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Chapter 32
Holly woke at six, with a thumping headache, wishing she had not celebrated so hard the night before. Certainly not on the eve of the fair and farmers’ market. Trixy jumped on the bed and licked her face. Jaz had spent the night and Holly could hear her showering, she sounded a lot brighter than Holly felt, singing an oldie they used to sing with Val as kids.The sun has got his hat on.
Peeking through the bedroom curtains, the sun did have his hat on, which Holly knew was great news for the day. Her phone dinged with a text; it was from Mitch she quickly opened it.
Good luck for today – see you shortly.
Holly smiled. With the court case out of the way and the land staying in her possession, she could see through the fog. After today was out of the way, she would arrange to have a chat with him. Apologise properly, maybe he would decide to stay at Booth Somerset rather than putting it on the market. She had time, selling a farm did not happen overnight. Maybe having a week or so to think about things had done her good because now she was certain – they belonged together.
The sun beatdown as Holly and Joe walked the site. She had Trixy on a lead, trained or not, there would be too many different smells for the little dog to resist. Watching the farmers fill their respective sheds, and the fishmonger parking up his van, Holly scanned the area for Mitch. She spotted him as he assisted a couple of members of his staff arranging his wares. As usual, she felt the heat warm her cheeks at the sight of him. She could see he was busy so did not interrupt. Julie watered the pots dotted around for sale. Anne’s husband was over at the petting zoo. He had agreed to oversee it for the day. Holly was touched at how many people were helping out for free, with the proceeds of the fair going to the arts hub fund.
‘It’s looking great, love,’ Joe said. ‘I’ll get up to the top field now and take that scrap of a dog. Angela is looking forward to minding her for you.’ Joe’s wife had agreed to take care of Trixy at her sweet stall which was placed on the far edge of the field.
‘Now be a good girl.’ Holly handed the lead over to Joe. ‘I’ll get on and help Jaz and Julian with setting up the fair,’ she said. ‘Although they’ve recruited quite a team.’
Holly looked up the hill where a marquee had been erected the previous day. A couple of men emptied a Luton van full of tables they had borrowed from the village hall. Cars were parking on the field, with stall-holders unloading their goods. ‘I can’t believe how many people have got involved.’
‘The whole village feels for you, love. And the fair has created a lot of excitement over these past two weeks. Anyway, I’ll get meself up there.’
‘Thanks for all your help, Joe.’ Holly gave him a brief hug,
Joe laughed. ‘Good luck, love. It’s gonna be a great day.’
After Joe and Trixy left, Holly nodded at a woman passing her, carrying a stack of wind chimes. Checking the list she had on her clip board, she could see everything was going to plan.Is this my turning point?she asked herself.
Looking up, Holly saw Jaz approaching, dressed in the nursery uniform of cerise polo and khaki shorts. She smiled, this was different to Jaz’s usual clothes of dresses, suits and stilettos.
‘I love you in uniform,’ Holly said.
Jaz laughed. ‘I’m too short in these boots, I need heels to give me height. But O-M-G, hun, today’s gonna be mega.’ She grabbed Holly around the waist and squeezed her tightly.
‘How’s it going up there?’ Holly nodded to the field.
‘Julian’s collecting subs from each stall-holder and Noah is selling raffle tickets.’
‘I’m so pleased Julian managed to find a cider farmer at this short notice. I’m hoping the alcohol will lead to impulse buys.’
‘I’ve left them up there, so I can help with your meet and greet.’
Holly was pleased that Jaz had agreed to help show people around the property, she was excellent at sales, not pushy but very persuasive. Holly had sent email invitations to Trudy from the Arts Council and the local councillors, including Nina and David.
‘Val will be so proud of you,’ Jaz said, pulling her phone out and taking a picture of Holly. ‘I’m taking pictures and video to show her like you asked.’ She took a few more shots.
‘Have you heard from Len? Is he coming?’ Holly asked.
‘No, but his son Ben is bringing the grandkids down.’ Jaz’s phone rang. ‘I’ll just take this,’ she said.
Holly’s stomach rumbled as the smell of bacon wafted over from the snack shack, as it sizzled on a portable burner. Anne spotted her looking over and waved. Holly’s appetite had returned with a bang since Tom cancelled the court case.
She approached the shack. ‘Bacon roll, please.’
‘Same here.’ She heard Mitch’s voice from behind and swung around.
‘Oh, hi,’ she said brushing the hair out of her eyes.
‘It looks like everything is going to plan?’
‘Yes. I’ve had great news; Tom dropped his claim on my land.’
