Springtime at Wildacre: the gorgeously uplifting, feel-good romance (Animal Ark Revisited Book 3)

by Lucy Daniels

  ‘So how did it go?’ Helen appeared from the front consulting room as soon as Jimmy and the twins had disappeared.

  Not great, Mandy thought.

  ‘Five pups, I think,’ she said aloud. Despite the complications of the past few minutes, the scan itself had gone well. And Jimmy and the twins’ delight had been a pleasure to see, even if Abi’s affection was clearly reserved for Zoe.

  ‘Nice litter size,’ Helen said.

  She was right, it was a good number, Mandy thought. With five puppies, it was unlikely they would be oversized, but it wasn’t such a large number as to be overwhelming for a first-time mother.

  ‘I was just going to the post office to post Gizmo Kramer’s blood sample,’ Helen told her, waving a brown-wrapped parcel. ‘Is there anything you want from the shop?’ The post office in Welford was attached to the little village shop where Mandy and James had bought ice creams when they were young.

  Mandy thought for a moment. There was nothing in particular she needed, but it would be nice to get some fresh air and clear her head. Helen had been extra busy recently as well with Emily having been around less. ‘Actually, I’d like a walk. Shall I go for you?’ she asked.

  Helen looked pleased. ‘That would be amazing, if you’re not busy,’ she said. ‘I was going to give the kennels a bit of a spring clean when I got back, but if I start now, I should be finished before lunch.’

  ‘I’ll give you a hand when I’m back,’ Mandy said. She called Sky and together, they set off down the lane. It was another beautiful day. The hedgerows that lined the roadside were bordered with spring flowers. The air was sweet with the scent of growing things. Sky trotted ahead of her, exploring every inch of the grass, halting now and then when she smelled something especially interesting. She stopped dead as a leaf fluttered out from under the hedge, then chased it across the tarmac, pouncing with both front paws. She paused again, then leaped over it, body twisting to land her paws on top of it once more. Mandy smiled. Sky’s life was so simple.

  She doesn’t have to worry about potential stepchildren.

  Mandy called the collie to her and slipped the rope lead around her neck as they approached the junction with Main Street and turned left towards the village.

  Outside the brightly painted door of the post office a young woman with black curly hair was struggling with a giant pushchair. As Mandy walked towards them, she could see that there were three babies, all strapped in side by side. The buggy was almost too wide to pass though the doorway. Mandy’s eyes travelled back up to the woman’s face. She seemed familiar, though for a moment, Mandy couldn’t place her. ‘Let me help.’ Mandy bent to lift the wheels of the buggy over the door sill and something clicked in her head. ‘Harriet?’ she said as she straightened. ‘Harriet Ruck?’ How long had it been since she’d seen Harriet? More than ten years, she thought, though she’d seen Mr and Mrs Ruck a few days back. They had made no mention of babies that she could remember. Was it really her friend?

  ‘Mandy Hope!’ Harriet’s face was pale and she had dark rings round her eyes, but she greeted Mandy with a grin. Mandy, meanwhile, was gazing at the three small faces that were looking out from the pushchair. Three babies, all at once; and she felt like Jimmy’s twins were enough of a handful. ‘Yup,’ Harriet said, as if reading Mandy’s mind. ‘They’re all mine. Triplets, two of them are identical – Giselle and Sophie – and this little poppet is Imogen.’ Harriet leaned over to wipe away a small blotch of what looked like porridge from Imogen’s smooth cheek with her thumb. ‘Seven months old. And I …’ she straightened up, ‘… am Harriet Fallon now.’ She looked both proud and exhausted. Mandy found herself torn between admiration and sympathy.

  Gemma Moss came out from behind the counter as Mandy, Harriet and the triplets manoeuvred their way into the post office. ‘Hello Mandy,’ she said. ‘Hi Harriet.’ She leaned over to admire the triplets. All three gazed up at her and gurgled. Sophie held out a tiny finger and Gemma met it with her own. Both laughed and then Gemma looked back up at Harriet. ‘How are they doing?’ she asked, adding, ‘and how are you doing, more to the point? Are they sleeping yet?’

  Harriet grinned again. ‘Oh yes,’ she replied. ‘They do all sleep … just not necessarily at the same time.’ Gemma and Mandy laughed, though Mandy’s respect for her old friend was increasing all the time.

