Chapter Twenty #2
Hattie knew her sister was thinking about coming to the locality but mostly managed to forget about it. She smiled as their hostess approached.
‘Sheila! This looks amazing!’ said Hattie, kissing Sheila’s cheek. ‘Let me introduce you to my sister, Leonie.’ She placed her hand on Leonie’s shoulder but she needed no encouragement. Leonie was good at this.
‘And you know Sam and Rose,’ Hattie went on. ‘From the quiz.’
‘Of course!’ said Sheila. ‘I’m so glad you could come. Do you know people? Can I introduce you to anyone?’
‘Actually,’ said Rose, ‘if it wouldn’t seem too rude, can I have a look round your garden before it gets too busy? It’s so beautiful. I can see a sweet pea wigwam from here.’
Sheila was obviously delighted. ‘July is a great month for fragrance; we have the lilies as well. Although the dahlias don’t smell of much they do like to show off with their huge flower heads like Ascot hats!’
‘It’s so kind of you to give a party for Hattie,’ said Leonie when Rose and Sam had gone off to explore.
‘Anything for Hattie!’ Sheila began, and then stopped, possibly realising that Leonie didn’t know everything that Hattie had done for them. ‘I mean, she’s been so kind to my daughter and she’s become a family friend. Come and have a drink.’ She drew Leonie towards the bar area.
Hattie was following when suddenly Fiona appeared and hugged her. ‘Hattie! It’s so lovely to see you! Isn’t it, Nick?’
Nick smiled his agreement. They were both lightly tanned, and looked relaxed, happy in each other’s company. Nick had his arm round Fiona’s waist as if they’d been together for years. Hattie couldn’t help noticing how much he had changed from the slightly taciturn client she had once known.
‘I’m delighted to see you too! And you’re both looking so… well!’
They exchanged a quick, intimate glance before Fiona went on excitedly.
‘I was thrilled when Mum said we were having a party, because although we’re not making any sort of announcement as it’s so soon after last time but…
’ She leant in to whisper. ‘We’re engaged!
We haven’t told Dad as he’ll worry he’s got to spend loads of money for a wedding, but this time it’ll be very low key.
And not until next year. But we wanted you to know. ’
Hattie hugged Fiona. ‘That is so good to hear! How did it happen?’
Nick looked lovingly at Fiona. ‘I may have rushed it a bit. I didn’t want to risk losing her, so I blurted it out over the Greek yoghurt and strawberries at a little B and B in France.’
‘And I said yes instantly because I didn’t want to risk him going down on one knee or anything.’ She squeezed Nick’s hand. ‘But then he asked me again, and I said yes again.’
‘So there was no doubt,’ said Nick.
‘What a great story! I do love a happy ending!’
‘Or a happy beginning! And thanks to you we should have a wonderful new home to start that beginning,’ said Nick, looking pleased and proud.
A few minutes later, Hattie moved away, leaving Fiona and Nick to wander round the garden hand in hand, hoping her vision concerning her sister would work out just as well.
She went to join Leonie, who was chatting away to a nice couple who must have been friends of Sheila’s, and took a glass of champagne from a passing tray.
‘Hattie!’ said Leonie. ‘Allow me to introduce you to—’
Hattie responded accordingly and as she did so, she noticed Tom Saye arrive. She took hold of her sister’s arm and moved her round a little so she could see him too.
‘Oh, he looks rather nice,’ said Leonie, sounding surprised.
‘He doesn’t know anyone here,’ said Hattie. ‘We should go and say hello. If you’ll excuse us,’ she said to the couple. ‘I hope we’ll catch up later.’
‘He’s happy to talk about Xander,’ Hattie said, still holding on to Leonie’s arm, in case she suddenly decided to walk off. ‘And it would be good to get him while the party is still quite quiet.’
Leonie didn’t reply. Unusual, thought Hattie, encouraged.
‘Hey, Tom!’ she said when they reached him.
‘I’m so glad you could come. If you’re new to the area, it’s a good opportunity to meet some people.
’ Too late she remembered he hadn’t told her he was new; she had found that out through internet stalking.
But she couldn’t unsay it. ‘Let me start with my sister – Xander’s mother.
She needs to speak to you anyway.’ She stopped, aware that she had said too much.
But Tom seemed very willing to meet Leonie, giving her a broad smile, which made his rather ordinary face suddenly attractive.
‘It is so kind of you to make the time for this,’ said Leonie. ‘I do hope my sister didn’t bully you into coming.’
‘No bullying required, I assure you,’ said Tom. ‘Shall we find somewhere quiet so we can talk?’
Hattie wasn’t given to punching the air, but she did whisper ‘Yes!’ to herself as she watched them go.
Then Luke was at her side, with Xander. ‘Hey!’ he said, and kissed her cheek. ‘You’ve done something different with your hair.’
The feel of his cheek against hers and the smell of his cologne confused her for a few seconds.
