You've Got My Number: Warm your heart this winter with this uplifting and deliciously romantic story!

by Angela Barton

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Tess and Holly were at Rose Cottage getting ready for The Royal Oak’s annual bonfire and fireworks party. The house was now calm following the din of hairdryers, an Ipod blasting out through speakers and the girls’ karaoke efforts while they got ready. They were adding the final touches of make-up and tweaking the last strands of hair into place.

  ‘I hoke dey hag skarklers!’ said Tess, smearing Fragile Pink lipstick onto her lips that were set in a frozen smile for ease of application.

  ‘I’m telling you now,’ shouted Holly, from Tess’s bathroom, ‘if they do the hokey-cokey starkers, I’m bloody coming home.’

  Tess sat back and pressed her lips together to smooth the pink cream evenly. ‘I said, I hope they have sparklers.’

  Holly appeared at the bedroom doorway. ‘Oh! Misheard you. Me too. Do you remember our bonfire nights on the beach? We’d write the names of our latest crushes in the air with our sparklers.’

  ‘It was all right for you. You fancied Ed Holt. I had a thing for Matthew Hamilton-Bonningsby. By the time I’d finished writing his name, you’d be unwrapping your Christmas presents.’

  Holly chuckled. ‘I wonder where they are now.’

  ‘Probably knee deep in nappies and mortgage repayments.’

  Holly clenched her fists in excitement. ‘I’ve told you that Doug’s coming tonight and has split with his girlfriend, haven’t I?’

  ‘Only about twenty times. Are you still okay about me inviting Daniel tonight, although he might not turn up?’

  Thankfully, Holly hadn’t seemed to mind one bit when Tess had told her that she and Daniel occasionally had coffee together and had become good friends.

  ‘Of course not. Anyone can see that he’s gorgeous, but a girl can tell if someone likes them, and he wasn’t interested in me. Doug’s more my type, anyway. He’s silly without being immature. I find Daniel a bit intimidating. He's artistic, he’s clever, owns his own house – no, his own castle, and has travelled the world.’

  Tess laughed as she checked her hair in the mirror. ‘I hate to break it to you Holly, but it’s being called an adult, not being intimidating.’

  ‘Well Doug and I are going to leave becoming an adult until we’re thirty. Don’t you just love meeting a new man?’

  ‘It’s been a while.’

  ‘But you must remember how it felt?’

  Tess thought back to when Blake had entered her life. He’d stepped inside The Blue Olive and walked to the choose-your-own-pizza-toppings counter. Tess had noticed his good looks, athletic build and golden hair; he’d let himself go a little since then. Tess had made up his pizza while he’d pointed to the different ingredients. She’d made conversation by asking him about the book that was tucked under his arm. He’d told her that inside his book was a star ship’s schematics database and that it archived every single star ship design ever conceived. Surely that should have made her distance herself light years from him from the start. But no. She’d been impressed with what she’d thought was his intellectual mind.

  It seemed ridiculous now that she’d thought he was an amateur rocket enthusiast with a degree in physics, or a lecturer on space. She’d gone on a date that very night and now here she was, two years later and still dating what turned out to be a nerdy Trekkie.

  Bringing her thoughts back to the present, Tess pulled on some thick socks and wrapped a scarf around her neck. ‘No, it’s a distant memory. A bit like our happy relationship.’

  Holly threw a toy Bagpuss at her. ‘Stop it before you get all maudlin.’

  ‘You brought up the subject,’ said Tess, throwing the floppy pink and white striped cat back at her.

  Tess had called Daniel a couple of days previously to say that she’d be waiting at The Royal Oak’s front entrance, at seven o’clock. She’d also let him know that there was no pressure to turn up if he felt he couldn’t face it when the time came. However, she couldn’t help wishing that he’d find the courage to meet her and face his biggest demon.

  A short time later, Tess and Holly were crossing the village green, each clutching a torch. It was a cool evening with a scent of wood smoke and wet grass in the air. The girls folded their arms as a barrier against the chill, while still managing to direct the lemon beams of light ahead of them. Music boomed from the large speakers in the pub’s garden and children’s squeals of delight sprang from the darkness. A string of brightly coloured light bulbs danced in the breeze on the trees and the smell of caramelised onions and sausages drifted across the expanse of grass.

