‘We’ve rented a little cottage in Lingham-on-Skimmer for the week,’ Tom explained. ‘I thought it best that Andi get a real taste of the country if she was intent on moving here, and that she should see it outside of the summer months too.’

  ‘That’s why I was here for the sheep fair,’ Daisy explained. ‘Tom and Andi were there too, but they were in the pub when I met you. We spent the afternoon at the fair though, didn’t we?’

  ‘Yes,’ Andi said glumly, ‘we did. So many sheep! The craft fair was interesting, though.’ She fixed Kat with an astonished gaze. ‘Mind you, I had no idea there were so many dead animals in the countryside. It’s a bit off putting if I’m honest.’

  ‘Dead animals?’

  ‘She means roadkill,’ Tom said. ‘She was a bit shocked, weren’t you, love?’

  ‘Every few yards there’s another squashed badger or summat,’ she said, looking disgusted. ‘And no one cleans them up, so things can happen which are absolutely vile.’

  ‘I told her about the crows and foxes feeding on the carcasses before the council gets to them,’ Tom explained. ‘It’s been a bit of a culture shock. I think Andi’s beginning to realise that maybe city life is more her style after all.’

  ‘I’m not being funny,’ Andi said, ‘but that hair salon across the square looks like somewhere my gran would go for her shampoo and set. It’s not exactly Toni & Guy, is it? And where are all the clothes shops? I mean,’ she added, looking doubtfully at Kat’s jeans, jumper, and winter coat ensemble, ‘you must have some decent ones somewhere.’

  ‘There’s a train station,’ Kat pointed out. ‘You can always go back to Leeds, or to York, or Harrogate.’

  ‘Kind of defeats the object though, doesn’t it?’ Andi said.

  ‘And I’m very worried you’d be bored,’ Tom added. ‘It’s all right for me. I’m an accountant, and I can work from home at all hours. Besides, I’m used to the country in all seasons. Andi would find it proper dull.’

  ‘She’ll be too busy working to be bored,’ Daisy protested. ‘We’ve got a business to set up, remember?’

  ‘All work and no play,’ Tom said coolly.

  ‘Who do you think you’re kidding?’ Daisy burst out. ‘This isn’t about Andi. This is you not wanting to move back to the Dales.’

  ‘Well, can you blame me?’ he asked. ‘Didn’t we suffer enough when we were kids on that miserable farm? I couldn’t wait to get out and you know it.’

  ‘But this isn’t a farm, and you promised!’ she said, her eyes shining with tears.

  ‘Because you kept going on and on about it,’ he said, sounding annoyed. ‘And then you recruited Andi into this mad scheme, and I knew there’d be no dissuading her. She had to see it for herself. Now I think she has.’

  ‘But you know how much I want to come back here,’ Daisy pleaded. ‘I can’t stand it in the city, Tom, and now Dad’s gone there’s nothing to keep me there. And this is a market town, it’s not exactly the middle of nowhere.’

  ‘As good as,’ Andi said with a shudder. ‘Perhaps Tom’s right, love. I’m not so sure this is the place for us after all. Maybe we’d be better off looking for business premises in Leeds. What do you say?’

  ‘I don’t want to live in a city,’ Daisy said. ‘I’ve told you that. Please, just look around properly. Think what we could do with this place.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Tom said, to Kat rather than his sister. ‘I think we’ve been wasting your time, but we won’t take up any more of it.’

  ‘Hang on a minute, I never said no, did I?’ Andi scolded him. ‘Stop making decisions for me. Honestly, bloody men, it’s always about them, isn’t it?’

  ‘But you just said!’ Tom said, sounding outraged.

  ‘I said I wasn’t sure,’ Andi pointed out. ‘I haven’t made my mind up yet. I need more time.’ She tilted her head at Kat. ‘Is that all right?’

  ‘Of course,’ Kat said reluctantly. ‘Though of course, if we get an offer in the meantime there’s no guarantee my aunts won’t accept it.’

  ‘Point taken, and that’s fair enough. Come on, Daisy,’ Andi urged her. ‘Let’s go back up to Lingham-on-Skimmer and I’ll treat you to a Chinese. That’s if they do such a thing up there.’ She rolled her eyes at Kat. ‘It’s like the back of beyond, honestly. Can you believe there isn’t even a McDonald’s?’

