Leonora stifled a giggle. ‘Seriously, could you be any more unsubtle?’
‘No! Because he’s annoying. Last week he drove past me in the village in his stupid sports car and I know he saw me but instead of waving back, he revved it up like a boy racer then sped off. He looked a right pillock because he only went a few yards and got stopped at the pedestrian crossing by the lollipop lady. About a hundred kids took their time dawdling across while he had to wait. He’s a complete arsehole.’
‘I’m cringing.’ Leonora really was.
‘And I’m just saying it like it is. Anyway, I don’t think your mum will give a stuff if you ditch him. Carmen is so cool and as long as you’re okay that’s all she cares about. No way will she take the huff about a wedding and anyway, you and Joel are soulmates and one day you’ll get hitched. I know it.’
‘Okay, Gypsy Rose Lee, but let me get rid of Caspar before you start planning my second hen party. And I know you’re right about Mum but it’shimI’m worried about. Don’t forget how awkward it’s going to be professionally. The firm he works for have been our accountants forever and it could cause problems there.’
‘What, like he’s going to fiddle the books and report you to the taxman and have your mum thrown in jail?’ Daniella chuckled, clearly finding this scenario most amusing.
‘I don’t know. He might want revenge, or be so broken-hearted he loses his mind and the last thing I want is him causing a scene at the farm, or the garden centre, or turning up in the middle of Christmas dinner or ringing me every two minutes. He’s a control freak and I reckon he might turn nasty.’
Daniella immediately had the solution. ‘Okay, okay, I get the message. But the way I look at it, he won’t take it lying down whenever you tell him and that’s why I think you should do it now. And if he gets nasty I’ll send my Chris round to sort him out. And I’ll come too. He’s already scared shitless of me.’
Leonora laughed, picturing her beautiful best friend, a petite brunette whose sensitive and caring nature was a complete bluff because she had the heart of a lion and the roar to go with it. ‘Never mind Caspar. I’m scared shitless of you. All of Gawsworth is scared of you, Dan.’
‘Well, just you remember that if knobhead causes trouble. I’ll bring my gun.’
Taking a sip of her coffee Leonora couldn’t help but smile as she remembered the conversation and once again indulged herself with the mental image of Daniella chasing Caspar off the farm on Christmas morning, pointing her dad’s old hunting rifle, blasting the tyres of his shiny sports car and taking out the back window as he sped off.
The door of the break room opened and pulled her from her dreams and for a second she was disappointed that her solitude was about to end, until she saw who it was.
Sam was their kitchen porter, an extremely genial man who got on well with everyone but away from the hubbub he came across as shy and very private. They’d become friendly ever since she spotted him reading one of her favourite books,Robinson Crusoeand she’d asked if he was enjoying it. He said he was but had read it many times. She said, ‘Snap!’
Leonora was reading a book by Keri Beevis – one of her favourite authors – and she promised to give him her copy once she finished. They had bonded over literature, forming a tentative friendship – mainly one where she chattered on and he for the most part nodded and listened. And then boom. Lockdown.
Their fledgling friendship was curtailed and she had worried about Sam, hoping he’d stayed well so when they all finally came back to work Sam was one of the people she’d been looking forward to seeing the most. Normal service was resumed, catching a few minutes between shifts, one usually heading off as the other came in and their conversations remained light, a way of passing a few minutes while they relaxed.
Once again Leonora found herself drawn to her introverted friend. Her gran would say it was a father complex, the same one her mum had. Apparently Granny Sylvia had never approved of her daughter’s choice of husband, saying he was far too old and predicting it would end in tears – which it did, but not in the way she meant. But none of the sisters ever talked about that. Not in front of their mum and gran, anyway.
