Chapter 21
CHAPTER 21
S aul was in a quandary.
They’d packed up selling the trees at lunchtime on Monday because of the foul weather. This was after he’d been left sitting like a prune in the steamed up van for an absolute age while Clayton was up at the shed fetching more twine, which he’d then come back without – Saul hadn’t asked but it didn’t take his three A levels to work out what, or rather who, had kept him.
While he’d waited for Clayton, he hadn’t wasted his time. He’d sent Holly a text: Hiya, any idea when you’ll be back in the sticks? All casual, like he wasn’t that bothered. She’d replied gratifyingly fast: Some time Wednesday. Lk fwd to a catchup. H.
Wednesday? He’d expected her before that, considering her term had ended, but the message had sounded promising, like she really wanted to see him. And now it was Wednesday afternoon, and Laura had gone to Lewes Station to meet Holly – he’d heard her tell Clayton when she stopped to speak to him before she drove out of the gates. By Saul’s reckoning, they should be back at any minute. But what then? No doubt they’d drive straight up to the house. Should he wait a while for her to get settled, then nip up there, say ‘hi’ and welcome her home, sort of thing? Or might that seem uncool, or even – perish the thought – a bit desperate? Anyway, there’d be little chance of talking to her properly with her mother there.
The alternatives weren’t that attractive either. If he waited until tomorrow, she’d probably make her way down to the tree site at some point, but then he’d have Clayton within earwigging distance, not to mention half the village. It seemed kind of important that if – when – he asked Holly out on a date, he did it face to face, in private.
Saul sighed inwardly as he scooped eight hot chestnuts into a bag and exchanged them for a quid. If only Holly wasn’t so important to him, he could just go with the flow. But the more he’d thought about what had happened between them back in October, the more she’d sashayed her way into his head, and his heart. Their reunion – and the beginning of what was to come – had to be perfect. He had to get it right. The problem was, he wasn’t too sure how to manage that. Clearly the matter required a lot more serious thought.
‘Mum, I’ve met somebody, at uni,’ Holly said, once the back seat of the car was piled with her rucksack and stuff, and they’d done the did-you-have-a-good-journey conversation.
‘Have you, darling? Who is he?’
Her mum was concentrating on the road as they left Lewes, looking dead front and not at Holly, but her smile said she wasn’t taking this news as seriously as she might have done.
And so Holly told her all about Lorcan, and how close they’d become in such a short time, and how very special he was, and how very special their relationship was. She didn’t add that she was already missing him like crazy and she had no idea how she was going to survive the Christmas holidays without seeing him. They were going to Facetime, Skype, whatever, but she suspected that might make her feel even worse, knowing he was so far away, in the middle of bloody Wales.
‘He sounds lovely,’ her mum said. ‘I take it this Lorcan has some connection to you not coming down right after the end of term?’
‘Might do.’ Holly couldn’t suppress a smile.
‘Well, I hope you’re treating him properly. And he you, of course.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It means … oh, I don’t know.’
Mum flapped a hand, causing the bloke driving a Mondeo on the outside lane to throw her a confused look, like he thought she was doing some sort of hand signal.
The Mondeo driver tooted. ‘Prat,’ Holly’s mum said.
‘No, go on.’ Her mother clearly had something on her mind.
‘Saul Fielding. He asked when you were coming home. And he was listening in when I mentioned to Clayton I was coming to fetch you and making no secret of it.’
‘So?’
‘You had a bit of a thing with him in reading week, didn’t you? And don’t ask me how I know. I just do.’
Holly sighed. ‘It wasn’t a thing . We hung out a bit, that’s all, but no more than I did with everyone else.’
Not quite true, but she wasn’t going to share the juicier details with her mother. Neither would this be the time to mention Saul’s texts; her mother clearly had the bit between her teeth on this one.
‘It doesn’t matter. Forget I said anything – it’s nothing to do with me. Only you know he’s at Spindlewood, don’t you? Saul. Standing in our garden right at this minute?’
Holly nodded. ‘Selling Christmas trees or something. You did say.’
‘Just be careful, Holly, that’s all. If he’s sweet on you it wouldn’t be fair to lead him on, especially with Lorcan in the picture.’
‘Honestly, Mum,’ Holly said, laughing. ‘I do have some scruples you know.’
Her mum’s turn to laugh. ‘Good, well keep it that way.’
They were home now, the car swinging off the hill and in through the gates that were kept permanently open. Holly smiled. Spindlewood looked so pretty, so welcoming, and the lights were up for Christmas even though they weren’t switched on. She loved coming home. Wherever she was in the world, she would always look forward to coming back to Spindlewood.
‘Shall we stop?’ Mum said, glancing at her. ‘Your decision.’
In one sweep of her gaze, Holly took in rows of Christmas trees filling a large area of the lawn, a hot chestnut brazier, and a tent thing at the back, where Clayton was standing. And there was Saul, too, kind of looking right at her but kind of pretending he wasn’t. Her stomach tightened, just a tiny bit; she’d forgotten how handsome he was.
‘Yes. Stop.’
Mum stood on the brake. Clayton came up to her window as she lowered it and said ‘hello’ to both of them, although he must have seen her mum less than half an hour ago. That was some smile he gave her, Holly was amused to note. He was just a bit gorgeous, for an old guy, even with that daft hat on. She’d never spotted that before.
Saul came up behind Clayton. She beckoned him round and lowered her window. ‘Hiya.’
‘Hi. Welcome home.’
‘Ta. See you down the Goose some time, I expect.’
‘Yep, you can rely on it.’
Another car had come up behind theirs, two in fact. People coming to buy Christmas trees, no doubt.
‘Good to have you back, Holly,’ Saul added, stepping back as the car pulled away.
Her mum was right; she would have to be careful there. But she’d already known that without being told. She could see Saul in the rear-view mirror, standing half in the drive and looking in the direction of the car. Extra careful, then.
She was home. And he’d spoken to her. She’d looked worn out; it was a long journey from Birmingham – two trains, one to London, then one down to Lewes – so it wasn’t surprising. In a way, the few words they’d exchanged had left him in a kind of limbo. It hadn’t been enough to suss out whether she was especially pleased to see him or if she was just being friendly. He mustn’t expect too much too soon, though.
‘She’s back then,’ Clayton observed unnecessarily, widening his eyes meaningfully at Saul.
‘Obviously.’
Saul raised his eyes, and turned his attention to a middle-aged couple who’d just climbed down from their Range Rover and were inspecting the trees. He knew them slightly because they were friends of his parents. After they’d paid for their tree and it had made its way into the back of the Range Rover, he gave them each a bag of chestnuts for free, because Clayton had said they were calling it a day soon. It was perishing cold, admittedly, and the sky overhead had turned the colour of a day-old bruise. At least if he was off the premises, there’d be no chance of him hoofing it up to the house to chase down Holly, which he knew now would be totally the wrong thing to do.
They packed up in double-quick time, and as they drove away in the van, Saul turned and glanced back at the house, but there was no sign of Holly. Clayton must have noticed him looking.
‘You do know it would be the same every time she went away, don’t you? Worrying yourself sick over who she’s with and what she’s doing when she’s gone. Driving yourself mad every time she’s due back. Find yourself a nice local girl, I would.’
Thinking about Laura, Saul was going to say like you have, you mean , but thought better of it. Clayton and Laura weren’t even seeing each other, as far as he knew, although you’d never know it from the way they acted when they were together.
Instead, he said: ‘We’ll see,’ while he wondered if his blue shirt had been through the wash yet, the one Holly had once said matched his eyes. She’d been sober at the time. Well, almost.