Chapter Thirty-Four
‘Friend or family?’ asked the woman behind the reception desk.
For a bizarre moment it reminded me of being asked if you were ‘bride or groom?’ at a wedding. For an even more bizarre moment I considered lying and saying I was family, in case that made it easier to get in.
To say Freeman Manor was exclusive would be an understatement.
The grounds alone explained why Henry chose this as his new home.
They were truly spectacular. It was a gardener’s paradise.
I’d taken a shortcut across the lawn from the car park, panicking halfway across in case I was breaking the rules.
It looked like that kind of place. Beneath my feet the grass had been deep and springy, as though below the turf someone had planted a layer of memory foam.
I found myself tottering as I walked on the balls of my feet, fearful that my kitten heels would damage Freeman Manor’s immaculate lawns and I’d be evicted before I’d even made it to the reception.
‘Friend,’ I said decisively.
I knew from the home’s website that visitors were welcome at any time, but I still felt like an imposter as the woman reached for a sign-in book and visitor’s pass.
‘Would someone be able to direct me to Henry’s apartment? I’ve not been here before.’
‘I know. I’ve an excellent memory for faces . . . although there is something very familiar about yours.’ She lifted a single eyebrow curiously. It was an impressive facial manoeuvre that looked like it must have taken a great deal of practice to perfect. I was a little envious of it, to be honest.
‘Actually, I believe you’ll find Henry in the conservatory at this time of day. I’ll ask one of the carers to show you the way. If you’d just take a seat over there for a moment, someone will be with you shortly.’
I dutifully crossed the foyer to sit on one of the velvet-covered armchairs I’d been directed towards. As the minutes ticked past, I was beginning to regret turning down Rhys’s offer to come with me.
‘I can easily rearrange my morning,’ he assured me, buttering slices of toast for both of us. I liked seeing him in my kitchen on the mornings when he stayed over. It was a novelty that I really didn’t think was ever going to wear off.
‘That’s lovely of you, but I’ll be fine on my own.’
He’d abandoned the butter knife and come around the kitchen island to slide his arms around my waist.
‘I know that. You’re the most capable woman I’ve ever met. I just wanted you to know that you don’t have to do everything alone if you don’t want to. If you need someone to lean on, you can lean on me.’
‘Same,’ I said.
He gave me a kiss that tasted of butter, marmalade, and a promise of tomorrow. It was a sweetly intoxicating combination. My hands slid to his shoulders, revelling in the solidity of him. It was hard to imagine a time when Rhys would ever need to lean on me, but it was a lovely sentiment.
After ten minutes a young, cheery-faced carer bounced into the reception to escort me to Henry.
I’d spent the intervening time studying my surroundings, noting with interest that everything around me looked expensive.
I’d seen enough furniture in my job to recognise the difference between antique and reproduction, and these were definitely the real deal.
I knew nothing of Henry’s personal circumstances, but clearly being a maths teacher was far more lucrative than I realised, because this place must cost a fortune.
What I hadn’t allowed myself time to consider, I realised as I fell into step beside the carer, was how to explain to Henry why I was there.
I wanted to make sure you were alright was almost as ludicrous as I wanted to make sure you weren’t a guardian angel.
Before I could find a solution, the young girl turned one last corner and we came to a stop before the doors of an enormous conservatory.
Beyond the glass I could see a room filled with ferns and palms and dotted among them were comfortable armchairs and settees.
My first sweep of the room failed to spot its single occupant, but the girl beside me gave a smile and inclined her head towards the far end of the room, where someone was sitting in a wing armchair reading a newspaper. Protruding above the top of the broadsheet were tufts of silver-coloured hair.
‘There he is. In his favourite spot,’ she said, frowning as the pager clipped to her uniform suddenly trilled and flashed red. ‘Sorry, I need to answer this.’
‘That’s okay,’ I said, my hand already reaching for the door handle. I fixed a smile on my face and made my way across the gleamingly polished wooden floor towards my friend.
‘Hello, Henry.’
I’m not sure which of us was the most startled. He dropped his newspaper at the sound of my voice, and my jaw dropped just as fast when I saw the large wound dressing on his forehead. Creeping out from beneath it was a yellow-tinged bruise that didn’t stop until it reached his cheekbone.
‘Ellie, what are you doing here?’ Henry exclaimed, immediately moving as though to stand up.
My eyes took in the tremor in his hands and the walking stick beside his chair.
