Kilgarthen

by Kilgarthen (retail) (epub)

  When their lips separated, he held her even closer. It had been the sweetest moment of his life. ‘Tressa darling, I’ve wanted to do that since the first day we met.’

  She looked at him with a new life and depth shining from her dark eyes. ‘I wish I’d felt this way about you before. It scares me to think of what I would have missed if you’d not come back again.’

  ‘You are worth fighting for, darling. Let’s not waste any more time.’

  They kissed passionately, reluctant to let each other go but her wounds had to be attended to.

  ‘What will you do if you father objects to us?’ Andrew asked as he bathed her knees.

  ‘I think Dad will come round. I just hope he’ll live so he’ll have the chance to consider it,’ she answered in a choked voice.

  ‘We’ll take one step at a time. We won’t rush him.’ He smiled tenderly. ‘This might not be the most romantic time to repeat myself but I do love you, Tressa. I won’t rush you either. When we know how Jacka is and everything has settled down again, I hope you’ll find your feelings are the same for me.’

  She stroked his shoulder and bent forward and kissed his cheek. She was already quite sure she knew how she felt about him.

  He bound her grazed knees and arms with strips of gauze bandage. They drank some sweet tea then Tressa went upstairs to dress properly.

  ‘The doctor’s just left,’ she said when she came back. ‘He said Dad has to have at least four weeks’ bed rest. Aunty Joan and I are going to take turns sitting with him for the first few days. She wants me to get on with some work but first can we drive over to Rosemerryn Farm and ask Spencer if he and Ince can take turns helping us out for the next few days. It’s what we usually do when a farmer’s laid up. I know you can do some jobs but I don’t want you doing the heaviest work.’

  He had taken the piece of paper out of his pocket Joan had given to him and was scanning the contents. ‘I’ll do anything you say, darling. Come to me a minute. This is the letter your father received. When you read it, you’ll see what upset him so much.’

  She went to him and he held her. Feeling alarmed by his grave face, she read the letter. ‘But Dad paid half of the arrears the bank was demanding!’ she exclaimed. ‘“No choice but to evict you…” He sent it off well before January the first. He went down specially to the village to post it himself.’

  ‘Try not to worry, darling. I’ll drive into Launceston and see the bank manager myself.’

  Tressa’s eyes filled with tears. ‘But even if you do put things right, Andrew, it won’t help Dad. If he survives this heart attack, he’ll never be well enough to farm again, he’ll feel his life has come to an end anyway.’

  He kissed her brow. ‘Jacka doesn’t need to worry. If you’ll let me, I’ll see to the future for all of us.’

  Chapter 30

  Laura cycled over to Tregorlan Farm with Mike and Pat Penhaligon. The Rosemerryn Farm cart had just pulled up and the small army of helpers piled off their vehicles. Laura was thrilled to see Vicki was with Spencer and Ince.

  Vicki let go of Spencer’s hand and started to run towards her, a bright sunny smile on her little face. Then she stopped, frowned, and looked uncertainly at her father.

  ‘It’s all right, pipkin, you come inside with Laura,’ he said. He strode off to meet Tressa and Andrew at the door. Ince followed him after giving Laura a brief smile.

  Vicki started running again and Laura rushed to her and swept her up into her arms. ‘Hello, Vicki.’ She kissed both her rosy cheeks. ‘How are you?’

  Vicki wound her arms tightly round her neck. She put a peck on her cheek and said peevishly, ‘You mustn’t fall out with Daddy ever again. Then he won’t tell you to stay away.’

  ‘I won’t,’ Laura said, cuddling her tightly. ‘I promise.’

  Tressa and Andrew greeted them. ‘Aunty Joan’s upstairs with Dad,’ Tressa said. ‘The doctor’s coming back this evening. He said the next forty-eight hours are going to be critical.’

  ‘Now you’re not to worry, my handsome,’ Mike said. ‘There’s plenty of us here ready and willing to help. More will be up from the village throughout the day. You don’t have to do any work so you can stay close to the house. And best of all,’ he winked at Andrew, ‘you’ve got Andrew here with you.’

  They all went into the kitchen to discuss a working plan. Andrew stationed himself protectively at Tressa’s side. ‘I want to pop in and see Dad often,’ Tressa said.

