Eleanor felt a strong sense of déjà vu when she walked down the street later that sunny afternoon. It was a route that she had taken most days in her childhood, picking up Megan first and then Annie as they walked to school, their cheerful chatter filling the air.
She turned to head up the front path to No 2 Cherry Tree Avenue. The garden was a little messier than she remembered. Probably because Megan’s dad, who had been a keen gardener, had moved up to Scotland with her mum a few years previously, enabling Megan and her husband Neal to move in and have their own family home.
But at least their garden didn’t have a donkey in it, thought Eleanor with a shudder.
She had barely reached the front door when it was flung open and Megan rushed out.
‘I couldn’t wait any longer!’ she almost shouted, pulling Eleanor into an enormous bear hug. ‘It’s so good to see you!’
‘And you too,’ said Eleanor, her teary words muffled in her friend’s shoulder.
She inhaled the familiar scent of Coco Mademoiselle as she was clutched tight. She had a sudden memory of picking out the perfume bottle in Selfridges for her friend’s birthday a few years ago.
‘Let me look at you,’ said Megan, stepping back to give her a wide smile. ‘As bloody glamorous as always, I see.’
Eleanor glanced down. It was true that she had taken care with her outfit, but it was only a smart-casual look of a pair of white jeans, wedges and cute pale blue top and matching cover-up. Her elegant armour against the real world. Of course, her friend hadn’t seen her a couple of hours earlier, milking a goat for goodness’ sake!
‘I should have worn something smarter,’ muttered Megan.
‘You look great,’ replied Eleanor automatically.
It was almost true. Megan was wearing black leggings and a long pink tunic top which clashed with her red hair but concealed her mummy tummy.
‘It’s the only thing that isn’t covered in some kind of stain,’ said Megan, with a shrug.
‘It’s fine. Anyway, you’ve cut your hair,’ said Eleanor, in approval.
Megan touched the red strands that only just reached her shoulders now. ‘Oh, that was months ago, didn’t I tell you? It takes less time than when it was long.’
Months? Eleanor bit her lip. It had been too long since she’d caught up with her friends. Especially after such a brief visit at Christmas.
But Megan’s round cheerful face looked just as youthful as always, if you didn’t look too closely at the dark shadows under her eyes. That was probably due to having three children under the age of six.
‘Where are the kids?’ Eleanor asked, peering around to peek into the hallway. ‘I haven’t seen them for ages and need my godmother hugs.’
Megan shook her head. ‘Neal’s mum has got them for tea as he’s working late again. I told her it was an emergency as I haven’t seen you for so long.’ She jangled a heavy set of keys in her hand. ‘Come on,’ she said, slamming the front door shut and heading towards a grubby Fiesta parked in the street. ‘You can see them another time. Annie’s desperate to see you as well. And I need a drink after being on playground duty this afternoon.’
Eleanor slipped into the passenger seat, dismayed to see a host of grubby marks and crumbs. Hopefully her white jeans would survive intact.
‘Sorry about the mess,’ said Megan, crunching the car into gear before setting off. ‘I’d blame the kids, but it’s mostly me.’
It was warm in the car, so Eleanor wound down the window. The weather forecasters were promising a hot summer, but they had all heard that too many times before to believe it would come true.
However, the wild rhododendron bushes that grew along the wide road were full of bright purple and pink flowers. It was a riot of colour and immediately cheered her up after such a dismal few days.
Megan was driving pretty quickly in her haste to get all three of them together, so they were soon going down the long bumpy driveway towards Willow Tree Hall.
‘I haven’t been up here in years,’ said Eleanor, staring out of the window at the overgrown fields, a riot of long grass and wild flowers. Beyond the large willow tree that stood in the front of the house, the elegant stately home came into view. She had forgotten how huge it was. ‘It’s so beautiful.’
Megan nodded her head as she crunched down a gear. ‘Isn’t it? Mind you, I come up here at least twice a week to help clean the place so I’m almost used to it.’
