out through her nose as he un-tucked the sarong and it fell open to expose her nakedness.

“We’ll miss breakfast” she said as he kissed her neck, but it was said with no conviction, and he wasn’t really listening.

 

When they collapsed in a breathless heap on the bed and just lay there, spent and panting, Molly said.

“Can I have breakfast now?”

“You have a one-track mind” he replied and then he suddenly realized the time, so they had to jump in the shower together to wash away their lust, so they could make the restaurant in time for breakfast and only made it by the skin of their teeth to satisfy a different kind of appetite. 

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (169) Saint Lucy’s Day

 

Wednesday was St Lucy’s Day and after darkness had fully descended proceedings began with a celebration service and then after the Church service a parade of school children from the local schools processed through the town carrying their Lucy lights and then threw them onto the bonfire to light the Lucy fire in the park.

It was all very pagan and a Swedish tradition originally, a mixture of the Christian and the pagan really, something that the Victorian’s introduced to the island more than a hundred and forty years earlier.

It is believed that St Lucy’s light can lengthen the days and the St Lucy’s day festival was always well attended as it’s such a unique event.

Christians from all the islands churches attended the service and a healthy crowd both church and secular turned out for the parade, even the odd humanist had been known to turn up.  

 

Lee Barnaby had unwittingly got Steve Sharpe involved with the Church again as a result of their friendship and apparently rekindled the flickering flame of his faith.

 

Also on Wednesday Molly and Danny drove up to Abbottsford where they were spending the next two nights at the Regents Hotel.

They drove straight there, where they had a long leisurely lunch with publisher Max Parsons, where they discussed a book signing tour in Australia, New Zealand and the far east, then that evening they saw a play at The Empire Theatre and had dinner at The Wooden Slipper.

 

Lily Beales was head of housekeeping at the Beaumont Manor Hotel and was 5 feet 4 inches tall in her stocking feet and was half a stone heavier than she should have been which was thanks to her comfort eating.

She wasn’t though disappointed with everything she saw in the mirror, she liked her legs which she thought were quite shapely and her hair which she thought of as her crowning glory, which was long, straight and light brown, and she was in a long standing relationship, and the recipient of her favours, and the reason for the comfort eating, was Adrian Greig, 28 year old Paramedic and part time firefighter who had been away on the mainland on a month long residential training course.

Lily and her family arrived at St Joan of Arc Church for St Lucy’s Day service and milled around at the back of the Church chatting to some of the other congregants, until it was time to take their seats, but as they walked down the aisle, a murmur rumbled around those already seated and when Lily turned around to investigate, she saw a figure walking towards her and she couldn’t believe her eyes.

“Adrian?” she exclaimed

“Were you expecting some other hero?” he asked, and she launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

 

During the St Lucy’s event Sally Swift had been in the coffee shop serving refreshments.

At the end of the evening the shop was deserted, apart from Sally who was packing up.

When she saw Steve Sharpe walk in, she quickly fussed with her hair.

“Hello Sally” he said, and she instantly got very flustered

“Oh, oh, good evening, Steve” she said and moved awkwardly to the counter

“Everyone appears to be going home” he said

“Yes, it’s getting late” she replied

Steve walked towards her.

“Here’s my chance” he said to himself “Ask her now while there’s no one around”

So, he took a deep breath and prepared to ask her as out, he was leaving the island at the weekend so time was running out but before he could get the words out, she said

“So I’m closing up on my own tonight”

“Let me help then” he offered

“Thank you, Steve” she said smiling coyly and between the two of them they soon made light work of it and when the last of the chairs and tables were inside, he said

“Well that’s everything”

“Thank you, Steve,” she said and beamed him a beautiful smile so he thought he would test the measure of the smile

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going” he said, and the smile left her face

“No, no” she said “come in, come in”

And she pulled him forcefully aside, so she could close the door

“You must have a hot drink” she insisted, “You must be very cold, come on in”

This was a side of her he had never seen before, and when the door was closed and the shutter was down, she led him through the shop, and behind the counter and the lovely Sally went to the sink to fill the kettle.

