Page 5 of Wild Swimming at Croftwood Lake
‘Nora! It’s great to see you!’ Val got up from her desk and hugged Nora. ‘Nightmare about the kiln, though.’
‘I know. I thought I was ahead of the game with that order, but never mind. Let’s just hope the kiln gods are on my side once I get that far.’
‘Talking of kiln gods,’ said Val, ‘we’ve had the first firing of the Christmas samples. Want to see?’
‘I was hoping you’d say that!’
‘Let’s grab a coffee to take with us.’
They headed to the compact kitchen, which had a small table and chairs and so often was a good place to sit and chat.
‘So how’s the new place?’ Val asked as they waited for the kettle to boil.
‘I love the house. It’s gorgeous. Tiny but luxurious compared to my old place.’
‘And you’re not lonely? Being in a new town must be weird.’
‘It’s a bit strange,’ Nora agreed. She wasn’t going to let on that Archie was the first person she’d spoken to since she’d moved in. Being on the outskirts of town along a country lane meant she hadn’t come across any neighbours yet. She hadn’t ventured into town because she’d been busy getting the house straight and had been back and forth to Stoke, finishing the bespoke order, picking up a grocery shop at the big supermarket at the motorway junction on her way back. ‘I did meet the lord of the manor this morning.’
‘The lord of what manor?’
‘Croftwood Court. He introduced himself as Archie, but I’m pretty sure he’s Lord Harrington.’ It said a lot about Archie, in her mind, that he hadn’t introduced himself as such.
‘Ah, he owns the lake you told me about.’
‘Yes, Miss Marple.’
‘So he caught you in the act?’
‘Almost,’ laughed Nora. ‘I hadn’t got in, so at least it was a level playing field.’ And she’d have missed out on shaking hands with him. Why that stuck in her mind, she wasn’t sure. It was probably just because she was on her own now, and didn’t have the most basic level of physical contact with anyone very often.
‘And what was he like? He doesn’t mind you sloshing around in his lake on a daily basis?’
‘Thankfully not. He’s young for a lord, I think. Similar age to us.’
‘Eligible?’
‘No idea. Shut up.’
Val laughed. ‘That’s all I need to know. Come on.’
The Christmas samples were in their best room, in that it was one they tried to keep nice for entertaining buyers and so wasn’t dusted with clay like the rest of the place. Nora made a beeline for a ceramic bauble which was decorated to be a very fat robin. There was also a snowman, a Father Christmas and an angel.
‘I love these!’
‘I knew you would. I’m not sure the angel works, so we’re coming up with a reindeer option instead.’
‘Mmm, I probably agree about the angel. Could we do a Christmas pudding as well? Just in case.’
‘That’s a great idea,’ Val said, making a note on her phone.
They went through the other samples, which were a mixture of decorations and gift items like mugs and candle holders. There were things Nora loved, and things she didn’t. Things she didn’t hate, which might be an idea for another year, or something that could be tweaked for another collection. They chatted through the cost versus possible selling prices to make sure they had the right mix of price points and a range that all kinds of retailers could stock, from the small to the biggest. And by the time Ken came to find her with a kiln update, they had made all the important decisions.
‘You’re up and running again,’ Ken said with a huge smile on his face. ’It was touch and go.’
‘It always is. That kiln’s an old lady now.’
‘That she is. A word of warning though, it wasn’t a loose wire, it was a faulty element. I’ve repaired it, but it could go again and with the age of the thing, you won’t be able to replace it. That’ll be it.’
