Despite the torrential rain everyone had a fantastic afternoon. Tasha and Alf left soon after the presentation, but not before Bea had put together a small food hamper for them both and Alf promised next time he was in the area with his wife he would visit for a cream tea.
The mood was jovial and after Nathan shushed the remaining guests he erected the plaque in the middle of the wall behind the counter and they all stood and admired it.
‘My face is actually aching. I don’t think I’ve smiled this much in ages,’ Bea laughed, pinching her cheeks with her fingers.
‘You must be tired,’ Nathan grabbed a chair, ‘Take that weight off your feet.’
‘Are you saying I’m fat?’
Everyone chuckled.
Finally, after a couple of hours the rain had begun to ease a little and Fern ushered Nell into the kitchen.
‘It will only take me fifteen minutes or so to nip back to Mum’s and grab the painting. But what’s the story if Bea asks where I’m going?’
Nell paused for a minute, ‘I’ve no idea, but I’ve got to nip to the Old Picture House in the next half an hour. The builder is meeting there to discuss something about the re-wiring.’
‘Sounds riveting,’ Fern laughed, snatching her coat from the back of the office chair.
‘It’s been a fantastic afternoon, hasn’t it?’
Nell agreed, ‘Yes, and made even more special knowing you and your mum nominated Bea for the award. That was definitely the icing on the cake.’
Fern smiled and touched Nell’s arm, ‘I’ll see you in a little while. I’m going to sneak out the back door.’
‘Good idea.’
Nell locked the door behind Fern and wandered back into the deli. Everyone was huddled around laughing and chatting. Gilly was standing with Lloyd in the corner and Sam was sitting at his side.
‘Looks like you’ve made a new friend there,’ Nell bent down and ruffled Sam’s fur.
‘What a fantastic day,’ Gilly turned towards Nell, ‘Will it be alright if Lloyd joins us at the pub for Bea’s celebratory meal this evening.’
‘Of course. I’m sure Bea won’t mind and neither do I. The more the merrier.’
‘Come and join us, you three. Don’t stand in the corner, grab a chair,’ Bea hollered, ‘And where’s that sister of mine disappeared to?’
Nell pulled up a chair alongside her friend, ‘She’ll be back in a minute. She’s just nipped out for a second.’
‘Where to?’
‘I didn’t ask and anyway where’s that lovely godson of mine? He must have finished school by now.’ Nell changed the subject, steering the conversation away from Fern.
‘He’s at a friend’s house for tea. That’s why we are taking advantage of some adult time in the pub for tea, which will finish off the day perfectly.’
‘Gushing-friend moment coming up,’ Nell warned Bea, ‘I’m so proud of what you’ve achieved here.’
‘Thank you.’
‘I’ve just got to nip out for a short while. I’m meeting the builder at the Old Picture House anytime now,’ she glanced at her watch, ‘I’ll see you in the pub when I’ve finished. It shouldn’t take too long.’
‘Make sure you do.’
Nell stood up and slipped her arms inside her coat before hurrying up the wharf towards the Old Picture House. Nell took a moment outside and smiled at the huge yellow skip outside, which was packed to the brim with rubble. She still had to pinch herself. She couldn’t quite believe this place was hers and already it was beginning to be transformed into something special. She willed the day to hurry when she could open the doors to the public and, with everything running so smoothly, hopefully it would soon.
Nell turned the key in the lock and pushed open the door to the Old Picture House. She stood proudly inside the foyer. Already she could imagine how everything was going to look. The builders were already doing a fantastic job, the wallpaper had been stripped and the worn carpet ripped away. The windows were being replaced in the next few weeks and everything was on track. She knew, even though it was still a fair few months off completion, that it would all come together in the end and look magnificent.
Nell wandered around the place, the ladies’ and gents’ were an empty shell waiting to be tiled and painted, then the new toilets could be installed. This coming week the cinema chairs were going to be deep-cleaned and the new heavy red-velvet curtains that were to hang in each auditorium in front of the screen were on order.
She climbed the stairs to the projection room. The shelves of films had already been transferred to plastic boxes and labelled in alphabetical order. The walls had been painted in magnolia, which gave it a more airy, clean feel.
She sat on one of the chairs and glanced at her mobile. The builder was already fifteen minutes late. She sent a text asking how long he was going to be, knowing that he’d probably been caught up at another job.
Almost immediately the phone beeped and she swiped the screen.
‘Just caught in traffic. I’ll be there in ten minutes.’
Nell walked back down the magnificent staircase towards the foyer. She stood still for a second thinking she’d heard a door creak at the end of the hallway towards the small cinema room.
‘Don’t be daft,’ she murmured to herself, ‘It’ll just be the wind.’ For a second she loitered at the bottom of the stairs, when she heard it again. Her heart was thumping as she swung her head round and stared towards the door at the bottom of the hallway.
She hollered, ‘Hello, who’s there?’
But there was no answer.
She felt uneasy as she tiptoed along the floor and pressed her hand to the door. She took a deep breath and pushed it open.
The room was in complete darkness.
‘Stupid woman,’ she uttered, rolled her eyes and heaved a sigh of relief. ‘It’ll be a draught somewhere.’
She turned round and squealed. Placing her hand on her heart, Nell forced herself to breathe calmly.
Guy beamed back at her. ‘Fancy seeing you here.’ Nell stared in amazement, ‘You nearly gave me a heart attack! What the heck are you doing here?’
He looked gorgeous standing there in his ever-faithful Levi’s and converse. He nervously swept his fringe away from his eye, allowing his hazel eyes to lock with Nell’s.
‘You’re shaking.’
‘No bloody wonder, I thought there was an intruder.
Guy, you frightened the life out of me.’
‘It’s good to see you,’ his eyes sparkled at her.
Nell had to admit, it was good to see him too.
‘Any chance of a hug?’ he tilted his head to one side and slowly opened his arms.
‘Go on, then, if I must.’
He wrapped his arms around her and Nell almost melted, it felt so good.
After a few seconds Nell pulled away, ‘I’m meeting the builder in a minute. He wants to have a chat about the re-wiring. But what exactly are you doing here, Guy?’
‘There is no builder. I telephoned Mike and asked him to arrange the meeting.’
‘No meeting? It was you?’
‘Yes! I wanted to surprise you!’
‘Well, you did that all right!’
He smiled at her and Nell swiped his chest playfully, ‘Look at this place. It looks different already. You’ve worked really hard bringing everything together.’
‘I’m actually quite proud of myself, even if I do say so myself,’ she beamed.
He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her in close once more, wrapping his arms around her and rested his chin on top of her head, ‘I have missed you, Nell Andrews.’
She closed her eyes, her heart clattered at his touch and he smelt divine. She’d missed him too but he wasn’t hers to miss. ‘Me too, but it’s too complicated. We shouldn’t be talking like this,’ her voice was barely a whisper.
‘We need to talk,’ he said firmly, pulling away and gripping her hand. ‘Back to the Nollie and I’m not taking no for an answer.’