Page 15 of Finding Love in Micklewick Bay

As she walked on, her thoughts swimming around her mind, the screeching of seagulls barely registered in her ears, nor the caterwauling busker who’d attracted a small, amused audience at the top of the one-hundred and ninety-nine steps.

Stella was jolted out of her musings when her gaze unexpectedly landed on a familiar tall, broad-shouldered figure ambling in her direction. Alex Bainbridge! Her heart leapt in the way it usually did when she set eyes on him and she cursed its inappropriate timing. He had a jaunty looking Fred on the end of a lead, and was walking alongside the young woman who’d arrived at the Jolly on Friday night. From her quick appraisal, Stella noted the woman was chatting away animatedly as Alex gazed down at her with what looked unmistakably like affection.Rat!At that moment, the pair laughed heartily at something the woman had said. Alex gave her a nudge with his shoulder. She reciprocated with a playful whack on his arm which set him laughing even louder. Out of nowhere, a pang of jealousy squeezed in Stella’s chest, making her face burn, more with annoyance at herself for letting her feelings get carried away in such a ridiculous manner, than with him. Her nostrils flared and her breathing intensified.Gah! He really is a player!

It wasn’t her style to avoid a situation; she preferred to tackle things head on, but right now there was no way she wanted to come face to face with either of them. She wasn’t in the right frame of mind to deal with his self-assured manner, never mind have him introduce her to his girlfriend. Before either of themhad a chance to spot her, Stella quickly slipped across the road and into the shade of the tall, Victorian houses, striding briskly in the direction of her apartment building, apparently unnoticed by Alex Bainbridge and his girlfriend.

Back home, her anger abated, Stella flung open the doors to the balcony, admitting the sea breeze before heading to the kitchen and her coffee machine. She’d have a quick kick of caffeine before getting stuck into her work. She not only had her brief to prepare for the following day, but also several forms relating to other cases to complete. She’d be working well into the evening which was why she’d gone easy on the wine at her mum’s. If only she didn’t have so much other stuff buzzing round her head.

As she sipped her coffee, gazing out to sea, comfy in her seat on the balcony, Stella’s thoughts drifted back to Alex Bainbridge. Much as she’d decided unequivocally he was a rat, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret that things hadn’t panned out the way she’d hoped. Even she couldn’t deny the sparks that had danced between them, nor the way he’d made her heart race so wildly. Maybe it was a good thing that he had a girlfriend, that whatever had been stirring between the two of them hadn’t gone any further. She was only just getting her head around her mum having a boyfriend; she wasn’t sure it was the right time to try and work out why Alex Bainbridge had triggered such a dramatic response in her, and in a way she’d never experienced before.

Her gaze fell onto a couple walking along, arm-in-arm, the man dropping a kiss to the top of the girl’s head. Stella drew in a sigh, trying to imagine if she’d ever change her attitude to relationships as her mum appeared to have done. Tried to picture herself walking along with someone, looking as loved-up as the couple down on the prom clearly were. ‘Ain’t happening!’ she said aloud and with great conviction. Stella would be the first to admit she didn’t have a romantic bone in her body, shecouldn’t bear all that mushy hearts and flowers stuff. Her job was her first priority; she was too busy to factor having a man in her life on a permanent or serious basis. If they weren’t reasons enough, there was the fact that she liked her home neat and tidy; under no circumstances would she be able to tolerate smelly socks lying around the place, or underpants that haven’t quite made it to the laundry basket, strewn over the floor as Maggie so often complained about Bear, albeit affectionately. ‘No thank you!’ Stella shuddered at the thought, it was single all the way for her.

Her mind wandered its way back to the afternoon at her mum’s house. From the various conversations they’d had, it was evident Rhys would be staying the night at Magnolia Gardens, and Stella surmised it wouldn’t be the first time. This was new territory for her to navigate with her mum, and she couldn’t deny it did feel a little strange, not that she wanted to think too much about it. On the other hand, it had been good to see her mum looking so happy. It was just that it had come so out-of-the-blue after she’d stressed to her for as far back as Stella could remember that there was no way she’d ever let a man into her life again after what Stella’s father had done. And, much as she’d liked Rhys, the niggle that he might just be a bit too good to be true was starting to creep in.

TEN

Half an hour later, Stella found herself still rooted to her seat on the balcony when her eyes were drawn to the familiar relaxed amble of Alex Bainbridge, with Fred trotting along on the end of his lead. This time, there was no sign of the pretty young woman who’d been making Alex laugh so heartily earlier. Frustratingly, Stella’s pulse surged, unleashing a flurry of butterflies in her stomach.Dratted man!How could he have this effect on her from this distance? It was ridiculous and totally unwarranted. There was something clearly amiss with her emotions right now. She must have had too much sun that afternoon.

With her traitorous heart leaping about in her chest, Stella watched as Fred brought them to a halt, sniffing around the legs of a wooden bench that faced out to sea. Just then Alex’s gaze wandered in the direction of her apartment building, his eyes travelling upwards. Giving a sharp intake of breath, she leant back into the shade, her heart pounding for a different reason this time. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was staring at him or spying on him. That would only serve to inflate his already enormous ego!

