The Bunk Up (The Village People Book 1)

by D H Sidebottom

  After saving my number to his phone, Liam tells me he’ll pick me up from the cottage at seven. I should be more excited than I am, but as I watch him walk away, my eyes shift from his cute, and very tight backside, to the pub.

  Frazer is now stood alone, but he’s watching Liam as he walks across the square. There’s an expression on his face I can’t interpret when his stare shifts to me. Eventually he blinks and waves. I return his acknowledgement but as our eyes lock together a shiver races up my spine. Why does just one heated look from him have me ready to drop my knickers?

  A duck quacking breaks my focus and I turn back to the water just as the duck pops his head under water and thrusts its ass in the air. “Quit showing off, Tiffany.”

  Grabbing my mug, I bid the duck farewell and head back towards the cafe.

  “Nice ass!” Frank shouts.

  “Cheers, Frank,” I shout back.

  Not ready to return to the cottage yet, I have a stroll around the village. I notice a sign on the village hall saying there’s a book sale today so I head inside to see if I can grab a few reads to take back with me to the cottage. The book sale is a small table in the entrance. I browse the titles, picking up anything with an interesting cover and reading the blurb on the back.

  “That’s a good one,” says the woman running the stall. She looks a similar age to Mrs Haversham but is dressed in a pair of black trousers and a smart blouse. To be honest, the fact a sixty odd year old has enjoyed it would usually put me off but there’s something about this woman, a cheeky twinkle in her eye, that leads me to believe she reads books beyond the latest People’s Friend.

  “So, are you part of the film crew?” she asks me.

  “No. I’m staying at Haversham House.”

  “Oh, you’re Daisy. Gosh, Sam was right. You are a pretty little thing.”

  I blush.

  “I’m Josie.” She holds out a hand. “I’m head of the Women’s Institute here. You must come along to our meetings. We’re arranging a village dance.”

  “Oh, erm.”

  “I insist. It will give you a chance to get to know the other ladies in the village. We’re meeting tomorrow night at seven-thirty.”

  I don’t get a chance to say yes or no before she launches straight into twenty questions.

  “So how is Mrs H? Still settled in Chesterfield?”

  “Yes.” I see an opportunity for gossip gathering. “I gather she doesn’t come back here very often?”

  “Only a few weeks a year and then she tends to stay up out of the way at the cottage. She used to come here to get a break from her husband, I think.”

  “Oh?”

  “He was a poorly chap, by all accounts, as he got older. Difficult to care for, but she stayed because she felt she owed him, I guess. When he had respite she’d come down here. Such a shame she wasn’t able to stay with the real love of her life.”

  “Frazer’s dad?”

  Her face clouds over as I mention his name.

  “Ah yes, Frazer. Thinks the world owes him, that one, because of his mother not being around. Doesn’t realise that she felt she had to sacrifice him for everyone else’s sake. His dad was a fabulous bloke. It’s not like he was dragged up.”

  “Was?”

  “Yes, God rest his soul. He passed a few years ago. Had a bad heart. Since then Frazer has kept turning up when he’s not working. Comes here, breaks a few female villagers’ hearts and then leaves. You watch out for him sharing that cottage.”

  “He doesn’t bother me.”

  “So what brings you up here, Daisy?”

  “I’m escaping my own broken heart. I’ve run away here to enjoy some time out and consider my future. Mrs H was lovely, letting me stay at her cottage rent-free.”

  “It’s a lovely village and we need some fresh blood, so please consider staying.”

  “Well, I-”

  “Just give us a chance. That’s all I ask. That stupid old fool up at Beydon Hall owns too much of this village and won’t change his fuddy-duddy ways. Is it bad that we’re all waiting for him to die?”

  I laugh. “What happens to the village then? Does he have a fuddy-duddy son to inherit?”

  “He has no direct heirs, so by all accounts, it’s his nephew who’s due to inherit. We’ve never seen him but we all live in hope that he can help bring the village back to its feet.”

  “It seems to be doing alright.”

  “We get by. The film crew have paid a large sum to film here, apparently, but we’re only benefiting from what they’re spending in the pub. Lord Dimwit’s no doubt sat there counting it.”

