The Perfect Match (9 page)

But in spite of a good day at work, which included her finally selling a house that had been on their books for months and months because it was so noisy (there were advantages to people being hard of hearing, she discovered), Bella was aware of being quite anxious at the prospect of meeting Dominic when she arrived at Jane Langley’s.

As only Jane’s ancient Corsa was in the drive, and the usual note about her being in the garden was on the door, she felt enormous relief. Bella kept meaning to mention that announcing to the world that she was out of the house and the door might well be unlocked was probably not a good idea, but now Dominic was living with Jane, at least during the week, that was his responsibility, not hers.

‘Jane!’ said Bella when she found her. ‘How lovely to see you. How are you?’ Bella hadn’t called round since the awkward drinks, and so much had happened since, it seemed a long time ago.

Jane looked round from where she was tying a delphinium to a stake, her shirtwaister dress blending in well with the blue of the flower. She tucked a wisp of hair back into her chignon and smiled.

‘I’m very well, thank you! And do you know? I find I quite enjoy having someone else in the house.’

‘Well, that’s good!’ said Bella, laughing.

‘I was rather dreading it, but Dominic is very good – he’s not in a lot and when he is, he cooks for me as often as I cook for him.’

‘So I should hope!’ Bella found she was not exactly pleased that Dominic had got on to such good terms with his great-aunt so soon.

‘Let’s go into the house. Needless to say, I made a cake.’

‘So,’ said Bella a little later, having sampled the cake, ‘what can I do for you?’

Jane laughed. ‘I missed your company, of course, but I really wanted to know if you could recommend a good builder. Dominic said he found some patches of damp when he went up to the top floor. We’d like to have it looked at.’

‘Sure! I know some lovely firms. If you are going to have work done you’ll need to get a couple of estimates at least.’

‘Dominic said he’d sort all that out, if you can just give us some names of reliable people.’

Bella got out a pen and some paper and began writing things down.

‘So how have you been, dear?’ said Jane when Bella had handed her the names. ‘Anything exciting to tell me?’ She had an expectant look, and Bella realised that Dominic must have said something about her so-called engagement.

‘Well, now you come to mention it . . .’

‘Yes? Should I buy a hat?’

Bella relaxed and laughed. ‘Not yet, that’s for sure.’

‘So you are engaged, but not officially, that’s what Dominic said.’

‘Dominic’s right, but I wish he’d let me tell you myself.’ She sighed.

‘To be fair, he assumed I knew.’

‘Well, it’s very recent – in fact I’m not sure I am, really.’ Jane looked at her quizzically. ‘Nevil more or less announced that we were going to get married. He didn’t actually ask me in so many words. I haven’t said yes or no. But because I haven’t said no, I suppose I’ve agreed to it.’

Jane frowned. ‘You don’t look every enthusiastic, my dear. Surely most young women are excited at the prospect of getting married.’

Bella shrugged. ‘It’s put me into a bit of a whirl.’

Jane nodded, obligingly not asking more questions, possibly picking up that this was not a cheerful topic of conversation for Bella. ‘Did you know? I’m going to be eighty-five next week.’

‘Really?’ Bella was genuinely surprised. ‘I suppose it’s all the gardening that keeps you so fit, but I’d have put you in your early seventies.’

Jane had a timeless quality to her; she still wore the cotton dresses she would have adopted in her fifties and she had probably also had her chignon, white now, for a long time.

Jane smiled. ‘Well, thank you, but I do have to think about my position here, I think.’

‘Dominic’s been getting to you!’ said Bella instantly.

‘Really, he hasn’t. But it is a big house and I can’t manage the entire garden myself. I’ve let a large section go to grass. It would be better if this house had someone living in it who wanted a lot of garden – more garden than I can cope with.’

A thought came to Bella, but it would take so much tactful arranging that she mentally filed it under ‘good ideas but just too difficult’. ‘Well, don’t move until you absolutely have to. And you could always get help with the garden.’

Jane nodded. ‘I will when I find someone I can trust to do what I would have done myself. Aiden – your friend – is very good, but he’s more of a weeder than a planter.’

Bella nodded, resolving to ask around to see if the right person could be found. ‘So what are you going to do on your birthday?’

‘The family are taking me to a hotel for lunch,’ she said.

Bella regarded her friend thoughtfully. ‘You don’t look wildly enthusiastic about the prospect?’

