Chapter 24
‘Argh, Nic! Can you remember where these are supposed to go?’ Laura held up two large ceramic statues of a bride and groom as she looked around the decking.
‘Yep, over there at the bottom of the steps to the left, I think.’ Nicola twisted around on the stepladder, careful not to tug the string of fairy lights she was hanging up from the roof of the decking.
‘Right, of course. Thanks.’ Setting the statues down, Laura ran back up the stairs and gripped hold of the stepladder, looking up at Nicola. ‘I can’t believe that this time tomorrow the wedding reception will be in full swing.’
‘I know. It seemed so far off when Suzy and Owen booked it and yet now, the time has just zoomed by.’ Having finished attaching the wire, Nicola stepped down.
‘And you really think we can pull it off?’
‘I know we can.’ Nicola looked down the garden.
The white metal tables and chairs Suzy and Owen had hired were set up across the lawn, vintage-looking birdcages hung from branches in the trees surrounding the tables, and the willow tree sitting proudly in the centre of the garden was strung with white metal hearts.
Meadowfield’s own brass band would be playing during the reception, and they were busy laying a temporary dance floor just behind the seating area.
Tomorrow, all they’d need to do was to put up more fairy lights in the trees, place the tablecloths and flower arrangements on the tables and the flowers across the banisters of the decking before setting the tables.
‘Yes, yes.’ Laura continued to grip the now-empty stepladder; her knuckles white. ‘Of course we can.’
‘Laura.’ Turning to face her, Nicola held her arm out to encompass the garden. ‘Look what we’ve achieved so far. We can definitely do this. The weather is still predicted to be dry. It’s going to be perfect.’
‘I know, I know.’ Laura began chewing on her nail. They’d been decorating for hours now and she looked tired.
‘You’ve not been sleeping, have you?’ Nicola watched as Laura closed her eyes momentarily.
‘Is it that obvious?’ Laura pasted a grin on her face. ‘I’ve just been worried about this, that’s all.’
‘I thought so, but honestly, we’ve got this.’ Nicola smiled. ‘And once this one is over and done with, any future weddings will be a doddle.’
‘Yes, I guess they will.’
‘How’s Jackson settling in?’
Laura’s face lit up at the mention of her own fiancé. ‘Good, thanks. It’s just as though he’s always been here.’
‘I bet.’ Nicola grinned.
‘Talking of which, I’ll go and check how the preparations are going for the wedding breakfast if we’re done out here?’
‘Yep, I think we’ve done all the prepping out here we can for today.’ Nicola checked her watch. ‘I’ll stay on until the band has finished laying the dance floor.’
‘Okay, thank you. I really do appreciate everything you’re doing.’
Nicola smiled. ‘I wouldn’t be anywhere else. I love it here.’
‘Me too.’ Laura took a deep breath as she looked around the garden before turning and disappearing into the inn.
Looking back up at the fairy lights, Nicola sighed. She’d hadn’t secured one section properly, and the wire was hanging at a weird curve. Moving the stepladder across, she climbed up again.
‘Nic!’
Charlie’s voice snapped her from her thoughts and she looked down at him as she gripped the edge of the stepladder. ‘Charlie, you almost had me falling off then. What are you doing here?’
‘I was in the village picking up some food for our dinner tonight and thought I’d pop by to check you’re still coming over?’
Climbing down from the stepladder again, Nicola wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close before bringing her lips to his. This was the fourth time they’d met up this week and it warmed her heart that he was so keen to spend time together. ‘Absolutely, I am.’
‘Good, that was the answer I was hoping for.’ Charlie grinned.
Stepping back, Nicola looked down at his checked shirt. A large rip in the material ran from the cuff of his left hand all the way to his left shoulder. She ran her finger across it before looking him over. ‘What on earth happened here? Are you okay?’
Charlie followed Nicola’s gaze to his mangled shirt. ‘Apart from my ego and any self-respect I may have had left, I’m okay. I had a run-in with Claudette.’
‘Claudette did this?’ She picked up the two flaps of material, looking at the jagged edges. ‘How? Was she trying to eat it or something? Or has the freedom she’s been enjoying finally turned her feral?’
‘I think she’s been feral for a long time now.’ He chuckled. ‘I found her in the barn again and when I was trying to usher her out, I fell and caught my shirt against the doorframe.’
‘The doorframe?’ Nicola frowned, checking his skin beneath for any cuts.
‘Yes, the metal is a little, umm, rough, I guess, something must have been knocked into it and pulled it out of shape slightly. Another job I need to fix.’
Looking up, she met his gaze and smiled. ‘So, you fell into the doorframe? You weren’t mauled by the vicious fluffy white cloud that is Claudette the sheep?’
‘Well, no, I wouldn’t use the word mauled, but it was up there.’ His lips twitched with a smile.
Placing her hands on her hips, Nicola looked him over, taking in the jeans and the now-ripped checked shirt. ‘You know, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.’
‘Oh yes, should I be afraid?’ He raised his eyebrows.
‘Haha, no, I don’t think so. You seem to have so many of these checked shirts, you know, like proper farmer’s shirts, and yet I can’t imagine you rocking up to your office in the city in one of them.
Did you go out and buy a ton of them when you learned you’d inherited the farm?
Like a bulk order from Farmer’s Clothes Warehouse or somewhere? ’
Throwing his head back. Charlie laughed. ‘I’m not even sure such a place exists. Although if it does, I’d certainly be up for checking it out.’
‘So, these are the fashion in London too?’
‘Haha no.’ Charlie wiped his palm across his face and smiled ruefully. ‘They were my uncle’s. When I turned up, I didn’t really have anything suitable to wear, save a couple of T-shirts, and so I borrowed one of his shirt’s, and I’ve been wearing one every day since. It sounds weird, doesn’t it?’
Nicola tilted her head. Charlie hadn’t been born with the same fashion sense as his uncle then. Shaking her head, she took hold of his hand. ‘Not at all.’
‘It sounds daft, but even though I rarely have a clue what I’m doing on the farm, wearing one of his shirts helps me feel closer to him, gives me a little confidence in my abilities.’
‘That’s not daft.’ Stepping closer, she wrapped her arms around his waist. ‘I think it’s really sweet, actually. You want to honour your uncle’s memory and that’s exactly what you’re doing.’
‘Oh, I hope so. I hope the old boy would be proud of me.’ Hugging her back, he leaned his chin on her shoulder, his breath tickling her ear as he spoke. ‘I doubt myself every day, but I’m trying. I’m trying to learn these new skills. I’m trying to do the right thing.’
‘I know. And you are.’ Her voice cracked as she thought about him leaving.
With every accomplishment Charlie met at the farm, even down to fixing the doorframe, it all took him closer to the time he’d put the farm on the market.
And she had to remember that. However close they were growing, however much her feelings for him were developing, she couldn’t let the reality of him leaving Meadowfield slip from her mind.
Pulling away, he turned to look out across the garden. ‘Anyway, this looks amazing. A world away from the chaos of the forest school yesterday.’
‘Thanks.’ She smiled. Did he feel it too? The uncertainty, the worry of where their relationship would lead? He’d changed the subject pretty quickly. Shoving her hands in her pockets, she forced the thought from her mind and instead reminded herself to focus on the here and now, to focus on today.