  I lift up three books I’ve decided on and hand over a pound coin. “Keep the change.”

  “Thank you. So will we see you tomorrow?”

  “Why not?”

  I want to ask Josie more about Mrs H and her love affair with Frazer’s dad. Maybe I’ll be able to glean more information from Frazer himself or at the meeting tomorrow? In the meantime, I’ve a few hours to kill before my date this evening, so I head to the hardware store and pick up a couple of medium sized tins of white paint and some other equipment for painting. I then wonder how I’m going to carry it up to the cottage, but Jerry who owns the store tells me his son will drop it off in around thirty minutes, so I hurry back with my paperbacks and a sandwich I’ve bought from the bakery for my lunch.

  There’s no sign of Frazer when I get back so I drop my bag in the hallway and begin to take the curtains down from the windows. The first room I’m going to paint is the sitting room. The white paint will refresh it and then I’ll dust everything down and do a tiny bit of rearranging. Nothing too drastic as Mrs H may not like it, but if I add a small bookcase and fill it with a few more books from the village hall it might be somewhere she wants to come and stay more, or maybe she could start renting it out and make a little extra money for her retirement. I realise how little I know about Mrs H, despite her attendance in the Post Office. I bite my lip. I should have been less judgemental and spent time to get to know her. Now I’m living in her cottage, aware that somewhere along the line she came to Beydon and had an extra-marital romance that led to Frazer’s birth. How difficult must it have been to leave her son behind? I think about how proud she is of Nigel and realise that a lot of her enthusiasm could be a desperate need to have succeeded as a parent.

  The sound of an engine startles me from my thoughts and I head out to the hallway to meet the driver of the white van.

  A tall man unfolds himself from the driver’s seat. His lank, long hair hangs part way over his face and he walks with a stoop, reminding me of Lurch from The Addams Family. I want to open the door and say ‘you rang?’

  He opens the back of the van and takes out my newly bought items and then slowly walks towards my front door.

  “Great. Now I’ll be able to make a start on painting.” I beam at him.

  He gives me a shy smile.

  “I’m Daisy,” I tell him before I look at the piece of paper in his hand that quite clearly has written on it, Deliver to Daisy, Haversham Cottage asap. “Oh, yes. You know that already. Would you like a cup of tea while you’re here?”

  Lurch looks around before speaking. His voice is faint. “Is Frazer here?”

  “No. I don’t know where he is.”

  “Okay, I’ll stop for a brew then,” he says, only a tiny bit louder. “I’m Jimmy.”

  Jimmy must be six feet four or thereabouts because he has to duck to enter the cottage and has to mind his head walking around. He takes in the furniture that I’ve pushed to the back of the cottage. “You need covers for those. Hang on.”

  He returns from the van with a handful of old sheets. “Here. You can borrow these, but I will need them back, only I do a bit of decorating on the side.”

  “Thanks so much,” I tell him. “I’m going to freshen the place up for Mrs H so that the next time she comes to stay it looks a little better.”

  He nods his head. “Do you want me to get you that curtai
n pole down?”

  “Gosh, yes please, if you wouldn’t mind. I can’t reach it very well and didn’t want to stand on a chair.”

  Jimmy, of course, can reach it effortlessly. It’s like having a giant in the house. As he reaches up his shirt lifts and I see a glimpse of a six-pack. Well, that’s something I wasn’t expecting. Handing Jimmy his tea I observe him more closely. He stands slumped over with his hair still covering half of his face. What Jimmy appears to be lacking is confidence.

  “So have you lived in Beydon all your life?” I ask.

  “Yeah. I thought about going to Uni, but my dad expects me to take over the business because he took it over from his dad.”

  “Do you not want to?”

  Jimmy shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t mind the business and I like decorating but I don’t know what there is beyond the village. It’s like being in a time warp.”

  “You should do what you want to do, Jimmy, not them.”

  “Yeah, but what if it all goes wrong? Do you know what they call me here?”

  I shake my head.

  “Lurch.”

  My heart does the same with guilt.

