Page 57 of Happy Days Ahead in the Cornish Village

She stood there, holding the phone to her ear, the silence of the now abandoned line encompassing her. Had he really thought she’d go back to him? She shook her head and lowered the phone to its cradle, her mind whirring with questions.

At that moment, Jay pulled the door open and entered the reception area, Rex scurrying through in front of him. ‘Flora said there’s a storm coming.’

Megan nodded, trying to push all thoughts of Lyle to the back of her mind. ‘Yes, she said that to me, too.’

Jay glanced out of the window before looking at her again. The clouds were even darker than they had been a few minutes earlier and a light sheen of rain had begun.

‘It looks as though it won’t be long before it gets here, either.’

‘Nope.’ She watched as Sally walked across the courtyard, gripping the agility tunnel in one hand as it blew out to the side, Percy just behind her, carrying the hurdles. If this was what it was like when the wind was already picking up, what was it going to be like when the storm actually hit? The lay-by she’d been parking in at night was lined with trees. Should she go somewhere else, or would the trees protect her a little? And if she parked somewhere else, then where?

‘Your new place isn’t too far, is it?’ Turning, Jay looked at her.

‘Oh, no, not far at all.’ That was the truth, at least. The lay-by was only just down the road.

‘That’s something then. You don’t want to be driving far if this gets any worse.’

‘No.’ Megan shifted on her feet.

‘Whereabouts is it? I missed where you said you were staying.’ Jay bent to fuss over Rex whilst keeping his eyes on her.

Megan shrugged. What was with all the questions? She picked up a clipboard from the counter and stared at it, pretending to be engrossed in whatever was written on the page. ‘Not far. A little drive in that direction.’ She blindly pointed to the right.

After a moment’s silence, Jay cleared his throat and spoke. ‘The dogs have already been fed. Ginny and I fed them about half an hour ago.’

‘What?’ Looking over at him, Megan frowned. What had the dogs being fed got to do with where she was staying?

‘The dinner list.’ Jay indicated the clipboard in her hand.

‘Oh, right.’ Megan focused on the scrawled handwriting. He was right, it was the dinner list, noting any allergies the dogs had and their preferred food.

‘Is everything okay? You seem distracted.’ Jay stood up again, Rex pawing at his leg for more fuss.

Megan smiled. ‘Yes, all good, thanks. Just a bit tired, that’s all.’

Jay nodded slowly before looking down at Rex. ‘Okay. I’d better get this one in his kennel. See you in the morning.’

‘See you.’

As the door leading to the kennels swung shut behind him, Megan rolled her shoulders back. Why was he suddenly so interested in where she was staying? It didn’t affect him. It wasn’t as though they were seeing each other any more. Not that going on one date and sharing one kiss could actually be described as ‘seeing each other’, but still, why would she give her address to him anyway?

She looked out of the window. Flora was hurrying across the courtyard holding a plastic bag over her head in an attempt to dodge the rain. She’d have to go or else Flora would only tell her to leave, to go home in the warm and out of the way of the storm. If only.

The bell above the door tinkled as Flora rushed in before shaking the rainwater off the bag and shutting the door. ‘You still here, lovely?’

‘Just getting my bits together.’ Megan smiled and walked into the kitchen to grab her bag.

‘Okay, well take care on your journey, won’t you?’

‘I will. See you tomorrow.’ Pulling her tote bag onto her shoulder, Megan walked back through the reception area and braced herself for the storm outside.

22

Megan pulled the handbrake up and looked across the lay-by towards the row of trees that shielded her from the road. In the few minutes it had taken her to drive here, the sky had unleashed the storm. Sheets of rain covered the windscreen and could be heard hammering against the roof of the car, and the wind had picked up, bombarding the trees she’d hoped would protect her from the worst of it.

Leaning forward, she put the windscreen wipers on, her visibility only improving for a millisecond before rainwater flooded the windscreen again. She could hear the low rumble of commuters as they inched forward along the road beyond, their vision as obscured as hers.

She jumped as a particularly strong gust tore twigs from the trees, throwing them against her car. Would she be safe here? There was a branch just ahead of her, a large gnarly branch that was swinging dramatically as the wind pummelled it, which was worrying her. Would it hold or would it be torn off the trunk? If it did come down, then it would be thrown this way, and she didn’t much like the chances of driving her car away unscathed.

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