Page 37 of Coming Home to Roseford Villas
She knew she’d shattered his trust in her, after everything they’d done to build it over the past few weeks. After their glorious night together, when things had certainly gone with a bang, she felt as though she’d damaged what had seemed to be the beginnings of a more serious relationship.
The question was, how on earth was she going to fix it? In the midst of her upset about the way Leo had reacted, she also heard a little voice in her mind questioning why she felt she now needed to run things past him in order to tell the story. After all, if he hadn’t been in Roseford, wouldn’t she have written it anyway? What difference did it make that he’d seen an early draft? Perhaps she’d been influenced by their new relationship, and written with a little more immediacy than she would have done otherwise, but what was narrative, if not some kind of representation of a greater truth?
Shaking her head, realising that this was getting her nowhere, she decided to take herself off for a couple of hours, and lose herself once more in the Roseford Hall archives. If one line of plot was causing her grief, perhaps the other strand, the one that concerned Edmund Treloar and Frederick Middleton, would provide her with a little distraction.
41
It was amazing, Leo thought, as the next couple of weeks passed, just how easy it was to avoid someone, even when they were living at the bottom of the garden. He’d been keeping on top of things at Roseford Villas before, but now he really threw himself into it, cleaning and scouring everything, making sure he was up long before his guests, even hoovering the communal areas three times a day, just to keep himself busy. He’d always kept the darkness at bay through work, and now it was his salvation. Every time he stopped to think about Rory, and what had happened between them, he thought of another job to do, and by the time he collapsed into bed each night, he was beyond insomnia. The house and gardens had never looked so good, even if he did tend to the back gardens when he was sure Rory wasn’t around. The mental energy he was expending by keeping out of her way was tiring enough but, combined with the endless jobs he manufactured for himself, he had no time to brood.
Which was just as well, as Aunt Vi and Uncle Bryan were due home in the next week, and he wanted to make sure that Roseford Villas looked even better than when they’d left. Leo had even managed to set up a database for customer feedbackwhich they could manage on their return. He hoped they’d find it useful. Keeping his mind on administrative tasks, the careful, predictable inflow of data, also kept his mind busy and away from more emotional things.
He’d also had confirmation that, having signed the papers when Corinne had visited, his marriage was officially over, and his old life in the law firm was, too. Now, he had a future in London to anticipate, a new job and the chance of a brand-new start.
So why did he feel so unmotivated by it all? Why did he feel as though he was walking away from the most important thing in his life? And this time, rather than being forced to do so by his parents’ change of circumstances, he was choosing to do it himself.
The problem was, he wasn’t prepared to go to Rory and apologise. Reading what he’d read, no matter how rough the draft on the computer was, had frightened him. The intimacy in those pages, laid bare, for anyone, eventually, to pick up and read wasn’t just a reminder of what they’d experienced the first time they’d been together, but also a manifestation, in black and white, of the emotions he’d been experiencing ever since they’d met again. He knew, now, that he’d fallen in love with her, hard. And while she’d been affectionate, and passionate, and he’d seen a hopeful light in her eyes about whatmighthave been going on in her heart, something told him that she wasn’t in the same place as him yet. Leo was so afraid of rejection, after everything he’d been through, that he couldn’t bear to put himself in that position. So he’d jumped first, using the manuscript as a good reason to call the relationship to a halt.
What was the worst that could happen? he’d reasoned. Rory was going back to York, anyway, and he was off to London. They couldn’t sustain a relationship over that distance, even as adults. He wasn’t in the market for a long commute everyweekend, he just wasn’t physically up to it, and the thought of spending hours on a train for a couple of days at a time filled him with exhaustion. It would have been nice to have continued the illusion of a pleasant holiday fling for a few more weeks, but ultimately, it would have had to have come to an end. Leo knew, if he hadn’t read the manuscript, he’d probably have found some other excuse to end it. He wasn’t proud of himself for that, but he was certainly self-aware enough to draw that conclusion.
All of this knowledge didn’t solve the problem of his aching heart, though, and that was why he’d thrown himself, hook, line and sinker, into managing the hell out of the B&B until it was time to hand it back to Bryan and Vi. The funny thing was, he was really enjoying the work. The business suited him, and once he’d begun to formulate his own rules and routines, adapting those that his aunt and uncle had so fastidiously left him, he found himself feeling as though he had a real stake in the place. It was liberating to take control, and as guests came and went during the closing weeks of the summer season, he was feeling a great reluctance to step away and start again in London, to go back to the corporate grind. When he’d started looking after Roseford Villas a few months ago, he’d been doing it out of a sense of duty to the family, and purely as a time filler before his new job started. But over the time he’d been in Roseford, he’d found himself warming to the place and its people, and his fledgling relationship with Rory had been the icing on the cake. The fresh summer air of Roseford at its most attractive was winning him over, and more than once he found himself wondering: what if he could stay?
