Chapter 24

24

‘Thank you.' Megan smiled at the shopkeeper as he took the small A5-sized postcard from her. She'd made sure to write her contact details and a couple of lines about herself and the type of work she was looking for, which was basically anything, in her neatest handwriting. Now all she could do was hope and continue to look and apply for jobs online.

‘No worries. I'll pop it up.' He walked around the counter and pinned it to the noticeboard next to the tills.

As she left the shop, she took Cindy's lead back from Jay.

‘All done?' He clicked his fingers, signalling to Petal and Willow that they were on the move again.

‘Yep. All done. That's a card up in there as well as in the ice-cream parlour, plus the village noticeboard. Not that I'm expecting anything to come of them, but Flora thought it would be a good idea.' She paused as Cindy sniffed a tuft of grass at the side of the path.

‘You never know.' Jay glanced down at the ground. ‘I hope you don't think I was trying to meddle when I encouraged you to tell Flora about the car and everything?'

‘No, not at all.' She had at the time, but she knew why he had. She'd have done the same. ‘Flora overheard the end of our conversation in the kitchen, anyway.'

‘Ah, so it wasn't my brilliant advice that has resulted in you staying at Flora's, then?' Catching her eye, he grinned, the dimple deepening in his cheek.

‘Ha ha, no I'm afraid not.' She laughed. ‘But, hey, I should have listened to you. Both Flora and Poppy have made me feel really welcome.'

It was true. She might have only stayed there for one night so far, but to have a room, a bed again, a place to call her own, it meant more to her than either Flora or Poppy probably realised.

‘Well, I'm glad it's all worked out for the best.'

‘Yes, me too. I don't know why I was so adamant not to ask for help earlier. I just…' She shrugged. She couldn't really explain it. It hadn't been that she was too proud to admit what path her life was taking her down. It hadn't been that. More that she just hadn't wanted to be anyone's burden, but over at the cottage, she didn't feel as though she was. She felt welcome, accepted. ‘I don't know.'

‘It's okay. I think I know what you mean.' Jay paused and looked at her, running his fingers through his hair. ‘Now that you've got a place to stay, did you fancy celebrating?'

‘Celebrating the fact I'm not sleeping in my car any more?' Megan grinned and raised her eyebrows.

‘Exactly. Why not?'

‘Umm, I guess so. You think I should shout it from the clifftops or something to celebrate?'

‘I was thinking more along the lines of going to a theme park?'

‘A theme park?' She frowned. ‘I've not been to one in years.' Theme parks really weren't Lyle's thing. At all.

Jay grinned and carried on walking. ‘Maybe that's even more of a reason to go?'

‘Is there even one around here?' She automatically looked around herself at the beautiful, quaint little cottages and narrow lanes.

‘Well, not here, no. But there's a good one just over an hour away. Flambards. Mia is desperate for me to take her, so I thought perhaps you and I could go and check it out first? I haven't taken her in while and have forgotten what rides will be suitable. It could be a celebration trip and a reccy all in one.'

‘Like a risk assessment?' Megan laughed. Her mum had been a teacher, and Megan remembered going on day trips with her, usually to museums, to check places out before she would commit to taking her class.

Jay shrugged. ‘Yes, I guess so.'

‘Okay.' Megan narrowed her eyes at him. ‘You do know they probably have a website, right? Which will list the rides they have?'

Jay glanced towards the other side of the lane before catching her eye again. ‘You've got me. I was asking you out.'

Megan bit down on her bottom lip. ‘You were?'

‘Yes.' He chuckled. ‘Remember, I did tell you I was terrible at these things.'

‘Ha ha, you did.' She nodded.

‘It was just a suggestion. We don't have to.' He shook his head. ‘Of course, you don't have to. That was a daft thing to say.'

‘You're cute when you get tongue-tied.'

She covered her mouth quickly. Had she really said that out loud? She could feel the prickling of a blush creeping across her face. Why had she said that?

‘Oh. Umm… thank you.' Jay chuckled.

‘I can't believe I actually said that.' She laughed.

‘So, what do you think? Would you like to come?'

She looked down at Cindy, who was walking perfectly at her heel. She would. She'd love to go with him and enjoy a day at the theme park. A day without a care in the world. But she couldn't.

‘I can't. I just don't have the money. When I have a job, though, I'd love to come.'

‘You don't need any money.'

