‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘I didn’t realise you were still in here.’ He turned to the man. ‘We can come back later.’
Mr Shiny Shoes clicked his way out of the room and Nick looked at me.
‘I’ll catch up with you later,’ he said, and was gone.
‘What was all that about?’ asked Marilise. ‘Is Nick selling the house?’
I could hear the anxiety in her voice.
‘He promised he wouldn’t,’ I said reassuringly, although I was far from confident. ‘Should we get out? It’s not long until lunch.’
I made sure Marilise was comfortable in the dining room, then went to the kitchen, where I found Angela and Astrid, talking agitatedly as a pan of potatoes, forgotten on the hob, threatened to boil over. I rushed across and turned it down.
‘Oh dear,’ said Angela, grabbing the handle of the pan and quickly draining it. ‘We were so busy talking that we didn’t notice the potatoes. I do hope the fish hasn’t dried out.’
She opened the door of the Aga to inspect it, and Astrid turned to me, her eyes wide.
‘Did you see that man who came to the house this morning?’
‘The one from the estate agents? Yes, he tried to take photos of Marilise and me having our swim,’ I replied, trying to keep my voice light.
‘Well, what’s goingon?’ demanded Angela, shutting the Aga door again, apparently satisfied that her fish was okay. ‘I thought Nick had given up on the idea of selling.’
They both turned to me as if I had the answer but, of course, I knew as little as they did.
‘I don’t know,’ I said. ‘Maybe Nick will say something at lunch?’
‘It’s no surprise,’ said Astrid, twisting a tea towel between her hands. ‘He’s not made a secret of wanting to sell Lyonscroft, but after everything he said… Well, I suppose I should know better than anyone that you should believe what peopledoand not what they say.’ There was a short silence as we all digested this truth. ‘I’ll be all right,’ she continued, her voice brave. ‘I do have my own money, and I’ve been building up my gardening business. I can find somewhere for India and me, but I don’t know about Firefly.’ The tea towel was getting tighter and tighter. ‘I’ll work something out. What will you do, Angela?’
‘I’m sure Greg and I can find another family nearby,’ she said stoically. ‘Or go to London with Marilise for the time being. It’s disappointing. I thought that young man was going to come through for the best, I really did. I suppose this means your new romance will be over before it’s barely started,’ she said, looking at me. ‘Oh, I know we’re not supposed to know, but we all do, and we were so happy. We thought it meant a new beginning for Nick, that he might be settled at last.’
I shrugged, feeling uncomfortable.
‘I think we should wait and see what Nick says.’
‘But you’ve got your sister, haven’t you?’ said Astrid. ‘The maternity nursing?’
‘Yes, I’m still considering that,’ I replied, and quickly filled Angela in on the plan that was becoming more established all the time, even though I still hadn’t made a decision about it.
‘You’re a sensible girl,’ she said approvingly, checking the fish again, which now seemed to be cooked to her satisfaction. ‘Now, let’s say no more about it all and get this lunch on the table.’
Lunch was a subdued affair. No one mentioned the estate agent, and we ended up with a half-hearted conversation about what flavour stuffing goes best with Christmas dinner, which nobody seemed to care about very much. When the meal was over and I had taken Marilise up for her nap, I decided to go for a brisk walk to try and blow the cobwebs away. I was togging up in the hall when Nick came out of the sitting room.
‘Going out?’
‘Yes, it’s beautiful outside now the sun’s come out.’
‘Can Steve and I join you?’
‘Of course.’
A few minutes later, we were striding through the chilly fields, and I was already feeling better for the fresh air. Steve was as comical as ever, chasing after imaginary foes and bounding joyfully over to us whenever he found a stick he wanted to be thrown for him.
‘Look, I’d like to explain about Tyler,’ said Nick.
‘Tyler?’
‘The estate agent from this morning. I know it’s got everyone worried.’
