Country Affairs. Zara Stoneley

      Lottie gnawed the side of her fingernail with a worried expression on her face. ‘He said somebody was putting him up, said he was hanging around for a bit.’ She groaned. ‘She can’t be taking him back to her place, can she?’

      ‘You’re kidding. Can you imagine Tom’s face if his little girl arrives home with a man like Todd, well any man, really? And he adores you, so all you’d have to do was say the word and Todd would be out.’

      ‘I suppose so.’ Lottie hugged the little dog closer and carried on worrying.

      ‘Does it bother you, him being here?’

      ‘It’s not that. I mean I don’t know exactly what he said to Rory, but he doesn’t mind. And it’s weird, but it just seems like it was years ago, and it was fun, but…’ She shrugged, then grinned. ‘I’ve got Rory now.’ Then the smile faded as she remembered. ‘And I haven’t got time to look after him or anything, and I don’t really know why he’s here, to be honest.’

      ‘Mm. Maybe he’s bored? But look on the bright side, I’m sure somebody would be happy to take him off your hands.’

      ‘What am I supposed to do? I can’t just ignore him, and he doesn’t know anybody else.’ She paused, as she suddenly realised that he did know somebody else.

      Pip caught the look and laughed nervously. ‘Oh, no.’

      ‘But you know I promised Uncle Dom I’d take on the running of the Estate, and I said I’d move into Tipping House soon,’ she glanced nervously at the door. This was something she still hadn’t managed to discuss with Rory properly. She had mentioned it, more than once, but they hadn’t exactly set a date. She’d thought that after the hugely successful wedding had taken place would be an ideal time, but it hadn’t been quite gone as planned. Either the wedding or the chat, given that Todd had stormed into the ceremony, and Rory had decided to liven up the proceedings that came after. If he’d only be serious just for one moment it would be so helpful.

      ‘Tell me you’re not serious, please Lottie.’

      ‘Well, er I was being serious. Is that a problem? I mean, you know him, and all you need to do is—’

      ‘No way.’

      ‘He’ll soon get bored and you can put him on a plane?’

      Pip laughed at the note of optimism in Lottie’s voice. ‘Lottie, you know I love you, but you know me and Todd never really hit it off.’

      ‘Will you at least think about it? Can you imagine what Uncle Dom would say if he found out about Barcelona and Todd getting arrested?’

      ‘I think he might already know.’ Pip’s tone was dry.

      ‘Gran thinks it’s entertaining, but you know what Dom is like, he can be so…’

      ‘Stuffy?’

      ‘Particular. He’ll think I’m not being serious enough. And have you any idea what he wants? He’s acting weird, phoning me even more than normal, and this morning he actually sent me a text. An actual text.’

      ‘No idea.’ Pip stared at Lottie, and squashed her original intention for coming. She’d wanted to talk to somebody and Lottie had seemed the ideal person. But suddenly she wasn’t sure. She wasn’t the type to unburden herself and if she was going to she had to be sure it was the right person, right time, right place. She was the stable one, Lottie was the scatty one. She was the one who never let relationships get to her. Lottie was the one who had ex-boyfriends who left her in the lurch only to reappear months later. And Lottie was the one who would soon be inheriting a mansion complete with a leaking roof and mountainous debts. The one who needed good friends she could rely on.

      But the niggles that Pip had squashed the first time she’d stripped herself bare in front of Mick had come back with a vengeance. And each day they were getting harder to ignore.

      ‘Are you okay?’ Lottie was frowning.

      ‘I don’t think he loves me.’ It was out before she could stop it. So much for right time, right person.

      Lottie jerked upright from her slouch, letting go of the dog abruptly, her mouth dropping open as the little dog landed on the floor and started to run around in circles after her tail, barking. ‘You don’t mean—’

      ‘Any chance of a cup of—’

      ‘Go away.’ The two girls shouted out in perfect unison and Rory, one foot hovering over the threshold of his own home, beat a hasty retreat, taking the dogs with him.

      ‘Oh blimey.’ Lottie was mortified. She’d never shouted at Rory before, let alone at the same time as Pip, which had made it pretty forceful. ‘I better go and explain, hang on, don’t go away.’ And she was across the kitchen and out of the door, still barefoot, before Pip could speak. ‘You won’t will you? I won’t be a sec, honest. Stay, stay there.’

      Pip sighed, wondering why she’d ever thought a quiet heart to heart was possible in such a chaotic place. She studied the photos on the wall opposite. Rory on the back of one of his favourite horses took pride of place, being presented with a cup by Princess Anne. He looked dashing and fun, tawny eyes dancing, pure joy spread across his open features, even in the face of royalty. And even the royal in question was entranced.

      Why couldn’t life be more bloody straightforward?

      Pip made a sudden decision. Elizabeth was the one she should be talking to.

      She had just got out of the front door when Rory appeared, coming in the opposite direction, Lottie clinging on to him and squealing.

      ‘He said he’d give me a piggy back across the gravel, it’s a bugger in bare feet.’ She was red-faced, which had to have more to do with where Rory’s hands were than it had to do with sore feet. ‘You’re not going are you? Oh please don’t. Oh Pip, I thought, but you had…’

      ‘I’ll catch up with you later, urgent call.’ It was only as she pulled out of the yard on her bright pink Vespa, nearly mowing down a jogging passer-by, that she remembered she’d promised to get Lottie to call Dom. Oh well, she had mentioned it, not that Lottie would remember, and she’d remind her again later. After she’d worked out just why her normally organised life had suddenly become an emotional whirlwind. And what she was going to do about it. About Mick.

      ***

      ‘You have to be the hardest person in Tippermere to get hold of, what have you been doing, Charlotte?’

      Lottie who had finally given in and answered her phone (mainly because it wouldn’t stop ringing and the dogs steadfastly refused to eat it) stopped the examination of her feet, rubbed at the last bit of gravel and gave a worried sigh. ‘I’ve been here, Uncle Dom.’ She was only half listening as she watched one of the horses gallop enthusiastically around the paddock, kicking his heels in the air. A youngster, she really did need to work this morning even if she didn’t manage anything else.

      ‘Well, I asked that Australian chap to pass on a message if he saw you, and I asked Philippa, who is about the most reliable of your friends.’

      Registering his tone, she picked up a pile of three-day eventing entry forms from the nearest chair, dropped them on the table and sat down. On the TV they always told people to sit down when there was bad news coming.

      ‘Charlotte, we have to talk. I’ve put this off as long as I can, but it can’t wait any longer. I’m coming to see you now, and don’t you dare disappear again.’

       Chapter 5

      ‘Amanda is expecting.’

      ‘Expecting what?’ Lottie only had a fraction of her attention on her Uncle Dominic, partly because the two-year-old horse on the other end of the lunge rope