Seventeen
For someone who was employed by a software company, Lara clearly had a lot to learn.
When she had mentioned to Bob that she needed to sort out an internet connection, so that she could video call her friend, shop online, and even do some work, if necessary, his nephew Harvey told her she could do so via her phone.
She knew she could do that at home, and in restaurants, cafés, and even on a train, and in the car, but she didn’t know she could do so from a remote cottage on a cliff with no fixed connection.
And yet, once he had shown her how to create a hotspot via her phone, she realised she had known that all along. She simply hadn’t remembered how to do it.
‘All you need is a good signal,’ Harvey said, eyeing her as though she might be lacking several brain cells.
There was no stopping her now. She ordered paint from the nearby DIY store which was ready for her to collect within an hour. She bought curtains for the guest bedroom, also to collect that morning. She even purchased a bed for the guest room from a store a few miles away, that Bob had told her about. Amazingly,when she asked if there was any chance they might be able to deliver it that day or the next, they confirmed they could deliver it that afternoon and even assemble it, for a fairly reasonable fee.
Lara threw herself into the task of getting the guest room ready for Jenny. The windows could be open as it was such a lovely day, so hopefully the smell of fresh paint would have dissipated by the evening.
The wildflower patterned curtains were a perfect fit and the matching bedding Lara had also found, complemented the pale blue she had painted the walls. She had bought a bedside lamp but she would have to use one of the dining chairs to stand it on as she had no other furniture in the room. Nevertheless, the guest room was ready to welcome its first guest.
Bob and Harvey, along with Colin and Paul, had completed the rewiring and all the plumbing and heating, so they wouldn’t be coming back the following day. Unless anything was wrong. Roger and his team had ensured the roof was watertight, but they would return in the morning.
The front and back gardens were still like jungles but that wouldn’t matter to Jenny.
Unfortunately, the oven Lara had hastily ordered would not arrive until next week, but she had been able to purchase the perfect electric hob, which the store had in stock, and she had collected. Bob and Harvey had fitted that into one of the old but now exceedingly clean, worktops.
By the time Jenny’s car pulled up outside the cottage, at a little after seven-thirty, Lara was exhausted, but the amount she and the team, as she now thought of them, had achieved was truly remarkable. It was amazing what could be done when you asked for a little help.
‘This place is certainly hard to find,’ said Jenny as they hugged one another. ‘Good thing you sent me that map this afternoonwith the massive arrow pointed at the lane or I’d never have found the entrance to Old Oak Lane in the dark.’
‘I couldn’t find it in daylight,’ Lara said. ‘Do you need a hand with anything from the car?’
‘Only the bag with the bottles of wine. I can manage my holdall and the rest.’
‘The rest?’
‘Just a few bits and bobs to snack on.’
Lara grabbed the bag containing six bottles, and then headed down the path that was lit up by two matching outdoor lights, either side of the front door, that Bob had fitted that afternoon.
‘Ignore the jungle, and come in.’
‘Wow!’ Jenny said as she stepped into the hall. ‘This actually looks really cosy. And rather lovely.’
‘I can’t believe the amount that’s been achieved so far,’ said Lara, proudly, taking the wine through to the kitchen. ‘I thought I could do a lot of it on my own but all the guys have been fantastic. There’s still loads to do, but the important stuff is either done, or will be soon. The roof will be finished by next week. The oven will be fitted by Bob next week. And then I can measure up for the kitchen units and fit those. After that it’s just painting and decorating, getting more furniture, then tackling the jungles, front and back.’
‘I’m impressed,’ said Jenny, having dropped her holdall in the hall and followed Lara into the kitchen. ‘I had doubts, I’ll admit, but this is honestly so much better than I expected.’
‘You should’ve seen it when I arrived. But that’s in the past. In other news. You don’t have to sleep on the sofa.’
‘You’ve found a home for the cat?’
‘What? No! I managed to buy another bed. I’ll show you your room and the bathroom, and then we’ll open the wine. I’ve cooked Coq au vin. Well, more chicken casserole really, but itshould be good.’ She pointed to the pan on the new hob. ‘I hope that’s okay.’
Jenny handed her another bag. ‘That’s perfect. I’ve bought a bottle of champers. We have to celebrate, don’t we?’
‘We do. Thank you, Jen.’
‘Right. Where’s my bedroom? The sooner I dump my stuff, the sooner we can have a good old gossip. Have you heard from Jasper?’
‘Only that Tom is home. Jasper sent a text to let me know. All it said was, ‘Gramps is home.’ I sent a text back asking if I could have Tom’s number so that I wouldn’t need to keep bothering Jasper to find out how Tom was doing. The text he sent back was simply Tom’s number.’
