Page 49 of Coming Home to Roseford Villas
‘So, are you, er, in Roseford for long?’ Rory asked. It felt like an echo of the conversation they’d had back in the summer when they’d first been reunited.
Leo paused before he replied, and Rory noticed that he suddenly looked even more nervous. ‘I hope so,’ he said softly. ‘It depends.’
‘On what?’
Leo smiled, and Rory had to clench her hands even harder on the handle of the basket.
‘Well, mainly on how successful Roseford Villas is, now that I’m taking it over,’ he said. ‘I mean, I’ve only really had asummer’s experience at running the place, so it’s going to be a pretty steep learning curve, but I’m hopeful, with a little hard work, that I’ll do Uncle Bryan and Auntie Vi proud.’
‘You… you’re taking it over?’ Rory paused in her steps and hopped out of the road just in time as a car came around the corner. ‘Since when?’
‘Eventually!’ Leo gave a quick laugh. ‘I mean, Aunt Vi and Uncle Bryan are still in situ for the time being, as their place in Spain won’t be ready for them until early spring, and they’re showing me the ropes, but it’s all been signed over to me, and contracts were exchanged last week. Completion is in a couple of days’ time, but since we’re all family, it’s been quite straightforward.’
‘But what about your career? Won’t you miss law?’
Leo shook his head. ‘Not really. I kind of knew the London job was just a stop-gap. What I didn’t realise was that I needed to spend some time doing it to know that it wasn’t what I wanted any more. Being here in Roseford was what I wanted.’
Rory was shocked at how happy and at peace Leo seemed with these life-changing decisions, until she realised she’d pretty much done the same thing over the past few months. Fair enough, she hadn’t taken the plunge and bought a B&B, but the move to the West Country and the change in her working situation were radical enough.
‘Well, I’m glad you found what you wanted,’ Rory said, trying to keep things light. ‘It’s good to see you again.’
Leo looked momentarily confused, but she could see he was working his way up to something else.
‘But what made you come back here?’ Leo’s brow was furrowed. ‘I thought you were just here for the summer.’ He smiled at her again. ‘Did you, er, finish the novel you were writing?’
Rory paused, unsure about what to say. On the one hand, she felt relieved that Leo had clearly made the decision to return to Roseford because he wanted to, not because he’d heard she’d moved back here. That would have been more pressure and expectation than she could take. On the other, the fact that he knew she was living in Roseford, too, at least for the foreseeable future, meant a whole new set of pressures anyway. She had no desire to make him feel as though he had to take an interest in her again. After all, he’d made it pretty clear when they’d had their last exchange exactly how he felt about her novel, and, by extension, her, for having written it.
‘Oh, it’s going fine,’ Rory said, deciding to tackle the last of the questions first. ‘I’ve been busy at school, but I’ve been sending it out to agents and publishers.’
‘That’s great!’ Leo smiled broadly. ‘I’m so pleased you managed to get it finished. I always knew you had it in you.’
Rory couldn’t help the raised eyebrow of surprise at the positivity in his tone. After all, their last conversation about her novel had hardly been a positive one. ‘I’m glad you’re so pleased,’ she said guardedly. Her reticence wasn’t lost on him, she could see from the expression on his face.
‘Well,’ Leo said, and for the first time since they’d bumped into each other, he looked shy. ‘If you, er, wanted to catch up over a drink sometime while you’re here, just text me, when you get your phone back. I’d love to see you again.’
Rory nodded, although she wasn’t entirely sure if she could face another stilted exchange with Leo, even if alcohol was involved. ‘Thanks, I will,’ she said briefly. ‘I’ll, er, see you around.’
‘See you,’ Leo said. Rory hurried off before he could try to prolong the conversation. Her thoughts were whirling wildly in her head, and she needed some time to process them. Leo was back in Roseford! And it seemed as though he’d got over hisconcerns about what she was writing, although he hadn’t said it in so many words. What did that mean for them both, now they were going to be in the same place at the same time, and in Leo’s case, permanently? He had seemed delighted to bump into her, and she had noticed how genuinely pleased he was to see her. She collected her phone from Roseford Hall and then hurried back to the gatehouse, where she sorted out the basil plant. Later that afternoon, as she absently poured hot water on some leaves from her herb box on the windowsill, it wasn’t until she sniffed the pungent aroma she realised she’d picked those same leaves and put them in her cup instead of mint. She was obviously more jolted than she’d thought.
57
Well, that went great!Leo’s inner monologue was relentless as he trudged back up the street. He’d been so flummoxed by seeing Rory in Roseford Reloved that he’d totally lost the plot about what was most important to say to her. He’d imagined, when he’d sent her the text the previous night, that their first exchange would have been a lot easier than that, but the fact she’d seemed as shell-shocked as he’d been when they’d clapped eyes on each other hadn’t helped. She’d clearly not wanted to prolong the conversation. It was like a morning after exchange, without having had the fun of the night before!
Pausing for a moment outside Roseford Reloved, Leo wondered what he could do to mend things. The first thing he’d intended to do had been to apologise: the second, to find out where she was living. He’d done neither of those things, and while the reason she hadn’t responded to his text had seemed legitimate, there was no guarantee she would actually choose to answer it when she had got her phone back. What if she just didn’t bother? Then it came to him. Pushing open the door of the shop, he walked back through.
‘Hi again!’ Polly exclaimed as she caught sight of him. ‘Is there something else I can help you with?’
Leo smiled at her. ‘Yes,’ he said, pulling out his wallet again. ‘I think there is…’
Some time later, he was walking briskly back up the hill towards Roseford Villas and although he wasn’t quite sure, yet, what his plan was, at least the first step seemed a decent one. Now he just had to get his act together and carry out the second one.
‘Thanks, love,’ Aunt Vi said when he handed over the dress in its bag to her. ‘What do I owe you?’
‘Oh, don’t worry,’ Leo said fondly. ‘It’s the least I can do, as your freeloading guest for a couple more days. But there is something you can help me with, if that’s OK?’
‘Of course,’ Vi said. ‘What can I do?’
‘Do you have anyone in the chalet at the moment?’
