Christmas at Mistletoe Cottage

by Lucy Daniels

  Chapter Twelve

  After waving James off to Sunday lunch with his parents, Mandy rushed upstairs. It was time to head over to Six Oaks Stable. It was almost three months since she had seen Bill, the charismatic Shire she had rescued in the summer. Donning a pair of stretchy jeans and pulling out her old riding boots, Mandy found her old riding hat at the bottom of the cupboard. Though the boots still fitted, when she tried to pull on the helmet, it was much too small. Hopefully Molly would be able to lend her one.

  She thought back to the summer, and the unexpected disappointment she’d felt when she had seen Molly and Jimmy in the Fox and Goose. That had been the first time she had truly recognised her own interest in Jimmy, she thought. Helen had told her Jimmy and Molly had dated and that they must have been back together.

  Mandy had been taken aback to feel so aggrieved, though she’d never had any reason to dislike Molly herself. It was the same day Paul had died, Mandy remembered. The familiar wave of pain passed through her at the memory. So many things brought her back to Paul. She stood for a moment, lost in thought, then pulled herself back to the present, walked downstairs and climbed into her car.

  Drawing up in the immaculate stable yard, she stepped out of her SUV. Overhead, the sky was clearing at last and the wind was easing. Mandy admired the revamped yard. The stable doors were freshly painted in royal blue paint. Wooden tubs suggested floral displays in summer, and hooks beside each stable held colourful headcollars with their ropes neatly coiled. There were far more horses than in the days Mandy had attended the somewhat ramshackle riding school. To her left, a handsome bay with a wide white blaze was gazing at her with interest. From the far side of the yard, there came a sound of shuffling straw and a black face emerged, all liquid eyes and ears alert. What an intelligent head, Mandy thought. Walking round to the back of the car, she pulled out the long tooth rasp and the Hausmann’s gag that she would need for Bill’s dental treatment.

  ‘Hello!’ called a voice and Mandy turned, expecting to see Molly, but a long-legged girl of about fifteen was approaching. She wore her long blonde hair in a plait and her blue eyes shone in the emerging sunshine. ‘You’re Mandy Hope.’ Not stopping to explain how she knew, the girl went on, ‘Molly has asked me to take you to Bill.’ She offered a rapid smile with an appealing hint of shyness, then turned away to stride across the yard and round a corner, leaving Mandy to trot behind.

  Bill the Shire horse was tied up outside a short row of stables, resting one hind leg. He looked in great shape, even better than Mandy had dared to hope. He had been so thin last summer that his ribs had stood out and the hollows in his face had been deeply shadowed. Now his dappled grey coat was thick and fluffy for winter, but his belly was healthily rounded beneath the hair and his face looked about a million years younger, despite his age. Mandy turned her body sideways and allowed the old boy to stretch out his nose to her in his own time. It didn’t take him long. The gentle gelding nuzzled at her hair and snuffed in her ear, making her laugh.

  ‘He’s so lovely,’ said the girl who had greeted Mandy. ‘Molly told me all about your rescue last summer. The photos of Bill on your website are lovely, though he’s even more handsome now he’s rounded out a bit.’

  ‘He’s clearly in the best place,’ Mandy agreed. ‘What’s your name?’ she added.

  ‘I’m Nicole. Nicole Woodall.’ The girl was hanging her head again, her face pink as if she was embarrassed to be asked about herself, though she seemed happy to talk about the horse. She untied the lead rope attached to the metal ring and reached up to smooth Bill’s forelock. ‘Would you like me to hold him while you examine him?’ Nicole offered.

  ‘That would be great, thanks,’ said Mandy. She studied Bill, thinking hard. She often gave horses a small dose of sedative when she wanted to do a thorough check inside their mouth. But Bill’s age meant that she was reluctant to take the risk, and Mandy had seen enough of him to know that he was exceptionally quiet and unfussed about being handled.

  Nicole undid Bill’s headcollar and buckled it around his neck, leaving his head free. Mandy held up the rather daunting-looking equine gag and the metal rasp so that Bill could sniff them.

  ‘Nothing to worry about, old chap,’ Nicole murmured, smoothing her palm down Bill’s neck on the other side. Mandy smiled. Nicole reminded her of herself at the same age, infinitely comfortable around animals but not quite so sure about people.

