by T A Williams
‘I’d like that, Danny. Here, take a seat while I grab the laptop.’
They sat down together and he introduced her to a variety of property auction sites. In particular, they found one close to Exeter. He clicked on the icon.
‘Next sale…catalogue…look, there’s a sale next week.’ He could feel her warmth beside him. He did his best to concentrate on the screen. ‘Wow, look at this. There are eighty properties going under the hammer. Why not take a look at some of those. You can sometimes get real bargains at auction.’
She started clicking through the list, astounded to see some with a guide price of less than the cost of her new kitchen. She shot him a quick glance. ‘I’ll make some tea in a minute if you like. Do you want to take a look around the place in the meantime? You might as well check to see if it could suit you.’
He got up and wandered round the flat. There was this wonderful large living room, with a dining table to one side. The view from the window, over old slate roofs, was towards trees and parkland. The ultra modern kitchen was through an arch and looked like the inside of a space capsule. Not without difficulty, he located the electric kettle and filled it. While it heated up, he continued his tour of inspection. The bedroom and bathroom were spectacular. The bed was stainless steel, the sheets crisp and white. It was like something out of a glossy magazine. Shelves of clothes and rows of shoes gave it an air of intimacy, as did the blouse lying across the bed. He thought he could distinguish the imprint of her head on the pillow. He gave a silent sigh. He was still looking down at it when he heard her voice.
‘What do you think?’ Her voice echoed through the flat.
He returned to the living room. She had left the computer and was in the kitchen, making tea. He glanced at the screen. There was a pretty, red-brick terraced house for sale with a guide price of less than a hundred thousand. He gawped. The same house around here would be closer to half a million. Alongside the keyboard he saw that she had opened the letter from Nigel. She had tucked it back into the envelope again. He found himself hoping desperately that it would be sufficient for her to be able to keep the flat and rent it to him.
‘Afraid I haven’t got any biscuits.’ She reappeared with two mugs of tea. ‘If I had them in the house I would only end up eating them. Just because I’m unemployed, I don’t intend to slob out on the sofa.’
She looked, as ever, utterly gorgeous. He risked a compliment. ‘I can’t imagine you as anything remotely resembling a slob. You always look fantastic.’
Her head jerked up. That sounded remarkably like a compliment. Mind you, she thought to herself, he’s probably just trying to cheer me up. She kept her tone light. ‘A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips.’
He did his best not to think of either her lips or her hips. He turned his attention to the laptop and pointed at an address on the screen. ‘See that? Beauchamp-by-the-Sea, I know that place. Did you know the locals pronounce it “Beecham”? It’s got a lovely sandy beach. Good for windsurfing, if you’re ever interested.’
She concentrated on the house agents’ blurb. ‘It’s in East Devon. That’s an area of outstanding natural beauty. I like the sound of that.’
He took a good look at the description of a terraced house. ‘It says here this one is in need of total refurbishment. Are you ready for a bit of DIY?’
She took a sip of her tea. ‘Do you know, Danny, I think I am. Something physical might be just what I need after years sitting in an office. I know what I’ll do, I’ll buy something in Devon that needs to be refurbished. In the meantime I’ll rent a place down there, so I’m not living in the midst of a building site.’ Happy with her decision, she pointed to the letter on the desk. He was pleased to see her smiling. ‘You can tell Nigel that he was right. It is a good severance package they have offered me. So, Danny, if you want it, this flat is yours. I’ll find out what the going rental rate is and send you an e-mail. OK?’
He jumped to his feet and extended his hand. ‘It’s a deal. Shake on it?’
She took his hand. ‘It’s a deal.’
CARINA™
ISBN: 978 1 474 02833 2
What Happens in Tuscany…
Copyright © 2015 Trevor Williams
Published in Great Britain (2015)
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