Steve didn’t think she wanted a hot drink any more than he did, so he walked up behind her and put his hands round her waist and breathed in her perfume as he kissed her ear and neck

“Oh Steve” she sighed

“I don’t really want a hot drink,” he said

“Ok” she said and put the kettle down before turning to face him

“Perhaps you would like a soft drink or a beer” she suggested but he ignored her and before she could speak again, he kissed her and the moment his lips touched hers she locked onto his mouth like a limpet and her arms gripped him around the neck like a bear trap and the shyness was gone along with his need to ask her out, he very definitely had his answer.

 

While Sally and Steve were kissing in the coffee shop Cheryl and Lee were kissing in the vestry.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (168) Saving the Day

 

Cheryl and Lee were in a Christingle meeting when Steve arrived at the Church, so it was Sally Swift who met him and showed him the system.

Sally’s day job was working in the harbour master’s office, but she was also a Committee member at St Joan of Arc, but her real passion was as a singer with the Church worship band.

“So what would you like to see first?” she asked

“The sound system is my main area of expertise” he said “and I’ll need to see the control desks please”

“No problem” Sally responded

 

After showing him where everything was, she said

“I’ll leave you in peace while I make a drink, what would you like?”

“Black Coffee if I may” he replied

“You may” she replied and smiled

 

Sally made him a coffee and then half an hour later she made him another one and by the time he’d finished it Lee appeared.

“Typical” Steve said “He suddenly appears when I’m done”

“Of course” Lee retorted, and the friends embraced

“But I left you in very capable hands”

“Very capable” he said and smiled at Sally who blushed

“Anyway what’s the verdict?” Lee asked

“Well it’s not a complicated system,” Steve retorted

“So I can easily patch it up in the short term, and after Christmas I can do a more permanent fix”  

“The Church doesn’t have much money,” Sally added

“Not an issue” Steve said, “I have a small stock of refurbed equipment”

“And you’d do the work?” Lee asked

“Absolutely, it will give me another reason to come to the island” he replied and made Sally blush again

“Will it take long?” Lee asked “It’s a big week for the Church”

“We’ve got St Lucy’s, Christingle and the Carol Concert over four days”

“I can have it finished by the end of tomorrow” Steve said directly to her “And I can be on hand to nursemaid the system for the big events” 

“That would definitely be useful” she replied flirtily

“Well let’s go and make Cheryl’s day then” Lee said

“Oh I think you should go and make her day” Steve said making Lee blush and Sally looked confused.

 

It took about twenty minutes for Lee to track Cheryl down and in the end, he found her sitting in the Vestry looking glum and when she saw him, she stood up and said.

“Its bad news, isn’t it?”

“No” he replied and after he explained what Steve had suggested she looked at him without speaking and tears started to well up in her eyes and then ran down her cheeks and she threw herself into his arms.

“Oh Lee” she sobbed and buried her tearstained face in his neck.

He held her close and stroked her back for a few minutes as Cheryl’s sobs began to get shallower and shallower and eventually abated.

Cheryl held on to him tightly and sighed into his neck before she lifted her head, smiled at him briefly before she kissed him on the mouth.

 

Late afternoon Elke Offord was down by the harbour walking her dog when the “Maid of the Bay” finished unloading their catch and Conrad awkwardly disembarked.

“You idiot” Elke shouted “You were told to rest”

“So now you’re talking to me” he retorted

“The Doctor told you to rest” she stated

“I have rested, I’ve been sat in the wheelhouse for the whole trip” he said “And I’ve used my stick for getting around”

“You’re still an idiot” she said crossly

“Why do you care?” he retorted “You couldn’t have been less caring at the hospital, what was all that about?”

“What’s it about? What’s it about?” she snapped

“You promised to call me after we met on New Years Eve”, and guess what? You didn’t call”

“I didn’t call because you didn’t give me your number” Conrad replied

“Yes, I did, I put it in your phone” she corrected him

“No the number you put in my phone was for a plumber in Pipershaven, I still have it” he said and showed her the number

“Ah” she exclaimed and rushed off

“Slowdown” he called as he hurried after her “Slowdown”

“Why?” she barked “So I can be humiliated some more?”

“No I was thinking of a quiet drink and taking the weight off my knee”

“Oh ok… sorry” she said and took his arm.

 

When Sally walked past the St Joan of Arc on Tuesday on her way to work, she saw Steve Sharpe’s van parked outside the Church and there were a lot of strange noises emanating from inside, she wished she’d had the time to go and investigate but she was already running late.

