Wreckers Island (romantic suspense) (9 page)

‘I know,’ said Dan. ‘And what I could see,
facing into the pub, is the number of people who looked over when she held
those coins up. I can’t believe she did that. I hope no-one overheard us
talking about where the treasure is located.’

‘There’s only one way to it,’ pointed out
Emma, ‘via the outbuilding on the island, and that’s safely locked up.’

‘Yes,’ said Dan, ‘and hopefully we’re safe
to assume the other way is safely blocked up.’

‘I’m sure it is. You know, I am so loving
today and tonight, even though Louise is being a pain,’ said Emma, looking
warmly into Dan’s eyes. ‘I’m loving sitting here and enjoying this beer knowing
that I don’t need to worry about how much it’s cost. I’ve never been able to do
that before. It’s thanks to you. And thank you for being so generous earlier, about
sharing the money with me, that means a lot.’

‘Louise was generous too,’ said Dan. ‘Whatever
her faults, she’s a kind soul.’

‘That’s what I appreciate about you, you
know,’ replied Emma, ‘the kindness of your soul and the fact that your feelings
for me seem so genuine. You have been such a hero today, why I could almost
kiss you.’

Dan’s stomach fluttered.

‘Emma, don’t tease me when you know I have
strong feelings for you and that I would love to kiss you, given the chance.’

‘Even more than finding a chest brimming
with treasure?’ Emma smirked winsomely at him and narrowed her eyes in mock
scrutiny.

‘Come on, a single kiss hardly equates to a
box of treasure,’ said Dan, a mischievous look in his eyes. ‘I would gladly swap
it in exchange for you as my full-time girlfriend.’

‘Aah, aren’t you the romantic! No man has
ever offered to purchase me with the contents of an old crate before,’ teased
Emma as Dan spluttered mirthfully on his beer. ‘Anyway, when you’ve finished coughing
I will allow you to kiss me, if you wish. Don’t read too much into it, mind.’

Dan glanced towards the bar. Louise and John
seemed deep in conversation. Hesitantly, he took Emma’s hands into his and
pushed his lips gently against hers, worried that at any moment, she might
recoil as she had that time in the lighthouse kitchen.

She made no sign of wishing to resist. Dan leant
over to bring himself closer. It was tricky with the table in the way. He
opened his lips and as he did so, hers opened too and they embraced, tenderly
yet passionately. Emma wrapped her arms tightly around him.

‘You have the most wonderful blue eyes, do
you know that?’ Dan whispered into her ear.

‘You can’t see them properly in here, you
flatterer,’ she whispered back.

‘And you look incredibly sexy under this
lantern light.’

With the gentlest of touches, Dan’s graceful
fingers caressed Emma’s cheeks down to the nape of her neck. Her skin was
gloriously soft. Often, in bed at night, Dan dreamt of stroking her face and
kissing her on the lips and running his fingers through her blonde tresses. It
was truly hard to believe that such a wonderful fantasy had now come true and
on such a remarkable day. It was, without doubt the best of his life so far.

‘I think I am falling for you, Dan,’ said
Emma, softly. ‘Being with you tonight in this spooky, atmospheric pub feels perfect.
I love the way you hold me, so gentle and tender. I can sense the love you have
for me and it’s so nice. I have strong feelings for you too, you know, I was just
slow to realise it. I had a crush on John and me and him, we’re good chums but
we don’t have what you and me have got.’

Dan was strangely tongue-tied, fearing he
might say something stupid and thereby spoil an impeccably delightful moment.
He yearned to clarify whether he could consider Emma his girlfriend but
resisted the temptation.

‘I wonder where John and Louise have got
to,’ he eventually said, ‘although it’s been nice to have a while alone
together.’

‘I agree. No doubt they are propping up the
bar, or they’ve bumped into some long-lost local friend of Louise’s or
something,’ said Emma. ‘After all she must know a few people around these
parts.

‘By the way, Dan,’ added Emma. ‘Don’t let’s
mention anything about you and me for now, ok? Let’s keep it to ourselves.’

The hint of a shadow crossed Dan’s face and
Emma instantly regretted needlessly confusing him. She simply wasn’t ready to
declare that they were a couple, fearing it would unbalance what was supposed
to be a holiday of four friends. John and Louise would not want to feel like
gooseberries.

‘It’s fine,’ said Dan graciously. ‘We’ve had
a romantic evening but it doesn’t mean we’re together. Like you said earlier, I
shouldn’t read anything into it.’