  Running her hands over Bill’s face, she checked for lumps and bumps. The temporomandibular joint felt fine. Bill’s breath smelled sweetly of hay, as it should. Hoping her fingers weren’t too stiff from the cold, Mandy tucked herself close to Bill’s head. Moving very slowly, she eased the gag into his mouth and buckled it behind his poll. He tossed his head experimentally, but Nicole kept a contact on the lead-rope and he stood still again, blinking his long-lashed eyes. Once he seemed settled, Mandy cranked the ratchet attached to the gag so that Bill’s mouth opened wide. He looked a bit startled, but kept still.

  ‘Good boy,’ Mandy praised him. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her headtorch and put it on.

  Bill stood as steady as a rock while she carried out a careful inspection inside his mouth. There were no signs of decay on his teeth, no cheek ulceration. After a thorough visual check, Mandy slipped her hand into Bill’s mouth. The metal gag was cold against her arm as she felt right to the back. As she had expected from his age, there were a few jagged edges on his cheek teeth. Picking up the rasp, she slid it into position and with Nicole holding the old horse’s head still, she worked it backwards and forwards against the rough edges of the lower teeth until they felt smooth.

  Repeating the action on the upper teeth, Mandy could feel her arm tiring. Bill was tall enough that she almost had to stand on tiptoe to reach, and working above your head was always difficult. She was relieved when another check of his teeth with her fingertips revealed the sharp edges had gone.

  ‘I think that should do,’ she said to Nicole as she set the rasp down on the windowsill. After a final glance inside the dark cavity of Bill’s mouth, she closed the gag, allowing his teeth to come together. Then she unbuckled the leather strap. With a grunt of relief, Bill let the gag drop into Mandy’s hand. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, as if enjoying the release of pressure. Mandy leaned her head against Bill’s neck. With her left hand, she stroked his thick coat, enjoying the softness of the hair and the solid feel of his muscles.

  When she looked around again, Nicole was smiling at her. ‘He’s such a special horse,’ she said.

  Mandy nodded. ‘And he’s landed on his feet here – or should I say hooves?’

  ‘Would you like to see my boy?’ Nicole asked with a hint of hesitation.

  ‘I’d love to,’ Mandy replied. Giving Bill a last pat, she opened the stable door to let Nicole walk him in. She emerged a moment later with the headcollar in her hands. Leaving the headcollar on a hook, she led Mandy back to the main yard.

  ‘He’s called Braveheart.’ Mandy could hear pride in the girl’s voice. No wonder, she thought when she saw where Nicole was taking her. Braveheart was the horse she had admired earlier. Jet black, with a huge noble head and tidy hogged mane, his ears pricked forwards as he listened to Nicole’s voice. ‘He’s half Irish Draught and half Thoroughbred,’ the girl told Mandy. She reached up to smooth her horse’s ears. ‘We’ve started doing some eventing this year, and he’s going really well.’

  Mandy could see that the gelding would be ideally suited to competing, with his inquisitive, thoughtful gaze and sturdy build.

  ‘Hello, Mandy.’ This time, the voice was definitely Molly’s. Mandy turned to see Molly approaching across the yard. ‘I see you’ve been introduced to Braveheart.’

  ‘I have.’ Mandy smiled. ‘He’s fabulous,’ she added.

  ‘He is,’ Molly agreed. She turned to Nicole. ‘Have you finished mucking out Sasha?’

  Nicole glanced across the yard. Following her gaze, Mandy could see a ske
wbald horse with one blue eye watching them. ‘Yes,’ she replied. ‘I made a start on Moondance, too.’

  ‘That’s great,’ Molly told her, then to Mandy, ‘Nicole’s a great worker. I’d take her on fulltime if I could!’

  ‘Do you like working with all animals, or just horses?’ Mandy asked, with the seed of an idea growing.

  ‘All animals, definitely,’ said Nicole. ‘I love horses the most, but dogs, cats, rabbits, fish … I think they’re all amazing.’ She paused and her cheeks reddened. ‘I love your website,’ she added. ‘I think it’s wonderful that you’ve opened Hope Meadows.’

  Perhaps that was why Nicole had recognised her instantly when she arrived, Mandy thought. Her photo was on the website as well as Bill’s. It was a relief to hear something positive. Negative thoughts had been swirling in her head more often than she liked after the recent events. ‘Would you like to help out with the animals sometimes?’ Mandy asked. Maybe she had found an answer to at least one of her difficulties. ‘If Molly can spare you, that is?’