 

Also that morning Molly Barrington and her fiancé Danny Nightingale left the island on a Christmas Shopping expedition to Abbottsford, so they caught the midday ferry to Pipershaven before driving to Applesford, where they stayed at his flat for the night.

 

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (167) The Blacksmith and Stable Girl

 

On Monday morning bright and early Conrad Watts steered the “Maid of the Bay” out of the harbour entrance and out to the open sea, but he spent the whole of the trip in the wheelhouse.   

 

Later that day Steve Sharp was on the first ferry of the day from Pipershaven.

He was not an islander but had gone to university with Lee Barnaby and they were still very close friends, and he was the only person other than Lee himself who knew about Lee’s feelings for Cheryl.

 

The Beaumont family had once owned the whole island but after three successive heirs were killed in action during the Great War the accumulated death duties forced the only surviving Beamont, George, to sell off the estate in 1920, auctioning off the buildings, the port, and parcels of land.

Fortunately, the sale managed to raise enough to pay off the taxman, while being able to keep Woodside Farm and retain a Beaumont family presence on the island.

 

Woodside Farm was the largest of the five farms on the island covering the whole of the southeast corner, a large wedge-shaped parcel of land bordered by Halfway Lane to the north, Spanish River and the Eagles Crag in the west and the rugged coastline from Manor Cliff Beach to Armada Head to the east.

 

It was primarily an arable farm, potatoes mainly but also other root vegetables, but half the business was breeding horses and ponies, rare breeds in particular, heavy horse’s, Cumberland fell ponies and other breeds in danger of extinction.

They also had a Clydesdale, Suffolk Punch and a Cleveland Stallion for stud but the heavy horses also worked in harness, and pulled the dray on special occasions, fete’s and such and the Christmas parades.

 

The equine side of the farm employed an all-female team of stable staff, led by Natasha Baker, who were all hard-working girls and didn’t care what work they did.

 

After about two weeks into December, it was time to get the heavy horses reshod before their Christmas duties and the Power brothers were visiting the farm to do the job and they asked Natasha if they could have the assistance of two of the girls.

Obviously as Mark Power and Michelle Kendall were seeing each other she had put herself forward, but she needed one more girl and was about to assign someone when much to hers, and everyone else’s surprise, Eden Hills volunteered.

“Ok then off you go” Natasha said with a smile.

 

Eden was a relatively new arrival on the farm, and was quite shy, she was a slender girl of five feet eight and was completely bald, but she strode very confidently that day to meet the blacksmith.

 

“Hi, I’m Dale” he said as she walked in, and was rather pleased that his helper was the bald girl he had met briefly at a party at the Beaumont Hotel.

“Eden” she said in response

“That’s a lovely name” he said, “Doesn’t it mean Happy?”

“Delight or bliss” she replied proudly

“Much more interesting than mine” he said “I’ve always thought Dale was rather a dull name”

“Nonsense it’s a great name, it means “small valley” she explained

“Really? I didn’t know that” he responded

“You were at the party last month” she said

“That’s right” he replied “I remember seeing you there”

“I do rather stand out” she said

“Yes, but in a good way” Dale said, and Eden blushed

 

Eden worked with him on and off over that week and in the week that followed, he asked for her, and it was clear to everyone that there was more to their relationship than Blacksmith and stable girl.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (166) The Second Sunday of Advent

April Portnall and Eric Hilton  met in town on Sunday Morning and walked to the Church together and he introduced her to a few people then stayed with her until he had to go and do his thing.

 

Afterwards when the congregants had gathered at the rear of the church and shared the peace April asked

“Is it always like that?”

“Sometimes it’s even better” He replied “I take it that you enjoyed it”

“Very much”

“Well if you liked that then you’ll love Christingle, the Carol Service, Midnight Mass and the Christmas Morning Service”

“Can we go to all of them?” she asked innocently

“Oh yes” he replied

“Together I mean” she said

“So did I” he retorted and put his arm around her.

 

For Reverend Cheryl Mackender the Sunday Service and the lighting of the second candle of Advent went as smooth as silk but the following week was to be a test of endurance with the approach of the special St Lucy’s day celebration on Wednesday.

