Chapter 8
At a little after six that evening Angus phoned to speak to Catherine. Hayley, Dorothy and I were setting the table ready for what was going to be a very late supper. There was a definite buzz of excitement and expectation in the air and although a little nervous about my decision to stay, I was also enjoying the tentative beginnings of really feeling that I was a part of something. It was a long time since I had felt as though I truly belonged or was so welcome anywhere.
‘Oh well,’ we heard Catherine sigh and say, ‘it can’t be helped.’
She sounded utterly deflated and we looked at one another, wondering what on earth had happened.
‘Will you ring again in the morning?’
We all looked in her direction.
‘All right, my darling. Sleep well.’
Catherine replaced the receiver, then turned to us and shook her head. Hayley snuffed out the candles and Dorothy returned some of the plates and bowls to the warming drawer.
‘What’s happened?’ I asked.
‘Jamie’s flight has been cancelled,’ she said. ‘Some industrial action in Europe having a knock-on effect, or something, I couldn’t really hear.’
‘But they definitely won’t be home tonight?’
‘No,’ she sighed, ‘not tonight. This is the last leg of his journey and instead of being the most straightforward it’s turning out to be the most complicated of all.’ She sounded as fed up and frustrated as Jamie no doubt felt. ‘Angus said he’ll ring to give us an update in the morning.’
‘Oh, love,’ said Dorothy, rubbing Catherine’s arm. ‘I’m so sorry.’
‘Oh well,’ was her stoic, but unconvincing reply, ‘I suppose I’ve waited this long. One more night won’t hurt, will it?’
‘They aren’t sleeping in the Land Rover, are they?’ piped up Hayley. ‘Or on those horrid plastic seats in the airport?’
‘No, they’ve managed to get a room at the hotel just next door,’ Catherine explained. ‘They only had a twin though,’ she added, biting her lip.
‘Better than nothing, I guess,’ I shrugged.
‘Mick might not think so by the morning,’ said Catherine, with a small smile. ‘Have you not heard Angus snore?’
It was down to me to ferry Hayley back to Wynbridge later that evening.
‘I hadn’t planned to go back tonight,’ she explained, after calling home to tell whoever was there that she wasn’t staying for the reunion dinner or overnight now after all, ‘but it seems a bit pointless to mess up one of the rooms for no reason.’
‘But I wouldn’t mind helping you prepare it again,’ I insisted. ‘If you would rather stay I don’t mind helping out and besides, how much mess could you make in such a short amount of time?’
Hayley looked at me and grinned and I guessed that on her own time and in her own place her standards of tidiness weren’t quite as strict as those she adopted when she was in professional mode. But I really didn’t mind whether I ended up taking her back to town or not. If she stayed I would enjoy her vibrant company, but taking her home would give me the opportunity to give my little car, which had been sitting idle for the last few days, a much needed blast.
‘Look, do you want me to stay over?’ she asked.
‘It’s entirely up to you,’ I told her.
‘Because really, I’d like to go home and revise my outfit,’ she mused, chewing her nails at the expense of the polish she had apparently ‘borrowed’ from me earlier in the day.
‘OK,’ I said, thinking she couldn’t possibly have an even tighter pair of jeans to pour herself into. ‘That’s fine. I’ll go and grab my car keys.’
‘So now you’re trying to get rid of me?’
I looked at her and sighed. She may have been good fun and fast becoming a great friend, but she could also be infuriating.
‘Of course I’m not.’
‘Well, that’s good,’ she said, with a wink. ‘Because when I make friends with someone they don’t ever get rid of me, it’s for life.’
In spite of her attempts to wind me up, I was really rather pleased about that.
In keeping with my Wynthorpe routine, early the next morning I pulled on my trainers and headed out into the crisp, frosty air. It was a solitary pursuit that particular day as Floss simply refused to budge and consequently I decided to go a little further and risk a run through the woods, avoiding the witch’s house, of course.
Unfortunately, however, I didn’t manage to find either the Wishing Tree or the circle of beech trees where Mick and I had gathered logs, but I did add what felt like a couple of extra kilometres to my distance as I got hopelessly lost for a while and ended up, quite literally, running around in circles.
