Chapter Six
The week went so fast, Mandy was startled to realise it was already Wednesday, and time to meet Jimmy at the rope course. After a hasty lunch, Mandy headed upstairs to her bedroom and inspected herself in the mirror. She needed a haircut, she thought. She could wear her blonde hair tied back, but the layers that framed her face were far too long and were beginning to resemble spaniel’s ears.
Pulling the door open, Mandy peered into her wardrobe in the hope of inspiration. Although the November sun was bright, there had been frost on the grass that morning and it was still chilly. She decided on jeans that didn’t normally get worn around the animals, and a soft woollen jumper with a matching red hat. To complete the outfit, she pulled on a short padded jacket. Whatever she wore, it had to be practical. They were climbing ropes, not going out on the town. But she wanted to make some kind of effort so she pulled out the mascara she had bought in the summer. The somewhat clumpy results were a marginal improvement, she decided.
Sky was sitting nearby, watching with her head on one side. Sky’s lashes were long enough for anyone. ‘You’re just lucky in the eyelash department,’ Mandy told the collie. Sky tilted her head even further. Mandy smiled. ‘Now you’re rubbing it in,’ she teased.
Mandy took the car up to Welford Hall and pulled into the parking area beside the gate. Stopping the engine, she jumped down and walked round to open the door for Sky. A sharp, cold wind whisked across Mandy’s face, lifting her hair and sending a shiver down her spine. There was the slightest hint of wood smoke in the air.
Jimmy was on the far side of the closest paddock. He was wearing his waxed jacket and faded jeans over sturdy hiking boots, with a knitted hat pulled down over his ears. He was bent over a pile of rope, pulling it into a tidy coil.
Mandy let herself into the paddock and set off across the grass, feeling butterflies in her stomach. Apart from the short meeting at the opening ceremony, and their brief chat on the phone, it had been more than a month since she had seen him, she realised. He had been in touch twice since and both times there had been an animal that needed her attention. Not that he would be angry with her. He wasn’t like that. The first time she had been unavoidably delayed helping Emily with a gastric torsion operation. The second, she had rushed through to York to help James with a kitten he had found. She hadn’t felt able to let her old friend down. Hope Meadows was important to James too; Paul’s legacy was inextricably linked to the centre.
But Jimmy had sounded very disappointed when she’d told him. Hopefully he wouldn’t bring it up but it was complicated. Sometimes she felt she was investing so much time in her project that there was no space in her head for anything else.
Sky had no such reservations. As soon as the gate swung open, she floated off across the field, a black and white streak racing to meet Zoe and Simba, Jimmy’s husky and German Shepherd. The three dogs greeted one another like old friends, tails high in the air, sniffing and circling. Mandy was glad of the distraction.
When she looked up from the dogs, Jimmy was coming towards her, beaming. For a moment, Mandy wondered if he would try to kiss her, but to her relief he stopped short and nodded. ‘Hello,’ he said, and leaned down to stroke Sky, who had run over to greet him.
‘Hi.’ Mandy’s attention was instantly claimed by Simba and Zoe, who bounced around her demanding a fuss. Mandy bent over them, burying her fingers in their thick fur. As the two dogs licked her face, she could feel some of the tension dissipating.
Jimmy waited until Zoe and Simba had launched themselves after Sky, leaving Mandy alone, before speaking. ‘Are you feeling fit?’ he asked with a grin.
Mandy flexed her arms. ‘Just about!’ She took the lightweight leather gloves that Jimmy was holding out to her.
‘These will prevent any rope burn,’ he explained, pulling on his own pair. ‘But this isn’t going to be a serious test of military fitness, I promise!’
Side by side, they walked towards the wooden steps that led up to the platform at the start of the course. There was wind in the upper branches of the trees, and Mandy had to duck a waving branch as she climbed. A stray leaf whirled through the air, landing on the ground below. Mandy felt a moment of dizziness.
‘Try not to look down!’ Jimmy called from the platform. ‘If you feel a bit dizzy, just stop and take a few deep breaths.’
Mandy joined him on the wooden ledge. ‘I’m fine,’ she said, trying not to puff. She gazed around at the treetops. ‘What a stunning view!’
Jimmy nodded. ‘It gets even better.’ He moved to the edge of the platform where a short, sturdy net stretched upwards, higher into the trees.
