Chapter 19
19
Sadie was feeling a little delicate when she entered the lounge the following morning and set her coat down on the nearest sofa. The show the previous evening had been great fun, perhaps a little too much fun. The ballroom had been transformed into a nightclub, the walls covered in dark hangings, small tables dotted around the room illuminated with soft-glow lamps. A temporary stage had been erected, and they’d been treated to a cabaret with singers, acrobats and a magician. The show had ended with a marvellous rendition of the cancan and Sadie’s hands had been sore from clapping along to the music. Dylan hadn’t made it and, although it would’ve been nice to see him, his absence had given her the opportunity to have a final evening with Charlie, Jane and Anna before they departed this morning. They’d had a brilliant time, shared more champagne than was good for them and finally staggered up to bed some time after one in the morning.
Sadie walked over to the coffee machine as though she’d spotted a long-lost friend and made herself a cappuccino with an extra shot. The lounge was quiet, unsurprisingly, as they hadn’t been the only ones late to bed. Clutching her coffee, Sadie settled on one of the sofas near the door so she could keep an eye on who went past. She’d already checked with Reception and she hadn’t missed the girls leaving. No doubt they were finding getting up a struggle too.
They appeared about half an hour later, all looking just a shade worse for wear. They made a beeline for the coffee machine just as Sadie had. Each clutching a large takeaway cup, they came over to hug Sadie. ‘It’s been so much fun,’ she said as Charlie stepped back.
‘You’ve got my number,’ Charlie replied, reaching out to take hold of her suitcase handle. ‘Send me a message when you’re home and let me know how the rest of your holiday goes.’
‘I will. And once the weather improves we’ll fix a Saturday and I’ll come into London so we can have lunch.’ It had been ages since she’d visited the capital, but there was nothing stopping her now. She’d found her way across country on the train by herself and the one advantage of moving home was she was now within walking distance of the mainline station.
‘I’ll look forward to it.’ Charlie leaned in for another quick hug. ‘I hope everything goes well with you and Dylan.’
Sadie pulled back to stare wide-eyed. Oh, goodness, what had she said to them last night. ‘Whatever I said, it was just the champagne talking.’
‘Our lips are sealed,’ Anna said, pretending to zip her mouth closed. ‘It’s been lovely,’ she added, taking her turn to hug Sadie. ‘Though I feel like someone is doing the cancan inside my head this morning!’
‘Me too. I hope you’ll be okay on the flight home.’
‘A couple more of these, and I’ll be fine.’ Anna raised her coffee and took a sip.
Tasha walked into the lounge, her face lighting up as she spotted them. ‘Ah ha, there you are. I’m parked just outside if you’re ready to go, ladies?’
‘Take care, Sadie.’ Jane gave her a quick hug. ‘And have a really lovely Christmas. Take lots of photos for us, won’t you?’
‘Yes, share them in the group,’ Anna urged. ‘Though it’ll only add to my terrible FOMO. I’m going to start saving so I can stay for the whole fortnight next time.’
Sadie walked with her friends to the door, standing on the top of the steps to wave them off. A shiver ran through her and she looked up at the sky. Yesterday’s blue skies had been replaced with heavy clouds and there was a yellow warning of snow from a storm moving in from the west. The worst of it looked to be centred mainly on the north-west and Wales, with only the edge of the area on the map skimming the Cotswolds, so it would be a case of waiting and seeing. A dusting would be nice, just enough to cover the fields without causing any disruption. With another shiver she returned inside. If Dylan still wanted to go for a walk, it might be better if they went out that morning, just in case.
She’d finished her second cup of coffee and had managed a couple of slices of toast when Dylan walked into the lounge, his jacket under his arm. The first thing she noticed as he sat down opposite her were the dark-circles under his eyes. ‘Everything okay?’
He nodded. ‘Yes, fine, thanks. The kids are having a lie-in so if you wanted that walk now would be a good time for me.’
