Twelve
Matt cursed as his truck bounced along the country lane. He was late for his appointment at the farmhouse and tardiness was something he deplored. He would have been on time if Mrs Jenkins hadn’t insisted he have a cup of tea and a homemade scone before he left. He knew his older client didn’t get many visitors and hadn’t the heart to refuse. He’d tried to call the mobile number Flora had jotted down but it had gone straight to voicemail.
He followed the lane round and pulled up beside the two cars already parked there. He’d just jumped down out of the cab when he heard voices and turned to see two women walking round from the side of the house. One was Fiona Parkridge whom he knew well through her working at the estate agents and the other… was the woman he’d seen in the bookshop!
The woman he now knew was called Sally Edwards.
Before he could gather himself together, Fiona was walking towards him.
‘Hey, Matt, you’re here. Great. This is Sally Edwards, Sally, meet Matt O’Brien, one of the best builders this side of Oxford.’
A little burst of irritation flared up in Matt when Sally made a point of looking at her watch before shaking his outstretched hand. Her lack of a smile annoyed him even more.
‘Pleased to meet you, Sally, I’m sorry I’m late.’ He looked at Fiona. ‘I had a job over at Mrs Jenkins’.’
‘Ah! I see.’
Fiona turned to Sally. ‘Mrs Jenkins is one of the older residents in the village. She doesn’t have any family close by so all visitors are treated to a cup of tea and a homemade scone – even if they don’t want or have the space for one. She gets a bit lonely which makes it difficult to refuse.’
Sally turned to look at him with a stern look on her face.
‘So, you’re late because you were keeping an old lady company. Is that right?’
‘Err, yes, it is!’
Much to his surprise, the stern demeanour was instantly dropped and a large smile lit up her face.
‘Well, that is a more than acceptable reason for being behind schedule. Good for you.’
She turned back to Fiona.
‘We’d better get on here, since you have another appointment to get to.’
‘Actually, Sally, I’m going to leave you in Matt’s capable hands. I need to go now otherwise I’ll be late too. Matt,’ she held out the keys to him, ‘can I leave these with you to drop back into the office tomorrow morning?’
‘Sure, no problem, Fiona.’
‘Sally, let me know how you feel once you’ve had your walk round with Matt. Mr Altshott needs to understand that the amount of work required here will impact the price offered. I can’t believe he’s now decided to up the asking price after you offered the full value it was on for. Unbelievable!’
‘He’s probably taken advice from someone who’s given him the current value on a fully-working house, not something ramshackle and weed-infested.’
‘Most likely. Anyway, I’ll wait to hear from you.’
She got in her car, did a speedy three-point-turn and with a quick wave, bounced out the gate and disappeared around the bend, leaving Matt and Sally standing in silence behind her.
For a brief second, neither of them spoke and then Matt said, ‘Okay, shall we get on?’
‘Yes, let’s.’
‘Before we begin, do you want to give me a quick brief on what you’re thinking of doing, any concerns you may have noticed when you first viewed the house and any other plans which you feel may be relevant?’
As Sally informed him of her desire to make the house into a B you’re not enlarging the building and all changes are internal.’
He watched Sally as she looked around the space, trying to visualise his suggestions. Her forehead was furrowed in concentration although a small smile sat on her lips, telling him she wasn’t averse to the idea.
Finally, she turned towards him and the small smile had doubled in size. Once again, her face was bright with happiness.
‘I love that idea. Oh wow, it would be glorious. I never even thought of that.’ She gave him a gentle punch on the arm. ‘I just knew you’d be the right bloke for the job.’
She grabbed his sleeve and began pulling him towards the doors which led out into the yard.
‘Come, wait till you hear what else I have planned.’
As they stepped out into the sunlight, Matt looked down at the hand holding onto the sleeve of his jacket and for the first time in twenty years, since Flora had died, he felt a little flame of warmth light up inside him.