Island for Dreams

ISLAND FOR DREAMS

Katrina Britt

Could she fulfill such a condition?

Only when she arrived on the island did Nora learn that part of her inheritance from Uncle Jake depended on her marrying a Manxman.

There was no lack of candidates. Even, it was suggested, Jony Cesar, who inherited the estate moneys if Nora failed to comply.

Unfortunately, Juan Cregeen was the one who attracted her most. He seemed to have no visible means of support ... and was a confirmed bachelor.

CHAPTER ONE

Nora c
ame to the island when the yellow gorse was in full bloom and the blue, blue sea edged with snowy white foam was topped by the billowing sails of yachts beneath a shimmering blue sky. The first glimpse of one of the United Kingdom
’
s most beautiful offshore islands was enough to halt the lighthearted chatter of the passengers at the end of an hour-long flight from London.

Attention was drawn on the lush green fields sparkling in the crystal clean air immediately below the hovering wing tips of the plane as it came in to land.

‘
Beautiful and peaceful, isn
’
t it?
’
remarked the elderly woman seated next to Nora.
‘
Like another world after the polluted and overcrowded cities on the mainland. I adore the Isle of Man.
’
The woman turned a neatly lacquered hair-do to take a closer look at the slender silent girl beside her.
‘
On holiday?
’

Nora smiled and shook her head.
‘
Not really.
’

‘
Combining business with pleasure, eh? There
’
s nothing like it, especially if you happen to be young and pretty. You a
re
lucky.
’

Nora leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. The woman could be right. She was lucky in a way, if material things were anything to go by, like the legacy which had brought her to the island. But she would have gladly given everything she had to have her parents back again.

Orphaned at twenty—her parents had been killed outright in a road accident—she had staggered through the following months of grief with a youthful dignity and courage which had helped her to go on running the family business as if her father was still there. Being his typist had helped and this along with her vivid imagination, foresight and stamina, had taken her to the top. At the end of four years she had passed her exams and was firmly established as a qualified land and estate agent.

Of medium height, small-boned and neatly made with a cloud of fair hair, and melting brown eyes, she looked appealingly fragile and very misleading. By nature Nora was robust and healthy, with an attractive husky voice and moderate tastes. Her intelligence covered a wide field and her conversation, along with her appearance, was appealing to men.

Success, however, had not gone to her head. She had friends of both sexes and was popular because she could be trusted and was also decorative at parties. Despite the number of proposals she had received Nora was in no hurry to get married.

She admitted a fondness for her cousin Floyd whom she had taken on as a partner in the business, but that was all. Her one regret was that she had never met Jed Kelly, whose death was her reason for coming to the island.

Jed Kelly had been in love with her mother and he had never forgotten her when she had married an Englishman and gone to live on the mainland. He had never married and Nora had not known that he existed until she was notified of his will. She was to share his estate with a man named Jony Cesar, his son by adoption.

‘
Miss Bain?
’

Nora had collected her case and was walking towards the airport exit when the man stepped in front of her. She saw a man who looked to be in his thirties with lean Celtic features, small dark eyes and brown hair. Of medium height, he gave the impression of broadness and strength.

She nodded and said with a smile,
‘
You must be Jony Cesar.
’

‘
That
’
s right.
’
His voice, like his expression, was deadpan.
‘
I hardly expected you to be so young.
’

‘
I
’
m twenty-four.
’

He raised a surly brow.
‘
I can give you a few years,
’
he admitted without enlarging upon it.
‘
This all your luggage?
’

He took her case and she walked beside him out of the airport to a waiting car.

‘
I suppose you knew
Mr.
Kelly well,
’
she said.
‘
I hope you
’
ll tell me a lot about him.
’

He shrugged.
‘
There isn
’
t much to tell. I reckon you
’
re lucky that he left his affairs in order, even to preparing an apartment for you on the sea front at Ramsey in the north of the island.
’

Nora watched him place her case in the trunk of the car, then open the door of the front seat for her to get in.

‘
He didn
’
t expect me to live here permanently, did he?
’
she asked as he slipped into the driving seat beside her.

‘
He was hoping that you would marry a Manxman,
’
he replied, setting the car in motion.

They drove off in silence and gradually Nora forgot the surliness of her companion in the beauty of her surroundings. The forecourt of the air terminal with its velvet lawns, colourful flower beds and palm trees whispering in the breeze was picturesque and welcoming under a very blue sky.

Green fields came into view dotted with black and white cattle, then sheep. Nora sat up with a cry of pleasure at the sight of them.

‘
Oh! Baby lambs!
’
she cried.
‘
Aren
’
t they sweet?
You mustn
’
t take any notice of me—I usually go gooey-eyed over anything young and cuddly.
’

Her companion, however, neither turned his head nor spoke, but Nora was staring straight ahead now with shining eyes and pink parted lips, taking in the notice by a small stone bridge.

‘
The Fairy Bridge!
’
she cried.
‘
Isn
’
t one supposed to say something? Like, “Hello, fairies”?
’

‘
You
’
ve said it as we were passing over the bridge,
’
he replied, keeping his eyes on the road.

Nora
’
s hands, clasped loosely in her lap, trembled a little. One did not have to be clairvoyant to see that this stranger was not exactly putting out the red carpet for her.

