Time for New Beginnings Read online

  Time for New Beginnings

  Mette Barfelt

  © COPYRIGHT 2018

  Mette Barfelt & Solvik Publishing (Barfelt AS)

  All rights reserved

  Cover Designer: Ashraf E. Shalaby

  Cover Photo: dotshock, Shutterstock.com

  Translator: Valeska Ruiken

  NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

  This book is set in the town of Solvik in Norway. Solvik is part fictitious, part real. Although the town itself and its citizens are fictitious, everything else such as the surrounding area, distances, geography, names of cities, nature, and weather are real.

  The idyllic Solvik is only half an hour’s drive southeast of Oslo, but the contrast to the noisy capital is enormous. I picture Solvik situated by the sea, a mere ten-minute walk from where I live, surrounded by woods, farms, and fields in the relaxing countryside.

  Norway is part of Scandinavia in Northern Europe, and a peaceful corner of the world. We have four seasons, each lasting about three months. There’s snow in the winter, but also bathing temperatures in the summer. Spring in Norway is my favorite time of year, with the bright green buds of birch and oak mixed with dark green from pine and spruce. Norway is famous for its long summer nights and the Northern Lights, which make you want to stay outside and enjoy the balmy weather all night long. In the fall the colors turn orange, red and yellow – a magnificent sight.

  In Norway, we measure temperatures in Celsius:

  22 degrees Celsius equals 72 Fahrenheit

  Minus 2 degrees Celsius equals 28 Fahrenheit

  Water freezes at 0 and boils at 100 degrees Celsius.

  And we measure length in centimeters and volume in liters:

  5 centimeters equals 2 inches

  51 centimeters equals 20 inches

  3321 gram equals 7 ¼ lbs

  2 liters of fluid equals 1/2 gallon

  The Norwegian currency is Kroner, and 2 million NOK equals 250.000 USD

  Parental leave in Norway is generous – a total of 49 weeks fully paid. 10 weeks is reserved for the father; if he doesn't take it, they lose it. However, if the mother is a single mum, she will get the full 49 weeks herself.

  I do hope you enjoy the book!

  1

  “Where are we going?” Preben Torsvik looked through the windshield, puzzled. He was sitting in his fiancée’s charcoal Volvo, on their way into the great nothingness. They had left Oslo fifteen minutes ago and were now on the highway, traveling south-east toward Sweden.

  “Wait and see,” Bettina Hoff said with a secretive look. She turned onto the country road leading to the small town of Solvik. It was August, still summery and warm. The landscape was green and lush, and as soon as they left the highway, it became rural. They passed several farms and open fields as they approached the coast.

  “Have you been here before?” He gave her a curious look.

  “Yes, but it’s been several years.” She knew it wouldn’t be long until he got restless. Patience was not his forte, but she consoled herself that they would be there shortly. He could bear it a few more minutes.

  She slowly drove through the cozy main street. The white, wooden houses were idyllic and lined up, a mix of small shops and private homes. It was Saturday and vacation time, so people were everywhere.

  “It’s nice here,” he said and looked around. “I fancy an ice cream.”

  “There’s supposed to be a bakery selling ice cream somewhere. We can leave the car by the square.”

  She found a free parking space in the nearby marina and made a brave attempt at parallel parking. It wasn’t her strongest suit, but since the other spaces were taken, she didn’t have a choice. She backed up and turned the wheel, oops… wrong way. She tried again but didn’t get far enough in, so out again. She could feel sweat seeping along her ears, starting to tickle at her neck. Oh, how she hated this. It didn’t help that cars were waiting to pass in both directions; she was blocking the whole street. They were watching the entire spectacle with their laidback small-town mentality. She tried ignoring them. Preben wisely kept his mouth shut. He knew from experience that he shouldn’t offer to take over the wheel.

  Finally, the car was somewhat properly parked. Any car passing by too fast could easily brush against both the side mirrors and the front of the car, but it couldn’t be helped. Enough was enough. She hadn’t planned on stopping here at all, but the surprise she had promised Preben could wait a little longer.

