Bella plonked herself down on the sofa next to Zach and passed him a glass of water and a small chocolate brownie, courtesy of Mr Kemble. ‘So tell me your story, how did you end up on the streets?’

She watched as the smile faded from his face. ‘It’s not something I want to talk about.’

‘Oh.’ She felt the rebuke like a slap in the face.

‘I know you trusted me with your story and it’s not that I don’t trust you with mine. It’s just that if I told you the truth, I don’t think you would be happy to be sitting here with me now. I love that you have no judgements of me, that we can sit here and talk like this, but I rather wish that… the path that led me to here had never happened because it’s something I can’t undo.’

‘I would never judge you. We have all made mistakes in our past and it would never be fair to judge you on them now. But I understand if you’re not comfortable talking about it. Let’s talk about something else instead. Where were you born, where did you grow up?’

Zach smiled, obviously relieved to move on to a subject that he was comfortable talking about. He took a bite of his brownie and chewed slowly, almost as if he was considering his answer.

‘Born on St Mary’s but I lived here for the first eight years of my life.’

‘You lived here on Hope Island? We might have played together as kids. How old are you?’

‘Thirty-three.’

‘Oh I’m twenty-seven, we probably didn’t mix in the same circles. Rome is thirty-one and Eden is thirty, so you might have known them.’

Zach shrugged. ‘The names don’t ring a bell. They would have been a few years below me at school.’

‘How funny that we probably used to play on the same beach, go cycling through the same woods. It’s a small world. Do you remember the funfairs we used to have here every spring?’

He grinned. ‘Yes, they were amazing. The bumper cars, the haunted house, the ghost train—’

‘And the big wheel! I used to love and hate going on that in equal measure. It was always a thrill to see the whole of the island and everyone there below us like tiny ants and feeling like I was king of the world as the wheel went up in the air but then we’d get to the top and I always felt like we were going to fall. I remember feeling so scared but as soon as we got back down we’d queue back up to ride it again. The tourists would come over just to see the fair and they’d always tell us local kids that we were so lucky to live here all the time. I never really appreciated that until I was older. I loved the smells, the candyfloss and the toffee apples and Uncle Finn would always try to win us the biggest, fattest teddy to take home on all the little games.’

‘And the fireworks at the end of the night,’ Zach went on. ‘All that colour exploding over the sea, it looked magical. We came back to Hope Island every year just for the funfair, until they stopped doing it.’

‘I know, it was such a shame. It was Dougie’s parents that used to organise it.’

‘Dougie?’ Something in Zach’s eyes registered recognition and she wondered if he remembered him from his time on the island.

‘He’s a friend of ours, me, Eden and Rome. We used to hang around together as kids. Do you know him?’

He hesitated before he shook his head.

‘His parents emigrated to New York when Dougie was eighteen and Dougie went with them. After that no one wanted the hassle of organising the fair again and it stopped. There was talk of starting it again but it never happened. Do you remember the ice cream shop at the end of the pier?’

‘Yes,’ Zach laughed. ‘Maddy used to give us free samples of any new flavours. Whenever a sign went up advertising there was a new flavour, the kids used to queue up all the way back to the start of the pier to try it out.’

‘I remember that too. Quite clever marketing really, because we would all use our pocket money to pay for an extra scoop or for toppings. Do you remember those little white chocolate bears she used to sell, with caramel in the middle? They were my favourite toppings. I used to go in there sometimes and just have a bag of those and Maddy never minded that I wasn’t buying ice cream.’

‘She was wonderful, what happened to her? The shop was still there when I left.’

Bella shrugged. ‘I think she moved to Australia or somewhere. I remember being more gutted about the shop closing than Take That breaking up and I loved Take That. There’s a new ice cream shop in town now. It’s nice, I suppose, but nothing will ever beat Maddy’s ice cream.’

‘I know. When I moved to St Mary’s when I was eight, I missed her shop so much. I missed a lot about Hope Island actually. I still had the beaches but it wasn’t the same as here. There’s something magical about the beaches here. There’s something about the people on Hope Island too, they look out for everyone else. I ended up moving to London when I was fifteen and lived there for many years with university and work but I wanted to come back to the Isles of Scilly. I just missed the place too much. I sold my house, made some changes at work and…’ he trailed off.