Jane shook her head. ‘They’re all rather stuffy, my family. Some of them even call me “Cousin Jane”. And I suspect them of wanting me to move so they can get my money before I actually die. Dominic can’t come.’

‘We are hopeless, aren’t we? I’m not excited about my wedding and you’re not looking forward to your birthday. Tell you what, if you’re not sick of lunch after that, why don’t you come to me and Alice on Sunday? Alice is brilliant at Sunday lunch and I know she’d love to meet you. Hotels are lovely but home is the best place for a roast, I always think. They can’t seem to get the roast potatoes right in restaurants.’

Jane laughed. ‘I agree with you there, but although that sounds very nice I think you should ask your godmother first! You can’t invite strange people to lunch without asking her.’

Bella produced her phone. ‘I’ll text her. But I know she’d be delighted.’ Bella was fairly sure about this. Alice liked doing Sunday lunch, but when it was just the two of them they didn’t bother often. It would be lovely to have Jane over and spoil her a little. They could relax and focus on good food, and eat it companionably at the big kitchen table. Then, if the weather co-operated, they’d have tea in the garden.

Taking Alice’s assent for granted, Bella looked up at Jane. ‘I’ll pick you up at about twelve thirty?’

‘But you will ring and tell me if Alice even hints that it would all be too much, won’t you? I’d hate to put her out.’

‘Honestly, it won’t be any trouble and I know she’d love to have you. I’ll help her and clear up afterwards.’ She smiled. ‘You’re worth washing up a few greasy pans for.’

Jane chuckled, satisfied at last.

ALICE WAS PLEASED
when she got Bella’s text. Cooking a nice roast for a nice old lady was just the distraction she needed. It was a much more suitable occupation for her than obsessing over her phone and her email. But the fact that the text was from Bella and not Michael had caused a few moments’ disappointment. Then again they hadn’t really got into texting yet. They both preferred emails, which were longer and gave one more scope.

‘Just as well I cleared that end bed then,’ she said when Bella got home. ‘I wouldn’t like to have Jane Langley, famous gardener, to lunch with my own garden looking neglected.’ She was aware that her garden was in fact a bit neglected. She used to spend hours in it but not lately. It just wasn’t the focus of her life any more.

‘You don’t mind? Thank you so much,’ said Bella, giving Alice a hug. ‘I’ll go to the organic butcher and get a nice piece of – what do you think?’

‘Why don’t you see what he’s got? A leg of salt marsh lamb would be nice. I can still do Yorkshire puddings.’ She smiled. ‘I don’t suppose you fancy coming to the garden centre with me? Or are you working this Saturday? It would be easier for me to decide what to put in that flowerbed if there are two of us.’

‘No, I’m free. I’d love to come with you. And I’ll help you put the plants in. It’s so kind of you to agree to have Jane.’ She frowned suddenly. ‘Do you think I should invite Nevil?’

‘No,’ said Alice, not pausing to think about it. ‘Let’s just have a girly lunch. Nevil doesn’t care about gardens.’

‘Fair enough. I’ll tell him about it, and then he won’t want to come.’

The garden centre was huge and only partially dedicated to plants and garden accessories. However, it had an excellent café and Bella and Alice always liked to have an excuse to go there.

‘Let’s have lunch first,’ suggested Alice. ‘I’ll make better choices if I’ve eaten.’

Alice was enjoying her bowl of soup, discussing with Bella what sort of things she should put in her end bed, whether she should choose annuals for colour or herbs for a more long-lasting effect, when something caught her attention. It was Michael, sitting in the far corner of the room, and he was not alone.

She went hot and cold in rapid succession and then realised that it was a huge café and he was unlikely to spot her.

‘What’s the matter?’ asked Bella. ‘Broken a tooth on the wholemeal roll? You’ve gone a bit pale.’

Alice turned to Bella and shook her head. ‘Don’t turn round, whatever you do, but I’ve just spotted Michael.’

Bella’s eyes widened. ‘Oh my God! How can I not look! Tell me where he is and I’ll think of some way of getting a look at him.’

‘Right over in the corner. But he’s not alone.’ Alice was deliberately sounding calm but Bella’s hand shot across the table in sympathy.

‘You mean he’s with a woman?’

Alice swallowed. ‘Worse. Two women.’

To her credit, Bella was discreet. She dropped her serviette and then bent down to pick it up, looking round the restaurant as she did so. ‘Very far corner? Attractive man? With two very much younger women?’

