When Love Knocks Twice (A Contemporary Love Story) Read online

  “ Oh,” she sighed. “You were always so bloody sensible.”

  “ Wise,” grinned Tom, correcting her. “The word is wise.”

  He took her hand as they crossed the road and started up the vague path leading to the stream. Ahead of them the two highest forbidding Cuillin peaks of Sgurr A'Ghreadaidh & Sgurr Alasdair looked relatively benign in the sunshine, but the cloud around their summit was a reminder of how quickly things could change. The path very shortly wound through the heather and arrived at the lower reaches of the stream, at that point really a river.

  A variety of paths now meandered up the hill and they decided, after consulting the map, to stay as close to the river as possible. After climbing for half a mile they caught a glimpse of why the river was such an attraction. They found crystal clear waterfalls and copper blue deep pools of water, reminiscent of tropical lagoons. Cascades emptied themselves, to be refilled from above.

  Gail was enchanted, and they sat for many minutes, enjoying the sound of rushing water and the sight of the azure blue pools.

  “ It's beautiful here,” she declared.

  “ It is in this weather I guess,” agreed Tom. “But let the cloud close in and it would quickly become the most dismal place.”

  Gail nudged him with her elbow. “Don't spoil it, I'm having such fun. All this fresh air and sunshine is doing me so much good, I can feel cares rolling off me.”

  “ I'm glad you came,” confessed Tom.

  “ Mmm. Me too,” agreed Gail, stretching her head backwards so that her face caught the sun.

  They continued upstream, marvelling at each pool and cascade. The going became rougher and soon they were scrambling over rocks to get a better view, Tom offering his hand to help Gail balance, occasionally using his hands round her waist to help lift her up to another level.

  As they reached the topmost pool, a good two miles from the car park they stood to look back and admire the view. It seemed most natural for Tom to put an arm around her shoulder, whilst she responding with an arm around his waist.

  It was only when they turned to take one last look up at the Cuillin peaks that they realised the weather was closing in quickly. Great dark clouds were rolling off the summits, which were quickly shrouded in rain. Tom and Gail quickly started down the hill, stepping lightly from boulder to boulder and later striding down the path. The temperature was dropping rapidly as the sun disappeared and the wind picked up, in advance of the squall approaching off the mountains.

  They could start to feel the odd drop of rain on the back of their necks as they reached the car park.

  And as they returned to the car park they became aware of how thirsty they had become, having not taken any water with them.

  “ The stall has some bottled spring water,” suggested Tom, and so they walked briskly over to buy some, noticing that it was advertised as coming from the very spring they walked up.

  “ Are you sure there are no dead sheep upstream?” checked Gail, half joking, half serious.

  The stall holder, overhearing her question replied.

  “ It's all right, you don't need to worry yourself. I can guarantee that there are no dead sheep in the spring, for I removed the last one myself four days ago.”

  The twinkle in his eye overcame Gail's embarrassment, and they could all laugh.

  They hurried over to the car and scrambled inside as the heavens opened and the torrential rain blotted out the landscape in front of them.

  “ Timing is everything,” declared Tom, as they clinked bottles. “Cheers.”

  The rain cleared as they made their way home in the car, carefully negotiating flooding on the roads. By the time they reached the cottage the sun was back out with a vengeance as the temperature climbed again. They ate at an Italian restaurant and then walked along the shoreline, listening to the seagulls cry, and watching a sea eagle soar along the coast.

  As they went to bed the temperature was still high, and the humidity had increased due to the rain. They didn't bother with bed-clothes at all but lay naked on the bed. Tom was amazed at the velvety softness of Gail's skin and couldn't resist running his fingers over her body, something she didn't object to, as it was giving her the same rush that she last remembered as a newly married, back in her twenties. She responded by running her hands over his lean torso and then pulling him towards her as their lips met in an increasing hunger for intimacy.

  “ You felt guilty about this morning,” whispered Tom.

