The first job that they had decided to tackle was the leaking barn. Having this fixed would mean that it could be used as storage for some of the items that were currently in the house, which would then give them better access to the areas there that needed work doing.
Norman had wandered around the farm getting together everything that they would need. He’d managed to find a ladder, hidden under some hay in another of the barns while Amy had nipped into town to buy the planks needed for the roof. He had to admit that the reason he’d been up so early was because he’d been looking forward to the day ahead. He’d started out building when he was very young and even though he didn’t do it professionally anymore he still liked to keep involved. He’d even done some of the work on the castle himself. Not that he wanted to think about that now. No, he was just going to concentrate on today and the work he was doing. Forget all about Norman the Billionaire Bore and just be Norman, the farm hand.
Once Amy had returned they had soon settled into a good working rhythm. He was on top of the roof, hammering the planks into place, while she cut them to the right size and handed them up to him. He was surprised to find that they worked in a companionable silence. He’d spent so long either on his phone, at meetings, or listening to Celine’s constant inane conversation that he’d forgotten what it was like to just enjoy the quiet and the work. And what surprised him even more, was how good Amy was with this rather men’s tasks -- a far cry from his ever useless ex-girlfriend.
He was already starting to feel far more relaxed than he had in months, years even. This really was going to be the best thing for him. Lost deep in his thoughts, he brought the hammer down on his thumb.
“Arrgghhhh, for the love of…. Ouch, ouch, ouch…” he tried really hard to not jump up and down too much and end up going through the roof.
Amy shouted up to him. “What’s going on? Are you ok?”
“Yeah, I guess, just managed to hammer my thumb instead of the nail.”
“Ooo that does sound painful. Why don’t you come down and I’ll take a look at it, it might need ice or something?”
Amy tried to hide a smile as Norman made his way down the ladder, looking a little forlorn. She did have sympathy for him having done it herself endless times but he did look rather funny trying come down the ladder one-handed.
“Here, let me look”, Norman tentatively held out his thumb, wincing as she gently held it.
“Ouch, yeah that does look bruised. Let’s go back to the house and sort it out. We don’t want you out of action on your first day.”
Back in the kitchen, Amy busied herself gathering ice from the freezer and wrapping it into a clean tea towel, while Norman held his thumb under the tap.
“Here, this should help.”
She took his hand again and held the icepack against it for a minute. Suddenly she was aware of how close they were, she could feel the heat from his body and smell his aftershave, she couldn’t help but breathe it in. He smelt gorgeous, like lemons. How did he manage to smell so nice after all the work they’d been doing? She looked up, surprised by how close his head was to hers and looked into his eyes, a spark of electricity ran through her and she quickly stepped away, blushing slightly.
“Errrr, that should do it, you’ll just need to keep the ice on it for a little while longer. You stay there and rest, I’ll go and carry on with cutting the planks, I’ll soon have a nice pile built up for when you’re ready to carry on.”
She left the kitchen as quickly as she could and walked back towards the barn. The hot afternoon doing nothing to cool down the warmth she was feeling. Damn it all, why did he have to be so distractedly handsome? She really needed this work doing and the last thing she or the farm needed was a man coming along and ruining her plans like they always do. If there was one thing that she’d learn in life it was that men and love were not always the fairytale that the media would lead you to believe.
She thought back to Paul and the wedding that never was. They’d been together since high school and even managed to survive a long distance relationship at different colleges and yet, two weeks before the wedding, Amy had caught him in bed with her best friend. Even at the time she’d laughed at how much of a cliché it was. Not only was her relationship ruined but her friendship as well. The two people that she’d trusted most in the world and who’d she thought would never hurt her had broken her heart into a million little pieces.
Then, 6 months ago she’d found out that they’d gotten married, even though it had been a couple of years since she’d seen either of them she’d been surprised at how hard the news had hit her. She’d been spiraling into a deep well of misery and self-pity when she found out she’d inherited the farm. This place had been her refuge, she’d retreated here to lick her wounds and found it sparking a longing in her that she’d forgotten about. Now was the chance for her to live her dreams. To set up a place where she could rescue animals and provide them with a safe, loving space. She was determined that nothing was going to stop her, especially not a man.
Chapter 4
Watching the sun setting, Amy sat on the porch in one of her uncle’s old chairs. It had been a busy week but Amy was surprised at just how much work had been finished now that she had Norman to help her, you could really start to see the difference in the place.
She wasn’t surprised to feel a presence standing over her shoulder and looked up into Norman’s deep blue eyes, greeting him with a smile. He smiled back and held out a mug.
“I thought you’d enjoy a hot chocolate round about now. I wasn’t sure how you take it so I made it how I like mine.
Amy took a sip. “Ummm, it’s delicious. Did you put some kind of spice in there?
“Yep. Cinnamon and a pinch of ground ginger. It just adds a special something.”
“You're right about that, thank you so much, it’s yummy. I think you can stay for a few more weeks, especially if you keep making me hot chocolate.” Amy teased, but in all honesty, she’d enjoyed his company over the past few days and he had already made a huge difference to the farm.