‘Is that when it all went wrong? Coming back here?’ Bella said but she could see Zach didn’t want to talk about that. ‘I’m not prying. I just wonder if you had all your hopes pinned on here and now you feel let down.’

Zach didn’t say anything and she took his hand. ‘I know it feels hopeless but my nan has a saying. “What’s meant for you won’t go by you.” Something bigger and better is just around the corner for you. And I’ll do whatever I can to help you.’

It was good to remember that although she had nothing, there were people who were in a far worse situation. She had a roof over her head and a loving family who wanted to look after her. Zach didn’t even have that.

‘If you wanted to stay here for a bit longer, until you sorted yourself out, I’d be happy to have you here. You could be my lodger.’

He laughed. ‘I can’t pay you any rent.’

‘You don’t have to. There’s odd jobs you could help me with. There’s a bulb that needs changing at the top of the stairs and I can’t reach it even with a step ladder. I normally get Rome to do it for me whenever he comes round. I have a door that won’t close and a shelf that needs putting up. You could do those jobs for me in return for the use of my sofa and as much porridge as you want if I can get another box next week.’

‘Did I eat the last of your porridge?’ Zach said, horrified.

‘It doesn’t matter. I’ll be able to get some food from somewhere. And now that Rome knows my situation, he won’t let me live on porridge for any longer. I guarantee lunch with him tomorrow will result in me leaving his house with several bags of groceries. We could eat like kings tomorrow night. And as much as I hate relying on him like that, I need the help. And it’s a temporary measure. When I get this job for the Umbrella Foundation at least that will be a guaranteed income at the end of the month and then I can pay him back. So do you fancy some steak tomorrow night?’

‘Thank you, that’s really kind, but I really need to try to get back to St Mary’s tomorrow. There’s more chance of me getting a job there than there is here.’

‘Oh, of course.’

She got up to throw another piece of wood into the log burner. She couldn’t help but feel disappointed about that fact. She was offering him a warm place to stay, some decent food and some company and he would much rather face a night on the streets of St Mary’s than stay with her.

She talked too much, she knew that. Asked too many questions. ‘Sorry, I’m used to being on my own. When I have company I start talking and just don’t stop. Look, I’ll leave you to some peace and quiet; I have a good book upstairs with my name on it.’

He caught her hand as she walked past.

‘Don’t go, I’m enjoying our chat. Sometimes living on the streets can be so lonely. Days go past and I don’t speak to anyone. It’s been lovely chatting to you tonight.’

‘Really? You don’t find me too much?’

‘Too much of what? Too much kindness and generosity? Too much giving your time to help those in need? Too much chatting to me like I’m a normal human being and not someone to be avoided or treated with disgust? I don’t think there can ever be too much of that. I’ve never met anyone like you before, Bella, and believe me when I say that that’s a good thing.’

‘OK, but if you get sick of listening to me talk, just tell me to shut up, I promise I won’t be offended.’

‘I don’t think I could ever get sick of listening to you talk,’

She smiled and sat back down. ‘I know I talk too much. I don’t have many friends; I like to keep to myself. Some evenings I spend with Eden and Rome and our friend Freya, every Friday I have dinner with my family but most nights I’m here alone. And it suits me. I can read a book without being disturbed, go to bed when I want, watch what I want on TV – when I had a TV – but it means when I suddenly do have company I could talk for England.’

‘Why don’t you have many friends?’

She shrugged but in reality she knew that there must be something wrong with her. She knew lots of people on the island but none of them were really her friend. Eden was her best friend but she was also her sister, which didn’t say much. Freya was her only real friend outside of the family, and Dougie of course, but he lived in America. She kept people at arm’s length, she knew that, and over the years she’d let so very few people in. Zach was still waiting for an answer so she gave him one which was at least partly true.

