Rory grabbed both her hands, annoyed at himself for already upsetting her. ‘Cassie, I’m viewing a house tomorrow.’
‘But… I don’t understand, why haven’t you—’
‘It’s in Cumbria.’
‘In Cumbria?’ Her voice held surprise and confusion. She snatched her hands away from his hold.
‘Yes, the Lake District,’ he replied quietly.
‘Well, you’ll be paying a bloody premium there,’ she retorted.
‘And there’s another I’m viewing in Chipping.’
She stared at him, jaw dropped. He gave her a few moments for the information to sink in.
‘And why, can I ask, have you not thought to tell me this before?’ The confusion was replaced with anger now. Pin pricks of rage glowed in her cheeks and her blazing eyes burnt into him.
‘Because there’s more to it, Cass,’ he replied calmly, meeting her stare.
‘More?’ she squealed. ‘Like what?’
He leant forward to touch her, but she pushed him back.
‘Please, Cassie—’
‘What the hell’s going on, Rory?’ She was on the verge of crying. He knew he had to act fast.
‘Listen, I want to explain—’ Just then, Lisa called from the top of the terrace.
‘Cassie, you’re needed at reception!’
Rory closed his eyes. This was exactly what he’d been at pains to avoid.
She got up to leave.
‘Don’t go, Cass. Just listen to me, please,’ he pleaded urgently. She gave him a look of contempt mingled with hurt.
‘I’ve got to go,’ she said flatly. He got up to follow her, then reached out and took hold of her arm to stop her. She turned to face him with a hard glare.
‘Cassie, we’ve got to talk.’
‘Later, when I’ve finished working.’
‘Let’s have dinner out, away from this place.’
‘OK,’ she nodded, somewhat defeated, all the spark knocked out of her. Rory felt frustrated and helpless. He tried to touch her face, but she dodged his hand. ‘Don’t.’ She walked up the steps and left him.
*
Cassie’s mood hadn’t lifted on returning from her shift. The silent atmosphere between them was palpable. Rory had booked a table in a restaurant, in the nearby town of Clitheroe, and was looking forward to having no distractions, as well as offloading everything to Cassie once and for all.
Once seated he ordered a bottle of wine immediately, hoping that would take the edge off her frostiness. He then took out the house specs for both properties; the Victorian house in Cumbria and the farmhouse in Chipping.
Despite herself, Cassie was curious. She’d had time to calm down a little, but still couldn’t help feeling hurt. Why hadn’t Rory mentioned these houses before? Her eyes scanned the details before her. She had to admit, the Victorian property looked magnificent, with its pointed arch door surrounds and decorative ironwork, and the farmhouse, although looking like it needed a lot of work, clearly had great potential with its land and outbuildings. All this and yet Rory had kept it to himself. After absorbing all the information, she looked up at him. Luckily for Rory, the waiter came with the wine at this point. When he left, Rory poured her a generous glass before speaking.
‘Cass, the reason why I’ve kept quiet about these is because it’s not just a home I’m looking for.’ She frowned, but didn’t interrupt, just took a long gulp of wine and listened to him. ‘It’s a way of life.’ Still, she sat in silence. ‘I want land. I want to work the land, grow vegetables, fruit, keep livestock.’ His eyes shone with passion as he built momentum. ‘I want to go off-grid, be self-sufficient, have wind turbines, solar energy, live off natural resources.’ Cassie blinked. On a bit of a roll, he continued. ‘I want to appreciate nature, breathe fresh, clean air and have space to…’ he gazed into her eyes, ‘bring up a family.’ There, he’d said it. All of it. A few second passed before she reacted.
‘Why haven’t you told me all this before?’