  ‘It’d be fine with me if you wanted to,’ Molly said to Nicole. ‘It would be great practice for you to deal with different animals.’

  Nicole was gazing at Mandy with shining eyes. ‘I’d love to,’ she said. ‘I don’t live too far away. Just on the edge of Graylands.’ That was the oldest of the new housing estates that spread along the valley. ‘I could cycle to you easily.’ She straightened up, one hand still resting on Braveheart’s neck. ‘How often can I come?’

  Mandy wanted to laugh. She was absolutely looking in a mirror at her teenaged self, desperate to do anything to spend time with animals. ‘Could you do a couple of evenings a week?’ she said. ‘What about Tuesday and Thursday?’

  ‘Can I come on a Saturday too?’

  Mandy grinned. ‘Of course,’ she said. Coming down to earth, she added, ‘I can’t afford to pay you for now. Are you sure that’s okay?’

  ‘It’s definitely okay,’ Nicole said. ‘I wasn’t expecting you to pay me anyway.’

  Mandy felt a surge of gratitude. As soon as she could afford to give the girl some pocket money, she would. She was sure her rescue animals would love Nicole, and it would do them good to see a different face sometimes.

  ‘Well, that’s settled.’ Molly looked pleased too. ‘Are you still keen to ride? We should probably get on.’ With a last nod to Nicole, Mandy followed Molly across the yard. ‘How did you get on with Bill’s teeth?’ Molly threw the question over her shoulder.

  ‘They were fine,’ Mandy replied. ‘A few sharp edges, but nothing serious.’

  ‘That’s good.’ Molly stopped beside the stable with the skewbald horse. ‘This is Sasha,’ she said. ‘She can be a bit spooky, but if you’re firm with her, she goes well.’

  Mandy looked at Sasha. Her blue eye gave her a lopsided look, but her face was broad and intelligent. ‘She’s lovely,’ Mandy said. ‘I need to borrow a hat, though. Mine was too small. If you have one, that is?’

  Molly looked amused. ‘We’ve got plenty.’ She led Mandy to a well-stocked tack room. ‘There.’ She pointed at a shelf which had a line of hats of all different sizes.

  Mandy picked up a plain black helmet and tried it on. It was too big, but only slightly. Pulling it off, she replaced it and selected one that was half a size smaller. This time, it fitted well. Walking back outside, she found Molly was already more than half way through tacking up Sasha.

  ‘Just about there,’ Molly announced, tightening the girth. ‘I’m going to ride Georgie.’ She pointed out a tall chestnut mare watching them from over a stable door. She was already wearing a saddle and bridle. ‘She’s a retired eventer,’ Molly said. ‘She and Sasha go well together.’ Gathering Sasha’s reins, she led the mare out into the yard. ‘Will you need a mounting block?’ she asked.

  Mentally crossing her fingers, Mandy shook her head. She watched as Molly moved around to tighten the girth another hole, then pulled the stirrups down. Sasha wasn’t enormous. About 16 hands, Mandy guessed, but it was still a long stretch to get her foot up into the stirrup. With muscles that she hadn’t used in years, she swung herself up and to her relief, landed lightly in the saddle. She was glad when Molly continued to steady Sasha while she adjusted the stirrup lengths. The mare was quite fidgety.

  Molly was smiling up at her. ‘How do you feel?’ she asked.

  Mandy wriggled her feet in the stirrups, pushing her heels down. They felt comfortable on both sides. ‘Fine,’ she told Molly. Shuffling forwards slightly, she gripped with her knees and adjusted her reins. Molly let go of the bridle and Sasha bounced sideways, her hooves clattering on the concrete. Resisting the temptation to cling on with her legs, Mandy relaxed her weight a little more into the saddle and shortened the reins very slightly. On the far side of the yard, Molly had mounted Georgie from a stack of breeze blocks.

  Nicole opened the gate for them. ‘Have a good ride!’ she called, waving.

  Mandy nodded, not wanting to take one hand off the reins to wave back. Sasha was certainly responsive. She had a choppy walk, with a tendency to veer sideways, but once she was tucked alongside Georgie, she seemed to calm down a little.

  Molly grinned down at Mandy from the chestnut mare. ‘Sasha goes best if you keep her on a light contact,’ she said. ‘Use your legs to keep her moving forward, and keep her focussed with your hands.’

