‘I bet you are. And I got to meet you this summer too so it’s been a time to make new friends, for sure.’
Louise looked away, wishing his words didn’t cause her stomach to flop. She knew it was all her fault having set up strict boundaries with him after he asked her out for a coffee. ‘I’m really glad we met,’ she answered, keeping her gaze on the trees at the end of the lawn. ‘And it was all thanks to the Kindness Board,’ she added. Louise glanced at him then and he was looking back at her, his hand holding his beer, his face open and unguarded as it always was, with a smile on his face. Louise wanted to take that final leap and tell Alex that she wanted to be more than just friends but the words appeared to be stuck in her throat.
‘Brew has a way of bringing this community together, doesn’t it? We’ll have to thank Joy and Harry somehow. I have news, too, actually – I spoke to David and he and Julie are going to move in together.’
‘Really? That’s fast!’ Louise said with a raised eyebrow. She was always shocked when she saw other people just jump in like that. And jealous of them too.
‘It is but they seem really happy.’
‘Well, I’m really pleased for them,’ she said, taking a sip of her wine, her mind whirring. She had seen Julie and David meet and to go from that to moving in so quickly, she was stunned. ‘I wonder why Julie hasn’t said anything at work.’
‘It’s only a recent thing, I think. David was quite nervous to tell me; maybe they think people will judge them or something.’
Louise looked down at her drink. She could guess that Julie had been worried about telling her because she had been so down on love whenever they had talked about it, and Julie thought that Louise was resolutely single. She hated to think her friend hadn’t wanted to share her happy news, and resolved to tell Julie how happy she was for them when she next saw her at work. ‘I admire people who can take a leap of faith like that,’ Louise said quietly. ‘It’s so scary to take a chance on someone especially if you’ve been hurt before,’ she said, unable to meet Alex’s eyes.
‘It is a leap of faith, you’re right,’ Alex replied gently. ‘But if you meet the right person then it doesn’t feel like that, does it? It should feel natural to take the next step because you’ve fallen in love. I think it’s only scary before you actually do it, then it should feel right.’
Louise blinked back a tear. She had been so scared but he was right, now she had found Alex and fallen for him, things didn’t feel as scary. She knew he was kind and thoughtful and generous and he cared about other people. She knew that he would never hurt her intentionally. They had so much in common. And she was extremely attracted to him. All she had to do was reach out and let him know how she felt and everything would be okay, she could feel it deep in her heart.
‘Oh, I’m so sorry but I’d better take this,’ he said then as his phone buzzed on the table. She watched him get up to answer it, and she wiped her eyes quickly. Louise hated how hard it was to speak out loud about how she felt. Alex returned with an anxious look on his face. ‘Someone’s cat has been run over and they need me at the surgery. I’m so sorry to run out on you like this.’
‘Oh, of course you should go. Don’t worry at all, I understand,’ she reassured him quickly.
‘Can I walk you back first?’
‘No, I’ll finish my drink. I’ll be fine, I promise.’
‘Okay, well, text me when you’re home, okay?’ He leaned in and kissed her cheek again. ‘Thank you for this evening, I had a wonderful time and we’ll do it again properly soon, okay?’
‘I’d like that.’ She watched him go and decided that she had to find a way to show him how she felt, otherwise she might never be able to tell him, and she wanted to take that leap with Alex. It was right. She knew it, and she hoped he would too.
Chapter Nine
‘It’s perfect!’ Abbie said looking at her sister in her bedroom wearing the dress she’d found in Huntley Manor’s attic. ‘Just perfect.’
Louise looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. ‘It’s so lovely.’ She twirled around. ‘Are you sure it’s okay with Thomas that we wear these?’
Abbie looked at her own reflection, and had to smile too. Her dress fit her like a glove, and it was all the more special knowing that they came from the very era of the party theme. ‘Definitely. He was really excited that I found them. Louise, seriously, you are stunning. Alex won’t know where to look!’
‘If he comes.’
