‘You rescued her? Wow, that’s amazing. Could I take her for a walk sometime?’
‘I don’t think so, Harriet, seeing as Lola will be moving out with Gil later today.’ Pippa wanted to make sure that was clear. There was absolutely no point in letting Harriet get attached. Pippa had experienced that once in her life with a pet and she certainly wasn’t going there again, nor would she allow Harriet to be exposed to those same feelings. ‘Mind where you’re putting your feet, she’s spilled water all over the floor.’
‘So? I’m not bothered.’ Harriet scowled before returning her curiosity to Gil. ‘So, you like, save sick animals and stuff?’
‘When I can.’ His smile for her was weary, tinged with something Pippa thought might be sadness. He was slightly less guarded, not as resentful, when he was speaking with her daughter. He yawned again, covering his mouth with a hand. ‘Sorry, very late night. I was called out. Sadly not every animal I treat gets a happy ending, it goes with the job.’
‘But still, you make a difference, right?’
‘I guess I do. It’s worth trying, anyway.’
‘Where are you going to live?’ Harriet had left Lola snuggling down again and opened the fridge door. She shut it again and shot Pippa another look, one which Pippa understood all too well. A look that implied she could magic up whatever food it was that Harriet wanted right now. In London, where there was every kind of shop, she usually could. She made sure to keep all Harriet’s favourites well stocked at home; her daughter played a lot of sport and was always hungry. Harriet came and went as she pleased between Pippa’s house and her dad’s, but there was no doubt who was the better cook, and it wasn’t her father. Pippa often wondered if that was the real reason why Harriet still lived with her; she always seemed to be angry with her these days.
‘Well, I—’
‘That’s none of our business, Harriet,’ Pippa said coolly. Partly because it wasn’t and partly because she didn’t care, as long as Gil was out of her sight. Her mind was still tugging her back to that first glimpse she’d had of him in bed earlier; that bare chest, the tousled blond hair…
‘Mum, stop it! I can hear you grinding your teeth again, it’s disgusting. You always do that when you’re stressed.’
Oh, she was stressed all right! Faced with an angry vet who couldn’t stand the sight of her and a grumpy daughter who’d already made friends with a dog who wasn’t staying. And that was before she’d even got to the bottom of her dad’s connection to this house and what exactly Gil was doing in it.
‘Mum hates Hartfell,’ Harriet offered Gil helpfully, folding her arms. ‘She didn’t want to come here.’
‘She didn’t?’ Gil had apparently honed the ability to ask a question whilst conveying absolutely no interest in the answer.
‘Harriet, that’s not fair. I know nothing about the place, and we’ve only been here ten hours.’ Pippa was doing her best to unclench the tension in her jaw and decided a change of subject was needed. ‘So, what are your plans for today?’ She’d learned a while ago to let Harriet come to her, not to make her own suggestions anymore.
‘Eat, obviously, when you’ve done the shopping. And if you want me to do some homework then I’m going to need the Wi-Fi network and a password.’
‘Wi-Fi network? Sorry, Harriet, we don’t have one of those in the house.’ Gil laughed and Pippa really didn’t like how he directed his amusement at her as she braced herself for battle. He raised a disdainful hand to the kitchen. ‘You can see the state of the place, it’s barely even habitable. I’m afraid Wi-Fi isn’t going to find its way in here anytime soon.’
‘NO WI-FI!’ Harriet screeched, her face turning pink with fury. ‘Did you know about this, Mum?’
‘I didn’t have time to do much research before we arrived and now we’re here, I’ve realised the house is even more outdated than I’d expected.’ Pippa settled on a version of the truth, wondering why Harriet thought doing homework was more for Pippa’s benefit rather than her own.
‘Outdated?’ Harriet jabbed her phone furiously in Pippa’s direction. ‘Do you even actually understand what this means? Just because you don’t care about Wi-Fi and need it like I do doesn’t mean it’s not important! How am I supposed to stay in touch with Isla and my own life now you’ve dragged me up here and dumped us in the middle of nowhere?’
Pippa was feeling guilty that Harriet wouldn’t easily be able to reach her best friend. And neither would she, seeing as Isla’s mum Cassie was Pippa’s closest friend. ‘That’s not what you said last night. You said it would be an adventure. It’ll be fun, Harriet, like living off-grid for a bit. A digital detox.’ She took a calming breath, reminding herself who was actually the parent in this relationship and trying to quell the knots that had erupted in her stomach. Harriet’s face was red now and she flounced from the kitchen, offering a parting stab over one shoulder.
‘Off-grid?Without Wi-Fi you can forget me doing homework, Mum. I’m going to look up trains back to London. Oh that’s right, I can’t. Because we’re now living in the dark ages and trains probably don’t even run up here.’
Pippa’s fingers were trembling, and she took another breath as the door shook in its frame after the slam. She’d need to talk to Harriet, but she knew from experience it would be best done when her daughter had eaten and for that she’d have to go shopping first, delaying the conversation required after that outburst. A wave of misery washed through her and she wished with all her heart they were still in London. At least there Harriet was familiar with home and all they both loved about the city. Gil was staring through the window, and he slowly turned around.
‘Thanks for that! You obviously enjoyed letting Harriet know about the Wi-Fi, probably because you knew she’d be angry and would blame me.’
‘Well, she’s right.’
‘It’s not my fault!’
‘Not having Wi-Fi in the house isn’t your fault but maybe you should have told her because then she would have known the facts before she came and made an informed decision, not one based on assumptions.’ He raised that brow again and Pippa wanted to swipe it from his face. ‘Or were you afraid that she wouldn’t come, and the lack of Wi-Fi would’ve sealed the deal?’
Pippa thought wildly her teeth were grinding so hard now it was a wonder she wasn’t spitting dust, and she could feel her face heating up, her hands clenched into fists. ‘How dare you,’ she roared, tempted to grab her empty mug, and hurl it at him. ‘We’ve barely met and you think to mansplain to me about how I parent my daughter. You clearly know nothing about teenagers!’
‘Funny, considering I’ve raised two of my own.’
‘Sorry, is this a bad moment?’ A head appeared around the back door and Pippa spun around in shock at the disturbance. ‘I did knock but I don’t think you heard me.’ The woman offered her an apologetic smile before her look went to Gil, standing impassively at the sink. ‘It’s an emergency, Gil. That heifer up at Roland’s place has taken a turn for the worse and he wants you to come as soon as possible.’
‘On my way, I’ve just picked up his voicemail. How’s the rest of the list looking?’
