Chapter 10
Just after lunchtime and armed with a couple of fresh eggs and a rumbling tummy, I said my goodbyes at the Grow-Well and walked over to the house. I arrived just as Erik turned up with two very excited girls who raced off ahead of him.
‘What have you been up to?’ he asked me. ‘You look really grubby.’
‘Well, hello to you, too,’ I laughed. ‘If I look that bad, perhaps I’d better head straight home.’
He stared at me for a moment and then gave me the brightest smile.
‘You’ve been in the Grow-Well, haven’t you?’ he said, sounding genuinely delighted.
‘I have.’
‘It was an easy guess because you’ve got some leaves caught in your hair.’
He took a step towards me, and I realised he was going to pull them out.
‘There,’ he said, as he gently lifted them away and let them fall.
‘All gone?’ I asked, my voice catching.
‘I think so,’ he reassured me.
‘The garden was brilliant,’ I smiled.
‘Don’t say another word,’ he said. ‘Let’s use the tradesmen’s entrance,’ by which he meant the side door. ‘You can clean up some more in the cloakroom and then tell me all about it. And I can introduce you to Luke.’
‘I’ve already met him,’ I said as Erik led the way. ‘He and Kate were in the garden earlier and invited me over to tell me more about the upcoming equinox party.’
‘Great,’ Erik said over his shoulder. ‘I’d forgotten about that.’
Having handed Erik the eggs for safekeeping, I shrugged off my jacket and short wellies in the boot room and tidied myself up, as much as I could, in the warm cloakroom.
Erik hadn’t mentioned that I’d somehow managed to smear compost right across my forehead, or that my ponytail was bumpy.
I pulled the band out and shook my hair loose.
I noticed my complexion looked rather rosy thanks to my exertions and I didn’t hate the look.
‘Do you need anything, Skylar?’ Kate called from the other side of the door which I then opened because, I realised, I had taken a few minutes to get myself together.
‘No, I’m all good,’ I told her. ‘That is as long as you don’t mind the scruffy look. I don’t think I’m going to deposit any mud about the place.’
‘You’re fine,’ she said. ‘And you look as a fresh as a daisy. The autumn air obviously agrees with you.’
I felt my cheeks turn even warmer because of the compliment.
‘I was nervous when I started, but I had the best time, and everyone was so friendly and helpful. Graham especially. I think I’m going to learn a lot from him.’
‘You’re not alone,’ she said, as we walked along a short corridor towards the kitchen, ‘I don’t think there’s anything he doesn’t know about sowing and growing. Now, come and have some lunch and I’ll put the kettle on. Though I would imagine, Carole has kept you full of tea.’
‘She has,’ I confirmed. ‘And I wasn’t expecting lunch but thank you that would be lovely.’
‘It’s only soup and sourdough,’ Luke said as we walked into a kitchen which rivalled the size of the one at Highfell.
He was standing in front of an Aga and stirring a huge pot, while Erik sliced the loaf on a vast scrubbed pine table. It was an idyllic scene of domestic bliss.
‘Well,’ I said, as I looked around, ‘it smells delicious. My tummy is rumbling in anticipation.’
Once the thickly buttered bread, squash and sweet potato soup and drinks were served, the four of us sat at the table to enjoy the unexpected but most welcome repast.
‘So,’ Luke said to Erik, who was sitting next to me, ‘did the girls behave? The crafts they came back with looked impressive and I can see you’ve got glitter in your hair.’
‘They were as good as gold,’ he grinned and Kate tutted.
He made no attempt to get rid of the glitter which I could then see sparkling in the light, and without thinking, I leant over and brushed it away. His eyes met mine and I felt even rosier than before.
‘Just returning the favour,’ I said quietly and he grinned.
‘They’re always better behaved for you than me,’ Kate sighed, thankfully not seeming to notice my face was even pinker than when I’d walked in.
‘Only on this occasion because I said I’d take them for a Happy Meal if they didn’t bicker,’ Erik confessed. ‘That’s why they haven’t hung around for soup.’
‘Well, I wouldn’t want to switch this soup for chicken nuggets,’ Luke said.
‘Me neither,’ I agreed. ‘Is it homemade? It’s delicious.’ For some reason it felt imperative for me to focus on something other than my now glittery hand. ‘I’ve practically lapped this up.’
‘It is,’ Kate said. ‘I made a huge batch fresh this morning, so there’s some for the freezer. You can take Rafe a serving if you like?’
‘Yes, please,’ I said. ‘He’ll love that and probably quiz you for the recipe.’
‘I can give you that, too,’ she generously offered.
‘And the bread came from Blossom’s and was made by a neighbour of yours, Mark,’ Luke told me. ‘Have you met him yet?’
