‘Jack and his wife, Jade.’
‘Jade agrees with this?’ Bridie couldn’t be more surprised if she tried.
‘Apparently, it was her idea.’
‘Now, I really do need to sit down.’
Bridie resumed her seat. She remembered commenting that Jack and Jade had seemed deep in conversation when she’d seen them pause outside the cottage and she’d wondered at the time whether they were discussing what to do with the property now that Jack wouldn’t be moving into it.
Oliver continued, ‘You know, she had an idea you wouldn’t accept another gift, so Jack told me she’d suggested gifting it to you anonymously, but he vetoed that idea. You’ve already got one anonymous benefactor who has yet to be revealed. He didn’t think you’d appreciate another one.’
Bridie laughed out loud. ‘No, he was right there.’
Oliver couldn’t help but laugh too. ‘Yes, I couldn’t agree more. So Jack told me to tell you that he wants more than anything for you to accept this gift. He only bought the cottage to tear it down and build something in its place to make money, and the fact that it happens to be next door to the theatre makes it feel like it’s had your name on it all along. Not that a property could ever make up for the way he behaved …’
Bridie disagreed. ‘It absolutely can.’
Oliver smiled. ‘Yes, I told him that. But he did say something a bit … strange.’
‘What was that?’
‘The property comes with a caveat.’
‘A what?’
‘A condition.’
Bridie sighed, ‘Not again.’
‘Huh?’ Oliver looked at her askance.
She explained, ‘The theatre came with a caveat too – remember?’
‘Oh, yes.’ Oliver chuckled. ‘Jack isn’t after you staging a play there – if that’s what you’re thinking …’
‘Then what does he want me to do?’
‘That’s the strange part. He wants to do a lot of the work himself – as much as he can do, anyway.’
Bridie smiled. ‘Did he ask me to muck in and help roll walls?’
‘Yes, actually. How did you know?’
Bridie smiled.
‘Is it like some sort of private joke?’ Oliver leaned forward in his seat. ‘Should I be worried?’
‘Not at all. You can join in too.’
‘Actually, he did mention something about me picking up a paint brush and mucking in too.’
Bridie understood. He wanted the three of them to do one last thing together. She took his hand. ‘We’ll both meet him in our soon-to-be new home tomorrow.’
She suddenly had a thought. ‘But what about your cottage.’
‘My cottage?’
‘Yes.’