  Bettina spotted the bakery with the melodious name Sweet Temptations. She saw the colorful tables and chairs outside, but every one of them was taken. Inside, there were even more colors, and she couldn’t help but smile at this funny place. The walls, floor, and the furnishings were painted in different pastel shades. It was evident that this was the workplace of someone who loved hustle and bustle.

  “What an amusing place,” she said to Preben.

  “It’s a bit much for me. Let’s see what kind of ice cream they have.”

  They went over to the ice cream counter. “Gelato, that sounds good. What would you like, Bettina?”

  “Strawberry and vanilla in a chocolate cone.”

  Preben picked hazelnut and pistachio and went to pay the cashier.

  In the meantime, she had a look at the inviting cake counter. She had rarely seen a selection like this before and had never heard of several of the cakes on display. A cute, blonde woman stood behind the cash register. She matched the colorful interior, so Bettina guessed she was most likely the owner.

  They walked along the marina, eating their ice creams and holding hands. At the end of the marina, they entered the boardwalk. The fine-grained sand was tempting but overcrowded with kids and grown-ups in the pleasant weather. She remembered it well from the times she visited her aunt and uncle when she was younger. Grief overwhelmed her at the thought of Herman. She’d been at his funeral a few days ago, and missed him more than she’d expected. They’d had less contact after his wife Olga died when Bettina was in her late teens. The last fifteen years he had been married to Mathilde. She shuddered thinking about it. Mathilde was hardly anyone’s favorite, and now they were heading her way. Her head was full of conflicting thoughts, and she was both dreading and looking forward to it. But there was no other way.

  “It’s very cozy here. Is this the surprise?” Preben asked while licking his ice cream.

  “Not quite. It’ll be here soon enough.”

  They passed Café Solside where she had eaten several times before. Next to the café was a big, white mansion.

  “Wow, look at that house! It’s so old and stately.”

  “It was built at the beginning of the 1900s. It’s where we’re going,” she added.

  They walked up the wide driveway and further into the garden.

  “Let’s sit on this bench.”

  He put his arm around her when they sat down. The bench was in the shade of an oak tree, and it felt cool there. The view over the beach and sea was spectacular, despite there being a road between the house and the sea.

  “This is Uncle Herman’s house,” she said after a while. “I came here often as a girl.”

  “I had no idea. But where is your aunt?”

  “Inside, I assume. I’m not exactly looking forward to meeting her.”

  His eyes narrowed. “But why are we here, then? Can’t we just leave? She doesn’t know we’ve been in her garden. Nice of you to show me their property, by the way.”

  “It’s not that easy.” She didn’t quite know how to phrase it. She realized that she should have planned this better.

  “I met their lawyer yesterday, remember? Uncle Herman has left me his part of the house.”

  “Huh?” He gave her a startled look. “Wha
t did he mean by that? Your aunt lives here.”

  She nodded gravely. “It makes it all complicated. As if that wasn’t enough, they’re in the process of remodeling the mansion to a guesthouse. They’re almost ready to open, it’s only lacking some painting and furnishings.”

  Preben sat with his mouth open and had completely lost the ability to speak, which didn’t happen often. At last, he managed to ask, “What are you saying?”

  She cleared her throat, which all of a sudden felt dry. “Uncle Herman wanted me to take over the management of the guesthouse. Aunt Mathilde can’t run it on her own. This was his dream and project. Unfortunately, she hasn’t been well after he passed away. She was depressed and barely recognizable at the funeral. Apparently, she stays in bed all day, completely unenthusiastic. She’s grumpy, but that’s not new.”

  “What about your brother? What did he inherit?”

  She held her breath for a moment. “Nothing. Uncle was never a fan of Lauritz’s lifestyle and never pretended to be, either. He didn’t even show up at the funeral. I guess he’s in a pub in Spain, having a good time with the senoritas.”

  Preben gave her a distressed look. “He’s gonna throw a fit when he hears about the will. That huge house must cost a fortune.”

  She took his hand and caressed it with her thumb. “Dad told him. He wasn’t happy about it, to put it mildly. But there’s nothing I can do about that. I’m just as surprised by the will as everyone else.”

