‘And how did that go?’
‘Weird. Awkward. We ate fish and chips on our knees and watched Air Ambulance Rescue, he told me about stuff that was going on at work, and then I went off to have a bath and when I got back out he’d gone to bed in the spare room.’
‘Sounds pretty much like a standard night when you two were together.’
Hannah looked at her straight-talking cousin and laughed. ‘That’s exactly what I thought.’
The next morning, Phil had been up and on his way before Ben had even made it out of bed. Hannah had unpacked a delivery from the wholesaler and thought to herself all morning just how bloody thankful she was that they weren’t together any more.
‘You need to get back on the horse, Han.’
‘I haven’t been on the horse in sixteen years. I don’t know if I even remember what to do.’
‘It’s not exactly rocket science.’
‘I know, I know. I mean the whole dating thing. It’s not really me, to be honest.’
‘I’m loving it.’ Beth picked up her phone, which was pinging with another notification. ‘Look, I’ve got another match. I wonder if this one’s pretending he’s not married as well . . .’
Chapter Twenty-five
‘I think I’m going to do it.’
Sarah looked up as Jake walked into the pool room. She’d been swimming lengths, and her hair was clamped to her head in damp tendrils. She looked rosy-cheeked, healthy and like a completely different person to the terrified, sodden shell who’d turned up on his doorstep all those weeks ago.
‘Do what?’ He racked his brain. His half-sister had a weird habit of coming back to conversations they’d had ages before, and he couldn’t always keep up. Plus, if he was honest with himself, he’d been so wrapped up in plans for Bonfire Night that he’d not really been paying attention.
‘Go to that course I showed you.’
‘Ohhh.’ He nodded, remembering. ‘The one about mindfulness and stuff?’
‘Yes.’ She climbed out of the water and wrapped a towel around her middle, sitting down on one of the pool chairs. ‘I was thinking about it when I was swimming.’
‘I think that’s a brilliant idea.’
‘I’ll show you the stuff.’ She paused, biting her lower lip and looking at him, suddenly awkward. ‘As long as you don’t mind paying?’
‘Of course I don’t.’
‘You are an angel.’
‘I’m not,’ he said. ‘It’s the least I can do. I’ve got years of big brother stuff to catch up on.’
She beamed, her smile lighting up her face. ‘Cool.’
So it was sorted. Sarah was off to Cirencester for a week-long residential course in mindfulness training, where she’d be locked away from the outside world, relaxing and enjoying the beautiful grounds of the country-house hotel where it was taking place. He was quietly relieved, because it made his plans for Bonfire Night with the boys from the team so much easier.
He’d managed to keep Sarah’s existence below the radar so far. Pippa was the only one who knew about her – and that was just how he liked it.
‘D’you want me to order fireworks and stuff?’
Pippa was sitting in the office at her desk, which faced onto his. Where his was neat, with just a desktop computer and a small succulent plant in a red enamel pot, hers was as chaotic as she was organized. Papers were strewn all over the place.
‘That would be amazing. Any other stuff I need to sort?’
‘Nope.’ She pointed to the screen of her computer. ‘I’ve sorted out the tax stuff for the property portfolio, and I’ve set up the account for Sarah. She’s lucky to have you, you know.’
‘Not that lucky.’ He felt automatically defensive. ‘She’s spent twenty-four years crashing from pillar to post and ended up escaping an abusive relationship. God knows what would have happened if she hadn’t turned up here.’
‘That’s what I mean, silly,’ Pippa shook her head. ‘I wasn’t suggesting she was taking the mick, more that she’s fallen on her feet. In a good way,’ she added, as he opened his mouth to defend her further.
‘I just want her to be happy, and feel safe. And I want to make sure she never ends up going back to that dickhead again.’
‘That’s not likely to happen, is it?’
‘I’d like to think not. But she can’t stay tucked away here forever, can she? I guess this course is the start of her getting ready to live a new life.’
‘You don’t want people getting wind of her, do you?’
