Page 19 of Watch For Me By Candlelight

Her hands shook as she carried the tray carefully downstairs and out into the garden. She set it down and Theo came over from the wall.

‘Maeve said it was a lovely spot,’ he told her. ‘She said that I should pay a visit here. She didn’t tell me the catering rivalled the coffee shop’s though.’

‘You know Maeve?’ she asked, surprised. ‘Really?’

‘I know her quite well. I met her at the Outer Hebrides dig. I was one of the divers that found the site of the crannog. I had to take her out to the spot in a boat, throw myself into the water and feed some film back to her. That was a wild day — didn’t stop raining for hours.’

‘Oh!’ Her heart was suddenly lifted. He wasn’t a complete stranger then, really. Not if she took a particular view of the situation. He knew Maeve. Maeve had probably mentioned him to her. She’d certainly mentioned the dive. Kate was probably entertaining one of her friends, as a courtesy to her. That sounded better. ‘Didn’t she have to huddle under a makeshift marquee on the deck of the boat?’ Kate asked, remembering an email Maeve had sent her just before she started the dig.

‘She did indeed. She wasn’t very happy about it.’

‘She doesn’t like boats much.’ Kate settled down with her tea. She picked up a slice of toast and bit into it, the hot melted cheese burning the roof of her mouth a little. ‘Yet she’s happy to dig around in holes. I don’t get her at times.’

This was much easier — they had common ground. Kate didn’t feel quite so disloyal to Chris now — even if she was having awfully interesting dreams about someone who looked awfully like Theo Kent.

* * *

They talked for what seemed like hours. The sun had set completely and the little solar lights she had dotted around came on one by one. There was a string of them along the wall and they looked very pretty, twinkling away.

It was surprising how easily they managed to chat to each other — as if they had known one another for years. Sometimes, Theo thought, you get that though, don’t you? A spark of recognition and suddenly you’re talking away like old friends. It was like that with her.

At length, and very reluctantly, Theo stretched out in the wooden chair he had been sitting on and sighed. ‘It’s time for me to go, I guess. I’m just at that point where I know I have to make a move, because I’ve got a car to drive back and a sleeping bag to crash into.’

‘Not literally, I hope,’ said Kate with a smile. ‘I wouldn’t like to think about you physically driving into your tent and annihilating your sleeping bag. There are cows for that sort of thing.’

Theo looked at her, and laughed. ‘Tell me they don’t do it on the Hartsford camp site?’

‘All I’ll tell you’ she said, wagging her finger importantly, ‘is that Hartsford campsite is right next to Hartsford Dairy Farm. Just saying.’

‘Thanks for that! So when I’m trampled in my sleep, it’s the dairy herd I have to blame?’

She stood up and stretched. ‘Yep. The dairy herd. But don’t worry. They tend to get locked up in the evening. You’re more likely to be trampled during the day.’

‘That’s it, then. I’m investing in a campervan. I’m not going to be party to a cow trampling incident. At least I’ve only got tonight, then I’m packing up and going home.’

‘You could have pitched up on the field out back.’ Kate nodded to the grassy expanse beyond her wall. ‘I suspect nobody would stop you. But there aren’t any toilet blocks. And then you’d have to face the rabid ducks instead.’

As if on cue, a cacophony of duck quacking began, then ended shortly afterwards.

‘They’re always arguing,’ said Kate. ‘They have about three squabbles a night, all around this time, then mainly settle down. I think they fight for the best piece of grass or something to sleep on. Silly birds.’

‘Noisy birds,’ Theo said. ‘Well, thank you for the snack. It was just what I needed. That and the chat of course. It was nice to meet you again.’

‘And you.’ She smiled again. ‘One day you’ll have to come back and see the exhibits you missed.’

‘One day I will. I need to go and keep my clients happy though, so it can’t be any time soon unfortunately.’ He frowned. ‘In fact, I’ve got a job tomorrow afternoon, so I’ll be making an early start. Yes. I’d best go.’

‘Can’t keep clients waiting.’ Kate looked at him a little curiously. ‘I didn’t ask. Where do you work?’

‘Anywhere that needs me. Riding schools, stud farms, family homes, normal farms. Wherever horses are. Oh — museums. I do museums. Shire horses and Shetlands and pit ponies are ever popular in those places. Animal sanctuaries. There’s another one.’

Kate’s voice sounded a little strangled when she said her next words: ‘Are you a blacksmith, then?’

‘Almost right. A farrier. I do a little bit of tending to injured feet and limbs as well. A little bit of veterinary care. It’s good work. Always busy and very satisfying. It’s nice to see the animals running around happily when you’ve finished with them. My grandfather was a farrier too. I got the bug from him — loved spending time in his forge. It was immensely exciting for a little kid, being allowed to hammer hot metal and make things out of it. Then I like to go diving too when I have free time — that’s how I met your friend Maeve. I got the chance to visit Scotland and do some work on the site they discovered. It was incredible. Really fascinating.’

‘I bet it was,’ said Kate, faintly. ‘And you sort out injured feet and limbs too. Jolly good. Right! Okay. Have a safe journey home and — well — good luck with the horses.’

‘Thanks. The job’s near Malvern, so it’s not too far from home.’