Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye - Jacquelyn Middleton Page 0,136
basically one large room with two small check-in areas, an information desk, a tiny souvenir shop, and a cozy seating area hugging the café’s counter. “It really is. The plane was teeny, too—only thirty seats.” She hugged her flowers and rescued her midsized backpack from slipping off her shoulder.
“We should fly up to Westray,” said Tarquin, extending the handle of Leia’s suitcase. “The plane is an eight-seater, and the airport is a small waiting room and a toilet!”
“So, how many different islands have you been to?”
“Seventeen or so.” Tarquin held Leia’s hand as they walked toward the exit, passing tall glass cases displaying Orkney silver jewelry.
“And there are seventy in total?”
“Yep, but most of them are skerries.” He caught her furrowed brow. “Small rocky islands, completely uninhabitable…unless you’re a puffin.”
“Riley begged me to bring her back some puffin souvenirs.”
“Just wait to till we go shopping in town.” Tarquin swung her hand as they stepped outside. “Puffin-palooza!”
Striding through the small parking lot, a heavy mist dampened Leia’s parka, but not her enthusiasm. Taking everything in, she glanced back at the airport as Tarquin stowed her backpack and luggage in the black Land Rover. “Oh, check that out!” She pointed, her long hair dancing in the blustery Orkney wind. “Viking runes! Above the entrance. What does it say?”
Tarquin closed the tailgate and raced to the passenger side, opening Leia’s door. “Krimsitir, which in English translates to Grimsetter. During World War II, the airport was a Royal Airforce Fighter station known as RAF Grimsetter.”
Leia climbed in the car and gazed at her bouquet. Taming her messy mane, she smiled the entire time, like a little kid embarking on a big adventure.
Someone is thrilled to bits. I hope Mum doesn’t change that. Tarquin hopped behind the steering wheel and shivered, yanking his door closed. “There’s plenty of wartime history here, along with all the Viking and Neolithic stuff.”
“So much to see!” said Leia, clicking her seatbelt. “A week won’t be enough.”
“We’ll pack a lot in. I’ll make sure you see all the Orkney highlights: Skara Brae, Maeshowe, the Ring of Brodgar.”
“Balfour?”
“Yes?” Tarquin started the car’s engine and pulled his seatbelt across his body.
“No, silly.” Leia giggled. “I don’t mean you. I mean the village of Balfour on Shapinsay. Is it true your family owned the entire island at one point?”
“Someone’s been researching on Google.” Tarquin cranked up the heat as the wipers did a waving swoop across the windshield. “Only the village name remains. We don’t even own Balfour Castle anymore.”
“But hello, Balfour Hospital! Your last name is synonymous with the islands. And you’re descended from lairds!”
“Yeah. Balfours have been tied to Orkney for hundreds of years.” Tarquin checked the Land Rover’s mirrors and pulled out of the parking space. “They came from Fife in Scotland originally—”
“—and changed the course of farming on Shapinsay in the mid-1800s! I’ve been doing my homework! So, is that where Rupert’s farm is located?”
“No, he’s in the parish of Stenness on the West Mainland, where we’re headed now, you big swot.” He laughed, taking a right. The two-lane road sliced through a panorama of never-ending farmland dotted with grazing sheep. “Good news, though: we’ve got some free time before you’ll be overrun by Balfours tonight. Fiona’s taking Ava to Poppy’s four-month checkup, and Rupert is meeting with the agricultural society.”
“I love that photo you texted this morning of you and Ava wearing unicorn onesies.”
“The hood makes it, right? With the glittery horn?”
Leia clasped his hand across the center console, giving it a squeeze. “No wonder you’re her favorite uncle.”
“Well, Nick tries, bless him, but he’s never been big on kids, even when he was a sprog himself. Mum says Nico bawled his eyes out when Rupert was born and demanded she send him back! By the time I arrived, he knew Mum loved him most, so I didn’t get it in the neck.”
“Your mum plays favorites?”
“Shamelessly. Nick is—and I quote—‘Kiki’s number-one son’. And not just by birth either. His childhood acting, his preference for city living, his looks…they’re similar in many ways. Farm-loving Rupert, on the other hand, is the oddball, and I’m the troublemaker.”
Leia winced. “That must be hard, feeling second best.”
He shook his head. “Not really. After twenty-seven years, I’m used to it.”
“How’s Ava been with baby Poppy?”
“Really good. She even gave her sister her teddy.”
“That’s love, that is.” Leia’s gaze followed a flock of sheep lumbering along a rock fence. “If Ava is teddy-less, she won’t be for long. I bought her a Paddington Bear.”