This was exactly the response she was looking for. ‘It was difficult! But Jago – the landlord – was far too big to get into the space.’
Gilly had pulled her chair a bit nearer to Helena’s. ‘Surely he could have found someone else?’
‘There was no time. The heap of rubble could have collapsed at any moment. It wouldn’t take much to squash a kitten.’
‘Don’t!’ said Gilly, getting up to make the tea. ‘Do you want brandy? Or Rescue Remedy?’
‘I’ve already declined the offer of brandy,’ said Helena. ‘But Rescue Remedy might be good.’
Helena thought she heard her mother mutter, ‘Same thing really,’ as she went to find the bottle.
After Gilly had waved off her daughter, who was bearing a plastic box of bolognese sauce as well as quite a lot of shortbread, she went to find her phone so she could make an appointment. While she had told Helena about their lunch date with her brother and sister-in-law, she hadn’t told her that Cressida had added, ‘We’ve got an exciting plan we want to share with you,’ when she’d issued the invitation. Gilly had an idea she knew what this plan was, andshe wanted to prepare before the visit. Hence the appointment with her accountant.
William Davies had been her accountant for seven years. He had advised her when she was setting up her bed and breakfast business and had been a supportive presence ever since. She’d had him recommended to her by a friend who felt that Sebastian, her ex-husband, who was using an old school friend ‘mates rates’ solicitor to arrange his divorce, was far too advantaged. Putting Gilly in touch with William Davies was her attempt to level the playing field somewhat.
The following morning in William’s office, Gilly took the chair offered to her and sat down opposite him. She smiled, aware she was pleased to see him. ‘How are you?’
William sat back down behind his desk, having risen as she was shown in. ‘Well, thank you. And you? Mandy will bring us some tea in a moment.’
Gilly nodded. She’d left a tin of home-made shortbread at the front desk as usual. The tea which was brought, unasked, every time she visited, was part of the thank you from Mandy and her colleagues. While they waited she contemplated the fact – not for the first time – that William had very good hair. It was greying in an attractive way and there was lots of it.
‘So,’ William said when the tea had arrived, ‘what can I do for you?’
‘I’m wondering if there’s any way I can raise some money from my house without actually selling it.’
‘Why?’
It sounded like an intrusive question but Gilly knew it wasn’t. William was her accountant, after all, and well used to the demands on the Bank of Mum made on her by her son, though very rarely by Helena.
‘I’ve been invited to lunch on Sunday. Cressida has “an exciting plan” and, to be honest, if they didn’t need my money I doubt she’d have mentioned it. On the phone, anyway.’
William nodded slowly. ‘Do you have any idea how much?’
Gilly shook her head. ‘Not really, but I imagine as it’s a lunch, and they’ve invited Helena too, it must be quite a lot or they wouldn’t feel the need to involve her.’
‘I see.’
Gilly felt that William managed to express quite a lot of disapproval with those two short words. He wasn’t even frowning. She went on. ‘It’s Helena I’d like to help, if I can. She’s being evicted quite soon and she’s found it hard to find new premises, as she needs quite a large space. Her friend Amy – also a weaver but who uses small looms – doesn’t have the same trouble and has already found somewhere.’
William nodded. Gilly ploughed on. ‘I wondered if I could let Helena have the ground-floor bedroomas a studio? She hasn’t asked me, of course, she never asks me for money, but if I end up giving her brother something I have to do something for her too, to make it fair.’
William didn’t reply immediately, giving Gilly the impression he was preparing to give bad news. ‘To be honest, Mrs Claire, if you gave up that room you’d stop being profitable. The other rooms give you enough money to pay for the upkeep of the house but it’s the extra room that makes the profit. And it’s your only room with disabled access and going on your TripAdvisor ratings, people do really love it.’
‘You’ve looked me up on TripAdvisor?’ Gilly was surprised and a little bit indignant.
William nodded. ‘I did my research.’ He went on: ‘You had to spend quite a lot of money converting the bathroom for wheelchair access. Even if Helena paid you rent it wouldn’t cover the lost income.’
The trouble with her accountant, Gilly thought, was that he was nearly always right. And at that particular moment she couldn’t think of a time when he’d been wrong. She examined the large ring she wore on her wedding finger. She’d bought it herself as a symbol of her independence when she was finally free of her ex-husband.
‘I can’t believe you looked me up on TripAdvisor,’ she said to give herself time to think. She sighed.‘And you don’t think there’s any way I can raise capital on my house? Equity release? Something?’
‘I don’t think that’s really for you. You do have to pay back the money – or your children will after you die – and really, you’re a bit young for equity release. If the money was for you I might feel differently about it. But think how hard you had to fight to keep your house, the house left to you by your parents. You shouldn’t have to compromise that.’
‘OK, so what about me selling? I could downsize?’
‘You could, of course you could. But that would mean giving up your business and you’re so good at it I can’t believe you don’t enjoy it. TripAdvisor,’ he added, before she could argue. ‘Your reviews. I don’t think you want to sell.’
Gilly felt a bit stubborn. ‘Maybe I’m tired of running a B & B?’
