Page 48 of Summer Escapes on the Scottish Isle

After Mhairi had expertly and knowledgeably quizzed Freya on what she had been looking for when she was out on the loch, what had caught her eye and what she thought the hotel guests would gain from the experience, the old lady turned her gimlet gaze on Mack.

It was Freya’s turn to grin as he shifted uncomfortably at Mhairi’s ability to counter all his arguments for not trying at least one officialColours of Skyeexcursion.

‘What have you got to lose?’ Mhairi asked.

Mack pulled a face and Freya pressed her lips together to hold in a giggle. Poor Mack, she felt rather sorry for him – he clearly didn’t stand a hope in hell when it came to the owner of Coorie Castle. Freya definitely wouldn’t like to get on the wrong side of her.

‘That’s settled,’ Mhairi announced with a satisfied smile, delicately dabbing her lips with a linen napkin. ‘Coffee?’

‘Lovely,’ Freya said, placing her own napkin next to her plate. The food had been wonderful and she was so full that she could barely move.

After the coffee and some exquisite handmade chocolates to go with it, she was seriously concerned that she would fall asleep at the table. It had been another busy day (recently, every day was hectic) and she was ready for bed, even though it was still light outside and it wouldn’t be dark for another hour. Having lived down south for so many years, she wasn’t used to the days being quite so long. But she didn’t want to appear rude by leaving yet, with the meal not long finished, so she decided to take her cue from Mack.

However, it was Mhairi who made the first move. ‘I think it’s time I retired to bed. I find I don’t have the stamina I once did. These days I tire more easily.’ She made to rise and Cal leapt out of his seat to pull out her chair.

‘Thank you, Cal. Give Tara my love. It’s a pity she wasn’t able to join us for dinner this evening. Another time, perhaps? And you must come again, Freya, my dear. It was a pleasure to meet you.’

Mack got to his feet and Freya followed suit. She said, ‘It was a pleasure to meet you too, and thank you so much for inviting me. The meal was divine.’

‘Not up to London standards, I suspect.’

‘It most definitely was,’ Freya assured her. Mhairi was being modest. ‘I can’t think of a time when I’ve had better,’ she added.

‘You’re so kind. Why don’t you and Mack get off? I’d like a quick word with Cal.’

Freya bade them both good night and accompanied Mack out of the castle.

Despite her tiredness and full tummy, she was reluctant to leave and she turned around to gaze at the old building.

‘It’s gorgeous, isn’t it?’ she said. ‘But maybe gorgeous is the wrong word. Magnificent is better. To think it’s been standing for the best part of eight hundred years.’

‘Aye, and it’ll probably stand here for another eight hundred.’

‘I hope so. There’s something quite humbling about so much history. I’d forgotten that.’

Mack chuckled. ‘Isn’t there the same amount of history in London? I was under the impression there was rather more of it.’

Freya wrinkled her nose. ‘You know what I mean.’

He nodded slowly. ‘I do. It’s the raw power of a place like this. It can get lost in a place like London, I think.’

‘Have you been there?’

‘I have, but I wasn’t keen.’

‘It can be a bit of a culture shock,’ Freya acknowledged, even for her, who had loved the city from the very first time she’d visited it. She still did. It was so alive, so vibrant. And the culture was to die for.

Still, now that she was back on Skye, she really should make the time to reconnect with nature; it would do wonders for her work, and since the boat trip, she’d been buzzing with ideas.

Her thoughts went to her studio and the items that were still waiting to be fired. It wouldn’t hurt for them to dry for a few more weeks, but it pained her to think that she wouldn’t be there for a while. She was itching to get back to it.

‘I really did get a lot out of the boat trip,’ she said softly. ‘I think other people will, too.’

‘I’m not sureIwill,’ Mack grumbled, but she could tell it was half-hearted.

‘Go on, you’ll love it,’ she teased. ‘And think of the extra money.’

‘It’s not all about money,’ he countered. ‘Do you make your pots purely for the money?’

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