  ‘Look,’ shrieked Holly. ‘We’re just in time for the lighting of the bonfire.’

  Tess shone her torch on her wrist and checked the time. Six forty-five. Her stomach lurched with anticipation and excitement.

  ‘Quick, let’s hurry.’

  They both jogged over a little bridge that traversed a ditch and hurried across the tarmac parking area. They weaved through the stragglers of the crowd, both of them scanning the faces for someone special. Tess glanced towards the front entrance, but the only people in the vicinity were coming and going with drinks.

  ‘I’m going to look over the other side for Doug,’ said Holly. ‘It’ll be too noisy to hear you call, but I’ve got my mobile on vibrate.’

  ‘Okay, so have I.’

  Tess was relieved that Holly was over her short-lived crush on Daniel. Thankfully she was now preoccupied with all things Doug. When it came to men, her friend’s attention span was as temporary as a bruise.

  Tess watched Holly disappear into a sea of bodies surrounding the bonfire. She decided not to appear too pushy by waiting at the front door and sang along to Elton’s ‘Rocket Man’, thumping from the speakers. After five minutes, Tess turned to see Holly waving madly and running towards her. She stopped in front of her, breathless and excited.

  ‘Doug’s phoned. He’s ten minutes away.’ She jumped up and down clapping her hands and grinning.

  Tess smiled, sharing her enthusiasm.

  ‘Lucky you. You know where the spare key is kept, don’t you?’

  ‘Yeah, under the little pot of pansies.’

  ‘If we don’t meet up again here, I’ll see you back at mine. You’re still staying the night, aren’t you?’

  ‘Yeh, of course. This is only our first date. What sort of a girl do you think I am?’ Holly winked. ‘I’m going to meet him by the clubhouse. See you later. I hope Daniel turns up.’

  ‘So do I. See you later.’

  She watched Holly running clumsily in her wellington boots across the cricket pitch. Tess checked her watch. Two minutes past seven. It was time to see if Daniel had arrived. Weaving her way through the burgeoning crowds, she crossed her fingers inside her pockets. The crowd thinned the further she moved away from the bonfire. Sidestepping children who were clutching hot dogs that dribbled with tomato sauce, she’d reached the car park where she had a clear view of the pub’s front door. An unmistakable tall dark figure stood hunched outside the small porch. She walked towards the front door and stopped in front of him.

  He was wrapped up in a coat and scarf, with his hands thrust deeply into his pockets. His smile was shy and the flames from the bonfire reflected in his eyes beneath his woollen hat, making them twinkle.

  He spoke first. ‘Hello.’

  ‘You came.’

  ‘I love hot dogs.’

  ‘You’re in luck.’

  ‘Smell good.’

  ‘They do.’

  ‘I meant you.’

  ‘Oh. Thanks.’

  A few long seconds passed while they stood gazing and grinning at each other before Daniel broke the spell. ‘I’ve got some fantastic news.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Den’s had the op. The lump’s been removed and the surrounding tissue was clear of cancer cells.’

  Tess gawped in delight before hugging him. ‘I’m so happy for you both. That’s wonderful.’ She stood back and beamed at him. ‘You see, everything’s going to be okay.�
�

  ‘You might just be right, you know? There’ll still be chemo and check-ups for several years, but Den sounds so relieved.’

  ‘I’m not surprised. And it’s one less thing for you to worry about.’

  ‘I hope it works out for Blake, too.’

  ‘We’ll see.’

  Daniel smiled and rubbed his hands together briskly. ‘Now what?’

  ‘Now we enjoy the fireworks.’

  She saw him tense. ‘Let’s sit on the bench beneath the tree in the middle of the green. We don’t have to stand anywhere near the fireworks.’

  Daniel knew which bench she meant, its seating wrapped around the trunk of a huge horse chestnut tree. It had been replaced twice in his lifetime by a local joiner. When he and Denise were younger, they’d stand on the bench trying to dislodge conkers each autumn, before soaking them in vinegar to make them harder for battle. He felt his shoulders relax at the idea of walking further away from the unpredictable explosions.