  They politely shook Kat’s hand and turned to a clearly distraught Daisy.

  ‘We’ll wait in the car,’ Tom said. ‘I’m sorry it’s not been an outright yes today, Daisy, I really am. Like Andi says, we just need more time. We’ll be in touch.’

  After nodding at Kat, he and Andi headed out into the market place, no doubt highly relieved that their true feelings were finally out in the open.

  Kat looked at Daisy, feeling nothing but sympathy for the poor woman.

  ‘I’m so sorry,’ Daisy said, wiping her eyes as they walked back into the front of the shop.

  ‘It’s okay. It’s not your fault. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you.’ Sorry for her aunts, too, and for Tuppenny Bridge. Kat had to admit the crafter’s paradise and the craft café sounded like real assets for the town, and possibly for her. It was a shame it probably wouldn’t be happening.

  Daisy sniffed and looked longingly around the shop. ‘I never even got to go back upstairs. I had such plans for this place. I’ve wanted to run a café for ages. I love baking, you see. It’s the one thing I’m really good at.’

  ‘He hasn’t said no yet,’ Kat said.

  Daisy looked far from convinced. ‘I can see the way this is going,’ she said. ‘It will take a miracle to save me now.’

  ‘Isn’t there any way you could buy this place on your own?’ Kat asked hopefully.

  Daisy shook her head. ‘That’s always been the problem. You see, when Dad died, we finally got to sell the farm. Crowscar’s been in our family for generations, but Tom didn’t want to farm, and I never wanted to go back up there because…’

  She fell silent for a moment, and Kat remembered the sheep farmer she’d been watching at the fair. She could guess all too well why Daisy didn’t want to return to Upper Skimmerdale.

  ‘Anyway, while he was in the nursing home in Leeds, Dad would never sell the place, but after he passed we got rid of it as quickly as we could. Sounds mean, but we weren’t exactly happy there. Dad had left everything to Tom, which was bloody unfair because Tom cleared off and left him to it years ago, whereas I stayed and took care of him, and put my own life on hold…’

  She swallowed down her tears and Kat wanted to hug her. Poor Daisy. It sounded awful.

  ‘But Tom was decent about it. He signed half of everything over to me. Said it was only fair. Thing is, together we could buy this place, just about, but with just my own share it wouldn’t come close. If the farm had been a thriving concern when we sold it, it might have been a different story, but we’d already sold the stock and some of the land to pay towards Dad’s nursing home fees so by the time we could get rid of the house and the rest of the land there wasn’t as much money as we’d hoped.’

  ‘And you don’t know anyone else who’d be willing to become a partner?’

  Daisy shook her head. ‘No one. I’m sorry, I really am. I’ll do my best to persuade them both, I promise, but I’m not feeling very confident.’

  ‘It’s me who’s sorry. I can see how much this all means to you,’ Kat said gently.

  ‘Bloody men!’ Daisy said bitterly. ‘One way or the other they’ve ruled my life for as long as I can remember. Dad made me miserable, with his bullying, and Tom abandoned me—just left me to deal with Dad alone. Then Eliot… Well, he wasn’t what I thought he was, and I wasted far too many years mooning around after him, being his unpaid childminder and housekeeper. And now Tom again, letting me down, just when I needed him most. God I hate being dependent on them! They’re so selfish and unreliable. Well, I guess that’s a lesson to me. From now on I’ll have to look after myself.’

  ‘What will you do?’

  ‘I have no idea, but I’ll think of something. For now, though, it’s back to Kirkby Skimmer for a Chinese takeaway. Whoopee doo! And on Friday we go home, back to Leeds, and back to my job in the supermarket. Fabulous.’

  ‘Oh, Daisy.’

  ‘I’ll be fine, don’t worry.’ Daisy tilted her chin defiantly. ‘Like you said, it’s not over yet. They haven’t one hundred per cent turned it down, and until they do I’ll keep trying.’

  ‘But if we do get another offer—’

  ‘I know. I understand that.’ Daisy opened the shop door. ‘Thanks, Kat, for being so nice about all this. I know we’ve messed you about loads. I really will keep the pressure on. I so want this shop.’ She glanced around it again. ‘It really is lovely. I think I’d be very happy in Tuppenny Bridge.’

