Page 4 of Wild Swimming at Croftwood Lake
‘I don’t mind, if that’s what you’re wondering,’ he said, smiling. Now, his face softened and Nora could see beyond his dishevelled appearance. He had kind eyes. Deep brown, kind eyes. ‘Really,’ he said, bringing her out of the trance she hadn’t realised she was in.
‘Oh, well, thank you. I do come most days, actually.’ Despite what he’d said, she was sure he would mind, and there was a cautious tone to her voice as she admitted it.
‘And how does it shape up? Do you have anything to compare it to?’
He seemed genuinely interested, and for some reason, he put Nora at ease with his relaxed tone.
‘I used to swim in a sea pool so it’s very different to that, but I think the water quality is good and it’s wonderfully tranquil here.’
‘It is,’ he agreed, reaching down to stroke his dog’s head. ‘Are you new to the area?’
‘I’ve lived here about a month.’
‘And how’s it been so far?’
‘It’s pretty good,’ she said, grinning. ‘The lake helps. Do you ever go in yourself?’
‘Goodness no. I’m not saying this to scare you, but the carp in that lake were huge twenty years ago.’
‘I don’t mind fish. I haven’t noticed them yet, so I expect they’re steering clear of me.’
‘Ha, I expect so. Well, please don’t delay your swim on account of me.’ He gestured to the lake.
‘I’m assuming you own this place?’
‘I’m sorry, how remiss of me not to introduce myself. I’m Archie Harrington.’ He held out his hand.
Nora took it, noticing how warm it felt and enjoying the fact that she was making contact with him more than she would from a handshake with anyone else. ‘I’m Nora Hartford. Nice to meet you, Archie.’
He still had her hand in his. Then the dog jumped in the water, splashing them both, and they sprang apart.
‘Tatty! Out!’
‘She seems to enjoy a swim,’ Nora said, as they both watched the dog, who looked as if she was smiling, paddle to the shore and heave herself out.
‘Oddly, she’s never launched herself in before yesterday. She is rather old to start surprising me now.’
Nora wondered whether perhaps the dog wanted her as a swimming buddy.
‘I’m with Tatty. It’s an extremely inviting lake.’
‘Even in January?’
‘Especially in January. And at the moment, it’s not too cold, and not too warm.’
‘It’s been lovely to meet you, Goldilocks,’ Archie said, failing to mask his pride at making a pretty good joke.
Nora grinned at him. ‘Nice one. I’ll see you again.’
Archie fixed his eyes on hers for a moment, nodded, and then turned and walked away, his hands clasped behind his back like an old man. Tatty ran to join him and trotted devotedly at his heels.
Nora walked back to the other side of the lake and watched Archie until he was out of sight. So that was Lord Harrington. Perhaps she should have called him that instead of assuming that first-name terms were alright? But he hadn’t seemed to mind, and she was pleased to have his blessing to swim in the lake. How easy had that been?
After her swim, she bundled herself up, not having time for a leisurely cup of tea on the dock after being waylaid by Archie and Tatty. Instead, she sipped at it on her way home through the woods. As always, the rest of the day had melted into insignificance while she was swimming and only now did the anxiety over getting the kiln fixed come back into her thoughts. If Ken couldn’t mend it, she had no idea where she could get the pieces fired before next week. But until she knew it couldn’t be fixed, she wouldn’t waste her time and energy tracking down the nearest alternative kiln, because that’s what it would come to. No, she’d go up to Stoke and hope for the best. On the bright side, she could catch up with her production manager and see how the samples for the Christmas range were coming along. They weren’t due to be ready until next week, but they always built some contingency into the schedule, so she had high hopes that Val would have something ready for her to see.
While Ken was dismantling the controls for the kiln, convinced that a loose wire could be the problem, Nora headed upstairs to the production floor to find Val. The place was a hive of activity and Nora felt a lump in her throat, as she always did when she walked through the pottery. The sense of pride knowing she’d built this and that all these people were part of her success, as well as depending on it, was sometimes overwhelming.
‘Hey, Val,’ she said, knocking gently on the open office door.