Jimmy stepped off first, clambering expertly using the horizontal ropes as footholds and pulling himself up with the vertical pieces. Mandy watched him for a couple of moments, then followed. Below, the dogs circled the platform, tipping their heads back to look up. Mandy was tempted to call out but didn’t want Sky to try climbing the steps to reach her.
The netting felt rough under her fingers, and she was glad of the leather gloves. Thank goodness her arms were strong from all the cattle work she had been doing. At the top, Jimmy was sitting astride a thick wooden pole. He nodded approvingly as Mandy hauled herself up to stand beside him, wobbling slightly as the net swayed.
‘Well done,’ he told her, the corners of his green eyes creasing as he smiled.
Mandy grinned back. Jimmy already seemed less like a stranger, and although the ropes were taking Mandy a long way out of her comfort zone, she definitely felt better knowing he was there.
‘Now to get over,’ he said. ‘Come a bit higher so you can get your arm right over the top. Then grab one of the ropes on the far side with your right hand.’ He swung himself down so that he was standing next to Mandy and demonstrated. ‘Then,’ he continued, ‘grip one of the ropes on this side with your left hand. That way, you keep yourself stable as you climb over.’ He braced himself on either side of the net, then swung his legs effortlessly over the pole and ended up facing Mandy from the other side.
Mandy followed, slightly less elegantly and with a bit of a scrabble to find the net with her left foot, but without losing her handholds.
‘That’s great,’ Jimmy said.
From there, it was an easy scramble down the shorter side of the net to another platform. In front of them was a rope bridge.
‘You first.’ Jimmy nodded at Mandy to go ahead. His face was flushed from the exercise, and curls of brown hair were escaping from under his hat. Mandy had a glimpse of the small boy he must have once been, climbing trees around his home in the Lake District. It seemed odd that they had grown up more or less at the same time, either side of the Pennines, immersed in the countryside that would become their way of life.
Mandy took hold of the parallel ropes above the knotted bridge and clung on to them as she worked her way across, stepping on the thickest parts of netting and using her core muscles to stop herself from swaying too much. She was halfway across when she felt Jimmy set off behind her. Despite her increasing confidence, she didn’t dare turn round and look. When she reached the far side, she felt a sense of breathless achievement. ‘This is wonderful,’ she enthused as Jimmy joined her on the wooden planking.
Jimmy smiled at her, his head on one side. ‘Glad you like it,’ he said.
Mandy studied the rest of the course which stretched around the edge of ancient woodland. She couldn’t help noticing that Jimmy had kept to his promise and stayed well away from the red kites’ nest, and from the centre of the copse where there was the greatest density of wildlife. There was another cargo net to be tackled first. Beyond it hung a series of rope swings, followed by a narrow ladder.
Mandy felt a surge of enthusiasm. ‘I can do this!’ she whooped. She began pulling herself up the second net, glancing back down to where Jimmy was waiting. He gave her a few moments’ start and began to climb just as she slipped over the top. He made it look so easy, hand over hand, feet finding the outer edge of the gaps, close to the knots. As quickly as she could, Mandy made her way down the far side. When her feet touched the ground, she looked up as Jimmy was reaching the top.
Instead of holding the net on both sides and rolling his body over the wooden pole, he leaned over to grab a horizontal rope with each hand, then launched himself head first over the top. For a moment, he hung there, facing outwards. Then with barely a pause, still facing Mandy, he began stepping down the ropes as if they were nothing more challenging than a staircase. Left foot, right foot, he descended, grinning. Mandy watched, marvelling at how nimble he was, and then all at once, Jimmy’s foot snagged and he lurched sideways, catching one of the vertical ropes just in time to stop himself landing headfirst on the bark chippings that covered the woodland floor.
The look of alarm on his face was comical. Despite her fright, Mandy found herself laughing. She held out her hand and steadied him as he stepped onto the ground between the net and the next obstacle.
Jimmy shook his head with a rueful grimace. ‘That’s what I get for trying to impress you,’ he said.
‘You should know better than to try and impress me near netting,’ she said. ‘You should have known someone would have to be rescued. First a startled deer, now a clumsy human!’ The very first time they met, they had freed a deer that had become tangled in some of Jimmy’s ropes.
