The Winter Garden

by Heidi Swain

  ‘Looks like you’ve been busy,’ said Carole, with a nod to the A4 journal which was open on a page depicting September at Broad-Meadows.

  It was a particularly pretty layout with pressed flowers and illustrations as well as my thoughts on the weather and what was still in bloom.

  ‘And these are amazing,’ said Poppy, pointing out my pile of preserved leaves. ‘Where did you buy them from? The colours are incredible, so vibrant.’

  ‘I made them,’ I told her, passing her a mug and offering the sugar bowl and a spoon, ‘well, not the leaves, obviously, but I preserved them in glycerine to help them keep their colour and make them more durable.’

  ‘Wow,’ said Poppy as she stirred her tea, ‘what do you do with them?’

  ‘I’ve added some to my journal,’ I said, flicking back through the pages to late summer the previous year, ‘and others I’ve used for display by threading them on to cotton and hanging them up like a sort of natural bunting.’

  Carole and Poppy exchanged a glance and I realised the visit was heading exactly where I had expected it to when I spotted Carole’s clipboard, but I wasn’t going to give in. There was no way I could stand up in front of a bunch of strangers and teach, instruct, tutor, whatever they were going to call it.

  ‘So,’ said Carole, all business after she’d allowed a beat to pass. ‘You’re probably wondering why we’ve called, Freya.’

  ‘I think I might have worked it out,’ I said with a sigh, my eyes on Poppy, who was still looking through the collection of leaves. ‘You can take some if you like,’ I told her.

  ‘I’d much rather you showed me how to make my own,’ she said, with a crafty grin.

  I’d walked right into that one.

  ‘The thing is,’ said Carole, ‘we’ve decided what we’re doing for Winterfest, haven’t we, Poppy? And so,’ she carried on, not giving Poppy a chance to answer, ‘we’re doing a quick house to house to see if anyone else has any suggestions about how they’d like to help.’

  At this juncture she looked pointedly at the table and back to me. She couldn’t have been any more obvious, but I was still feeling adamant that I wouldn’t give in.

  ‘I’m sorry, Carole,’ I said, shaking my head, ‘but I’m really not cut out to stand up in front of a crowd—’

  ‘That’s exactly what I said,’ interrupted Poppy. ‘Selling my recipes on cards in Greengage’s and in the little book Mark and I put together is one thing, but delivering a masterclass in person is something else entirely.’

  ‘So,’ I said, feeling relieved as I let out a breath, ‘you know exactly how I feel.’

  ‘I do,’ she agreed, ‘which is why I’ve decided to join forces with Mark. We’re delivering our session together.’

  ‘Poppy’s going to demonstrate how to make her chuck-it-all-in chutney,’ Carole elaborated, ‘and Mark’s going to come up with a simple festive loaf.’

  ‘I won’t feel half as nervous if I’ve got him working with me,’ said Poppy. ‘In fact, I’m really looking forward to it.’

  She did sound excited.

  ‘And you could join forces with someone else to show them how to make these,’ said Carole, holding up a leaf, ‘and maybe offer some tips on how people could make their own nature diary.’

  ‘That would make a great family winter project,’ chipped in Poppy. ‘The ideal way to keep people heading out and getting some fresh air during the bleaker months.’

  Their ideas did sound wonderful, and I loved the thought of people being encouraged to get outside when the instinct was to hunker down and stagnate indoors, but their suggestions would have been even better if they hadn’t directly involved me.

  ‘That’s great in theory,’ I conceded, ‘but I don’t know who I could share a session with. I don’t really know anyone well enough. I mean, I’ve only been here a week.’

  ‘Lisa,’ they both said together, cutting me off.

  ‘Lisa?’ I frowned.

  ‘Of course,’ said Carole, as if we were the most obvious pairing in the world. ‘Lisa’s going to run a nature-themed creative writing workshop.’

  ‘She’s an author,’ added Poppy, helpfully giving the suggestion some context, ‘a really good one.’

  ‘And she’s looking for someone to work with her,’ Carole went on, ‘because she thinks she can only fill a couple of hours, even with an inspirational walk before she gets the pens out and the creative juices flowing.’

  ‘She’ll be much happier working alongside someone else,’ smiled Poppy. ‘Just like me and Mark.’

