“Well, he should have thought about that before he decided to throw our relationship away like it meant nothing,” Pippa said, barely able to breathe at the audacity. Alex was suffering, so, what, she had to run after him and fix things? “He’ll have to take care of that problem by himself.”
Finn lifted his hands. “All he wanted was to build something exciting with you and you said no.”
Pippa gritted her teeth. “Iwasbuilding something exciting with him. Or so I thought. Problem was, it wasn’t good enough for Alex.”
“I’m merely speaking up for my brother,” Finn said, resignedly.
Pippa barked a painful laugh. What happened to speaking up forher,the woman who’d once been like his sister? But the strength of fraternal devotion in Finn’s eyes was all too obvious and it pained Pippa to see it. He’d chosen his side and although it hurt, Pippa understood it. Blood came first. “I’d best go. I’m late for…” She realised she was late for literally nothing apart from cleaning a house that didn’t even belong to her. And that was all Alex’s fault.
Mae sensed the storm brewing inside Pippa and swooped in. “Yeah, let’s go. I need to get back to the pub anyway.”
Pippa left the café in a blur, hardly aware of Mae’s guiding hand on her elbow. The world outside was harsh and bright, her stomach a jangled mess. Some wretched part of her ached at the thought of Alex miserable alone, but mostly she burned with the unfairness of it all. The Goodmans were closing ranks around Alex and whilst it was understandable, Pippa couldn’t help but feel left in the cold, isolated from people she’d once known as family.
Mae fumed in solidarity, power walking so fast that Pippa could barely keep up. “You’d think Alex would have the decency to make a cock-up of his life after what he did to you.”
“Mae, wait.” Pippa wrenched her arm away. “Am I crazy? I mean, was I a terrible girlfriend?”
Mae halted, grabbing Pippa by the upper arms. “You’re crazy if you think you weren’t anamazinggirlfriend,” she said. “Ted Goodman’s probably only alive still because of you.” Following Pippa’s sceptical stare, Mae conceded. “Okay, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration. But surely now you can see what Frankie and I were getting at all these years: your entire life was built around Alex. I mean, he could barely get out of bed without your help.” She arched a wicked eyebrow. “I’d put money on that selfish git crashing and burning spectacularly before the year is out.”
“Aww.” Pippa tilted her head. “That’s sweet. Do you really think so?”
“Yes, and I don’t care what Finn says.” Mae nodded sombrely. “Alex will be destitute without you.”
Pippa leaned in for a hug. “Thank you. You’re the best.”
Mae wrapped her arms around Pippa and chuckled. “I try.”
Pippa peered up at her best friend. “Do you think maybe all his hair will fall out too? And his balls shrink to the size of peas?”
Mae squeezed her tightly. “If there’s any justice in this world.”
ChapterTen
Acouple of days passed without incident, for which Pippa was grateful. The shock of Ted’s outburst and the looming house sale combined with Finn’s revelations had left her shaken. But there was something about the honest demands of housework that wiped her anxiety clear, and Pippa welcomed it. Despite the many flaws of the house, its charm remained intact, and Pippa took comfort from the fact that she was the lucky person who got to spend her time surrounded by it. It was a lonely existence however, aside from a friendly wave over the fence every now and again from Todd and Pat. Mae and Frankie were in constant contact, but their lives were demanding enough without running around after her.
There was no sign of Wolfie since theTop Stayvisit and Pippa had to admit she was a little relieved. Wolfie Squires carried himself like a leashed storm; full of power but with the vaguest threat that an inner tempest might breach the barricade of regal calm. He was the opposite of Alex, who could set a room at ease with one of his broad, welcoming smiles. Wolfie was a different breed altogether, one Pippa had no clue how to navigate.
But she had to put all that out of her mind. It was Saturday, and the morning sky was a perfect shade of pale blue that would no doubt deepen as the day got warmer. Pippa had made sure to water all the garden plants thoroughly, taking some extra time to pull out the pesky weeds that bothered the once pristine driveway. It was sweaty work, but worth it when the front of the house looked a tiny bit more refined as a result. A part of her itched to tackle the garden properly, particularly the maze, but the binder had spoken, and the next task beckoned: polishing the dining set. Despite being protected under plastic, the glorious old wooden table and matching chairs still needed attention. The instructions in the binder were very clear and somewhat laborious. Although Pippa wasn’t overly familiar with the intricacies of polishing antiques, she presumed there were various specialist products with which to do it. But such products were not acceptable at Squires, oh no. The binder insisted upon an ‘organic approach’ using an olive oil and white wine vinegar concoction which had to be mixed freshly and stirred frequently to maintain the right consistency. The resulting solution was a stinky gloop that made her gag, soaking into her skin and making her cuticles sting. But Pippa craved the solace that the labour brought her and so she set to work, gently rubbing the mixture into the wood and filling her nose with its acidic scent.
Even though she had to concentrate on bringing the wood to a high shine, every so often Finn’s words about Alex danced across her brain. Each time they did, Pippa poured that heartbreak into her task, the muscles in her arms aching with the effort. The spindled legs of the table were particularly tricky with all the ins and outs of the intricate carvings and more than once, she ended up flicking homemade polish over her hair and face.
When the gate buzzer rang, she was surprised to find that not only had she been working on the great table for over an hour, but that she’d managed to polish most of the wood. Not only that, but her efforts had also yielded a deep shine as if the table was not in fact squillions of years old. It looked beautiful. A warm nugget of satisfaction took root within her and suddenly the matching chairs waiting for the polish treatment didn’t seem like such a terrible task. She hurried to the door, smiling when Todd announced his presence.
“Todd!” She had opened the door before he made it down the drive. “How lovely to see you. Come on in!”
“Thank you.” Todd stepped in and his face transformed as he took in the surroundings. “Gosh, this place is so beautiful.”
Pippa sighed in agreement. “Isn’t it? Shame it’s getting sold.” Todd’s expression turned from awestruck to concerned. Pippa filled him in about the visit fromTop Stayand Todd’s jaw dropped.
“A hotel? Here?” he said. “This isawful. And construction work next to my farm? The bees will abandon ship. Juniper … well, Juniper will no doubt revel in the chaos because that’s what she does. But the others? Pigs are so sensitive. It could really damage our operations.”
“You never know, maybe if you complain loudly enough, that will stop the sale,” Pippa said brightly, although something about Wolfie’s careful, controlled nature told her such complaints would be unfounded, legally speaking.
“I’ll look into it.” Todd sniffed. “Are you … are you covered in vinegar?”
“Urgh. Sorry. A homemade cleaning solution.” Pippa grimaced. She did stink. “I’d best crack on so I can finish up and shower. Can I help you with anything?”
“Of course, the reason I came round.” Todd laughed at himself. “Juniper’s escaped, I think she’s in your garden. Can I pop through and get her?”
