‘It does look a bit like a military operation.’
Florrie pulled away slowly. ‘The flower business needs lots of love and dedication.’
‘And that’s exactly what you’re going to give it.’
‘I am.’ She hesitated. ‘But what if we don’t find that document?’
‘We will. Have faith.’
She nodded and pointed to the cabinets in the adjoining glasshouse. They went through to them, took a drawer each and sifted through the paperwork.
‘This is mainly invoices from the wholesalers, lists of gardening equipment bought, etc. There’s nothing out of the ordinary. Have you found anything?’ Florrie asked.
‘Gardening diaries, photographs of The Vintage Flower Van and an old Valentine’s Day card.’
‘No way, let’s have a look.’
Tom passed Florrie the card and she read the words inside.
My Dearest Ada,
My valentine forever.
Yours always,
Ewart X
‘Aww, how sweet. They certainly had a special love.’
‘A rarity,’ Tom added.
They continued to look through the rest of the drawers but found nothing of importance.
‘It’s getting late,’ said Florrie, looking at her watch. ‘Would you like to stay and have a drink?’
‘That would be good,’ he replied.
They began to walk towards the back door of the cottage. ‘If you had to keep an important document safe, where would you keep it?’ Florrie pondered.
‘Maybe give it to a friend? A safety deposit box? Under the mattress?’
‘I think Aunt Ada would have given it to either Dolores or Martha, but they haven’t got it. A safety deposit box is a possibility, but surely she would have mentioned it in her will? And as for under the mattress…’ She chuckled.
‘Hey, you never know, people used to hide all manner of things under the mattress in case they got burgled.’
‘And wouldn’t that be the first place a burglar would look?’
‘Fair point.’
As soon as they were in the kitchen Florrie opened the fridge door and pulled out a chilled bottle of wine. She poured two glasses and placed them on the table. As she went to sit in the chair next to Tom, he reached out and pulled her on to his knee.
‘What is it about you that makes me so nervous?’ Florrie could feel her pulse beginning to race.
‘Is that a good thing?’
‘It is.’ She paused and looked over his shoulder.
‘What are you thinking about? You suddenly look all worried.’
