Page 51 of A Forever Home at Honey Bee Croft

‘To give me another fatherly talk. No, thanks.’ He took a couple of paces towards the hall then turned and gave me the finger. I closed the window and sank down onto one of the chairs with a heavy sigh. Sarcastic and snarky were Chester’s default modes, but the aggression was new. I had enough hostility to deal with from Tilly and I’d put up with it so far because I wanted to see my daughter, but I wasn’t prepared to take it from my brother too.

I took another glug of water and found Harry’s number on my phone.

To Harry

I know this is none of my business but Chez is in a really bad place right now and I think he could use a friend

I stopped typing and shook my head, deleting the message. My first few words said it all and I was fairly sure that sticking my nose in would backfire on me. It could also make things worse between Chez and Harry. After all, I didn’t know the full story. All I had were my brother’s moans that Harry sided with Deana over him but there’d be three sides to this story – Chez’s, Harry’s and the truth.

I sent Dad a message instead.

To Dad

Don’t know if you’ll pick this up but I’ve just seen Chez and Lorna have a big bust-up and she’s gone. He refuses to speak to me, but he might listen to you. No idea where he is now and I’m not suggesting you go on a wild goose chase around the building but, if you do encounter him, can you see if you can get through to him?

From Dad

We’ll be coming back down in 10 mins so will watch out for him then. Enjoy your evening and don’t worry about Chez. We’ll sort it!

Dad was seemingly incapable of adding just one emoji to make a point and had gone crazy with the party-themed emojis adding people dancing, music notes, party poppers and all thedrinks ones, which helped defuse the tension inside me. I hated passing the buck as they’d come a long way to be at the wedding and I wanted them to enjoy themselves, but they were Chez’s parents and it felt like he needed them right now.

I finished my water and pushed the incident with Chez and the exchange of words with Tilly out of my head before going downstairs to join in the festivities. The laughter emanating from the Juniper Lounge immediately lifted my spirits.

The bar was busy and, despite an hour still to go until the evening do, I spotted several evening guests who were obviously keen to make the most of their night out. A large patio ran the full length of the bar and was illuminated with fairy lights, spotlights and the glow from several patio heaters so a number of guests had spilled outside.

I ordered a pint and worked my way round the room, joining in various conversations. I’d been down for about twenty minutes and there was no sign of my parents or Chez which either meant they’d found him and were having a chat or they hadn’t found him and were relaxing in the snug.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a streak of orange and turned to see Amber introducing Poppy to her dad. I had a clear view of her, and she looked exceptionally nervous which appeared to amuse her partner. Cole gave her a hug and Poppy’s partner took several photos of them. After a brief chat during which Poppy appeared to relax, Jules, Sophie and her boyfriend, Devon, joined them, quickly followed by Brad and Tabs. Soon Poppy was having her photo taken with the whole of Amber’s celebrity family. I couldn’t take my eyes off her captivating smile. Her partner was taking all the photos. Why wouldn’t he be in them too? Maybe he was camera shy.

I was aware of a presence beside me and looked down to see Zara grinning at me.

‘She’s very pretty,’ she said.

‘Who is?’

‘Poppy. The woman in the orange dress who you can’t take your eyes off.’

‘I wasn’t looking at her. I was just…’ I shook my head. Why even bother to deny it? ‘Yes, she’s very pretty and, yes, I was looking at her. Who is she?’

‘A guest at Whisperwood Farmhouse. Mary invited her and she’s lovely. You should ask her to dance when the disco starts.’

‘I can’t do that. She’s with someone.’

‘They’re not together. He’s her ex-husband. Lives between London and Spain and is working in the area next week, so they’re catching up.’

It was great news that they weren’t an item, but could attending a wedding with her ex-husband be a sign of a reconciliation?

‘Sounds like it might be complicated.’

Zara laughed and gave me a gentle punch on the arm. ‘Far from it. They’re just good friends. He’s happily remarried with a new baby girl. And he’s not staying late tonight so, if you like her, don’t leave it too long. She barely knows anyone so, once he’s gone, she might not want to stick around.’

My heart sank at the thought of her leaving.

‘You know her. Can’t you convince her to stay?’

She laughed again. ‘I’ll do my best. And it looks like Amber’s family have adopted her so, if they have anything to do with it, she’ll be on the dance floor until the very end.’

We both watched as Amber took Poppy off to meet some guests.

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