  Gail made eye contact. “I have no idea why. It all seems natural.”

  “ Are you still open to compliments?”

  “ Mmm,” she murmured.

  And so he paid her the greatest compliment she could remember for a long time, which left both of them sweaty and spent, and badly in need of a shower, which fortunately was big enough to take two.

  Thursday

  They woke in the morning to a classic Scottish summer's day, that is weather that can't make up its mind, alternating between sunshine and showers.

  They breakfasted on scrambled eggs on toast, with grilled bacon garnish, followed by more toast and marmalade, while reading yesterday's paper. Occasionally Gail would turn a page before Tom had finished reading, leading to a battle for domination. When there was a danger of the paper being shredded they called a cease fire and debated what to do with the day.

  Tom was up for a walk. Gail was in two minds.

  “ Look,” said Tom,pointing. “It's clearing. There's blue sky.”

  “ And beyond it more cloud,” pointed out eagle-eyed Gail.

  “ Wimp,” accused Tom.

  Finally Gail conceded, and they went. A short walk, claimed Tom, up onto the ridge, along the top for a mile and then back via a path on the foreshore.

  They started in sunshine, climbing up the steep ascent at the end of the ridge, stopping frequently to catch breath and admire the view. By the time they reached the top, the end of the sunshine was in sight.

  “ You see that grey stuff?” suggested Gail.

  “ Yes.”

  “ That's cloud.”

  “ Agreed.”

  “ You see that grey stuff between the cloud and the ground?”

  “ I can't see the ground.”

  “ That's because it is hidden behind the grey scything rain that's falling,” concluded Gail. “We are going to get very wet.”

  “ It's not approaching that quickly,” insisted Tom.

  Gail gave him a look of general disbelief and they hurried on.

  By the time they reached the end of the ridge the sun had gone and the cloud was around them. Ten minutes later they were descending across the face of the ridge when the rain started, and then the squall moved in, horizontal rain that soaked through any layer of clothing. Within another ten minutes their shoes were squelching, hair plastered to their heads, trousers stuck to their legs.

  Gail tried to catch Tom's eye in an 'I told you so' sort of way but Tom's eyes were resolutely forward, in the guise of British Indomitable Explorer. The rain eased to a torrential downpour as they reached the lower levels, encountering boggy ground where pools of water were already forming around them. They dodged from tussock to tussock, trying to avoid the soft ground, until Tom missed his footing and went into a mud filled hole up to his knee. As he floundered around trying to regain his balance and pull himself out, Gail observed his dilemma with increasing mirth, finally bursting out laughing.

  Justice was served however, as laughing out loud, Gail overbalanced and fell onto her knees in a shallow pool of green slimy water. Tom, pulling his leg out of the hole, grinned widely as he offered her a hand up. Without any further words spoken, they trudged uncomfortably the final mile against the wind, with the rain in their faces, as they finally picked up the pace with the car coming into sight.

  They dived into the insanely welcome shelter of the car, soaked to the skin, no piece of clothing escaping the water. Tom started the engine quickly to try and get some heat going as the windows steamed up.<
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  They stopped and looked at each other, a pair of completely drowned rats.

  “ Timing is everything,” Gail reminded him, and as they locked gaze they both burst out laughing simultaneously at the ludicrous nature of their situation.

  That evening the rain continued unceasingly and they hurried through the rain back from the restaurant. Despite it still being too warm to light the log fire, they did it anyway, huddling around it for psychological warmth. With the overcast sky, darkness came early, and they had to turn on some lamps. Tom flipped through some of the CDs that had been left in the cottage, either by the owners, or by forgetful holidaymakers. He put on a CD that turned out to be slow, soft, dance music. He held out a hand to Gail.

  “ Dance with me,” he invited.

  “ What, with both my left feet?” joked Gail.

  “ Just dance,” insisted Tom.

