‘Apparently he did, but there was no answer, which is why he rang me. I’m just so sorry to – Oh, got to go! See you soon.’
And Vanessa was gone.
Meg was in a state of shock when she went into the kitchen. Susan was scrubbing the kitchen table and looked up.
‘You look as if someone walked over your grave,’ she said.
Meg laughed reluctantly. ‘I think several people are going to! Vanessa, my friend, who was coming to help me while Mum is in France—’
‘I’ve met her.’
‘Well, she just telephoned to say her mother is coming with her. I really need to impress her mother. It’s mostly because of her that we’re having bathrooms. But she won’t have a private bathroom if she comes now. Bob’s only just started work, as you know.’
‘Sit down, Meg, and stop looking as if this is an emergency,’ said Susan, moving the kettle on to the hot part of the range.
‘And my other friend, David, the one who thought this would be a good place to put on a play, is also coming, with his director friend. I need to impresshim, too!’ Her mother had only been gone a few hours and already she was panicking.
‘Don’t be silly. What you need to do is book Vanessa’s mother a “just-in-case” room at that big hotel where Justin works. Then if she is too grand to stay with us, she can go and stay up there. In the meantime, we can suggest her ladyship tries the Yellow Room, which is right next door to a bathroom, and give her exclusive use of it, and see if she’s happy there.’ Susan still called the rooms after what they were called on the bell indicator, although no one had rung the bells for a while. ‘The two chaps will have to go where we put them. And I’ll see how Bob is getting on. We may need to send Cyril to the builder’s merchants with a list.’
‘And maybe hire a plumber.’
Susan didn’t speak for several anxious seconds. ‘Maybe it’ll come to that.’ Then she pulled herself together. ‘Now, have you had breakfast? Tea and toast for you, young lady, unless I can interest you in a boiled egg? Everything seems better when you’ve had breakfast.’
Cherry, who had come in from clearing the dining room and drawn up another seat at the table, was told the story and nodded. ‘I’ve got a little lace cap I could wear,’ she said. ‘Ambrosine gave it to me. She’d found it in one of the attic rooms. It’s ever so pretty. Vanessa’s mother might like that, if she’s a “lady”.’
‘Lady Lennox-Stanley is very old-fashioned so she probably would appreciate a lace cap,’ said Meg, feeling more cheerful now she was on her second piece of toast.
‘It’ll be nice to see David again,’ Cherry went on. ‘He was very charming. I expect his director friend will be too.’
‘Do you think I should book a room for him at Justin’s hotel, as well as Lady Lennox-Stanley?’ said Meg.
Susan shrugged. ‘Men aren’t so obsessed with bathrooms as women are, in my experience.’
‘Just the one room then,’ said Meg. ‘We wouldn’t want to find ourselves having to pay for it, after all. I’ll go and do that then.’
‘And I’ll have a word with Bob,’ said Susan. ‘Tell him it’s urgent. Cherry? You make a start on the Yellow Room. It’s not as nice as the Blue Bedroom, where the bathroom’s going to be, but it’ll have to do. Meg will pick flowers for it later.’
Meg halted on her way to the kitchen door. ‘My mother always does the flowers.’
‘You’ll have to do them today, Meg! Now put your best foot forward. We’ll get through this, you know we will. We can think what to serve for dinner later. I can ask Sam what he’s got that’s special. We’ll want something nice for David. He appreciates his food.’
Sam was the butcher, and, like almost everyone in the area, related to Susan. ‘Run along now,’ she said to Meg, making a shooing gesture. ‘Book the room, pick the flowers and we’ll do the rest. Until it’s time to start cooking, of course.’
Meg poached a very fine salmon that Sam the butcher provided as well as some pork loin which he had turned into escalopes. Meg knew that while Davidwould enjoy a hearty beef stew at any time of year, Vanessa’s mother almost definitely wouldn’t. There were some new potatoes in the garden which would go beautifully with both.
Everyone worked very hard at getting things ready. Cyril was roped in to help. He dug potatoes, fetched and carried for Bob, collected a lavatory from the builder’s merchants, and generally earned himself the accolade ‘good lad’ from Susan. It made him turn a bit pink.
Meg didn’t stop. She managed to pick and arrange a few vases of flowers for some strategic places and, aided by the electric mixer, made meringues and a chocolate mousse for pudding. She was still behind on her list of things to do when she heard a car. Her heart sank. The thought of having to deal with Vanessa’s mother as well as finish preparations for dinner made her heart sink.
She was surprised when Justin marched into the kitchen. Part of her was relieved, but the other part was terrified she was going to make a huge blunder and show herself up an amateur. A part she didn’t want to acknowledge was excited.
‘What are you doing here?’ she asked. She was slicing cucumbers to make fake scales for the salmon.
‘I wondered why you’d booked a room at the hotel. Laura told me about it.’ He seemed curious.
‘Vanessa’s mother is coming to stay unexpectedly,’ Meg explained. ‘She wants a private bathroom and we haven’t got one yet, only a building site. The room at your place is in case she won’t stay here.’
‘Goodness. And have you got a lot of guests in? That’s a very large salmon.’
