There was a pause that thankfully was broken by the ring of the doorbell.
‘That’ll be Monty,’ Bella said, relieved to be off the subject of her past music career. ‘Mollie’s bringing him and his stuff over this afternoon.’
Noah looked wary. ‘Should I make myself scarce?’
‘Why? It might help that you know him.’
‘I don’t think so!’
Bella smiled again. ‘Well, I’m happy for you to hang around, so Monty’ll have to lump it, won’t he? I’m sure he’ll be so pleased to be back in his own house that he won’t even notice us.’
‘Let’s hope so,’ Noah replied. ‘But I’m keeping my bedroom door shut tonight, in case he decides to exercise his territorial rights and smother me in my sleep!’
Bella was still grinning when she opened the door to Mollie.
‘You look like living here suits you,’ Mollie said, returning her broad smile. ‘Are you ready to take on Monty?’
‘Absolutely. I can’t wait to see how he responds to being back in his own house again.’ She took Monty’s bed, which Mollie had brought to the door, and called to Noah. ‘Can you remember where Jack used to put this?’
Noah nodded. ‘Monty liked the alcove under the stairs when he chose to sleep in it, but most of the time he ended up on Grandpa’s bed.’
‘I’ll bear that in mind,’ Bella replied, ‘so he doesn’t frighten the life out of me in the middle of the night!’
After Mollie had handed over Monty’s bowls and the rest of a bag of dried food he’d taken a shine to, it was time to bring him in. Bella suddenly felt nervous; she’d never taken responsibility for anything other than herself. What if she did something wrong? Shaking off those thoughts as much as she could, she braced herself for a very grumpy Monty. She knew Monty didn’t take well to the cat carrier, having seen how pissed off he’d been when Mollie had collected him from the cottage the first time around. Having had four months in the sanctuary, he was unlikely to be any better now.
‘Nearly there, old chap, not far to go now.’ Mollie’s soothing tones broke into Bella’s train of thought. Bella heard Monty before she saw him; he was kicking up quite a stink. Yowls were emanating from the cat carrier that illustrated the extent of Monty’s irritation.
‘Can you shut the front door, love? And there aren’t any low windows or outside doors open, are there? Even though this is his manor, you ought to keep him inside for a few days, until he acclimatises again.’
‘Will do.’ Bella watched as Mollie gently put the cat carrier down on the living room floor. Then, carefully, she undid the latches, and they all took a step back, waiting for Monty to emerge.
33
‘It’s probably best if I get off,’ Mollie said, once she’d released the catches on the cat carrier. ‘Too many people, even if he knows them, might spook him.’
‘Thanks for bringing him over, Mollie,’ Bella replied. ‘I’ll keep you posted about how he is.’
‘Do.’ Mollie gave Bella and Noah a last smile before heading hurriedly out of the front door, closing it quickly as she left.
‘Well,’ Bella said brightly. ‘Do you want to coax him out, or shall I?’
Noah regarded the carrier in a manner that suggested a man-eating tiger, and not an aged Bengal cat, was about to emerge. ‘I think I’ll let you take one for the team, if you don’t mind!’
Bella smirked. ‘Don’t tell me a poor defenceless old moggy’s got you all of a flutter? Are you a man or a mouse?’
‘Pass me a piece of cheese.’
Bella sank to her knees and peered into the carrier where Monty crouched. ‘Come on, darling, it’s all right. You’re home now.’
For some reason that he couldn’t quite place, Noah felt his throat start to constrict as he heard Bella’s soothing tones. He’d been holding back a lot since his grandfather had passed away, and something about being back here in the cottage, and having Monty back here too, had made the emotions start to bubble. He cleared his throat.
‘Do you mind if I put the kettle on?’ he asked. ‘I could do with a cuppa after the drive.’
‘Sure.’ Bella glanced quizzically up at him. He got the feeling she’d noticed the odd expression on his face, but she didn’t press him. He was glad. They weren’t that well acquainted, and he didn’t feel comfortable baring his soul, especially when he couldn’t quite put his finger on why he was feeling the way he suddenly was.
Hurrying from the living room and into the kitchen, Noah boiled the kettle and stared out at the overgrown mess of his grandfather’s back garden. At some point he was going to have to tackle that, too. He’d have to look into getting a landscape gardener in to take down the worst of it. In the months since his grandfather had stopped being able to take care of his cherished garden, the place had gone haywire. The grass was about three feet high, the honeysuckle that had been carefully pruned all the time his grandfather had lived in the cottage was now tumbling over the fences and across the flower borders, and the borders themselves, although a riot of colour, were wild and weedy. It would take some time, and some money, to sort it all out. More time. And more money.
‘How do you like your tea?’ he called through to Bella, whom he could still hear trying to coax Monty out.
