‘I’m not going to be in this thing forever,’ said Abbie, patting the arms of her chair, ‘but my recovery is taking a little longer than expected so, in the meantime, I’m keeping busy hanging out with this lot and seeing if I can make a go of running a small business.’

‘I think you’re all amazing,’ I told them, feeling in awe of both their determination and incredible skills. ‘And I’m certain your products are going to prove popular with everyone who visits Wynter’s. Ned was really on to something when he suggested siting the huts here, wasn’t he?’

Everyone nodded in agreement and I only then realised there was one woman who hadn’t introduced herself. She was wrapped in a sort of patchwork cloak and stood slightly apart from everyone else.

‘Hi,’ I said, when our eyes met. ‘I’m Liza.’

‘I’m Lilith,’ she said, then quietly added, ‘I’m going to be selling greenery and making wreaths and swags on-site.’

‘How lovely,’ I said.

‘I’m more interested in Yule, than Christmas,’ she elaborated, her eyes sparkling and her cloak swishing as she became more animated. ‘As you may have worked out.’

‘Right,’ said Ned, clapping his hands together, before I had an opportunity to answer her. ‘Let’s get this show on the road, shall we?’

I helped Abbie ferry a couple of boxes from Noah’s car to the hut the pair had been assigned. It was the first one in the row and at the bottom of a slight incline that led to the others.

‘Ned’s thought of everything, hasn’t he?’ Abbie laughed as she easily negotiated her way inside the hut.

‘It would appear so,’ I agreed, putting down the boxes. ‘Give me a shout if you need an extra pair of hands with anything else, won’t you?’

‘Well,’ she smiled, ‘as you’ve offered, I could do with a hand with the painting. Ned has said we’re allowed to decorate but I can’t reach the high bits.’

‘In that case,’ I smiled back, ‘give me a brush and I’ll make a start.’

By late afternoon, the light was fading fast and not even the warmth supplied by the delicious spice infused lunch that Sophie had kindly provided was enough to stave off the biting cold. Everyone had made a great start personalising their beach huts but there was still a way to go before they were officially opened the following Thursday.

Not everyone was going to be able to get back every day, so before they all left, Ned and I went around and made a list of who needed what and I offered to do anything I could to alleviate the stress and help make the launch the success I could see everyone wanted it to be.