‘He will if you ask him. I’m going with Thomas, you should be going with Alex. Then it really will be perfect.’ Abbie really wanted to see Louise happy, and she was determined to bring her and Alex together before the end of the summer.
Louise turned to look at her sister. ‘Actually, I’ve been thinking about that. I keep trying to tell him how I feel and the words just disappear so I was thinking that I could show him instead.’
‘How would you do that?’
‘Well, I thought about how we first met – because of his act of kindness in returning my earrings. If I hadn’t written on the Kindness Board in Brew then we might never have become friends so I thought about using the board to tell him how I feel.’
Abbie broke into a smile. ‘I love it! That’s so cute. Using how you met to show him that you like him. And you know that Joy and Harry will be happy to let you use it.’
Louise nodded. ‘I was going to ask them if I could open up early and invite Alex there for breakfast.’
‘Perfect. And what will you write up on the board?’
Louise turned to look at herself in the dress once more. ‘That’s still a work in progress. You really think this dress will be okay for the party?’
‘You know it will. We will be the belles of the ball, for sure.’
‘And what about you? Will the party be the night that you tell Thomas how you feel?’
‘How do you know how I feel?’
Louise rolled her eyes. ‘Everyone knows that you two need to be a couple, you just need to get things moving.’
‘Whenever we try, we’re always interrupted,’ Abbie said with a sigh. ‘So, yes, I hope at the party . . .’
‘Look at us, both hoping for summer romances like we’re teenagers again.’
‘Actually, I don’t remember us ever having summer romances, as you were with that scumbag Peter, and I despised every boy in our town. But at least we’re making up for it now, right?’
‘If the boys we like actually like us back.’
They looked at one another nervously. Abbie stepped beside her sister and they looked at each other in the mirror. ‘Even if they don’t, we have each other, and that’s more than enough this summer. I’m so glad I came to live in Littlewood, little sister.’
Louise smiled back. ‘Me too. Whatever happens, we’ll be okay, won’t we?’
‘Always.’
***
Eszter wiped down the counter in Brew as her shift was coming to an end. In walked Jenny who worked for Littlewood Animal Rescue. They had met briefly at the summer fete the charity had run. Eszter, Anne and Zoe had gone along and had a great time, and Jenny had since become a Brew regular. ‘Hi, Jenny, what can I get you?’
‘Just a latte to go, please.’ She gestured towards the door. ‘I’m walking Ben but needed a caffeine fix.’
Eszter looked outside at Ben, the Labrador who they had seen at the fete. He was tied up outside, looking in at them, his tongue hanging out as he sat there happily. ‘He’s so cute.’
‘I was really surprised that no one snapped him up after the fete,’ Jenny said, handing over her money. ‘One family wanted him but they didn’t have enough space; he needs a big garden and plenty of exercise so they weren’t suitable, which was a real shame. He’s such a sweetheart.’
Eszter made her the latte and slid it across the counter to her. ‘Can I come out and say hi to him?’
Jenny smiled. ‘Of course.’
Eszter followed Jenny outside into the sunshine and was immediately
greeted by a bouncing, tail-wagging Ben. ‘How old is he?’
‘Four, so he’s trained, but his owner died suddenly and their family couldn’t keep him so he came to us a couple of months ago.’
Eszter kneeled down to pet him, and was rewarded with an enthusiastic lick of her chin. She laughed as she rubbed his head, reminded of the dog her grandmother Zoe had had when she was growing up in Hungary. ‘Zoe would love you,’ she told Ben, thinking of her daughter’s wish to have a pet. Now they were staying in Littlewood and not restricted to the no-pets rule of their city apartment, Eszter had been wondering whether to ask Anne if she would be okay with letting an animal into her home. ‘Could we come and see him at the shelter?’
‘Definitely. Are you thinking about getting a dog?’
Eszter stood up and Ben pressed himself against her as if he didn’t want her to go. ‘I might be, yes.’