  ‘So do I,’ Kat agreed. ‘I’ll keep everything crossed for you.’

  As the door shut behind Daisy, Kat heaved a heavy sigh. Poor woman had clearly had a rough time of it, and whatever she said, it didn’t sound as if any amount of pressure would persuade Tom and Andi to change their minds.

  It seemed Daisy had been forced to rely on men who’d consistently let her down. That was the trouble with being dependent on them, she supposed, and the thought jerked her back into the realities of her own life.

  She and Jonah were happy—happier than she’d ever dreamed possible—and she really wanted that to continue. All the same, this had shaken her. Right now, she was totally dependent on him. He was not only her—well, what did she call him now? Boyfriend? Partner? Lover? She felt a thrill at the thought and refused to be distracted by it. The point was, he was also the man who’d put a roof over her head, and that didn’t feel right.

  She needed to earn some money. She needed independence. She needed a career of her own. If she’d had any doubts about that before, this conversation with Daisy had just clarified matters once and for all, and she thought knitting might be the answer to her problems. She’d have to go home and start making plans straight away.

  Well, perhaps not straight away.

  She smiled and flicked off the light, then left the shop, locking the door behind her. Planning her new business venture could wait until tomorrow. She had bigger plans for tonight.

  TWENTY-ONE

  Jonah felt quite lost. He was so used to having Kat around that the cottage felt empty without her. It was ridiculous. She was, after all, only at Daisyfield Cottage. She and Sally, along with Ava Barrington and Dolly Bennett, had decided to spend the evening with Jennifer.

  With the anniversary of Leon’s death fast approaching, they were all too aware that she might slide back into the depression that had dogged her for years and had sworn to do all they could to prevent that from happening.

  He thought it was nice of them. Ben had taken Jamie to the cinema in Kirkby Skimmer and intended to take him for something to eat afterwards, so hopefully it was going to be a fun, girly evening.

  Jonah wasn’t sure what that entailed, and frankly he dreaded to think, but he thought it would probably do Jennifer the world of good. It didn’t stop him missing Kat, though.

  Hattie was full of beans and showed no signs of sleepiness, so there was plenty to keep him occupied as he tried to entertain her. It took him back to the early days of his relationship with Sofia, when Tommy had been very small. That had been a steep learning curve, but he’d soon bonded with the little boy, and he felt as if he’d already bonded with Hattie, too. It was impossible not to love her, with her cheeky smile and stubborn, affectionate nature.

  He’d forgotten, though, how much hard work caring for a baby was, and with two children to care for he and Kat were often exhausted by the end of the day. Not that either of them would have it any other way.

  Kat obviously adored Tommy, and as for Jonah—well, he was starting to think of Hattie as his own daughter. She and Kat were a package, and he loved them both dearly. He was thoroughly enjoying being part of this new blended family.

  He supposed they’d been very lucky, because Tommy hadn’t seemed remotely jealous of Hattie, and had accepted her presence with no problem at all. In fact, Jonah reflected, Tommy seemed to be much calmer and happier these days. He supposed it was down to Kat’s steadying influence. There were no more mad rushes in a morning, no more last-minute ironing of the school uniform, no panic over the packed lunch.

  He watched fondly as Tommy concentrated on his newest colouring book, looking up now and then to grin when Hattie giggled. He’d already decided that hearing her laugh was one of the best things ever and spent a great deal of time trying to entertain her, which Jonah thought was the sweetest thing.

  Hattie was having a great time, picking up her plastic bricks and putting them to her mouth before banging them on the rug. She seemed to love smashing her toys onto the floor lately. She was babbling a lot, too, making lots of unintelligible sounds which amused Tommy no end.

  Jonah thought he heard rain outside and wandered over to the window, pushing the blind aside to get a look. Sure enough, there were raindrops on the glass. He knew Kat had her winter coat on and wondered if she’d taken an umbrella. Maybe Dolly or Ava would give them all a lift home if it was raining when they left.

  A slight movement made him turn his head and he realised someone was standing on the pavement by the gate. It was hard to see with the light behind him as he peered into the darkness, but he was almost sure there was a shape. Was it a man?

