Page 127 of Escape to the Country

And then he turned to close the front door behind him.

He was grateful once more for Eleanor’s company on the way back to Cranley. He chatted a little about his gran but mostly he was feeling wiped out from the emotion of the day.

‘Dylan will be glad to see you,’ she said, when they were on the outskirts of the village at last.

He smiled. ‘There’s nothing friendlier than a welcome from a dog.’

He and Dylan were so alike. Two mongrels who hadn’t been shown much love in the past but were getting used to being part of a warm, loving family now.

It was a massive step for him to adopt a dog. He had been mulling over the idea for a while when he voiced his innermost thoughts to Eleanor. The trouble was, all of the queries that she had raised were true. What would happen to Dylan when he was away on tour? The best thing would be to have a dog sitter, but Dylan was pretty untrusting of most people – apart from Eleanor and the Harris family. And no, his new flat didn’t have a garden or anything like the grounds of Willow Tree Hall. If he even went for a walk in one of the many London parks, no doubt he would get his photo taken or hassled on a daily basis. He didn’t miss the city at all, he had found. The lack of smog and noise meant that he felt calmer in the countryside.

He glanced over at Eleanor as she looked out of the window. He couldn’t have faced his gran’s flat on his own that day. And Eleanor was one more thing that would be missing when he went back to London. She didn’t appear to have any plans for heading back any time soon.

He had a sudden image of having dinner with her in some country cottage, Dylan snoring nearby. The two of them laughing and sharing a bottle of wine.

These were not his normal thoughts, he knew. He was independent. He didn’t rely on anyone else. He didn’t need anyone else in his life.

But whichever way he looked at it, staying in Cranley with Eleanor and the Harris family appeared to be the best thing for both him and Dylan.

A few months ago, he knew that thought would have scared him. But now the future felt warm and bright. Especially if that future occurred with Eleanor alongside him.