  “From some old programme on the TV. All I want is to fade into the background, you know? But my size means I can’t do that.”

  “Why do you want to hide away?”

  “Because people see me as the village idiot.”

  “I’m sure they don’t.” I touch his arm.

  “They do. All because of that bastard that comes here when he feels like it.”

  I step back. “Frazer?”

  He nods.

  “What did Frazer do?”

  “We have a dance a few times a year. I’d got the courage up to ask Sam to go with me. Do you know Sam, from the cafe?”

  “Yes.”

  “He’d offered to DJ for the night.” Jimmy looks at his shoes. “I hadn’t spoken much. I felt awkward, like wondered if Sam was just feeling sorry for me. He kept flirting with her from the stage, saying the next song was for her, that sort of thing.”

  “Well, that’s disgraceful behaviour but how does that make you the village idiot?”

  Jimmy’s mouth becomes a taut line. He inhales then speaks. “Because then near the end of the evening he said he’d play some slow tunes. He invited me onto the floor with Sam. There we were, on our own, but with everyone looking, and I thought, I’m going to do it. I’m going to stand up straight and hold her in my arms and not be afraid anymore. Then he played The Addams Family song.”

  “What?”

  “He made a mock look of mistake, apologised. Said he’d mixed up the tracks, but everyone had been drinking and they forgot their manners. They all fell about laughing, looking at me hunched over in the middle of the room. I ran out. I’ve tried to keep out of the way ever since.”

  “That disgusting fucking excuse for a male,” I spit. “Jimmy?”

  “Yeah?”

  “There’s going to be another dance soon, isn’t there? At the village hall.”

  “I don’t know. I stay away from all that.”

  “Well not this time, you’re not. You’re going to be my date for that dance, do you understand?”

  He places an arm on my shoulder. “Thanks, Daisy. You seem a lovely lady, but no. I’m alright as I am.”

  “Are you turning me down? Am I ugly?” I ask him.

  “Oh my God. No. Not at all. You’re lovely. I’m so sorry.”

  I laugh. “I’m messing with you. Please, Jimmy. I’ve lost my own confidence. That’s why I’ve escaped to Beydon. You’d be doing me a favour keeping me company.”

  He looks troubled for a moment then blows out a breath and nods. “Okay then.” Moving towards the door, he stops and turns. “But if he appears, I’ll be out of there.”

  “No. You leave him to me. If he appears, we’ll deal with him. You need to get your confidence back, Jimmy, and I’d love to go to a village dance before I go back to Chesterfield.”

  “You’re leaving soon?”

  “Well, I said I’d stay for a couple of weeks originally. Past that I’d have to speak to Mrs H again about paying her rent and I’d need to find a job here. All things I don’t want to consider this week. I want some time to just be, you know? No responsibilities.”

  “I know exactly what you mean. Well, thanks for the cup of tea, Daisy.”

  “No problem. Thank you for bringing my equipment round. I can crack on now.”

  A shadow passes the kitchen window.

  “Oh. Christ. It’s him, isn’t it?”

  “Head held high.” I challenge Jimmy. “Leave this to me, okay?”

  I open the door and grab Jimmy’s hoody, pulling him towards me. I kiss his cheek. “Thanks for stopping by.” I wink at him. “I’ll see you at the dance.”

  Jimmy nods and rushes off to the van.

  Frazer pushes past me. “I know you said you were going to try and get some experience with men, but that’s two in one day. They’ll be calling you the village bike.”

  “Didn’t see you complain when it was your turn to ride.”

  “Yeah, well I’m a little insulted that after me you think Lurch will prove to be a valuable experience.”

  “Have you shagged him?” I ask.

  “No, I fucking have not. I don’t swing that way.”

  “Well, how do you know he’s a crap shag then? He might be amazing.” My voice rises. “He might be a lot better than you.”

  “Not a chance. But try him to compare if you must.”

  “I will.”

  He walks into the room. “God, what’s happening here? I want to lie on the sofa and watch TV. Is it too much to ask?”

  “I’m decorating to make the place nicer for Mrs H.”

  “She won’t give a toss. She makes that clear by staying away from here as much as possible. She only comes to give the place a quick once over.”

