Chapter 21
‘Are things any better between you and Jack?’ Astrid asked. Today she was ploughing her way through a tube of Pringles, with a Revels chaser. ‘Want one?’ She offered the packet of Revels to Molly, who shook her head.
‘No thanks. I can’t stand the orange or coffee flavoured ones – it’s like playing Russian Roulette with chocolates. Why don’t they make them different shapes or something, so you can tell which is which?’
‘Sadists,’ Astrid mumbled around a toffee. ‘Well?’
Molly pulled a face. ‘He’s not speaking to me,’ she said, then added, ‘He is, but not the way he was speaking to me before. He’s gone all distant and polite. It’s been three days now, and I’m not sure I can take any more of it. It’s like living with a cardboard cut-out. Thank goodness for Reuben – at least with him there in the evenings I’ve got someone to talk to besides the dog. Jack’s still helping with the flower beds, but I can tell his heart isn’t in it, so I’m leaving him to it and sorting out the woodland with Reuben instead. He’s doing brilliantly! He’s already created a path wide enough for two to walk abreast, and today he said he was going to source some fallen logs and dot them along the path for people to sit on and enjoy the peace.’
‘Aren’t you worried they’ll sit around drinking and smoking instead?’
‘That is a concern,’ Molly agreed, ‘but at least they can’t do it in the evenings.’ She rose, deciding to put the kettle on. Seeing Astrid eating her own weight in crisps and chocolate was making her hungry, but lunch was a good hour away, so she would have to make do with a cup of tea and a custard cream.
‘Is Jack still locking the gates?’
‘He is, and there has been a definite reduction in the amount of litter since. The youngsters aren’t happy, of course, and we’ve both had some abuse shouted at us – Jack more than me. He’s the one who tells them they have to leave because he’s about to lock up.’
The phone rang, and Astrid pointed frantically at her mouth, having loaded it with another chocolate.
‘I’ll get it,’ Molly said, sitting back down. ‘Watkin and Wright, how may I help?’ She automatically picked up a pen in case she needed to make a note, but she dropped it onto the desk when she heard what the caller was saying.
Astrid looked at her in concern. ‘Is everything OK?’ she mouthed.
Molly nodded.
But it wasn’t OK, because the person on the other end of the phone had given her the news she’d been dreading.
Jack had an offer on his house.
***
‘Jack, I’ve got something to tell you,’ Molly said, as soon as she walked into the cottage later that afternoon.
Jack was on one knee in the hall, tying his laces ready to go for a run, Jet at his side.
The dog bounded over and gave her an enthusiastic welcome as Molly crouched down and ruffled his ears. Sadness pricked her when she thought how much the dog would miss Jack. Jet adored the guy almost as much as he adored her, and he loved accompanying Jack on his runs – the exercise did him such a lot of good. Maybe she’d have to take up running after Jack moved out…
She was under no illusion that as soon as contracts were exchanged Jack would be off. This was only ever meant to be a temporary measure, despite her praying that he might stay on. And the way he had been behaving lately, she knew he couldn’t wait to leave.
‘What is it?’ he asked, looking up as he tied the last lace.
She waited for him to straighten up because she wanted to see his face when she gave him the news, even though she already guessed he would be over the moon.
‘You’ve had an offer on your house for the full asking price,’ she told him.
Jack’s mouth dropped open and his eyes widened, and for a second he looked taken aback, then a smile spread across his face. ‘That’s brilliant. Wow! I’d better make some calls. How long do you think it will take until the sale goes through?’
Molly exhaled slowly. ‘There’s no chain on their side, so it depends on how fast the two sets of solicitors work. The other party will have a survey undertaken, which usually takes a few weeks, and their mortgage company will come out to value it, and then there are the various searches that have to be done, so… hopefully not more than three months?’
Molly didn’t miss the disappointed expression that flitted across his face.
‘It could be less,’ she added, trying to reassure him, despite her heart feeling as though someone was sticking pins in it.