Before Emma had a chance to clarify, John
and Louise came back.

‘Sorry we were so long,’ said John,
apologetically, as they took their seats, each carrying two pints apiece. ‘We
were ambushed at one point by a couple of the locals, chatting away to us and
asking if we were enjoying our holiday. They were fascinated about our stay in
the lighthouse.’

‘I hope you didn’t tell them anything about
our discovery,’ said Dan, trying hard not to give away his frustration that his
one-to-one with Emma had been curtailed.

‘No, don’t worry about that, we didn’t say a
thing, and in any case, no-one has a clue about getting into that tunnel from
the island,’ said Louise, ‘if they did, you can bet your life they would have
looted that treasure sometime in the last 230 years. I’m sure it will be safe for
another few hours.’

Not for the first time, Dan found himself
wincing at Louise. He felt like giving her a good, sharp kick under the table.
That was another reckless remark which cried out to be overheard. Of course the
treasure was safe while no-one knew about it, perhaps it was just waiting 230
years for someone foolish enough to blurt out its secret down the local tavern.

Was it Dan’s imagination, or did he catch
the eye of a local man just then, propping up the wall the other side of the bar?
Did he have a funny glint in that eye, or was it the way the lantern light illuminated
his round, unattractive, unshaven face?

Dan had enjoyed their jubilant outing ashore
but was beginning to ache for the comforting isolation of the lighthouse, and
the simple pleasures of beers around the kitchen table or a-sprawl across the
lounge sofa. Inside those thick round walls, encircled by the sea, they could
jump for joy, squawk like pirates’ parrots, flourish gold coins, and swagger
around talking in loud voices about buried treasure with impunity. Only the
gulls, cormorants and possibly a passing seal would overhear.

But it was a different matter in a pub like
this where tales of yesteryear lived on, bubbling up from the gene pool of
old-time baddies reborn as modern-day chancers, opportunists and layabouts. For
the four of them to blabber on about their find like over-excited school children
was plain foolish.

Dan was tempted to suggest they get off but
they could hardly leave with a food order on the way. Nothing could be done
save hope that Louise would start to see sense. It was difficult to rein her in
– they were after all, her guests. As for John, he seemed oblivious, as if in
some sort of dreamy trance.

Their meals looked too good to waste when
they finally arrived, and hopefully that hearty great pie in front of Louise
would impede her ability to talk for at least a few minutes. Dan had ordered
scampi and was pleased to find that it was freshly cooked.

‘This is delicious,’ he told the others, seeking
to steer the conversation towards culinary matters. ‘Home-made with their own tartare
sauce served in a bowl rather than a couple of blue sachets.’

‘Mmm, it does look good Dan, I might pinch
one of your little scampi pieces if you’re not careful,’ said Emma, giving him
a wink.

‘Ah ha me hearties, pieces of scampi, pieces
of scampi,’ squawked Louise loudly.

I wish you were a parrot, groaned Dan
inwardly, you’d be less trouble.

But the conversation was about to take a new
and different turn which left both treasure and food forgotten about, temporarily.

‘Erm everyone,’ said John, glancing at
Louise. ‘Erm, Louise and I have got something to announce.’

Dan and Emma looked up from their plates in
surprise.

‘This is in part, why we took so long at the
bar getting the drinks,’ continued John, awkwardly, as if about to embark on a
long speech.

Louise butted in. ‘It’s just that, while
we’ve been here we’ve been feeling a growing connection with each other,’ she
said, her bright green eyes looking earnestly at Emma and Dan. ‘I know we’re
all friends together here and we didn’t exactly want this to happen in case it
caused any friction but we both feel so right together.’

For a fleeting moment Emma looked vexed and upset.
She glanced regretfully at John as if he were a departing train with someone
special on board. John, unaware of her interest in him, failed to notice,
although Dan and Louise both did.

Then Emma’s eyes met Dan’s across the table,
filled with love and understanding and her pointless crush on John was finally
swept aside. Her body tingled with the affection she now felt for Dan, with his
bookish good looks and vulnerable air. If John and Louise were now together,
what was the harm in being open about her and Dan? It would mean they were two
couples on holiday together and would restore the balance.

‘I’m happy for you both,’ said Emma,
eventually. ‘In fact, Dan and I have some news to share too, don’t we Dan?’

