Page 61 of Summer At Willow Tree Farm

‘Not a lot. The floor needs tiling. The walls need painting. And the bathroom needs to be plumbed in. It’s all there. It’s like a month’s worth tops of evening and weekend work, but I haven’t got it done. We’ve been trying to do it in the spare hours we have. I’m not a trained plumber so it means reading the manual, but Maddy usually comes over to help and…’ He cleared his throat. ‘We don’t always get a lot done.’

Yes, Ellie could well imagine.

‘Isn’t Art a certified plumber? Couldn’t he show you how? It would probably be quicker?’ And if he was there to act as a gooseberry, maybe Maddy would keep her hands off Jacob long enough for him to actually read the manual.

‘I don’t feel right asking him.’

‘Why not?’

He huffed out a laugh. ‘I’m not Art’s favourite person at the moment. And he’s already super busy.’

Art obviously slept like a rock. Or he would be a lot more incentivised to help Jacob and Maddy out. And get them the hell out of the room between his and Ellie’s. ‘I tell you what, Jacob, why don’t you leave it with me? I’ll see if I can persuade him.’

‘Really? You’ll talk to Art?’

‘Why not?’ She could think of one reason why not – that insane kiss. But that had been over three weeks ago now. Heck, Art might even have forgotten it. And getting a decent night’s sleep would surely be worth it. ‘Pick me up on Candlestick Hill once you’ve finished at the lumber yard. I’ll have a chat to him when we get back.’

All she had to do was beard the dragon in his den and not get fixated on his lips. Or his toolbelt. Easy-peasy.

*

They arrived back at the farmyard an hour later, Ellie buoyed by her chat with Rick who said the grant application was just a rubber-stamping exercise now. She’d also managed to nip into Helena’s workshop on Candlestick Hill to see the signs in progress. Two more things to tick off two of her to-do lists. Jacob too seemed a little less downtrodden as he began unloading the lumber. Probably hoping she was going to work a miracle with Art.

‘Do you want some help taking this in?’ Ellie asked, psyching herself up for a quiet chat with their project manager. It wasn’t as if they hadn’t spoken to each other since the kiss. And confronting him in a work environment would make it easy to keep things on a professional level.

Jacob threw her a pair of work gloves. ‘That would be great, but don’t take anything too heavy. I can get one of the lads to help bring in the rest.’

With a load of lumber under her arm, Ellie followed Jacob past the farmhouse and across the yard. The sounds of hammering and drilling greeted them, floating on a breeze perfumed by the apples in the orchard. Ellie’s spirits soared as she rounded the blasted stone of the barn’s back wall.

It had been over a week since she’d had a chance to look in on the build in the daylight and the changes were amazing. Huge bricked arches led into the cavernous interior of the barn, its high ceilings suspended by oak beams. The darkly stained wood looked elegant and yet earthy against the recently plastered walls. Light flooded in from the domed glass Art had suggested adding at the construction stage in the cavity that had once been the old barn doors.

With the cabinets and shelving being built at one end, while the kitchen equipment was being installed at the other, the space was a hive of men – and one woman – busy doing everything from sanding wood to laying ceramic tiles. She spotted Mike in one corner painting the plasterwork in the fresh lime green Dee had suggested. She knew from the financials that Art had hired a bunch of workers from Gratesbury to steamroll through the final week of construction, so Dee and Tess could get in next weekend to start putting in the finishing design touches and arrange the produce for the opening.

Once that happened, it was going to look incredible. It looked incredible already. How had Art managed to get all this done in only three weeks? Her admiration for him increased.

She scanned the interior, and then she spotted him, standing at the main kitchen counter. The faded tattoo flexed on his biceps as he shuffled and rearranged the plans and then began to explain something on them to Rob. His thick wavy hair was sheened with sweat and a fine layer of dust. The toolbelt lay low on his hips like a western gunslinger’s bullet belt.

His head came up as she and Jacob picked their way through the melee to pile the lumber on a workbench. Her gaze connected with Art’s and the lick of sensation crossed her lips.

Pushing a pencil behind his ear, he walked towards them. He gave her a cursory nod of greeting then addressed Jacob. ‘The carpenter’s arriving tomorrow at eight and I need this stuff re-cut by then so he can get started. Don’t fuck it up.’

Colour slashed across Jacob’s cheeks, the hopeful smile from moments ago gone. ‘No problem,’ he said.

The banging and hammering had stopped as everyone observed the exchange. Who knew construction workers were nosier than the housewives of Orchard Habor? Poor Jacob.

‘Have you rechecked the plans? Made sure you’ve got the right sizing this time?’ Art said, the tone harsh.

‘I’ll do it now,’ Jacob murmured and ducked his head, making the long walk towards Rob as all the workers watched him.

Art went to walk off and Ellie touched his arm. The skin burned under her fingertips as his gaze slanted down to where she grazed the tattoo.

Her hand dropped. ‘Do you have to be so arsey with him?’ she said, beneath her breath, so as not to clue in their audience. ‘He hero-worships you, and he’s exhausted.’

‘Yeah, but his exhaustion is of his own making,’ Art fired back. ‘I didn’t get a wink of sleep last night either, but, unlike Jacob, my sleepless night was a lot less fun.’

So Art didn’t sleep like a rock. No wonder he was so arsey. He was getting as little sleep as she was. Why the thought of them both lying in their separate beds on either side of Jacob’s room listening to the young couple having sex should seem arousing she had no idea.

‘I know what you mean,’ she said. Art’s eyes narrowed and what was supposed to be a simple confidence suddenly felt far too intimate. ‘But there is a solution,’ she said, trying to keep her mind on business and off the strange current that arced between her and Art like a blowtorch.

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