Garden. ‘Anyway, I’ve promised to submit some sketches but advised him that if he would like to go ahead, then I need to complete the work for Luke first.’
‘Will that be an issue, do you think?’
‘Oh no, he didn’t mind at all, and when I explained about what’s happening here with the Winterfest, he offered me the bundle of willow whips for Chloe, free of charge.’
‘He sounds lovely.’
‘They all are,’ Finn laughed, ‘and it’s not just the family living in the hall. There’s the handyman, cook, housekeeper and groundsman and someone else in the cottage in the woods. From what I could make out, they’re from all walks of life and backgrounds. Anna, the partner of one of the sons, told me that if you go there for even just a few weeks, it’s most likely that you’ll fall in love and never leave. It’s a fairy-tale place.’
‘A bit like here,’ I suggested.
I felt my face colour, but thankfully Finn didn’t seem to notice. I had meant fall in love with the place as opposed to anyone living in it. I wasn’t ready to admit that just yet.
‘Yes,’ said Finn, running a hand through his windswept hair. ‘Luke might not have the acreage that Wynthorpe Hall has, but he’s definitely creating the magical urban equivalent, isn’t he?’
‘It’s beginning to feel that way.’
We were quiet for a second and I wished Zak wasn’t working upstairs so I could pick up our conversation from Sunday. It would have been the perfect time to properly clear the air, what with Finn’s exciting news and me, comfortable in my own home.
‘Would you like a tea or coffee?’ I offered, knowing our talk would have to wait.
‘Coffee please,’ said Finn. ‘It’s freezing out there. I could do with warming up.’
‘So why have you carried the willow over here?’ I asked, as I splashed milk into the mugs. ‘Chloe’s going to love it, but it’ll be better off stacked in the garden.’
‘It was just an excuse really,’ he huskily said, coming to stand next to me.
‘An excuse,’ I blinked up at him, my breath tight in my chest.
‘Yes.’
‘For what?’
‘Coming to see you.’
‘Did you need one?’
‘I just thought it would make turning up on your doorstep a bit easier.’
‘And why did you want to turn up on my doorstep?’
‘To carry on the conversation that we started on Sunday of course.’
Off went my heart again, galloping about all over the place.
‘Well,’ I said, trying to sound relaxed, ‘you didn’t need an excuse to do that. You could have just turned up without a horticultural accompaniment.’
‘I tried that before I left,’ he said, turning endearingly red, ‘and I didn’t even get through the gate.’
‘I see,’ I smiled.
‘Don’t laugh,’ he tutted. ‘It’s not funny.’
‘I’m not laughing, I’m just smiling.’
‘Well, whatever,’ he said, a smile of his own tugging at the corners of his luscious lips, ‘I realised that I was going to need an excuse to come over and Angus Connelly kindly provided me with one.’
‘And I’m very glad that he did,’ I told him, giving him a nudge.
‘Are you really?’
‘I am really,’ I whispered.
‘Well,’ he sighed, reaching to tuck an unruly strand of hair behind my ear in a gesture that now felt achingly familiar, ‘that’s all right then, isn’t it?’
I was just about to tell him that it was more than all right when there was a thud from upstairs which was accompanied by some extremely blue expletives.
‘Oh,’ said Finn, as he looked up at the ceiling and took a step back, ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t realise you had company.’
‘I haven’t.’
The racket upstairs suggested otherwise.
‘Well,’ I elaborated, ‘not company, company.’
The swearing then morphed into heavy footfall and Finn stepped into the hall to find himself faced with the source of the rumpus.
‘Hello, bruv,’ said Zak, who had almost collided with him in his eagerness to get to the kitchen. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘I could ask you the same thing,’ Finn shot back.
Personally, I was more interested to find out why Zak was topless.
‘I’m here to—’ Zak began, but Finn didn’t wait to hear his explanation.
‘Oh, forget it,’ he angrily said, pushing through and making for the door. ‘I’ll let Chloe know about the willow.’
He crashed out, slamming the door behind him and making the whole house shake. Again.
‘Earth to Freya,’ said Zak, clicking his fingers in front of my face. ‘Can you hear me?’
I came back to earth with a bump. ‘What?’ I dazedly asked.
‘Where’s your stopcock, my love?’
Chapter 22
‘So, what happened then?’ Chloe asked wide-eyed as