Juliette was being Sparkled; she could feel it. Jeremy himself was radiant, but his still amazing good looks and charm did nothing for her. She wondered how it ever had.
‘Thank you, actually I am. It was hard work but worth it.’
‘What time is Bella coming next weekend, have you heard yet?’
‘I’m not sure, she’s waiting to see if she’s working on Friday. If not, she’s coming then.’
‘Cool. The plan is they’re both coming to me on Saturday night still?’
‘As far as I know.’
‘Great, I’ll book The Pavillion then. She loves it there, doesn’t she?’
‘Who wouldn’t love it with that view out over the water? I still haven’t been yet myself.’
‘Good point. Right, come on, Mags, let’s get going.’
Juliette smiled as she watched Maggie holding Jeremy's hand and they walked down the cobbled laneway at the back. Jeremy, now with the pink glittery backpack over his left shoulder, and Maggie with the same colour blonde curls as Jeremy looked like the female, mini version of him. Only cuter. And definitely nicer.
Juliette closed the gate, pushed the old rusty bolt across, and walked back down through the garden. She shut all the kitchen windows, locked the back door, grabbed her sun hat from the hooks in the hallway, slipped on her boat shoes, and walked out of the front of the house, basket over her arm, the cool bag she’d got ready the night before by her side.
It was a glorious Pretty Beach day. The pavements and beach teemed with day-trippers, a line snaked out of Holly’s bakery and the oyster shop down at the end of the laneway was buzzing with customers.
Juliette walked all the way through Pretty Beach to the jetty and as she turned the corner stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the boat. The mouldy old boat with the bright yellow roof and dreary grey interior was long gone.
Now what looked back at her was a beautiful white boat. The whole of the outside had been repaired, caulked, and re-painted in a strong, glossy enamel boat paint. She hadn’t got her way, even with the favours, but as she stood there now on the jetty, she had to admit to herself that the boat probably would have looked a teeny bit odd in pale pink. All the wishes coming true. Juliette thought. Only one more left to go.
In white, with the old yellow roof now a lovely sea-blue and a striped blue and white awning at the back, the boat now looked fabulous. Radiant in fact. Juliette shuddered to think what it had cost at the boatyard, but hadn’t wanted to know.
She walked along the timber boards of the jetty and stepped down onto the navy-blue mat with the white anchor on it.
‘Everything okay with Maggie?’ Luke asked as Juliette put her basket on one of the hooks on the side.
‘Yep, all done, and Delilah’s gone too. She loves going out with Jeremy.’
‘Great. Ready for a day out on the water?’
‘I am, we just need to pop this up across the top there.’
Luke looked at Juliette with a frown as she fumbled about in her bag.
‘You didn’t really think you would get away without any bunting, did you?’ Juliette said, as she carefully pulled out a white paper bag containing 3 metres of handmade blue and white bunting.
‘Hmm, it just about passes. It’s not pink, so that’s a plus,’ Luke observed, shaking his head.
Juliette and Luke crisscrossed the bunting across the boat and Juliette stood back and looked at it fluttering in the breeze coming in off the sea, ‘Now we’re ready to go.’
Ten minutes later, and Lottie, Juliette’s friend, came strolling down the jetty in denim shorts, an oversized white shirt, basket over her arm, and sunhat on her head.
‘Oooh, look at you looking all tanned and beautiful,’ Juliette called out as she clambered out and kissed Lottie on the cheek. ‘You look like you just stepped off a beach in Greece.’
‘I’ve spent every day in the garden with my roses and my vegetables. Hence the tan due to all this lovely weather we’ve been enjoying,’ Lottie said, laughing. ‘There's more chance of me flying to the moon than being able to afford to go on holiday to Greece!’
‘Well, you look gorgeous!’
‘I think you mean the boat is gorgeous. It looks fabulous, well done you two.’
‘Nothing to do with me. All I did was slap on a bit of paint in the cabin and put up the bunting. All Luke’s work.’
Luke kissed Lottie on the cheek. ‘No boys with you, then?’ Luke asked.
‘Nope. You’d think one of them would have said yes to a day out on the water, but they are all off doing their own thing. Can’t complain I suppose,’ Lottie replied, holding onto the handle on the right of the boat and stepping in. ‘I’m quite pleased to be honest - it will be nice to have a day of peace. A day of not being a parent for once. It’s been a very long time.’
‘Tell me about it. I must admit, I thought exactly the same thing when Maggie skipped off with Jeremy this morning. Maggie’s had a few little trips out on the boat already, so it’s not like she’s missing out or anything,’ Juliette said, putting her sunhat on and rubbing sun cream into her legs.
‘Rightio ladies. Let’s get this baby up and running. Sit yourselves back there and enjoy the sunshine.’
Juliette and Lottie sat at the back of the boat chatting as they chugged along through the beautiful blue waters of Pretty Beach Bay observing Luke.
‘He really is a sweetheart, isn’t he? What a ride you’ve been on,’ Lottie said, taking a sip of her drink.
‘I know, and I don’t think it’s over yet.’
‘What do you mean? Oooh exciting! Is there the patter of tiny feet? Wedding bells?’
‘Not sure. But there is something in the water. I can feel it in my bones. Not sure if it’s good or bad - I
