AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Enough of that, then. Let’s go and find Trudy and tell her you have the Council’s support.’
They headed to the field hosting the fair. The buzz of excitement was electric and her eyes threatened tears. She was touched by the number of people there, at Lovelands, on her property, having fun.
‘You’ve done an amazing job.’ David smiled at her.
They caught up with Trudy.
‘Hello again, I’m David Bunning. We met atThe Beauty of Somerset,awards evening.’
‘Of course I remember you, David.’ Trudy turned to them, and her husband took their boys towards the tombola.
‘I wanted to let you know that we at Wells City Council fully support Holly’s funding application.’
Trudy turned to Holly. ‘I’m impressed with what you’re doing for your local community. It’s outstanding and I’ll be giving your application my full support and, whilst I’m not meant to say this, your claim will definitely be approved in full. It’s the best presentation I’ve seen in a long time.’
‘Thank you so much. I don’t know what to say. Really I don’t.’ Holly blinked her eyes rapidly.
‘You don’t have to say anything. You deserve it. You’ve worked really hard,’ Trudy said.
David took them both by the arm. ‘Let’s celebrate. I’ll have to treat you two ladies to something in the cider tent.’
Holly let David lead her away, but she looked over her shoulder. She was desperate to tell Mitch the good news.
Inside the packed cider tent, people were in jovial spirits ? no doubt having sampled many of the ciders on offer.
‘I hope you’re all buying as well as tasting,’ she called out.
Julian laughed. ‘I am. I’ll be placing an order of this one for the pub,’ he said as he finished off his glass.
David got caught by another councillor and Trudy slipped away, presumably to find her family.
‘Have you anything with a fizz in it?’ Holly asked the cider maker. ‘I’m celebrating.’
Jaz came up behind her. ‘What happened with Trudy? I’ve been texting you. Have you got your funding?’
‘Yes! Everyone here approves.’
The cider maker passed two small glasses to Holly and Jaz.
Jaz raised her glass. ‘I’m pleased for you, hun, and so flippin’ proud.’
They drank the sweet, fizzy cider, which brought a glaze to Holly’s eyes.
Julian put his hand on Holly’s shoulder. ‘You’re doing great things for our village.’
‘Thanks for arranging the cider at the last minute. It’s heaving in here.’ Holly placed her glass back on the make-shift bar.
Jaz pointed to a large man in front of a table. ‘Jim from Kelly’s auction house is about to start the hub fund-raising auction. I managed to get a few local businesses to support it. We’ve got vouchers for restaurants, signed celeb photos, an entry into the caves over at Cheddar and all sorts.’
‘I’m so grateful – I don’t know what to say.’ She gave Jaz a hug,
Holly heard Jim’s voice testing the microphone and was filled with an overwhelming desire to see Mitch. A sense of urgency filled her. However, she could not leave the tent now, not when a fund-raising event was commencing for which she was the beneficiary.
The auction went well, especially as the cider flowed. There was a voucher for Sunday lunch at The Eversley Arms, a signed photo of a Wurzel who lived in a neighbouring village, a meal at a celebrity chef restaurant, tickets for local attractions and a voucher for the chippy on Eversley Burrows estate. At the end the mayor stood up, swaying slightly with cider and auctioned an off-the-cuff cream tea with her in Wells Cathedral. Holly could understand why Jim Kelly had a lifetime in the auction business as he certainly had a way of pushing the price up. Holly was called to the stage at the end and thanked everyone for coming.
Leaving the tent, Holly had only one thing on her mind, finding Mitch. She didn’t want to wait until the evening. She felt an overwhelming sense of urgency, as she ran over to his shed in the market area, wondering whether he’d returned. He was not there, so she waited until one of his assistants had stopped serving a customer.
‘Is Mitch about?’ she asked.
