‘Yeah, the directions the owners sent said the cottage was next to that. Thank goodness for that.’ He pulled onto a narrow track and rounded a bend, the view hidden by a high hedge. At the top was the gateway to a large, rather fancy looking stone house. But tucked away in a wooded copse to the right of the gates wasa tiny, slightly rundown looking stone building. ‘Oh dear.’ Sam pulled a face. ‘Looks a bit worse for wear. No wonder it was cheap.’
Clara laughed. ‘Do you think it’s haunted?’
‘Do you?’ He threw her a look.
‘Oh gosh, I don’t know. Sometimes I say crazy things.’
‘Only sometimes?’ He winked, and she gave him a hard prod in the arm, but she was giggling.
He parked, climbed out, and went searching around the outside wall for the lockbox. ‘Apparently it’s hidden behind a bush, but there seems to be more bush than house.’ He moved a few jaggy branches out of the way. ‘Oh, here we go.’ Crouching down, he held back the plants, keyed in the number, and opened the box. ‘I’ve got some serious misgivings about this place. The photos made it look a lot nicer than this.’
‘They always do.’ Clara laughed, watching him as he pushed the key into the lock. ‘But I think it’s quite cute. The garden just needs a little tidy up.’
‘Let’s hope the same isn’t true for the house.’ Sam pushed the door and held it open. ‘After you.’
Clara chuckled and peered inside. ‘I appreciate your manners, but I’m not sure I want to go in first.’
‘I’m right behind you.’
She stepped in and he followed, glimpsing low beams, an empty wood burner, and slightly tired décor that was nonetheless quite homely and rustic.
‘This isn’t bad.’ Clara peered around. ‘Cosy.’
‘Yeah. It’ll do.’ It seemed to be mainly one room with a small kitchen area at one end and the living area at the other. Towards the far side was a door that led to a tiny back porch, which housed the washing machine, and off the side of that was a very small shower room. ‘It’s a bit like a caravan.’
Clara poked her head around the door beside him. ‘Well, I’m little, so it’s fine for me.’
‘Yeah.’ He gave her a small smile as they returned to the main room. ‘It’ll be fine for me too. It’s more the ceiling height I was worried about. Some of these buildings are very low, but this isn’t too bad. I’ll just have to duck the beams.’ He reached up and gave one a slap.
In the corner was another door. Clara opened it and peered inside. Sam followed, leaning over her shoulder to get a look.
‘Oh, you’ve got to be joking.’
Clara’s laugh burst out bright and musical. The room looked like something from a quaint country style Pinterest board – all soft lighting, white broderie anglaise, and an avalanche of mismatched cushions. It was cosy, charming… and unmistakably furnished with only one bed.
‘I asked for it to be made into two,’ Sam said, sighing.
Clara turned, her grey irises sparkling, fingertips pressed to her lips as if she might burst out laughing again. ‘Maybe they thought you meantfortwo, notintotwo.’
He rolled his eyes. ‘Who knows? That doesn’t even look like the kind of bed that can unzip. But I’m sure it said that in the description.’ He edged past her, lifted the duvet, and let out another sigh. ‘Nope. I’ll take the sofa.’
Running a hand through his hair, he tried not to think about how ridiculous this was – or how small the sofa had looked in the other room.
Clara stepped closer and patted his arm. ‘We can’t have you doing that. It’s not fair. I think it’s hilarious that we’ve ended up in our very own one-bed saga.’
He shook his head. ‘You think? You actually want to share?’
‘Of course. I’ll happily cuddle up next to my fake date all night.’
He rubbed a hand down his face and glanced at the tiny window, fighting the smile tugging at his mouth. Would he everget used to how easily she said things like that – how she made a minefield sound like a picnic?
‘Ok,’ he said finally.
‘I hope you’re not a duvet hogger.’
‘I…’ He gave a half shrug. ‘I don’t know. I don’t think so.’
‘Well, I apologise in advance.’