  He stuck out an arm like a teapot handle for Tess to slip her arm into. She did and he squeezed it tightly against his side, enjoying the closeness of her body. She shone the torch on the rough grass and they trudged across the green towards the bench. Behind them they could hear the crowds cheer as a rocket screeched skywards.

  He flinched and hoped that Tess didn’t feel it.

  ‘You okay?’ she asked.

  ‘I’m fine,’ he lied.

  They turned and sat beneath the skeletal canopy of the huge tree. Sitting with their arms still linked, they both looked ahead towards the distant glow of the bonfire. The navy-blue sky was bare and clear. Daniel thought how romantic this would be if they were on their own instead of sharing the village green with hundreds of people and waiting for disfiguring bombs to explode. Laughter occasionally broke free from the huddled crowd and voices cheered into the night, serenaded by crackling sparks from the fire.

  Suddenly, the sky lit up with brilliant arms of cascading gold and silver stars. Bright glowing pearls rose silently into the darkness, dissolving into the heavens. Blue tracer stars crackled as they wriggled in a sparkling mesmeric dance. Gold clusters of starbursts flashed and glittered above the village green, lighting upturned faces. The whizzing and whirring echoed across the cricket pitch and far past the village.

  Daniel pulled his scarf up to hide his mouth and nose. He didn’t think that a soft cashmere mix, a gift from his sister, would be much protection from a wayward explosive, but it made him feel warmer and safer. He turned to look at Tess to see if she was looking at him with a pitying gaze. Fortunately, she was looking skyward with a hint of a smile on her glistening lips. Her profile was silhouetted against The Royal Oak’s lights, a pale glow outlining her features. His eyes were drawn to her smooth neck as she watched another rocket explode into a chrysanthemum of stars. Her lips parted slightly as a series of whistling clusters shot into the black night. He watched her eyelashes blink with each explosion and burst of colour. From the position they were sitting in, Daniel slightly behind Tess, he could watch her in secret against a backdrop of Swarovski crystals raining down from the sky.

  For the next ten minutes, while a crescendo of squeals, oohs and aahs emanated from the distant crowd, and a climax of whistles, bangs and crackles sprang from the sky, Daniel focused on Tess. He drank in the curves of her profile and the warmth of her body leaning against him. A cheer and a noisy round of applause heralded the end of the display. Tess turned towards Daniel.

  ‘How was that?’

  ‘Okay,’ he answered, truthfully. Watching the fireworks as a background to Tess’s lovely face had been the perfect way to be reintroduced to the volatile explosives. They were the colour wash to the central eye-catching subject of the painting.

  He saw her face light up with relief.

  ‘Really?’

  He smiled cheekily. ‘Can I have a hot dog now I’ve been so brave?’

  ‘Oh, before we go…’ Tess fumbled in her coat pocket and pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper. ‘I found out some information that I thought you’d find interesting. Here.’ She passed him the paper.

  ‘Shall I open it now?’

  ‘Save it until you get home. Come on, let’s find those calories.’

  Daniel stood up and pushed the paper into a pocket.

  Tess slipped her hand through his arm. His body felt warm and safe through the fabric of his coat. They trudged in step back towards the bonfire. It was still burning brightly, but was half the size it had been.

  ‘Will Goya and Gogh be all right with the noise?’ she asked.

  ‘You’re kidding. I’ve shut them in a back bedroom with the television’s volume turned up. At this very moment they’ll be lying on their backs with their legs in the air on a memory foam mattress, watching the lads on Top Gear larking about.’

  Tess tried but failed to stop herself from imagining what it would be like to be on Daniel’s soft mattress with her legs in the air.

  ‘You okay?’ asked Daniel.

  ‘Just a bit chilly now we’ve moved.’

  He took his arm away from Tess’s and pulled open one side of his warm winter coat. He invited her in with a nod of his head. Tess slipped inside his coat and melted into his warm body. She wrapped her arms around his waist and he closed the coat around her. They continued to walk, a little unsteadily now, towards the glorious smell of melted cheese and fried onions. As Tess walked inside Daniel’s coat, she closed her eyes and let him guide the way. His jumper smelt clean with a hint of jasmine. She let her lips touch the soft wool and gave it the gentlest of secret kisses. She knew he’d never feel it through his layers of clothing. This must be the safest place in the world, she thought.