‘Erm yes, that’s right,’ he said, slightly
hesitantly.

‘Well,’ said Emma, ‘while you were at the
bar, having your moment together, Dan and I had a kiss and a cuddle and I
think, I hope, I’m right in saying that we are now a couple, too. I was nervous
about telling you in case you felt strange about us going out together while we
were on holiday. But since you are both a couple now, it seems the right thing
to let you know about us.’

‘Wow, I’ll be honest I didn’t exactly see
that coming,’ said Louise, after a short pause. ‘But I think it’s great news.
What a simply wonderful 24 hours this is proving to be. I’m pleased for you, we
both are, aren’t we John?’

John nodded and gave Dan’s shoulder a
friendly punch. Dan slipped his hand under the table to find Emma’s and squeezed
her fingers.

‘You are perfect for each other,’ said John.
‘I’m so happy for you.’

‘Hurrah!’ said Louise, loudly. ‘You know
what’s even more perfect? Now we’ve coupled up, I can move into John’s bedroom
and Dan and his many books can move in with Emma.’

‘Erm yes, fine, if that’s all right with you
both,’ said John, glancing at Dan and Emma, who both exchanged slightly worried
glances.

Emma hadn’t been expecting to share a bed
with Dan so soon and Dan knew that perfectly well.

‘Don’t worry,’ he said, briskly. ‘I’ll sleep
on the lounge floor.’

‘You’ll do no such thing,’ said Emma,
determinedly. ‘Of course you can move into my bedroom.’

A slow smile crossed John’s face as he
turned to Dan. ‘Can you believe we’ve found a fortune in hidden gold and got
the girl of our dreams
on the same day
?’

Dan shook his head and grinned but said
nothing. For him, it was like everything was going too well and the ensuing merriment
was almost over-kill – like too much rich food in one go. The sudden change in
sleeping arrangements made him feel uncomfortable. Certainly, he had no wish to
embarrass Emma by seeking to take advantage, and they needed a good night’s
sleep with a big task ahead of them the following day. It was important they kept
their wits about them. Getting hammered was not a great idea.

The pub was filling up, becoming livelier
and noisier.

‘Let’s get some more drinks in before it
gets any more packed,’ said John, with a smile and a pat of his pockets. It
wasn’t his round but he was feeling thrilled and ecstatic rolled into one. And
the ice-cold lager in the Smugglers Tavern was exceptionally good.

‘Yep, one for the tunnel and all who sail in
her,’ declared Louise, loudly. She was not getting any more discreet, the
drunker and happier she got.

Emma, before she had any more beer, decided that
a trip to the ladies’ would be wise. Louise joined her. As they walked past the
bar, one of the locals – a rough, unsavoury-looking chap – gave them a knowing,
gap-toothed grin. Louise didn’t notice but Emma did. As they came out a few
minutes later, he accosted them.

‘That better ladies? That be a lot of lager
you’ve just emptied out of your bladders I’ll be bound. Must feel more
comfortable, especially in those tight jeans, hey missy?’ he said to Louise. As
she went by, he reached out and grabbed her backside.

Louise turned and glared at him.

‘I wouldn’t mind getting my teeth into those
fair buttocks of yours,’ he growled, with a leering smile.

‘It’s a pity you’ve hardly got any left
then, isn’t it?’ retorted Louise, pleased with her put-down.

The seedy-looking man roared with laughter.
‘I’ve still got one of these,’ he said, pointing at his groin and pushing it at
her.

As Louise walked away, the man said with a
wink, ‘I reckon we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other before long.’

Emma stared at him in disgust. Nasty little
creep!, she thought. Louise shrugged it off. To her, it was just another sad
bloke who fancied her.

‘Right, a final one for the road – or
rather, the voyage,’ slurred Louise, half an hour later, with the time pushing
11pm.

‘Not for me thanks, I’ve had enough, to be
honest I think we all have,’ said Dan. ‘Remember we’ve got to be in a fit state
to navigate the boat.’

Emma also shook her head, she couldn’t keep
up with Louise’s drinking and didn’t particularly want to try.

Eventually, after Dan and Emma had managed to
persuade Louise and John not to drink the pub dry, the four of them staggered
to the jetty and clambered inside Louise’s boat. It was nearly dark, with a
streak of blue and grey in the western skies. It was as well Louise was at the
helm of a boat not a car because she would certainly have failed a breathalyser
test.