Pull yourself together,she thought. It wasn’t his fault she was in love with him.
She hadn’t realised how deeply she felt until Jack had started to withdraw from her, and now she was in a right pickle. Fancy being in love with the guy you live with, and him being utterly oblivious! Even worse, Molly suspected he was still in love with his ex – who she also suspected was no longer an ex at all.
‘That’s good news, isn’t it?’ she said, with false cheer. There was no way she was going to let Jack know how heartbroken she was at the prospect of him moving out.
‘It sure is.’ He nodded, the smile back on his face, and Molly’s heart sank even further.
Look at him – he was thrilled to bits at the news, and it was obvious he couldn’t wait to leave.
‘I’d… er…’ He pointed to the front door.
‘Sorry.’ Molly stepped to the side to allow him to pass, careful not to touch him. The friendly, flirty strokes on his arm, the accidental (on purpose) brushing against him was no more. These days she was extra careful to keep her distance.
After she had closed the door behind him, she leant against it sadly. He’d hardly stepped outside before he’d removed his phone from the zippered pocket of his running shorts and she guessed he couldn’t wait to pass on the good news to Chantelle.
There was one thing preying on her mind though, and that was… if he and Chantelle had indeed got back together, why was he so pleased about having an offer on the house? Surely it would make more sense to take it off the market and for them to move back in together?
Or did they want to make a fresh start somewhere new?
Molly pursed her lips: with her and Jack’s formerly friendly relationship now decidedly frosty, it was too late to ask.
***
That’s it, Jack thought as he scrolled down the list of contacts on his phone and pressed Della’s number. The sale was really going through.
Even though he had moved out and was living in the park keeper’s cottage with Molly, he still hadn’t truly believed that sooner or later his house would belong to someone else, that another bloke would mow the lawn, that another—
‘Della? It’s me, Jack. I’ve got good news.’
‘I was about to phone you,’ his sister said.
‘Oh? Why?’
‘I’ll tell you in a minute – you go first.’
‘We’ve had an offer on the house, for the full asking price,’ he announced.
‘That’s brilliant!’
‘Isn’t it!’
He couldn’t have sounded very convincing because Della was immediately contrite. ‘Sorry, Jack, I know how hard this must be for you.’
‘It’s just a house.’
‘But it’s your first proper home.’
‘Yours, too,’ he pointed out. He glanced back at the cottage as he lifted the latch on the gate to allow Jet to go through ahead of him. There was no sign of Molly, and he wondered whether she was in the kitchen cracking open a celebratory bottle of Prosecco. He paused, one hand on the nearest post; he couldn’t begin his run until he’d finished his conversation and put his phone away.
‘Yeah, but I moved out ages ago,’ his sister said. ‘I know you were hoping you would be able to buy me out.’ She hesitated. ‘We don’t have to go through with it, you know. I don’t want to turf you out of your home. I can raise the money another way.’
‘Such as?’
‘I don’t know – I’ll think of something.’
‘The house was never meant to be a permanent home,’ he reminded her. ‘All it was ever supposed to be was the first rung on the property ladder. It’s about time we both climbed to the second rung.’ Unfortunately for Jack, there would be no second rung any time soon. He would most likely be standing on ground level again before too long. But Della didn’t need to know that. If she did, she would insist on taking the house off the market and demand that he continued to live in it. Her dream of owning the guest house in Alaska where she worked with Scott, would be seriously compromised.
‘Speaking of homes… how is the lovely cottage in the park?’ she asked. ‘I can’t wait to see it.’
‘I’ve sent you loads of photos. You have seen it.’
‘Not in the flesh. And I can’t wait to meet Molly.’
‘That’s unlikely to happen,’ Jack said.
‘Oh, but it is, big brother. That’s why I was about to phone you. I thought I would pop over and say goodbye to the house, and no doubt there’ll be things to sign now. Plus I want to see you and Mum.’