‘No one stays on Hope Island. The youngsters don’t anyway. The older people will never leave and many retire to here, but there is always a mass exodus of young folk leaving every year. The island is too small and there’s so much world out there for people to explore. Every single person in my class at school went away for university and no one came back.’

‘But you never wanted to leave?’

‘I went away to university but I couldn’t wait to get back here. This place just feels safe. I’d love to travel one day, see the world, but I think Hope Island will always be my home.’

‘I understand that. I’ve always missed Hope Island. I’ve wanted to come back for a long time. Do you not get lonely though, sitting here every night on your own?’

‘I do enjoy being alone and reading a book. Some people on the island have not been kind about the embezzlement and I was bullied as a child. Books are not mean or unkind. I can dive into a book and not fear that I’m going to get hurt. But sometimes, I do get a bit lonely. I was going to get a dog for company, someone to talk to in the evenings even if he couldn’t talk back. I went to the dog home here on Hope Island and I met the most beautiful husky-labrador cross called Alfie. Six years old and he was abandoned by his owner. I had all the house visits and I’d been to the dog shelter to take him out for walks and we just clicked. But I am struggling to find the money to feed myself, so I couldn’t realistically take him when I wouldn’t be able to feed him. Jenny at the dog home has promised to keep him as long as possible for me but I don’t want to stand in the way of him getting his forever home; someone who can love him and look after him when I can’t. That’s where I was today, visiting him. I help out there too now and again in return for them keeping Alfie for me.’

Zach smiled. ‘Well, maybe when you get this job you can go and get him, bring him home where he belongs.’

‘That’s the plan. If I get the job.’

‘You’re perfect for it. Look at you helping the homeless tonight. If you can stop and help me, think of all the other people you could help too.’

She laughed. ‘I never even thought of that. I should use you as a reference. Look at this homeless person I helped. Give me the job.’

Zach laughed too.

‘If only it were that simple. This job is perfect for me and I think I am perfect for this role but I think the embezzlement and my past history is going to be a hard obstacle to get past, at least as far as they are concerned.’

‘You just need to show them the other parts to you, show them why you would be perfect for the job. OK, I’ll be the interviewer. Why do you want this job, aside from the money issue?’

She smiled and turned to face him, crossing her legs under her. ‘Because, Mr Umbrella, I—’

‘Wait, Mr Umbrella?’ he laughed. ‘You don’t know the name of the person interviewing you, this CEO that you were talking about? You don’t know his name?’

‘Of course I do, but Isaac Scott isn’t going to be interviewing me. He has underlings for that sort of thing. I have no idea which underling will be picked for the job. I had a letter from an Amanda Jackson and I know she will be on a panel of four people who will be grilling me but it didn’t say who else will be on the panel.’

‘Don’t you think that this Mr Scott bloke, who as you say puts a lot of time and effort into the charity, has a vested interest in who he employs?’

‘Nah. He probably does this charity for tax purposes or something. Offsets a lot of the company expenses from his other companies against the charity and then he won’t have to pay so much tax. I’m not sure how it works. I’m sure he is a very clever and very generous man but he is probably way too busy to get involved in the inner workings of the charity. And from what I gather, he lives in London. It’s a bit far for him to travel all the way down to the Scilly Isles just for an interview. I probably need to do some more research on him. I know he owns BlazeStar which makes computer programs for big companies and I know two years ago he created SparkStar which makes phone apps for companies but his photo isn’t on the websites. I probably need to find that so I recognise him if he pops his head round the door. I’m sure I can find it online somewhere, but I imagine him to be quite a portly gentleman who wears braces with his suit and probably a bowler hat. He’ll have a curly moustache and a little goatee which he styles into a point.’

Zach burst out laughing. ‘That’s quite an image. Anyway you were telling me why you want this job.’

‘Well, Mr Umbrella,’ Bella said and continued despite Zach’s smile. ‘I want this job because I want to make a difference and I know this company has made great strides in reducing the homeless population and really helping to get them off the streets and into jobs and homes and I want to be a part of that.’

‘That’s a corporate line, they’ll hear that from everyone they interview. What’s the real reason?’

Bella frowned, her heart sinking. ‘That is the real reason. I love working for a charity. I want to help people.’

