Page 61 of The Cottage at Brambleton Hall

‘For a bit,’ Chloe said lightly. ‘A break. I cannot live with these people, Sammy. They’re exhausting.’

‘What are they doing?’

‘Everything,’ Chloe said. ‘Cooking all the time, hogging the sofa.’

‘That does sound . . . like what couples do.’

‘They moved my stuff off the sofa,’ Chloe added.

‘Moved it how?’

‘Shifted it. Said they needed space.’

Sammy toyed with the flowers. ‘If you’re sharing,’ she said carefully, ‘that sounds . . . reasonable.’

‘Sam,’ Chloe said, softer now, ‘you wouldn’t have done that.’

Sammy stopped in her tracks. She pictured it: her making space, adjusting around other people without being asked. ‘No,’ she said. ‘I suppose I wouldn’t.’

‘Exactly. They’re not easy to live with. They’ve got to go.’

Sammy started walking again, slower now.

A blackbird called out sharply from somewhere close by, then changed its mind.

‘Right, hazard lights on, tough question coming . . . it’s coming up to that day, you know the dreaded 24th of the month . . . you haven’t cancelled that direct debit, have you?’ Chloe asked.

Sammy’s grip closed around the flowers. ‘September’s rent?’

‘Mm. Nothing’s changed, still got to pay in advance. You’ll handle that, won’t you?’

Sammy didn’t reply. The path curved gently. Her footsteps sounded unnaturally loud on the ground. ‘I was thinking,’ she said eventually, ‘now the couple are living there, that’s something you could . . .’

‘Sam,’ Chloe cut in, not sharp but quick, ‘I don’t have anything coming in yet. You know that.’

Sammy closed her eyes.

‘It’s only until I get sorted,’ Chloe added. ‘I thought we’d agreed that. Cos you don’t have to pay rent for your place, do you?’

The flowers wilted in Sammy’s hand. ‘I know,’ she said. ‘I . . .’ She took a breath. ‘I’ll cover it. One more month.’

‘You’re the best,’ Chloe said immediately, warmth flooding back in. ‘Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without you.’

‘Probably manage.’

‘Debatable.’

They both laughed.

Sammy reached the cottage gate, pushing it open with her foot. Here the birds were quieter; only a blackbird’s liquid notes drifted from a nearby hedge as the evening settled over the row of cottages.

‘I’m still coming to visit, though, we need to party,’ Chloe added. ‘And I need a break from this overcontrolling pair of monsters.’

‘Yeah . . . maybe.’

Sammy ended the call.

The flowers were still in her hand, stems slightly bent where she’d held them too tightly.