Page 19 of Best Summer Ever

‘Because men like Laurence don’t come along all that often.’

I couldn’t help thinking that was something to be grateful for.

‘I’m well aware of that,’ I said, unclenching my jaw.

‘Perhaps you’ll feel differently once the dust has settled,’ Dad suggested, sounding hopeful and making me tense up again.

I thought again of Nick’s summer fling idea. Maybe he was really on to something and I should take it up. A passionate and very public romance would get the message across, to Mum and Dad at least, that I’d moved on. Penny, however, would probably assign it to the rebound box, but that wouldn’t matter. If it proved to my parents that I was capable of carrying on with life post-Laurence, that would be a definite win.

‘Do you think that might be a possibility, Daisy?’ Dad asked, as I rubbed one calf against the other and ignored him. ‘Earth to Daisy Daydream,’ he then said more loudly, recalling another childhood nickname. ‘Do you think once the dust has settled—’

‘Absolutely not,’ I said vehemently, only just resisting the urge to scratch. ‘Now, if you don’t mind, Dad, I need to get on. I promised I’d go and see Nick this morning.’

It was a blunt departure, but bluntness would, I hoped, at some point work where treading lightly had failed.

‘So, what did you think of the cut-flower garden?’ Nick asked, when I found him arranging boxes in the barn that was used as the pick-your-own weighing station and after I had explained what I’d been up to ahead of seeking him out.

‘I didn’t get that far,’ I huffed, even though I’d actually avoided that part of the garden on purpose. ‘Dad came along and started banging on about Laurence and how he’s convinced that we’ll get back together once thedust has settled.’ I gave the final words air quotes and a sarcastic edge.

Nick looked annoyingly amused.

‘It’s not funny,’ I scowled. ‘Him and Mum are doing my head in.’

‘And you’ve only been back, what, a week?’

‘Four days,’ I corrected. ‘Just four days. I snapped at Dad, told him I’d promised I’d come and see you, then legged it down here.’

‘Don’t rope me into the situation,’ Nick said, grinning. ‘But as you’re here, you might as well make yourself useful.’

‘What did you have in mind?’

‘I’m about a dozen of the kiddies’ baskets short,’ he told me. ‘Would you mind going to look for them?’

‘I suppose I could,’ I said, sauntering out. ‘Anything’s got to be better than risking running into Dad again.’

‘Thanks. They could be anywhere.’

Abandoned baskets were a nuisance on the fruit farm and in need of regular rounding up. They were as difficult to keep track of as it was to work out how many kilograms of fruit were lost by theeat three, pay for one, fruit-picking brigade.

‘You’d better wear this,’ said Nick, tossing me a wide-brimmed straw hat from the collection left behind over the years. ‘It’s hot already.’

I thrust it on my head.

‘It is,’ I agreed. ‘I wonder how Penny’s getting on. I messaged her earlier, but didn’t get a reply.’

I knew the end of term was always hectic and hoped that we’d see more of each other after the school year ended, but knowing now that she was going to be working in the beach café all hours, I wasn’t sure how we were going to manage it. I was catching up nicely with Nick, but I wanted Pen back in my life properly too, so we’d have to find a way.

‘She was going in extra early to get the course set up, so you probably missed her.’

‘That school will be lost without her if she does decide to leave,’ I mused.

‘As lost as my baskets,’ Nick said pointedly.

‘All right, all right,’ I said, putting up my hands. ‘I’m going.’

Nick was right about the temperature. It had risen noticeably during the brief time we had been chatting and by the time I’d found eight of the missing baskets, it was becoming uncomfortable.

A few people had arrived and were keenly filling the larger punnets and baskets with the juicy red strawberries the farm was known for. I’d eaten a couple myself, but hadn’t gone overboard. I had no intention of eating into the fruit farm profits.

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