Chapter 2

2

‘Here you go.' Flora placed a fresh mug of coffee in front of Megan and slipped into the chair next to her. The kitchen was now empty, the last of the volunteers having signed up for their first volunteering shifts and left. ‘Thank you for staying behind. I think it's best we have a chat before you begin volunteering, don't you?'

‘Thank you.' Megan took the mug and wrapped her hands around it, the heat from the ceramic warming her skin. ‘Honestly, I don't have to volunteer here if you'd rather I didn't. I half expected you to tell me to leave when you first spotted me. And I understand. I really do.'

‘I'm not going to ask you to leave. I'm just curious. Why do you want to help out here?'

Glancing down into her coffee, Megan swallowed. There were so many reasons, many of which she didn't fully understand herself. How could she explain something that she didn't understand?

‘It feels like the right thing to do,' she said tentatively. ‘After everything that happened… the way Lyle tried to force you to sell, what happened to Sally and her dog…'

‘You feel responsible?'

‘No, yes. Yes, I do. I should have realised what was happening. I should have guessed what he was doing. I was living with him.' She laughed, a short hollow sound escaping her lips. ‘I was married to him. I should have known.'

‘I think he was just a rather good showman. He had Andy fooled too.'

Megan nodded, automatically touching her ring finger, still uncomfortable with the sheer absence of the wedding ring which she'd been wearing for the past fourteen years. ‘That's right.'

‘It must have all been such a shock to you.' Flora smiled sadly.

‘It was. But it shouldn't have been. I don't know how I didn't see what he was like earlier. How could he have kept such a secret from me? How didn't I realise what sort of person he really was?'

‘Love does that to people. Love covers up the most damaging secrets.'

‘I suppose so.' Megan took a sip of her drink, the sharp taste of black coffee welcome. Flora was right, she knew she was.

‘I don't want you volunteering because you feel you have something to make up to us. Because from where I'm sitting, you don't. You've been as much fooled by that man as we have. And lost a lot more because of him, too.'

Megan took another sip of her drink. ‘I do feel as though I have something to put right. Even though I wasn't aware of what he was doing and his underhand tactics, I was still part of the problem. I was still supporting him.'

Flora sighed. ‘I don't think that's true. As soon as you discovered what he was up to, you and Andy worked so hard to bring his plans to a stop. And you succeeded. If it wasn't for you, Wagging Tails would likely still be trying to put up a fight against him. Or worse.'

‘Still, I'd like to volunteer. Please?'

‘I'm not going to stop you from volunteering, but I'd like you to make that decision because you want to, not because you feel you have to.'

‘I do. I do want to.' Megan looked out of the window. The sun was shining, and she could just about make out a couple of figures and dogs in the top paddock. Sally and Susan must still be up there. She laid her hands, palms down, on the table in front of her and looked down at them. ‘I feel as though I don't have any control over my life any more. Everything I thought was real wasn't, and everything I thought I wanted in life, I realise I don't. This is the one thing I can do to try to feel better about myself. I would like to volunteer here. I want to make a difference. Even if it's an insignificant one.'

Frowning, Flora nodded slowly and pulled the sign-up sheet towards them. ‘Let's get you signed up, then.'

‘Thank you. I appreciate it.' Megan smiled as relief flooded through her. It probably seemed disproportionate to Flora, but this, Wagging Tails and trying to make up for the part she may or may not have played in Lyle's attempt to destroy it, was all she had to cling on to at the moment, all she had to build her life around.

The kitchen door opened slightly, and Megan saw Ginny peering through. ‘Sorry to interrupt, but can I just have a quick word please, Flora?'

‘Of course, lovely. I think we're done here, anyway.' Flora turned back to Megan and patted her hand. ‘You fill this out and finish your coffee and I'll go and help Ginny. Take your time.'

‘Thanks.' Megan picked up the pen and looked down at the sheet. A list of names and available time slots stared back at her. Most people had indicated that they wanted to volunteer at the weekends and the majority had highlighted just one or two hours. What was she supposed to write? That she was available every day, all day?

She downed the rest of her coffee. She might as well be honest and write that she could volunteer whenever. There might be a time or a day that Flora and the team needed more help. And it wasn't as though she had anything else to do with her time. Apart from staring at the four walls of her room back at Honeysuckle Bed and Breakfast, that was.

After scribbling her name and contact number down, she paused and looked down at the list again. Huh, there was someone else with a lot of time on their hands too. Someone else who had signalled that they could be flexible with their volunteering time. Someone called Jay had indicated he was free most days. Every day apart from a Friday and Saturday. She wasn't the only one after all then. That was a relief.

There, done. Hopefully, they'd think she was just happy being flexible rather than literally not having anything else to do, but she'd be happy volunteering every day if they needed her.

Standing up, she placed her empty mug in the sink and made her way towards the door. She could hear Flora and Ginny's voices on the other side. They must still be discussing whatever Ginny had needed Flora for. She picked up the sign-up sheet. She'd hand it to them on her way past.