Jenny beamed at her. ‘Come whenever you like. He would make such a great family pet.’
‘I can see that.’
‘You two look as if you’ve already fallen for one another.’
Eszter patted Ben, who sat on her feet as if he belonged there, and laughed. ‘We’ll come tomorrow,’ she promised, vowing to bring both Zoe and Anne to meet him, sure that neither of them would object to him joining their family. Eszter had been looking for some way to repay the kindness that everyone in Littlewood had shown her; maybe giving Ben a home was a good place to start.
‘See you tomorrow then,’ Jenny said, unhooking Ben’s lead and walking off with him and her coffee. Eszter watched them go with a smile. Now that she had made the decision to stay in the small town, she felt lighter and happier than she had done since they diagnosed Nick with cancer. She knew this was just the beginning of her and Zoe’s new life but she was certain it was the right one for both of them.
Chapter Ten
Abbie and Thomas stood in the ballroom of Huntley Manor with just a few days to go until the relaunch party. It was the end of a long day, and the room which had been filled with people making preparations was now empty, save for the two of them.
‘I’m exhausted,’ Abbie admitted as she looked around; everything was in place now. They had all worked so hard, and she was proud of what they had achieved. The room looked sparkling and transported you instantly to the 1920s – it looked grand and elegant and magical. The only thing still under wraps was the chandelier that Thomas refused to let anyone else see before the official unveiling, and Abbie could hardly wait. ‘But we’ve done it.’ She turned to smile at him. ‘Everyone is going to be talking about this place, everyone will want to come and stay here just to see this room.’
‘I couldn’t have done this without you.’
‘Lord Huntley?’
‘Yes?’ Thomas turned to see the man in a suit in the doorway. ‘Mr Andrews, have you found something?’
Mr Andrews was the antiques expert Abbie had hired from London. He had spent the whole day up in the attics looking through all the treasures up there. ‘I’ve found a lot,’ he replied, walking into the room. ‘There are quite a few items that would do well at auction, and I’ve made a full inventory but there is one piece that I wanted to talk to you about. Can I show you?’
They followed him into the library where he had several things laid out. He led them to the desk where, on a piece of velvet fabric, was a pocket watch. It was gold and tarnished, very old but intricate and as Abbie leaned over, her head close to Thomas’s, she could understand why Mr Andrews was so interested in it. ‘It’s beautiful.’
‘I remember my grandfather wearing it,’ Thomas said. ‘It was his father’s, I believe.’
‘The reason that I am excited by it,’ Mr Andrews said, ‘is that I believe it to have originally belonged to King George VI.’
Thomas and Abbie exchanged a look. ‘Why do you think that?’ Thomas said after clearing his throat and standing up straight.
‘There was a pocket watch that he himself received as a gift and he was said to have passed it on to a family friend after spending a weekend at their house but it’s been lost through the years, and this watch could well be the one that has been missing all this time. Did you know that he stayed here?’
‘My grandfather used to tell us that but my father always passed it off as family folklore. We never really believed it, to be honest.’
‘I’d like to take the watch back to London with me and have it verified. If it is that watch and you decide to sell it at auction, it will fetch a lot of money. With this, and all I’ve found in that treasure trove up there, you won’t need to worry about money again.’
Thomas stared at him. ‘I won’t have to sell the house?’
Mr Andrews smiled. ‘I should think not.’
‘Oh, Thomas,’ Abbie breathed. ‘That’s wonderful.’
‘Think of all the improvements we could make,’ he said, turning to her. He took her hand in his. ‘Why did I never think of looking up there seriously? I just dismissed it all as family junk.’
‘We’d all love family junk like that,’ Mr Andrews replied dryly.
‘I can’t believe it,’ Abbie said, looking at the watch in awe. She was so relieved and happy for Thomas – he could keep his family home, and see it returned to its former glory. It was all she had been hoping for all summer.
Thomas was looking at her. ‘What did I do to deserve you showing up in my hotel demanding to help me save it?’