  ‘Dad said you’d been up to the lambing, Mandy,’ Harriet asked. ‘And I hear you opened a rescue centre?’

  ‘Yes,’ Mandy replied. ‘Hope Meadows, plus working with Mum and Dad at Animal Ark.’

  ‘The lamb with the short tendons is almost normal now,’ Harriet said, and Mandy smiled. ‘They’re doing well, all of them.’

  ‘That’s good to hear,’ Mandy said. ‘So what have you been doing lately?’ she asked, then cringed at her own question. ‘I mean, before you had these three?’

  Harriet seemed unfazed by the question. ‘I was actually out of work for a little while before they were born,’ she replied. ‘Mike, my husband’s a dentist, so we’re managing, and I do two nights a week as a waitress in Walton, but I’d love to find something new. I used to work in a garden centre over towards Ripon when we lived there, but it closed down. Then Mike got a new job over here, and with this lot on the way …’ she glanced fondly at Giselle, who was holding up her thumb and gazing at it as if it was the most amazing thing ever, then turned her eyes back to Mandy with a smile. ‘I’m glad we came back here, but there’s not much work. Bev in the Fox and Goose told me a couple of days ago that she’d heard something about a new place that’s being set up. They were going to make furniture, she said.’

  ‘Oh!’ Mandy frowned. ‘I might have seen something about that. There was a planning notice up in the spinney near Hope Meadows.’ She stopped. It might not be ideal to have a workshop right beside Hope Meadows, but it would be great for Harriet if she could find work.

  ‘That must be it,’ Harriet said, then with a grin, ‘So all I need now, is to be offered a job, AND find a local nursery with three free spaces that doesn’t cost the earth!’

  ‘You could talk to Susan Collins,’ Mandy suggested. ‘Welford nursery is very good, though I know nothing at all about how much it costs.’

  She waited while Harriet bought some stamps from Gemma, then handed over the blood samples she had brought to be weighed.

  ‘I’m off to the bus stop now,’ Harriet said.

  ‘I’ll walk with you,’ Mandy offered.

  Together, Harriet and Mandy left the post office and crossed the road onto the green. Harriet turned the pushchair round to face them and they sat down on the bus stop bench, basking in the warmth of the spring sun.

  ‘What a gorgeous dog.’ Harriet watched as Sky lay down with her head on Mandy’s feet. ‘Is she one of your rescues?’

  ‘She was.’ Mandy leaned forward to stroke Sky. ‘Harriet meet Sky, Sky, Harriet.’ The collie sat up on hearing her name. She leaned her head into Mandy’s fingers, half closing her eyes with pleasure as Mandy scratched behind her ear. When Mandy stopped, Sky sank back down again with a sigh. ‘I’ve adopted her permanently.’

  ‘How lovely.’ Harriet looked wistful. ‘I’d love to have a dog, but it’s not practical just at the moment.’ She held a hand out to Sky, who stood up and went over to investigate. ‘She’s got such soft fur,’ Harriet said as she stroked the collie’s ear. The three triplets were also watching Sky with interest. ‘How would you three like a dog?’ Harriet asked them. She received three grins and one happy shriek in response – Mandy counted a total of four teeth between the three babies.

  ‘Would you like to come over to Hope Meadows some time?’ Mandy offered. ‘You’d all be welcome.’ She gazed across the road to the quiet, grey church opposite. The graceful trees in the graveyard were moving gently in the breeze. Beyond the stone wall, the darker green trees of Longstone Edge Forest rose up the side of the fell.

  ‘That would be great.’ Harriet smiled as she too gazed at the view. Then she got u
p and stretched as the bus rumbled into view. ‘But right now, I have to get these three to the doctor’s. They’re due a health check. We’ll all see you soon, won’t we, girls? Wave goodbye to Mandy for me?’

  One of the babies flailed an arm, and Mandy and Harriet both laughed.

  ‘Good enough,’ said Harriet, and waved herself as she wheeled the buggy towards the bus.

  Mandy walked back up the lane with Sky a few minutes later. Harriet really had her hands full. Nine-year-old twins were daunting enough for Mandy, and she could barely imagine baby triplets!

