Arriving at the bus stop, she joined the queue of people standing in the bus shelter and attempted to prepare herself for her interview. The temp agency had called it an ‘informal chat,’ but she knew it was more than that. She had to look the part, sound the part, and play the part if she wanted to be considered for the more lucrative placements.
But try as she might, her mind kept drifting to Ashton and she wondered whether he was in Picklewick at this very moment on his rounds.
She caught a glimpse of a red van, and her heart gave a lurch before settling back into its normal rhythm when she realised it wasn’t a Royal Mail one. She couldn’t wait to see Ashton later, and she tingled at the thought. Since that fateful evening when they had made love for the first time, they’d hardly been able to keep their hands off each other, and Carla was most definitely in lust. The man was freakin’ gorgeous, and he knew what to do with a woman between the sheets. And on the couch. And on the carpet once, but it had made the skin on her back sore so she wouldn’t be doing that again in a hurry.
In case he was in the village, she shrank back and hid behind an elderly couple and their pull-along shopping trolley, and only when she was on the bus, did some of her tension evaporate.
Staring out of the window, she told herself to focus. She would have plenty of time to think about Ashton on the return journey. She needed to stop daydreaming and concentrate on what she was in Thornbury to achieve. And whilst she was there, there was no harm in checking out what was available to rent.
‘Got everything?’ Ashton asked. He glanced at the suitcase by the bedroom door.
Carla scanned the room. ‘I think so.’
He noticed she’d put fresh linen on the bed and he knew she wanted to leave Beth’s rented house clean and tidy, but to him it felt like she was erasing every trace of herself, as though this was a hotel room and she was done with it. Done withthem.
Yesterday had been bitter-sweet. They had spent her last day on the hill above the farm, taking photos, and when they’d spotted the stoat again, it had felt symbolic, her time in Picklewick bracketed by sightings of the little animal.
Last night he had held her until she’d drifted off to sleep. Unable to sleep himself, he’d lain beside her, listening to her soft breathing and trying not to think how lonely he would be without her.
Watching her pack this morning had been hard, so he’d sat in the garden with an untouched mug of coffee and waited until it was time to take her to the station.
With a heavy tread, Ashton carried her case out to the car while she did a final check, before locking up and posting the key through the letterbox. His heart squeezed painfully – far too soon they would be at the station, and he might never see her again.
She was subdued on the short journey to Thornbury, and he guessed she might be worried about her meeting tomorrow. She had tried to put it behind her for the most part over the past week or so, but he’d sensed it had been playing on her mind. He knew it would have played on his, if he had been in her position.
God, he would miss her.
Would she miss him?
In a way, he hoped not, because he didn’t want Carla to experience the loneliness that he knew would be his lot after she was gone. He cared for her too much to think of her hurting.
Easing the car into a space in the station’s car park, he switched the engine off and got out. ‘Do you want me to wait with you until the train arrives?’ he asked.
‘Ashton.…’ Her expression was unreadable. She shook her head.
He sighed and opened his arms. Carla stepped into them, and he held her close for as long as he could, her head on his chest, his nose in her hair as he breathed in her scent.
Eventually, she pulled away to stare into his eyes, and he cupped her face with his hands.
‘It’ll be okay,’ he said.
Then he kissed her one last time.
He hadn’t fought for her. That was the only thing Carla could think of as she boarded the train. Ashton had let her go, had accepted that their relationship was over without so much as a murmur.
It hurt. A lot.
Did it alter her plans to return to Picklewick? Possibly.
The interview with the temp agency the other day had gone well, despite her honesty regarding the uncertainty around her current employment. Beth had told her that she could stay in the house in Picklewick until she sorted out more permanent accommodation in Thornbury, and her mum had insisted on gifting Carla her car, so she had everything lined up. All she had to do was make the decision.
She had tried so hard not to let it hinge on Ashton, but how could it not since she was in love with him? Ah, yes, the womanwho had arrived in Muddypuddle Lane determined not to get entangled in another relationship, had well and truly lost her heart.
The journey to Birmingham seemed interminable, but eventually she trundled her case into the hall, the sound of her footsteps in the empty house echoing the emptiness inside her.
Can I come over? I need to see you.
Ashton read the message for a second time. Why did Lacey need to see him? What could they possibly have to talk about? He hadn’t had any contact with her since she’d told him they were over, apart from seeing her in the Tex-Mex restaurant a couple of weeks ago, so why did she suddenly need to see him now?
