The Butterfly Cove Collection. Sarah Bennett

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СКАЧАТЬ remains of her pasta. ‘Me too.’

      ‘I know it’s overstepping the mark, but I can’t help myself making plans for the future. Whatever may or may not happen between us, I want to stay. This house feels like the first home I’ve had in years. I want to stay. With you. As friends, if nothing more. I’ve even got some ideas for converting the barn.’

      Mia knew she probably looked dumbstruck as she stared open-mouthed at Daniel. It was almost as though he could read her mind as his words echoed perfectly her own feelings. ‘I want the same thing, whatever else happens here, I want us to always be friends, Daniel. I feel like we came together at a moment in time when we both needed the other so badly without even realising it. You have become so special to me in just a few weeks and I can’t bear to think that we might spoil this by rushing too far ahead or striving to feel something that just might not be there for us. I think we need to promise to be honest with each other, no matter what we fear the other person might say because it is only by staying true and trusting each other that we can hold this together. Do you agree?’

      Mia reached up to cup his bearded cheek and he turned his head to press a kiss into the centre of her palm.

      ‘Yes, I agree. I also think we need to start sharing some of those sad stories, but not tonight and not all at once. The dark should be for whispering about our dreams and hopes for the future. Let’s save the tough stuff for the daytime, okay?’

      It was such a sweet idea that it appealed deeply to Mia, to keep their most intimate times a haven, knowing that she could lie beside him and be safe and warm and not have to face anything upsetting or difficult. A time to plan and look to the future. It was perfect.

      ‘So tell me about these plans of yours.’ She settled back against her pillow and let him tuck the quilt under her chin as if she were a child. He drew back to his own side of the bed, leaving a clear space between them. He mimicked her position. Snug as two bugs in a rug, as her mother used to say when she still used to put Mia to bed. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and then listened with her heart open as Daniel described his fledgling ideas for converting the barns.

      ***

      ‘The air here is different, even the sky looks different. I didn’t realise how much the darkness of the city was getting to me until it was almost too late. You end up living this life that isn’t yours, if you’re not careful, and then you lose that part of you that your creativity and artistry needs to survive and thrive. I was so full of hope, so full of ideas and excitement when I moved to London. My pictures reflected that positivity. All my themes were of things to be celebrated.’

      Daniel paused, trying to find the right words. ‘I need to show you my portfolio and then you would understand.’ He sat up intent on fetching his tablet, but she stopped him with a light touch on his arm.

      ‘Save that for later. You were talking about the difference here away from the city and how it makes you feel. What does that have to do with your plans for the barn?’ She rolled onto her side, tucking her hands beneath her cheek.

      He settled back down and turned to face her, heart racing a mile a minute. He’d thought for sure any hopes of a relationship with her had been dashed because she still grieved for Jamie, but she’d offered him a lifeline with her shy admission. Now was not the time to push it though. They would have plenty of time to explore things between them if she liked what he said next.

      ‘I want to convert the barn into a studio, well a collection of studios really. Something to cater for different artistic disciplines. A pottery studio with all the equipment: a wheel, a kiln, drying racks and display cases. A photography studio with a dark room for the old-fashioned types and a top-of-the-range computer and printing set-up for us digital addicts; one for a painter to use, one for a sculptor.

      ‘The light in the barn is fantastic and the view across the beach to the sea would be inspirational to the most jaded of eyes. The gardens here are fascinating too. I love them as they are—so much to explore, so many hidden secrets to capture on film, on canvas, in clay. I just think it would be fabulous to be able to offer an exclusive retreat to people. Somewhere they can tuck themselves away and recuperate, recharge their batteries and maybe rekindle their muse if they are struggling like I was.’ He cut himself off with a laugh at the saucer-eyed expression on her face. ‘Yeah, I’ve been giving this a lot of thought.’

      ‘It never occurred to me the barn could be anything other than an eyesore and a dumping ground. I’ve always known I’d have to tackle it at some point, but trying to deal with the house has been overwhelming enough.’ She nibbled her lower lip, a single line etched between her brows—her thinking face, as he thought of it. And when had he started giving names to her different expressions? She spoke again, distracting him from the thought. ‘I can see the appeal of the idea, but I never planned on turning the place into an artist’s retreat.’

      A note of uncertainty crept into her tone and Daniel plunged on, hoping to sell her his vision. ‘It’s such a beautiful place; it would be perfect. I want to invite my friend Aaron down to visit and check it out further. He’s the one with a head for figures and his brother’s an architect. I want to get their input and ideas, see if Luke can take some measurements, maybe put together some sketches. I’d make sure it wouldn’t interfere with the guest house. They would be pretty self-contained with the little apartments on the mezzanine floor, although you might get a few begging at the back door once they smell your cooking.’

      ‘You plan to have them sleep there too? You wouldn’t be expecting them to stay in the house?’ Mia sounded surprised and he wanted to slap himself for being a fool. She’d obviously thought he wanted to take over everything.

      ‘God no, the guest house is yours. I wouldn’t presume to interfere with your plans. The barn is huge, plenty of room to put in a first floor. That was the idea, studios down below with maybe a staircase connecting to a loft type apartment above. The artists can totally retreat if they wanted to, although I would hope that people would mingle a bit in the summer if we had a barbeque or a bit of a beach party. Get everyone together and all mixing. Maybe put a few bits of art around the house to decorate and we could offer them for sale if anyone was interested. We could even set up a small gallery in time if there was enough interest. A gallery and a tea shop to draw the holidaymakers in the season and something to offer the locals off-peak.’

      Mia started laughing as Daniel raced on a mile a minute. So yeah he was miles beyond just a few artist studios, but he could see it in his mind’s eye and excitement fizzed in his gut like champagne bubbles.

      ‘You’re mad, you know?’ She was laughing, though, much to his relief. ‘The dream I had for opening a guest house seemed unachievable only a couple of months ago and now here we are thinking about adding an artist’s retreat, an art gallery and a bloody tea shop! It all sounds marvellous, but I barely have enough in the budget to finish this place.’

      Oh, hell, he was really mucking this up. ‘The cost of anything you agree for the barn would come out of my pocket, not yours. I’ll buy or lease the space from you, with a proper contract and everything. Once I became flavour of the month, people paid quite ludicrous sums for my work and even more for a personal sitting.’

      A flicker of guilt over that last disastrous sitting jabbed him in the belly. ‘I have more bloody money than I know what to do with and no-one and nothing in my life that was worth a damn penny of it until now, until this.’ He sounded desperate to his own ears and knew he should back off, but he needed this, needed something physical to show for his almost thirty years of existence other than a few pictures and a failing reputation.

      The frown on her forehead smoothed out and excitement gleamed in her eyes. ‘It’s a great СКАЧАТЬ