  ‘I’ve got all day to spare,’ Laura said. ‘I can do the cooking.’

  ‘And I’ll do some housework,’ Pat volunteered.

  ‘I’ll draw up a rota of field and beast work, if you like, Tressa,’ Spencer said. He looked from the girl to Laura and his intense grey eyes made her colour slightly. ‘Perhaps Vicki could stay here with Laura and then Ince and I will be able to put in more hours outside.’

  ‘I’d love to have her here with me,’ Laura said, and Vicki ran excitedly to her and climbed up onto her lap. Laura was pleased it was a Saturday and Vicki wouldn’t have to go to school.

  When everything was settled, Mike took Spencer aside. ‘It’s good of you to come. Pat’s just reminded me that it’s the anniversary of Natalie’s death today.’

  Spencer’s face set like granite and he looked down at the floor. ‘Life has to go on, they say. Jacka’s life is in danger and his family needs my help. I’ll do my grieving later privately. Please don’t mention it to anyone else.’

  Spencer and Ince left to complete some work on Rosemerryn Farm before one of them returned to be joined by Bert Miller later in the morning. When they were trotting back up the lane, Spencer glanced at Ince.

  ‘I thought Laura would have been over to the farm to see Vicki before now. Has something happened between you and her? Could that be the reason? I couldn’t help but notice you weren’t particularly friendly just now.’

  ‘No, that’s the point,’ Ince said, sighing and gazing at the road disappearing under the horse’s hooves. ‘Nothing has happened. My hopes for a romance with her have fizzled out.’

  ‘I’m sorry, mate. I wanted to warn you, with her only being recently widowed, but felt it was none of my business.’

  ‘You’ve also probably guessed that after her bad marriage she wasn’t ready for a new relationship. Things happened too fast between us. Oh well, it probably wasn’t meant to be anyway.’

  ‘With her being church and you being chapel, you mean?’

  That amused Ince. ‘I don’t think that would have been a factor,’ he grinned. ‘I don’t know really. I think I was dazzled by her beauty and after years of a quiet village life she was so different to any other woman I know.’ He was aware of the special sadness his friend was feeling today but thought it was about time he admitted something that had been on his mind for a long time before Laura arrived in Kilgarthen. ‘I want a wife and family of my own, Spencer. I think it’s only fair to tell you that I might not be living at the farm for ever.’

  Spencer felt brave enough to accept that there might be another loss in the future but it wasn’t as if Ince had said he’d go away and not be working on the farm any more. ‘Vicki and I will miss you if you do go, Ince, but I wish you well and hope you find the right woman some day soon.’

  * * *

  ‘Right then,’ Laura said to Vicki when Mike had left and Pat had gone upstairs with a duster, polish and broom. ‘We’ve had a look at what’s in the cupboards and larder. Shall we make a rabbit pie, mashed potatoes, cabbage and carrots? Followed by a steamed pudding for afters?’

  Vicki nodded enthusiastically. ‘Can I rub the fat into the flour? I did it the other day with Daddy.’ She didn’t mention she had made a terrible mess and covered half the table with flour and it had taken Spencer ages to wash her greasy hands clean.

  Laura was willing to let her do anything she wanted. ‘Of course you can, sweetheart. I’ll prepare the meat and peel the vegetables then we’ll stir the pudding together. First, let’s see if we ca
n find some aprons.’

  The two of them spent a happy hour carrying food to the large table and preparing the meal. Vicki managed not to make quite as much mess as she had with her father. When all the preparations were finished, they sat at the table making shapes with the leftover pastry.

  Pat bustled into the kitchen carrying an armful of washing. ‘I had to creep about not to disturb Jacka. He’s sleeping at the moment. I’ll take a cup of tea up to Joan. You two look like you’re enjoying yourselves. I’ll take this lot home and put it through the copper and handwash with mine. There isn’t an item of women’s clothing in Tressa’s things but even her brother’s clothes can’t disguise how pretty she is, can they? You can see why Andrew’s falling so heavily for her. They seemed very close, don’t you think, before they went out to work? I hope with Jacka ill she isn’t turning to him for the wrong reasons.’

