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Chapter 18
Holly walked towards her burned buildings with George, the contractor she had appointed. It was time to get things moving.
‘Heel, heel,’ Holly called to Trixy as she tugged at her lead. ‘I’m training her,’ she said to George then pointed to the ruins. ‘As I explained before, I need the dangerous areas to be cleared and cordoned off.’
George nodded. ‘Of course.’
‘And if you could make the house as safe, as possible, Joe, my groundsman, has offered to sort through it, to rescue any personal items remaining intact, before it’s totally cleared.’ She doubted there would be anything salvageable, but Joe insisted on going through it for her. ‘Once the area is prepared, I’ll be putting the rest of my land to good use.’
‘You’re planning to reopen before the building work is done?’
‘Yes, it’s not to cover loss of earnings, as such – the insurance pays out for that, but I want to keep my customer base. Otherwise, people will forget about Lovelands, and go off to the big chains.’
George nodded. ‘I’ve notice a few of them open up. They’re very popular.’
‘Yes, there are a lot of garden centres in Somerset. That’s why I’d like to keep this place beautiful, rather than a big metal unit. As mentioned, I want to expand on the buildings when we rebuild.’ Holly pointed to the old barn. ‘That will be linked up to the rest of the nursery buildings, with an extension, to become an all-weather attraction. We’re likely to be busier on rainy school holidays with the indoor activities, which are always popular.’
‘I can see you’re passionate about this. Once I’ve had a chance to go through the plans, I’ll let you have a quote as soon as possible and discuss materials and their costs.’
‘I have a suggested schedule of works I can send you. And I’m leaving the cottage until next year – at least.’ She stared at her charred family home as Trixy slackened the lead and sat down. Holly wondered whether it would be years before she got back in there; she only had enough funds to rebuild the entire property exactly as it was, no money for the extra works required for the hub so something would have to be left and that would be her home. She had to focus on the parts of the property which would be making money.
Back in her caravan after George left, Holly felt positive. He had a real can-do attitude, which she found reassuring. Buoyed up, she pulled open her box of papers and took out David Bunning’s business card, noticing that his business was in motorhomes. He had said he would drum up support for her and knowing the local council meeting was looming up, she wanted to contact him. Nina had texted the dates of all the upcoming business breakfasts, and with David on side, that would be two votes. But she would have to drum up a lot more support than that and hoped David could help her out. She rang his number and it was answered immediately.
‘Bunning.’
‘Hi, David, it’s Holly Loveland. Can you talk?’
‘Yes, of course.’
‘I wondered if we could meet? To go over the funding application?’
‘Sure, I’m having a spot of lunch with my daughter. I can meet you back at the Town Hall, in half an hour?’
‘That would be great, but I’m looking after a friend’s dog.’ She did not want to leave Trixy to chew up her new furnishings.
‘I’m in the pub next to the Town Hall. In the beer garden. We can have a chat here if you like. Half one suit?’
Holly glanced at her watch. That was in twenty-five minutes. ‘Yes, that’s great.’
Lifting Trixy into the van,Holly watched as the little dog made herself comfortable on the passenger seat.Maybe I should have borrowed a pet cage,she thought. She went back into the caravan, returning with Trixy’s bed, which she laid on the van floor in front of the passenger seat. Trixy ignored this and remained on the seat, her tongue flapping as if in anticipation of an adventure. Giving up on pet safety, Holly climbed into the driver’s seat and set off.
They walked up the High Street in stops and starts, Holly repeating, ‘Heel, heel,’ as Trixy tugged on the lead in front of her. She reached the pub and walked around to the rear beer garden, which was more of a patio, filled with colourful flower pots. She saw David stand up and beckon her. He was with a blonde woman she presumed was his daughter. The woman turned and Holly’s face fell.Grace.
Grace raised her eyebrows and gave Holly a smug smile.
Oh no, really?Holly thought.
David walked forward. ‘This is my daughter, Grace. Grace this is Holly a local artist.’
‘Yes. We’ve met,’ Grace said with a sweet smile.
‘Have you?’ David turned to his daughter.
Grace kissed him on the cheek. ‘Oh, yes. Thanks for lunch, Daddy. I’ll speak to you – later.’
‘Bye, poppet.’
Holly nodded at Grace, forcing a smile as she watched her walk away.