  All too soon, they’d reached the bright outdoor lights that had been hung to illuminate the food tables. Disappointingly, Tess had to unwind herself from underneath Daniel’s coat. After ordering hot dogs and mulled wine, they walked towards the dying bonfire. Curling tendrils of smoke spiralled upwards as yellow flames licked the air, juxtaposed against the navy-blue skies. Delicate shimmering embers flitted in the breeze like glow flies. Tess and Daniel bit deeply into hot dogs that were nestled in silver foil and tasted of happy childhood memories.

  An hour later, they were walking back to Tess’s cottage, her arm once again tucked inside the crook of his. They passed beneath the amber glow of a street lamp.

  ‘You haven’t mentioned the café in Padstow for a while. Are you still considering it?’

  Tess shrugged. ‘I feel like I’m ready for a change. Do you ever feel like you’re touching life but not feeling it? I don’t know if it’s fate that this opportunity has arisen or if I’m running away.’

  ‘From what?’

  What was she running away from? Blake? She didn’t need to run. She could simply say it was over.

  ‘Perhaps not running away,’ she said, ‘but I want to have my own business one day and Crimpton’s came up for sale. I’m not sure I’m ready for it yet, but it’s a great opportunity.’

  They stopped at the gate to Rose Cottage. With the street lamp behind Daniel, she couldn’t see his features clearly.

  ‘This is just a suggestion and I don’t want you to feel any obligation,’ said Daniel.

  ‘Okay.’

  ‘If the exhibition goes well I’m going to apply for planning permission for a permanent gallery and I’ll need to employ someone to run a small café at The Rookery. You could be in charge of the menu, decoration – everything.’

  Tess felt conflicted. On the one hand, that thought of spending every day close to Daniel whilst running a teashop, was intoxicating. But how would she feel when he eventually met someone? She would have to watch their relationship grow while she was just the paid employee?

  Before she could answer, Daniel spoke again.

  ‘Just think about it. I don’t want to pressure you for an answer.’

  ‘Thank you for the offer,’ said Tess. ‘It’s very kind of you.’

  ‘Just
a thought.’

  ‘Food for thought.’

  Half an hour later, after Daniel had said goodbye to Tess, he was sitting at his kitchen table staring at the piece of paper she’d given him. He’d read it and reread it several times. It was a recent copy of an interview with the author and teacher of ceramics, Sean Connors, in The New York Tribune. Daniel repeatedly read the middle section of the interview over and over again, as if it was a prayer of the rosary.

  You teach advanced sculpture and ceramics here in New York. Which do you have the greater passion for?

  I suppose my greatest pleasure comes from making ceramics. I find glazing incredibly beautiful, and beautiful pottery can influence social interaction. If the piece is functional and striking, I believe it makes a difference. I like to hear and see how a piece of my pottery is being used. In Japan, the pot itself represents life, as found in the tea ceremony. I like to believe that my work can change routine into ritual.

  Do you find it frustrating being partially sighted in the art world?

  People ask me how I design such intricate pieces with only the sight of one eye. I tell them it’s all about the feel of the clay. It’s so fulfilling to feel a lump of material mould and shape into anything I choose. In a strange sort of way it helps that I only have partial sight. I’ve been known to close my eyes when I’m creating, which my son finds hilarious.

  Do you mind telling us how it happened?

  It was a freak accident. I’d been invited to a bonfire party by a friend. Initially I didn’t want to go, so we tossed a coin. I won the toss, but pretended that he’d won because I’d changed my mind – decided it would be fun. A rocket fell from its holding and shot into the crowd. It hit us both. I feel bad that I lied about the coin because it scarred his face. One day I’ll find the courage to get in touch and own up.

  Daniel laughed, having read it for the fourth time. It was the laugh of a hostage’s first view of open meadows after years of captivity, heady with manic relief. Sean was happy. He had a successful career and a family. Daniel shook his head and ran his hands through his hair. His eyes glistened with tears as he laughed again with loud rasps, his head thrown back and his hands clutching handfuls of hair. He paused, open-mouthed in disbelief. Sean didn’t blame him, because Sean himself had chosen to go to the bonfire that night.