Page 26 of The Christmas Fayre on Holly Field

‘He is,’ Owen laughed. ‘Once I’ve helped to set the boot sale up, I can have a look around with you, if you like?’

Harriet liked very much. Far too much. ‘I’m sure Bobby will love to see you again,’ she said. ‘He couldn’t stop talking about your van. He was quite taken with it.’ She could feel heat steal into her cheeks. ‘I’m sorry if he embarrassed you.’

‘He didn’t. He did make me laugh, though. You should have seen your face!’

She put a hand to her flaming cheek and giggled. Then she suddenly became aware that Pen was having to cope on her own because Harriet was too busy enjoying herself, and she immediately felt contrite. ‘Oops, I’d better get back to work before I get the sack. See you on Saturday?’

‘If not before. There are a few more things on the menu I’d like to try.’

Harriet cleared away the used dishes on a nearby table and, out of the corner of her eye, she watched him tuck into his reheated soup, feeling confused. She was pretty sure she’d been flirting, and she was surprised at herself. The last time she had flirted with anyone had been when she’d met Declan for the first time – and look how that had turned out!

She couldn’t deny that she fancied Owen, though. He wasn’t her usual type, being too intense; but then again, she had been away from the dating scene for such a long time that she wasn’t sure she had a type any more.

Wait up… what was she doing, thinking about Owen and dating in the same sentence? Seeing him on Saturday at the boot sale was hardly a date. And even if he asked her out, she wouldn’t go. She’d had enough of men to last her a lifetime. Or until the kids were grown and flown. The thought of having to go through all the palaver of meeting someone, getting to know them, introducing them to the children and hoping they got on… No thanks! She could do without the aggro.

‘You like him, don’t you?’ Pen said, after he had paid and left. She was peering at her with a knowing expression.

‘I do not.’

‘You could have fooled me.’

‘Looks like I did. Because I don’t.’

‘You were flirting with him.’

Oh, for goodness’ sake! Trust Pen to have noticed. ‘I was being friendly. Are you going to serve Lowri, or shall I?’

‘You serve her,’ Pen said. ‘It’s about time you did some work.’

Harriet threw her a dirty look, Pen’s chortles following her as she walked over to Lowri’s table. ‘We don’t see you in here very often,’ Harriet said. ‘What can I get you?’

‘A chai latte, please, and a slice of whatever that is.’ Lowri pointed to the cake in the top of the chiller.

‘Red velvet cake.’

‘It looks yummy.’

‘It is. How is that gorgeous daughter of yours?’ Harriet bent over to peer into the pram, and a pair of deep blue eyes gazed solemnly back at her. ‘Aw, isn’t she cute! I’m getting all broody.’

‘You’d soon change your mind if she had you up three times in the night.’

‘She’s still so tiny – she needs her feeds.’

‘She didn’t want feeding at all. She wanted cuddles,’ Lowri grumbled. ‘She had better start sleeping through the night soon, because I’m going back to work shortly.’

Harriet remembered those sleepless nights well, but she was lucky that Declan had earned enough so Harriet could stay at home when the children were babies. But Lowri owned A Cut Above, and when it was your own business, Harriet supposed it was harder to take time off.

As she made Lowri’s chai latte, she once again wondered what Owen did for a living. Pen had told her that he did a ‘bit of this, and a bit of that’, but what were thethisandthatexactly? Aside from handing out leaflets and doing a spot of work for Aled Harris, she had no idea what he did. She was tempted to ask him the next time she saw him.

A shiver of excitement shot through her at the thought of seeing him on Saturday, and she stamped down hard on it. Even if she was amenable to some romance, she didn’t think Owen was interested in her. Not in that way. All he seemed to be interested in was making another convert to the ‘don’t buy anything new’ crusade.

Oh, well, it was for the best, because if hehad beeninterested in her, Harriet had the unsettling suspicion that she might be unable to prevent herself from acting on the attraction she felt for him.

Chapter 7

Owen loved early mornings, when there were few people around, and he could sit outside the van with a brew in his hand and listen to the sounds of the world waking up.

Not this morning, though, because today was Saturday and he had work to do. He could already hear the rumble of a diesel engine trundling down the lane and he guessed Aled wanted to get started.

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