Flora's Lot by Katie Fforde (13 inch ebook reader TXT) 📕

Charles, which,bearing in mind the situation they were all in, had to be a good thing. She and Emma hadonce confessed to each other that whereverthey worked, they tried to findsomeone they sort of fancied. They didn't do anything about it, or at least, only if everything else was right, but it sort of cheered up the workingday.

Thissituation, however, was rather more tricky. If thingsworked out as Flora increasingly hoped they would, sheand Charles would be involved in running Stanza andStanza together for a long time. A crush, thoughentertaining, would be disastrous if unrequited - and she had no illusions about eitherCharles or Annabelle breaking off thewedding. It was only a few monthsaway now, and Charles was hardly going to risk a ten-year relationship for thesake of someone he'd only known afew weeks. As Annabelle had pointed out, he'd been in love with her allhis life.

Yes, Floradecided briskly, it was infinitely better that thingsreturned to a businesslike, friendly but not too friendly footing.

She wentinto the spare room to retrieve the kittens and tofeed Imelda. Everyone seemed fine after their night withCharles. Flora felt quite envious, and then chidedherself. If anything had happened between them they wouldhave hated themselves and each other now.

Charles hadfound some of the real coffee left over from theweekend with Emma and was making it. He had alsofound some bits of ciabatta, which he was toasting.

‘Why is everything worth eating in thiskitchen Italian?'

‘Emmaworks near a really good Italian deli and brought a lot of stuff down,' Flora explained. 'I stuffedthat ciabatta in the top of the fridge. It must be quite stale.'

‘It'll be fine toasted.’

Florasuddenly longed for a corner shop where she could buyfresh bread and orange juice. 'I don't have much time for shopping, myself.'

‘Noryou do.' He smiled at her, and for a moment Flora wondered if this having a slight crush was actually going to make things quite difficult. Itcouldn't, she decided. The businesswas far too important to jeopardise with random hormones.

She pulledup a chair and sat down at the little table. If he washappy making breakfast, she didn't want to interfere.

‘You'vemade this cottage very homely, Flora. Even if you don't have much timeto spend in it.'

‘Imade an effort before the weekend, when Emma and you all came. But it is very sweet. I could happily livehere for ever.'

‘I'mso glad. I would have thought you'd have got lonely.’

Florashook her head and sipped the coffee he placed in front ofher. She didn't like to tell him she usually had tea,first thing. Or that she'd had very little experience of living in the cottage alone.

‘I hope Annabelle's all right,' shesaid, after a moment's mastication.

‘Why shouldn't she be?'

‘Noreason. Some women might be a bit miffed if their fiancé spent the nightwith another woman.'

‘Annabelleand I have far too good an understanding of each other for her to worry about things like that.’

Florafrowned. This sounded just a bit too complacent, inher opinion. It wasn't as if there hadn't been an undercurrentof something not quite platonic between them theprevious evening. 'Oh. Very modern of her.'

‘She knowsshe can depend on my sense of responsibility, in all things. Some thingsare too important to endanger.' He took a sip of coffee andlooked across the table at her, as if making a point. 'Sometimesthe grass appears a bit greener, but it never is if you doclimb over thefence.'

‘Ican't imagine you ever scrumped apples, Charles!' said Flora, to lighten the atmosphere, but inspite of all her best intentions,Flora couldn't help feeling rather crestfallen.There was absolutely no ambiguity in what he'd said - he was clearly slightly embarrassed about the atmosphere the night before and wanted her toknow she shouldn't read anything into it.

‘Youdon't actually have to go into the lion's den to realise it isn't a verygood idea,' he continued.

‘Doyou talk in riddles to Annabelle every morning?' Flora asked slightlyirritably.

‘Ihave to confess that Annabelle and I don't talk much in the mornings any more. We've reached that contented stage when you don't have to make aneffort all the time.'

‘Butto begin with, you did? All women like to be romanced, Charles!' Shecouldn't help it - she was intrigued.

‘Oneof the things that attracted me to Annabelle -when I was an adult, Imean—'

‘I know you've known each other forever.’

He nodded. 'Was that she was sopractical.'

‘Asafe pair of hands,' said Flora. Of course she didn't know for sure but she was convinced that hisheart had been broken by the womanhe had met when he was travelling.

‘What do you mean?'

‘Yousaw Annabelle as someone reliable and steadfast.' He laughed. 'You make her sound very boring.' Floralaughed too. 'Of course not.'

‘I'm a man who sticks to things.'

‘Likechewing gum on the bottom of your shoe, you mean,' said Flora, not feelingnearly as flippant as she sounded.

‘We'dbetter get going,' he replied. 'I'll just wash these few things.'

‘Don'tbother, I can easily do them when I come home, and you did all thewashing-up last night.’

WhileCharles was brushing his teeth with Flora's sparetoothbrush, Flora stacked the plates. The intimacy, the happycloseness of the previous evening had been spoilt, andshe made a decision to put it entirely out of her mind.She and Emma had been wrong to think it was fun tohave a crush on someone you work with. Sometimesit was a really bad idea. Just as well she had Henry to think about.

*

 ‘At leastwe've got boots on this time,' said Flora as they walked back to the car through the mud.

‘Yes.It was lucky for me that William left his behind.’

Flora wondered idly how William wasmanaging without them, and why on earth heforgot them when it was raining so hard.

‘Do you think the car will be allright?'

‘Ifit isn't, I'll ring Annabelle's father and ask him if a tractor can comeand get us.'

‘I have got some Sunday papers, if wecould do anything clever with them.'

‘Whatwe'd need would be old carpet, or something with some grip. I think it'll be the tractor or nothing.’

‘Oh God! Supposing the tractor can'tcome?'

‘We'llwalk to the end of the lane and get a taxi or Annabelle to pick us up.’

Floradidn't think Annabelle would like that suggestion