She glanced sideways at her taciturn companion.
‘
I noticed that you didn
’
t greet the fairies.
’
He shrugged and her soft mouth tightened.
‘
Is it the fairies whom you
’
ve no time for or me?
’
she asked.

‘
I
’
m not against you personally,
’
he admitted grudgingly.
‘
It
’
s just that I think old Jed must have been out of his mind to split the estate up.
’

‘
You mean you think you ought to have had everything?
’

‘
Not exactly, but it would have been better just to leave you some money. I can
’
t see what good it
’
s going to do you coming over here. You do know the terms of the will, don
’
t you?
’

‘
No, I don
’
t. I
’
m supposed to be seeing the lawyer when I arrive,
’
she answered.
‘
Do you?
’

Again he shrugged.
‘
Part of them. Better let the lawyer tell you.
’

‘
You mean there are strings attached?
’
she asked apprehensively.

‘
Better wait until you
’
ve seen the lawyer. I
’
m taking you to him now.
’

Nora noticed his clothes then, the leggings and gear of a farmer. He had not even changed to meet
her, she thought, then immediately dismissed the thought as unworthy since he could be spending time he could ill afford away from his work.

‘
Are you a farmer?
’
she asked.

‘
Yes. Jed left me the farm and bought you the apartment. We share all the land between us.
’

‘
The land?
’
she queried.

‘
There
’
s plenty of it around the island. Not immediately round the farm, that
’
s mine, but there are acres and acres on outlying farms that Jed lets out to them on a lease.
’

‘
But why did he not sell the farmers the land?
’

‘
Because he said they had enough and he hated speculators. Jed was afraid that whoever bought the land would sell it to speculators to build on.
’

Nora said softly and gently,
‘
He must have loved the island. You wouldn
’
t sell to speculators, would you?
’

The answer obviously required much thought, because Jony Cesar was a long time answering.

At last he said slowly,
‘
I couldn
’
t very well without
your consent.
’

Nora looked at him aghast.
‘
You can
’
t sell to speculators if
Mr.
Kelly was so much against it, surely? Besides, he might have made that a condition in his will.
’

‘
There are always ways and means of getting over these things,
’
he replied.

The lawyer resided in the hilly part of Douglas, the bustling capital of the island. A shrewd elderly man, he came right to the point when Nora had established her identity. As Jony had said earlier, the farm had been left to him and the flat to Nora, with the monies from the land and other investments to be divided between them.

It was the last condition in the will that finally took Nora
’
s breath away. She was to marry a Manxman if single at the time of her benefactor
’
s death; only then could she inherit. She was still shaken about it when, the interview over, she was again sitting in the car with Jony.

The lawyer had been very kind and had advised her to contact him if she had any problems. He reminded her that the flat was her own, had given her the keys and had promised to get in touch at a later date to hand over the deeds.

‘
But why should
Mr.
Kelly insist that I marry a Manxman?
’
She made a helpless gesture with her hands and spoke almost to herself, and gave her companion an exasperated look.

‘
Are you married?
’
she asked curiously.

‘
No. Never got around to it.
’

‘
Don
’
t you find it lonely?
’

‘
No. I get around
... pubs mostly
... play darts, go fishing, that sort of thing.
’
He favoured her with a glance.
‘
You can get round that marrying a Manxman by marrying one and later divorcing him.
’

Nora gazed at him in astonishment.
‘
I
’
d never dream of such a thing! You
’
re very devious, aren
’
t you? I don
’
t mean that as an insult, but you seem to have an answer for just about everything.
’

‘
That
’
s the way to be if you want anything in this world. Take old Jed, for instance, he never went anywhere in the way of company, neither did he entertain at his home. He had a shrewd eye for making money which he
’
s left for someone else to spend.
’

‘
You should be grateful to him for leaving you so much. As for me, I don
’
t know what I
’
m going to do yet.
’

‘
You could stay at the flat for a while and look around the island.
’

They were going along the coast road now, with panoramic views of the sea at every bend in the road. On their right white villas clung to the slopes, on their left cattle and sheep grazed in the fields.

The rich golden gorse lined the hedgerows and decorated the fields in huge bouquets, and Nora fell in love with Laxey, nestling in the feet of the cliffs where houses of Manx stone rubbed shoulders with new villas in a picturesque haphazard fashion.

Leaving Laxey behind, they took the coast road again with a view of the famous Laxey wheel to their left and on to Ramsey.

Jony dropped her off at the promenade entrance to her flat overlooking the sea. It was on the top floor of a three-storey block with panoramic views. It was a relief for Nora to be on her own, for Jony
’
s company, in her opinion, left much to be desired. Perhaps he did not like girls, she thought, opening the door of her flat, then promptly forgetting all about him.

The
flat
was small and compact with the verandahed lounge and two bedrooms on the front overlooking the water. The kitchen, toilet, bathroom and linen cupboards were on the inside of the building, with air-conditioning instead of windows. French windows opened on to the verandah, and as a delighted Nora explored her smile became fixed.

The refrigerator was stocked with food, as were the wall cupboards. There was a crusty fresh loaf in the bread bin and a bottle of milk with half a dozen fresh eggs in the refrigerator. Whoever had furnished the kitchen with all the necessities had done an excellent job and she was very grateful. She toyed with the idea that it could not have been a man.