A Thousand Salt Kisses (Book 1 of Salt Kiss series)

><> Chapter Four <><

I leaped in front of the door, blocking Maurice from coming into the house.

"No!" I squealed as I felt the wet bulk push against my legs. "Bad dog!"

I stood by the door exasperated, but suddenly he turned and then I felt his soaking tail pound against me as he stood wagging, ears cocked. The sound of an engine hummed from the back of the house.

Maurice barked and together we sprang into action, racing around the side of the house and across the back garden. When we came to the stone staircase at the bottom of the lawn, we saw a familiar little red boat pulling in.

Maurice leaped down the staircase in one big jump and bounded onto the jetty.

"Dad!" I shouted, laughing.

My dad was beaming from ear-to-ear, and I could see an enormous mountain of shopping sitting inside the boat. He rigged it up and clambered onto the jetty.

Maurice promptly leaped all over his front, and Dad shouted as wet paw prints decorated the front of his cream linen trousers. I couldn't help but giggle.

"Hungry, Dad?" I said nodding at the shopping.

"Oh no, I'm having the Seal Society round for dinner," Dad replied chirpily. "Can you help me, darling?"

"The Seal Society?"

"Yes, there's a great gang out here - all terribly concerned about our ocean's future."

"Yup... you're really diving in," I joked, winking at him.

"Haha, very unfunny," he replied. "Now let's drag this load indoors, shall we?"

I hopped onto the boat.

"Er, Dad. If you're having the Seal Society round for dinner, does that mean you can't take me to the mainland later?"

I passed some bags up to him from the boat, and from below I noted that his tummy was getting larger by the day.

"Mainland? Why are you going there again?" said Dad in his very british accent.

"Oh, I just wanted to go to the pub," I said, casually.

The truth of the matter was I wanted to take a walk along the surfer's beach and see if I could find Llyr. I wanted to thank him for helping me. And of course, I was also desperately hoping we might get talking again.

"You have school tomorrow," he said, firmly.

"Yes," I said, "but I won't be late."

"Your mother is coming Friday; she will hit the roof if she knows I've been letting you out on a Sunday night."

"Yes, Dad, that's the whole point," I argued from the boat. "We only have four more days left of freedom where I can go out... and you can eat chocolate croissants!" I exclaimed, pulling out the giant bag of pastries from one of his bags. "Oh, Dad!" I cried. He was borderline diabetic, not to mention overweight.

Dad looked away sheepishly. "It's for the fellows tonight," he said.

"Who eats croissants in the evening?" I said.

Dad sighed. "I will pay for a sea taxi then," he said. "Just this once."

"Oh yay!" I cried, jumping up in the air and then tumbling backward as the boat rocked. I scrambled back to my feet unhurt, using the edge of the boat to push up against.

Dad frowned. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yes," I said quickly. "Why?"

"You just seem very excited for a trip to the pub," he said.

Now it was my turn to be sheepish. "Oh, I'm just making some friends finally," I said, before changing the subject rapidly. "By the way Dad, you'd better do some sit-ups before Friday, you know?" I said, pointing to his tummy as I climbed out of the boat.

Dad squeezed my cheek with his fingers. "I've had enough of your cheek young woman!" he said with mock sternness.

"But I'm serious!" I protested linking his arm and gesticulating out to the ocean. "If you lay on your back in the sea you could start your very own island!"

Dad raised an eyebrow and looked down at me. I could see he was semi-amused. "I'm going to have both of you on my back soon, I suppose."

I frowned, my mood dipping a little. Mum and Dad had not been getting on so well the past six months. It had all started around the time of Dad's retirement. She had become short and snappy with him, accusing him of being a layabout all the time. We had decided to move here a long time before then, but as the move neared, she had become more and more upset about it. I don't think she much liked the idea of growing old and leaving behind her glamorous city life.

"Well, more sit-ups, fewer croissants then Dad," I said, covering up my concern.

The water sparkled emerald under the clear blue sky, and I leaned my head on Dad's shoulder, gazing at its beauty.

Dad laughed. "What am I thinking, anyway? She will be so mesmerized by the sea that she won't even notice anything else," he said.