He glanced away, apparently ignorant of her presence and she seized the opportunity to slink inside, telling herself it was time she made a start on her work.

‘Lucky escape,’ she said, puffing out her cheeks. As she headed towards the kitchen to rinse her mug her mobile phone pinged from where she’d left it on the worktop. Scooping it up she saw it was Florrie asking how everything went with her mum. Stella was just about to fire off a quick reply when something stopped her. Before she knew it she found herself selecting the call icon; it would be good to talk to Florrie, she was often the calm voice of reason – as Lark could be too, but she liked everyone, saw the good in everything. As lovely as this trait was, it didn’t always help in situations like these.

The five friends acknowledged that she and Lark were the most different personality-wise, Lark’s gentle, laid-back nature the polar opposite to Stella’s drive and assertive manner. Maggie and Jasmine both shared a wicked sense of humour but could get quite hot-heated at times – Jasmine particularly so – whereas Florrie fell somewhere in between. She had the knack for putting things very clearly into perspective, which was something Stella felt in need of right now.

Florrie picked up on the first ring. ‘Hi, Stells,’ she said cheerily, the sound of a lawnmower rumbling away in the background.

‘Hi, Florrie, are you okay to talk for a few minutes?’

‘Course, Ed’s just mowing our postage stamp of a lawn, and I was about to sit down with a cup of tea and a book.’

‘Sounds like you’ve got the work distribution spot-on there,’ Stella said with a laugh. ‘Sure I’m not intruding on your reading time?’

‘I so have.’ Florrie giggled. ‘And no, you’re certainly not intruding, I’m keen to know how it went at your mum’s.’

Stella made her way over to the lounge area and flumped down onto the sofa. ‘It went well. Rhys Baker seems very nice, and mum looked happy. It’s just…’ She paused, drawing in a deep breath.

‘It felt a bit weird.’ Florrie finished her sentence for her.

‘It did, and you know what I’m like, my mind starts going off down all sorts of avenues, wondering if he’s a genuinely decent bloke or if he’s a charmer who’s trying to inveigle his way into her life so he can fleece her of all her money before doing a disappearing act. And I’m sure, as much as I did my best to hide it for my mum’s benefit, they’ll both have detected a hint of my mistrust; I’d just hate for her to end up hurt.’

‘Listen, Stells, I really don’t think you should beat yourself up about this. You’re only thinking what everyone else would in your position, and I totally get why you’re feeling the way you are. I mean, it’s just been the two of you your whole life and your mum has always said a romantic relationship wasn’t for her; you’re bound to feel a little wary. And it’s not as if you know this Rhys; he’s just arrived in the area and into your mum’s life. If I was ever in your shoes and one of my parents started a relationship with someone new, I’d be exactly the same, worse probably. Knowing your mum as I do, I’m sure she’ll understand. She’s a reasonable person; she’ll know you’ve got her best interests at heart.’

Florrie’s words had an instant soothing effect, helping to assuage Stella’s guilt. ‘I suppose you’re right. Mind, her saying a romantic relationship wasn’t for her is clearly a thing of the past after what I witnessed today. You should’ve seen the way they were looking at each other, all puppy-dog eyes. And she seemed so different around him, so much more carefree and light-hearted. It felt good to see her that way actually.’ A smile spread over her face at the thought.

‘Aww. That’s so nice to hear,’ Florrie said, gulping down a mouthful of tea. ‘You never know, maybe it’s just taken until now for the right man to come along for your mum. And don’t forget, she’s no fool, she’s not some giddy young girl who’s desperate to fall in love for the sake of it. She’ll have given it a great deal of thought before she dipped her toe into the relationship pool. Like you, she’s a pretty good judge of character and I honestly can’t see her letting herself get sucked in by some unscrupulous bloke.’

Florrie had summed up Alice so well. Stella hadn’t considered either of those points. ‘I hope you’re right.’

‘I’m sure that’s how it is.’ Florrie paused, Stella could almost hear the cogs of her friend’s mind working down the phone line. ‘And am I right in thinking you might be a bit worried about how the dynamics between you and your mum will be affected if Rhys does become a permanent fixture in her life? That he’ll have a hand in her decision-making? It’s only natural, by the way, flower, I’m not criticising.’

Florrie had hit the nail right on the head. ‘I know you’re not. And, yeah, I suppose I am a bit bothered about it, especially if they end up moving in together.’ Her heart jumped as another thought segued into her mind. ‘Or if they end up getting married.’ She pulled a concerned face at that.

‘I think you’re getting a bit ahead of yourself there. Your mum’s a level-headed woman. Look at it from this perspective, it’d be like you meeting a fella, falling in love and suddenly announcing you’re getting hitched – which we all know is something that’s never going to happen!’ Florrie gave a hearty chuckle. ‘Can you honestly see your mum doing that?’

Florrie’s analogy seemed to have the annoying effect of conjuring Alex Bainbridge into Stella’s mind. Scowling, she shoved the unwelcome image firmly out of her thoughts and said, ‘When you put it like that, no, I definitely can’t. And you’reright, Mum is level-headed and a good judge of character. Which reminds me, from what I picked up today, it would seem I’m not the only one who’s got concerns.’

‘Oh?’

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