Pushing the door open, she found both Flora and Ginny standing behind the counter, Flora flicking through a notebook, her reading glasses perched at the end of her nose and her forehead creased.

Megan placed the sheet of paper on the edge of the counter. ‘Here's the form.'

‘Thanks, Megan. I'll let you know as soon as I've taken a look through and come up with a rota.'

‘Great. Thank you.' Megan paused, unsure whether to dash away or say what she wanted to.

‘Everything okay?'

‘Yes, I just wanted to say thank you for not dismissing me.'

Flora smiled. ‘Of course not, lovely. We're happy you want to help us, aren't we, Ginny?'

‘Absolutely. We couldn't operate without our volunteers.'

Megan nodded and turned away.

‘Megan, mind your lace. It's undone,' Flora called.

‘Oh, thanks.' Bending down, Megan began to tie her lace.

‘Ah, I just don't understand,' Flora said, her voice filled with exasperation. ‘I'm sure it was this notebook I'd written it all in.'

‘Let's try another one,' Ginny replied. ‘Maybe you wrote it in the red one? I'm sure it was that red one which has been lying about for days.'

‘Maybe. Yes, yes, let's take a look in there.'

Megan pulled the bow in her lace tighter. They'd obviously lost something.

‘We do need to come up with a better system, though. We can't keep relying on notebooks to scribble our outgoings in. We have this problem every year when we sort out the finances. We need to have a better system.' Flora's voice was firm. Not with Ginny, but herself.

‘You're right. We really should get one of those computer programs and just fill it in every time we spend something. It would make life so much easier. Or even an Excel spreadsheet.'

Megan tucked the end of her laces into the top of her trainer. Maybe there was a way she could help Flora, really help her, after all.

‘Umm, I'd love to agree with you, Ginny, but I've no idea what an Excel spreadsheet is. It might as well be an alien spacecraft to me.' Flora chuckled.

Standing up, Megan turned back to the counter. ‘I could help you with that if you like?' she said. ‘I'm a trained accountant, and I'd be happy to get your finances in order. I could set up a system and explain it all to you.'

‘Oh, are you?' Flora closed the notebook.

‘Yes. And I wouldn't charge you. I'd do it all for free.' Megan looked from Flora to Ginny and back again. ‘I haven't officially worked for over ten years, but I used to help Lyle out with his accounts.'

Flora nodded slowly.

Megan clasped her hands in front of her, the searing heat of self-consciousness flooding her face. Why had she said that? If it wasn't bad enough that she'd mentioned his name, to then say that she had done all his accounts would have made things worse.

‘I mean, I kept the accounts that he told me about. I know now that he wasn't transparent about his finances, but I didn't know at the time.'

‘Right.' Flora's eye twitched, her forehead creasing ever so slightly before she relaxed her expression again as Megan continued.

‘But I am an accountant, and I can do this for you. I promise I wouldn't have offered if I didn't think I could. I know I can.' She shrugged. ‘I'm good at what I do. I just need to be given all of the information and not be lied to. Not that for one minute I'm suggesting you will. I mean, Lyle. If he hadn't lied to me, I could have done my job properly…' She let her voice trail off and turned around. ‘Sorry, I should go.'

‘Wait.' Flora held up her hand. ‘Are you sure you wouldn't mind? It'd save us a lot of headaches if you could sort the accounts for us, but I'm afraid I've never been the best at keeping on top of things. Not things like finances. As long as we have money in the bank to keep the dogs fed and the bills paid, then I don't tend to worry too much about documenting everything until we have to.'

Megan smiled. ‘Yes, I'm sure. I'd be happy to help.'

‘There are receipts everywhere. In the drawers, stuffed into notebooks, scribbled lists of expenses.' Flora held her arms open, indicating the countertop strewn with notebooks and papers.

‘I can collate them all for you and enter them into a system. Once that's done, I can show you all how to use it, so it's not a huge job at the end of the financial year.' Megan stepped forward.

‘You mean no more all-nighters trying to find evidence of all expenses?' Ginny raised her eyebrows. ‘That sounds like bliss.'

‘Ha ha, we're not that bad.' Flora shook her head.

‘Umm, I beg to differ.' Ginny laughed. ‘Honestly, what you're offering to do sounds fantastic, but Flora's not joking when she says all the information is spread around.'

‘That's fine. In the past I've worked with people with really shocking ways of storing income and outgoings, so I'm sure I can cope. I'd love to help.'

‘Great. Well, we accept, and quickly before you change your mind.' Flora smiled, the skin around her eyes creasing with kindness.

‘When would you like me to start?'

‘Whenever is convenient for you, lovely.'

‘Okay, I'll come in and make a start tomorrow then, if that's okay?'

‘Perfect.'

Nodding, Megan pulled the door open and stepped outside, the heat of the summer sun enveloping her. She grinned. She could actually help. She could actually make a difference. She was needed. For the first time in a very long time, she was needed.