Chapter 29
‘Here, let’s see if we can get further to the front.
’ Charlie grabbed Nicola’s hand and began weaving through the crowds gathered along Meadowfield High Street.
The carnival was in full flow and after making sure all the children were safely in position on the back of the trailers, Nicola and Charlie had run ahead to find a good spot to watch the procession.
‘Sorry, thank you.’ Nicola smiled as she let Charlie pull her towards the edge of the path, right in full view of the approaching carnival.
The brass band, the same one which had played at Suzy and Owen’s wedding, led the procession, their conductor, Jerry, leading the way with some very clever back-walking.
As soon as they stopped, Charlie pulled Nicola into his arms so her back was against his chest, his arms wrapped around her middle.
‘Oh look, there’s Miss Cooke’s float and the netball team.
’ Charlie pointed towards the first float in the possession, hot on the heels of the brass band.
Miss Cooke was riding upfront in the cab of the tractor next to one of the farmhands working at Little Mead.
‘Is that the royal wave she’s been practising? ’
Letting out a splutter, Nicola tried to hide her laughter as Miss Cooke waved at them. ‘I think it might well be.’
The trailer the tractor was pulling had been transformed into a netball court, complete with its own goal posts and goal rings, the girls trying their best to stay upright and play netball as the float bumped over the cobbles.
Next up were floats from the local litter picking group, the history club and even their very own bridge club. Nicola waved as her mum whistled to get her attention from where she was perched on a hay bale in the back of the float, playing cards taped to her jumper.
Nicola leaned back against Charlie’s chest, the warmth from his body warming hers, and smiled.
They hadn’t said a word about him leaving, not since that night in her back garden when Nathan had caused a scene.
And she was content with that. It was easier not to think about it, easier to pretend he was here to stay.
She held his hands as Meadowfield’s children’s dance club danced their way past them.
Having decided not to have a float this year, the youngsters pivoted and jived their way down the High Street.
Clapping her hands as one boy did an impromptu backflip, Nicola glanced up at Charlie.
‘So, when are you learning how to do one of those?’
‘You mean you don’t think I can already?’ he asked, raising his eyebrow.
‘You can?’ Twisting in his arms, she widened her eyes. ‘Seriously?’
‘Nope, sadly not.’ Charlie chuckled. ‘I had you going for a moment though, didn’t I?’
‘Haha, you sure did.’ Turning back, she felt Charlie’s chin dip to her shoulder as he spoke into her ear. ‘Jill’s float is coming up next. Let’s hope Claudette isn’t playing stowaway.’
‘Umm, I don’t think that would be such a smart idea if she was. Can you imagine the welcome she’d get from the residents she’s been terrorising over the last few months?’
‘True. Let’s hope she’s had the good sense to stay away then.’
Nicola laughed. ‘She’s turning you into a softie.’
Straightening his back, Charlie ran his fingers through his hair. ‘Ah, she’s not so bad. Besides, where has it got me, chasing after her? A ripped shirt and her tying me up in bunting.’
‘I don’t think she intentionally tied you up.’ A smile twitched at the corners of her mouth.
‘Don’t underestimate her.’ Charlie wrapped his arms around Nicola again, pulling her back against him. ‘Sheep can be dangerous creatures.’
‘Uh-huh. Very dangerous. They might even eat your roses if you have any.’
‘Are you mocking me?’ Charlie chuckled.
‘Absolutely.’ She grinned and settled back against him, turning her attention back to the forest school float.
Jill had worked her creative magic as always and every inch of the edge of the trailer had been covered with plywood trees, grass and cardboard animals, each lovingly painted by the children waving from their positions sitting on hay bales, huge grins on their faces, proud of their accomplishment. ‘Aw, that looks amazing.’
‘I know why she and at least some of her kids have been at the farm all the spare hours now.’ Charlie began clapping.
‘I can imagine. Every day this last week or so, she’s been telling me she’s going straight over there after finishing work.’ Nicola whooped in delight as Jill spotted them. ‘Love it!’
As the trailer dipped over the cobbles, one of the children, dressed as a bunny, jumped up and began hopping around the trailer. Jill tugged on their outfit and pointed to the hay bale. Reluctantly, the child sat back down and instead held their hands above their head in bunny ear style.
Nicola laughed.
‘So adorable,’ Charlie whispered in her ear. ‘I can’t wait to start a family.’
Looking over her shoulder at him, she searched his face. Was he implying what she thought he was? Was he suggesting that he could see a proper future with her? With kids involved too?
A loud clatter sounded, pulling her attention away from him and towards the forest school float instead.
The plywood fox, the one they had reattached after Claudette’s vandalism attempt, had fallen into the large painted tree they’d fixed, which in turn had cracked in half again, leaving the top half of the tree hanging precariously over the edge of the trailer.
Some of the wooden branches were now dragging along the cobbles beneath, leaving a trail of paper leaves in the float tracks.
‘Mr Fox!’ The bunny screamed as the fox fell from the side of the trailer and lay stranded in the middle of the road before the wheel of the float bumped over it.