‘Maybe next time I can rescue you,’ Jimmy murmured. He reached out a hand, brushing her waist, then his arms were round her, the firmness of his body pressed against hers as he leant down and kissed her, gently at first and then more deeply. His arms tightened. For a moment she felt the beat of his heart against hers, and her mind whirled with pleasure. Then a long furry nose was thrust between them and she found herself pulling away, breathing hard, as Sky tried to burrow into the non-existent gap between them. Her hands were shaking slightly. The kiss had been wonderful – but it had deepened so quickly, and the feelings it had churned up had been almost too intense.
Jimmy grinned, oblivious to the strange feeling that was washing through her. ‘Your dog doesn’t approve,’ he said. His eyes were filled with amusement, but the nervousness Mandy had felt when she first saw him had returned. ‘I’ve thought a lot about you over the summer, Mandy,’ Jimmy admitted. He reached out his hand to take hers, and with an almost involuntary movement, Mandy took a step backwards. To her dismay, there was a lump in her throat.
‘Is something wrong?’ Jimmy asked. He looked worried.
Mandy felt a rush of confusion. She swallowed and gave a tiny shake of her head. ‘Not really,’ she managed. ‘I wasn’t …’ She trailed off, then began again. ‘I’m not sure that I’m ready,’ she said. She stopped, the lump in her throat making it difficult to speak.
She had to explain, otherwise Jimmy would think she didn’t want him in her life and that wasn’t the case. There were just so many other things going on with the animals, her worries about how she was going to fund Hope Meadows, the complicated bookwork that she was having to learn. Plus there was the way she was still feeling about Paul’s death, and James – and all those big emotions had been mixed up even more by the kiss. ‘I’m just not ready,’ she said again, swallowing hard. ‘It’s too soon.’ Her toes were curling. She wanted to explain how she felt, but as happened so often when thoughts of Paul came into her head, she found herself fighting off tears.
Jimmy’s eyes searched her face. Mandy wondered what he saw there. She knew she felt hot and flustered. Her cheeks burned. ‘It’s okay,’ he said after a long pause. ‘I wasn’t proposing marriage or anything. I just thought we were getting close. I’m sorry if I misread the situation.’ He glanced at the rope swings with their wooden planks. ‘Do you want to go home?’ he offered.
Mandy shook her head. He had kept his voice steady, but she could see hurt in his eyes. ‘I don’t want to go home, but can we take things very slowly?’ she said. ‘It’s just, with Paul and everything and I’ve been so busy and …’ She trailed off. The last thing she wanted was to use Paul as an excuse. She turned away as a salty droplet escaped from her eye, and she wiped it from her face with fingers that trembled.
‘Of course.’ His face when she turned back to him was filled with compassion. ‘We’ll only go as fast as you like,’ he told her. Another tear escaped and he reached out and wiped it from her cheek with his thumb.
‘Can we change the subject please?’ Her voice was thin, but he smiled again and he did as she asked with a look of determination.
‘How are you getting on with Lamb’s Wood Cottage?’ he asked as he helped her up onto the next platform, then showed her how to grip the rope and swing across to the first plank.
For the next few moments, Mandy’s attention was taken up by her wobbly navigation across the rope swings, but when they reached the other side, she couldn’t help but wish he had chosen another topic of conversation. ‘I’m not getting on with it at all,’ she admitted.
Jimmy raised his eyebrows. ‘I thought everything would be settled by now.’
‘It’s not.’ Mandy shook her head. ‘There’ve been so many problems with the mortgage application.’ There was a long pause while he obviously cast around for yet another topic of conversation, but with a sudden sense of pulling herself together, Mandy blurted out, ‘I’d have had better luck applying for a mortgage on a house built of straw, even if the cottage was in a wood filled with big bad wolves.’
To her enormous relief, the tension dissipated as Jimmy laughed. He put his hands on his hips, addressing her in a mock serious tone. ‘Well, Little Red Riding Hood,’ he said, ‘unless you want to be running around the forest in the dark, we should think about tackling the rest of the course.’
Mandy smiled back, relief flowing through her. ‘Lead on!’ she declared, gesturing with her gloved hand.
‘That’s the last,’ Jimmy said half an hour later as they scrambled down one final net onto the hard-packed earth under the trees. ‘For today, at least.’ Mandy knew there were different elements in other parts of the forest, but the light was beginning to fade. ‘Can I interest you in a cup of tea to warm up?’ Jimmy asked.