Eleanor shook her head in disbelief. ‘I still can’t believe Annie lives in a place like this. And not as an employee any more but as a member of the family.’
‘Talk of the upwardly mobile devil,’ said Megan, screeching the car to a halt and pulling up the handbrake. ‘There she is.’
As she got out of the car, Eleanor looked across to the huge double front door to where her friend had just appeared. Desperately trying not to run, Annie was speed-walking towards the car, the ponytail holding her long blonde hair waving back and forth.
‘Yay! You’re here at last!’ said Annie, grinning. She stepped forward to envelop Eleanor in a warm hug. It wasn’t quite as crushing as Megan’s but it was just as genuine.
‘Hi there, your majesty,’ said Eleanor, breaking into a cheeky grin.
‘Shut up,’ muttered Annie, a red blush spreading across her cheeks. She looked radiantly pretty as always. Her eyes lit up with happiness at having her friends all together at last.
Although dressed in skinny jeans and pale yellow T-shirt, Annie looked relaxed in her elegant surroundings. After all, she was home now. This countess-to-be was more Primark than Harrods, but maybe that wasn’t a bad thing, thought Eleanor. She could bring some humility to such an intimidating place.
‘Right,’ said Eleanor. ‘First things first. Show me your ring!’
Annie automatically held out her hand, the square diamond solitaire engagement ring flashed in the sunlight.
‘Wow, that’s gorgeous! Very classy,’ said Eleanor, nodding in approval.
She also noted Annie’s soft, smooth hands which were in marked contrast to her own red, flaky ones. But then again, her friend probably had no stress to deal with. After all, she was the one living in a huge mansion with the man she loved.
‘It was very expensive,’ added Megan. ‘That’s where your new kitchen went.’
‘Shurrup,’ said Annie, grinning. ‘So? Do you want to look around?’
‘Of course I do,’ Eleanor told her, in an eager tone. ‘I’ve never ever been inside, I think.’
‘Why would you?’ said Megan with a wink, as they headed towards the front door. ‘We’re only the country peasants after all.’
Annie rolled her eyes. ‘If you two are going to carry on like this, I’ll shut you in the servants’ quarters. And they haven’t been renovated yet.’
Eleanor couldn’t stop smiling. It was so lovely to be back in their threesome once more. She was always more relaxed when she was with her friends. She had never felt like this at any time during her years in London. But that’s because no one knew her as well as Annie and Megan.
They stepped inside and Eleanor stopped to stare around the vast entrance hall in amazement. ‘Wow,’ she murmured. ‘It’s so elegant.’
‘That’s one of my favourite bits too,’ said Annie, following her gaze high up to the huge chandelier hanging overhead.
‘If this had been a year ago, you wouldn’t want to have been standing underneath it,’ said Megan with a grimace. ‘Unless you wanted a trip to A&E.’
‘That’s true,’ said Annie, nodding. ‘The whole place was falling apart.’
Eleanor remembered the frantic texts and calls from Annie at that time. ‘It’s hard to believe it never looked as lovely as this.’
‘Ugh, honestly, some days she was covered from head to foot in dust,’ carried on Megan.
‘And you could see the sky through the patches in the roof,’ said Annie, with a smile of remembrance. ‘Happy days.’
‘Seriously?’ asked Eleanor.
Annie nodded.
‘When the builders arrived so did Sam,’ cooed Megan. ‘She had a crush on him from the moment they met.’
As she and Annie grinned at each other, for a second, Eleanor felt a little out of the loop. They had obviously gone through quite a bit together. Without her.
She felt a jolt of worry about being left behind. But then, whose fault was that?
Annie must have picked up on something in her friend’s face. ‘You wouldn’t have wanted to be here in all that dust and dirt,’ she said. ‘Not in those lovely clothes of yours. Come on, I’ll show you the rest. We’ll start with the west wing.’
‘You have separate wings?’ muttered Eleanor, still looking around in amazement.
