The House in the Clouds - Victoria Connelly Page 0,5
a daily ache he carried around inside him. He often visualised it, feeling sure it was eating him up, molecule by molecule until, one day, there would be nothing left of him at all. Just a hollow husk riding the tube to work, an empty vessel devoid of dreams.
He felt like he’d got out just in time. At thirty-five, he was still young, he told himself, he still felt passionate about his job and still had the energy to pour himself into a project of the magnitude of Winfield Hall. Of course, he’d still be living in his London flat for most of the time, but the fact that he now had somewhere to escape to at the weekends – even if it was a building site for the foreseeable future – was a great comfort to him.
There was just so much to do. Edward had thought he’d prepared himself for it by reading a few books about house renovations and watching YouTube videos, but nothing had prepared him for the enormity of the project. The full structural survey he’d had done on the property ahead of making his winning bid had shown a few key areas that needed work and, on top of that, were the plans for turning the house into leasable flats. That’s what Edward had envisaged as soon as he’d seen the place. He’d known it was too big for him to live in alone and that it would be way too ambitious even on his city salary. But he could take a generous slice of the house for himself and make an income from the rest. It was a sound investment, he believed.
Being a listed property, though, meant that you couldn’t just start knocking down walls as soon as you took ownership. No matter how keen you were to save the old building and make improvements, things had to be done officially, with the right permissions and that, of course, meant delays. It was very frustrating and Edward had no choice but to hire a manager to oversee the whole project, liaising with builders and workmen and being around to sign for deliveries. He’d given it a go trying to coordinate everything himself, but it was impossible when he was working in London.
But he lived for the time when he could be at Winfield, pacing the rooms and envisaging what it would be like when the work was done. This was what he’d been dreaming of for the last few years and he couldn’t help but allow himself a proud little moment as he stood in one of the grand first floor rooms and looked out of the great sash window across the valley beyond. He deserved this, he told himself. He’d worked and saved hard for it, and he was here now, making his dreams a reality.
For a moment, an image entered his mind of the woman who’d been bidding against him at the auction. He hadn’t seen her face clearly, just a glimpse of blonde hair tied back. But he remembered the way she’d carried herself as she’d left the auction room. Was it his imagination or was there something defeated about her gait and posture? And was Edward having a glimmer of guilt now because his victory had been at the cost of somebody else’s happiness? But that was the way of the auction room, wasn’t it? There could only be one winner and he couldn’t truly have any regrets because he was that winner.
Still, as he turned away from the window to venture back downstairs, he couldn’t get the rather forlorn image of that woman out of his mind.
Abi smiled sweetly at the estate agent, but she wasn’t really listening to her patter. The woman was saying something about local amenities in the nearby Oxfordshire town. Apparently, they were second to none. Very popular. Very handy. But Abi wasn’t really interested.
She walked around the garden and glanced back at the house. It was pretty enough in that golden Cotswold stone, but Abi didn’t feel the need to get out her sketch book. She didn’t even want to look around the rooms for a second time when the estate agent offered. She’d seen enough. She was done.
The next week, she viewed a property in Hampshire. It looked like a dolls’ house from the front with fine sash windows and perfect Georgian symmetry. The rooms were just as light and lofty as those at Winfield, but they didn’t look out onto the downs.