‘No, thanks.’
Harrie smiled. She had yet to meet a man who enjoyed herbal tea.
‘You haven’t yet told me your name,’ she said, turning to face him.
‘You haven’t told me yours.’
‘True.’
‘Haverstock,’ he said.
‘That’s . . . unusual.’
‘Samson,’ he added.
‘Haverstock Samson?’
‘Samson Haverstock.’
‘Right.’ She bit her lip, trying not to laugh.
‘What?’ he asked.
‘Nothing.’
‘You’re laughing.’
‘I’m not laughing.’
‘Yes you are.’
‘Okay, yes I am,’ she said.
‘My name isn’t funny.’
‘Well, it is just a bit.’
He frowned at her and she grinned. He was very easy to rib.
‘Here,’ she said, handing him his tea. ‘I’m sorry. I’ve just never met a Samson before. Or a Haverstock.’
‘What’s your name, then?’
‘Greenleaf,’ she said with a grin. ‘That’s my surname and Harriet is my first name, but I prefer Harrie.’
‘But that’s a man’s name.’
‘It’s with an ie.’
‘Still sounds like a man’s name. I’ve never met a woman called Harrie.’
‘Well, now you have and I’ve met a Samson Haverstock.’
He drained his cup of tea and took it to the sink and washed it.
‘So,’ he said, clearing his throat, ‘you want to see what I’ll be working on?’
‘Yes, please,’ she said.
‘I don’t like chatter,’ he told her.
‘I don’t do chatter.’
‘Good. Or questions.’
‘Ah,’ Harrie said. ‘I do do questions.’
He frowned at her.
‘What? I can’t help it. I’m a teacher; I’m curious by nature.’
‘Well, try not to be curious while I’m working.’
Again, Harrie desperately tried to hold her laughter in. She’d never met anybody like this man before with his gruff manner. But, as much as he irked her, she had to admit that there was something she liked about him. Perhaps it was his honesty. He didn’t mess around with being polite. Harrie liked that, she realised. Not enough people were like that, were they? Most people slyly danced around the truth, wasting time with one another, and Harrie didn’t have any time to waste these days so it was quite refreshing to be told the truth from the beginning. It saved time.
‘Can I ask questions at the end?’
‘At the end of what?’
‘When you’ve finished your day’s work?’
He shrugged. ‘If you must.’
‘I think I must.’
He nodded.
She followed him out of the kitchen and towards the tower, the oldest part of the priory. A couple of jackdaws had found their way inside and cawed in alarm at being disturbed, flying out of the windows, which no longer had glass in them. Harrie marvelled at being able to see the clear blue sky through the tracery. It was the most beautiful building she had ever seen and she once again felt truly privileged to be staying there.
Turning her attention back to Samson, she noticed that his work tools were already laid out.
‘How long have you been doing this?’ Harrie began.
‘I’m working now,’ he said, his eyebrows raised.
‘Oh, sorry,’ Harrie said, her hand over her mouth in horror at having already managed to disturb him. ‘I’ll sit over here. I won’t bother you here, will I?’ she asked, pointing to a stone step.
He was glaring at her and part of her wanted to laugh again. He was so very earnest. But she didn’t get a chance to laugh because she heard someone calling her name.
‘Audrey?’ Harrie turned around to see her friend approaching. ‘Good morning.’
‘I wondered where you were.’ She stopped, looking across to Samson.
‘He’s the restorer. He’ll be working here over the summer,’ Harrie explained.
‘Hello,’ Audrey said.
Samson nodded.
‘He’s called Samson and he only speaks when he wants a cup of tea.’
Audrey looked perplexed and Harrie laughed.
‘Have you seen Lisa?’ Audrey asked.
‘No. Isn’t she still in bed?’
‘I checked her room and she wasn’t there.’
‘I suppose we’d better go and find her,’ Harrie said, getting up from the step she’d been sitting on and brushing her hands over her bottom. ‘I’ll see you later,’ she told Samson. He gave a half-nod, but didn’t say anything.
