Chapter 17
Pausing in front of the office door, Polly pushed the hood of her coat down and watched the rainwater drip onto the tiled floor of the large foyer.
She was late. She’d decided to take the bus again this morning because of the downpour, but the bus had broken down at the stop before the reserve and so faced with the prospect of waiting ages for a replacement, she’d braved the rain and walked the rest of the way.
But at least it had given her time to think a little and she might just have thought of a way to speed up raising awareness of the reserve.
With her hand on the door handle, she jumped back as Declan’s cheery voice boomed through the door before it opened.
‘Ah, Polly! There you are. We’d begun to think you’d run out on us.’ Declan chuckled as he held the door open for her.
‘Sorry, bus trouble,’ she muttered as she began to walk through into the office. Thinking better of it, she turned to him. ‘Actually, I was wondering if I could have a quick word at some point today, please?’
Pausing with his back against the open door, Declan hitched the sleeve of his coat up and glanced at his watch. ‘Ah, any other day I’d be all yours, but I’ve got a meeting at HQ to go to this morning and will be out all day. Can it wait?’
She hopped from foot to foot. With the idea fresh in her mind and with the limited timeline, she really wanted to get back to Jill today if there was an any possible way she could pull this off.
Watching as she dithered on the spot, Declan shook his head slightly. ‘Walk and talk with me. That’s the best I can do if it’s urgent.’
‘Great. I’m happy to walk and talk.’ Turning, she followed him back the way she’d just come and pulled her hood up just before they stepped outside.
After holding the door open for her, Declan followed and lifted his face to the sky before raising his own coat hood. ‘There’s something refreshing about this weather, isn’t there? Something revitalising.’
Polly swiped at her face as a fat raindrop landed squarely on her forehead.
Refreshing? That’s not the way she’d have described it after walking half a mile through it and getting drenched.
She could feel her wet jeans sticking to her legs and that definitely didn’t feel particularly revitalising, either. ‘Yep, it sure is.’
‘What can I help you with?’ Turning to her, he held the edge of his hood back so he could see her.
‘Zac and I went to a village meeting last night and I just have a couple of ideas to run past you. They’re to do with the upcoming Bonfire Night, which is why I wanted to get your opinion on them today.’ Polly batted a raindrop dribbling off the end of her nose.
‘In Meadowfield?’
‘Yes, that’s right. The community hub have organised a bonfire and fireworks display at the local primary school and will be having food trucks and some stalls inside the hall too.’
‘And what were you thinking?’ Turning, Declan began walking slowly in the direction of the car park.
Walking beside him, Polly took a deep breath before blurting out her ideas.
‘Well, I was thinking we could hire a food truck on behalf of the reserve café and offer hot drinks and some of the food which is served there. And we could also set up a stall inside, print some leaflets and maybe run a competition to win a stuffed toy or something. Anything really just to let people know the reserve is still here, still open and has a lot to offer the people of Meadowfield.’
Declan paused and turned towards her. Tilting his head, he nodded slowly. ‘I can see how this could work.’
‘Yes, I really think it might. Of course it’ll cost us, but I reckon we’d get our money back and make some besides.
Plus, it’ll be worth the outlay to get the word out.
I know we’ve spoken about how we can improve visitors’ experience of the reserve and I know we won’t be able to implement everything in time, but I do think a lot of villagers just don’t see it as a place to come.
’ She shook her head. She wasn’t making any sense.
‘We need to raise awareness if we’re going to attract more visitors. ’
‘Okay, okay.’ Rummaging in his pocket, Declan pulled out a bunch of keys.
‘Make the necessary enquiries. See if it would be possible. Check there are still stalls available, speak to Helena and Jarvis at the café and ask their opinions and if they’d be willing to help and we’ll go from there. How does that sound?’
‘Great. Absolutely great. Thank you.’
‘No worries. I like it.’ Smiling, he held his keys out and clicked the fob, the hazard lights flickering to life on an old Ford Escort.
‘Okay.’ Polly nodded, a slow grin spreading across her face. She’d got his approval. He thought the idea was a good one.
‘Now go inside and get yourself dried off before you catch your death or nothing will get done.’ Nodding towards the visitor centre, Declan chuckled before turning and making his way to his car.
Laughing, Polly spun on the spot, suddenly forgetting how cold and wet she was. If she could organise this in time, it could make a difference. It could be a relatively easy and quick way to remind the villagers of the reserve’s existence and bring in some money.