But after another success, with the morning service going off without a hitch there was just time for a light lunch before she was off again.

 

Back at Terrell’s Acre’s when Sarah eventually rose from her bed, she was bombarded with questions from Ava about the Christmas Party and after she regaled her with the details of the Dinner, the Dancing and the kissing Sarah said

“Now it’s your turn”

“What do you mean?”

“You and Max” Sarah said

“There isn’t any me and Max” Ava said

“There could be if you said yes the next time, he asks you out” Sarah pointed out

“He probably won’t ask again” Ava said

“Well, when he does you must say yes,” said Sarah

 

After lunch Verger Lee Barnaby walked down to St Joan of Arc Church with Church Warden Guy Millar, and he was surprised to see Cheryl outside the Church engaged in conversation with church committee members Eric Hilton and Sally Swift.

“It’s just one thing after another” Cheryl was saying

“It’s St Lucy’s day on Wednesday and next weekend we have the Carol Concert and Christingle”

“What’s the matter? Is life testing your patience Vicar?”

Guy asked cheerfully

“No, it’s testing my faith,” she replied without humour and went inside.

“Now look what you’ve done” Lee said and followed in the Vicars footsteps.

Sally just looked at him and tutted and followed Lee.

 

“What’s wrong Cheryl?” Lee asked once inside the Church

“The sound system and the visual displays have packed up” she replied

“How bad?” he asked

“Bad enough, and hardly any time to get it fixed” she replied glumly

“That’s why it’s a disaster”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” he said

“Really?” she asked doubtfully

“Really” he said and taking out his mobile phone he got up his contacts list, scrolled down and hit dial

“Steve? What are you doing tomorrow?”

 

Cheryl burst into tears when Lee told her that Steve was coming to the island first thing on Monday to fix the system

“It’s divine providence” she sobbed “I prayed for a solution and here you are” then she hugged him and continued to hug him far longer than was necessary.

 

When Lee went home, he reflected that it had been a bit of an eventful day for a Sunday, and if Sunday had been an eventful day, then it merely heralded the beginning of an even more eventful week to come.

The Islands in the Bay – Chapter (165) The Christmas Party Event

 

Also at the Christmas Party Event held at the Beaumont Manor Hotel party was Church Warden of St Joan of Arc Church, Guy Millar and the staff of his travel agency and Librarian Augustine Poyle and her colleagues

They were both in their mid-forties, neither of them were married or had been and they both attended the same Church.

She was slim and elegant with auburn hair, but dressed on the side of frumpy, he was tall, with a military bearing, light brown hair, blue eyes and a smile that melted Augustine Poyle’s heart the first time she saw it, and if that alone hadn’t been enough to catch her eye, Guy was also an immaculate dresser, Blazer, Slacks, collar and tie, finished off with tie pin and cufflinks.

Some people at Church made fun of him behind his back about the way he dressed but Augustine liked it.

She liked him and she knew he liked her too, so she intended to get his attention at the Christmas Party.

 

When Augustine entered the hall, it was teaming with an array of stunningly turned-out men and women, but she couldn’t immediately see Guy however, but while she stood on the periphery of the throng her heart skipped a beat when she first caught sight of his dapper upright figure.

“Wow” he said, as he turned around “you look stunning”

Because there was nothing frumpy about Augustine’s outfit as she was immaculately dressed in a full-length blue designer evening dress.

 

Among the other guests were a group of lifelong friends including April Portnall who was half an inch shorter than five feet, with Jet-black hair and alabaster skin, and it was at the party that she met Eric Hilton for the first time, and she fell hard for him.

She had had crushes before, but she had never been in love, but when she first saw Eric, it was like a switch being flicked inside her heart.

 

In the closing minutes of Saturday Night, after spending much of the evening dancing together, when the party was coming to an end April took a deep breath and asked

“Do you want to meet up for coffee in the morning?”

“I can’t” he replied, and her heart sank “I have Church in the Morning, it’s the Second Sunday of Advent”

She knew that Eric was a musician and that he played for the Church band, but the Portnall Family had not been churchgoers, so she said

“I don’t know what that is, is it important?”

“Yes” Eric replied and then explained its significance

“Could I go?” she asked

“Anyone can go” Eric replied

“Could I go with you I mean?”

“Of course, you can” he said and smiled