‘Please don’t get up,’ I said, taking a step towards him, aware that my heart was thudding in my chest. I’d been right. There had been a reason to be concerned. But how on earth had I known it?
‘What happened to you, Henry?’
‘Gravity,’ he said with a rueful smile. ‘Well, that and a tiny altercation with a rug and a slippery floor.’
‘Oh my God, did you break anything?’
‘Bone-wise, happily no,’ he replied with his usual acerbic wit. ‘But there was a vase on a nearby table that didn’t fare so well.’ He raised a hand and tapped the covered head wound with his index finger. ‘I got this from the table. It’s all so silly, really. Just a big fuss over nothing.’
‘It looks a little more serious than that, if you don’t mind me saying,’ I said, my eyes going from the dressing to the bruise, and then to the stick. ‘But I’m glad it wasn’t any worse.’
Henry nodded sagely. ‘It’s nowhere near as dramatic as being struck by lightning. You still win with that one.’
I shook my head, but my smile made its first tentative appearance. ‘I don’t think it’s a competition.’ I could still vividly remember the look of absolute horror on Henry’s face when I’d told him what had happened to Rhys and me.
Without waiting to be asked, I slipped onto the chintz-covered armchair beside him.
‘Well, I’ve answered your question, Ellie, but you still haven’t replied to mine. What are you doing here?’
‘I came to check you were okay, obviously,’ I said, still covertly scanning him for further signs of injury. ‘I realised I hadn’t seen you at the cemetery for quite a while, and I started to worry that something might have happened. With good cause, as it turns out.’
‘You came all this way for a casual acquaintance who you sometimes see at the cemetery?’
I leant closer and placed my hand over his.
‘No, I came all this way for a friend who was worryingly absent.’
Something happened then on Henry’s face. His eyes grew a little brighter and for just a moment I thought his lower lip might be trembling. But his voice was as measured and calm as ever.
‘You are an exceptionally kind and thoughtful young woman, Ellie.’ He turned his hand, and just for a moment his fingers gripped mine. ‘You are a credit to the woman who raised you. Elizabeth would be very proud of you.’
For once I didn’t try to deflect his words or deny them. ‘I really hope that’s true.’
‘I’m absolutely sure of it,’ Henry said in a voice that brooked no argument.
This time it was my lip that was in danger of trembling. I drew in a steadying breath and turned my attention to the room we were sitting in.
‘This is a beautiful place to come and relax.’
‘Hardly any of the residents seem to use it,’ Henry said sadly. ‘But I like to come here in the morning with a cup of coffee and read the newspaper.’
It sounded like a delightful way to spend his time, and not at all the kind of thing someone who hated living here would say.
‘The flowers are amazing,’ I said, noticing that on practically every side table a vase was positioned holding a gorgeous display of blooms.
‘Ah, those are left over from a recent wedding in the home. Two of our lady residents got married quite recently. It was my first same-sex wedding, and it was really rather beautiful. We all had to wear hats.’
I smiled. No, it definitely didn’t sound as though Henry hated it here. A knot of concern that I hadn’t even known I was harbouring slowly began to unwind.
‘I am so sorry to have worried you and not to have been around to keep an eye on your mother’s plot for you. I hope it hasn’t grown too unwieldy.’
‘That’s not something you should be worrying about,’ I reminded him for what had to be at least the twentieth time.
‘Still, I don’t like to leave a job half done.’
‘You’ve taught me well,’ I said, extending my hands. ‘These fingers are practically green now.’ Henry, who could remember when I scarcely knew one end of a trowel from the other, simply smiled.
We spent a very pleasant hour in the conservatory. A woman pushing a trolley came around with tea and coffee, and it was with genuine reluctance that I eventually got to my feet. I would have liked to have stayed longer, but I had afternoon viewings scheduled and needed to go back to work.
‘I’ll see you at the cemetery as soon as the doctors give me a green light,’ Henry promised.
‘Don’t rush back. Bee will understand why you haven’t been able to visit her, I’m sure of it.’ I’d heard so many stories about Henry’s other half that I felt like I knew her myself.
‘As I said before, Ellie, you are a very kind and thoughtful person.’
Impulsively, I bent down and pressed a brief kiss on his cheek. I wasn’t sure if that was appropriate, but the softening in Henry’s expression made me think it had been a good call.
‘I’ll take care of things at the cemetery until I see you there again,’ I assured him, never knowing that I was going to be seeing him much sooner than that.