Beatrice knitted her brow. She hadn’t realised he had fallen in step with her until he’d spoken. ‘Haven’t you got anything better to do?’ she asked.
His expression was blank when he replied, ‘Actually, I have,’ and stopped, turning away.
Realising how rude she’d been, Beatrice caught hold of his arm. ‘I’m sorry, that came out wrong. If you’re not busy, I’d love a lift, please.’
He glanced at her hand. Beatrice hastily removed it from his arm and dug her nails into her palm. Touching him had unsettled her. Meeting his gaze, she felt herself blush, but she couldn’t look away.
‘My car is in the pub’s car park,’ he said. ‘Come on.’ He strode off and she had to hurry to keep up.
The short walk was conducted in silence, and when she got into his rather smart black car she felt distinctly awkward.
Mark broke the silence as he reversed out of the parking space. ‘Have you got a garage you can call?’
‘There’s one on the outskirts of Picklewick, but I’ll see if Dad’s got some jump leads first. I’ve got a feeling I need a new battery, but if I can get it going, it’ll save me having it towed.’
‘How will you get home?’
‘Walk, probably.’
He signalled to turn right, then pulled onto the main road. They should be at the farm in five minutes.
He said, ‘I’ll fetch you. What time do you finish?’
‘There’s no need, honestly,’ she replied, then subsided when a gust of wind buffeted the car. The heavens opened once more and the windscreen wipers went into overdrive.
‘Three o’clock,’ she told him, gratefully.
But when he dropped her off in the farmyard, she feared she had made a mistake and that walking would be preferable after all – despite the risk of a good soaking. Because the risk of being hurt again by this man grew every time she clapped eyes on him.
Muddypuddle Lane was narrow, with room for only one vehicle at a time, apart from the two passing places. One of those was the entrance to the stables, the other was outside a pretty cottage halfway up.
Mark was on his way to fetch Beatrice from the farm, when he spied another vehicle coming down the lane, so he pulled in next to the cottage. And wished he hadn’t when Dulcie pulled up alongside and waved at him.
It wasn’t a ‘hello’ kind of wave: it was more of a ‘can I have a word’ kind of wave, and the word she wanted concerned a certain green costume and small children.
‘Please,’ she begged. ‘Walter isn’t up to it, and Gio – that’s Nikki’s other half – was supposed to be doing it, but he’s having to work on Saturday. I hate to ask, but you weresucha big hit. I’d do it myself, but I’m running a pinecone decorating session. It’ll only be for a couple of hours.Please?’
He hesitated, and her face fell.
‘I shouldn’t have asked. Note to self – be more organised next year. This is my first year doing a Christmas Wonderland, so I didn’t know what to expect. I can’t believe how well it’s taken off.’ She brightened. ‘I’m not complaining, you understand.’
Against his better judgement, he said, ‘Okay, I’ll do it.’
‘Youwill?That’s marvellous. Thank you!’ She looked so pleased that Mark was glad he’d agreed.
What was a couple of hours out of his day?
Dulcie said, ‘This time I insist on paying you,’ and when he shook his head, she said, ‘Dinner at The Wild Side, then? Just let me know when and for how many.’
‘It’ll just be me,’ he said.
‘Why not ask Beatrice if you don’t want to dine on your own?’ Dulcie’s expression was devoid of guile, but he couldn’t shake the feeling he was being set up. It occurred to him that her sister Nikki must have overheard him asking Beatrice to have a coffee with him when he was at the primary school the other day. Either that, or they had been spotted in the cafe – which was also quite likely.
Beatrice was waiting when Mark drove into the yard, and she hopped into the car. ‘Thanks for this. I really appreciate it.’
‘It’s no bother,’ he replied, trying not to stare at the silver glitter on her nose. ‘You’ve got, um…’ He touched his own nose, and she pulled down the sun visor and examined her face in the mirror.
Laughing, she said, ‘I’ve been making up Christmas Eve boxes – or as much as can be done ahead of time. Can’t add the perishables just yet. That’ll be a last-minute job. Did you know that there’s such a thing as edible glitter?’ She rubbed her nose, transferring the glitter to her finger, then popped it into her mouth.
