Page 5 of Toy Boy

“Are you here on holiday?” I ask, and then instantly regret it, like I said, I’m not really in the mood for a conversation with a stranger. And, yeah, okay, he’s definitely easy on the eye with his short, mussed-up dark brown hair and infectious smile, but, at first glance, I’d say he was more than a few years younger than me. Quite a few, I reckon. And that shouldn’t make a difference, but it kind of does. To me, anyway. Just, you know, don’t ask me why. I mean, can’t someone who’s within spitting distance of her mid-forties admire a man far too young for someone her age? There’s no law against that, surely. I’m only looking.

“No, actually, I’m here to work. For the summer, at least.”

“Doing what?”

He pauses for a moment, and then I realise that I’m the one asking personal questions now. “Sorry. None of my business, right?”

“No. It’s fine. You can ask me anything you like.” He leans forward, his eyes back on mine. Ice-blue eyes that are in no way cold. Quite the opposite, in fact. “I’m looking after the surf shop down on the beach, while Ray’s away in Canada.”

I feel my eyebrow lifting again. “You know Ray Callan?”

“Not personally, no. I’ve been travelling around Europe for a while now, but it got to the point where I quite fancied basing myself in one place for the summer, so, when I got here, and saw Ray’s ad asking for someone to look after the surf shop for a few weeks, it seemed the perfect opportunity.”

“Do you surf yourself?”

“I do. It’s one of the bests forms of escapism there is.”

“For you, maybe.”

“You’ve never tried it?”

“No. And I don’t intend to. I’ve got an horrendous sense of balance, so I’m not sure it’s my kind of activity.”

“You’re not much of a risk taker either, then?”

“Oh, I’ve taken risks, believe me.”

He looks at me like he’s waiting for me to elaborate, but I’m not going to.

“Anyway, you said you’ve been travelling?”

“Yeah. I’ve always wanted to see more of the world, and even though I’m a little older than your average backpacker, I wasn’t going to let that deter me. It’s been good to get away from things for a bit. It’s been a tough few months, so…”

He leaves that sentence hanging and drops his head, and I don’t miss the fact his fists have suddenly bunched up into tight balls. And then, almost as if he’s flicked some kind of inner switch, his fists unfurl and he looks up at me, a smile now back on his face.

“The timing couldn’t have been better, let’s put it that way.”

“Alright, well, if you’re sticking around don’t forget that we don’t just do breakfast. We do food right through to 6pm.”

His smile widens and I pour his coffee. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind. Providing those pancakes live up to the hype.”

I smile too as the bell rings for service, and I turn around, grab his order from the serving hatch, and place his breakfast down in front of him. “I guess it’s time to find out. I’m Megan, by the way. Megan Flowers.”

“Xander Johansson. It’s good to meet you, Megan.”

“Good to meet you, too, Xander.”

I leave him to his pancakes and head into the kitchen.

“Who’s that?” Hanna asks me as she cracks three eggs onto the hotplate. “Talk about brightening up my morning.”

“He’s in town for the summer, apparently. He’s running the surf shop while Ray’s away.”

“So, not just passing through, then?” She glances over her shoulder, through the hatch, craning her neck to catch a glimpse of Beachcastle Bay’s newest arrival. “Wonder if he’s come alone…?” She loses herself in a nanosecond of day dreaming before snapping out of it and turning her attention back to the eggs. “It’s about time we had some new male blood in this town. The scenery’s getting a bit tired around here.”

“I heard that!” Graham shouts over from the grill, but it’s all good-natured, back and forth banter. We’re a close team here atFlowers. A little family. And that’s just how I like it. Maybe there’s a part of me that really would’ve liked more children, which is why my predominantly younger staff can sometimes feel like the other kids I never had, but they certainly don’t treat me like a mum. Not unless they feel the need to, and I’m there for them when that happens. I’m their friend as well as their boss, but nobody takes advantage of that. They all know where to draw the line.

I smile and shake my head, and I find myself also glancing out through the hatch, catching sight of Xander as he eats his pancakes and reads a book. I can’t see what the book is, but he looks engrossed. And soFlowersgains another new customer, for a few weeks, anyway. And that never hurts.

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