  For the first few minutes, Mandy found herself concentrating hard. Through the reins, she could feel the mare was keen to get a move on. But the walk, though brisk, was steady and easy to sit in to, and Sasha didn’t even blink when a pigeon flew out of the hedge beside them. Mandy straightened her back and started to relax.

  By the time they reached the gateway that led to the track up the fellside, Mandy was feeling thoroughly at home. Molly was very chatty. The conversation had moved from Hope Meadows to Christmas and then back to Welford.

  ‘What made you move here?’ Mandy finally got a chance to ask a question. She was half hoping that Molly would tell her something about Jimmy, but she didn’t want to be the one to bring him up in conversation. Part of her wanted to tell Molly she was seeing him. But any relationship they had was at such an early stage that she didn’t want to mention it. Also, for all she knew, Molly could still be feeling hurt by the split.

  ‘I heard about the stables coming up for sale and knew I wanted to buy them as soon as I saw them,’ Molly replied. ‘Mrs Forsyth was retiring, so she sold me a lot of her tack and field equipment. I had Georgie and Sasha already. Coco was Mrs Forsyth’s gelding and I agreed to keep him on.’

  ‘So it wasn’t Welford that really drew you?’ Mandy suggested.

  Molly, who had stopped to open the gate that led out onto the fellside, gazed back at the village. They had already climbed high enough to see over the roofs of the houses. ‘Not exactly,’ she said, ‘but as soon as I arrived, I knew I wanted to live here.’ She grinned. ‘And there are definitely a few great perks to living in the Yorkshire countryside, aren’t there? Though I seem to have a preference for men from the Lakes.’

  Mandy stared at her for a moment. Jimmy had grown up in the Lake District and Molly and he had dated a couple of years ago. Had Molly found another man from Cumbria to swoon over?’ Molly’s smile was so wide that Mandy couldn’t help but feel pleased for her. Whoever it was, he was certainly making Molly happy. The gate was open. Steering Sasha through the gate, Mandy tightened the reins. The mare’s ears were pricked, her body tense. She would ask Molly more later, Mandy thought. For now, Sasha needed her full attention.

  ‘Want to go for a run?’ Molly had closed the gate and was smiling. Mandy could see that Georgie had raised her head, ready to go.

  ‘Love to!’

  She barely had time to draw breath before Georgie spun round and raced up the grassy track. Sasha needed no encouragement. The muscular body tensed and surged beneath Mandy, and suddenly the only sounds she could hear were hooves thudding on the firm earth and the wind rushing past. Leaning forward, Ma
ndy relished the chill of the air on her face, a tingling sensation, fresh and exhilarating: she felt truly alive. She kept her hands close to Sasha’s neck, among the thick brown and white mane. The mare felt full of running, but Mandy didn’t feel out of control. She could tell that Molly was having to keep tighter control of Georgie, who was plunging against the reins as if they weren’t going fast enough for her taste.

  Ahead of them, the path stretched from the tree-lined valley right up to the ridge that overlooked the village. They were halfway already, the fell rising steep and green to their left, walled fields falling away to the right. The sky seemed to draw closer as they crested the ridge. Even Georgie slowed down when they reached the top. Sasha returned to a walk in a couple of strides, snorting. Mandy leaned forward to pat her neck, and gave her a loose rein. It was colder up here and the horses’ breath made white plumes of steam in the air. Relaxing back into the saddle, Mandy felt like laughing out loud.

  ‘That was amazing!’ she gasped.

  Molly twisted in the saddle to grin at her. ‘Better than anything in the world!’ she agreed.

  Mandy suddenly felt as if she was being watched. At that very moment, a voice called, ‘Hello!’

  She would know that voice anywhere, she thought. When she looked around, she felt her already glowing cheeks flush an even deeper shade. Jimmy stood beside the track, flanked by a group of people in waterproof walking gear, ranging from a grey-bearded older man, who was breathing hard, to a glamorous young woman. Several of them held cameras and mobile phones to take pictures, though whether they wanted to photograph the horses or the view, or indeed both, Mandy didn’t know.

  Jimmy beamed up at Mandy. ‘I see you’ve gone over to the dark side,’ he said. ‘Hillwalking is much easier with four legs.’

  ‘Technically six,’ Mandy pointed out.

  Jimmy’s grin widened as Molly halted Georgie and looked back. ‘Don’t forget about Friday,’ she called.