‘He’s an odd sort,’ Audrey said, once they were out of earshot.
‘I kind of like him.’
‘You do?’
‘For some strange reason, he brings out the perverse in me,’ Harrie admitted.
‘What do you mean?’
‘His reluctance to talk makes me want to keep bothering him until he does. Is that awful?’
‘It’s probably awful for him,’ Audrey told her.
‘But fun for me.’
They entered the courtyard garden, but there was no sign of Lisa.
‘Where do you think she is?’
‘Let me see,’ Harrie said. ‘The sun will have risen over there, right?’
‘Erm, I guess.’
‘Then that’s where we’ll find her.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Her yoga.’
They found Lisa a moment later in the herb garden. She was seated on her pink yoga mat, her legs folded and her hands resting on her knees, palms facing the sky, a look of total serenity on her face.
‘Is she meditating?’ Audrey asked.
‘No, she’s probably just sleeping.’
‘I can hear you!’ Lisa told them, and they both giggled.
‘I was worried. You weren’t in your room,’ Audrey said.
‘I’ve been up for hours.’ Lisa stretched her arms above her head as she slowly blinked her eyes open. ‘Well, at least one hour.’
‘Meditating?’ Harrie asked.
‘Greeting the morning,’ she revealed. ‘It’s glorious here. The perfect place for a sun salutation.’
‘I had a pillow salutation,’ Audrey said.
‘A what?’ Lisa asked.
‘A lie-in!’
‘Audrey Wells had a lie-in?’ Harrie cried. ‘Are you sure?’
‘And I’ll carry the guilt for the rest of the summer,’ she said.
‘You mustn’t do that,’ Harrie said quickly. ‘This place – our time here – isn’t for regrets. It’s for living life to its fullest.’
Audrey smiled at her. ‘I’ll try and remember that.’
‘Good.’
Lisa stood up and began to roll up her yoga mat.
‘Oh, I should warn you, there’s a guy doing work on the tower today,’ Harrie said.
‘There’s a man here?’ Lisa asked.
‘The restorer,’ Harrie explained. ‘Samson.’
‘What’s he like?’
‘Sullen, abrupt and very odd.’
‘Good-looking?’ Lisa prompted.
‘I think so.’
‘I’ll go and take a look.’
‘He doesn’t like being disturbed,’ Harrie warned her. ‘So I wouldn’t if I was you.’
‘Oh,’ Lisa said, crestfallen.
‘What about some breakfast?’ Harrie said. ‘Anyone had any?’
‘Only a glass of warm water to get my digestion moving,’ Lisa said.
‘Blimey, I hope we’re not going to hear about that all summer,’ Audrey said.
‘People tend to overlook their digestion,’ Lisa went on, ‘but nothing else will function properly if you don’t pay it attention.’
Audrey grimaced and the three of them walked through the garden. The morning light was a clear silver and there was a slight breeze now that was refreshin
g.
‘I’m going to make a smoothie,’ Harrie said. ‘Anyone want one?’
‘They have a blender here?’ Lisa asked as Harrie plugged one in.
‘No,’ Harrie laughed. ‘I brought it with me.’
‘You brought a blender on holiday?’ Audrey asked in surprise.
‘What can I say? I like my smoothies.’
‘That’s a bit obsessive, isn’t it?’
‘Not when we’re going to be here for six weeks. It’s important to start your day well and a freshly made smoothie is just the thing. I put all sorts of wonders in mine: fruit, oats, spinach—’
‘Spinach?’ Audrey said, wrinkling her nose.
‘You don’t taste it. It just turns it a bit green, that’s all.’
‘You’re not really selling the idea to me,’ Audrey confessed.
‘Let me make you one,’ Harrie said, addressing both of them. ‘I bought a heap of bananas and the freezer’s full of frozen fruit and you both look like you could do with one.’
‘What do you mean?’ Lisa said, ever mindful of her looks.
‘I don’t mean anything.’ Harrie bit her lip. Perhaps she’d gone too far trying to push her healthy-eating regime onto them so early. ‘I just want to take care of you.’
