‘A little bit of everything – they came with Bette when I got her. History is what those are,’ replied Roman, starting the engine. He looked over his shoulder to check the road was clear. ‘Oh, and we don’t believe in mod cons, do we Bette? Which means we have no air con and the heaters play up too, which means she’s not so great in summer and not so great in winter.’

‘So you’re telling me, Bette is not so great.’

‘Shh, she’ll hear you.’

Ella threw back her head and laughed as Roman kangarooed Bette into the middle of the road.

‘And sometimes, Bette does exactly what she wants.’

‘It may be time to trade Bette in for a newer model,’ suggested Ella, grinning and holding on to her seat until Bette had calmed herself down. ‘I’m thinking it would have been safer to take the bus.’

‘We’ve been on so many adventures together, and I really can’t bear to part with her. Everyone should have a Bette in their life.’ Roman clunked the gears as he made his way over the track at the bottom of Love Heart Lane, then headed towards the bridge that took them over into Glensheil.

Feeling relaxed and at ease in Roman’s company, Ella sat back and watched Heartcross whiz by through the window. He pointed to the rowing boats that were bobbing about on the river and Ella spotted Flynn Carter’s water taxi in the distance. ‘Who drives the boat when you’re not there?’

‘Would you believe Wilbur! He loves it. However, he refuses to wear the sailor suit! I don’t know what the problem is. I love a good uniform – I think I pull it off well,’ he joked. ‘And it also saves me thinking about what I need to wear to work.’

‘Most women like a man in a uniform,’ agreed Ella, with a glint in her eye, before her thoughts immediately turned to Alex. She couldn’t quite believe that Alex had had the audacity to turn up, day after day, wearing a white doctor’s coat, and often with a stethoscope hanging around his neck, when he wasn’t even a doctor. But she shook the image from her mind. She was learning to give him less and less head space each day. ‘And yes, you do pull it off well.’ Changing the subject, she said, ‘Let’s just hope today’s emergency meeting throws up some good marketing plans.’

‘Emergency?’ queried Roman, slowing down at the traffic lights and looking sideward at her.

‘If they don’t get more diners on seats soon, things won’t be looking good for The Lakehouse.’

‘How do you know this?’ he asked, with a concerned look on his face as he slowed down at the roundabout.