  From what I could work out, Carole had no qualms about flying solo for her Christmas cake and pudding session, which came as no surprise at all.

  ‘Lisa’s creative writing combined with your clever craft and nature diary idea would be the perfect partnership,’ said Carole, quickly scribbling something down on her clipboard. ‘That could easily fill a day.’

  ‘I’ll have to think about it,’ I said, feeling rather railroaded. I wasn’t surprised by Carole’s super-efficient tactics, but Poppy joining forces with her made her harder to ward off.

  ‘There’s no time,’ said Carole, ‘you heard what Luke said yesterday, if Winterfest is going to happen, then it needs to be sorted fast.’

  ‘But the attendees wouldn’t be able to take their leaves away with them,’ I desperately added, ‘they need to be immersed for a few days for the glycerine to work.’

  ‘Folk could come back to collect them,’ Poppy unhelpfully suggested, ‘or we could send them on. They don’t weigh much so it would be a reasonable cost to factor in. I’m sure we could work something out.’

  ‘Is everyone else doing something?’ I swallowed, feeling resistance was futile.

  ‘Not everyone,’ said Carole, consulting her notes again.

  Phew. That would make saying no slightly easier.

  ‘Heather might not be able to manage it because of the little ones, but almost every other household has come up with something.’

  Bang went that theory.

  ‘And even she said she’d be willing to assist in some things if she could juggle childcare with Glen’s weekend work.’

  That was that then. I had no one, other than Nell, depending on me, and even she was extending her boundaries and making the most of getting to know the Nightingale Square and Prosperous Place menagerie.

  ‘So,’ said Carole, tapping her pen on her clipboard. ‘Can I put you down, Freya?’

  ‘Yes,’ I squeaked, feeling I had no choice. ‘I suppose so. You’d better partner me with Lisa, hadn’t you?’

  ‘Great stuff,’ said Poppy, fingering the pile of leaves again.

  ‘Marvellous,’ said Carole, finishing her tea and heading for the door. ‘Luke will be thrilled to have you on board.’

  I hoped everyone would. If I was going to put myself through it, then I wanted everyone to appreciate the gargantuan effort the new girl was making.

  ‘Last stop is the new chap, Finn,’ said Carole to Poppy, who was carrying Gus because he refused to get up, ‘he’ll be over at the studio.’

  ‘You’re going to ask him?’ I frowned.

  ‘We’re asking everyone,’ Carole said firmly.

  ‘We’ll come and find you tomorrow before we go and tell Luke,’ said Poppy, rushing to keep up with her friend. ‘As you’ll be on site, you can help us share the good news. He’s going to be so pleased.’

  Which I guessed was more than Finn would be when Carole started hammering on his door.

  * * *

  As promised, just before lunch the next day, Carole and Poppy came to find me ahead of going to tell Luke what they had come up with so far.

  ‘I can’t be too long,’ said Poppy, who was rosy-cheeked from her walk back from the grocer’s where she worked. ‘I’ve blagged an early lunch, but I can’t be late back. Oh,’ she added, ‘what’s all this?’

  As easily distracted as a kitten with a ball of string, she wandered over to the potting bench where I had spread out
a selection of leaves which I had gathered throughout the morning.

  ‘I thought it might not be a bad idea to start collecting some leaves now,’ I told her. ‘If the forecast isn’t great when Lisa and I have our session, then I’ll already have some to hand that haven’t turned soggy. They don’t have to be dried out before they’re preserved, but they do have to be intact – and it won’t hurt to have a back-up plan.’

  ‘You’re all fired up by the sounds of it, Freya,’ said Carole.

  ‘I wouldn’t go that far,’ I told her, ‘but I’m hoping I won’t feel quite so stressed about it all, if I’m well prepared.’

  ‘I’ll share those words of wisdom to the others when Winterfest is officially announced,’ said Carole as I gave Nell her lunch and locked her in the shed, just to be on the safe side.

  I didn’t want to take her with me and I couldn’t risk her wandering off unattended and ending up in Finn’s lair again. Not that given her first experience of the place, she was all that keen to go back, but you never know.

  ‘Let’s go and tell Luke what we’ve arranged then.’ Carole urged. ‘Kate said he’s in his office.’