‘I don’t want the press turning up and making up a load of crap, no.’ He shuddered, thinking about it. He’d always had an instinctive loathing of the press and their desperate desire to overturn everything in a person’s past just to make up a story that would sell papers – or more likely, sell online advertising space. He’d stayed as low-profile as possible because of that, and yet they’d still made up a load of crap when he’d been injured, claiming he’d lost his nerve and that was why he’d never returned to the game. It made him furious that they could behave that way.
A week and a half later, he was pacing the kitchen waiting for everyone to arrive. Pippa had organized the fireworks and with the help of Dave, the gardener, he’d set up a huge bonfire at the back of the long stretch of lawn. They’d been careful to leave spaces just in case any late-hibernating hedgehogs had decided it looked like a good place to curl up for the winter, and he’d taken a last look before the light dropped that evening, poking about with a long branch in the hope of scaring anything that might have crept in back out again. Fortunately there was no sign of anything.
‘Evening,’ said Jamie, who appeared at the door followed by his twin, Tommy, and their friend Jude. They were carrying a huge effigy of Guy Fawkes, stuffed with straw and with a terrifying-looking Anonymous mask in place of a face. ‘We thought we’d burn him on the bonfire.’
‘Good idea. D’you want to take him round the back and stick him on, or wait for the others?’
They looked at each other thoughtfully. ‘Leave him. We can bring him down when the lads get here.’
‘Come on then,’ Jake said, beckoning them in. ‘Where’s your mum, Jude? Is she coming?’
‘She’s got to work.’ Jude, who towered over the other boys at six foot five, motioned to the driveway where his mum lifted a hand to wave hello and goodbye. ‘She says thanks for the offer, but she’s got something she needs to hand in by Monday.’
‘That’s all right.’ Jake waved to Jude’s mother. She was a writer and always seemed to be running to catch up with herself, muttering about deadlines and edits. Her wheels crunched on the gravel as she drove off, music blaring from her car.
‘This place is so cool.’ Tommy spun round on his heel, looking at the huge open hallway. ‘When I’m a famous player, though, I’m going to have one of those smart houses where everything’s done automatically. This place is a bit—’
‘Haunted-looking?’ His twin finished his sentence. It made Jake laugh. The two of them were just as instinctive on the pitch, seeming to know where the other one was without looking. It was their team’s secret weapon – and the fact they were identical helped even more. The opposition teams seemed to be thrown by it every time, not quite able to figure out how the player they’d just tackled was somehow in front of the ball and bearing down on them all over again.
‘There’s drinks in the kitchen,’ he said, showing them through to the room where the dogs were waiting, eager to be petted. ‘And snacks and stuff.’
‘No beers?’ Jude looked hopeful.
‘No beers,’ he said, firmly. ‘Because you’re under age, and the last thing I need is a load of crap for giving alcohol to sixteen-year-olds.’
‘You said your body was a temple anyway,’ Tommy teased Jude, who was always at the gym working out.
‘It is.’
‘So you won’t be wanting any of these?’ Jamie picked up a tube of Pringles and waggled it under his friend’s nose.
/> ‘Nope.’ Jude looked resolute for about two seconds. ‘Oh go on then. Give us some.’
Jake, laughing, left them to it. A few moments later, it seemed, the room was packed with all the lads from the team, winding each other up and messing about with the dogs. Gary, the old coach, had come along with his wife Anna, and the usual parents – the ones who made it every weekend and stood freezing their backsides off on the sidelines – were here too, more dressed up than he’d seen them before. They’d all brought warm coats and hats for the firework display that was planned for later, and he showed them to the downstairs cloakroom to hang them up before heading into the kitchen for drinks.
He’d set up a couple of games in the big sitting room. The boys had naturally gravitated towards the Xbox and PlayStation and were sitting around on the sofas, drinks in hand, teasing each other and having a laugh. This had been a good idea, he decided. They needed some downtime where they could hang out and bond away from the pitch, and it felt good to have a houseful. Greenhowes hadn’t been built to be a home for just him and the dogs. He looked out of the window. There was only one thing missing. Well, two, to be exact.
‘Anyone heard from Ben?’ He tried to sound casual as he stuck his head round the sitting room door. Tommy looked up.
