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He turned to Cam then, offering him the other glass while extending his free hand for a crosswise shake. ‘You must be Cam! What did you think of the lodge? Bit fancy, eh? Rhys has done a grand job with them, I must say. Come in and meet everyone!’
Warmed by such an effusive welcome, Cam accepted the drink and the handshake and allowed himself to be ushered into what turned out to be a massive kitchen, the back wall dominated by one of those fancy cooking ranges which would take up most of the space in his mum’s little box of a kitchen. The walls had been painted a bright, sunny yellow and the wooden cupboards had the patina of age and use. They were too imperfect in shape and size to be anything other than handmade – none of the easy uniformity of an off-the-shelf package from a DIY store – which only added to the charm of the space. A table big enough to seat a dozen people filled the centre of the room, several of the chairs already occupied, including Barnie, who was deep in conversation with a man who would’ve been the mirror image of the one who’d just greeted Cam if his hair hadn’t been cropped close to his scalp. Zap and Ziggy, Cam mentally reminded himself of the family’s penchant for odd names.
‘Look who I found!’ Zap declared, at least Cam had assumed it must be him because he was the one who worked with Hope at the distillery and had mentioned a batch to her.
Stevie, who’d had her back to the room, turned with a smile. ‘We were about to send out a search party!’ she exclaimed, before coming around the table to greet both Hope and Cam with a kiss each on the cheek. Clearly the Travers family were not ones to stand on ceremony, regardless of their heritage. ‘Have a seat,’ she said, as she breezed back around the table. ‘Rowena and I are just throwing together a few nibbles.’
The other woman in the room turned to give them a quick wave over her shoulder. ‘We’ll be two ticks,’ she said, her round face creasing into a smile that immediately warmed something inside Cam. ‘Rhys is upstairs having a shower.’
‘I’m not, I’m here,’ a tall man around the same age as Cam said from the doorway opposite, one hand raised to his head as he towelled off his hair. ‘I heard the cork pop and knew I’d better get a move on before you lot drain the bottle.’ He padded across the room into what Cam thought might be a utility space from the quick glimpse before returning without the towel. He offered his hand to Cam. ‘Hiya, it’s great to meet you.’
There was no mistaking him. He was the man from the photo on Hope’s phone who’d been sharing ice cream in the sunshine with her. Cam was surprised by a sudden jolt of jealousy, but he made himself smile through it as they shook hands. No ring on his finger, Cam noticed, same as Hope, but they obviously lived together and he was part and parcel of the various businesses here. ‘Thanks for the loan of the lodge,’ Cam said, reminding himself that he was there to work and that this man had been incredibly generous already.
‘Hey, it’s not a problem. I’m sure Hope explained to you that I decided against renting them out this summer, so you’re doing me a favour, really.’ Rhys raised his glass as though in toast before taking a sip.
‘I think we’re going to have to agree to disagree on that,’ Cam said with a grin as he returned the toast. The golden champagne fizzed on his tongue as he took a drink. Champagne on a Friday night? This really was a case of how the other half live. His impression of grand living wasn’t diminished in the slightest when Stevie and the lady she’d called Ro placed several platters on the table. Nibbles in the Ferguson household were a bowl of salted nuts and a few crisps – maybe sausage rolls if it was a special occasion like Christmas because they were his dad’s favourite. Eyeing the array of cheeses, charcuterie, olives and other treats like stuffed peppers and vine leaves, he doubted the Travers family knew one end of a frozen sausage roll from the other.
Stevie did another trip from the countertop to the table to fetch an enormous basket of baguette slices before taking a seat beside Barnie and urging everyone to sit down. Cam pulled out the two chairs nearest to him and when Hope took one, he gestured for Rhys to take the other. ‘No, you’re fine, thanks,’ the other man said. ‘I’ve been crouching most of the day, so my knees are not keen on bending any more.’
‘Oh, darling,’ Rowena said, sending Rhys a beaming smile. ‘As you’re up, can you fetch my rings off the windowsill?’
Cam watched as Rhys did as he was asked, and Rowena slid on a thick gold band and a ring with what looked like an enormous opal surrounded by diamonds from the way it caught and shimmered in the light. He wondered at the size of it and whether it was a family heirloom. It would be nice to get a closer look, but he couldn’t think of a polite way to ask.
