Page 84 of Best Summer Ever

I was interested to note that my moving day had become a family event now. Mum was itching to get the curtains and any other removable fabrics washed and Dad had offered to help manoeuvre any furniture I wanted shifting. The pair were playing to their strengths and I knew that by the end of the day, I would be feeling immensely grateful that they had been willing to get stuck in and see me settled.

‘No,’ I told Dad. ‘The opposite, actually. I haven’t told him or Penny about my change of abode or the new job yet and I’m hoping to keep it a surprise. I’ve invited them both here this evening and will walk them down to the summerhouse when they get here.’

‘Penny especially will be so excited,’ said Mum. ‘I’m sure she must be feeling guilty about you giving up your job in the pub to work in the café for just four days.’

‘I daresay you’re right,’ I agreed. ‘So, Mum’s the word, okay?’

‘I won’t say anything,’ said Dad.

‘Me neither,’ said Mum. ‘And I’ll tell Algy to keep it under his hat too.’

‘Thanks, Mum.’ I nodded. ‘I’d appreciate that. I was hoping to talk to him today, but I don’t think there’ll be time.’

In the early hours, I had started making notes covering how I thought it would be best to launch the cut-flower enterprise so late in the growing season. I was extremely excited about the prospect of creating an Insta account and thought that selling some sample bunches and arrangements of flowers at the fruit farm shop might encourage folk to come to the gardenand buy more. I would have to talk to Dad about the public access aspect too. There might be areas he wanted to fence off. And what about the estate’s public liability insurance? Did that cover the garden?

There was so much to think about, but just for that day, my focus was on the summerhouse, making it comfortable and clean and feeling like home. That said, I did give plenty of attention to the huge plate of breakfast Mum was dishing up first.

‘I think that was your phone, Daisy,’ said Mum, giving it a nod as I got stuck into the crispy bacon and perfectly poached egg.

‘I’ll check it when I’ve finished eating,’ I said, knowing it would be Josh.

I had invited him to join Penny, Nick and me that evening and I’d been thrilled when he said yes. Penny was going to pick him up, as she lived literally just a few doors away from where he was staying and I was looking forward to finding out what Josh, as well as my friends, thought about my change in circumstances. I might even be able to tempt my summer delight to stay the night and, as a result, repay some of the hospitality he’d shown me during the last few weeks.

I hadn’t mentioned to Mum and Dad that I’d invited him because after the excitement of moving day the last thing I was going to want was a bigmeet the parentsmoment. I was pinning my hopes on sneaking Josh down to the summerhouse and putting that off for another day.

‘Well,’ said Dad, once we’d opened all of the summerhouse windows and doors and he had pushed a wheelbarrow full of curtains and cushion and chair covers up to the manor forMum to work her magic on, ‘it could be a lot worse given the amount of time the place has been shut up, but I’d still like to know what that whiff is.’

‘Um,’ I said, looking about, but finding I was still none the wiser as to what the rather pungent smell might be, ‘me too. I was hoping it would have started to fade a bit now we’ve got the air flowing through.’

I had initially wondered if it might have been the fridge, but that had been left turned off and with the door slightly ajar so was fine. Whatever it was had certainly ramped up since Algy and I had briefly looked in before.

‘What’s this now?’ Dad frowned, looking along the path which he’d kindly and ruthlessly cut back so that the formerly encroaching nettles weren’t quite so deadly.

I looked outside and was surprised to find two men shuffling along the narrow path with what looked very much like a brand-new mattress between them.

‘Where do you want it?’ the one at the front gasped when he reached the summerhouse veranda.

‘Oh,’ I said, looking at Dad who shrugged. ‘I’m not sure…’

‘Please tell me you do want it,’ the man tutted. ‘It was a long way, carrying it from the van and Mr Alford said there’s one here that needs taking away too. Assuming we’ve got the right place, that is.’

‘It’s a moving in gift from Algy.’ Dad smiled. ‘The bedroom’s this way.’

The two men followed him inside and I looked up at the mezzanine, wondering how they were going to perform the tricky swap.

‘Looks like you’ve had company,’ said the other, slightlyshorter, man who had been sent up the stairs to retrieve the old mattress. ‘Unless you’ve been sleeping on this…’

His face flushed red and I headed up the stairs.

‘No,’ I said, looking at the mucky state of the mattress. ‘No one’s been sleeping here and I hadn’t realised the bed was like this.’

‘I’m not sure we should take it, he said, scratching the back of his head. ‘I’m not sure we should put it in the van given the state it’s in.’

‘Have you been paid to?’ Dad asked gruffly.

‘Well, yes—’

‘In that case,’ I suggested with a nod to the new mattress, ‘wrap it in the plastic that’s covering that one before you load it up. Most of this mess will likely fall off as you carry it back through the garden anyway.’

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