‘I’m so sorry,’ he said, walking towards me. ‘I didn’t think you’d be here already.’
‘Drinks with Rosie and her friends.’
He grimaced. ‘I should have thought. It was meant to be one quick drink and he’d be gone before you got here.’
‘Did he know I was joining you for the quiz?’
‘Yes, so he suggested the Lakeside Inn instead, but I thought we had time and… well, clearly we didn’t.’
‘It’s not your fault. It was going to happen sooner or later. I’d have preferred later.’
‘It could be the perfect chance to get it over with.’
I started shaking my head vigorously before Mark even finished his sentence. ‘I’m not ready. Moving back here is a lot for me and I can only handle one thing at a time.’
Mark nodded solemnly. ‘I get it. Sorry, Mel. I shouldn’t have?—’
‘It’s fine. As you say, you weren’t expecting me to be here. Tell Georgia I’ll call her tomorrow.’
‘Don’t go! We’ll take our drinks into the beer garden. You don’t have to see Flynn.’
‘No need. I’ve got some stuff to think about. Tell Flynn…’ I paused. What was the message? ‘Tell him I know we probably do need to talk at some point but not yet.’
‘Any idea when?’ he asked gently.
‘Too soon to say.’ I tapped the side of my head. ‘Lots going on up here. See you soon, yeah?’
‘Okay.’
As I walked away, I had a sense of being watched. I was pretty sure it was Flynn looking out of the window but I wasn’t going to turn around. If I made eye contact with him, I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to keep walking away and I had to do that. I’d break if I didn’t.
15
On Saturday morning, I dressed warmly, pulled on my wellies and made my way over to Casa Alpaca – the area near the estate entrance where the alpacas were kept. Rosie had told me that it would be Emma’s first day back at work after her holidays and I was eager to meet her as, from what Oliver and Rosie told me, she sounded like somebody I was going to really like.
There’d been a heavy frost overnight and the ground crunched satisfyingly beneath my feet. My breath hung in the air and my nose and cheeks tingled from the bite of the chilly early morning. The trees surrounding the hall looked picture-postcard beautiful with a layer of frost clinging to the branches. There wasn’t any snow forecast but I hoped I’d one day see the estate covered in snow as, if it looked this stunning on a frosty morning, I could imagine it looking magical under a blanket of snow.
Casa Alpaca was approached down a lane with neatly cut hedges either side, their branches twinkling with the frost. Parked at the end of the lane, facing me, was a small van with the back doors open. A woman with long dark hair beneath a yellow bobble hat was unloading some straw bales. She looked up and smiled as I approached.
‘Are you Emma?’ I asked.
‘I am. You must be Mel.’
‘That’s me. Architect in residence.’
She laughed at that. ‘I’m so excited that they’re kickstarting the refurb. It’s such a stunning place. Deserves some care and attention.’
‘I completely agree. I’ve been in love with the hall pretty much my whole life so I keep having to pinch myself that I’ve got this opportunity.’ I nodded towards the bales. ‘Can I help you with anything? I was keen to meet you but I don’t want to stop you working.’
‘You can give me a hand carrying these through if you don’t mind.’
She closed the van doors and opened the gate. I was a little disappointed not to see any alpacas.
‘The herd are at the other side of the paddock,’ she said, as though reading my mind. ‘I wanted to get this fresh bedding down before I call them in for their breakfast.’
I followed Emma’s directions to pile up the bales in a wooden storage cupboard, leaving one out to distribute in what she called the Paca Shack – a large wooden structure with stable doors at either end. She told me the alpacas were fed inside it but might also bed down, especially in the colder weather. The floor had already been cleared of the old straw and swept.
‘I met your dad last week and he said you were away in Northumberland,’ I said as we scattered straw across the floor. ‘Did you have a good holiday?’