  ‘I’ve been thinking about that too,’ Laura said, passing Vicki the rolling pin and a scone cutter. ‘It’s difficult but we’ll just have to stand back and leave them to their own lives, but it was Andrew she ran to raise the alarm about Jacka. It was him she wanted to drive her back here.’

  ‘Yes, there is that,’ Pat admitted, feeling more optimistic. ‘You’ve got the kettle on, good. I’ll call them inside, they must be parched by now.’

  ‘Are you staying to eat, Pat?’ Laura asked, admiring Vicki’s handiwork.

  ‘Bless you, no. Mike’s coming back soon and we’ll ride home together.’

  She smiled when Laura ducked as Vicki swung the rolling pin in the air and Laura laughed and said patiently, ‘Careful, sweetheart. You nearly knocked my block off.’

  ‘You’d make a good mother, Laura,’ Pat stated.

  Mike came with Bunty just before midday and they carried in a large box of groceries made up of various little gifts the villagers had wanted passed on. Bunty raised her eyebrows to see Vicki there. ‘The vicar’s on his way,’ she said. ‘How are you getting on here? How’s Tressa bearing up? I saw her this morning from my bedroom window tearing down the hill to the pub in a terrible state. It gave me quite a turn, I can tell you.’

  ‘Everything’s under control,’ Laura replied, packing up Vicki’s pastry shape of a hedgehog and untying the little girl’s makeshift apron. ‘Tressa’s taking it hard but she’s better working outside. Will you tell Aunty Daisy I’ll pop in and see her this evening, please?’

  ‘Certainly I will.’ Bunty looked as if she was chewing something over. ‘Is Andrew with Tressa?’

  Laura smiled to herself, she knew what Bunty was getting at. ‘Yes, he hasn’t left her side all day.’ She knew that would provide a juicy morsel to pass on to Daisy.

  And sure enough Bunty was in a hurry to leave. Are you ready, Pat and Mike? We’d best be going and let them eat their dinner here in peace.’

  When dinner was over, Spencer was the next on the scene. Tressa and Andrew had no more work to do for a while and had taken mugs of tea into the sitting room. Vicki was sitting on Laura’s lap while Laura plaited her hair, tying the ends with scraps of wool from Joan’s knitting bag. Laura looked guiltily at Spencer; she never felt comfortable in his presence.

  Vicki didn’t get down and rush to him like she usually did but if Spencer was put out, he didn’t show it. ‘Is Bert Miller here yet?’

  ‘I haven’t seen or heard him,’ Laura replied.

  ‘I’ll wait for him here.’ He sat down in Jacka’s chair on the other side of the range.

  ‘Me and Laura made rabbit pie and a lovely pudding, Daddy,’ Vicki piped up. ‘You must get her to cook some for you.’

  ‘That would be nice,’ he said, noting the charming scene the two of them made. Vicki looked thoroughly at home on her perch having her hair plaited. Laura Jennings was exceedingly beautiful, even more so since country living had dispersed the pale, gaunt look she’d had when he’d first seen her. He felt sorry for Ince. He knew what it was like to lose the woman he loved and losing a woman such as this one would be very hard.

  Laura tied the last piece of wool in Vicki’s hair then said, ‘Don’t forget you’ve got something you made from the pastry to show Daddy. It’s in the back kitchen keeping cool. Why don’t you run along and fetch it?’

  Vicki skipped off obediently and Laura turned to Spencer. He could see she was going to ask him something and he raised his fair brows. ‘I was wondering if you would mind if I gave Vicki a present for her birthday. I know it’s late but I wanted to ask you first. It’s nothing showy, just a plain cardigan.’

  ‘I can’t see anything wrong with that. You seemed almost too afraid to ask me.’

  ‘Things haven’t been easy between us.’

  ‘True, but seeing how much Vicki likes you, we must make sure that changes, mustn’t we?’

  In the evening, Andrew carried an armchair upstairs so Joan and Tressa in turn could sit and keep their vigil more comfortably.

  ‘Would you like to stay at the farm until we learn one way or the other about Jacka?’ Joan said, her voice weary from the long day. ‘Tressa needs you to be close and I’d be glad to have you here too. It would be strange without a man about the place.’