  So she got onto her feet and wound her hands behind his neck. He put arms around her waist and they slowly shuffled around the limited floor space. Gail let her head fall onto Tom's shoulder, snuggling into the curve of his throat. After a while Tom broke the silence.

  “ Do you remember the last school dance?”

  “ School dances were horrible. What about the last dance?”

  “ You asked me to dance the last waltz with you.”

  Gail lifted her head, eyebrows deep in thought. “Yes!” she exclaimed. “I remember that. No-one had asked me to dance. I didn't want to be a wallflower, but then I saw you were on your own. I thought I could trust you not to take the mickey.”

  “ And did I behave?”

  “ I don't recall you trampling all over my feet if that's what you mean. I'm amazed that you remember.”

  “ I felt on top of the world when you asked me,” admitted Tom.

  “ Good. I'm glad. I remember thinking that I chose well,” concluded Gail, and let her head fall back onto his shoulder.

  They lost track of time, and the CD was a long one, so they had plenty of time to enjoy.

  Friday

  The dawn arrived inconclusively, a grey blanket stretching to the horizon. The made toast and ate it in bed, being very careful with the crumbs. They spent the morning entwined in the bed, reading magazines and drinking coffee, no mean feat in itself.

  They spent the afternoon curled up on the settee, heads buried in books for the first time that week, whilst the drizzle outside reduced the countryside to a dismal uniform grey. Occasionally Tom would look up and watch the dark head beside him for a few moments, a smile playing on his lips. At one point Gail looked up, noticing his gaze, which she might have construed as fondness.

  “ What?” she inquired.

  “ Nothing,” replied Tom carelessly.

  “ Couldn't have been nothing. You were watching me. What were you thinking?”

  “ I was thinking that it's a shame that our last afternoon is a wet one,” lied Tom.

  “ I'm not going out in that rain, if that's what you're thinking.”

  “ Didn't cross my mind.”

  Gail gave him a curious look, muttered something along the lines of 'madness' or 'senility' and went back to her book.

  By the time they went out for a meal the rain had stopped, blue sky appearing in the distance. By the time they had finished their meal the sun was out, low in the sky, bathing the countryside in a warm orange glow.

  “ What shall we do?” quizzed Gail. “It would seem a shame to stay in and miss the only sunshine of the day.”

  “ We haven't been around the north of the island,” suggested Tom.

  “ Worth seeing?”

  “ Certainly.”

  “ Let's do it then.”

  They set out, taking their time, as with so little traffic on the single-track road, they could stop at will to admire the scenery.

  “ Look!” exclaimed Gail, pointing out to the east.

  Tom stopped the car and let his gaze follow her finger. The mountains of the mainland out to the east, across the water, had turned bright orange in the glow of the setting sun.

  “ It's beautiful,” enthused Gail.

  “ You're not wrong.”

  They watched it for five or ten minutes as the orange cast changed tone with the angle of the sun, before they moved on past old abandoned crofts and settlements, briefly imagining how harsh life must have been.

  They rounded the northern tip of the island to be met with a view of the Outer Hebrides on the horizon, silhouetted against the back illumination of the reddening, setting sun.

  They were a magnificent spectacle, like prehistoric monsters lying asleep in the water. Tom pointed out Lewis and Harris, followed by North and South Uist, and just on the edge of their sight, Barra.

  They were mesmerised by the sight, so far away and yet somehow close enough to touch. As they watched, the sun started to dip behind North Uist and the island shadows deepened.

  As they continued to gaze out of the car windscreen Gail spoke up.

  “ So. Where do we go from here?”

  “ We continue down the coast to Uig and then take the overland road back to the cottage,” replied Tom, pointing at the map on his lap.

  Gail gave him an old fashioned look. “No Tom. I mean where do we go from here.”

  “ Oh. You mean, as in us. Tomorrow,” asked Tom.

  Gail nodded. “And beyond.”

  Tom was quiet for a few moments while he tried to get his thoughts in order.