‘I think that’s my fault. I obviously didn’t secure it again well enough.’ Charlie ducked beneath the ribbon keeping the spectators on the path and hurried towards the trailer.
Joining him, Nicola rushed towards the fox and picked it up. By the time she’d run ahead to where the float now was, Charlie had hopped over the side of the trailer.
‘Here, take my hand.’ Holding his hand out towards her, Charlie nodded towards the trailer.
Was he mad? He wanted her to jump onto the float, movie-star style? Yes, in the movies they liked to run and jump onto moving trains or lorries which were speeding away at a million miles per hour and this was a carnival float barely hitting five miles per hour, but still?
‘Come on, I’ve got you.’ He ushered her forward, his hand still ready to help her.
She frowned. Was she actually going to do this? What if she ended up face down on the road in a heap in front of all her friends and neighbours? She glanced behind her as the spectators began clapping.
‘Go on, Nic!’ She heard Laura’s voice call out from somewhere in the crowds.
‘Okay, please don’t let me fall,’ Nicola muttered before taking Charlie’s hand.
Feeling his grip tighten around her wrist, she matched the speed of the trailer, the plywood fox still beneath her arm.
Willow, dressed as a hedgehog, soft spikes and all, leaned over and took the fox from her, freeing her other hand, which Charlie grabbed too.
With cheers from the crowd behind her, Nicola took a leap of faith and, thanks to Charlie lifting her over the edge of the trailer, landed in a heap against the hay bales.
Covering her hands with her face, she laughed.
She’d actually done it. She’d jumped into a moving vehicle.
The float may have been crawling along at a snail’s pace, but she’d still done it.
Lowering her hands, she pulled herself into a sitting position as raucous applause erupted around her.
‘Go, Auntie Nic!’ Willow jumped up and down, clapping her hands together.
‘Careful, Willow. Sit back down, sweetie.’ Jill leaned forward and patted Willow’s spot on the hay bale.
Twisting on the spot and giving Nicola an eyeful of fabric spikes as she did so, Willow slumped down on the hay bale as instructed. ‘I want to do that. I want to do what Auntie Nic just did.’
‘No, that was very naughty, Nic.’ Jill used her hand to shield her mouth from her daughter and mouthed, ‘Wow!’
‘Yes, very naughty.’ Charlie winked at Nicola as he joined in.
‘Uh-huh, don’t try that, Willow.’ Scrabbling to her feet, Nicola glanced around the group of animals, all eyes fixed upon her. ‘Very dangerous.’
Charlie turned back to the dismembered tree and began tugging at the branches to lift them from the road, his muscles straining through the fabric of his shirt.
‘Here, my turn to help.’ Crawling across to where he was crouching, Nicola smiled at him before helping him pull up the fallen half of the painted tree.
As the wooden branches scraped across the edge of the trailer and the paper leaves were shaken free, Willow crawled across to them and began picking up the leaves, Jill ushering her back to her seat and taking her daughter’s place.
With the branches and top half of the plywood tree safely on the floor of the trailer, Jill passed them a ball of string and between the three of them, they managed to secure the bottom half off the tree, albeit more than a little lopsided against the side of the trailer.
With a final effort, Nicola and Charlie hoisted the top half of the tree into position and, in a half-crouching, half-sitting position, held the wood in place for all to see whilst Jill gripped the fox.
Shifting against the metal bed of the trailer, Nicola jammed herself against the side of it, her arms still in the air supporting the wooden structure, and nudged Charlie.
When she’d got his attention, she whispered, ‘So, this is our punishment for not fixing Claudette’s vandalism to the float properly. ’
‘I think so.’ Charlie grimaced.
‘I’m not going to be able to feel my arms by the end of the carnival,’ Nicola hissed.
‘Nor me.’ Chuckling, Charlie scooted over closer to her, so they were both hidden from view of the spectators behind the large wooden tree. ‘It does make me wonder what Claudette will get up to next.’
‘I’m sure she’s planning on her next adventure as we speak.’ She smiled at him. This wasn’t quite how she’d envisaged the day of the carnival to unfold, but it was a memory she knew she wouldn’t forget in a hurry. ‘Still think Meadowfield is quaint?’
Charlie chuckled again, louder this time. ‘Can it get any quainter than having to jump onto a moving carnival float in front of hundreds of spectators to hold a wooden tree painted by a dozen forest school kids because the village runaway sheep tried to eat it?’
She scrunched up her nose. ‘Hmm, when you put it like that…’
Moving a little, he changed his grip on the tree and reached out to place one hand over hers, so they were both holding it in the same place. ‘Quaint isn’t all bad, though. I’m beginning to realise that.’
‘You are?’ She grinned as a dart of hope shot through her heart.
‘Well, yes, I mean I can’t very well walk down Oxford Street and see a procession of tractors and decorated trailers, can I?
Much less be in a position where I’m needed to rescue a wooden tree or have the woman I’m seeing risk her life to save a fox, real or not, from certain tyre marks and then into jump into a moving vehicle. ’
‘No, I don’t suppose you can.’ Nicola grinned. Charlie was beginning to like quaint. Or to at least see the advantages of small village living. That’s what he was admitting to, wasn’t it?