‘Ever the mother,’ Audrey said.
‘I’m good with my coffee,’ Lisa said.
‘But that’s so bad for you,’ Harrie said. ‘All that caffeine and dairy.’
‘Don’t forget the sugar,’ Lisa said.
‘You shouldn’t put all that into your body.’
Audrey placed her hands on her hips. ‘Are you having a mid-life crisis or something?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean this sudden interest in diet.’
‘It isn’t sudden.’
‘No?’
‘I changed my diet a while ago.’
‘Well, you’ve certainly lost weight, that’s for sure,’ Lisa observed. ‘Your dress is hanging off you.’
Harrie’s hands immediately flew to her waist. She was conscious of the fact that she’d lost weight, but she’d been happy with that, believing that she’d found a more natural way to live since her diagnosis. It was funny but her illness had actually made her healthier. If she’d never got cancer, she might easily have overloaded her body with all sorts of sugars, fats and chemicals and got diabetes. She truly believed that. Her new diet had saved her in so many ways and had allowed her to have a certain amount of control over her body. It was a positive focus on the good that she could do herself. So much of having cancer was out of your control, but her diet was something she alone was in charge of and she’d embraced her new regime with a vigour she didn’t know she had. It might not save her life, but it was at least going part way to saving her sanity.
‘I’m not sure I’ll be able to cope for six weeks with a health freak to my left and a meditating Buddhist on my right,’ Audrey said.
‘I’m not a Buddhist,’ Lisa insisted. ‘I’m just a very spiritual person.’
‘You’re making fun of Harrie for bringing her blender, but you’ve got your yoga mat and singing bowl.’
‘It was you who was making fun of her blender!’
‘I hope you’re not going to stink the priory out with your incense sticks like you used to in your room at uni,’ Audrey went on.
‘Well, I hope you’re not going to keep sloping off to your room to work like a boring person.’
‘Ladies!’ Harrie said. ‘I thought we weren’t going to argue.’
‘Talking of being boring,’ Audrey said, ‘this six weeks is a long time.’
‘It’ll fly by,’ Harrie said.
‘Yes, I know, but I do think we should organise things.’
‘Like what?’ Harrie asked as she loaded her blender with frozen fruit.
‘Like chores. I mean, we’re going to be here for the entire summer – we need to decide on things like cooking and washing-up. A rota, perhaps.’
‘I can’t believe you just said that,’ Lisa groaned. ‘A rota! We’re on holiday!’
‘Yes, but it won’t remain a holiday-like atmosphere if we’re knee-deep in dirty dishes before this week is out.’
Harrie shook her head. ‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘It’s all taken care of.’
‘What do you mean?’ Audrey asked.
‘I’ve hired someone. Mrs Ryder. She’ll be coming in three times a week to sort us out. She’ll be cooking a few meals, bringing a bit of shopping and generally tidying up after us.’
Audrey’s mouth had fallen open. ‘Isn’t that expensive?’
Harrie shrugged. ‘Yes.’
‘I hope you’re not expecting me to chip in,’ Lisa said, ‘because I’m broke after the last retreat I went on. You’ve no idea how much those places charge.’
Harrie grinned. ‘I didn’t want us to be bothered by dull things like household chores. This time’s about us. No chores. No TV. No work. Just us.’
Lisa looked as if she’d been punched in the face. ‘What do you mean, no TV?’
‘There’s no TV here. It’s part of the ethos of the trust that owns this place. There’s no TV and no clocks. You knew that, didn’t you? I did tell you. Don’t you remember?’
‘But I can’t go without TV for the whole summer!’ Lisa cried. ‘There’s a great new series everyone’s talking about and I want to catch up.’
‘Charming!’ Audrey said. ‘And here was I thinking I was riveting company.’
‘But just remember those days when we weren’t glued to the TV or our mobile phones,’ Harrie said.
Lisa shook her head. ‘Nope. Can’t remember them.’
‘There are shelves of books to read and footpaths to explore . . .’
‘You’ll be telling us that there’s no electricity next and that we’ll have to bake our own bread by candlelight,’ Lisa said.
