Page 39 of Before We Were Famous

He laughed and looked embarrassed. ‘Um, young master.’

I laughed out loud. ‘No?’

He grinned and shrugged.

Oh, that will stick,’ I teased him, and he cringed.

Edgar pulled into the garage and turned off the ignition. He leant over and took my hand and then kissed it. ‘The young master is at your service,’ he said. So gallant. ‘So, let me show you around.’

‘And show me to my room,’ I teased. I was expecting we might share a room, but I would be happy to have my own space just for dressing, bathing, and time out – you get the picture.

He laughed. ‘Yeah, I think your room might also be mine,’ he said, and I gave him a smile that said it better be.

I opened the door and met him at the back of the car where he gallantly grabbed both bags, slinging his own over his shoulders.

I turned to follow him in and stopped in my tracks. I had forgotten just how dramatic Thrushcross Grange was. It reminded me of a time when Heath and I snuck here to peek inside. How bizarre to think that the young Edgar and his sister, who we watched through the windows and we both thought were so insipid, would one day be in our lives to the degree they were now, and not because we were neighbours.

I hate you, Heath, get out of my head and heart.

I glanced at the large bay window frame and remembered the time when Heath dropped below the windowsill and pulled me down beside him.

I couldn’t help but giggle, and he smiled but held a finger to his lips in warning.

‘They look so pasty,’ I whispered.

‘They match the house,’ he said, and I giggled again.

I raised myself about the windowsill enough to peer into the huge room where the Linton family sat. It was like something from a postcard. The two children about our age sat in front of the fire with their books and their parents sat side-by-side with a small glass of red liquid looking at the fire.

‘It’s amazing,’ I said. ‘Look at those massive rugs, and that Christmas tree is huge.’

Heath shrugged. He was never impressed by that sort of stuff.

I studied Isabella and she looked like a doll. Fair and slight, tall, and all dressed in white.

‘They look too clean,’ Heath said and made me giggle again.

We watched them in silence, they were oblivious to us peeking in from the outside.

‘The room is so beautiful,’ I said, ‘I wish we had those sorts of lights that drop from the ceiling. They’re like drops of glass hanging from silver chains. I hate our modern stuff, it’s so ugly, but Mum loves it,’I sighed.

Heath must have read my mood, and found me all of a sudden disgruntled with my life.

‘You and I would die in there,’ he said, with a nod to the postcard picture in front of us. ‘You wouldn’t be able to escape and explore the moors with me. And you wouldn’t be able to ride your horse. You would have to stay inside and keep clean in your pretty dress,’ he teased. ‘I love our place.’

I recall at the time I smiled thinking he was teasing me, but on seeing his eyes I realised it was more than that. He was worried that I wanted that life. That I suddenly found the Lintons’ world more attractive. Even as a teenager I could recognise his disquiet.

And he was right. I wouldn’t fit in at Thrushcross Grange without changing who I was … I could do that. But I was only twelve and Heath was fourteen and we soon forgot the Lintons and Thrushcross Grange and scampered across the moors to Wuthering Heights again and onto our next adventure.

Chapter 21 – The skinny dip

I was still admiring the vista when Edgar nudged me.

‘I don’t like to rush you,’ he teased, ‘but the weekend is nearly over.’

I rolled my eyes at him for his masterful exaggeration and followed him inside. Thrushcross Grange was only a five-minute drive from my home, literally, but it may as well have been in a foreign country it was so different. Unlike Wuthering Heights, Thrushcross Grange was down in a valley where the weather wasn't so harsh. It featured huge windows and all the curtains were open; even from the outside I could see how light and welcoming it was. Around me were beautifully manicured gardens that I couldn’t wait to explore, but for now, I raced to catch up with Edgar who had started the tour and I was lagging.

Inside was enormous and tastefully decorated; there were several fireplaces that I imagined would be very cosy to snuggle near at night.

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