‘I wanted to make it more of a day out so people don’t just come and pick the one or two things they want, but can spend a few hours here, like they did at the pumpkin patch,’ she said, excitement creeping into her voice. ‘We could have photo opportunities, food and drink, a picnic spot maybe… I don’t know, I have so many ideas but Dylan said maybe it will be too much work to do it all myself before we open in June. I thought I’d have my usual summer staff to help or I would have started earlier. But I was so focused on getting the crops in the best shape possible. And they are but will that be enough to bring more people to the farm?’ She shook her head. ‘Dylan is really good at business plans while I’m the one with the big ideas.’
‘It sounds like you make a good team,’ I commented. I couldn’t help but envy her a little bit.
‘We do. But I need to be able to put my ideas into action, don’t I?’ Willow went over to check the sprinkler that was currently watering the sunflowers.
‘I forgot how big and beautiful this place is.’ I looked around at the rolling fields of crops, the polytunnels that covered anything that needed protection from the elements, and the chickens off to the side, enjoying the sunshine too. It was idyllic out here. I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with fresh air. I had spent so long hunched over my desk, it felt really good.
We left the sunflowers and went over to the polytunnels and she showed me the pumpkins she had sown. ‘I need to plant them out in that field there,’ she said, pointing. ‘I sold pumpkins I had bought in last year but this will be even more special selling ones I’ve grown myself. If they flourish like I hope they will. And we’ll make more profit this way too, of course.’ She then took me past the rest of the fruit and vegetable crops before we reached the final two fields. ‘These are the strawberry fields, always the most popular part of our pick-your-own selection.’ She bent down to check some of the plants as I looked out at the ripening fruit stretching as far as my eyes could see.
‘It’s beautiful,’ I told her. ‘I bet they will taste delicious. I remember us sneaking out here when we were younger to eat as many as we could,’ I said with a smile as I thought back to those times.
‘That was so fun, although my mum told us to leave some for our customers,’ Willow said, shaking her head as she picked off a strawberry. ‘Almost ready,’ she said, holding it up so I could see. ‘What’s wrong?’ she asked when she saw my face fall.
‘I just feel really bad that I stayed away for so long. That I didn’t keep in touch as well as I should have done. That you guys were in trouble and I wasn’t there for you. I really am sorry, Willow.’
She nodded. ‘I know. We missed you. But I understood. It’s been a difficult few years for us all. And I get why you wanted a fresh start in the city… I buried my head in the sand about the farm being in trouble for a while. I avoided the truth. It’s not easy to face tough things.’
‘That’s for sure.’ I had done the same thing about my relationship with Henry. ‘But the farm is doing better now, right? And you have your ideas for the summer?’
‘Yeah. Things are better. I just don’t want to rest on any laurels. I saw this being the big finale out here,’ Willow said, gesturing to the growing strawberries around us. ‘But can I make that happen now?’
* * *
For the rest of the morning, I followed Willow around and tried to help with her farm chores. She then said she needed to fix the door on one of the barns as it wasn’t closing properly. My uncle said he was meeting Taylor in Birchbrook for lunch, and Dylan and Blake were still with the builder so I went into the farmhouse and made Willow and I sandwiches. Then we took them onto the grass outside and sat down to eat.
‘I rarely eat lunch,’ I said as we tucked into the chunky sandwiches. ‘Or if I do, it’s at my desk in a hurry. This is much better.’ I smiled as the sun kissed my bare arms and I drank in the silence out here.
‘Working in an office would probably be my worst nightmare, I have to be honest,’ Willow said with a wry smile. ‘Dylan did that but once he came to the farm, he didn’t want to do it any more. Don’t get me wrong, he still loves inputting numbers on his laptop but nothing beats being outside all day.’
‘You look much healthier than me,’ I had to admit. ‘So, you convinced Dylan to leave the office behind?’
‘Dylan worked for his brother’s property company. That’s why he turned up here. They wanted to buy the farm.’ She saw my wide eyes. ‘Yeah, it was a big turnaround, wasn’t it? But he fell in love with this place.’
‘And with you,’ I said.
She grinned. ‘That too. I don’t often stop for a picnic lunch, though; there’s too much to do. We loved doing it as kids, didn’t we? My friend Sabrina would come over too and my mum would pack us up a basket to take out into the fields.’
‘That was so fun,’ I agreed. ‘I remember Sabrina loved horses, didn’t she? We kept begging your parents to buy a pony and offer pony rides. Your mum thought it would be popular but your dad said it would be too much work, didn’t he?’
‘Oh God, yeah,’ Willow said. ‘We all argued about it over breakfast almost every morning one summer.’
‘And I was freaked out by the scarecrows you guys had over there,’ I said, pointing to the crop fields, the memories flooding back to me.
Willow smiled. ‘Oh yeah, the old owners had them even though they didn’t actually do much to deter birds. Dad took them down years ago. But I used some in my autumn display last year.’
‘I don’t know if I’d ever want to see them again,’ I said with a shudder.
‘They have cute faces,’ she said with a laugh.
‘It has been really nice today. Thank you, Willow. I didn’t realise how much I had missed it here. And you and my uncle.’
‘There’s no rush to leave again. We love having you here. And if you don’t know what to do next, you might as well hang out with us until you do?’
‘That would be great,’ I admitted. ‘I guess if it’s completely over with Henry then I have to find a new job, and a place to live…’ I trailed off worriedly. I knew that when I stood in front of Henry in my wedding dress, I had realised that we shouldn’t get married. But I hadn’t thought any further ahead than that. The summer was now suddenly stretching out uncertainly.
‘It’s all still so raw; you need some time to think about what you want, right?’
‘I haven’t thought about what I want in a long time,’ I confessed.