  “ Well?” persisted Gail.

  “ It's complicated, isn't it?”

  “ I think it's only as complicated as we want to make it,” countered Gail.

  “ I've had a great week,” Tom confessed. “I've enjoyed every minute, and I'm sure it wouldn't have been nearly so enjoyable if you hadn't been here. I thank God that I bumped into you in the church.” He paused. “How about you?”

  “ I think,” started Gail, “I feel that this week has given me a new lease of life.”

  “ We're carefully avoiding the question aren't we?” suggested Tom.

  “ Are we?”

  “ I would like to see a lot more of you,” admitted Tom.

  Gail laughed. “I think you've seen all of me this week.”

  “ But?”

  “ But nothing. I also would like to see a lot more of you. But as you say, it's complicated.”

  “ By the fact that we, and our families, live five hundred miles apart you mean?”

  Gail nodded.

  “ It doesn't need to stop us,” continued Tom.

  “ But it will. It's inevitable.”

  “ So. What are you going to for the rest of your life?” probed Tom. “Babysitter on-call, and arranging the church flowers once a month?”

  “ No. But my family is important to me. As yours is to you.”

  “ So it's a question of what contributes to our happiness, isn't it?” Tom reached out and wiped away a tear from her cheek with his thumb.

  “ Hell,” exclaimed Gail. “You spend most of your life bringing up your family to be independent, and once they are, you find you're still tied to them.”

  “ The parenting conundrum,” suggested Tom.

  “ Oh God, I wish I knew what to do for the best,” exclaimed Gail. “One part of me wants to turn my life upside down, move in with you, marry you or whatever. Start the next chapter of my life without the baggage from the past. The other part doesn't want to give up what I do treasure.”

  Tom, stunned by her outburst, was completely speechless.

  Gail turned to look at him. “There, you see. I've shocked you, and I suppose that was the part of me that wanted to come up here with you. The part that wants to kick over the old traces and move on, and to hell with what other people think.”

  “ If only life were that simple,” conceded Tom.

  “ I don't want this week to stop,” declared Gail. “That's the bottom line I think. It's got me out of the rut that I don't want to sink back into.”

  “ And I've been the bonus?” sugges
ted Tom.

  “ You silly man,” accused Gail. “You are the reason. The holiday is the bonus.”

  “ So, where do we go from here?” asked Tom.

  “ Hey, that's my line. Find your own difficult question to ask.”

  “ Well, we have to leave Skye that's for sure.”

  “ Shame,” protested Gail. “ But you will stay with me on your way south, won't you?”

  “ Yes, I'll break the journey at your place. That is, if you don't mind,” agreed Tom.

  “ Of course I don't mind. I insist.”

  By this point they were sitting in what passed for darkness at that time of year. Tom started the car and they moved off down the coast, headlights picking out the sheep grazing on the roadside verges.

  As they eventually pulled up outside the cottage, Tom killed the engine but neither of them made an immediate move to get out of the car, as if some train of words or deeds might be broken by such an action.

  “ You know,” started Tom, hesitantly . “I love having you around and I think I will miss you chronically when you're not there. Come to that I think I don't want to miss you at all.”

  “ I know how you feel. Come on. Today is today, let tomorrow take care of itself.”

  That night in bed, as they lay with half-packed suitcases around them, they hugged more tightly to each other, as if increasing the intensity would somehow combat the threat of impending loneliness.

  Saturday

  The dawn was masked in grey, the mountain peaks occluded by cloud, and there was rain in the air. They made an early start to packing up, which virtually meant throwing in their night things. Breakfast was a bizarre mixture of odds and sods, clearing out the fridge of left-overs. By seven thirty they were ready to pack the car, and yet reluctant to make a start. Gail took photographs of the inside of the cottage with her mobile phone, careful to avoid getting the suitcases in shot.

  “ I want something to remember it by,” she declared, in answer to Tom's raised eyebrows.