Page 30 of Fundamentals in Flirting

“I own her.”

Teddy and I turned as one to the open doorway, where a stooped, elderly lady in a blue headscarf and matching wellies was watching us with complete puzzlement.

The goat, who had also heard her, launched herself across the pen towards us, crashing into Teddy and knocking him clean off his feet and onto his arse, long legs flailing wildly in the air.

Perhaps a better woman would have helped him. She would certainly have shown some concern for his wellbeing or offered him a hand. But not me. I was too busy leaning on the gate in fits of laughter, which I didn’t even try to stifle, at all.

ChapterTen

“Sorry about that, young man. Deidre’s just eager for her breakfast.” The lady rattled a tin bucket in her hand and the goat bleated excitedly.

“Who are you?” I asked, wiping the tears from my eyes and finally helping a disgruntled Teddy to his feet.

“I’m Agnes Timms. Who are you?”

“Hannah Havens,” I replied. Facing her, a flush of fresh social awkwardness setting off warning sirens in my head, aware that she was probably a client at the veterinary practice.

Try not to be prickly, Hannah. Try to be nice.

I looked at Teddy for inspiration, but he was still sulkily cleaning goat excrement off his backside. So I tried a smile on for size and added rather lamely, “Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too. Are you the new owners of The Rectory? Lovely to have a young couple living in it after all these years.”

I started to stutter a reply about how we were most definitelynota couple, when Teddy broke out his most devastating grin, his previous terror now masked beneath a suave veneer, and he addressed Agnes directly. “I’m Ted Fraser. Are you one of our neighbours, Mrs Timms?”

Agnes nodded, and momentarily seemed at a loss for words, the sheer force of Teddy’s charisma washing over her like the healing vibrations of a gong bath. Agnes stared dreamily up at him, while Deidre gently headbutted her leg, clattering the pail of goat food in her hands.

Teddy continued to smile back at her, then gently wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me to his side. Upon which my mind exploded in a volcanic reaction to this tender contact between us, while my body simultaneously went into some sort of shock, melting against him like I was made of molasses. His voice rumbled through me when he spoke again.

“What a lovely goat you have, but may I ask why she’s in my shed?”

“Oh, yes, sorry. My barn roof blew off in the winter storms and Deidre needed a sheltered spot for a few weeks, so I popped her in here, just until the place sold. I didn’t know you’d moved in already.” Agnes gave a rather flirty laugh, and looked back at Teddy from under her headscarf. “And please, call me Agnes.”

“Ah, I see. Well, Agnes, it was a bit of a shock to discover her in here this morning, I must say. But no harm done.” Teddy squeezed my shoulder and looked down at me almost lovingly. “Hannah’s a vet and was just about to give her a check over.”

Agnes smiled encouragingly and said, “Are you working with Giles?”

I nodded.

“How convenient.”

“Yes.”

Silence and awkward staring ensued.

“Your goat is blind,” I said, desperately trying to think of something to say.

“I know.”

“And ran through the gate, so it’ll need to be fixed.”

“Ok.” Agnes gave me a slightly puzzled look.

“We should check she’s not hurt.”

“We should.”

“She’s quite elderly. Is she in good health?”

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