  Preben scratched his head. “Are you telling me that you want to move here? And work here? We have our lives in Oslo, our jobs as well.”

  She looked at his doubtful face. The same questions had been filling her head the last twenty-four hours. “I don’t know what to do. But without me, there will be no guesthouse. Not sure if I have a choice.” She lightly shook her long curls.

  They both remained seated, pondering. She had spent most of the night thinking and had had a hard time falling asleep. It wasn’t as if she only had herself to consider. She had a thirteen-year-old daughter who was about to start at a new school next week. And she was recently engaged to Preben, and they were to be married in spring. There was so much happening in their lives right now, and this on top of it all. Wasn’t it always like that? When she thought it was as busy as it could get, something else came along and made it even more complicated.

  She glanced at Preben and could tell by the look on his face that he was as confused as she was. She leaned toward him and kissed him. “Come, let’s give you a tour. I’ve got a key. We’ll have a look inside.”

  They went over to the front door and opened it. At first, they entered a long, wide hall. The living room was to the right, painted in a classy, creamy white. The furniture was light beige, with throw pillows in a slightly darker shade. Everything looked new. The sofas were put together in a nice seating arrangement, making you want to sit down and chat. Through paned windows, the room had a view of the sea. You could watch the sunset from there.

  The dining room was on the other side of the hall, with the same beautiful view. Six dining room tables with chairs were placed throughout the room, and a sideboard stood against the wall. Everything was kept in the same light color.

  “It is delicately decorated,” she remarked. “Completely different from what I remember. They must have spent a lot of time and effort on renovating it.”

  “Seems like it. Let’s have a look at the kitchen. Is it this way?” Preben walked into a light gray room.

  “A spacious and new kitchen. I like it.” She let her hand touch the blank, grayish granite countertop. It had a timeless appearance, but in her opinion was not the most practical. You would have to be careful when setting a glass on the counter.

  They looked around the rest of the first floor and found a bedroom, two bathrooms, and a wardrobe.

  “I don’t get it. The lawyer said there was still work to be done, but this is all finished.”

  “Let’s have a look upstairs.” Preben was on his way up the stairs already.

  The house consisted of three floors, in addition to the attic. The second and third floor additionally had a separate, small apartment where her aunt was staying. The apartment was an extension on the outside of the house itself, and was apparently called the Tower since it resembled a Victorian turret with a spire.

  “Ah, now I get it.” They’d been through the next two floors, and this was where the work remained to be done. The bathrooms were finished, but none of the guest rooms were painted or furnished. There were three guest rooms on each floor, of which one on each floor was bigger than the others and had its own bathroom. The other two rooms shared a bathroom in the hall of the respective floor.

  They went up into the attic and found that it was used as storage. It would be possible to turn it into another guest room if need be, but six rooms should be plenty.

  Now only the Tower was left, and Bettina wasn’t keen to knock on the door. She didn’t know how she would be received. Aunt Mathilde had decided to stay in bed rather than meet the lawyer, but she had naturally been informed about the will.

  She knocked on the door and called for her aunt, but there was no answer. She carefully opened the door, and they entered an apartment that had not been renovated. Her aunt was lying in bed, embroidering, just as her father had predicted.

  “Dear me, is it you,” Aunt Mathilde said and squinted, despite wearing glasses. “Who is that man?”

  They went over to the bed. “This is my fiancé, Preben.” Mathilde didn’t appear to want to shake his hand but kept embroidering.

  “Never heard of him before.” She looked at the stranger over the edge of her glasses. “Are you going to live in sin? I hope you’re not planning to move in here before you’re married?”

  Bettina saw that Preben swallowed hard.

  “Not at all, Aunt.”

  “I’m not your aunt,” she said with a severe look. “I prefer being called Mrs. Fredriksen.”

  “Of course, Mrs. Fredriksen.”

  “I assume you’ve heard about the will,” she continued and turned toward Bettina.

  “I have. We’ve had a look around. There’s quite a bit left to do before you can open the guesthouse.”

  Her aunt frowned, wrinkling her little snub nose. “Well, you’re the one who inherited it, not me, so you’ll have to handle it yourself. I’m not planning on opening anything.”