“Why don’t you pull up a chair? It’s a lovely evening.”
“I’d love that. Thank you.” Norman lifted up a chair from the other side of the porch and carried it over, placing it next to Amy’s before looking down tentatively.
“Ummm, I’m not sure this is going to hold me. Promise you won’t laugh if I end up in a heap on the floor?”
Amy giggled. “I can’t promise any such thing but I don’t think you need to worry, the chair should hold. It’s one that my uncle made and he was a pretty good carpenter.” Growing silent for a second, Amy looked out over the farm. “This was one of his favorite places to sit. He’d come out every evening with his pipe and a whiskey just to watch the day end. He’d always say that it helped remind him of the beauty of life. Even after a bad day, you could come out here and this...” Amy swept her arm across indicating the view and the pink-streaked sky. “...this would make it all worthwhile.”
She turned back to Norman, her eyes slightly wet with unshed tears. “He was right, of course. It wasn’t really until I moved here that I truly understood it.”
Norman was gentle in his response. This was the first time that Amy had spoken about herself and he didn’t want to ruin it.
“He sounds like quite a man. Is that how you ended up here? Your uncle?”
“Yeah. He left it to me when he died.” Amy responded. “Not that it was as easy as that. Some company had their eye on it and wanted to turn it into a golf course. They tried to contest the will. It took months and months before the judge finally ruled in my favor and by that time the farm, which was already run down had almost gone to ruin. I have to admit, it did leave a slight taint over the whole thing. I’d been so excited when I’d first found out. This was a chance to live my dream, but I started to wonder if it was really worth fighting for.” Amy paused for a second to clear the lump in her throat.
“I’d already been th
rough so much before then and was also grieving for my uncle. He was the only family that I’d had left and losing him, after losing so much already. Well, I wasn’t sure I had the strength in me to fight.”
She was surprised when Norman leaned over and lightly placed his hand over hers.
“If it’s your dream it’s always worth fighting for.”
She turned her head and gazed at the sunset, trying to accept his words. Was it really worth it? Sometimes after a long hard day of toil and seemly getting nowhere she wasn’t so sure. But this past week, with Norman and all that they had achieved she’d started to see glimpses. Small realizations that her dream was still just out of her grasp but reaching ever closer.
“What is it?”
She was startled out of her thoughts by Norman’s question.
“What is what?
“Your dream?”
Her dream? Amy took a moment to decide how to answer. She hadn’t really told anybody the full details of her dream. She always tended to brush it off with a flippant comment and change the subject. It felt different with Norman, though. Suddenly she wasn’t afraid to share things with him. In fact, she wanted him to know. Wanted him to see what she saw, sitting here now, in the deepening dusk, she wanted him to know what it was they were working towards.
“It’s going to be a sanctuary.” Norman didn’t say anything, just raised one eyebrow in inquiry, urging her to continue.
“Well, when I say sanctuary, I mean I want to look after animals. Rescue them, take care of them and provide them with a safe space. Not only for the animals though for me too. I would love to be as self-sufficient as possible. Grow a vegetable garden, have eggs from the chickens, who knows, maybe even milk a cow. Not that I know anything about milking cows. I guess I’ve still got a lot to learn.” She took a sneak peek at Norman and seeing that he wasn’t laughing at her, felt comfortable enough to carry on.
“It’s a two stage dream, though. I want people to be able to visit also. My uncle used to grow strawberries here and I want to continue that. See those fields?” Norman looked out squinting into the darkness, but he’d already been looking out at those fields every day this week. Wondering about the faded brown plants he could only just make out. He nodded slightly and Amy continued her story.
“They were full of strawberries, rows, and rows of the plumpest, juiciest and sweetest berries you’d ever tried. One of the jobs I’m going to need your help with is digging up all the old dead plants and fertilizing the fields ready for planting a new crop. I’m going to bring those fields back to life, but rather than sell to the big supermarkets and restaurants like my uncle, I’m going to open a ‘pick your own’ farm. People can visit and fill their baskets with as many strawberries as they can carry.” On a roll now Amy let the words spill out of her.
“I’m thinking about also having a field for pumpkins and gourds. That way at Halloween I can have a pumpkin patch that people can choose their Jack O’Lanterns from. Maybe even build some kind of tea shop. A place where they can refuel, using produce from the farm, but that is getting way ahead of myself.”
Amy stopped, suddenly aware of how much she’d been talking and a little self-conscious. Did he think her silly? Was he bored? “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get carried away.”
“What?” Norman looked at her intensely and Amy lost herself for a few seconds in his deeply serious, deeply gorgeous eyes. “There is no need to be sorry. It’s wonderful to see somebody so enthusiastic. I was swept up in the dream right alongside you.”
Amy blushed “Really?” It’s the first time I’ve really spoken about it to anybody. I was expecting to be told it was a stupid idea.”