‘There’s electricity,’ Harrie told her. ‘I thought you’d be used to all that sort of thing with you going away on retreats.’
‘They’re different.’
Harrie finished adding her ingredients to the blender and switched it on.
‘Blimey, that thing’s noisy,’ Lisa said.
‘I could feel my chakras vibrating.’ Audrey’s hand moved over her chest. Lisa threw her a dirty look and Audrey winked at her.
‘Hey, who’s that man?’ Lisa asked as she looked out of the window.
‘Samson Haverstock. The restorer I was telling you about. I wonder what he’s up to,’ Harrie said.
‘Where are you going?’ Lisa asked.
‘Just to see.’
Harrie left the kitchen.
‘Hey,’ she called after Samson. He slowed his pace, but he didn’t stop. ‘Everything okay?’
He nodded.
‘You haven’t finished for the day, have you?’
He shook his head. ‘Got to get a special tool from the van.’
They walked towards the vehicle and he opened the doors at the back.
It was then that Harrie saw it and, by the look on his face, Samson knew that she’d seen it although she didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to, did she?
It was Samson’s flask.
Chapter 4
Harrie hadn’t said anything, of course, and neither had Samson. He’d merely cleared his throat, reached into the van for the tool he needed, closed the door and returned to the tower. Harrie had left him to it, smiling secretly to herself. He was an odd one, she thought, but she couldn’t help liking him.
If she were honest with herself, Harrie couldn’t remember the last time she’d even attempted to flirt with a man. It seemed like an age ago. Another lifetime; another Harrie. Since divorcing Charles, there’d been other men in her life, but nobody serious and no one at all since her diagnosis. Not only had her working life stopped, but her love life had too and it wasn’t just because she’d felt so ill for so long, but because she’d felt so insecure. Even when she’d felt well during her remission, the thoug
ht of dating had appalled her. She’d heard that was normal for a woman who had undergone a mastectomy. Intimacy could be a scary thing and the mere thought of trying to explain what she had gone through to a man was a problem she decided she could live without.
But, oh, how she missed men! It had been yet another thing cancer had taken away from her: not just her breasts but her confidence. That was it, she thought. She’d lost a little bit of the old Harrie – the naughty flirt who loved male companionship.
But now here was Samson. Was the world trying to tell her something? Might a summer flirtation be a good idea? She took a deep breath, sighed and reminded herself that this summer was about her friends.
When she returned to the kitchen, Audrey and Lisa had gone but she soon spied them out of the window, sipping their drinks on a bench in the sunny courtyard, a plate of croissants beside them. She took a moment to watch them, feeling blessed they were here with her. It had been too long since they’d all shared some special time together and she was excited at the prospect of the long summer ahead.
She was just about to join them when she heard a knock on the front door.
‘Hello?’ Harrie said a moment later as she was greeted by a short, stocky woman with ruddy cheeks and a rather severe perm. She was wearing an old-fashioned gingham dress with a crisp white apron tied around her large waist and no-nonsense plimsolls. Harrie guessed her to be in her late fifties.
‘Good morning,’ the woman said with a little nod.
‘Mrs Ryder?’ Harrie asked, guessing that this must surely be the housekeeper.
‘Yes. That’s me.’ She extended a large, plump hand, shaking Harrie’s slender one.
‘Very pleased to meet you,’ Harrie said.
Mrs Ryder nodded, her eyes sliding down Harrie as if in appraisal. ‘You’re too thin.’
‘Excuse me?’
‘Are you one of these modern women who spend all their time working and not enough time eating properly?’ Mrs Ryder asked.
‘No,’ Harrie said.
‘I’ll soon sort that out, don’t you worry.’
Harrie almost did a comedy double-take at the woman’s forthright manner. ‘Erm, my diet doesn’t need sorting out.’
‘I had a look at the meal plans you sent through.’
‘Good,’ Harrie said.
‘They won’t do.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘All kale and broccoli. You need to get some meat down you.’
One Last Summer Page 4