‘Yeah, he’s coming, I think.’
‘Right.’ Jake gave a brief nod and headed back towards the kitchen.
‘This place is gorgeous,’ Gary’s wife Anna said, running a hand along the rail of the Aga. ‘I’ve always wanted one of these.’
‘D’you know,’ he began, distracted by the sight of lights in the driveway, ‘everyone says that, but it’s like the world’s biggest and most expensive radiator.’
‘You don’t recommend it?’
‘Oh it’s lovely, don’t get me wrong – and the dogs love it. But as a cooker it’s rubbish. You try and do a Sunday roast on it and by the time you’ve made the Yorkshires it’s lost half the heat and the potatoes take about two hours.’
‘You hear that, Gary,’ she said, tapping her husband on the arm. ‘Jake’s not just a pretty face, you know. He makes his own Yorkshires, as well.’
‘Don’t go giving away all your secrets, Jake,’ Gary chuckled, putting an arm around his wife’s waist. ‘I don’t want to be expected to make Sunday lunch after all these years.’
‘Shush, you,’ said Anna, laughing.
‘Hi,’ said Hannah as Jake pulled open the door. ‘Sorry, we got caught up with the shop alarm. It wouldn’t stop beeping and I thought we were going to have to call the security people.’
‘Did you get it sorted? Do you need a hand?’
‘Yes, it’s sorted.’ Hannah looked at Ben with one eyebrow raised, laughing. ‘Someone was typing the code in wrong.’
‘Someone told me the wrong code.’ Ben nudged her.
‘Someone needs to get me a drink.’ Hannah pushed Ben gently in the small of his back, propelling him through the doorway.
‘I’ll do that,’ Jake said, turning to look at her. He reached out a hand. ‘Can I take your coat?’
‘Of course.’ She passed it to him, taking off a red woollen hat and unwinding the scarf from round her neck. She put a hand to her hair. ‘Oh God, I bet I look like a fuzzy thing now.’
‘You look lovely.’ He spoke without thinking. She cast her eyes down for a moment.
‘Anyway,’ she said, looking up again, her eyes sparkling. ‘You said something about drinks?’
‘I did.’ He went across the hall, taking her things. They smelled of her perfume. ‘Right, let’s get you something. You need it after the whole fire alarm stress.’
The level of noise in the kitchen had risen as the first drinks had gone down. Everyone was chatting animatedly. He poured Hannah a glass of white wine and passed it to her.
‘This should be mulled wine, really.’
‘Or mulled cider.’
‘Mulled anything, really. But I’ve got some hot chocolate and stuff down at the summer house for the boys – and us.’
She took a drink and looked around.
‘This place is gorgeous.’
‘Thanks.’
‘So what’s the history? What made you buy it?’
‘I just always wanted to live in an old house. The boys came in tonight and announced that it looks like it’s haunted.’
‘Is it?’
‘I hope not. I’m here on my own and I don’t think the labradors would do much to protect me, besides barking their heads off.’
‘They’re not the best burglar deterrents, are they?’
‘Definitely not.’
‘I’d love to have a look around one day.’
‘You can have a look now.’ He checked everyone was okay for drinks. Nobody seemed particularly desperate to get outside into the cold, and the boys were all happily playing FIFA on the games consoles. ‘If you’d like?’
‘I’d love it.’
He let her go upstairs ahead of him, partly because he had good manners and partly because – if he was completely honest with himself – he wanted to watch her bottom as she climbed the stairs. The nicest thing about Hannah, he decided as he watched her standing at the top of the galleried staircase and looking down, was that she had absolutely no idea of the effect she had on him, or anyone else for that case. She was completely unaware of how pretty she was.
‘Beth said this place was completely run down when you moved in?’
‘Oh God, trashed. It was used during the war as a convalescent hospital, and after that the owners couldn’t afford to do the work that was needed, and eventually they just gave up. It had been empty for years when I bought it.’
Hannah ran a hand along the silky wood of the banister. ‘I can’t believe you live in a place like this. Is that weird?’