  Luke was in his office, but we couldn’t go straight in to see him because he was already talking to someone. The three of us sat on chairs in the corridor, with our backs against the walls like the three wise monkeys. I wasn’t sure which one I would have been.

  Poppy looked at me sitting poker straight and tried to stifle a giggle.

  ‘I feel like I’ve been sent to the headmaster’s office,’ she squeaked, her shoulders shaking, with laughter.

  ‘You’ve had a lot of experience of that, have you, Poppy?’ asked Carole, which made her laugh all the harder and set me off too. ‘Why am I not surprised?’ she tutted, adding an eye-roll for good measure, which made Poppy crumple further.

  ‘What’s all the racket out there?’ came Luke’s voice from the other side of the door.

  ‘There,’ said Carole, sounding cross. ‘He’s heard you, and how does that look when he’s got someone in there with him?’

  The door was suddenly plucked open and Poppy bit her lip, her cheeks turning the brightest shade of red.

  ‘I might have known,’ grinned Luke. ‘You’d better come in.’

  ‘Sorry, Luke,’ said Carole, ‘we didn’t mean to disturb your meeting. We can come back later if you like.’

  ‘No, it’s all right,’ he said, beckoning us in. ‘I’m not in a meeting. It’s only Zak. He’s doing a bit of measuring up.’

  ‘Only Zak,’ said the man’s voice from inside, sounding offended, ‘that’s nice, that is.’

  ‘Oh,’ winked Poppy, ‘now we’re in for a treat. Watch yourself though, Freya, he’s trouble, this one.’

  ‘For pity’s sake,’ hissed Carole. ‘Pack it in, the pair of you.’

  Poppy giggled again and we followed our leader into the office. If I hadn’t felt like a naughty schoolgirl before, I did then. Poppy had pulled me down to her mischievous level and as a result Carole had tarred me with the same brush.

  ‘I might have known,’ said the man who had to be Zak because he was the only other person in the room, ‘don’t you ever go to work, Poppy?’

  ‘I’m on my lunch break,’ she pouted, ‘and what about you, you hardly sound hard at it.’

  ‘Oh, I’m always hard at it,’ he grinned, tossing and catching the tape measure he was holding.

  It was tricky to make out what he looked like while he was standing in front of the window but when he moved aside to let Luke back behind his desk, I caught sight of a pair of impressive biceps in a slightly too tight T-shirt, sparkling blue eyes and a buzz cut.

  ‘So,’ said Luke, ignoring Zak’s flirtatious innuendo, ‘what can I do for you three?’

  Zak turned back to his measuring but not before he’d winked at Carole. It was my turn to bite my lip and Poppy covered her mouth with her hand. Luke pretended he hadn’t noticed anything, but he must have done.

  ‘I’m hoping you’ve come to tell me that you’ve had some ideas about filling Winterfest sessions,’ he said, looking between us.

  Poppy nodded and Carole, positively glowing with pride, handed him her papers.

  ‘We’ve got plans for four Saturdays and three Sundays,’ she said proudly.

  I decided not to pay further attention to Zak, who was flexing and stretching more than was probably really necessary for someone simply wielding a tape measure. Carole and Poppy, but particularly Carole, had put a lot of work into the proposed Winterfest schedule and I wasn’t about to be distracted by some silly bloke’s behaviour.

  ‘This is all amazing,’ gasped Luke, flicking through the pages. ‘Far better than anything I could have come up with. I knew I was doing the right thing handing it over to you guys. There’s a fantastic mix of stuff here and, Freya, you’ve only just arrived and your name’s down twice. That’s wonderful.’

  ‘Well,’ I said, trying to sound blasé, ‘it was the least I could do… hang on… twice?’

  ‘There’s so much variety,’ Luke enthusiastically carried on. ‘We can have some of the nature-based sessions in the Grow-Well and gardens, depending on the weather of course, and the cooking in the kitchen here. If the weather really puts a spanner in the works, I suppose we could even have some of the crafting inside too, after the initial foraging and gathering.’

  ‘That’s what we were all thinking,’ Carole keenly agreed.