She held her hand up. Jay had done enough putting her up for the night during the storm, cooking her dinner and just generally being there. ‘Thank you, but there's no way I'm taking money from you.'

‘You don't need to.' He reached into his back pocket and pulled out two vouchers. ‘I have vouchers.'

‘You have vouchers?'

‘Yep. An old colleague of mine was given them by their marketing team after some work he did over there and he's not going to use them, so he passed them on to me.' He slipped them back. ‘What do you say? Shall we go and spend the day at Flambards Theme Park?'

Megan grinned. ‘Yes, in that case, I'd love to.'

‘Brilliant.'

As they carried on walking, Megan glanced at Jay out of the corner of her eye. It would be nice to spend more time with him. More than nice. Yes, they both spent most days at Wagging Tails together, but it would be good to meet up outside of their work environment. It would be good to get to know him a little better.

She touched the pad of her index finger against her lip. Would this be a date or just a day out with friends? Whatever it was, she was looking forward to it.

‘You look happy today.' Percy slipped into his chair at the table before sliding a mug towards Megan.

‘Thank you.' She took a sip of the coffee, strong with a teaspoon of sugar. ‘I am.'

‘Good, good. It's nice that you're over in the cottage with Flora and Poppy now.' He nodded at Cindy, who was lying in her usual position under the kitchen table, almost on top of Megan's feet. ‘I bet this one is happy to have you over there too?'

‘Ha ha, yes. She's a proper little, or should I say big, Velcro dog. Wherever I go she's always there right next to me, just as though she's stuck to me with Velcro.' Megan grinned.

Cindy had insisted on sleeping in her room last night. After her whining at the door for half an hour, Megan had relented and let her in, and she'd sprawled across the foot of the bed, stretching out from one side to the other.

Percy nodded and took a sip of his drink before glancing at the door and lowering his voice. ‘I don't suppose you've had a chance to speak to Flora, have you? Don't worry if you haven't. I know you've had a lot going on and all.'

Megan pushed the laptop away a little and wrapped her hands around her mug. ‘I have actually. Sorry, I completely forgot to tell you what she said.'

‘Don't worry, love. I know it's been a tricky time for you recently.' Percy clasped his hands on the tabletop. ‘What did she say?'

What had she said? The conversation she'd had with Flora felt as though it had been ages ago. A lot had just happened between then and now.

‘From what I could understand, she would be interested in dating. She said she thought she'd left it too late, and that anyone who would want to be with her would have to be as crazy about dogs as her.'

Leaning forward, Percy nodded. ‘And?'

Megan shrugged. What else had she said? ‘That they'd need to share her love of this place.'

‘Right. Anything else?'

‘I don't think so. Not that I can remember, anyway.' Megan nodded. ‘Yes, I think that was the general gist of the conversation.'

‘She definitely said she'd be open to dating then?'

‘Yes, well, I think so.' She looked at Percy as he frowned. ‘I'm sure of it – as much as I can be, of course.'

‘Okay, okay. So, what now?'

‘What do you mean?'

‘What do you think I should do now?' Percy furrowed his brow.

Megan looked at him. She knew he wanted her to tell him to ask her, but she couldn't. Although she felt as though she knew him and Flora well enough, and from what she'd picked up on, she definitely felt there was a connection between them both, this was too big. Percy and Flora had known each other for over thirty-five years. If Megan was wrong, then who knew how it might alter the friendship they had?

‘What do you want to do?'

Wringing his hands, Percy glanced over his shoulder towards the kitchen door. ‘I want nothing more than to ask her, but if she says no…'

‘What would you say to me or Alex or Ginny? What would your advice be for us?' Megan sipped her coffee.

‘Well, that would be easy, wouldn't it?' Percy shifted in his chair. ‘I'd have told you not to be so daft and to ask her to dinner.'

Megan looked at him. ‘Why aren't you following your own advice, then?'

‘Because I'm a coward, that's why.' Percy rubbed his chin, his beard shifting beneath his hand. ‘I love her. I only want the best for her and if that means being her friend for the rest of my life, then that's what I'll do.'

Megan gazed into her coffee before looking across at Percy. His eyes were shining with tears. From an outside perspective, he and Flora were perfect for each other and definitely appeared to have a connection, to have more than a friendship, but she was new here. Maybe she'd got it wrong. Maybe she was picking up on things which just weren't there. She didn't know their history. Percy did.