When I finally found my way back to the hall, and was cursing Dorothy and her extra calories which no doubt accounted for my lack of puff, I was surprised to find the Land Rover parked outside the kitchen with the back doors thrown open. I really didn’t think I’d been out that long and looked down at my muddied trainers in dismay. Sweating, dishevelled and out of breath was not how I had planned to meet any of the Wynthorpe boys, and I wondered if I could possibly somehow sneak in unnoticed.
Given the sudden eruption of voices from the other side of the door, I guessed not.
‘So,’ began a man’s voice I didn’t recognise, but which must have been Jamie’s. ‘Already it starts. I’m barely back over the threshold and you’re telling me we have yet more bloody repairs to fund and a Christmas spectacular to finance.’
‘But I thought you’d be pleased about everyone coming,’ said Angus. He sounded unusually downcast and a little sulky. ‘I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to get us all together and finalise everything.’
‘And have you talked to Archie about finalising things?’
He didn’t wait for his father to answer.
‘Because I can tell you right now, Dad, the last time I spoke to him he wasn’t very happy that things were still so up in the air.’
‘Archie is never happy these days.’
‘You know what I mean.’
Angus didn’t say anything.
‘He’s got it in his head that you and Mum are playing favourites, and over this, of all things.’
‘But I’ve told you a thousand times,’ said Angus, beginning to sound angry, ‘we have no choice. If we don’t do it this way, then the family will be in danger of losing everything. You know we’re right, Jamie, and you know exactly why.’
‘Oh, of course I know,’ he said, his voice quieter now. ‘But that doesn’t mean that I’m happy about it. This wasn’t how I expected my life to pan out, you know? I thought there’d be more to my existence than – this.’
Obviously I didn’t know what ‘this’ was because I couldn’t see through doors and if I had any kind of conscience I wouldn’t be listening at keyholes either. I made to walk away but his next words stopped me in my tracks.
‘And now you’ve given us another mouth to feed,’ he struck up.
‘I think that’s a bit strong,’ said Angus defensively.
‘Another bloody charity case for you and Mum to nurture and mend.’
‘Hey, now,’ cut in Angus, sounding properly angry. ‘You might be tired and fed up, but you can pack that attitude in right now.’
Charity case! I hoped the arrogant sod wasn’t talking about me but I had a sinking feeling that he was.
‘Tell me why she’s here again,’ Jamie said in a bolshy tone. ‘What’s the pretence this time?’
‘There is no pretence,’ said Angus firmly.
He sounded more than ready to stand his ground, and mine, and I was grateful for that.
‘Anna is here to help us organise Christmas.’
I let out a yelp then clapped my hands over my mouth as Floss began to woof.
‘Did you hear something?’ said Jamie, his voice suddenly far closer to the other side of the door than I was comfortable with.
‘No,’ said Angus. ‘Be quiet, Floss. As I was saying, Anna has great experience and fabulous references.’
That was true. I was very proud of my professional portfolio. I had taken years putting it together, but I had absolutely no experience when it came to organising a country-house Christmas and I had no idea why Angus was so insistent that I had. Why didn’t he just tell his son that I was there to support and take care of his mother? And collect wood. And bake cheese straws. And assist Hayley with the dusting. What exactly was my job title again?
‘Look, Dad,’ said Jamie, ‘I don’t care whether she organised the last royal wedding – we can’t afford a bloody party planner.’
Party planner!
‘But we need someone who can—’
What he was going to say next was lost as I heard Catherine shouting excitedly that her baby was finally home and Dorothy sobbing in the background. I ran a sweaty hand over my bumpy ponytail and let out a breath I didn’t realise I’d been holding. I had no idea what was going on, but I was bitterly disappointed that just when I’d decided that now was the time to ‘step into Christmas’, as Sir Elton John so succinctly put it, I was out in the cold – again.
‘What’s with the outfit?’ asked Hayley, wrinkling her nose as she climbed in the passenger seat of my car and flung her bag in the back.
‘Nothing,’ I shrugged.
‘And the perfume,’ she choked. ‘It reeks in here.’
I looked over my shoulder, ready to pull back on to the road.
‘Are they back?’ she squealed, making my foot slip off the clutch. ‘Is he home already?’
‘Yes,’ I sighed. ‘He’s home.’
‘Give me thirty seconds,’ she said, leaping out of the car again and across the pavement.