  Bettina flinched and didn’t know what to believe. If she was going to fulfill her uncle’s wish, her aunt would be part of the deal. It would simply mean living in the same house as this old grouch. Even though the house was huge and she kept to her own apartment, they would see each other a lot. It would be impossible to avoid her. She shuddered at the thought of it and wanted to run as far away from there as possible.

  “I can’t just move here and get going. I have a job in Oslo that I enjoy, and an apartment. Anneli has her friends and school in the capital. Furthermore, I’m engaged, and Preben works at an IT firm in Oslo,” she explained. “So I have others to consider.”

  “That may be. But you have to understand what a vast change this is for me,” her aunt said indignantly. “It was supposed to be Herman and me running the guesthouse together. Then Herman dies and all of a sudden I get strangers moving in. Now we’re only lacking Lauritz, and then we’ll be complete. He won’t be happy when he finds out that he wasn’t included in the will. Maybe I should let him inherit my part…”

  Bettina feared that Mathilde had completely lost her mind, and decided it was best to bid her goodbye politely. She promised to think about what to do, and they went out in the garden again.

  Preben looked pale while walking around the property. “Mrs. Fredriksen isn’t the most pleasant person I’ve met,” he said. “She doesn’t exactly radiate warmth. Are you sure this is what you want?”

  “No. I’ve no idea what to do. There is so much to consider. You’re right about Mathilde. Now I remember why I’ve been here infrequently over the last few years
. It was different when Aunt Olga was alive. I loved being here then. I don’t know how many barbeques we had in this garden,” she said, looking around, “but it was many.”

  Mathilde had taken care of the garden. This was something she was good at, Bettina couldn’t argue with that. She loved gardening and had landscaped flower beds all around. There was a koi pond in the middle of the garden, with a nostalgic bench to sit on while watching the kois. The pond was surrounded by pebbles, and a small wooden bridge crossed the water. They were standing on top of the bridge and looked down on the orange kois that swam leisurely around, eating nothing but the insects they caught.

  “Lovely,” Preben said and pulled her closer. “It’s a romantic garden.”

  “Absolutely. You’d think it was designed by a landscape architect, but Mathilde did it. Let’s have a seat.”

  They remained seated, admiring the lush garden. Some of the flower beds were circular with molded edges around them, and the beauty of the flowers was overwhelming. A white picket fence framed the property.

  “There’s not much that beats this view,” she said and stretched her arms as if to embrace the whole Solvik bay, with the long beach and the sea.

  He nodded. “What are you going to do? And what about us? We’re supposed to start planning our wedding. I can’t picture a life here in the countryside, no matter how idyllic it is. It’s so quiet here.”

  She nodded sadly. “I know. You like the chaos of the big city, with speed and excitement, and your motorcycle. Sometimes I wish we were more alike.” She looked at him and leaned toward the soft lips that were ready to meet hers.

  “We love each other. Surely there has to be a way?”

  2

  Mathilde watched the two lovebirds wandering around in her garden. Yes, it was her grass they were stepping on so that it would be extra heavy to mow when she got around to it. Right now she had enough to deal with in her grief. It was annoying that Herman had left her behind now they were about to open the guesthouse, leaving her with all the work. He could be annoying sometimes. Just dying like that. What was he thinking? Couldn’t he have held on better while running around on the roof like some youngster? He wasn’t a youngster. No sixty-five-year-old man, without taking leave of his senses, would think of repairing a roof on his own. She’d pointed that out several times. But it was like talking to deaf ears. He heard only what he wanted to hear. And now she was sitting here, alone in this giant house. What was she going to do with it? It felt completely meaningless to run it without Herman. After all, the guesthouse had been his vision. She didn’t share his passion. And then he’d pulled the stunt of leaving his part of the property to that young woman. Sure enough, Bettina was family, but it had been a long time since they saw each other last. However, she’d realized that she didn’t have a choice. The woman had inherited half of the house, and there was nothing she could do about it. So Bettina would get to run the guesthouse then. She’d have to do her part of the job.