A Pretty Beach Wish by Polly Babbington (scary books to read TXT) 📗

near the funicular railway. Daisy’s move had gone smoothly and after Juliette had helped her unpack and Luke had assisted Daisy in putting her bed together it had felt like Daisy had been back in Pretty Beach forever.

‘I take it, it went well?’ Daisy said, as Juliette came around to the back garden of the fisherman’s huts.

‘How do you know?’ Juliette said, looking at Daisy in confusion.

‘There’s already a picture of your shoot at the Orangery on the Where the Heck is Pretty Beach? Instagram page. It’s getting a tonne of interest, too.’

‘What? Wow! That was quick. I went straight to work, was flat out there and then came straight round here. I haven’t even opened my phone other than to check for messages about Maggie from you.’

‘He clearly liked you, then.’

‘Hello, Mummy,’ Maggie said, looking up from a garden bed where she was picking bunches of herbs. Daisy had picked Maggie up from school, they’d been for afternoon tea and were now back at Daisy’s house, Maggie quite happy with her head in the garden bed.

Juliette leant down, hugged Maggie tightly and kissed Maggie on the cheek. ‘What are you two up to then? You look busy.’

‘We are making coocoo,’ Maggie said with wide eyes.

‘Are you indeed, that sounds delicious,’ Juliette said and smiled over at Daisy.

‘Lemon and garlic couscous with lots of herbs, a bit like a tabouleh, but not. It will be up on my website tomorrow, too.’

‘Yum. I like the sound of that. Anything garlic, though, and you’ve got me hook, line, and sinker. As you well know.’

‘Come on then, how was it? Spill the beans Sparkles.’

‘It was all quite strange, to be honest. You know the tiny, and I mean really tiny cottages over the other side near the fire station? Lucian lives there in one of those cottages. I parked up my bike and then went into this little room which was more like a cupboard and we just chatted, really.’

‘So, how’s it all set up?’ Daisy asked.

‘Not much differently to how you do your stuff, but without the camera. A couple of professional microphones and the podcast techie stuff was all on an app. I mean really it’s quite unbelievable that the broadcast will be going out to millions.’

‘Yeah, technology has changed the world. It’s changed my world at least. Who would have thought me filming my lifestyle as they call it and how I cook would be interesting to other people?’

‘It certainly has. I mean look at my little online hobby - now a very nice income stream and all made possible because of the internet.’

‘My whole business and actually my whole life is possible because of the internet. Even me moving back to Pretty Beach is because of the internet. Well, that and the fast train.’

‘I told Lucian about you while we were running through it all and having a cup of tea beforehand. He was very interested - your businesses are both quite similar.’

‘Yeah, you’re right. Though the difference is no one actually knows where mine is - a little vlog from a little kitchen, could be anywhere.’

‘Hmm, yes there is that.’

With that there was a low, groaning rumble as the funicular railway started to make its way up the side of the cliff. Juliette looked up and over all the way down to the end of the road, and saw the tiny little train creaking and winding its way up.

‘Have you got used to that, yet?’

‘I have. I didn’t even hear it then. How weird is that?’

‘It’s kind of comforting, isn’t it? Like the beat of a drum for your area. Like when you hear the Pretty Beach ferry in the distance, you know that you are home.’

‘I’d forgotten how much I loved that sound to be quite honest and now I’ve got both - the railway and the ferry in the far distance.’

They heard a knocking on the front door. ‘That must be Luke, he said he was going to pop in.’

‘We’re round the back,’ Daisy called out, and Luke came strolling around the corner. Chino shorts, navy-blue linen shirt, and the bottom.

Juliette got up from the bench and Luke kissed her on the cheek, he said hello to Maggie, and kissed Daisy hello on the cheek.

‘How did it go, then? Can you still talk to us now that you’re famous? Or do you no longer talk to the minions?’ Luke joked.

‘I might have to trade you in for all the fabulous men who are going to come my way, ha! It was fine, just like a chat really. I was nervous when I first walked in, but after that it was okay.’

‘Good, glad to hear it went well.’

‘What she hasn’t told you is he clearly liked her because he’s already put a picture up on social media and it’s going off. You know the Orangery one with the tree and the decs?’

‘Ahh. Great. I guess I am going to be spending my hours in the evening packing up tiny little gold baubles in the middle of Summer, then,’ Luke said, chuckling.

‘Me too. I’ll have to do all the parcel stamping like at Christmas,’ Maggie said from the herbs, and they all turned around and looked at her and started laughing.

Chapter 14

‘Will we see any fish?’ Maggie asked excitedly, dancing along Mermaid Lane with Juliette and Luke.

‘We might do, but remember we are just going to have another look at the boat today. We’re not going out on it,’ Luke replied.

‘There aren’t any fish in the water there?’

‘Not a lot of fish around the jetty, no.’

‘Why not?’ Maggie asked.

‘Because they like to be out in the open water not around the boats,’ Luke answered.

Maggie listened intently as Luke patiently told her all sorts of things they might see in the water around the boat.

‘So, the fish don’t like to swim around near the boats too much?’ Maggie reiterated.

‘Not usually, but sometimes they may do. So, hopefully we’ll see some today,’ Juliette replied as all three of them strolled