‘Doesn’t mean either of them aren’t still a mess,’ said Megan, with a knowing smile.
Eleanor’s disbelief in her friend’s new home continued past the elegant drawing room and into the library. A long wall was covered from floor to ceiling with a vast number of bookcases filled with numerous classics. There was also a full-size snooker table which looked to have been used recently, although one end was propped up with more books.
‘All the windows are new,’ said Annie. ‘And the fireplaces work too, thank goodness. It was so cold in here last winter.’
But the rest of the room was obviously still waiting to be refurbished.
On the opposite side of the corridor was Arthur’s study, which was a bit messy, although not as bad as the music room, which Sam was utilising for his work. That was covered in piles of paperwork. Both rooms also had new windows, but the remaining furniture looked ancient and there were still cracks in the plaster across the walls.
They carried on to the end of the corridor.
‘This is the ballroom,’ announced Annie as they entered the last room.
Eleanor’s mouth dropped open. ‘You have a ballroom?’
‘Doesn’t everyone?’ said Megan, with a grin.
Eleanor stared around in wonder. Despite the shabbiness and decay of the peeling and cracked ceiling, the double-aspect room was enormous, with new windows at the front and huge French doors at the back leading onto the garden. The walls were patterned with paintings, their frames gilded with what could have been gold many years ago. It was hard to tell under all the dust and grime of the years.
‘Isn’t it wonderful?’ said Annie, walking slowly around the room. ‘Apparently even members of the royal family used to come to the parties here. And this is where I’m going to have my wedding reception! Can you imagine? Me!’
Annie was so cheerful despite living in what appeared to be semi-derelict conditions.
‘Is it going to be cleaned up before the big day?’ asked Eleanor, wondering how quickly that was going to happen.
‘Of course,’ said Annie, waving a hand as if it were a small matter. ‘Phase three of the building work starts this autumn and it’s going to be all about the ballroom. And our wedding!’ Annie was positively giddy as she spun around to face them both. ‘Right. Now that we’re finally together for the first time since I got engaged, there’s something I want to ask you both. Will you be my bridesmaids?’
There was a collective shriek. ‘Oh my god! Of course!’ they both replied, rushing over for a teary group hug.
‘I can’t believe you’ve waited this long to ask us!’ moaned Megan.
‘I had to wait for Eleanor to be here so I could ask you face to face. I didn’t want to do something this important on the phone,’ Annie told her, before looking anxiously at Eleanor. ‘You will be here, won’t you? I mean, not just for the wedding but for some of the other stuff as well.’
‘Of course I will,’ Eleanor told her. ‘You know that.’
But it surprised her that Annie obviously didn’t know. That both she and Megan thought that there was even a possibility that she wouldn’t be there to support her best friend when she was getting married.
‘I always knew you’d ask us,’ said Megan. ‘After all, you were both my bridesmaids.’
‘We know,’ drawled Eleanor. ‘We still haven’t forgiven you for those bright pink meringues you made us wear.’
‘Don’t worry,’ said Annie, with a shudder. ‘This time it’s understated elegance all the way, I promise. Eleanor can help us out with that.’
‘Absolutely,’ said Eleanor, nodding.
‘And then we can repay the favour for when she gets married,’ said Megan.
Eleanor grimaced and quickly turned away. She had seen what marriage did to couples and was determined to hold off for as long as humanly possible if not forever. Besides, she was more worried about finding a job than a husband at the moment.
‘Come on,’ said Annie. ‘I’ll grab my handbag and then let’s go and get a drink. We’ve got so much to catch up on.’
They headed back along the corridor to the entrance hall.
‘What about upstairs?’ asked Eleanor, glancing up the wide stairwell.
‘I’ll show you up there next time,’ said Annie, still walking. ‘Besides, Tom’s still asleep and I don’t want to disturb him.’
‘Tom?’ said Eleanor, raising her eyebrows. ‘Is that Sam’s brother?’
