The last stack of cash had been counted and Annie placed it into the sack at the side of the desk before getting to her feet and punching in the code to the safe that Terry had left for her. Opening the door, Annie placed the sack inside and locked the safe again. She’d counted almost five grand and that had only been collections she’d made from a fraction of the small female-run businesses in the city. Terry had said that Annie would get a better response from them than he would and he’d been right. Since taking them on, payments had come without question or complaint. The bigger firm’s takings were still to come but Terry and Richie would deal with those.
Annie had never seen that amount of cash before let alone been the one collecting it. Having retrieved payments from just a few establishments, Terry had been impressed with Annie’s ability to get things done. She didn’t ask questions as to why people were so forthcoming about their payments. It didn’t take a genius to work out why they hadn’t made a fuss. Annie was hardened to most things if she didn’t think about the ins and outs.
‘Do you fancy a drive later?’ Terry asked as he opened the safe on the back wall of the office.
‘Where to?’ Annie replied, watching as he typed in the code.
‘How about down Loch Lomond way? We could get Gerry to drive us, take a bottle of champagne and some food?’
Annie’s brow furrowed; Terry wasn’t normally the romantic type but she would go with it. The corner of her mouth lifted into a smile and Terry nodded.
‘Ah, we’re like one mind,’ Annie replied. ‘I was at the supermarket early this morning, picking up some stuff to make us a romantic dinner to celebrate us working together now.’ She smiled and he leaned over for a kiss.
‘Awe, you’re a gem Annie. Okay, excellent. The weather will be glorious down there.’
‘I’ve never been,’ Annie replied.
‘You’ve never been down to Loch Lomond?’ Terry cocked his head to the side.
Annie shook her head. ‘Never really thought about it. No reason to go.’
‘No reason to go?’ Terry repeated, obviously dumbfounded by Annie’s words. ‘Annie, it’s the most peaceful place I can think of. If this job has taught me anything, it’s when the opportunity arises to spend some time in a peaceful environment, take it.’
Annie couldn’t remember what peace felt like. Had she ever experienced it? Possibly before Jack. After Jack, definitely not. Her heart swelled with a sadness she’d thought was beginning to disappear. Clearly it was still there, heavy on her chest.
‘Okay, you twisted my arm,’ Annie said and she saw a smile creep onto Terry’s face. It felt good that she made him smile like that, that he wanted to do things for her that would make her happy. Peace and happiness it seemed were a long way away but Annie would settle for what she had right now, because she knew in time with Terry, things would get better. She just had to hope that he wouldn’t press her on her past.
Annie finished up at the desk and went into the bedroom. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she resisted the urge to look at her phone. She would have to delete the images from her past sooner or later. But right now she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. Deleting them meant that part of her life was gone forever, even though it was her fault things had gone so wrong in the first place.
Her fingers tingled as she placed them on her pocket where the phone was hidden. She took a deep breath and told herself no. That was then. This was now. She couldn’t look at his face. Whether it made her smile or made her cry, Annie knew that looking back at that time in her life would hold her there. The whole reason for being with Terry, working for him and sharing a life with him was to forget what happened. But the urge got the better of her and she took out the phone and glanced down and into the face of Jack. Tears swelled and a sob almost escaped. Guilt, fear, love and loss formed a ball of despair inside her chest and Annie clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.
Terry pulled the car into a parking space outside a grand building in Loch Lomond, stepped out and opened the boot. Annie followed him and offered to carry one of the bags. She took a peek inside and noticed he’d packed food. Nice, she thought.
They walked out of the small carpark and along the edge of the building, overlooking the loch. She noted the name on the sign; Loch Lomond Lodge at the Cameron. It was like something she’d never seen before. The architecture was stunning, but it wasn’t long before she realised that this wasn’t the place Terry was taking her. As they headed away from the lodge, they took a small pathway and headed down towards the water. The sun was still high, the temperature comfortable.
‘Where are you taking me?’ Annie asked.
‘It’s a surprise,’ Terry replied. Annie accepted this; she’d find out soon enough.
After around a five-minute walk, the trees which towered over the path finally cleared, revealing a deep blue sky above. Annie immediately saw the small island which was situated just north west of where they were standing. A wooden jetty extended in front of them and Terry kept walking and that’s when Annie noticed the boat at the end of it.
‘No, seriously Terry. Where are you taking me?’
‘Over there,’ he replied when they reached the boat. ‘Incharden, one of my favourite places in the world.’