Not that it would solve the problem with Rory, of course. Rory would still be in York, and, if he stayed in Somerset, he’d face even more of a commute to see her. But what if staying in Roseford allowed him to continue to heal, to make his own life better? He’d spent two years working on his physicalrehabilitation: it might now be time to really focus on his mental health, and what he needed to improve things in his own head.
All this, however, was a pipe dream, as much as making a future with Rory was. He’d signed the contract with Palmer, Dennis and Wright and he was committed to them for the near future, at least. And really, that was all there was to it. Wondering what might have been, with both Roseford Villas and Rory, simply wasn’t in the equation.
When Bryan and Vi returned, he welcomed them back with a smile and accepted a huge hug from his aunt. She’d always been someone he could talk to, and despite the fact that her standards when it came to Roseford Villas had been, in the beginning, very hard to live up to, he loved and respected her. Uncle Bryan, always the quieter of the two, had greeted him with a warm smile and a promise to show him their holiday photos that evening. Leo was looking forward to the distraction. Anything that stopped his thoughts from wandering in the direction of the chalet was definitely welcome.
42
‘So it looks as though we’ll be looking to get this place sold over the next few months, if we’re to move to Spain in the new year.’ Uncle Bryan sat back on the sofa, having talked Leo extensively through the many photographs of their prospective retirement property that had been screen casting on the television in the family’s private lounge area. ‘The vendor wants rid of it as soon as possible, so the family can divide the spoils, and so we’d be looking to do the same with Roseford Villas.’
‘It looks fabulous,’ Leo commented, not for the first time since the slide show had commenced. ‘I can see why you’d want to take your next steps over there.’ He gave his uncle a brief smile. ‘And is that an outbuilding in the garden? Potential to run a small holiday let, if you wanted to?’
Uncle Bryan’s eyes twinkled. ‘We’re going to walk before we run, but I would never rule something like that out.’
‘Well, I’m glad the trip was successful,’ Leo replied. ‘And I’m sure you’ll find a buyer for Roseford Villas very quickly. Anyone who’s interested in hospitality will snap it up, I’m sure.’
There was a long pause between the two men, during which Leo took a sip of the glass of red wine that Bryan had poured him.
‘Yes,’ Bryan said, eventually. ‘You’ve done a good job keeping an eye on the place while we’ve been away. It seems as though you’ve really enjoyed being here, too.’
Leo nodded. ‘I have. It was just the change I needed. Thank you for trusting me with it.’
‘I’ll be sad to see it going out of family hands,’ Bryan observed. ‘But I suppose all good things must come to an end eventually.’ He looked around the room, and then topped up his and Leo’s glasses. ‘We changed a lot when we came here. Roseford Villas was in a time warp when we took it on, and ran more like a smaller version of Fawlty Towers than a proper B&B. We focused on what was important to us, and we moved with the times. But now it needs to move again, and I’d like to think it was going to someone with the vision to do that. Even in the time you’ve been here, the small changes you made when you were in charge show that you might be the one who has that vision.’
Leo’s heart sped up a little. He saw the look in Bryan’s eyes and knew that his uncle was suggesting a move that would make the process of selling up easier for him and Vi. After all, if they sold to Leo, things could progress quickly. But that didn’t alter the fact that Leo had committed to a job in London or negate the arguments he’d had with himself about what staying in Roseford would mean.
‘I’ve had such a lovely time working here for the past few months,’ Leo said carefully. ‘And I would be lying if I said the thought hadn’t crossed my mind that I should like to be here for longer.’
Bryan arched an eyebrow at him over his wineglass. ‘I sense a “but” coming.’
Leo smiled slightly. ‘Well… as you know, my situation is rather complex. Having accepted the job in London, I’m not quite the free agent I was six months ago when I was looking for something to do. I just don’t know if I’m the right fit for you. But I am grateful that you’d consider me a decent proposition.’
‘I’m glad of your honesty, lad,’ Bryan replied. ‘But there’s no need to make your mind up just yet. You’re the lawyer… couldn’t you get yourself out of that contract if you wanted to?’
Leo laughed. ‘If only it were that simple, Uncle Bryan!’ He took another gulp of his wine. ‘Now, why don’t you tell me a little bit more about your plans for La Vista Marítima?’
‘Well, lad,’ Uncle Bryan warmed to his subject once more. ‘Given the proximity to the beach, we were thinking about adding an oceanside bar…’