‘Leonie did it,’ she said quickly. ‘She’s got her hair down and I’ve got mine up.
Hey, Xander! You’re probably dying to see your mum but she’s busy just now, if you can hang on.
’ She looked at Luke, suddenly a bit shy.
‘Shall we find the food? And Sam and Rose are wandering about somewhere.’
The table was laden with every sort of food you could imagine: much more than could have been frozen after the non-wedding party.
There were plates of charcuterie, smoked salmon and rare roast beef, interspersed by salads obviously inspired by Ottolenghi.
Tabbouleh bright with parsley; chickpea salad with tiny tomatoes, peppers and shallots, sprinkled with fresh herbs.
There was a pile of flatbreads and another of baguettes and sourdough rolls.
It was the perfect combination of fresh and healthy food and luxurious decadence.
Hattie was just trying to decide where to start when a pretty young woman came up. ‘Are you Hattie? Hi! You don’t know me but Gavin sent me. He’s hoping to come later – it’s such a lovely invitation – but he wanted to make sure that at least one of us got here. I’m April, from Rabbet and Such.’
‘Oh, hi!’ said Hattie. ‘So pleased to meet you! I was hoping to catch up with you. Luke? Let me introduce you to April. She works for my favourite estate agent. You might not know of them,’ she said to Luke, ‘but we work together quite a bit. And this is Luke, the best builder in the county, but sadly, always busy.’
‘Hattie’s saying that because people do proposition me at parties,’ said Luke with his shy smile.
‘I promise you I won’t,’ said April. ‘But it’s good to have a name to suggest to clients. You can tell them you have no availability!’ She laughed.
At this moment Hattie noticed that Tom Saye and her sister had separated and Leonie was heading towards them. Xander broke away and Hattie was pleased he seemed keen to see his mother.
Sheila came up to her. ‘I think it’s going rather well, don’t you?’
‘You’ve made the garden look magical!’ said Hattie. ‘Did you hire a team of designers to make it look so fantastic?’
Sheila laughed. ‘You know I didn’t. It’s all me and Fiona, helped by Nick. I must say I like a man who can climb a ladder without complaint. I’m no good at heights myself.’
‘So you like Nick?’
‘I love him! The more I see him with Fiona, the more I realise how wrong Lance was, even before he got controlling. Even Malcolm is coming round to him.’ Sheila paused in thought.
‘Although in some ways, I have to be grateful to Lance. He made me and Malcolm reassess our marriage. I think Malcolm realised how easily he could lose me.’
Hattie wasn’t quite sure how to reply to this so she squeezed Sheila’s hand comfortingly.
Luckily, Rose didn’t hesitate to interrupt their moment.
‘Sheila! The garden is so beautiful! You must not only have the greenest of fingers, but work on it every hour God sends! Do you do it all by yourself or do you have help?’
‘I had help for tonight,’ Sheila said happily. ‘But mostly it’s just me.’
There was a little dance floor set up on the patio and music came from inside the house.
Hattie found herself dancing with various people, including Tom Saye, who also danced with Leonie and then they went off together.
She was having a rest when Luke came up.
Her first thought was that he was going to ask her to dance but she quickly realised that he wasn’t.
‘Xander is flagging and Leonie thinks he should go home. I’m more than happy to take him. Leonie wants to come too.’
‘I feel I must stay a bit longer as the party is in my honour. You don’t think Leonie would mind?’
Luke shook his head. ‘She says she’d like to stay with me and Xander. I can put her in the spare room.’
‘Where I slept?’ asked Hattie, knowing that her sister liked a pure down pillow with a silk pillow case and a thread count for the sheets that was almost beyond counting. When she’d last been there, Luke’s spare room featured a ladder, a saw horse and a load of tools.
Luke nodded. ‘Would you like to come for breakfast?’
‘That would be very nice, thank you,’ she said.
‘I think Leonie is taking Xander out for lunch.’
‘It’ll be good for them to have some proper time together.’
Luke suddenly grinned. ‘I thought for a moment you were going to say “quality” time.’
Hattie smiled in return. ‘I thought I’d spare you. I know how you hate clichés. I’ll see you in the morning.’
Hattie moved away from the dance floor and found a little table and chair next to a bed of night-scented stocks that filled the air with their heady fragrance.
She was glad to have a few moments on her own.
She had a lot to think about. Had Tom and her sister really hit it off?
It seemed as if they had, and with Leonie planning to live in the area, they could become a proper couple.
She didn’t often question her visions, and so far they hadn’t ever been wrong.
But for some reason, as this one involved her sister, she felt the need to be extra vigilant.
And then there was Fiona and Nick. She was very happy for them. They seemed very happy.
As if thinking about them had conjured them up they appeared at the little table. ‘There you are, Hattie! There are about three people all longing to dance with you! Come on!’
Hattie laughed, allowing herself to be led back to the dance floor. She took the clip out of her hair and began to move to the music; she loved dancing.