“Oh Amy, there’s nothing stupid about it. You have this huge farm that needs to start earning its keep and you have a number of wonderful plans to ensure that it does. I have no doubt that you’ll succeed.”
Amy had already felt a thrill go through her at the way he’d said her name but for him to then be so complimentary about her plan, it made her feel like she was glowing. It was her turn now to reach across and take his hand.
“Thank you so much. It honestly means a lot. I…” She paused not wanting to sound too contrite or needy. “I also wanted to thank you for all the help you’ve given me so far. It has already made a world of difference.” His hand felt warm under hers and the electricity between them was palpable. She took a breath as she realized that he was looking at her with the same desire that she felt. The urge to reach forward and kiss him was almost overwhelming, she unknowingly bit her lip and Norman’s eyes darkened. Suddenly feeling awkward and unsure of herself Amy felt the best way forward was to break this intense atmosphere between them.
“To think, I was worried about you being a serial killer or something and nearly turned you away.” She smiled to show she was partly joking. “I’m glad that you actually turned out to be a nice guy, I’d started to think that they were becoming more of a rarity.
Norman tried to dampen down the guilt building up inside of him, now was the perfect time to come clean. To tell her his story and how he’d worked on his dream, but something stopped him. He’d really enjoyed listening to her and seeing how alive she was when she spoke about the farm and her plans for it. He’d really meant it when he’d said that he was swept up in the dream with her and if he was being entirely honest with himself, it had been a long time since he’d felt that enthusiastic about anything. No, he wouldn’t tell her yet, maybe it was selfish but he wanted to enjoy this evening for a little longer.
“Well, I promise you I’m no serial killer and I certainly try to be a nice guy. Hopefully, I’m succeeding at it. Sounds like some guy really did a number on you. What happened?”
Amy looked down into her now empty hot chocolate mug. “It’s going to take something a lot stronger to get through that story. Fancy a whiskey?”
After going to the kitchen for glasses and the whiskey bottle they’d decided to move into the living room. Amy had settled herself into one of the big soft lounge chairs and sat with her legs curled up underneath her. Norman was comfortably ensconced on the sofa with Rollo next to him. His big head resting easily on his knee. Amy had been taken aback at first by Rollo’s instant adoration of Norman but seeing the dog so taken with him had eased some of her initial misgivings and now the two of them were virtually inseparable. She watched as Norman gently stroked the soft white fur. He had such lovely hands, his fingers were long, but not too delicate and despite all the dirt, rust and cracked paint they’d had to deal with today, he’d still managed to make sure his nails were trimmed and clean. She looked down to her glass and gazed into the pool of amber liquid, trying to work out where to start from.
“You're right, of course. I did get my heart broken but not just by a man.” Even now, after all, this time, it wasn’t an easy tale to tell and Amy had to admit to herself that she was a little embarrassed.
“Paul and I had been together forever. High school sweethearts and all that. Anyway, it was my 25th birthday when he proposed. At the time, it felt like one of the best days of my life. He took me to our favorite restaurant for a birthday dinner and had asked the staff to hide the ring in my dessert. When I found it he got down on one knee in front of everybody and promised to love me forever.” She smiled with a faint hint of bitterness. “Fool in love that I was, of course, I believed him.
When we got home later that evening one of the first things I did was ring my best friend Sam, I remember her screaming with joy over the phone and we both dissolved into a fit of tears and giggles before spending a good couple of hours discussing initial thoughts for the wedding, by the time we’d finished my ear was burning from having the receiver against it for so long.” Amy smiled sadly, it had been a long time since she’d been able to relive that memory. Even now she still missed her friend.
“Anyway, a few weeks before the wedding, well two weeks to be exact. I went over to Sam’s to surprise her with an early bridesmaid
gift. We both had keys to each other’s apartments so I let myself in as usual and there was Sam naked, on top of my fiancé.”
Norman sucked in a breath, he’d had a suspicion that was where the story was headed, but even so, it was difficult to hear and understand. He’d only known Amy a week and he’d already seen how sweet and loving she was. You only had to look at how she treated Rollo and Tabatha to know that she had a kind nature and learning her plans for the farm had cemented that opinion for him. How could two people who were supposed to love her, treat her like that?
“What the hell were they thinking?”
Amy was slightly taken aback by the anger in his tone but also slightly flattered.
“That was exactly what I asked them when I’d calmed down a little. Apparently they weren’t thinking. They’d had a couple of “moments” before but always managed to resist.” Amy shook her head, aware of the sarcasm in her voice.
“But that’s all in the past now. Needless to say, there wasn’t a wedding, well not for me anyway. I found out 6 months ago that they got married. Not that either of them told me, I haven’t spoken to them for 2 years. I found out when a mutual friend put a picture from the wedding on Facebook.” A single tear escaped and rolled softly down her cheek. “If I’m being completely honest I miss Sam more, sometimes when I had a funny story about Rollo or I wanted to vent about the court case it was her I wanted to share it all with. I haven’t really had a best friend like her since then. Not sure I ever will.”
Bad Boys Rule Page 60