Abbie began to laugh, when Thomas wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her in for an unexpected kiss. His lips touched hers gently and produced a sparkling fire under them. He deepened the kiss and Abbie found herself melting into him. They started to get lost in the moment until Mr Andrews coughed and the two of them let go with a self-conscious laugh.
Thomas pulled back and gave Abbie the most smouldering look of her life; she couldn’t believe that her knees actually felt a little bit like they might give way. She held onto Lord Huntley and decided that she never wanted to let him go.
***
After they had shown Mr Andrews out of the hotel, Thomas said he wanted to show Abbie something and led her up the grand, winding staircase to one of the suites. ‘It’s empty this weekend, and I want you to see this view,’ Thomas explained as he opened the door. They walked through the room and out onto the small balcony.
The room was the highest in the hotel and views of Huntley grounds, and Littlewood beyond, stretched out as far as Abbie could see. The sun was only just starting to fade, and the sky was turning a burnt orange. She leaned on the railing and looked out over her new home. ‘It’s beautiful.’
‘Abbie, I feel the need to apologise,’ Thomas said then, beside her. He looked across at her. ‘I should have kissed you a long time ago.’
Abbie turned to him and smiled. ‘Well, I’m glad you finally did.’
‘I suppose I’ve always been a bit . . . reserved. I was raised that way. Really my first girlfriend was the one I told you about at university, and she made the first move,’ he said with a small smile. ‘I knew as soon as I met you that everything had changed. When I invited you for dinner, I wanted to tell you then how I felt but I completely messed it all up, and you left early, and then I thought I had it all wrong and you couldn’t feel the same way that I felt. And then Jack came back, and I thought that was it. That there was no hope for us.’
Abbie shook her head. ‘I felt it too, but after the meal, I thought that you just wanted to keep things professional. Not that it’s any excuse; I was an idiot when it came to Jack, blind and stupid. I ignored everything that my heart was telling me and I’ll never do that again.’
‘What’s your heart telling you now?’ Thomas asked gently, touching her hand on the railing with his own.
‘That I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.’
‘Abbie, you swept into my life when I least expected it, and frankly turned it all upside down. How will I ever manage without you?’
She laughed. ‘You don’t need to wo
rry about that, I promise.’
Thomas leaned in and kissed her gently. ‘You know that I’ve fallen head over heels for you, don’t you?’
Abbie’s heart soared and she kissed him again. ‘Lord Huntley has fallen for a commoner,’ she said with a happy smile. ‘And she’s fallen for him right back.’
‘That is the best news I’ve heard today, and it’s been a good news day,’ he declared.
Thomas reached for her again and Abbie sank into his arms, giggling as he pulled her backwards onto the four-poster bed behind them. ‘Why, Lord Huntley, where has your reserve gone now?’ Abbie said breathlessly as he trailed kisses down her neck.
‘Must have left it in the attic,’ he replied, brushing away a strand of hair from her face. They smiled at one another before he leaned down to kiss her again.
Chapter Eleven
Abbie woke up to the smell of bacon. She opened her eyes as Thomas walked into the room carrying a large tray. ‘What time is it?’ she asked sleepily, struggling to sit up. Jesus, the bed was so comfortable it was obscene.
‘Ten o’clock.’
‘What?’ She jolted up and grabbed her phone from the bedside table. ‘I’ve slept for eleven hours, oh my God!’
‘You looked so peaceful, I didn’t want to wake you so I went to my apartment and showered and got dressed, checked on breakfast and then got the chef to make this up for us.’ He climbed on to the bed next to her and leaned in to kiss her. ‘Good morning.’
She smiled. ‘Morning. I can’t believe I slept for so long, this bed is amazing and I obviously had sweet dreams after last night,’ she said, her cheeks turning a little pink as she thought back to the night with him. It had been perfect. Thomas slid the tray onto the bed between them. There was a pot of tea, orange juice for two, and two plates of eggs, bacon and pancakes with a plate of pastries on the side.
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