Chapter 9 #2
I stare at the invitation, and wonder if he’ll go.
From what he said last night, he’s had his fill of formal events, though this being Budbury, I’m guessing it won’t be formal in any recognisable sense of the word.
I also wonder if I’ll go. I’ve enjoyed my forays into friendship since I arrived here, but I’m still not ready to fully commit.
I’m still probably the kind of person who would cross the road to avoid chatting to anyone.
I am the anti-Edie. I also have my niece’s birthday bash to go to, between now and then, and that might use up all of my social battery for the month.
In fact, after that one, I might have to lock myself in a dark room for a week to recover.
There’s time to worry about all of that later, I tell myself.
For now, I need to get myself to Max’s place, collect my goodies, and find a way to deliver this invitation, that ideally doesn’t involve me coming face to face with Aidan Calloway.
I could do with a day or so to let the memory of those dreams fade away.
I head to Maxine’s first, where I am greeted by a screaming donkey and the sound of a barking dog.
Thisturns out to be Gary, her little black mystery hound who was a rescue from Hungary.
He looks like every breed of dog ever was put in a big mixing bowl and combined to create him.
He’s a friendly little chap once he’s had a good sniff of me, though, and is definitely more outgoing than Gabriel.
He nods at me when he comes into the kitchen for a coffee, and then disappears outside.
‘He’s a man of few words,’ Max says, watching him go and smiling.
‘Luckily I make up for it by being a woman of many.’
I suppose she has a point. I mean, I can be on the quiet side myself. What if I ended up with a guy who was just the same? We’d barely speak. We’d be silent over the dinner table and ignore each other on romantic nights out.
‘So,’ she says, spreading various colour charts and fabric samples over the big old pine table, ‘I rooted these out for you. Obviously, it depends on your tastes and your budget, but these might give you a few ideas. If you need any help just let me know. Gabriel is super-handy and can do most jobs, plus I’ve built up a lot of good trade contacts now.
And I’m always available for a shopping trip.
Only for house stuff, though. Not clothes or shoes or whatever.
If you need a new frock, you’re on your own. ’
I thank her for the help and add: ‘Are you going to this Halloween Ball? I suppose I might need a new frock for that…’
‘Oh gosh yes! Definitely going. And I’m making him come with me. There was a party at the café last year, and he skipped it ’cause he’s a grump. I went as a sexy witch– well, a witch– and that was the night we… ah… connected, when I got back here.’
‘Is that what the kids are calling it these days?’ I ask, as I place the cards and samples in my bag.
‘Okay, fair enough. It was the first night we tore each other’s clothes off.
So, kind of our anniversary really! The kids will all come back for it as well, the village teenagers who’ve moved away, mine who are at uni.
It’ll be fun. We’re going as pirates. Gabriel doesn’t know that yet, so don’t tell him. ’
I can’t imagine a situation where Gabriel and I would ever make small talk.
‘Aye aye captain. Your secret’s safe with me.
I have no idea if I’m going. It’s not… I feel stupid even asking this because I’m sure I know the answer, but it’s not a date type situation, is it? We don’t have to go with partners?’
‘No, Sarah. It’s not like the prom in an American high school movie. There’ll be a coach laid on from the café I suspect, because it’s a bit of a hike to Briarwood. Something to look forward to, anyway.’
‘If you say so,’ I reply, heading to the doorway.
‘I do say so. Stop being a Gabriel. It’ll be hilarious. Singing, dancing, costumes, Cherie’s famous Pumpkin Spice Punch and Murderous Martini. How could you resist?’
‘I’d find it remarkably easy, I’m afraid, Max. Anyway. Thanks again, and I’ll definitely be in touch about the house. It’s only small so I don’t want to get carried away. Lick of paint for now, I think. Plus, I’d like to get rid of some of the downstairs carpets.’
‘I’ll pop round some time if you like,’ she says, walking me to the door, ‘see the state of your floorboards.’
‘I’m not sure I’m ready for that level of commitment, at least not until we’ve been out a few more times… Now, can you give me some directions to Aidan’s place? Edie was threatening to cycle there on her bike to deliver his invite, so I said I’d drop it off for her.’
