Page 11 of The Village Midwife
‘You didn’t have to. I’ve been in your shoes – remember? I can’t tell you how many times I asked myself that question when I first came to Thimblebury. I know you’ve been doing the same. It’s a big step – it’s only human to have doubts.’
‘It doesn’t help that this house – lovely as it is – feels like it’s in the middle of nowhere. I mean, I know there was nothing else in the village and I was lucky to drop on, plus I have Daffodil Farm not too far away…’
‘Leon and Penny too, don’t forget. Have you met them yet?’
Zoe laughed. ‘Not yet… I thought I had met Leon, but it turned out I was being an idiot.’
‘Oh, you’ve always been an idiot. What did you do?’
‘Oh, it was just some guy walking a dog. Thank goodness I didn’t call him Leon or anything.’
Ottilie frowned. ‘Walking a dog up here? There’s no walking route up here. It’s either Victor’s land or Hilltop Farm’s. Are you sure it wasn’t Leon? Did he have a black-and-white collie with him?’
‘No, it was grey and shaggy, sort of a Heinz. He said his name was Alex. Come to think of it, he did tell me he was thinking of buying around here. Hilltop Farm is for sale, right?’
‘Yes. Perhaps he’s thinking of buying Ann’s place then. What was he like?’
‘Pleasant enough,’ Zoe said, wanting to say so much more than that. She could have waxed lyrical about his eyes, and his voice, and the way he smiled at her, but she’d have sounded ridiculous. She’d barely spoken two words to him, after all. Itwasridiculous. Besides, there was every possibility she would never see him again.
‘I’ll have to ask Ann when I go to see her tomorrow,’ Ottilie said. ‘I’m so used to going there every morning to look in on her and Darryl and make sure they’re OK, it’s going to be strange when I don’t have to. I feel so sorry for her. Things must be really rough for her to uproot Darryl like that. She’d never do it unless she absolutely had no other choice. I wish there was something I could do to help.’
‘Is she moving far away?’
‘A little bungalow a few miles down the road. Once they get settled in, I’m sure it will be better for them. She’s been struggling with Hilltop ever since her husband died. It’s a big place to take care of, and then there’s the fact that her son needs so much care and attention, and not being able to do much actual farming meant that money was always tight too. She couldn’t afford to hire help, and I think she felt a bit stuck in the end. I don’t blame her for moving on. I’m only surprised she managed to hold on for this long.’
‘So if she’s got a place to go to, she presumably wants a quick sale?’
‘I would imagine so.’
‘I wonder if he’s already bought it?’
‘The man you met today?’
‘I mean, if Hilltop is what he meant, but it seems that way, doesn’t it?’
‘Well, I expect we’ll find out soon enough.’ Ottilie went to the shopping bag she’d left on Zoe’s kitchen worktop and pulled out a covered dish. ‘Tiramisu?’
‘You made pudding as well? I love tiramisu!’
‘I know you do – that’s why I made it.’
‘Can you marry me instead of Heath, please?’
‘Sorry, I am quite excited to marry him. We could adopt you. How’s that sound?’
‘Whatever it takes to get casserole and tiramisu every week, I’m in!’
Ottilie chuckled as she opened a drawer. ‘Where are your spoons?’
‘Along one… that’s it.’
Ottilie grabbed a pair of spoons while Zoe looked for the bowls that she knew Melanie had left behind. ‘Where are they…?’ she murmured. ‘Oh, sod it!’ she exclaimed, coming back to the table. ‘I vote we eat it from your dish. Who needs bowls?’
Ottilie laughed. ‘Heathen.’
‘It’ll save on washing up too.’
‘You have a dishwasher!’
