I was saved from expanding my explanation by the arrival of a couple in their forties who walked in bickering over a TV programme.
‘Harry, settle this argument for us. Stephan is claiming Ray Mears is the best survival expert on TV, but I disagree. It’s got to be Bear Grylls. Poor old Ray might have the survival skills, but he can’t compete with Bear in the looks department.’
‘And what use is a pretty face when you’re out in the jungle?’ asked Stephan. ‘Besides, Ray has a manly charm that Bear lacks. All that posh-voiced pretence at beingone of the lads. No, I’d rather have Ray on my team any day.’
‘Stephan, Maggie, this is Liv. She’s come to stay with us for a couple of weeks, along with her son Bertie, who’s currently in the kitchen making pizzas with Pat.’
‘Lovely to meet you,’ said Stephan.
‘Yes, welcome to the farm. It’s good to see you again. It’s always a pleasure to see fresh faces around the table, no offence, Christine and Elaine.’
‘None taken.’
Bertie walked into the dining room and cleared his throat. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, dinner will be served in five minutes. Please take your seats at the table.’
‘Who is that boy and what has he done with my son?’ I asked Harry once Bertie had disappeared back into the kitchen.
‘That’s Pat for you. He’ll have him reading Shakespeare by tomorrow evening, mark my words.’
‘Is this everyone?’ I asked when we were all sitting down.
‘No,’ said Harry. ‘We’re still waiting for Seb, although he always feeds the chickens before feeding himself, so we let him off if he’s a few minutes late.’
Bertie and Pat came in bringing a selection of different home-made pizzas cut into slices and laid out on trays with parsley and basil for decoration.
‘Wow, these look amazing.’
‘I helped make them all,’ said Bertie.
‘Good for you,’ said Stephan. ‘We could do with another good cook around the place. The food here tends to be a bit variable… mentioning no names.’ Stephan coughed and said ‘Harry,’ under his breath.
‘Hey, at least I try.’ Harry turned to me. ‘We run a rota for cooking. The same with the cleaning, although if residents have jobs outside of the farm, we adjust their workload here accordingly.’
‘I’m happy to contribute any way I can.’
Before I had the chance to ask any more questions about the inner workings of Lowen Farm, the door opened and a tall, lanky man walked in. His hair hung messily down his back, and his beard was so long it tickled his chest. He kicked off his mud-covered shoes at the door and showed no embarrassment that his feet were covered by more holes than socks.
‘Ah, Seb. How were the animals?’
‘Hungry.’
Seb pushed his hair off his cheek and tucked it behind his ear. The pizza in my hand dropped onto my plate and heat rushed to my face. I recognised that gesture. As I looked up, Seb’s hazel eyes caught mine, and he held my gaze for a second too long. Did he recognise me? I prayed he didn’t. The humiliation would be too much to bear.
‘Who’s this then?’ Seb asked.
‘This is Liv and her son, Bertie. They’ll be staying with us for a couple of weeks.’
‘Nice to meet you,’ said Seb. ‘I’d shake your hand, but I’ve been cleaning out the chickens and although I’ve given my hands a good wash, you never know.’
He threw a warm smile my way. It was an easy, friendly smile that suggested he had no recollection of our shared history. But then, why didn’t he want to touch me? Was it really because hishands were dirty, or was it an excuse? He seemed quite happy to grab a piece of pizza with those very same fingers.
Given he’d pulled out a chair opposite me, it was hard not to look at Seb. But each time I glanced at him, his eyes were focussed elsewhere. I tried to keep up with Harry’s enthusiastic monologue about how she wanted to welcome groups of disadvantaged children to the farm, but I couldn’t focus. I was sitting around a table in deepest darkest Cornwall, but in my mind, I was under canvas, music blaring from the main stage as Seb, or Baz as I’d known him then, caressed me in ways I’d never experienced before.
‘What do you think, Liv?’
‘Pardon?’ Heat rushed to my face, and I took a sip of water to cool myself down.
‘What do you think about bringing groups of kids to the farm? Working with the animals would be brilliant for them. We could even run residentials, use the lake for some team-building activities, or water sports. Sounds good, yes?’
