Dreaming Under An Island Skye

Lisa Hobman

Description

'An uplifting and adventurous romance which reminds us that all that glitters is definitely not gold!' Heidi Swain
'I loved the book. It’s a captivating story with a relatable heroine and beautifully vivid settings. A perfect holiday read!' Darcie Boleyn

Is there really such a thing as a second shot at true love?

After three wonderful years of marriage, librarian Juliette Fairhurst’s heart is shattered when her husband, Laurie, is taken from her much too soon.

Devasted, Juliette decides to take a sabbatical and reconnect with her mother’s birthplace, the village of Glentorrin on the picturesque Isle of Skye.

Welcomed by most of the villagers, Juliette throws herself into an idyllic community life, taking on the role of temporary summer guardian at The Lifeboat House Museum; a role that offers her the perfect escape from the tragedy of her real life.

During her time on the island, Juliette clashes with brooding single dad and artist, Reid Mackinnon and is befriended by his son Evin and dog Chewie. It’s clear that divorced Reid is struggling and scarred by his own painful experiences.

Can these two lost souls find a lifeline to rescue each other?

Or will their pasts scupper their second chance at real happiness?

Praise for Lisa Hobman:

'Involving and intriguing!' Sue Moorcroft
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'Ruby’s dreams come true in this heart-warming and sometimes heart-wrenching journey of discovery' Heidi Swain
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'I love it! - escape to the beautiful Isle of Skye with this feel-good, uplifting story of lost love and second chances...' Holly Martin

'Simply gorgeous. An uplifting story of two broken individuals trying to find the courage to take a chance on love again’ Jessica Redland

'A really uplifting, feel-good read about hope, love and second chances, that really did warm my heart.' Kim Nash

'A gorgeous, heart-warming romantic journey, reminds us to never give up on love...' Lucy Coleman
'You will fall in love with this story of fresh starts and mending broken hearts' Mandy Baggot

'A heart-breakingly beautiful story of love and loss set in the stunning village of Glentorrin. Be prepared to fall in love over and over again.' Nancy Barone

'What a beautiful read this was. I was rooting for Juliette from the first page. Lisa handled some tough subjects with a delicate and deft touch. I'm ready to escape to Skye!' Sarah Bennett

Sujets

• Vie de famille
• Soutien psychologique et conseils familiaux
• Sea Stories
• Mashups
• Holidays
• Bereavement
• Women
• Coming of Age
• Escocia
• Friendship
• Contemporary history
• SpongeBob SquarePants
• Romantic Comedy
• General officer
• Woman
• The Women
• General
• Holiday
• Grief
• Contemporary
• Skye (Écosse)
• Family Life
• Romance
• Scotland
• Death
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: Boldwood Books
• Date de parution: 23 février 2021
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781800488731
• Langue: English

Extrait

Dreaming Under An Island Skye


Lisa Hobman
For Grace, the brightest star in my sky. You continue to make me proud and I can’t wait to see you collect your first Oscar for directing.
Contents



Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Epilogue


Acknowledgments

More from Lisa Hobman

About the Author

About Boldwood Books
Prologue

Through gritted teeth, Juliette cursed the Victorian architect who’d had the monumentally stupid idea of utilising every inch of the high-ceilinged room for storage. If they’d been subject to health and safety regulations back then, there’s no way ladder access to shelves – that were ridiculously high in her opinion – would have been allowed. Although it was a stunning library, with its ornately carved oak posts and arches, it was simply not practical any more. In fact, she couldn’t imagine it being practical back in 1873 when it was originally constructed. But, of course, the University of Gloucestershire was proud of its heritage, and rightly so, Juliette reasoned. Who was she to demand changes, but a twenty-six-year-old former student turned librarian?
This wasn’t how she was expecting to spend her day, that was for sure; clinging precariously to the location where she had just replaced copies of The Modern Judge . Her fingers ached and her toes were going numb as she clung on for dear life and tried to formulate a plan. She could jump, but as there was probably fifteen feet between her and the floor, that would possibly result in bone breakages, muscle sprains or, worst-case scenario… death! Her alternative was to hold on and either: one, shout for help, or two, simply hope it manifested by chance, sooner rather than later.
Friday lunchtime was usually Juliette’s favourite time in the library. It was the one time of the week when no students were allowed in and the librarians were able to catch up on restocking the shelves with returned books. To be surrounded by millions of pages of knowledge just waiting to be soaked up… and, oh, the bibliosmia – was there a better smell anywhere in the world than old books?
There were usually at least two members of staff, but today, typically, her boss, Nancy, had gone home ill and her colleague, Claire, was on holiday, meaning Juliette was alone.
All alone.
Completely by herself.
Which would be fine if she wasn’t stuck up a bookcase, sans ladder, wearing a floaty skirt.
Bloody typical .
Anger and embarrassment heated her skin in equal measure as she realised the security guards would have a field day if they watched back the footage of this utter debacle. She could imagine it now. The two main ones, Bill and Ben, as Juliette liked to call them, sitting there in front of the surveillance screens, a mug of some steaming brew resting on each rotund belly as they stuffed biscuits into their gobs. Then, she imagined crumbs spraying everywhere as they were overcome with the hilarity of watching the ladder fall leaving Juliette dangling from the top shelf of the Law Reference section like something off bloody You’ve Been Framed .
She was still unsure how the attached ladder had become de tached and had fallen to the floor, leaving her stranded and terrified. She would have serious words with the caretaker or, if anything bad was to happen, she’d be haunting the ratbag; those things were certain. What wasn’t certain, however, was how she was going to circumvent the small issue of the fifteen feet of air between her current location and the floor.
The lack of space at the edges of the lower shelves annoyed her. Nancy had obviously been tidying again. The woman had an aversion to spacing and each book was butted up to the edge, as well as being tightly packed in, making it virtually impossible to retrieve anything in order to use it but, more importantly now, it meant Juliette was unable to find a foothold.
So… climbing down isn’t an option , she huffed.
The door to the library gave the familiar high-pitched squeak as it was pushed open and Juliette closed her eyes. She couldn’t see the door from where she was, but she prayed it wasn’t one of the obnoxious new caretaking team she’d encountered in recent weeks. If it was, she could be sure this would all end up on YouTube with a gazillion views, meaning she wouldn’t dare show her face in public again.
She held her breath for a moment and listened intently for noises that would indicate the identity of the visitor.
When none came, she opened her eyes and cleared her throat. ‘Ahem… hello? Who’s there, please?’ she shouted with as much dignity as her situation would allow.
There was a pause and then, ‘Erm… It’s Laurie… erm Professor Fairhurst… Laurence.’
Oh shitty, shitty, shit. It just had to be him, didn’t it?
She had nursed a secret crush on the gorgeous, yet shy, man since the day she had started work at the university a year before and first laid eyes on him. The resemblance he bore to Superman from the DC movies wasn’t lost on her. She had noticed the lack of a wedding ring and had tried on so many occasions to pluck up the courage to speak to him; to actually have a conversation that wasn’t work-related. But, up to that point, the courage she sought had evaded her. And, much to her dismay, their relationship had been solely based on professional politeness and courtesy when he came to sign out a research book for his latest thesis.
She squeezed her eyes shut again and she called out, ‘Professor Fairhurst, it’s Juliette, I’m one of the librarians?’ – in case he didn’t remember her – ‘This is rather embarrassing, but… could you possibly come to the Law Reference section, please? I’m in a bit of a pickle.’
‘Sure! On my way.’ From the speed of his footsteps, he’d evidently sensed the urgency in her voice.
A couple of seconds later, she opened her eyes and turned her head slowly to find the handsome English professor staring up at her in bemusement. As always, he was immaculately presented in a tweed jacket, pressed shirt and co-ordinating tie, smart trousers and matching waistcoat. His dark hair was parted to the side and swept back in that Clark Kent way, and she tried her best not to swoon.
He shook his head. ‘How… I mean… why ?’ From the way he held his hand over his mouth, it was clear he was trying not to laugh. Great . ‘Hang on, am I supposed to recite Shakespeare to you at this point, Juliette ?’ He gave into the laughter he’d been holding back.
Anger flared inside her and her cheeks, by now, she guessed, would be a delightful shade of scarlet. ‘It’s not a laughing matter, Professor Fairhurst,’ she snapped.
His face squirmed and contorted into an expression of solemnity. ‘No, no, you’re right. I apologise. And, please, call me Laurence. Now, what exactly has happened?’
‘Well, Laurence , I think the ladder fixing is broken. The ladder fell when I reached across to grasp it and…’ She didn’t need to finish the sentence.
Laurence dashed to the offending article and lifted it up to rest beside her, but the top section was broken in two. ‘Ah, yes. It appears to have broken further in the fall. We can’t risk you climbing on it. Okay…’
Juliette prayed that her footless tights were not the ones with the hole under her left buttock that she’d meant to throw out. If they were , the Professor was getting an eyeful.
He took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves, then scratched his chin and glanced at his surroundings, seemingly trying to formulate a plan. ‘Right. Okay…’ He returned his attention to her and pursed his lips as he appraised her, hanging there.
She was on the verge of pointing out the fact that time was of the essence when he spoke again.
‘You’re quite small, really, which means I can easily catch you… I’m… I’m pretty sure I can.’
Juliette scowled down at him, and with a distinct wobble to her voice, she said, ‘In spite of your positive assertion, the delivery of it leads me to believe the contrary.’
He squared his broad shoulders and took a wide, arms-open stance beneath her. ‘No, no, I can do it. Just be sure to push off the shelf so you don’t hit yourself on the way down. I’m ready when you are.’
She gulped. ‘If anything… you know… bad happens, my diary and my phone are in my bag, which is under the main desk. My emergency contacts are in both.’
‘Nothing bad is going to happen, I promise.’
She peered down at him and saw sincerity in his beautiful eyes. Eyes that she had longed to gaze into ever since she first laid hers on him.
He smiled. ‘I promise I won’t tell everyone you fell for me.’ His smile turned into a grin, but it quickly disappeared as if he realised he had been rather inappropriate. ‘I mean… I didn’t…’ He appeared to be scrabbling around his mind for the words to undo his comment and blurted, ‘I’ll take you to the refectory for a cake when you’re down here, shall I?’ His colour drained, telling her he felt he’d made the situation worse. ‘I-I only mean because sugar helps with shock, I-I’ve been led to believe.’
Her heart melted at his awkwardness and she thought to herself. You can tell everyone I’ve fallen for you… it is the truth, after all . Instead, she said, ‘I’m holding you to that offer of cake,’ in the hope it would let him know she wasn’t offended.
‘Great. I’m quite partial to death by chocolate.’ He cringed again and she guessed it was at his mention of death. He clearly chose not to dwell on his faux pas. ‘Now, come on, before they run out.’
She nodded with det