‘Yes, please,’ she said, glancing at her watch. There was still time before she had to get back for evening surgery. They walked across the paddock with the dogs leaping around them.
Mandy had often wondered where Jimmy lived. Despite her professional visits to Welford Hall, she had never been aware of staff housing near the main yard. After a few minutes’ walk along the main road, they turned into a small lane edged with stone walls and tangled verges. Tucked away a couple of hundred yards beyond the junction, Mandy saw a neat redbrick house with a dark slate roof. As they came nearer, she realised it was a pair of old-fashioned farmworkers’ cottages. Each house had a white-fenced front garden containing a tree: a leafless cherry on one side, and an ancient, gnarly apple tree on the other, laden with white-berried mistletoe.
Jimmy stopped as they reached the gate of the cottage on the right-hand side, which had the apple tree. He pushed open the gate and stepped back for Mandy to go through. A path led to the white-painted front door. The three dogs pushed past Mandy to race ahead and stand panting on the step.
‘Welcome to Mistletoe Cottage,’ Jimmy announced.
‘What a perfect name!’ Mandy said as she admired the bountiful tree.
‘Jared Boone, the estate manager for Welford Hall, lives in Cherry Tree Farm.’ Jimmy nodded to the neighbouring house before turning to put his key in the front door. It opened with a scraping sound and the dogs rushed forwards as Jimmy stepped in and turned on the light.
The hallway was painted white and there were red tiles on the floor. Mandy wiped her feet on the rough doormat and reached down to pat Sky, who had hung back, suddenly wary of being inside a strange house.
‘This way,’ murmured Jimmy, heading towards a kitchen at the back. The room looked sparse but functional. There were white-painted wooden cupboards with dark worktops, and an old gas cooker stood near the curtainless sash window. Beyond the glass, the landscape was thrown into shadow by the kitchen light.
Zoe and Simba swirled around the floor while Jimmy stood at the sink to fill the kettle. Opening a cupboard, he pulled out two cream-coloured mugs and from another, he retrieved two teabags from a box. Then he turned round to lean against the counter and smiled at Mandy. He pulled a rueful face as he saw her glancing around the room. ‘Sorry about the lack of interior design,’ he said.
Mandy, who had pulled out a kitchen chair and sat down, shrugged. ‘My interior design skills are much the same,’ she confessed. ‘Hopefully James is going to steer me in the right direction.’
Jimmy laughed. ‘Maybe I should ask James for advice as well.’ He turned away, waiting for the kettle to switch itself off, then poured boiling water into the mugs. ‘Milk?’ he asked, opening the fridge.
‘Yes, please.’
‘Come through.’ Lifting the mugs, Jimmy headed back out into the hall, waiting for Mandy and Sky to catch up before turning into the living room. It had light blue woodchipped wallpaper and an old-fashioned brick fireplace. ‘I need to get the fire lit,’ he said. Mandy noticed there was already paper and wood in the grate. Striking a match, he set the paper alight and as it caught, began to place coal from a scuttle onto the sticks. ‘I’m afraid it’ll take a while to warm up,’ he told her.
Mandy stepped across the worn carpet and sank into the sofa. A faint scent of dogs greeted her. ‘It’s very nice,’ she said.
Jimmy’s green eyes held relief. ‘Just need to wash …’ He waggled his coal-blackened fingers. ‘Back in a minute.’
Mandy sat back and studied the room, with one hand resting on Sky’s head. The only ornament was a pewter pot on the mantelpiece that seemed to be filled with pens. In the corner beside the fire, a small TV stood on a pine stand. There were two dog beds on the far side of the fireplace, though for now, Zoe and Simba were sprawled on the rug in front of the fire.
‘Would you like a bun?’ Jimmy appeared in the doorway, clutching a round cake tin. Removing the lid, he held it out to Mandy. Inside there was a small pile of fairy cakes. They were all different shapes and sizes and garishly iced. Some were green, some pink, with multi-coloured hundreds and thousands scattered over the tops. ‘The twins were over at the weekend,’ he explained. ‘We made them together.’
Mandy tried not to smile at the thought of Jimmy painstakingly decorating fairy cakes with eight-year-old Abi and Max. She helped herself to a pink one. ‘Thanks,’ she said. The little sponge cakes tasted better than they looked, she decided a moment later as she chewed. ‘They’re lovely,’ she declared.