  He frowned and leaned closer to the glass. Whoever it was suddenly turned and hurried away, just as a car pulled up outside Forge Cottage. It couldn’t be Kat getting a lift home already, surely? It was far too early.

  He groaned as he realised his visitor was none other than his mother. What the bloody hell did she want?

  He dropped the blind and turned to look at the two children, feeling a sudden flash of panic as he took in the state of the living room, with Tommy’s colouring pencils scattered all over the coffee table and Hattie’s toys taking up most of the floor.

  Then he straightened, annoyed with himself. This was his home, and the children’s home, and if it was too messy for her taste, then tough. He hadn’t asked her to come here. Why had she anyway?

  He bit his lip in annoyance as he heard her try the handle of the front door and was glad he’d dropped the latch after Kat left. The way things were between him and his mother she had no right to assume she could just walk in.

  He heard the sharp rap on the door and knew she was annoyed already. Great.

  ‘Daddy, someone’s at the door,’ Tommy informed him, sounding surprised about it.

  ‘Yeah, I know.’ Jonah hesitated. Should he clear away Hattie’s toys at least? But then, she was happy and settled playing. It wasn’t really fair to take them from her just yet, and it was another half hour till bedtime.

  Oh sod it! At another, even louder bang on the door, he reluctantly opened it, his heart sinking as his mother pushed past him, her lips pursed and a sour expression on her face.

  ‘You took your time. Do you realise it’s chucking it down out there?’ she demanded.

  ‘Good evening to you too, Mother.’

  ‘Hardly good, unless you’re a duck.’ She shrugged off her coat and handed it to him.

  Struggling already, he silently hung it up on the hook and followed her through into the living room, waiting for her reaction.

  ‘So it’s true!’

  He steeled himself as she stared down at Hattie, who lifted her cherubic face and gaped at Mrs Brewster in surprise.

  ‘My God! I heard you’d taken another one in, but I couldn’t bring myself to believe even you’d be that bloody daft. Yet here you are.’

  Jonah seethed. ‘Shall we go into the kitchen?’ He glanced over at Tommy who was looking a bit worried. ‘Hey, mate, can you keep an eye on Hattie for me? She should be okay, but just in case. I’m just going to make—’ he couldn’t bring himself to say Grandma so finished, ‘—my mother a coffee. Okay?’

  Tommy nodded and Jonah took his mother’s arm and steered her into the kitchen.

  ‘Well,’ she said, as he flicked on the kettle, ‘you want your head read, you really do.’

  He said nothing, aware that she wouldn’t listen anyway, not until she’d said her piece. He dutifully made two coffees while she ranted at him.

  ‘Another single mother looking for a meal ticket! It would be laughable if it wasn’t so bloody infuriating. How much more time and money are you going to pour away on other people’s kids, Jonah? So who’s this one’s father? Another one living the life of Riley while you scrimp and save to pay for his kid’s upbringing, I suppose.

  ‘And who’s this woman you’re shacked up with? Please don’t tell me you’ve put a ring on her finger already. My God, they see you coming, they really do. Why don’t you give up the farrier work and open up a bloody refuge for single mothers and their kids and have done with it?

  ‘Your father would be turning in his grave if he could see what’s happened to you and this cottage since he passed. All that hard work to build up a business and make this a beautiful home, and you hand it all over to some scrounger who’s never heard of contraception.’

  Jonah banged the coffee down on the table and glared at her.

  ‘Have you finished?’

  ‘I haven’t even got started,’ she hissed. ‘When are you going to wake up and see sense, eh? What’s wrong with you? Is it some weird fetish you’ve got going on?’

  ‘I’m not even going to dignify that with a response,’ he said flatly. ‘Who told you anyway?’

  ‘Are you joking? As if you can keep anything quiet around here.’

  ‘You don’t live in Tuppenny Bridge now,’ he pointed out.

  ‘I shop here sometimes,’ she said. ‘I go to the doctor’s here. I go to the library.’

  And yet you never once call in to see us. He didn’t say it out loud, though, because he didn’t want to guilt trip her. Not because he cared, but because he didn’t want her to start popping in. God forbid.

  ‘So who is she? Where did you meet this one?’

 

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