‘I’m ready when you are. I was only thinking earlier that we should go out while we can as the forecast for later isn’t great. I brought my coat down with me.’
‘Let’s make a move, then.’ They stood and he helped her with her coat before pulling his own jacket on.
As they entered the main entrance hall, Sadie pointed down the corridor that led past the ballroom and eventually towards the orangery. ‘If you want to stick nearby in case the children need you for anything, I haven’t had a chance to explore the gardens yet.’
Dylan’s smile lifted some of the shadows from around his eyes. ‘You’re always so thoughtful – did I have that on my compliments list?’
‘Don’t start that again,’ she warned him with a laugh as she started along the corridor.
He caught up with her in a couple of strides, and she didn’t miss the way he adjusted his naturally longer stride to match hers. ‘I still owe you a few. Give me a minute to remember where I left off on my list.’
It was definitely time to change the subject. ‘I can’t believe the long-weekenders are leaving us today,’ she said as they walked into the orangery. The last of the craft projects were still out on display, waiting for the tree’s final assembly, which would take place on Christmas Eve. ‘I wonder if we’ll get any new arrivals?’
Dylan opened the door leading out onto the patio and the gardens beyond, standing aside to let her go through first. ‘I’m not interested in making any more new friends. I’d rather concentrate on the ones I’ve already made.’
She felt her cheeks heating, the cold air making them tingle, or perhaps that was the way he was looking at her. ‘You really have to stop flirting with me.’
His expression grew serious. ‘Is that what you want? Because the last thing I want to do is make you uncomfortable. I like you a lot, Sadie, but I’m more than happy if we just get to hang out with each other.’
She raised a hand to her cheek, which she was sure must be the most unflattering shade of crimson by now. ‘It’s not that I want you to stop, it’s just, oh God, it’s been so long since anyone showed even a flicker of interest in me that I’m afraid I’m hopelessly out of practice.’
With a smile he held out his hand. ‘I don’t want you to think I’m any kind of an expert when it comes to these matters either. Why don’t we start slow and see what happens?’
She hesitated. Getting involved with him would be foolish in the extreme, because it couldn’t go anywhere. Come the 28th they’d be going their separate ways. Then again, knowing they had a definite deadline reduced the risk of either of them getting hurt. And hadn’t she promised herself she was going to start saying yes to things? Right now she couldn’t think of anything she wanted to say yes to more than this lovely man before her. Reaching out, she placed her hand in his. ‘Yes, I’d like that very much.’
They strolled in silence along the path and down the steps between the neatly clipped hedges that marked the start of the gardens. Sadie tried to focus on the precise geometry of the gravel paths separating the neat flower beds cut in diamonds and rectangles but it was hard to think beyond the sensation of Dylan’s hand holding hers.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d held a hand that wasn’t tiny, and usually sticky for that matter. Like many other small intimacies she’d once shared with Pete, it had slipped away over the years. It was another sad acknowledgement of how long they’d been drifting apart even before their split. Pete had always held hers palm to palm but Dylan had laced their fingers together and she liked that it was different.
Dylan tugged her hand gently to steer them onto the path that went off to the left. ‘The old ice house used to be down here somewhere. I wonder if it’s still there. Shall we go and see if my memory’s any good?’
‘I’m happy to go wherever you want,’ she answered, truthfully. ‘Is it strange for you, being back here when so much has changed?’
‘It’s better than I expected. The hall was getting so run-down before I left, so it’s wonderful to see it back to full glory.’ He gestured to the perfect lines of the garden. ‘Most of this was taken over with weeds by the end. My grandmother did what she could, but she was suffering with arthritis and once the gardening staff were cut back to the bone she had to let some things go. I’m sure she’d love to know everything’s being taken care of once more.’
‘It sounds like the two of you were close.’
‘Yes and no. She was such a different generation and had very strict rules for how she expected us to behave. Children were to be seen but not heard, that kind of thing. She was never unkind, just a little distant. My father was their only child and he wasn’t interested in taking on the estate so my grandfather’s focus switched to Ziggy when he was still very young.’