  She hadn’t thought much about having a family of her own. She had been very focussed on becoming a vet, then on Hope Meadows. There had never been much space for children in her plans. What about Jimmy? she wondered. He had the twins. Would he want more children? They had never discussed it. She pushed the thought aside for now. She had enough to do, getting to know Abi and Max. That had to be her goal for the moment. She would make a special effort tonight, she decided.

  In the meantime, she had work to do. Arriving back at the rescue centre, she walked into the cat kennel and opened the cage. She might not have any babies of her own, but she did have feline triplets that needed her attention.

  ‘How are you, Mumma?’ she asked the little black and white cat. She really should give her a proper name, she thought. Nicole had named the kittens, but not their mum. Button, the last of the three youngsters, had finally opened her eyes. To Mandy’s pleasure, all three of them came over when she appeared. They were reaching the key age for socialisation, now they could see and hear, and it was important they met lots of different people. She would have to get Jack and Susan back over, maybe Roo Danjal, not to mention Adam and perhaps Grandad.

  There was milk substitute already made up in the fridge. She fed the three tiny animals and lifted up Mumma for a check-over. There was no obvious reason for her lack of milk that Mandy could find. The little cat wasn’t eating all that much, but she seemed generally well, although still rather thin. They had no idea what she had been through before she arrived. Next time Nicole was here, they could give her a more thorough examination, she thought.

  Mandy’s mobile rang in her pocket. She closed the kennel door, pulling herself upright before she answered.

  ‘Hello?’ A woman’s crisp voice came down the line. ‘Is that Hope Meadows rescue centre? I was wondering whether you had any nice cats that needed a new home?’

  ‘We do have one or two,’ Mandy replied, turning her back on the young litter and walking through into reception from the small side room. Mumma and her kittens were nowhere near ready, but there were two other adult cats who could be rehomed at any time.

  ‘That’s good.’ The voice really was quite booming, Mandy thought. She half wanted to hold the phone away from her ear. ‘My father is interested in getting a pet,’ the voice informed her. ‘I thought a rescue cat would be perfect.’

  Mandy walked through into the main cat room with its rather old-fashioned wooden kennels. Either of her current residents would suit a quiet elderly owner perfectly. The younger of them, a black furry bundle called Pixie, was rubbing her face against the bars. The other, a tabby and white cat named Gull, was stretched out on her bed sleeping. ‘Perhaps your father would like to come in and meet them,’ she suggested.

  ‘Excellent.’ There was a brief pause. ‘I’ll tell my father to call in tomorrow morning. Ten thirty, if that’s convenient?’

  ‘That should be fine,’ Mandy said, walking through to check the diary on the desk.

  ‘Thank you.’

  Mandy was about to explain a little more about the rehoming protocols, when there was a beep in her ear. The woman had hung up.

  How odd. She hadn’t even stopped to give Mandy any details. She frowned as she wrote ‘an older man to meet Pixie/Gull’ into the diary. But does her father really want a cat, or does she just think he should?

  Chapter Four

  Mandy paused for a moment outside the white-painted front door of Mistletoe Cottage, then knocked before she had time to change her mind. The door swung open. Jimmy grinned when he saw her face. ‘They don’t bite,’ he said, his green eyes laughing. He pulled the door open wide and took her jacket. ‘You can just come in next time, you don’t have to knock,’ he reminded her, as she followed him into the kitchen.

  Abi and Max were sitting at the dark wooden table. Pencils and paper were strewn across it. Both looked up as Mandy walked in.

  ‘Hello again,’ Mandy said.

  ‘Hi.’ Max sent her a shy smile.

  Abi met Mandy’s gaze with seeming indifference, though she too said ‘Hi.’ Having done their duty, both of them bent their heads and returned to their tasks.

  The kitchen was warm and the enticing scent of pizza filled the air. Jimmy broke the silence. ‘So, Mandy, the twins are thinking up names for the puppies. Abi, why don’t you show Mandy what you’ve done?’

  Without looking up, Abi turned her piece of paper towards Mandy and pushed it across the table. Mandy leaned forward to look. ‘These are singers,’ Abi muttered, pointing to the first group of names on her list.