What I actually ended up giving her was seven minutes and thirty-nine seconds. When she had sent me a text with directions as to where to pick her up I hadn’t expected her to leave me stranded on double yellows and fretting about getting a parking ticket.
‘Where the hell did you go?’ I demanded, when she eventually came back wearing an even tighter pair of jeans and an even smaller sweater. ‘I was worried I was going to get a ticket.’
‘I ran home,’ she said, blushing profusely. ‘Having taken one look at you, I decided to change yet again and you can keep it buttoned, Miss Woodruff,’ she added, pointing a freshly painted violet nail in my face, ‘because you haven’t looked like that since the day you arrived, so pot and kettle springs to mind.’
She was right of course. When everything had gone quiet back in the kitchen I’d slipped inside, up the stairs, and spent a ridiculously long time over my morning ablutions before heading back to town to collect little Miss Tight Fit 2017.
‘But you disappeared,’ I said, looking about me and knowing there was no point arguing the point. ‘And this isn’t anywhere near where I dropped you off last night. Where did you go?’
‘Home.’
‘I gathered that,’ I said crossly. ‘But where exactly is home?’
‘Oh I don’t live on this road,’ she said, buckling up. ‘I just thought it would be easier for you to park here. I’m on the estate. There’s no way I’d let you see my place.’
‘At least you have a place,’ I muttered.
‘Believe me,’ she said, ‘you really wouldn’t want my place.’
‘Well, if it’s that bad why don’t you move into the hall?’
She looked at me and chewed her lip.
‘Now’s not the time,’ she said eventually. ‘But I will tell you why one day. Now, come on, what did you think?’
‘What did I think about what?’
‘Jamie, of course!’
‘I haven’t seen him,’ I admitted.
‘So, what’s with the heels and eyeliner then?’ she pounced, clearly not believing a word. ‘That’s a ridiculously precise line for someone who’s pretending they haven’t made any effort.’
‘I didn’t say I hadn’t made any effort.’
I had made an effort. I’d made a huge effort, but not because I was out to impress my boss’s son. I had gone to so much trouble because I suddenly felt I needed to put my emotional armour back in place and that a professional demeanour, outfit and attitude would supply me with just what I needed to get me through my first, and quite possibly last, encounter with the prodigal son. I didn’t know why Angus had lied about what I was really doing at the hall, but if I was going to be challenged, then I was determined to be as prepared as I could be to face whatever Mr Connelly Jr decided to throw at me.
‘Let’s just say I’ve heard him then,’ I said to Hayley, ‘and if his face matches his attitude, then you’re welcome to him.’
‘Fair enough,’ said Hayley, with a sly grin. ‘I’ll hold you to that.’
Back at the hall there was no sign of Jamie, Catherine or Mick, but Dorothy was fussing over the preparations for brunch and Angus was fiddling about with the Advent calendar.
‘Morning, Angus,’ I said, ready to cover my tracks. ‘What time did you all get back? I saw the Land Rover parked up when I went to pick Hayley up from town.’
I didn’t want him to have any inkling that I had overheard the heated exchange when I came back from my run until I was ready to let him know.
‘Good morning,’ he smiled, ‘good morning. Jamie managed to get an overnight flight in the end, but we didn’t ring to say we were on our way because it was ridiculously early.’
‘You’ll all be ready for an early night tonight then?’
‘Indeed we will,’ he agreed, stifling a yawn. ‘Mick especially as he did all the driving. My goodness, don’t you look smart? Now where’s Hayley?’
‘She’s no doubt checking her make-up,’ said Dorothy, while trying to juggle two pans and a pile of plates.
‘I would offer to help,’ I said in passing, ‘but I’m only here to plan Christmas.’
Angus looked up so sharply I was afraid he was going to pull a muscle.
‘What was that, Anna dear?’ he asked.
‘I was just saying, did Catherine tell you that I’ve decided to stay on for Christmas?’
‘Yes,’ he said, looking to my mind relieved. ‘Yes, she did and I’m so pleased. We all are.’
I raised an eyebrow in his direction, but he didn’t say anything else. Even if he had really caught the gist of what I had said he obviously wasn’t prepared to give me a heads-up as to what was going on before we were all gathered together.
‘There,’ said Dorothy, taking a step back and looking well pleased, ‘all done. Now, would you go and rally the troops please, Anna? I think Catherine and Jamie are in the morning room.’