Never having had a granddad either, Leonora didn’t rule out that the reason she enjoyed Sam’s company was because he was around the same age as Granny Sylvia. She’d surmised that Sam was in his seventies. Handsome in a rugged way, perhaps you could say he’d had a hard life, outdoors. His brown soulful eyes seemed wise, knowing and kind. Leonora imagined his grey curls were once dark, maybe black, and he wouldn’t have been short of female admirers in his youth. He had a gentle voice, sort of mesmerising, that betrayed a faint accent when he spoke. He took time to enunciate, almost eradicating traces of his roots. That was his business though.
This subtle misdirection reminded her of Granny Sylvia who rarely talked about the past, or her life before she left London. She’d been adept at swerving the subject entirely, refocusing the conversation elsewhere. It was like she wanted to wipe it all out and start afresh which was fine, her business and nobody else’s and they’d all accepted it. Her mum was the same.
Their new life had begun when they both moved from London to Manchester and their painful past was simply left behind. It never seemed to bother her mum, so there was no reason to ask especially if it might upset her. All they knew was that their granddad had run off with another woman and was never seen again. Which was why as she got older, Leonora made sure to respect everyone’s right to privacy. She abhorred insensitive nosey parkers who didn’t take the time to think before they spoke. One stupid question could open wounds or ruin a day, cause embarrassment. If someone wanted to tell you about their private life then fine, if they didn’t, that was okay too.
Leonora applied this rule to Sam and sensed that whatever information he had shared was enough for him and he wouldn’t appreciate her prying. In fact, he didn’t delve into her private life either which was a good thing because at the moment it was a hornets’ nest. For the most part they talked about the news, the weather, work and books.
She had gleaned from snippets that Sam had been a dockworker at the shipyard in Tilbury. He then moved north to Manchester where he remained until the Salford Docks finally closed in the eighties. Ever since, he’d worked at the hotel where owing to his loyalty they’d kept him on part-time. Sam hadn’t wanted to retire and remained convinced that having a routine and a focus kept his mind active and his body from seizing up.
Just like Sam, Leonora stuck to facts if she referred to her family, avoiding deep and meaningful insights about her dead dad and disappearing granddad. He knew that she had two older sisters and her mum owned a garden centre. Leonora never bragged and played down how huge a concern it was, talking more about the fresh produce that she wished they could use there in the restaurant. And she’d even confided in him that soon she’d be taking the plunge and opening her own bistro and then her wish would come true because Appleton Farm, and other local producers would supply most of her ingredients.
Sam had seemed genuinely interested and in an unguarded moment told her that he and his better half had an allotment near their home. Gardening was their passion and they spent most of their free time there. It was then that Leonora noticed Sam didn’t wear a wedding ring. He saw her glance at his hand, but didn’t embroider. The moment, the opportunity to take another step evaporated for both of them and he never mentioned his better half again, or whether they had any children, so she didn’t either.
Smiling as he approached, knowing he would take a seat opposite her, she watched as he sat and placed his mug of tea on the table by the side. He took it with lots of milk and two sugars. Sighing the sigh of an exhausted man who was glad to be taking a break he yawned as he spoke.
‘My, it’s busy tonight. I’ll be glad when this shift is over with.’
Leonora nodded. ‘Me too, we’ve not stopped since two. Do you want a lift later? The weather is atrocious.’
‘That would be very kind. I don’t relish the thought of walking from the bus stop if this rain keeps up.’
She had assured him a while back that it wasn’t any trouble diverting to Altrincham on her way home and anyway, she enjoyed the company. Sam had also assured her that for the most part he didn’t mind the twenty-minute bus ride to wind down after a shift but graciously accepted her offer, saying he, too, enjoyed their chats. Leonora loved their polite exchanges, like playing a gentle game of conversational ping-pong. Nice and safe, refreshing really.
‘Have you got your ticket?’ She nodded to the far side of the room where sat the huge hamper rammed with food and wine and next to it an array of the other prizes up for grabs in the staff charity raffle.
‘Oh yes, have you?’ Sam began unwrapping the tin foil parcel on his lap.