  “Have you ever thought that maybe the memories are too painful for her?”

  “What would you know about any of this? Know my mother well, do you? Has she told you all about us? Oh, let me remember, when you turned up you had no idea who I was so that would be a no, wouldn’t it? Mind your own goddamn business, Daisy, and as this house will eventually be mine, I’m telling you to not decorate it.”

  He slings the sofa cover onto the floor and sits down.

  “It’s not yours now, it’s Mrs H’s, and you might not be alive to inherit,” I seethe.

  I pick up the dust cover and throw it over Frazer and the sofa.

  He shakes it off, and a tic beats in his cheek. “That’s dusty. I’ve got clean clothes on.”

  “Fuck you, Frazer. I’m going to start painting now.” I take the lid off the tub of white emulsion. “I need to get on as I’m off out later.” I pick up a brush.

  “Bike ride?” shouts Frazer.

  Unfortunately, I trip, accidently of course, but the brush that was in my hand, loaded with white emulsion, somehow, quite miraculously, hits the back of Frazer’s head.

  Chapter Twelve

  Daisy

  Liam has chosen a rather nice little bistro away from the village. It’s cosy inside; a roaring fire sits central in the small room and warms the chill of the whitewashed brick walls. The seating is positioned to benefit from both the heat and the attractiveness. All in all, I’m relaxed. Although, the way Frazer had reacted to Liam when he’d arrived to pick me up was making me feel a little uneasy.

  Liam had turned up with a super huge bouquet of flowers for me, and was very attentive, giving me a sweet kiss to the cheek. Frazer had taken one look at him and scowled, proceeding to drag me into the kitchen to tell me he didn’t like the guy. Apart from only meeting him once in the pub when they’d both auditioned for the same part, he didn’t even know him. But he’d gone into a spiel about how dangerous he looked. How, because his left eye was a millimetre smaller than his right, he must be a serial killer that hunted on naïve women who were just out for a quick screw in the back of his
car – a very nice BMW by the way – (I’ll let you know how comfy the back is later).

  So, now I’m sitting in front of Liam, with Frazer’s bloody horror story playing over and over in my head. I must look a right fart - forced manic smile, straight-backed, and my stare piercing as I try to measure the width of each of his eyes.

  “Red okay?”

  I blink, pulling my mind back to reality when Liam starts to pour some red wine into my glass. Shit. Shit. How do I tell him that red wine gives me terrible wind? I mean, he’s filled it to the top, and the aroma is already starting to make my mouth water. Maybe it’s a little more expensive than I’m used to and won’t affect me like it usually does.

  “Lovely.” I nod like the chuffing Churchill dog.

  Liam sighs and gives me a megawatt smile. “Daisy, relax. You’re making me nervous.”

  Rolling my eyes, I laugh nervously. “I’m sorry. It’s been such a long time since I’ve done this.”

  “Gone out on a date? Or evaluated the width of someone’s eyes?”

  I’m mortified! My cheeks flame and Liam laughs.

  “Calm down. I have good hearing.”

  Now I’m horrified. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry. Ignore Frazer. He’s a dick.”

  “Hmm.”

  I quirk an eyebrow, and take a sip of the wine. Oooh it’s yummy. Another mouthful. “Hmm? What does that mean?”

  Shaking his head, he remains tight-lipped and turns to the waiter when he approaches our table. “Are you ready to order, sir?”

  “Yeah. Two garlic mushrooms.”

  “Oh,” I jump in, shaking my head. “I can’t eat mushrooms. Bring me out in a rash.”

  Both the waiter and Liam stare at me like I’ve already broken out in a rash. Rather rudely, Liam sighs. “Would you like to order for us, Daisy?”

  I’m not sure if he’s being sarcastic or not, but thinking it’s probably my imagination, I smile and nod. “Thank you. We’ll take two prawn cocktails.”

  “Nope.” Liam huffs. “Can’t eat seafood. Makes my eyes swell up.”

  “Oh.”

  “One cocktail, one mushroom?” the waiter suggests.

  Liam and I both nod.

  “And mains?”