Annie regarded the boat and then looked back across to the island. Fear crept into her belly. She hadn’t been close to open water like this since Jack had died. The guilt of not being able to stop it from happening had become too much and she’d attempted to take her own life, slipping under the surface as she lay in the bath one night after cutting herself. ‘Don’t worry, we’ll have lifejackets and Innes here does this trip at least eight times a day,’ Terry said, as if reading her fear. Of course, he’d read her wrong but she was glad of the distraction.
Annie glanced at the man in the boat and smiled weakly and he returned the gesture. Innes seemed older, around his sixties perhaps and looked like a typical Scottish fisherman in his green waist high waterproofs and a skipcap. Terry held out his hand and she grabbed it a little too tightly as he helped her to step into the boat.
‘These are for you,’ Innes said, handing over two lifejackets to Annie and Terry. As much as they were supposed to assure her the trip across the loch would be safe, it made her more nervous. ‘Welcome back Mr Reid.’
‘It’s a pleasure to return, Innes. How’s the missus?’
‘Och she’s fine. Busy getting the place ready for the next flock of tourists, ye know how it is.’
Annie glanced at Innes and then Terry. Of course he knew Innes, Terry appeared to know everyone.
They sat down and the boat wobbled and bobbed in the water. With one hand squeezing Terry’s tighter than normal and the other gripped on the side of the boat, Annie felt her stomach flip as the boat began its journey across to the island.
‘You okay over there?’ Terry asked over the sound of the engine. Innes was in front of them, staring out at the water and appeared incredibly calm.
‘I’ll be fine once we get off,’ Annie replied, hoping that sea sickness wasn’t something she suffered from on top of the anxiety she was feeling. She didn’t know, having never been on a boat before.
The journey took fifteen minutes, but to Annie it felt like an hour. The boat docked at the jetty and as soon as they stepped onto land, all the fear and anxiety left her as she looked back across the water to the mainland.
‘Wow,’ she said under her breath, feeling her fear slowly dissipate.
‘Told you it would be glorious.’
She turned back to Terry and noticed that Innes had already made his way along the jetty towards the large Incharden Hotel. Terry told her that Innes and his wife Audrey owned the island and everything on it and were friends of Terry’s family. Annie didn’t question it.
‘So we’re going into the hotel then?’ Annie asked.
‘No, we’re heading around to the other side of the island. It’s only a mile and a half walk but it’s so secluded and you get some cracking views.’
‘Terry, are we camping?’
Terry laughed. ‘No, just picnicking.’
They walked together to the other end of the island and when they arrived, Annie was blown away by the beauty of the place. A small white sand beach welcomed them, with water so blue she could have mistaken them to be on a private Caribbean holiday resort; with the sun shining down on them and the silent surroundings it was better than perfect. The terror of the boat ride was wiped from Annie’s memory.
A large fleecy blanket had been laid on the sand prior to their arrival, with an ice bucket to the side containing a bottle of champagne. Annie gave a sideways glance at Terry who was smiling widely. Placing the bags down on the blanket, Annie walked towards the water and removed her shoes. The cold Scottish water on her skin felt refreshing, like it was washing away all the terrible things that had happened before meeting Terry.
Staring out at the loch at the smaller island to the east and the rest of the view ahead, Annie realised she could stay here forever. It was like the fresh air and the surrounding water made everything go away, so long as she didn’t have to be in the water she would get through the hard times.
Taking a deep breath, Annie turned back to the picnic spot Terry had organised prior to arrival and stopped when she realised what she was looking at.
‘What are you doing?’ she asked, stunned and now beginning to shake. ‘Why are you down there?’
Terry didn’t reply, instead he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a ring. Annie’s eyes widened at the sight of how beautiful it was, how the stunning surroundings matched the moment and how much her life was changing by the day.
‘Annie Wicks, I have never been more stunned or overwhelmed by a woman in my life and by the way you have made me feel,’ Terry said as Annie began walking towards him.
Stopping in front of Terry, who hadn’t moved, Annie stood above him and smiled widely as he asked her to marry him. A smile could mask a thousand dark thoughts and memories and up until now, Annie had been able to hold herself together.
Tears spilled over and her heart and stomach ached with guilt and happiness all at once. But she couldn’t get the word out. Instead, she nodded and Terry placed the ring on her finger.
Marrying Terry would be a life changing thing for Annie and exactly the thing she’d needed. He’d come along at the right time, helped her to move on with her life. She loved that he was able to give her what she needed and in time she was sure her feelings for him would grow. But Jack would never leave her alone. He would always be there in the back of her mind because if it wasn’t for her, he would still be alive.