  Clearly the discussions had continued after I’d added my contribution to the cause. I wondered what else I’d been signed up for in my absence. I was about to ask, but Poppy spoke up first.

  ‘So, when are you planning to make it all official?’ she asked Luke.

  ‘Well there’s no time to hang about,’ he said, reinstating what he had said on Saturday. ‘I’ll ring the radio this afternoon and if you could ask Ryan to come over when he gets back from college, Poppy, then we’ll set a page up on Facebook and share the details on Twitter.’

  ‘He should be home by three,’ said Poppy, looking at her watch. ‘At this rate you could have everything online by teatime.’

  ‘With less than three weeks until Freya and Lisa launch the project,’ grinned Luke, making my stomach roll, ‘that’s no bad thing.’

  ‘Finn was talking about all this at dinner yesterday,’ said Zak.

  My eyes flicked back to him.

  ‘Finn and Zak are brothers,’ Luke said to me, filling in the blanks.

  ‘Half-brothers,’ Zak was quick to point out. ‘And your name came up too, Freya,’ he added, pinning me with his blue eyes and making me blush.

  ‘Is that right?’ I swallowed, determinedly meeting his gaze.

  I would have paid good money to find out what had been said and Zak’s wide grin told me he knew it too.

  ‘Mum and Dad weren’t sure if he’d turn up yesterday,’ he carried on, ‘what with the fallout from him moving in here, but he arrived just as Mum was getting ready to serve up. He said he’s going to be making bird boxes or something, is that right?’

  His tone was a little too amused for my liking.

  ‘Yes,’ said Carole, with a sniff. Clearly, she’d picked up on Zak’s tone too. ‘He’ll be making hedgehog homes as well. He’s very talented, your brother.’

  I was relieved that Finn had agreed to take part and that my unenthusiastic response hadn’t put him off. Not that it should have done, but Chloe had made me feel guilty and I could hardly tell her that my lacklustre response to his plan was borne out of jealousy at seeing the pair of them together, rather than a dislike of his big idea, could I?

  ‘If you say so,’ said Zak, flipping and catching his tape measure again. ‘Dad says he should be building houses instead of fannying about making bijou boxes for blue tits.’

  ‘Well,’ said Luke, sounding cross as I caught an echo of someone walking along the corridor, ‘your dad always has had a way with words, hasn’t he?’

  Finn had said his half-brother was very much like hi
s dad. If that was the case, I wasn’t sure I’d like him. Zak struck me as a troublemaker and a mouthy one to boot.

  ‘Gift of the gab, Dad’s got,’ Zak proudly said. ‘Must be where I get it from. Finn’s more arty-farty, like his mother was.’

  I looked at Zak again. He was obviously aware someone was outside too and it didn’t take a genius to work out who he thought it was.

  ‘Well,’ said Luke, ‘I think that covers everything. I’m going to double-check the rules the council have about this sort of thing and then it’ll be all hands to the pumps.’

  It certainly wasn’t my place to, but I wished he had said something to shut Zak up as opposed to ignoring him, but then perhaps Zak was the sort who just wouldn’t quit if paid any attention, negative or otherwise.

  ‘Super,’ said Carole, ‘I’m pleased it’s all working out.’

  She didn’t sound quite as thrilled as she had before and I guessed that presenting her and Poppy’s weekend of hard work in front of Zak wasn’t quite what either of them had had in mind.

  ‘Me too,’ Luke said. ‘Is there any chance you could do me a favour this afternoon, Carole?’

  The two of them walked out through a different door, leaving Poppy and me in Zak’s somewhat overblown presence and the other visitor still waiting in the corridor. Luke obviously hadn’t realised he’d got someone else waiting and I wished I’d said something.

  Poppy and I stood up to go and Zak came around the table and leant against it. He put his tape measure down and crossed his arms, making his muscles ripple in the process. I don’t know who he was trying to impress, but the posturing did nothing for me.

  ‘So,’ he said, looking squarely at Poppy, ‘when are you going to let me buy you a drink then?’

  ‘Never,’ she said firmly.

  Zak really did think a lot of himself if he was making a play for a woman who was already in a rock-solid relationship.

  ‘Excellent,’ he nodded. ‘There’s nothing I like more than a challenge.’

  ‘Is that right?’ she tutted.