Rhys dropped a kiss on top of Rowena’s head. ‘You’ll lose them one of these days.’ Cam had always considered his family affectionate, but the Travers were very demonstrative. He hadn’t known what to expect, a bit more of a stiff upper lip, perhaps, given their heritage. He smiled to himself, at that bit of inverse snobbery.
Rowena laughed. ‘It hasn’t happened yet, touch wood.’ She quickly tapped her fingers on the wooden table. ‘The setting takes forever to clean, so I have to take them off when I’m cooking.’
‘Well, then the sacrifice will be worth it because this looks fabulous, Ma.’ Reaching past her shoulder, Rhys took a handful of olives and retreated to lean his back against the sink. ‘You’ll have to come to dinner more often, Cam, if it means we get a spread like this.’
Cam was still trying to process the implications of Rhys calling Rowena ‘Ma’, so all he managed was a half-smile, while both Rowena and Stevie protested his cheekiness. ‘You make it sound like we live on scraps,’ Stevie said with a frown before she turned to smile at Cam. ‘We just thought it would be nice to welcome both you and Barnie and to have a little celebration for what we hope will be an exciting summer.’
‘It’s a wonderful welcome,’ Barnie said smoothly, giving Cam a sharp look at his lack of response.
‘Y… yes, thank you so much,’ Cam managed to get out while his brain still whirled with calculations as to who was really who in the Travers family. Raising his champagne flute to his lips, he peered at Rhys over the rim. He didn’t know how he’d missed it before, but there was no mistaking the same solid jawline as the two older men at the table. So, if he was either Zap or Ziggy’s son then he must be Hope’s cousin rather than the romantic partner he’d mistaken him for. The wave of relief that moment of realisation brought should’ve set off a big warning siren in his head, but Cam didn’t care. And that in itself should’ve sounded another alarm.
‘Can you tell us about your progress so far?’ Stevie nudged one of the plates towards Cam with an encouraging nod for him to help himself. ‘Or is it too early to tell anything yet?’
Taking a couple of pieces of bread, Cam offered the basket to Hope as he pondered how much to say. Some of the speculations he and Barnie had made on the drive down were exactly that and it would be unfair, not to say unprofessional, to share their slightly wild theory about the site being linked to the upheaval following the religious reformation. ‘I’ve been working on a desk survey,’ Cam settled on saying.
‘Which is exactly as boring as it sounds,’ Barnie put in dryly, earning a few chuckles.
‘It’s not the most exciting thing in the world,’ Cam conceded with a grin as he added a sliver of brie to his plate and again passed the plate in Hope’s direction, then accepted the charcuterie board from Ziggy with a nod of thanks. ‘But it’s a vital part of the archaeological process. We have access to a huge range of records and databases and it’s a case of combing through them, trying to find information that might be relevant. With a site of significance like a stately home we have a great place to start, but it’s important to look beyond those records as well.’
Ziggy nodded. ‘My grandfather was something of an obsessive about the title and family history, so there are boxes of records in his old office. I’ve given Barnie permission to dig through the lot.’
‘It’s always good to have at least one obsessive in the family – makes my job a whole lot easier,’ Barnie said with a grin. ‘As I was saying to you earlier, it looks like the barony dates back to the court of King Henry VIII, so I’d love to find out the back story to that, unless you already know?’
Ziggy shook his head. ‘My grandfather probably told me, but I’m afraid if he did, it went in one ear and out the other.’
‘He was always banging on about the family,’ Zap muttered, not looking too happy at the memory. ‘Ziggy, thank God, shouldered his way out first so he was the golden child. I, being merely the spare, was left in relative peace.’
‘He was only trying to do what he thought was right by the family,’ Ziggy said. His voice was light, but it didn’t match the shadows in his eyes and Cam got the impression their grandfather might have been hard work.
‘Don’t you dare defend him!’ Stevie burst out, shocking the entire table into silence. ‘Not after what he put you through.’
‘Stevie, we have guests.’ Ziggy’s tone was mild, but a muscle twitched in his cheek as though he was clenching his jaw. Cam fixed his eyes on his food and wished with all his might he was somewhere else.
‘Ah, yes, propriety at all times,’ Zap murmured. ‘Grandfather really did train you well.’