‘Why don't you have a think about it?'

Percy nodded sadly. ‘I've been thinking about it for the past thirty or so years.'

Megan glanced at Cindy, who had left her favourite spot beneath the table and was now standing in front of the kitchen door, her left front paw held against the door frame.

Percy followed her line of sight. ‘It looks as though she needs to go out, love. You go, I'll be okay.'

‘Are you sure?'

‘Aye.' Nodding, Percy pulled the daily paper towards him, apparently immediately engrossed with the goings-on in Trestow.

‘Okay.' Standing up, Megan picked up Cindy's lead from where it was hanging over the back of her chair. ‘Come on then, Cindy. Let's go out for a wander.'

Clipping her lead on, Megan took another look at Percy, who was still seemingly reading the paper. Had she said the right thing to him? Should she have encouraged him to ask Flora to dinner? Maybe she wasn't cut out to be a matchmaker after all.

Stepping outside into the courtyard, Megan loosened Cindy's lead and she matched her pace as they made their way towards the grass. The air was cooler today, still warm, but the storm had cleared the humidity a little.

As she walked towards the bottom paddock, she noticed that Ginny was in there with Rex.

‘Hey,' Ginny called across to her when she saw Megan approach.

‘Hi.' Megan joined Ginny on the other side of the gate and lengthened Cindy's lead in her hand.

‘You look deep in thought.' Ginny threw a tennis ball she'd been holding and little Rex ran across the paddock chasing it.

‘Oh, I am. I'm not sure if I've said the right thing to someone who asked for advice.'

‘Ah, do you want to share?'

Megan looked down at her trainers. ‘I'm not sure if I should.' She glanced towards the reception area. The last thing she wanted was for Percy to step outside and see her chatting with Ginny after speaking to her in confidence. ‘But I'm honestly not sure if I said the right thing to them or not.'

‘You're welcome to tell me. I won't mention it to anyone else and you don't have to use names.' Ginny bent down and retrieved the ball from Rex's mouth before throwing it again.

Looking up at Ginny, Megan nodded. It couldn't hurt to get someone else's perspective, could it?

‘Thanks. Well, in that case, someone asked me to try to find out if the person he liked… loved… fancied…' None of those words seemed appropriate, not when she was talking about Percy and Flora. ‘Whether they would be open to dating or not.'

Crossing her arms, Ginny leaned on the gate. ‘Open to dating them or in general?'

‘Just in general. Anyway, they basically said they would but think their time has passed for starting another relationship, so I relayed the conversation back to him, and he asked if I thought he should ask her out.' Megan frowned. ‘I just said they should do what they think is right, but I'm pretty certain there's a connection between the two of them and I'm pretty sure he's never going to act on it because he hasn't for years. So, yes, I don't know if I should have told him to go for it.'

‘Umm…' Ginny frowned.

‘Sorry, that was a big old waffle, wasn't it?' Megan shook her head.

‘No, it's not that. I understand what happened. It's just I have a feeling I know who you're talking about.' Ginny grinned. ‘It's not Percy and Flora, is it?'

Megan nodded.

‘Well, you're right on both accounts. There is a connection between the two of them. We all see it. I even assumed they were a couple when I first arrived here and I'm pretty sure everyone who meets them for the first time thinks so, too. And you're right about Percy never plucking up the courage to ask her out. If he hasn't after all this time, then why would he now, right?'

‘That's just what I was thinking.' Megan leaned against the gate next to Ginny, Cindy circling the grass to her right. ‘What do we do then?'

‘Let me have a ponder, but I think we need to come up with a plan. If we leave those two to their own devices, then they'll never do anything about it. It reminds me of Elsie and Ian over at the bakery in Penworth Bay. They didn't get together until a few years ago and I'm pretty sure they were in a similar situation too, both having feelings for each other for years.'

‘If it worked out for them, it might just do for Flora and Percy.'

‘Exactly.' Ginny grinned and tapped the top of the gate. ‘Let me have a think. I can feel a plan brewing.'

Megan laughed. ‘I'm glad I told you now.'

‘I'm glad you did, too. This toing and froing between them has been going on for far too long now.'

Megan watched as Ginny threw the ball again before pulling a poop bag from her pocket and walking across to Cindy. ‘Come on, you. Let's go and check on Percy.'