‘Not yet,’ I said. ‘But I am familiar with the joy of Blossom’s. I joked to Rafe only yesterday that we’ll soon be putting on our Christmas weight before Halloween!’
‘Along with the equinox, that’s something else we celebrate here,’ Luke said.
‘Christmas or Halloween?’ I asked.
‘Both!’ he and Kate said together and laughed.
‘I’m excited to hear about the imminent celebration,’ I added, turning the conversations further towards why I had been invited. ‘You must fill me in on the details.’
‘Not before you’ve told us about your morning in the Grow-Well,’ Erik nudged. ‘I want to hear all about that.’
It didn’t take me long to fill them in about what I’d been up to because I hadn’t done all that much, but I did make a point of saying, just like I already had to Kate, how much I’d enjoyed it, along with what a total distraction it had been.
‘I didn’t think about anything else the whole time I was tidying and forking,’ I said in wonder. ‘And the time just flew by.’
‘How lucky you bumped into someone yesterday who suggested you give it a go,’ Erik said rather smugly.
‘Yes,’ I said, letting him enjoy the moment. ‘Wasn’t it?’
‘You aren’t worried about anything though are you, Skylar?’ Kate asked.
‘No,’ I said, my eyes still on Erik. ‘Not really. I’ve just been finding it a bit of a challenge to keep occupied. I’m not used to having no work to do. Before, even on my days off, I was thinking about events and quite often ended up doing something work related because I lived on-site.’
When I had been going out with Reuben I’d been as preoccupied with my work as he was with his family’s farm, so it was little wonder the romance had fizzled out.
Not that there’d ever been much fizz, I now realised.
Previously I’d assumed the relationship we had was what a Big Love settled down into, but now I wasn’t so sure it had ever been a Big Love in the first place…
‘Hence your offer to help with the equinox party,’ Luke guessed, as he pushed back his chair and stood up and I re-focused on the conversation. ‘Would anyone like another ladle of soup?’
Erik had another bowlful, but Kate and I both declined. I could easily have eaten more, but Kate had mentioned cake to go with the tea, so I needed some room left for that.
‘Yes,’ I answered Luke. ‘I’ve never been a part of an equinox event before, so this will be fun, and Rafe, who wants me to take a proper break because I haven’t had time off for so long, won’t object because this is something for the community.
And hopefully it will be far less stressful than overseeing a wedding with two hundred guests! ’
‘Two hundred guests,’ Erik whistled.
‘That was the average,’ I told him. ‘Sometimes it could be far larger.’
‘No wonder you need a break!’ Kate gasped. ‘You’ll be able to do this standing on your head, as long as you really want to.’
‘Oh, I do,’ I nodded. ‘I really do.’
She and Luke went on to tell me that it was a simple gathering where everyone came together to enjoy the Grow-Well harvest, share a meal made of ingredients grown in the garden and generally make the most of the last of the light evenings before the days started to grow shorter, colder and darker.
‘Carole, Poppy and I will be doing most of the food prep,’ Kate finished up.
‘I’m sure Rafe would love to contribute something, too,’ I said. ‘He’s a fabulous cook.’
‘The more the merrier!’ Kate accepted gratefully.
‘And John makes the most amazing pizzas, using the dough bases Mark supplies,’ Luke added.
‘I’m looking forward to seeing the oven fired up,’ I said keenly. ‘So, what exactly do you need me to do? The food is clearly all in hand.’
‘If you could take care of setting up, decorating and ambience,’ Kate asked. ‘That would be fantastic. Everyone seemed to have more time to go all in before, but we’re all so busy with other things now that it’s mostly just simple meals we come together for.’
‘Which are still lovely,’ Luke said.
‘But it’s not quite the same,’ Kate finished up.
‘Well,’ I smiled, ‘atmosphere and special touches happen to be my forte, so you can leave all of that to me. And what about this Fenland autumn festival you mentioned? What’s that like?’
It was mid-afternoon by the time we finished chatting and looking at the pretty festival online and we only came to a halt then because Kate and Luke’s girls came bursting into the kitchen claiming they were famished.
‘Anything but soup!’ clamoured the eldest, Jasmine.
‘I want cake!’ demanded Abigail. ‘Or dippy egg,’ she said, eyeing my eggs on the worktop.
‘Those belong to Skylar,’ Erik said as he scooped them up. ‘Come on, Skylar. I’ll walk you to the gate. Anything to get away from this racket. No more Happy Meals for this pair if they’re not going to keep their end of the deal for more than a couple of hours.’
The sisters were instantly silenced and sat at the table as though butter wouldn’t melt.
‘Thank you for lunch,’ I said to Kate and Luke, while Kate ladled some soup into a container for me to give to Rafe. ‘It was all delicious.’
