TWENTY
‘Ellie! You found us okay, then?’ Simona Gordon cried as she opened the heavy farmhouse door, enveloping Ellie in a hug. ‘Come in, come in.’ She ushered Ellie into a wide hallway with a long coat rack and a selection of muddy wellington boots arranged in a not-so-neat row underneath. On the other side of the hall, an oak cabinet supported a messy pile of letters and paperwork and a collection of cacti. A wide stairway with wooden treads, all slightly bowed in the middle, led upstairs. Fee was working on a job that had to be done by the next day; Ellie had promised to fill her in with all the gossip.
‘This is a lovely house,’ Ellie remarked as they walked through into a huge, rustic-styled kitchen with cream-painted wood cabinets and a terracotta tiled floor. The rest of the wild swimming group were sitting at a long, dark wood kitchen table, where Ellie spotted a couple of bottles of rosé wine, one of which was already empty, and the other half full. ‘Hi, everyone,’ she said, waving.
‘You’re so sweet, thank you. Mind you, you might think differently if I hadn’t moved all the washing off the table before you got here, and cleaned up after the dogs. Honestly, this house is a tip most of the time.’
‘Pull up a chair, Ellie!’ Petra called out. ‘The Wild Sisterhood is now in session!’
‘Have you been here long, Simona?’ Ellie hung her handbag on the back of the chair next to Petra and sat down. ‘Living in the house, I mean.’
‘Oh, gosh. Generations.’ Simona went to the fridge and extracted another bottle of wine. ‘My husband’s family, that is, the Gordons. I grew up in the village too, but closer to the cove. I went to school with Geoff, my husband. Kismet, it was. We got married when I was eighteen and I moved in up here. Mind you, his parents still ran the farm then. We spent years living out of one room until they retired and we took over.’ Simona sat down at the table and poured Ellie a large glass of rosé.
‘It’s a dairy farm, isn’t it?’ Ellie took the glass and sipped it. ‘Cheers, everyone,’ she added.
‘Cheers!’ Everyone raised their wine glasses in a toast.
‘Best dairy farm in the south-west,’ Simona replied, proudly.
‘Where are Geoff and the boys tonight, then?’ Clare asked. ‘Are they hiding from us rowdy women?’
‘They’re at the pub.’ Simona rolled her eyes. ‘The Lookout.It’s Geoff’s second home, since Alex opened it. That’s my son. The middle one,’ she added, for Ellie’s benefit. ‘Tim, my oldest, runs the farm with Geoff now. Our youngest graduates from university soon, so he’ll be back home no doubt, making more washing.’
‘Oh, the pub up on the cliff at Morven? I’ve been there,’ Ellie said, remembering her date with Mark Gardner. She cleared her throat. ‘Must be nice, having your own pub,’ she added, to move the conversation on.
‘Ah, well, there were some teething troubles at first. But yes. He’s happy, and it seems to be going well. Got a young lady in his life now too.’ She grinned over the table at Esther. ‘Esther’s daughter, Connie. Engaged. We’re waiting for a wedding date. She’s keeping Alex on his toes, I can tell you.’
‘Christie women don’t suffer fools gladly,’ Esther exclaimed. ‘Not that Alex is a fool in anyone’s book. Lovely fella, he is. You got a young man, Ellie?’
‘Me? Oh, no,’ Ellie said, feeling suddenly under the spotlight as everyone at the table turned to look at her.
‘I saw you at The Lookout with Mark Gardner. Couple of weeks ago.’ Simona leaned over and prodded Ellie’s arm. ‘What was that all about? Looked like a date to me.’
‘Oooh, Mark Gardner!’ Petra cooed. ‘So handsome. He used to go out with my friend, Emma.’
‘It was not a date!’ Ellie exclaimed. ‘He’s just repairing my motorhome,’ she said, playing with her wine glass.
‘That’s what they all say.’ Petra raised an eyebrow. ‘Don’t you think he’s good-looking?’
‘I suppose so,’ Ellie admitted. ‘Please can we stop talking about it?’
‘Hmm. Did he ask you out?’ Petra wheedled. ‘Come on. You can tell us.’
‘Yes, but that doesn’t mean anything.’
‘Oh, it does!’ Petra clapped her hands together. ‘He’s famously shy. If you get more than three words out of him, then he’s making a huge effort.’
‘Well, we did… do… have quite a good chat when we see each other, I suppose,’ Ellie admitted. ‘But that doesn’t mean anything,’ she repeated.
‘You’ve been on more than one date?’ Petra whooped. ‘Girl!’
‘Sounds like Mark opened up to you,’ Mara interjected. ‘He must like you.’
‘He does not,’ Ellie repeated. ‘He was just being… I don’t know. Hospitable.’
Esther tapped her fingers on the table. ‘Mark my words, my love. I’ve known Mark Gardner since ’ee was a boy. Always been quiet. Had ’is ’eart broken a fair few times too. I don’t wonder it’s because ’ee’s not much of a talker. You modern girls all want these long conversations, I dunno what. But time was when a girl’d be grateful for a nice, loyal man with ’is own business. An’ if ’ee’s a man o’ few words, the ones ’ee does say are all the more important.’
‘That’s a good point,’ Simona agreed. ‘Geoff can be quiet, but he says the things that matter. And anyway, actions speak louder than words. If you know what I mean, ladies?’ She winked. Everyone laughed.
