Page 37 of A Forever Home at Honey Bee Croft

‘She looked a little shocked, but she pointed me in the direction of the toilets and I scuttled off. I thought I’d have to spend the rest of my life hiding from her, but she sidled up to me later that evening and said,I have the same problem with Prosecco, darling, which is why I only ever drink champers. With the Prosecco, I’m never off the potty!’

‘She didn’t!’

‘She absolutely did and it broke the ice. We’re great friends now and she’s coming to the wedding.’

My eyes widened. ‘I’m even more nervous now.’

‘Don’t be. She’s really approachable. There are some pretentiousdo you know who I am?types out there but they’re not our sort of people. Everyone who’s coming is genuine and lovely. You’ll have a great time.’

I gasped as it suddenly struck me that I had nothing suitable to wear. I’d only brought casual clothes and loungewear with me. I knew the closest city was York, but I really didn’t have time to make that trip. Reddfield – the nearest town – hadn’t looked very big on the map so didn’t necessarily have any clothes shops.

‘Everything okay?’ Amber asked, looking at me with concern.

‘I’d love to come – thank you – but I’ve just realised I’ve got nothing with me to wear. Where are the nearest clothes shops?’

‘I can lend you something if you like. You look about the same size as me.’

Scarcely able to believe this was happening, we exchanged sizes. At five foot eight, I was an inch shorter than Amber and we were the same dress size so borrowing something to wear was an option, but I had small feet for my height – only a size five compared to Amber’s seven – so shoes weren’t.

‘Why don’t you come over to the farm with me now?’ she suggested. ‘We can see if I have anything you like. I won’t be offended if you don’t share the same taste as me.’

‘I’d love to, but are you sure? It’s bad enough that I’m gatecrashing your wedding without stealing your clothes too.’

Amber laughed. ‘It’ll be my pleasure. I’ve got a wardrobe full of clothes bought for events and awards and I can’t see myself wearing any of them again now that I’ve left that world behind.’

‘You’re not a TV producer anymore?’

‘No. I used to love all the travel but, after I met Barney, it got progressively harder to be away from him, the farm and the friends I’d made here. I finished filming a docuseries last spring –The Wildlife Rescuers– and my finalCountryside Calendarin the summer.’

‘I hadn’t realised. What are you doing now?’

‘All sorts. Obviously, there’s been the wedding to plan, but I’m a guest tutor on a media studies course at the local tech, I volunteer at Hedgehog Hollow – the rescue centre where most ofThe Wildlife Rescuerswas filmed – and I help out at the farm. I loved being a producer, but I hadn’t realised how shattered I was until I let it go. It’s been so good having time to breathe again.’

‘Sounds amazing.’ And exactly what I’d come here for.

Amber finished her drink and stood up. ‘I’m conscious you have work to do, so let’s go to the farm now. We’ll go in my car and I’ll drop you off after as I’ve got a few errands to run.’

I grabbed my phone and jacket and followed Amber to her car.

‘Tell me more about your beeswax products,’ she said as we set off. ‘What did you make?’

‘It was a skincare range. I started off simple with lip balms and soap and moved on to face cream and body lotion, but there’s so much potential if you have enough bees, the right equipment, and enough time and space to make it all. I loved experimenting.’

‘What was your brand name?’

‘Honey Bee Hugs.’

‘Aw, that’s so cute. We’re about to convert one of the barns into a farm shop and that’s exactly the sort of product we’re hoping to stock. If you ever pick things up again, let me know. I couldn’t promise anything because we ideally want to source our stock locally, but if there’s nothing available locally then it’s not out of the question to consider products from further afield.’

My heart leapt and I felt a fizz of excitement. I’d love to resurrect Honey Bee Hugs. To have a farm shop in a beautiful area like this stock my products would be such a dream. But my heart sank because the reality was that itwasexactly that – a dream. I couldn’t even think about it while Dad was ill and I was struggling to keep all those plates spinning.

‘I don’t know if I’ll pick it up again. I love it so much, but…’

‘But it’s difficult to think about while your dad’s ill?’ she suggested when I tailed off. ‘I can understand that. Here we are!’

She pulled off the main road by a white wooden sign with the nameBumblebee Barnon it and a round bumblebee on a lavender stem. The gently rising track was flanked by crops and then it dipped down to reveal the farmhouse and several outbuildings. A few hens were strutting across the farmyard and a grey and black tabby ran in front of the car and leapt onto the bonnet of a parked Land Rover.

‘That’s Radley,’ Amber said. ‘Pumpkin will be lurking nearby too. She’s a ginger tabby.’

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