‘No, that’s Will,’ said Megan, her eyes gleaming. ‘She means Tom as in Tommy King. In which case, I think we should definitely disturb him. Even I haven’t met wonder boy yet.’
‘Shush,’ said Annie, heading towards a corridor on the opposite side of the wide entrance hall.
Eleanor glanced up the stairs as she followed them. So Tommy King was actually staying there at the house with them? This was unbelievably good luck on her part! She had assumed he was in rehab after he passed out in public a few days ago. Instead he was here in Willow Tree Hall!
Would he be as wild and crazy as everyone suggested? Was he out of control? The idea of a story on one of the world’s biggest superstars was beginning to become a reality. If she ever got to meet him, of course.
Eleanor was still mulling over her yet-to-be told story as they went past a couple of rooms in the west wing, one of which appeared to be the dining room as it had a large table but it was still in a mess. Then they went down a couple of steps into the kitchen.
She suddenly had a vast appreciation as to how derelict the whole place had been before the house had begun to be renovated. The kitchen cupboards were shabby and rotten, the hinges barely holding onto the doors. The sink was cracked. The tiled floor very uneven. The pine table in the middle was scratched and stained.
‘Isn’t it awful?’ said Annie, looking cheerful as she picked up her handbag. ‘But Sam promises me it’s next on the list.’
‘I would have thought the kitchen would have been the first thing to get done,’ said Eleanor, looking around in dismay.
‘You’re kidding,’ said Megan. ‘The whole place had no windows or heating for a long time.’
‘Come on,’ said Annie, heading for the door. ‘Time to celebrate!’
Eleanor almost wanted to hang back, desperate to meet Tommy King and begin work on the story that would propel her back to London.
But for the first time in a long while, she actually felt as if she had something to celebrate. Okay so she didn’t have a job, didn’t have her exclusive story and perhaps she didn’t even have a boyfriend or a home to call her own, but she had her friends, the very best friends in the world.
And that, for now, was worth raising a drink to.
*
It was such a nice afternoon that they decided to sit outside in the beer garden of the Rose and Crown pub. Besides, there was really nowhere else to go out in Cranley for a drink. The pub was full of people stopping off after work, rolling up their shirtsleeves and shrugging off their jackets in the warmth of the sun.
Eleanor poured out the drinks and then placed the bottle of Prosecco back in the ice bucket.
‘Congratulations,’ she said, holding up her drink.
‘Cheers,’ said Megan, as they chinked their glasses together.
‘Here’s to being together again,’ said Annie, with a wide smile.
‘And to your wedding,’ added Eleanor before taking a sip of the icy cold drink. ‘It’s been so long since I came here,’ she said, glancing around the other wooden benches and realising that she didn’t really recognise anyone.
‘We don’t really come here much these days either,’ said Megan. ‘There’s never any time – or money – to go out.’
‘Well, I don’t care where we are just as long as we’re together,’ said Annie, reaching out to squeeze Eleanor’s hand across the table. ‘You’re finally home. I can’t believe it.’
‘Yeah,’ drawled Megan. ‘What gives?’
‘What are you talking about?’ asked Eleanor.
‘I mean you coming home. Now. In June,’ said Megan. ‘It’s not Christmas, Mother’s Day or anyone’s birthday. What’s happened? Is everything okay?’
Eleanor was mortified. Was that how they saw her? And was it true?
‘I was just desperate to see you both after so long,’ she replied. ‘And with Mum breaking her ankle, I need to give her a hand for a while.’
Her pulse drummed with the stress of leaving out the rest of the reason for her unexpected visit. She hated keeping secrets from them both.
Megan took another sip of her Prosecco. ‘She is getting a bit accident-prone, bless her. First her wrist and now her foot.’
Eleanor was nonplussed. ‘Her wrist? What are you talking about?’
‘She slipped on some ice during the winter and hurt her wrist,’ said Annie, frowning. ‘Didn’t she tell you?’