Zach studied her for a moment. ‘You really are one of a kind, Bella. OK, forget the interview with Mr Umbrella for a second. Why is it you want to help people?’

Bella thought about this, or more specifically what she could tell him. But there was something about Zach that made her want to spill her deepest secrets.

‘Life dealt me a crappy hand from a very early age but fortunately for me I had my aunt and uncle to look after me. I had someone to help me out and not everyone has that. If it hadn’t been for them, my life would have turned out very differently and I guess I want to be that person, maybe in some small way, for someone else.’

‘That’s why you want to take Alfie on?’

He understood.

‘He was abandoned by his owners just like I was abandoned by my parents.’

She looked down at her knees, so she wouldn’t have to see the pity in his eyes. She quickly moved on before he could ask her any questions or make any comments about that.

‘Working for a charity means I can help someone just like I was helped and whether that is Magic Wishes, helping people to create some special memories with a loved one before they died, or the Umbrella Foundation, helping people not as lucky as me to find a way back into work and off the streets, I want to do something to help people.

‘I’d be great at this job; I have experience as a fundraising events manager. I’ve done it for five years and I love it. A lot of people think that if they have experience in events management then the skills are transferable and I suppose they are, but events management for a hotel or other corporate events organisation is a different ball game to a fundraising events manager. Corporate or banqueting events is about giving the customer exactly what they want; the flowers, the food, the seating plans. Fundraising events management is about creating events that people want to be a part of. It’s about inspiring people to join in. It has to be imaginative and fun and uniquely different and I love stuff like that. Honestly, this job was written for me.’

Zach was smiling by the time she finished speaking, his grin growing as she explained her passion for the job. ‘You need to say all this in the interview. Your passion is what is going to stand you apart from the rest of the interviewees. Tell them where your desire to help people comes from. They need to see that it comes from the heart.’

‘You want me to tell my prospective employers that my parents abandoned me? That my dad walked out on me when I was five and then my mum ditched me with my aunt and uncle for the weekend when I was six years old and never came back for me. I don’t think that showing my new employers how unwanted I was is going to help them to want me. They might think that something is wrong with me if both my parents walked out and left me. I know I do.’

Good lord, the secrets were spilling forth tonight. Next she’d be telling him what age she was when she started her first period and how she had cried for a week when her pet goldfish had died. He didn’t say anything for a moment, just watched her. She felt her cheeks flame, probably going as red as her hair.

She decided to change the subject quickly. ‘So Mr Umbrella, the question is not what I can do for you. I’ve already told you why I am absolutely the best person for this job.’

‘That’s true, you have.’

‘The question is, why should I work for you? What would you be offering me if, if I decided to work for your company?’

Zach burst out laughing. ‘You’re not going to ask that in the interview?’

‘I might,’ she smirked. ‘It has to be an equal partnership.’

Zach nodded seriously, a smile tugging on his lips. ‘Yes you’re right. Well, Miss…?’

‘Roussel.’

‘Oooh nice, French?’

‘I have no idea. It’s my dad’s. The only thing he left me with.’

Zach hesitated for a moment but clearly decided not to pursue it. ‘Well Miss Roussel. I’d offer you a company car, maybe something like a Ferrari or a Porsche.’

‘I’m listening; this sounds like a very fair offer to go alongside my million-pound-a-year salary.’

‘Plus bonuses,’ Zach clarified.

‘Oh yes, I’d forgotten about the very generous bonus, private healthcare, and one of the best pensions around. What else are you offering me?’

‘You want more than a million pounds a year and a Ferrari?’

‘Porsche. Chauffeur-driven. Yes, I think I’m worth it.’

‘A beach house in Florida?’

‘Generous. Anything else?’

‘You name it, it’s yours.’

‘I want…’ She thought about it for a moment. ‘A housekeeper and cook and maybe a hot butler, to, you know, answer the door for me if I get too tired to do it myself.’

‘OK, deal.’

‘Wait. I’m not finished.’

‘You have more demands?’

Bella nodded. ‘My own boat.’