Jimmy looked pleased as he sat down beside her. ‘They are, aren’t they?’ he agreed.
‘How long did it take you to make them?’ she asked. ‘Last time I made a cake it took me all afternoon. Even then, it was barely edible. You’d think after all those years watching Gran I’d be an expert.’ She took another bite.
Jimmy reached out and took one of the pink fairy cakes, holding it aloft on the palm of his hand as if it was a work of art. ‘Magnificent, isn’t it?’ He grinned. ‘It took us all afternoon as well,’ he admitted, ‘but at least they taste good.’
There was a flurry of black and white fur and Jimmy found his hand suddenly empty. The look of consternation on his face was so comical, that Mandy laughed. ‘It appears that Sky agrees with you,’ she said.
Jimmy looked over at the fireplace, where Sky had retreated, having wolfed the cake straight down. She looked pleased with herself, thought Mandy. ‘I guess she still needs a bit more training around food,’ she said.
Jimmy considered Sky, his head on one side. ‘She was so thin when you got her, she probably had to take all the opportunities she could,’ he said. Reaching out, he took another cake from the tin. ‘Will she be all right after eating the paper case?’ he asked.
Mandy watched as Sky edged closer to Zoe, who was lying as close to the fire as possible. Her beloved collie seemed to be feeling much more at home as she curled up beside the other dogs. She did too, she realised. It was cosy sitting together in front of the warming blaze. ‘She should be fine,’ she replied. ‘It’s not the first time she’s eaten something she shouldn’t.’
‘At least she’s in good hands if anything does go wrong.’
Jimmy held the cake tin out to her again. Mandy, hungry from her exertions on the rope course, took a green one and bit into it. ‘Have you been busy with visitors yet?’ Mandy asked. She had been so busy herself that she hadn’t had much time to wonder how Jimmy’s new venture was going.
‘Not bad at all. Especially considering it’s November,’ Jimmy said. Mandy lifted her mug from the scratched coffee table and took a mouthful of tea. Although the cakes were charming, they were sweet. ‘I’ve a big group coming in next week from Leeds,’ Jimmy said. ‘How about you?’ he went on. ‘I guess you’re rushed off your feet trying to run Hope Meadows as well as working as a vet.’
‘You could say that,’ Mandy agreed. ‘Mum and Dad have mentioned the idea of getting a new vet in. They haven’t made up their minds yet. I guess they’ll see how busy it is in spring with the three of us and then decide.’
‘Is your work very seasonal?’ Jimmy asked.
‘Well, there’s more farm work in the autumn and winter, then even more in spring,’ Mandy said. She felt very much at home, talking to him about Animal Ark. ‘Summer is the easiest time, which was helpful for setting up Hope Meadows.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘I’m afraid I’m going to have to get back,’ she said with a sigh. ‘It’s been lovely, though.’ It was absolutely true, she thought, in spite of the moment of awkwardness earlier. Jimmy was so kind and funny, and she had enjoyed a few hours away from the pressures of the surgery and her rescue animals.
Mandy finished off the last of her tea and shifted to the edge of the sofa. He had been so understanding earlier when she had asked if they could take things slowly. She should probably suggest something suitable, but her mind was blank.
‘Will you have dinner with me on Friday?’ To her relief, Jimmy spoke first. ‘Not here,’ he added. ‘How about the Fox and Goose?’
Mandy smiled at him. The Fox and Goose was familiar and comfortable. It was hard to imagine anywhere she would feel more at home. ‘That would be perfect,’ she said. Together they walked out to the hall and Jimmy held out her jacket. Rather awkwardly, she slipped her arms into the sleeves. ‘Thanks for the tea,’ she said. ‘And the lovely afternoon.’
As she turned back towards him, Jimmy reached out and with only a moment’s hesitation, she slid into his arms. There was none of the intensity there had been earlier, but Mandy still felt as if she was floating by the time he released her. His green eyes searched her face as he released her and he seemed satisfied as he smiled his friendly grin.
‘Okay?’ he asked.
‘Very okay,’ she replied. Calling to Sky, she made her way to the gate and turned back for one last glance. Jimmy was standing in the open doorway. Giving him a wave, Mandy tugged the gate closed behind her.
Sky looked up at her expectantly. ‘Come on, girl!’ said Mandy. ‘Time to go home.’