Eleanor shook her head.
‘It was only a sprain,’ said Annie quickly, exchanging a quick look with Megan. ‘I mean, nothing for you to worry about.’
Eleanor shifted in her seat. What else didn’t she know?
She tried to recover. ‘And look at you now,’ she said, looking across the table at Annie. ‘You’ve made it. You’re going to be a, what is it again?’
‘A countess,’ said Annie, blushing. ‘But that’s years away. Only when Sam inherits the full title. I’m happy being plain old Mrs Annie Harris in the meantime.’
‘She’s in luurve,’ cooed Megan. ‘But he’s a pretty nice guy, so he gets my vote.’
‘I can’t wait to meet him again,’ said Eleanor. ‘I can barely remember him from when we were younger.’
‘He’s good enough for our friend,’ said Megan in a fake haughty tone, causing them to laugh. ‘And he’s got more blue blood than my Neal.’
‘Yes, but you’re lucky too,’ said Annie, ever the fair one. ‘You’re happily married with three beautiful children.’
‘Yes,’ said Megan with a sigh. ‘Remember we used to go to the health club and sit in the Jacuzzi with a glass of wine and think it was luxury? Now it’s having a bowel movement without someone shouting at me through the door wanting to come in.’
Annie and Eleanor laughed, even though Megan didn’t join in quite so much.
‘Wait a minute. So now I’m best friends with a future countess and mother of the year?’ said Eleanor. ‘God, I’ve just realised. Am I the only unmarried spinster of the parish now?’
‘Probably,’ said Megan, nodding before looking at Annie. ‘So does that make me your maid of honour?’
‘Maid of dishonour, more like,’ said Eleanor, with a smile.
‘Exactly,’ said Megan, laughing. ‘Can’t wait for the hen party.’
‘I don’t care what you call yourselves,’ said Annie. ‘I just want you both with me on the day. And to help with everything before then. There’s so much to plan!’
‘Count me in,’ said Megan. ‘I need some romance in my life.’
‘Me too,’ said Eleanor, nodding.
‘What about Lucas?’ said Annie, with a gleam. ‘I thought you two had moved in together.’
Eleanor sighed and shook her head, deciding to come clean about some of her life. ‘We’re taking a break. His decision.’
‘Oh no! You must be heartbroken,’ said Annie.
Eleanor shrugged her shoulders. ‘That’s the thing. I should be, shouldn’t I? We were together for two years. But I’m not upset. Not really.’
‘Maybe you both need a break to think about what you really want,’ said Annie, giving her hand a squeeze.
Eleanor nodded. ‘Maybe.’
‘And if he’s not the one, then you’re bound to meet some other rich banker the next time you go to one of those Bank of England parties, said Megan. ‘I mean, you’re out every night. I know you have to entertain for your job in the finance sector but even so, I’d kill for your social life.’
Eleanor drained her glass, wondering how to even begin to tell them that she’d lost her job.
‘I can just imagine your flash apartment in the city,’ carried on Megan. ‘I mean, look at what you’re wearing. You’ve got it all. Fashion. Parties. Nightlife. It’s all come together for you. I’m so bloody jealous I could cry.’
Eleanor knew that her apartment had been far from flash. It had been damp and cold. It had also had subsidence. But her friends, just like her mum, had always expected so much from her. Too much. A great career. A wonderful life in the city. She didn’t want to let them down.
‘Yeah, you’re this amazing career girl and all I want is a functioning kitchen!’ laughed Annie.
Eleanor took a deep breath. It was time to confess about her so-called perfect life. But the conversation had already moved onto the wedding once more. Annie looked so excited and it was such a lovely, happy subject that Eleanor didn’t want to bring down their mood. So she decided she would definitely tell them the next time they were together.
Unless she met Tommy King, of course. Because then she could write up her exclusive story on him and she wouldn’t have to reveal any of her lies to her friends.
Then she could carry on pretending. Forever, if necessary.