She waxed lyrical about the light, built-in storage and the fact that one bedroom was at the back of the house so was quietest. Sam didn’t say anything. Complete silence. She’d have preferred it if he’d been negative because at least then she could counter his objections, but nothing was hard to manage. They went back downstairs and she did get a nod in both the kitchen and lounge so all was not lost. Out in the garden she painted a little aspirational living picture. ‘This corner here is the perfect suntrap. Ideal for a summer’s evening, perhaps a barbecue and a few drinks with friends. Time to relax and unwind after a busy week. Can you imagine sitting out here and kicking back?’
‘It’s quite small,’ said Sam.
‘It will certainly be easy to manage.’
‘And you can hear the road.’
‘But you wouldn’t over the laughter of friends.’ She gave a little chuckle as a demonstration. ‘Would you like to see any of the rooms again or ask the vendor any questions?’
‘Yeah…’ Hope soared in Blythe’s heart. Questions showed interest; they were a good thing. She steered him into the living room where the owner was trying to put the scattered parts of a Mr Potato Head in a toy box while the toddler screamed and threw them out again. Sam stepped forward just as the toddler chucked something down and Sam trod on it. ‘Ow!’ Sam staggered about on one leg, his features screwed up in pain.
‘Lego,’ said the owner, with a sympathetic look on his face. ‘Almost the worst pain known to man. Second only to knob in zipper.’
Blythe blinked at him. This was why she preferred to conduct viewings without the owners present. ‘You had a question, Sam?’
Sam gingerly returned his foot to the floor. ‘What’s the broadband like here?’ he asked.
‘Shocking,’ said the owner.
Blythe wanted to shake him. ‘But that can be upgraded,’ she said quickly.
‘Nah, we’re on the best there is and it’s still crap.’ Blythe glared at him and he seemed to get the message. ‘But the pub’s great. Well, the beer is, the food not so much.’ Men were unbelievable.
‘Right, we’d best be off but I’ll be in touch,’ said Blythe, keen to move on. ‘Thanks again for letting us view at short notice.’
Sam wasn’t going to make an offer on this house and the sooner they found one he was going to buy the better.
4
30thMay
Vicky loved living in Holly Cross – so much so that when her parents had decided to move away to the seaside she had insisted on staying. She missed them, and the lack of childcare was tricky, but it was nice to have a little place for her and Eden. And whilst on paper she’d known the rent and other bills would be a stretch financially the reality was even more of a challenge. She had no wiggle room for Eden needing two pairs of shoes in one term or being invited to parties where it was expected she’d take a present. There was no spare cash for luxuries. She didn’t want to live like that and certainly wanted a little more for her daughter.
Vicky was very pleased with how her first dog walk had gone. After mulling over a number of business ideas she’d hit on the dog walking. She loved dogs, needed an additional income and wanted some regular exercise as she had a big liking for cheese, chocolate and cake, so this was the perfect solution.
It had been particularly good to get out of the house that morning because it was the first time Eden had been to stay at her parents’ new house, and she missed her. It was just the two of them and Eden was Vicky’s world. While she’d been hanging on to Barnaby’s lead with two hands, she’d not been able to check her phone every two seconds to see if her parents had messaged. Of course they hadn’t. After she’d panicked last night that she’d not heard anything and had catastrophised it in her mind until she was certain the reason she’d not had an update from them was because Eden had been rushed to hospital, she’d rung her mum in a stressed-out state. Her mum had calmed her down and explained they’d been at the park most of the day.
Instead of offering to message Vicky regularly her mum said it was best if she assumed everything was wonderful unless she heard otherwise. Her daughter was away for the whole weekend, and Vicky knew it was going to seem like a lot longer. Eden was just five years old – she was bound to worry about her. Just thinking about something happening to her daughter brought on a sense of dread.
When she’d cleaned and tidied the little house and all the washing up was done, Vicky decided she’d have a go at conjuring up some business names and maybe even design a logo. It killed an hour and she was quite pleased with her efforts. So much so that she printed some off and decided to pop round to the local pub to seek a consensus on the best name and see if she could drum up some business. The sooner she got more clients on her list the sooner she would start earning some extra money.
The Highway Inn was always busy at weekends. As a desi pub it was a destination in its own right because the food was so good. Desi pubs were a Midlands phenomenon where Asian cuisine met classic English pub, and a gastro revolution had been born. Vicky had to agree that beer and curry was a winning combination.
‘What can I get you, Vicky?’ asked Sarvan, who ran the pub with his wife Jassi.
‘Just a tap water and some advice.’ Vicky spread out her printed sheets while Sarvan got her drink.
When he placed it on the bar the colourful printouts caught his eye. ‘What do we have here?’
‘My new business venture. I think having the right business name is really important. It needs to say what it is but also be memorable. Which of these do you think stands out?’
Sarvan read the examples and his eyes widened as they moved across the page. ‘Rollover and Beg, Bone Sweet Bone, Shaggy Bitch, Doggy Style…’ Sarvan did a slow blink as if composing his question in his mind. ‘What sort of business is it?’
Vicky tilted her head in question. ‘Dog walking obviously. Why?’
*
Blythe’s day went from bad to worse. The second property was an immediate no from Sam because it was next to a school. The third property ticked a lot of boxes but was definitely something even Blythe would struggle to class as a project. It was a full renovation, which was already above Sam’s price limit. House number four had the perfect location: a village twenty minutes from the motorway junction Sam wanted to be close to, and it was also a cute cottage with a courtyard.