Gabriel, who is sanding down a pine door nearby, lets out a snort of laughter at that. Max joins in. Gary remains blessedly stoical about the whole thing.
‘Edie doesn’t cycle,’ Max explains. ‘But she is an absolute mistress of gentle manipulation. She has a way of persuading you to do things, without you even noticing. Gabriel is basically her slave, aren’t you, love?’
‘Yep. Happy to be, too.’
This is quite a speech for Gabriel, and I smile at the image of this taciturn man spending time with the old lady. Friendship comes in all shapes and sizes, I guess.
Max gives me instructions on how to reach Hazelwell where Aidan lives, and warns me that there’s no handy post box on the main road, and also that it’s not ‘right in your face’ like their farmhouse is.
Apparently the house is so deeply hidden in the parcel of land around it that nobody’s even seen it in recent times.
I guess that all adds to the sense of mystery around him and fuels the gossipy fires.
I must call in and see Cherie later, I find myself thinking, and give her the lowdown…
if I make it that far, anyway. Maybe I’ll just chicken out and post it to him.
Except… I also brought him a little gift, and now I feel like a complete idiot for that.
I climb back into the car and give a beep as I leave– Max has explained that it is required countryside etiquette to beep when you come or go– and head out into the hills.
I try not to think too hard, because all this ever does is wear me out.
It’s a clear day, but the wind is noticeably stronger than it has been, and I see crisp brown leaves swirling from the trees.
It looks like they’re dancing around in little whirlwinds.
The temperature is dropping, and I wonder how many days of sunshine we have left.
It already feels like we’re on borrowed time.
Before long, I will be preparing for my first Christmas in my new home, which makes me smile.
It already feels like exactly the refuge I was looking for.
Peaceful, quiet, remote, by the sea– but with an unexpected amount of ‘people’ stuff to navigate.
I really hadn’t expected so much people stuff– coffee clubs and unexpected visitors and balls and men.
Or one in particular. One I can’t quite banish from my mind.
I see the wooden sign that points me towards Hazelwell, just as Max told me I would.
I suck in a breath and make the turn. Why am I making such a big deal of this?
I’m dropping a couple of things off with someone who is practically a neighbour, and then I’m going home.
There is no drama to be found here, no moral dilemma.
No cause for embarrassment or self-analysis. In, out, gone.
I tell myself this as I make my way down the narrow one-way track, my car edging between the overhanging greenery and bumping over the uneven terrain. I can see why he has a four-wheel drive.
I reach an open wooden gate and continue on down the path.
I see his big black jeep parked just inside another gate, this one tall and closed to.
I pull up and go to examine the gate. This one is much taller and made of metal.
It’s bolted but not padlocked or anything.
I nervously push back the metal bolt, open it just wide enough to fit myself through, and close it again.
I glance around, finding myself in the courtyard of an old stone farmhouse that’s not dissimilar from the one Max and Gabriel live in.
It’s pretty, in that way that older buildings are– acquiring character as they age.
Off to one side is a wooden outbuilding in good condition– maybe a stable or some kind of store– and a huge pile of chopped logs.
An axe has been lodged solidly into a big stump, and I shake my head to clear off the image of Aidan, shirtless, axe in hand as he works.
I’m turning into a romance novelist. I don’t think my agent would appreciate the change in direction.
I notice that there is a tall metal fence running around the perimeter, disappearing off into the dense woodland behind the house.
I wonder if Aidan is security conscious because of his background.
He literally comes from the kind of family that could be a kidnap risk.
He seems very laid back, but maybe he has been raised to think about risk and danger and potential threats.
If so, maybe he could give me some advice, because I’ve still made no progress in sorting an alarm system for the house.
I walk towards the door, my feet crunching on the gravel, and knock on it firmly before I can chicken out.
I cast my eyes around, looking for cameras, but see nothing, not even a Ring doorbell.
It’s quiet out here, just the sound of the birds in the background and the whistle of the wind blowing through the treetops. I knock again. Nothing.