‘That’s him. I think they might be his daughters.’

Bella nodded. ‘OK. So what do you want to do?’

‘I don’t want to see him. I mean I don’t want him to see me.’ Alice was certain about this.

‘Why not?’

Alice tried to find a rational explanation for her instinctive reaction. ‘For a start, I’m not dressed right, I haven’t got much make-up on and – well – it’s far too early for us to introduce our families to each other.’

She didn’t add that she was terrified of Michael’s daughters who, she knew, although only in their twenties, had high-powered jobs. She didn’t want to meet them until she was wearing supportive underwear and scientifically proven anti-wrinkle cream.

‘OK, so let’s not worry. We’ll finish our lunch and then just go into the garden section, get what you want and leave. This place is so huge we’ll be able to keep away from them.’ Bella paused. ‘You’re actually looking great, Alice. You look happy and relaxed, as if you feel you don’t need to try too hard.’

‘Thank you, darling, but I haven’t tried at all, which is why I don’t want to see him, or his scary daughters.’

‘They’ll love you!’ said Bella.

They ate quickly, Alice hoping to get what she needed for her garden before Michael and his party had finished lunch. ‘Thank goodness it’s self-service and we don’t have to wait for the bill,’ she said. ‘Have you finished?’

Bella swallowed her last mouthful. ‘I have now. Shall we go?’

Alice nodded.

She walked out of the café with her head turned away from Michael, hoping her back view was OK. Really, she told herself, she was far too old to ask ‘does my bum look big in this’ even though she was desperate to know.

Once they were in the garden part of the centre Alice felt better. Among all the Saturday hordes it was terribly unlikely they would see Michael and his girls again.

‘I think I’ll go for herbs,’ she said aloud. ‘I’ve got a bit fed up with doing bedding every year. Herbs last a lot longer and are less labour intensive.’

‘Oh!’ Bella seemed surprised. ‘I’ve never heard you want to do something in the garden that was less hard work. You’ve always seemed up for the “beautiful but difficult” option.’

Alice sighed. ‘I know. I think I just need something else in my life, apart from gardening.’

Bella gave her a teasing look, but to Alice’s relief, didn’t say, ‘Like a love interest.’

Alice was just leaning over to see if the lemon thyme at the back was in better fettle than the one at the front, when she heard Michael’s voice. Bella had wandered off and she was on her own. Carefully, she withdrew her foot from the flowerbed and stood upright. Then she picked up the lemon thyme and walked off towards Bella.

To her relief she heard Michael discussing roses, which were far away from the herbs. She grabbed Bella’s arm and hissed, ‘Time to go home.’

Bella didn’t flinch, allowing herself to be marched briskly between the aisles and straight to the checkout, not pausing to look at the tempting array of gifts and items no well-accessorised home should be without.

They were in the queue and Alice was hunting for her credit card when she heard her name.

‘Alice! I thought it was you! But you were walking out of the café so quickly I didn’t have time to check!’

‘Michael,’ she said weakly. ‘Fancy meeting you here.’ She stepped out of the queue.

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. ‘How are you? And who’s this? Don’t tell me. Bella.’ He put out his hand. ‘I hope it won’t make you nervous if I say that I’ve heard a lot about you.’

Bella laughed. ‘Well, I am a bit nervous but it’s obviously too late.’ She shook his hand but, to Alice’s relief, didn’t say she’d heard a lot about him, too.

‘So, Dad,’ said one of the young women who was hovering behind him. ‘Are you going to introduce us to your new’ – the slightest hesitation – ‘friends?’

‘Oh, of course, I’m so sorry. Alice, let me introduce you to my daughters, Hannah and Lucy.’

‘Hello,’ Bella said, but didn’t shake hands. These women, who looked very alike, didn’t seem very friendly, although why not, she couldn’t imagine. ‘And this is my god-daughter, Bella. She lives with me.’

‘Hi,’ said Bella. ‘What Alice means is I rent a couple of rooms from her.’

‘Well, as I said,’ Alice went on, sounding very slightly hysterical, to her own ears at least. ‘Fancy you being here. I thought you lived near Kemble.’

‘It is one of the largest garden centres in the area, it’s hardly surprising we’d come here,’ said either Hannah or Lucy.

‘Were you after anything particular?’ said Bella. ‘Alice is a bit of an expert if you need any advice.’