Page 61 of Wild About You

‘There’s a shovel by the back door,’ he said, without missing a beat. ‘Don’t go too near the brook. And be as quick as you can. I don’t want to have to come looking for you.’

‘Great,’ I said. ‘Don’t have all the whisky. I’ll want some when I get back.’

CHAPTER 19

At 9pm, when the light was gone, I sent another message saying we would meet Callum at the Upper Reaches at nine the following morning. By 10pm, the wind and rain had started to ease. We sat, cross-legged, watching the fire together, talking about whatever random rubbish I could come up with as I tried to keep our conversation light and impersonal. Against my will, I kept wanting to move closer to him to such an extent that I felt it was taking superhuman effort to stay in my place.

You are an insane woman, I told myself.

‘You’ve been working here for a while now,’ he said, startling me out of that particular reverie. ‘Is there anything you want to know about the place? Or do you feel as though you know Stonemore back to front already?’

I thought for a minute. ‘I do have a question for you, as it happens,’ I said. ‘Why do you have a pack of hounds?’

The smile was replaced with a frown. ‘I’m sorry?’

‘I mean, it’s just a bit strange. With your green credentials and conservation plans, andHugo. Does an old-fashioned pack of hounds really fit in with that?’

He narrowed his eyes. ‘Hunting is a vital part of the local economy.’

‘Riiight.’ I narrowed my eyes in return and tipped my head sideways.

‘Plus, I don’t have my own pack of hounds.’

Eh? My eyes snapped back to his face. ‘Yes, you do. I’ve seen them.’

‘I think I would know if I had my own pack of hounds.’

I explained the location as best I could, to his impassive face. The high brick walls, the gambolling beagles.

‘Did they look like finely honed athletes to you?’ he said.

‘I have no idea.’ I’d waved at the people looking after the dogs if I saw them, but I’d purposely kept my distance from it all because it had made me uncomfortable.

‘They’re rejects, Anna. I thought you knew. We run a small sanctuary for the local area. We send some to a national charity when we get too many. Some people shoot their hounds when they get older or are injured.’

I stared at him. ‘You mean you save beagles?’

‘Not exclusively beagles. We had a wolfhound recently. Dropped off at the gate in a crate.’

I was dumbfounded. And it was clear he was not pleased. ‘Now I’ve got a question for you.’

‘Fire away,’ I said.

‘What on earth made you think that I was the kind of person who would own my own pack of beagles?’ There was something in his face I’d never seen before. Could it be he was a tiny bit sensitive? Had I found the chink in his armour? Of course, it would be about dogs.

‘I guess it’s just the kind of thing the landed gentry does.’Posh boy, my eyes added.

‘I see.’

‘Sorry if I hurt your feelings.’

He snorted. ‘You didn’t. It’s impossible foryouto hurt my feelings.’

‘Of course,’ I said sharply.

We sat there in silence for what was probably a minute, but felt like two hours. I heard a sound of rustling, and a soft crack. His hand appeared in front of me, holding a single square of chocolate. I took it and put it in my mouth.

‘Sozzo, as Tally would say,’ he said softly. Hadn’t I said that to him? On the night of the team-building evening? His memory was scarily accurate.

---