  ‘Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Ed Sheeran …’ Mandy read, stifling a laugh at the idea of Jimmy striding across the fields calling for Taylor Swift. There were ten names in total, five male, five female: very thorough, Mandy thought.

  ‘These are moorland plants,’ Abi said.

  This list was more to Mandy’s taste. ‘Heather,’ she read. ‘Willowherb, Cottongrass.’

  ‘Each puppy has to have more than one word in its name,’ Abi informed her, looking up at last. ‘Our kennel name is going to be WildRun. A name can only have twenty-four letters.’

  ‘I didn’t know that,’ Mandy said, quite impressed. ‘I love the wild-flower names.’

  Abi sent her a tentative smile. I’m making progress, Mandy thought, smiling back in return.

  ‘I’m making a new list,’ Abi said. ‘Yorkshire cakes and biscuits, but I’ve run out. Were there definitely five puppies?’

  ‘I’m fairly sure there were.’ Mandy read though the third list. ‘Yorkshire Parkin, Fat Rascal, Ginger Bread, Shortbread Thin, Tea Biscuit,’ she read. She searched her memory. Dorothy Hope, Mandy’s grandmother spent all her time baking. ‘What about Treacle Toffee?’ she suggested.

  ‘That’s not a cake or biscuit.’ Abi’s voice told Mandy not to argue the point. The girl pulled back the list, leaning over it as if to obscure Mandy’s view. The brief moment of amity seemed to have passed and Mandy wondered what to say next.

  Max came to her rescue. ‘I’ve designed an obstacle course for the puppies.’ He pushed his paper towards her. It showed an endearingly intricate design of cardboard boxes, hoops and tunnels for the puppies to run through.

  ‘It’s lovely,’ Mandy said. Totally impractical, but lovely, she added, just to herself. She was trying to think of something else to say, when Jimmy asked her if she would chop some salad. With relief, she straightened up, crossed to the chopping board and grabbed a knife.

  ‘Will you two clear your things and set the table, please?’ Jimmy said. The twins scraped back their chairs and began to tidy away their pencils. Mandy finished chopping the cucumber and started on some tomatoes. She realised she had no idea how much the children would eat. Child portions were smaller usually, weren’t they? But how much smaller? Had Jimmy passed her cucumber and tomatoes because that was what Abi and Max liked?

  Don’t panic, Mandy, it’s just salad!

  Abi dragged open a drawer and grabbed knives and forks. Max was pulling glasses and plates from the cupboard. Jimmy had taken two large pizzas from the oven. He sliced them into pieces, whilst Mandy put the salad in a bowl.

  Setting the salad bowl in the centre of the table, she sat down in the seat where she normally sat when she visited Jimmy.

  Max paused for a moment before setting down the last glass, but Abi was less reticent. ‘That’s Max’s seat,’ she said.

  Her stomach clenching,
Mandy stood up. ‘Where should I sit then?’ she asked Abi, just as Jimmy said, ‘It really doesn’t matter, Abi.’

  Abi frowned at him. ‘But you said this is our home,’ she objected. ‘We should have our own chairs.’

  ‘It is your home, but when we have visitors, it’s polite to look after them.’

  ‘I don’t mind, really,’ Mandy said, her face reddening with awkwardness. It seemed faintly ridiculous that there was so much fuss over a chair. After all, she came to Mistletoe Cottage at least as often as the twins did, maybe even more, and she didn’t have her own chair.

  They probably know that. It must be difficult to navigate when you’re nine, she reminded herself, and sat down in the seat that Abi pointed out, beside Jimmy. It was a relief to serve herself some salad and grab a slice of pizza. It was spinach and ricotta and looked quite delicious. For a couple of minutes, there was peace, then Abi spoke.

  ‘Did you know,’ she asked Mandy, ‘that Mum is like Zoe?’ For a moment, Mandy was confused, but Max’s next comment enlightened her.

  ‘Mum’s only having one baby,’ he objected. ‘Zoe’s having five.’

  ‘They’re both going to get really fat, though,’ Abi said. ‘Mum said so.’

  Mandy could feel herself growing hot again. Though under normal circumstances, she would have been delighted to hear about someone’s pregnancy, she had no idea how to talk about Jimmy’s ex-wife with his kids. Their kids.