‘I’ve only just heard about the offer. I haven’t even appointed a solicitor yet,’ Jack told her.
‘You’d better pull your finger out then, hadn’t you?’
‘Molly says it could take three months for contracts to be exchanged,’ Jack pointed out. He dearly wanted to see his sister, but he didn’t want her to waste money on airfare when she’d only have to fly over again when it was time to sign on the dotted line. And neither did he want to show her around the cottage, because it wasn’t his pride and joy: it was Molly’s.
He also didn’t want Della to meet Molly. His sister was very astute – she would be able to see how he felt about his landlord in a flash, and that would never do.
‘Jack, what’s wrong? And don’t say nothing, because I know there is.’
Darn it: Della was as bad as their mother when it came to female intuition. ‘It’s Chantelle,’ he blurted, without thinking.
‘Jack? Jack? You’re breaking up. What did you say?’
‘I said, it’s Chantelle,’ he repeated, raising his voice.
‘What?’
‘Chantelle.’ He shouted the name, then wished he hadn’t when he saw Molly’s face at the window. He turned around, so his back was to the house.
‘Did you say “Chantelle”? What’s she done?’
‘Can you hear me now?’ Jack asked.
‘Yes, that’s better. I asked, what’s Chantelle done? I thought you had finished with her.’
‘I have. Just a problem at work, that’s all. Nothing for you to worry about.’
‘Good. I never thought she was right for you.’
‘You’ve never met her,’ Jack said.
‘I didn’t need to.’
‘Are you still coming to the UK?’ he asked, changing the subject. ‘You might want to wait until the paperwork is ready for signing.’
‘Absolutely, I do! It will only be a quick visit to you though, because I want to spend as much time with Mum as I can, if that’s OK with you?’
‘Of course it is. I’m just delighted to see you.’
‘Are you free on Thursday? My flight lands at Heathrow at around eleven in the morning, so I thought I’d hire a car at the airport, see you first, then drive on up to York afterwards.’
‘I’ll make sure I’m free,’ Jack promised.
‘Fantastic! Maybe I can pop in to see the house one last time, then you can treat me to an early dinner?’
Jack turned back to the cottage, wondering if Molly was still watching him, but there was no sign of her. ‘Of course.’
‘Love you, big bro.’
Jack smiled. ‘Love you, too.’
The call ended and his smile quickly faded. He should have said those three little words to Molly when he had the chance. At least she’d have known how he felt, even if she didn’t feel the same way. But he had left it too late, and now another man had claimed her heart.
As Jack called the dog to him, he caught a glimpse of his rival in the distance and scowled.
That’s what Molly had been doing at the window, he thought – waiting for Reuben to make an appearance.
And he was proved right as he heard the unmistakable click of the latch when he was halfway to the gate near the bandstand, and glanced behind to see Molly rushing off in Reuben’s direction.
***
It might be silly to cry over someone who had never been hers in the first place, but Molly couldn’t help it. Jack mightn’t be her boyfriend but in the few short weeks since he’d moved in she felt closer to him than she had ever felt to any man – even without ever having kissed him.
However, the Jack she’d come to know and had fallen in love with, was a different Jack to the man who had been so delighted to be told his house had been sold.
And she knew why – Chantelle. He had phoned her barely a minute after Molly had told him the news, and although she hadn’t heard him tell Chantelle that he loved her, Molly had been able to lipread well enough. Even if she hadn’t, the soppy look on his face would have told her everything she needed to know. Jack was still in love with her.
Whether or not they were a couple again, Molly wasn’t certain, but it was only a matter of time she thought, as she hurried to catch Reuben before he knocked off for the day. She was dying to see if he had managed to find any suitable logs, and where he’d placed them. Then once he’d gone, she’d sit on one of them and have a good cry.
The only consolation was that Jack didn’t realise how she felt about him, because if he did things would be even more unbearable than they already were.