Page 57 of A Seaside Escape
They decided to stop for an impromptu lunch at a pretty little pub they saw on the way to their next destination.
As they walked through the doors Greg announced, ‘I don’t know about you but I’m starving!’
Mallory nudged him. ‘No wonder, you hardly ate any of your breakfast.’
Mallory excused herself to go wash up and check her red eyes and puffy face in the mirror. She splashed cold water on her cheeks and applied a little lip balm. She was glad she had decided against wearing her contacts today. Her eyes would’ve been too sore.
Greg was hungrily perusing the menu when she arrived back at their table. He had ordered her a large glass of wine.
‘What are you having then?’ she asked.
‘I think I may have to go with the steak pie and chips’ He rubbed his hands together looking greedy and excited. ‘Although, I doubt it will be as good as Stella’s eh?’
Mallory wasn’t that hungry. She still felt full from her bacon sandwich so she chose a salad and Greg went to order.
Their food arrived and Greg wolfed down his meal like a vacuum cleaner. Mallory was aghast at the sheer lightning speed of it. She munched through her salad but didn’t finish it all.
They set off again for Fort Augustus and parked in a little car park next to an old fuel station and convenience store. They walked around to the little bridge over the lock, the breeze had dropped slightly and so Mallory was able to release a handful of dust on to the water where it was free to float out towards the loch.
They didn’t stay long at Fort Augustus. The ice cream parlour was now a normal cafe which saddened Mallory a little. She stood gazing into the window for a few moments until she realised a little girl sitting at the window table was pulling faces at her. She giggled and walked back over to the bridge where Greg waited.
The final leg of their journey to Eilean Donan Castle would take them just over an hour.Mallory had taken some stunning photos of Sam on the footbridge. The imposing castle on its little island was another favourite of theirs. Sam loved the history of the island fort and had researched it before they went for the first time. He had impressed Mallory with knowledge of the meaning behind its name and the Celtic saint it was named after. He went on to explain to her that the castle she could see standing there was not the original as that had been almost totally destroyed after Spanish soldiers moved in and the British forces opened fire on them in the eighteenth century. How he loved his history.
When they arrived, Greg began taking photos of the imposing structure whilst Mallory went up onto the footbridge to release another handful of dust. She looked out over Loch Duich and remembered Sam also taking photos. He took what felt like hundreds all from different angles. Her particular favourite was a shot that showed the most glorious cornflower blue sky with the castle standing proud in the forefront. It had been framed by Mallory as a gift to Sam. The sky looked like an applied effect but it had genuinely been just as vivid in reality.
She had two more places to go, but she would do those alone in her own time. This part of her ordeal was over. She headed back towards Greg.
‘Hey, are you all right?’ Greg asked with concern. He could probably tell that she had been crying again. She felt her swollen eyes were probably a giveaway.
‘I’m okay. I found that bit so hard.’ She stifled a sob.
Greg rushed to her, enfolding her in his arms. ‘Hey, shhhh, it’s okay. You’ve done so well. You’ve been so brave. I’m proud of you,’ Greg soothed, speaking softly as he kissed her head and stroked her hair.
The journey home was going to take around three and a half hours and it was already just past five o’clock, so they climbed back into the car and set off. They sat in contemplative silence for a while looking at the stunning views through the dirty car windows. Mallory leaned her head against the doorpost as she gazed off into the distance.
Greg broke the silence first. ‘So, it’s been a nice day, weather-wise, eh?’ He kept his eyes on the road. Here he was again with his terrible attempts at small talk.
Mallory smiled to herself. ‘I really appreciate you bringing me, Greg. I think I would’ve hated to make the journey alone,’ she said without changing the direction of her stare.
‘Aye, well, Josie would’ve come surely?’
In her periphery she noticed him glancing over at her but she wasn’t in the mood for eye contact.
‘Yes, Josie offered. I just thought that… wellyouknow how I feel about it all. You’ve lost someone you were in love with.’ She wiped away a tear that had sneaked out.
He sighed. ‘Aye, that’s true.’
She turned to face him. ‘And, Greg, all that stuff you said before about being unsure of her feelings for you… there’s no point torturing yourself over that. You loved her. Maybe you’ll never know the true depth ofherfeelings. So, you just go with how you feel about her. What’s the point in dwelling on whether she did or didn’t love you the same?’ Mallory hoped that her tone was neither condescending nor harsh. But she turned away, not wanting to see his reaction.
They sat in silence again and eventually Mallory dozed off and slept for the remainder of the journey. A while later she awoke when the car stopped. She opened her eyes to see the familiar sight of Sealladh-mara Cottage. It was heading towards nine in the evening and the moon was bright in a crystal-clear sky, dotted with millions of tiny spots of light.
Mallory climbed out of the car. ‘I won’t invite you in, if you don’t mind. I hope that’s not unfair of me. I have a job to do before I go in. Then I just want to go to bed and cry myself to sleep.’ She smiled as she spoke, not feeling the expression go any deeper than her face.
‘Hey, no bother. You take care and give me a call if you need me okay?’ Greg replied through the open door of the car.
She nodded. ‘Thanks again, Greg. I can’t express how much today has meant to me.’
‘You’re very welcome. I’m glad I was able to help.’ He smiled. ‘Goodnight sweet Mallory Westerman. Sleep well, eh?’