He shook his head. ‘Not at all. That’s exactly how I feel. It’s so far removed from what we – what I grew up in.’
‘We,’ she agreed, her voice low. ‘No, me too. I get it.’
He looked at her for a moment then, and as if propelled by some outside force, took a step towards her. She held his gaze.
‘It’s just –’ he began, and then – with impeccable timing – there was a crash as a ball thudded across the tiles of the hall beneath them, followed by two of the lads, who whooped with delight and picked it up before it could do any damage. Hannah shook her head, smiling.
‘Think it might be time to get this lot outside, before there’s some kind of incident.’
‘I think you might be right.’
Chapter Twenty-six
Oh my God, Hannah thought, putting a hand to her chest to calm herself. For a second there, she’d genuinely imagined that Jake was about to kiss her. Then the boys had come crashing through and reality had brought her back to earth with a bump. The chances that he was about to declare his undying love for her when she was – well, herself – were non-existent. She shook her head, laughing inwardly.
Out in the garden, they trekked down a gravel path that curved along the side of the long stretch of lawn leading down towards the wood. The wooden summer-house – which was a misnomer, because she’d imagined a little shed type of affair and this was a huge, gorgeous alpine-looking thing with a central barbecue pit and chairs that went all the way round – was lit up with a thousand sparkling fairy lights, and a huge vat of hot chocolate stood warming on the side. On a side table there were containers of squirty cream, marshmallows and chocolate sprinkles, and next to them a huge refrigerated tray holding biscuits, fluffy marshmallows and chocolate chunks for making s’mores. The boys got stuck in straight away.
‘This is pretty amazing, isn’t it?’ Anna stood by Hannah’s side and spoke quietly. ‘I feel like I’m in an American movie.’
‘Me too.’ Hannah nodded. ‘Except of course they don’t have fireworks night, and they think burning an effigy of Guy Fawkes is utterly bonkers.’
They both laughed.
‘Speak of the devil.’ Anna pointed to the boys, who w
ere making their way across the grass with the huge stuffed body held high in the air, laughing and making lots of noise.
‘We’d better go out,’ Hannah said, pulling her scarf more tightly around her neck against the crispness of the air. ‘I think they’re about to light the bonfire.’
‘Three – two – one – GO!’ the whole football team chanted in delight, as Jake took a long torch and thrust it into the fire. It shot into flames immediately, and everyone cheered.
‘Fireworks now, I think,’ Jake said, once the blaze was satisfyingly under way and they’d all watched it for a while. He moved further down the lawn to a space that had been carefully marked off with rope and metal posts.
‘Can we light them?’ Ben called out hopefully.
‘No chance,’ Jake said, laughing.
Hannah realized she’d left a glove in the summer house and went back to get it, bumping into a returning Jake as she did so.
‘This is amazing. You’ve given them a brilliant night.’
‘Least I could do,’ he said simply.
Above their heads, a succession of rockets and sparkling, crackling colourful lights shot through the air. She turned to look at him, his face lit up by the bonfire, and realized that the fizzing heat she felt was far more potent than any of the fireworks that were illuminating the velvet of the night sky. The truth is, Hannah acknowledged to herself, gloved hand over her mouth in surprise, you are falling for this person. And you can’t have him.
Chapter Twenty-seven
November flew past – the shop was decorated prettily for Christmas, and the second book group meeting was a huge hit. Little Maudley was starting to feel like home, and Hannah couldn’t wait for Katie to come and visit for the weekend. It had been weeks since she’d last come down, and she was really looking forward to a girly weekend of wine and watching Christmas movies and picking up a takeaway from the Chinese restaurant in Bletchingham.
Katie arrived, arms full of bags of presents, hair misted with rain. The crisp weather of November had been replaced with a damp, sodden December, but Hannah was undeterred. She was determined to make this Christmas a good one – not just for Ben, but for her. It felt good to be making plans without having to factor in Phil’s lack of interest in the season, and she was going all out.
The Village Green Bookshop: A Feel-Good Escape for All Book Lovers from the Bestselling Author of The Telephone Box Library Page 19