‘A hundred-foot yacht with a crew of fifty to cater to your every whim?’

‘Well, no, that sounds a bit greedy.’

‘And a salary of a million pounds and a beach house in Florida isn’t?’

‘No, that’s just practical. Just a small boat with an engine, something simple to operate by myself so I can visit the other islands whenever I wanted. I’d like it to be purple and have her name written in silver down the side.’

‘I feel I’m going to regret asking, what’s her name?’

‘Boaty McBoatface.’

Zach laughed loudly. ‘You got yourself a deal, Miss Roussel.’

He held out his hand and she reached out and shook it, enjoying the warmth of it, the softness of his skin. There was something special about Zach, the ease with which she could talk to him. It was a pity she only had tonight with him, she would have enjoyed getting to know him more.

* * *

Oh this girl was going to be trouble. Isaac watched her as she moved to the fire to add more logs. She was smart and funny and cute as hell. He really liked her.

He frowned. But if she came and worked for the Umbrella Foundation, he would be her boss and he knew he could never let anything happen between them. That could be unbelievably tricky and messy at work. Never mix business and pleasure; that was something he always stuck to.

Unless of course he didn’t hire her. Although talk about cutting your nose off to spite your face.

She turned back to him with a smile and he found himself frowning slightly, which had her smile fading away.

‘I think I might head to bed, it’s getting late. Let me get you some blankets and pillows.’

She disappeared out of the room. She had been completely honest with him that night and in return he had lied to her. How was she going to react when she found out the truth? Would it be better for him to tell her the truth now? Apologise profusely and offer to make it up to her by buying her a decent meal out? Something that wasn’t porridge. Sure she’d be pissed but at least they could start the interview back on honest ground and she’d have a day to get over her anger with him.

He stood up as she came back in and she immediately set about making up a bed for him on the sofa.

She stood back up when she’d finished. ‘Will you still be here when I get up or do you intend to get the five o’clock ferry?’

Isaac didn’t say anything for a moment, the truth getting stuck in his throat. ‘I think I’ll get the early ferry. I might be able to get a few hours’ work down at the harbour in St Mary’s; they pay cash in hand and don’t ask for references.’

Bella nodded and he saw the look of disappointment flash across her face. ‘I understand. And the offer still stands. If you change your mind and want to sleep here tomorrow, I’d be happy to have you back again.’

He nodded. He knew he had to tell her, but he liked the easy relationship they had right now and he couldn’t bring himself to break the spell.

She seemed to hesitate, maybe hoping he would change his mind. A lock of hair fell across her face and she absently pulled out her ponytail, letting her red curls tumble over her shoulders. It was so long and all he could suddenly think about was what it would look like when it cascaded over her naked body as he made love to her. Crap, where the hell did that come from?

‘It was lovely meeting you tonight,’ Bella said, scooping her hair back up into a ponytail again, though this did nothing to diminish her effect on him. ‘It was really nice chatting and getting to know you. If I don’t see you again, then I wish you all the success for the future.’

He wanted to kiss her. He wanted to step forward, take her in his arms and kiss her and he didn’t know what to do with that feeling, because he sure as hell couldn’t act on it.

‘You’ll see me again,’ Isaac finally said. ‘I promise.’

Her face brightened at that and she gave him a little wave and left the room.

He sighed as he took off his hoodie. He certainly wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight knowing she was sleeping just a few feet above him.

* * *

Bella stood outside the door to the lounge for a second. There had been chemistry between them and she was pretty sure he felt it too. She wanted to go back in there and kiss him but she’d never been brave enough to make the first move in a relationship. He could easily have kissed her if he’d really wanted to and he hadn’t, so maybe he didn’t feel the same. She sighed. He would be going back to St Mary’s tomorrow and she’d probably never see him again. Just because she had enjoyed talking to him that night didn’t mean they had any kind of future together.

She sighed and had started to head upstairs when she remembered about the spare logs for the log burner. There was a huge pile in the kitchen but he wouldn’t think to look for them in the cupboard.

She quickly went back into the lounge to find Zach completely and gloriously stark naked.