Poppy and Zoey were up bright and early on the big day. Her parents arrived on the first ferry, followed by Fen, and then there was mayhem. Zoey dropped a bottle of wine on the tiles and it had to be mopped up and Poppy couldn’t find the notes she’d prepared for her speech and written on the back of an envelope and had to jot down the bullet points from memory.
Her parents and Fen seemed to have made enough nibbles and cakes to feed an army and were laying it all out on tables in the work area. But Poppy’s mind wasn’t on the food.
Jake’s photographs were hidden behind a portable presentation screen used to show slide evenings at the local community hall. After he’d left the previous evening, she and Zoey had gone to the pub, but Poppy didn’t feel able to share the intimate details of her conversation with Jake. She wished he hadn’t even spoken to her about the kiss … She’d rather they’d never mentioned it again, and as for saying she wasn’t ready to start a new relationship so soon, she’d been angry and hurt initially, but then thought perhaps he had a point. And even if she was ready, he clearly wasn’t. She definitely didn’t need a guy around her who didn’t know what he wanted, no matter how much she fancied him.
Can you trust me? His words rang in her ears.
Yes – and not quite – she thought, looking at the blank screen, wondering what lay behind it and how they’d both feel by the end of today.
‘So, please raise your glasses to Poppy, our lovely daughter and the proud new proprietor of the Starfish Studio.’
Poppy blushed as her dad lifted his glass into the air to loud cheers that echoed off the walls of the studio. There was clapping and a resounding cry of ‘To Poppy!’ then everyone cheered … Almost everyone, because she spotted Minty at the back, limply raising her glass about a centimetre and miming applause with one hand. She didn’t care. Today was going even better than her wildest dreams. Just about everyone she’d ever met on Scilly – and many who she hadn’t – had dropped by to wish her well at some point since the studio had opened for business at eleven a.m. With her family and best friend by her side, she couldn’t have asked for anything more.
She was sure they were breaking some kind of overcrowding rule and had no idea how none of the pieces had been damaged yet, with so many excited people milling around and necking Prosecco, but so far everything was going well. Fen, Maisie, Patrick, Hugo, Adam, Jess, Kelly, Ben and Lisa from the kiosk – the list of islanders went on and on, their ranks swollen by curious visitors and many of the artists whose work she was showing. Even Leo was keeping a watchful eye from halfway up the spiral staircase and had been on his best behaviour. The signs of his last escapade had now well and truly disappeared.
Jake was there too, of course, standing quietly at the end of the studio, with an encouraging smile on his face.
‘Congratulations,’ he mouthed, then joined in with the whistles and cheering. His eyes were bright and expressive; he looked happy – not to mention heart-stoppingly gorgeous in a white casual shirt worn loose over charcoal jeans. His black hair was tousled because he didn’t care how he looked and had no awareness that, actually, he was so sexy, she was having trouble framing her words. It was a shame he’d backed off from her just as things were getting promising.
Oh, shit, this was not what she wanted when she was about to give her big speech on the most important day of her life.
Faces looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to speak. She’d made speeches before in presentations and press conferences, but this was different. While she’d cared about doing a good job, today was about her dreams. It was personal in a way that no job had ever been.
She tore her eyes from his before replying to the toast.
‘Well, thank you, Dad, for embarrassing me horribly,’ she began.
Everyone laughed.
‘And thank you so much, everyone, for coming, and to everyone who’s helped me get the Starfish open – twice in fact.’
More laughter from those who knew she was referring to the flood.
‘Some of you know that it was a massive leap of faith to come out here to the middle of nowhere…’ she smiled and many nodded in agreement ‘… to this stunning and amazing place in the middle of nowhere. Some of you know that I never intended to come here on my own, but I’m so glad I have.’
She fought against the scratchy itch at the back of her eyes and the thick lump in her throat.
‘The support and kindness I’ve been shown – even though I was a newcomer with a funny accent …’
More laughter.
‘… has been incredible. So, thank you and especially to Fen and Jake. But the Starfish isn’t about me at all. It’s about all the fantastic artists and makers who have agreed to put their faith in the studio and share their work.’
Minty was positively puffing up at the rear of the studio until Kay Baverstock, keeping as far away from her rival as possible, shouted, ‘Hear, hear!’
After more applause for the artists, Poppy continued. ‘And finally, I raise my glass to the most important artist of all. One who sadly can’t be here today but who is here in spirit and will hopefully be back in person very soon. To the founder and the soul of the Starfish Studio.’ She lifted her glass high. ‘To Archie Pendower!’
After the applause died down and everyone had had another glug of Prosecco, Poppy spoke again. She caught Jake’s eye and noticed him making his way towards the front of the crowd.
‘On that note, I’m also very happy to announce some more exciting news. Most of you will know Jake Pendower, Archie’s grandson, who is a renowned natural history photographer. Or so it says on his website,’ she added.
Jake gasped amid the gales of laughter, but he was smiling too, now standing near the front of the guests.
‘Seriously, I’m delighted to reveal that Jake has kindly offered to display some of his work in the Starfish. Not only that, but the photos you are about to see are brand-new shots that are exclusive to the gallery. So new, in fact,’ said Poppy, focusing on Jake’s face, ‘that even I haven’t seen them yet.’
There were ‘ohms’ and ‘ahs’ from the crowd, and Poppy couldn’t resist a glance at Minty. Her lips were pursed as if, as Poppy’s mum might say, she’d swallowed a bottle of vinegar. Poppy moved next to the screen that had been covering the wall near to the staircase.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’m pleased to hand you over to Jake Pendower.’
Jake took over while Poppy took a few quiet, calming breaths.
‘Thanks, Poppy. I’m honoured to be able to show my photographs in my grandfather’s studio,’ he began in a steady voice. ‘I only wish he could be here to see them, but he is on the mend and I hope he’ll be back soon. Probably to give me his very honest opinion.’
‘Oh, he will,’ said Fen.
Jake smiled at her. ‘Some of you will know that I haven’t been back to St Piran’s for a while …’
There were sympathetic murmurs from locals and a few puzzled expressions from strangers, but Jake went on calmly.
‘These isles hold many memories for me. I grew up here as a boy and spent many happy days exploring with my parents and my grandpa. Coming back here and seeing the studio being given a fresh lease of life by Poppy has inspired me to revisit some of those places and look at them through fresh eyes myself.’
His words were simple, but knowing what the island and its memories meant to him gave an intensity to his speech that you could almost feel. Everyone who knew him was rapt and Poppy saw Fen wipe away a tear. She was almost trembling herself, wondering what the photos would show.
Jake wheeled the screen away from the wall. ‘So, without further ado,’ he said. ‘Here they are.’