‘The joy of homegrown,’ Kate sighed happily as she handed me the lidded pot. ‘And I’ll text you the recipe.’
We’d thought it would be a good idea to all exchange numbers, and Rafe and I were now added to the Grow-Well WhatsApp group, too.
‘And thank you for taking on some of the party planning,’ Luke said. ‘It’s a weight off our minds but do feel free to ask about anything you’re not sure of. We’re not going to just dump it all on you and run.’
That was good to know, but exactly what I expected. I was beginning to understand the true meaning of community and I rather liked it. I hadn’t expected to, or not so quickly at least, but it felt wonderfully inclusive.
‘I know where the tables and chairs are stored,’ Erik said to Luke, ‘so I can show Skylar all that along with the other bits and pieces I know you’ve used for parties in the past.’
‘Thanks, Erik,’ I said. ‘Nice to meet you girls.’
‘What do you say?’ Kate encouraged the still quiet pair.
‘It was nice to meet you, too,’ they echoed sweetly and Luke rolled his eyes.
It took me a minute to pull my wellies on again and do up my jacket and Erik waited with the eggs in one hand and the soup in the other.
‘You don’t need to walk me to the gate,’ I told him, when I took both from him.
‘Yes, I do,’ he grinned. ‘Unless you can juggle, and besides, I’ve got a favour to ask you.’
‘Oh?’ I said and followed him out.
The wind was keen and there was the odd raindrop blowing about in the breeze, too. Autumn seemed to have properly arrived, even before the equinox.
‘Will you come to the pub with me tonight?’ Erik asked, once the house door was closed behind us.
I whipped round to look at him. Was he asking me out? Surely, not given that we’d only just agreed to be friends.
‘Freya and Finn will be there and Mark and Neil,’ he said and the penny dropped. I felt myself blush again, this time for jumping to the wrong conclusion. ‘I want to go, but not on my own.’
‘I see.’
‘I thought it could be our first official PPO outing,’ he grinned and I found myself smiling back.
‘As long as Rafe isn’t expecting an evening of conversation,’ I told him. ‘I’ll be there.’
Rafe heated up the soup the moment I handed it over. Dug deep into his writing cave he hadn’t eaten all day and the cats were looking martyred because he hadn’t given them their lunch, either.
‘I thought you might have fed them,’ he said as he blew on the soup, ‘but now I think about it, you went out this morning, didn’t you?’
‘I did,’ I confirmed, as I weighed out the cat food and the pair twined themselves around my legs and mewed pitifully. ‘Stop that,’ I said in protest of their weaving, ‘otherwise you’ll have me over.’
I pushed between them, put the bowls down and left them to it.
‘And you haven’t been back all day?’ Rafe asked.
‘I haven’t.’
‘Where have you been?’
‘Working in the Grow-Well,’ I smiled. ‘Then having lunch with Kate, Luke and Erik in Prosperous Place.’
‘Well, I never,’ Rafe said. He sounded surprised. ‘That’s a turn up and no mistake. What made you decide to do that?’
‘It was something Grandad George said,’ I explained.
I didn’t mention Erik because he’d already come up in the conversation once and I didn’t want my father making more of our friendship than he should.
He’d recently bemoaned my single status, overlooking the fact that I was content with it.
‘He suggested that it might be a good idea to use the time I’m not working to try something new. ’
‘Good old Dad,’ Rafe cheered in approval. ‘You won’t find me arguing with that. Something new is just what you need.’
I decided not to mention helping with the equinox party just yet. I didn’t think he would object, but kept it to myself, nonetheless.
‘I didn’t think you would argue,’ I smiled. ‘I’m going to see Grandad again on Monday and I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.’
‘I’m seeing him tomorrow, but I won’t mention it. I’ll let you fill him in.’
‘And what are you up to tonight? More writing?’
‘No,’ he said. ‘Not tonight. I’ve got a date.’
‘A date?’
‘Yes,’ he laughed. ‘A date. You don’t need to sound so Lady Bracknell about it.’
‘I’m just surprised is all,’ I shrugged. ‘Given how long you’ve spent writing every day, I didn’t think you would have had time to set up a date. It isn’t someone you’ve met online, is it?’
‘No,’ he said firmly. ‘It isn’t. I’m beyond all that. What about you?’
I felt my cheeks flush.
‘What about me?’ I squeaked.
‘What are you doing tonight?’
I wilted a bit.
‘Oh,’ I said, ‘I’ve been invited to The Dragon with a few of the neighbours. Do you think I should go?’
I already knew what he’d say to that but hadn’t predicted the addendum.
‘You should,’ he said mischievously. ‘You might find a date yourself.’
‘No, thanks,’ I responded primly and stood up again. ‘As I’ve told you before, that’s the last thing I need.’