  Andrew was delighted and said so. ‘I told Tressa today that I love her. I think she feels a lot for me too. But what about Jacka? If all goes well, and I pray to God it does, do you think if he’s against us settling down, she’ll follow his wishes? I couldn’t bear to lose her, Joan.’

  ‘I think Jacka’s main worry is what sort of future Tressa will have with you. If you got married and lived in London she wouldn’t be happy mixing with strangers she’d have nothing in common with. She said something this morning about you maybe not going back to London. Would you be happy down here, living a totally different kind of life, Andrew?’

  ‘I love Tressa for what she is and wouldn’t dream of taking her away from her beloved moor. I could set up in practice locally. I’ve got some savings and I’d sell my flat. I’ll buy her a farm of her own if that’s what she wants and we’ll work the land together, it’s got a strong hold over me now. In fact, I could sort out the problem with the bank and buy Tregorlan Farm and we could all live here together. The farm’s big enough and we can always make some alterations. When Jacka gets better, he can potter around to his heart’s content and not risk his health. It would be the answer to all our problems, Joan.’

  Joan wiped a tear from her eye and put a hand on his arm. ‘You’re a good man, Andrew Macarthur. You go ahead and put a ring on Tressa’s finger with my blessing. Jacka will feel the same way, I’m sure, but if he doesn’t, you just leave him to me.’

  Joan insisted she would sit up with Jacka the first night. Tressa couldn’t sleep. She lay in her bed staring out of the window at the starlit sky. She went over every moment of Jacka’s symptoms leading up to his heart attack and blamed herself for not seeing how ill he was. She regretted every cross word she’d said to him recently even though there were only a few. She thought of Joan and their worries for the future, although her aunt seemed more serene since the few moments she’d spent talking with Andrew. She thought about Andrew. Not the things that had already happened between them, not even the way they had stolen a long passionate kiss goodnight. She was thinking about him lying in the next room and how she wanted and needed his arms round her, his closeness, his love. She knew she couldn’t live without him now.

  She endured her loneliness another hour then got out of bed. She crept out onto the landing, passed her brothers’ room and stopped and listened outside her father’s room. She could hear Joan snoring. She peeped inside and saw that her father was sleeping; he had hardly roused during the day. She tiptoed back to her brothers’ room and slowly lifted the latch. She had done this on many nights as a small girl when she had felt frightened after a bad dream, or when the wind on the moor was particularly fierce, and had crept into Jimmy’s or Matty’s bed and they had comforted her. She was seeking a different sort of comfort tonight.

  Andrew hadn’t been able t
o sleep either and sat up in surprise. He waited for her slender form in the thin nightdress to reach him. ‘What’s the matter, darling?’ he whispered through the darkness.

  ‘Nothing. I can’t sleep,’ she whispered back. ‘I-I want to be with you.’

  ‘You’ll get cold if you stay there. You’re welcome to come in with me but I’ve got nothing on. I won’t be fetching my things until tomorrow.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter.’ She shivered but she wasn’t cold. ‘I won’t be able to see anything.’

  ‘That wasn’t what I was thinking of.’ He held back the covers. He had been noble enough to point out that they would have only the barrier of her nightdress between them, but he didn’t want her to change her mind.

  She slipped in under the covers beside him. They lay on their sides facing each other, their faces on the pillow, their arms around each other.

  ‘I was tempted to come to you but I was afraid it would upset you and if Joan caught me she’d get out a shotgun,’ he said, grinning.

  ‘We’ll have to be very quiet. If Aunty Joan wakes up, she’ll be horrified with me.’

  He caressed her cheek. ‘Why did you come to me?’

  ‘I used to climb in with Matty or Jimmy when I was frightened as a girl.’

  ‘I’m not one of your brothers, Tressa.’

  She ran a hand over his broad shoulder and rested the palm on his bare chest. ‘I know.’

  He gathered her in close to him and she could hear his heart beating wildly and she could feel that he wanted her. ‘Sorry,’ he murmured, kissing her hair, ‘but you can’t really blame me. Don’t worry, I can keep control.’

  She rested her face on his chest, breathing in his wonderful male scent and luxuriating in the feeling of being in contact with him all the way down his strong lean body. ‘It’s all right to do it if you’re in love, isn’t it?’ she whispered, making him shiver deliciously where her warm breath caressed his flesh.