Page 35 of The Castle in the Bay

‘Good… Very good… and definitely not boring.’

‘Um… right… Well, that’s something then.’ He glanced out to sea again. ‘Should we… go back?’

‘Probably should, yeah.’

‘Can you…’ He looked at her, though his gaze was a little shifty and unfocused. ‘Well, not mention that kiss to anyone.’

‘Of course. My lips are sealed.’ She mimed zipping them shut, but really they didn’t want to be shut. They wanted to be busy elsewhere, continuing what they’d just started, but she had to be sensible. Something she’d never been very good at.

Chapter Thirteen

Monty

Monty woke up to the pale morning light filtering through the thin white curtains in the annex. He’d been sleeping fairly well since he got to the island, and it was hard to wake up. The sea air was working wonders – such a luxury not having to get up for work. The week was passing too quickly though, and his time here would end before he knew it and he’d be back doing nine till five.

Ah well, such was life.

He rubbed at the corner of his eye, then reached for his glasses and his phone on the nightstand. Still lying in bed, he started swiping through his photos from the day before. Stunning beaches, rugged hills, and a few selfies flipped past.Damn it.He’d forgotten to get photos of the bodyboarding. He’d been so fixated on doing it, he hadn’t thought to make a record of it. Would there be another chance? Part of him hoped so, but another part wanted to say he’d done it now and be done with.

He frowned. He’d heard about a water sports festival coming up. It hadn’t been something that much interested him, and he had no desire to take part, but… Well, something about it lodged in his mind. What did a water sports festival entail? He wasn’t sure he really wanted to examine his thoughts on the matter, so he parked it.

What he wanted to see right now was whether or not Sophie had made any comment on his social media post about scattering his father’s ashes. He opened the page and scrolled to the post.Nope. Not even a like. Other people had commented, sending love and condolences. He liked and replied to the comments, before heading to Sophie’s page. More photos had appeared of her out at a street bar with friends, including some men. Was she dating? Of course she was at perfect liberty to do so. They’d split up after all, but his stomach twisted at the thought. Still, it was fine. Once he got back, he’d be in a better place, and she might be too. Maybe she’d discover these other guys were even more ‘boring’.

Was that likely? He pulled a face, his mind supplying an answer that he didn’t want to hear.

How would it be if he posted some of his own photos and at least mention the bodyboarding? Maybe that would attract her attention. He selected a few of the best beach shots and a selfiewith the ocean in the background. His fingers hovered over the keyboard before typing out a comment.

Tried bodyboarding for the first time yesterday. Amazing experience.

He hit post. Would Sophie even see it? Maybe she never looked at his page or maybe she’d snoozed it from her feed. Anything was possible, but he crossed his fingers.Please see this.He was desperate to know what she’d make of him being adventurous. Speaking of which… His fingers tapped at the screen, putting in the name Iona McKenzie. A few results came up but only one caught his eye. A tanned beauty in a bikini with long brown wavy hair spilling over her shoulder. She leaned on a surfboard, beaming back at him. Wow, she was hot. He always saw her looking a bit thrown together in casual clothes or a wetsuit, but this. He took a long, slow breath and blew it out like a whistle before opening the page.

His fingers swiped through the pictures that were public, mostly shots of her surfing, laughing with friends, and the occasional stunning sunset, and his mind drifted back to their kiss the previous day. Why had he done it?

Research?

That was all, yes?

And practise.

When he finally got Sophie back, he’d be better equipped for romance and adventure. But the taste of Iona’s lips, the spark, the way she felt in his arms, lingered much longer than he wanted. So long he forgot what he’d been looking at or thinking about before.

It was just a kiss. I was pretending she was Sophie.

But even as he thought it, he sensed a lie. The kiss had felt a bit too real, stirring something inside him he hadn’t expected. Shaking his head, he locked his phone and placed it back on thenightstand. He rubbed at his face, trying to push away the mess. Would Sophie be annoyed he’d kissed Iona?

‘Stop,’ he muttered to himself. They’d split up. She wouldn’t care. She’d moved on, which was something Monty wasn’t good at. Maybe he should try harder. Even if it was just temporarily. This was the time to get new experiences. Then, when the time was right, he could try again.

After breakfast, Monty pulled on a sweater and stepped into the courtyard. The prospect of a day on his own felt a bit flat after the fun he’d had with Iona, which was totally stupid. It wasn’t like they were close friends. Just random acquaintances… who’d happened to have shared a kiss. She was teaching paddleboarding today, according to Catriona, when he seen her at breakfast. Monty had also asked her about the water sports festival, and Catriona confirmed it was this Saturday and Sunday, just a couple of days away. That would be the middle of his fortnight and would mark the downward turn of his holiday. He was just getting to know the place too.

Shit.He froze halfway across the yard on the way back to the annex. Iona obviously hadn’t left to teach the lessons yet. She was near an outbuilding, talking to Ruaridh. Her voice carried on the breeze. The memory of their kiss flared up, making Monty’s chest hurt. Why had he agreed to something so stupid?

He needed to avoid her for now. He couldn’t face the aftermath of what had happened or analyse why his body reacted strangely every time he saw her. He turned and nearly bumped into Alexander.

‘Morning,’ Monty said.

‘Morning.’ Alexander gave him a brief smile. He was a serious-looking guy, kind of moody and brooding, but he always said hello. Monty had seen him playing outside with the little girl he assumed was Catriona’s daughter. From what he could gather, Alexander wasn’t the father.

Scamp, the dog, leapt on Monty and tried to jump up and lick his face.

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