‘Goodness, that can’t have been easy.’ She had no experience of such things, having inherited not much more than a few old photos and the contents of her mother’s jewellery box. ‘How many generations does your family go back here?’
‘I don’t know the exact count, but all those ghastly portraits we walked past earlier are my direct ancestors. I think the barony was established in the mid to late sixteenth century.’ He laughed. ‘Somewhere in the crypt my grandfather is turning in his grave at my lack of knowledge of our family history.’
‘So your father is a baron? Should I start curtseying to you?’ she teased.
Dylan laughed. ‘You can if you like, but it’s definitely not a requirement. And yes, technically, Monty holds the title but he’s not interested in that any more than he is anything else to do with this place. If it was up to him, he’d get rid of the estate altogether.’ A scowl marred his brow.
‘I’m sorry. I’ll stop asking you so many questions because it’s obviously an uncomfortable topic for you.’
Dylan squeezed her hand. ‘It’s okay, it’s just that Monty’s not exactly my favourite person right now. Not that he ever was, really, but we had a massive row last night.’
Sadie stopped to face him. No wonder he looked tired this morning. ‘Not at the reunion dinner?’
He shook his head. ‘Not in front of everyone, thankfully, but outside. He’s decided to pull one of his disappearing tricks again so Ziggy, Zap, Stevie and I told him he should go for good this time. It doesn’t matter to me, but it’s clear that he’s tearing the others apart. They’ve invested everything in the estate and it means so much to them.’
‘But not to you?’
‘No. It’ll never be my home, not really, not the way it is for them. But that’s not the point. He’s hurting everyone with his actions and I can’t stand by and let it keep happening. Not now I know it’s still going on.’ He sighed. ‘I never imagined he’d still be pulling the same old tricks as when we were kids.’
It was her turn to squeeze his hand. ‘Parents. Who’d have ’em?’
‘What a pair we are.’ He straightened his shoulders, a determined look on his face. ‘Right, enough of that. I’m not going to let him spoil a moment more of today. Let’s go exploring.’
The formal gardens gave way to wilder, more natural planting, though a clear path still lay between the bushes and trees. They found the ice house, a large man-made hill in the landscape. The entrance had been sealed off with iron bars and a rusty padlock that looked as if it hadn’t been opened for years. They pressed their faces up against the bars, peering into the inky blackness. A breath of cold, stale air kissed her cheek and Sadie stepped back with a shiver.
‘I remember going down there once when I was a kid,’ Dylan said as he turned away from the bars. ‘There’s a huge underground void and I remember my grandfather saying it had all been dug out by hand.’ He pointed past the ice house towards where the land sloped sharply away. ‘There was a lake here back in the day, where they kept fish in the summer and cut the ice in the winter. They dug that all out too, and diverted the river that runs through the estate to create it. Once they converted to electricity, the lake and the ice house weren’t needed any more and they could use the land for arable crops instead.’
Sadie nudged him gently. ‘I thought you didn’t know much about the history of the place.’
He smiled down at her. ‘Turns out I know more than I thought. Come on, let’s head back. I don’t know about you, but I could do with a cup of coffee.’
Sadie glanced up at the heavy grey sky. ‘It feels like it’s getting colder by the minute.’
Dylan put his arms around her and rubbed his hands up and down her back. ‘How’s that?’
‘Much better.’ His hands had stopped moving but he didn’t seem in any hurry to let her go. ‘Did you do that as an excuse to hold me?’ she asked in a light, teasing voice.
‘Guilty as charged.’ Dylan grinned down at her. ‘Do you mind?’
She curled her arms around his waist and leaned against his chest. ‘No. I don’t mind at all.’
He hugged her tight for a few moments before easing back. ‘Now all I have to do is find an excuse to kiss you.’
Sadie laughed and stepped out of reach, though she extended her hand for him to take. ‘You work on that and let me know when you’ve come up with something worth considering.’
‘Challenge accepted.’