I lied about that.”
“She was a fool, whoever she was.”
“I don't know …”
“Andrew, please.” Nicola made a face. “I've only known you for a few days, but it doesn't take a clairvoyant to see that you are a good man. For Christ's sake, you try to save sheep!”
“But I couldn't save the marriage.”
“None of us can do that single-handedly.” Then a thought occurred to her. “Did you beat her?”
“What? Of course not!”
“My husband did.”
Andrew looked at the woman across the table, speechless. He couldn't imagine anyone wanting to mar that beauty.
“Your husband beat you? Jesus.”
“I don't think Jesus had much to do with it, frankly,” she said, flashing a smile still fraught with pain.
“I … I don't know what to say. I can't imagine …”
“You know what? I believe you. I believe you can't imagine doing harm to anyone, much less a woman. I suspect you're cursed.”
“Cursed?”
“With being a gentleman.”
“I never thought of it as a handicap.”
Nicola winked at him: “Don't you know that good girls like bad boys?”
Andrew laughed. “I guess I'll never have a chance with good girls.”
Nicola seemed to study him for a moment, then said, “She left you for someone else, didn't she?”
She didn't know why she knew this≔ the knowledge came to her as if through her pores. There was an ache in this man, the ache of betrayal. It was palpable.
Andrew looked away.
“Maybe Lee's right; maybe you are a witch. Or a mind reader.”
“I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have—”
“Yes. She left me. For a lawyer, someone who earns a lot more than a university professor.”
He stared at his empty plate, then looked up again. “And now, Nicola, I think it's time I trundled home to bed.”
Nicola suddenly felt like a vampire who had sucked the life out of this lovely man.
“Andrew, please don't; I'm sorry. I didn't mean—”
“I know, Nicki. I'm still a little raw is all, like some reptile that's shed its skin and is still waiting for the layer underneath to toughen up.”
“I remember how that feels,” she said.
Randi had been resting his chin on one of Andrew's dusty boots and was asleep. Andrew slipped his foot out as gently as he could and stood. The dog looked up, then put its head down on the floor with a sigh.
“Look,” Andrew continued, “dinner was wonderful—almost as wonderful as your company, but not quite. I've got a big day tomorrow; we start building the rest of the hedge, now that the foundation is laid.”
She rose and stood by the table. “Thank you for the flowers, Andrew.”
“Sorry they weren't a bit more, um … lush. You deserve better.” Andrew stood at the door for a moment, waiting for Nicola to open it. She seemed riveted to the floor. He lifted the latch, stepped out into the warm evening, then turned and smiled.
“Good night, Nicola,” he said quietly, “and thank you.”
Nicola managed to smile. “Good night, Andrew.”
She watched him walk up the lane and turn into Dunn Street. Then she closed the door.
“Shit!” she said.
Information on the storms of 16th August 2004 comes mainly from 5 tipping bucket rain gauges in the area: at Slaughterbridge in the River Camel catchment, at Woolstone Mill, Tamarstone and Crowford Bridge in the Bude catchment, and at Lesnewth/Trevalec in the Valency catchment. All use 0.2 mm buckets. The first four record the number of tips at fixed time intervals, giving 15 minute rainfall accumulations, while the last records individual tip times with a precision of 10 seconds.
Brian Golding, ed., “Numerical Weather Prediction,” Forecasting Research Technical Report No. 459, Met Office
seven
“How many of those stones you reckon you'll pick up and put down before you find one you fancy?” Jamie had walked up behind Andrew and was smiling.
They were working on the “filler” level, laying stone atop the uneven grounders to create a level base on which to build the rest of the hedge. Earlier Wednesday morning, Jamie and Becky had gone through the rock pile and sorted the stones in rows, placing the largest closest to the wall. Jamie explained that you always lay the biggest stones first, so you don't have to lift them very high.
Andrew studied the rock he'd just lifted. “I'm searching for one that fits.”
“Makes sense, but for one thing.”
“What's that?”
“You're doubling your work every time you lift one and put it back. Soon be exhausted and have little to show for your sweat.”
“So what's your solution?”
“You don't search for the right stone, lad; you discover it.”
“Huh?”
Jamie laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “I'm