Today I’m joining the blog tour for Love And Loss At The Beach Hotel. I’m sharing an extract from the book with thanks to Rachel Gilbey at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me on the tour and to the publisher for providing the extract.

Blurb:

Can true love win the day?

Hetty Affleck is working as a maid at the prestigious Beach Hotel in Littlehampton. Her beau, Lorcan, is away at war and has recently stopped replying to her letters but she is determined to keep her spirits up. When she meets wealthy shipbuilder’s son Victor Perryman, they pass the time of day and they both feel a connection but she can’t allow herself to think anything more of it – not only does she have Lorcan to think of, but she and Victor are divided by wealth and class.

Yet they meet again and Hetty is charmed and intrigued by Victor and his openness towards her. It becomes harder to ignore the attachment growing between them.

When Lorcan comes back on leave, Hetty is forced to face her true feelings. Who does she really love, and can that love conquer everything in its path?

An uplifting, emotional WW1 saga perfect for fans of Ginny Bell and Jean Fullerton.

Extract:

It’s been a couple of days since Hetty Affleck first met Victor Perryman, the son of a local wealthy shipbuilder, when she served him afternoon tea at the Beach Hotel, but she’s still thinking about him on her afternoon off.

It had been a busy morning, shut up in the stillroom. As Hetty left the hotel and saw the wide blue sky and felt the warmth of the sun, she decided to walk the length of the long common, past the pond, and make her way into town that way, rather than take the short route. 

She took her time as she walked along the River Arun on Pier Road, greeting a couple of fishermen along the way, enjoying the freedom of the open space and fresh air. As her mind wandered, she pictured Victor Perryman’s appealing face. She’d done that a lot the last two days. Silly really, but it didn’t do anyone any harm just to dream, like she might do about a matinee idol.

When she reached the entrance to Fisherman’s Quay, she strolled down past the Britannia public house, pebbles crunching underfoot, towards the lobster pots and the river’s edge. There were some boat building workshops on one side. She looked out across the water, to the riverbank opposite, where there was a small beach and a wharf.

‘Good afternoon, are you looking for something?’

She turned, surprised. It was Victor Perryman standing there, looking dapper in a blue pinstriped suit. It was as if her thoughts had conjured him up.

‘Oh, hello, it’s you,’ said Victor, as he smiled warmly and stepped a little closer. ‘Don’t look so shocked.’ 

‘Good afternoon, Mr Perryman.’ After a brief delight at seeing him, she felt immediately silly in his presence, outside of her proper place.

‘It certainly is a good afternoon for a walk.’ He turned to look over the river, like she had been.

‘Are you out for a walk too, sir?’

‘Goodness, no.’ He pointed to the buildings of the Britannia Works to the side of them. ‘I run the Humphrey Wilmot factory here for my father. We make the hulls for the flying boats.’ 

‘I’ve seen the flying boats being tried out on the river here a couple of times.’

‘That’s right. They take them down the river and out to sea for a test run.’

‘I do enjoy watching them, sir.’

‘Please, we’re not in the hotel now. You can drop the “sir”.’

‘Oh, all right then – um… all right.’

‘You were about to say “sir” again, weren’t you?’ He chuckled.

‘Yes, I’m afraid I was.’ She started to feel more at ease in his company, but wary of overstaying her welcome. 

‘I’m Victor, which you may already have gathered.’ He put his hand out towards her.

As she took it, she said, ‘And I’m normally called Hetty. Henrietta is only for formal occasions.’

‘Nice to meet you again, Hetty. What’s brought you down to the quay?’

‘It’s my afternoon off and I fancied a walk. As I passed here, I thought I’d take a look. I love walking by the river but I only normally come down this bit when the fair’s in town.’

‘Yes, I love a walk by the river, too. I have been known to walk all the way to Arundel.’

‘Oh, yes, me too!’

‘Fancy that! So, do you live-in at the hotel, Hetty?’

‘That’s right, um, Victor. Though I used to live in Wick, with my parents. My father is the headmaster of the Lyminster Council School, and they live in the schoolhouse.’ 

‘A headmaster’s daughter, eh? That would account for your “rather nice diction”, as Mother put it.’

‘My what?’

‘My mother pointed out, when we got home, that your diction was rather more middle class than many of your work colleagues.’

Hetty, not knowing what to say to that, frowned a little.

‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you. My mother said it wasn’t a criticism of your colleagues, just an observation that you might be middle class, whereas most who work there aren’t.’

‘I don’t know about that. Mother was always keen on our elocution, though.’

Her mother had been sure it would allow her brothers to get better jobs, and that she and her sister, Iris, would marry into a better class. She’d always been a bit of a snob. That’s why Hetty had never confessed to her true relationship with Lorcan.

There was an awkward silence which made Hetty squirm inside. Even though he’d meant it as a compliment, somehow it felt like the opposite, like he’d only talked to her because she might not be considered working class, like most of her colleagues. How she hated this whole ‘class’ thing!

‘I had better get going,’ Hetty said. ‘I’m supposed to be shopping for new shoes. Good afternoon, sir.’ She bowed her head a little.

‘Good afternoon, Hetty.’

She crunched her way up the pebbles with purpose, feeling a mixture of loss at leaving him there and annoyance at his assumptions. As she passed the Britannia, she looked back to see him, hands in pocket and head down, walking back towards the workshops. Regret filled her, but she soon shook it off. Regret at what? They were worlds apart, and it wasn’t like she could ever be anything but a maid to him. And she had a sweetheart, didn’t she? Sort of. Though she still hadn’t heard from him.

***

Love And Loss At The Beach Hotel is available from Amazon.

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