‘Morning,’ I said, running a hand over my hair and sitting down at the table. The smell of cooking made me feel funny, but I tried not to show it. ‘Lovely day, isn’t it?’
‘Hello, dear. Did you sleep well last night?’ Rose put some sausages and bacon onto a plate then turned to look at me.
‘Yeah, it was great!’ I knew I was lying, but it was necessary in this situation. I didn’t want to explain that, while the bed had been lovely, I’d been awake most of the night worrying about being in the same village as my long-lost biological father. To avoid anything accidentally slipping out, I turned to my phone and the stack of unread emails that had to be dealt with. Business was the solution to every life problem, after all. If I was working towards my goals, everything would be OK.
Or it would be if there were any Wi-Fi.
‘Is there a Wi-Fi hotspot anywhere round here?’ I asked, trying not to let my frustration seep into my tone. ‘I need to get work done while I’m here.’
Rose shook her head. ‘I’m afraid not, dear. The signal’s always been a bit patchy round these parts, so we just don’t bother with it in the B&B. You’ve got broadband at your place, haven’t you, Noah?’
Some colour drained away from his face. ‘Yeah, but she needs to be here, doesn’t she? She won’t want to schlep up to my cottage to use the internet.’
‘Actually, that sounds ideal,’ I replied. ‘If you don’t mind, that is? She can work anywhere, after all.’
He didn’t say anything and went back to tending the sizzling pans in front of him.
‘It’s too early to be working anyway,’ Rose said. ‘You haven’t even had breakfast yet; what do you fancy? Noah does a lovely full English.’
‘Do you have any kale or avocado? A green smoothie would be amazing.’
They both turned to look at me, blank expressions on their faces like I’d spoken in fluent Swahili.
‘Huh,’ said Noah, ‘I didn’t think anybody actually drank those! Looks like chemical waste, if you ask me.’
‘I didn’t.’ I kept my voice low, but judging by the look he shot me, not low enough.
‘Oh, I’m afraid I don’t have either of those things.’ Rose wrung her hands with worry. ‘I… is there anything else I can get you?’
I shook my head and got up from the table. ‘Nah, I don’t really do breakfast. Thanks, anyway. I’d better get going. I’ve got loads of work to do today.’
Rose looked utterly crestfallen and I felt a stab of remorse in my chest. ‘OK, if you’re sure. I’ll get some in for you for breakfast tomorrow. Noah, watch this pan while I go and see if we’ve got any maple syrup for that Canadian couple in room two.’
I smiled. ‘That’d be great, thanks!’
As I left, Noah’s voice piped up. ‘Next she’ll be asking for bloody quinoa salad on a bed of pearl barley or something.’
‘There’s nothing wrong with liking healthy food, you know. You are what you eat and all that jazz,’ I replied.
He left the pan of bacon he was tending to and came over to me. ‘So, you’re some unidentifiable substance we’ve never heard of and don’t want in our kitchen?’
Oh great, I thought, the verbal sparring was starting again. There was no way I was letting him win, though.
‘And you’re something that might be popular but still liable to cause heart attacks?’
‘I’ll miss this back-and-forth when you go back home,’ he shot back. ‘When is that exactly?’
‘Not soon enough for my liking!’
Our latest run-in was interrupted by Rose gleefully announcing she’d found the maple syrup and the Canadian couple bursting into the kitchen, full of the joys of summer.
‘Till next time,’ I said, throwing him a sly smile over my shoulder.
*
As my stomach gurgled and lurched thanks to no green smoothie, I found a shred of phone signal to phone Paul with an update on Sunflower Cottage. You had to watch with Paul. He had a reputation for being slippery and conveniently forgetting things. I also needed a distraction to stop me thinking about the fact my biological dad was just a few feet away, living his life, with no clue I was about to show up on his doorstep.
‘It’s practically in the bag,’ I said after my belly groaned again. ‘Owner’s really keen to sell; she just needs a bit more time to think it over. Also, she called the lovely Tara an incompetent fool. Great decision giving her that promotion!’
I could almost hear the cogs of Paul’s oily little mind turning as he tried to formulate a smooth and winning response. ‘Just think of when you’ve got business development executive after your name on your business card and running your own team. Tara might’ve had an… unfair advantage, shall we say, but you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you earned it.’
I rolled my eyes. ‘Yeah that’s a real comfort right now; I’m two hundred miles away from home, there are no decent coffee shops or sushi bars for miles and I’m standing on a bloody chair to get mobile phone reception. Oh, and the town arsehole already hates me!’
‘You’ll win him round; you always do.’ Paul’s voice was silky and soothing. He’d used the same tone with countless disgruntled clients over the years and I could see why it worked. ‘And even if you don’t, who cares? It’s a tiny little village in the middle of nowhere that you’ll never have to visit again.’
I sighed as I tried to keep my balance on the chair. ‘You’re right. It’s only a month and then I’ll never have to see anyone here ever again. Doesn’t sound so bad when you put it like that.’
‘That’s the spirit! Just think of coming back to civilisation and that should get you through. Let me know when you’ve definitely got Sunflower Cottage in the bag. It’s a big one, Emily, and I know you can do it. If anyone can get her to sign on the dotted line, it’s you.’
*
I was jiggling the laptop around, trying to find even a wisp of a Wi-Fi connection, when Rose came in, proffering tea and scones.
‘I felt so awful I didn’t have the ingredients to make your smoothie earlier, so I thought you might like these.’
‘Oh thanks, that’s lovely!’ I put my laptop aside and took the cup and plate from her.
I expected her to leave, but she sat herself down on the edge of the bed. The frame groaned a little under her weight.
‘You seem like a busy young woman.’ She gestured to the laptop with an uncertain smile. ‘All these gadgets you have with you! I wouldn’t know where to begin with them.’
‘They’re all part of my job.’ I sipped my tea and took a bite of my scone. ‘Don’t know where I’d be without them!’
‘Noah’s always fiddling with that tablet computer of his… what’s it called, an iPad? I don’t bother with them; Sunflower Cottage doesn’t even have one of those website thingymabobs. I think sometimes people need to put the technology down and have a look at their surroundings. Like now, for instance: you’re in one of the most beautiful parts of Yorkshire and you’re stuck inside working! Still, I suppose this place is a million miles away from what you’re used to, isn’t it? Which part of Scotland are you from?’
I opened my mouth to respond, feeling a little awkward about answering a question about myself. The answer was Glasgow, but was it? I’d already found out my dad was a Yorkshireman called Derek; maybe my mum was really a Highland princess like Merida from Brave?
I shook my head to displace the thoughts. ‘I…