Faith - Lesley Pearse [245]
She made herself a cup of tea, smiling at the tiny packet of Highland shortbread, which was almost certainly made somewhere like Slough, and bore no resemblance to the real McCoy. She had glanced into the dining room downstairs and noted there were tartan tablecloths and a stuffed stag’s head above the fireplace. She guessed there would be some haggis dished up at breakfast too.
The bed creaked ominously when she sat down on it and she smiled again, wondering how many couples had been too afraid to go into the dining room after a night of noisy passion on it. But then, the couple of other guests she’d glimpsed as she booked in looked far too old for any hanky-panky.
Taking her map out of her bag, she began to study the area around Oban, wondering where the house Stuart was working on might be. She saw that Loch Awe, just below the town, was vast, some sixteen miles long at least, so she was unlikely to find his house there just by chance.
But the road to Oban passed through a place called Taynuilt, and as it appeared to be the biggest village near the loch there was a fair chance Stuart might have been into the pub there. That was where she’d make for tomorrow.
Laura woke the following morning feeling completely rested, and to her surprise the breakfast in the guest house was superb. After buying postcards to send to her sisters and Angie, she set off again.
She had been through the Trossachs on the way to the Highlands many times before with Stuart, but twenty years on she found it even more spectacular and majestic than she remembered. Each turn of the road seemed to present an even more incredible view, and several times she had to pull over because she was overcome with emotion at the splendour. The bright blue sky was reflected in the vast expanses of shimmering water in the lochs, and the autumn colouring of the trees and the height of the hills all added up to unforgettable beauty.
She rang Patrick from a pub in Crianlarich and asked him if he had an address or phone number for Stuart, but as she expected, he hadn’t. Stuart had only said he’d be in touch before long. Patrick did offer David’s number, but she was loath to ring there for fear of looking needy.
She didn’t actually mind the prospect of looking for a needle in a haystack. The weather was beautiful and she was happy to be alone just exploring. Even if she didn’t find him, it wouldn’t matter, she’d just look upon it as a holiday.
When she came to Loch Awe, she pulled over to look at it, thinking how well named it was, for it was awesome. She was at the most northerly end of it, and although it was quite narrow, perhaps not more than a mile across at the widest point, it stretched on lengthwise almost to infinity.
There was a pub in Taynuilt, and she found a place to stay for the night close by. Unlike the guest house in Callander, it was lovely, with a huge, comfortable bed and quiet, tasteful decor.
‘Have you ever met a man called Stuart Macgregor?’ Laura asked the young fresh-faced barmaid at the pub. As it was Friday night the public bar was crowded with men, and she couldn’t bring herself to go in there alone, so she was staying in the saloon bar. ‘He’s mid-forties, tall, brown hair, from Edinburgh. I heard he’d come up to Oban to renovate a big house. I think he’s bought a place on Loch Awe too.’
The girl shook her head, but Laura guessed she wouldn’t notice any man over thirty, not even one as striking as Stuart. ‘But I only work here at weekends,’ she added more helpfully. ‘Ask Molly, she knows everyone.’ The girl pointed out an older woman pulling a pint in the public bar.
Laura didn’t get a chance to question the other barmaid until some time later, when many of the customers in the public bar had gone home. By then she’d had a further two glasses of wine and a bowl of chilli. Seeing Molly come over to the saloon side of the bar, Laura jumped up and ordered another drink, then asked her question, giving a little more detail.