Page 38 of A Forever Home at Honey Bee Croft

‘Mary said you have a couple of Border collies too.’

‘Yes, Bear and Harley are out with Barney. We’ve got horses and ponies, Herdwick and Swaledale sheep, pigs, goats, hens, rabbits, guinea pigs and tortoises.’

‘That’s a lot of animals.’

‘The rabbits, guinea pigs and tortoises are fairly new – part of a petting farm experience which Barney’s mum runs with my best friend, Zara. It’s only open for school groups at the moment, but the hope is to expand it when the farm shop opens and we have more footfall.’

As I followed her into the farmhouse, pausing to give Radley a stroke on the way, I told her about visiting Saltersbeck Farm with Dad when I was young and how the hives were still kept there.

‘Funnily enough, Barney and I were talking about beehives the other day. Neither of us have our sights set on becoming beekeepers – more than enough here to keep us busy – but we have some space and wondered if a local beekeeper might like to put some hives on it. Assuming it’s suitable land, that is. Not sure what’s needed.’

‘I can take a look if you like – maybe one day later in the week if you have time.’

‘That would be great. Saves us messing anybody about if the land isn’t suitable. How about first thing tomorrow morning? I can show you the field, introduce you to Barney and give you a quick tour if you like.’

‘Name the time and I’ll be here.’

That night, I propped myself up in bed, gazing at the stunning dress Amber had not just loaned me for Saturday night buthad actually given to me. I’d seen the designer label on it and protested that it was far too much, but she claimed it had been an impulse purchase which she’d never wear because the burnt-orange colour was too close a match to her hair and made her look wiped out. The lace-covered dress was one shouldered with a high leg slit and diamante detailing round the waist and had to be the most beautiful, elegant item of clothing I’d ever worn.

I felt a lot more comfortable about going to the wedding now that I’d spent time with Amber and would meet Barney in the morning. As I’d tried on dresses, she’d given me the lowdown on her wedding party. I’d done a double-take when she said she had eight bridesmaids. Imagine having that many family members and friends to ask. When I’d married Phil, my only bridesmaids had been Shauna and Jo – my best friends from school and university respectively – and neither of them were in my life anymore. Shauna had got together with Bertie at our wedding and, when their relationship ended badly a year later, she’d expected me to take her side and cut him out of my life. How was I supposed to do that when he was my long-term friend and my brother-in-law? So Shauna cut me out of her life instead. Without her friendship, Jo and I became even closer. We didn’t see much of each other as she lived in Portsmouth but we spoke regularly. She was the first person I called when Mum got her MND diagnosis and she was so supportive as I cried down the phone, promising me she’d be there for me every step of the way. But she wasn’t. She never returned my calls after that and eventually I stopped trying. Looking back, they’d both been very needy, expecting me to be there for them but not reciprocating that. True friendship had to be two-way – there for each other through the good times and the bad.

If I lived near Bumblebee Barn, I could imagine becoming friends with Amber and her being a proper friend. She was one of the most genuine people I’d ever met. I could imagine beingthe Bumblebee Barn beekeeper and spending my days making Honey Bee Hugs products. But I didn’t live locally. My life was in Gloucestershire near Dad and to wish it was anything different was to wish for the one heartbreaking event which I knew was coming but was already dreading.

14

POPPY

I was up early the following morning to drive over to Bumblebee Barn, but I wasn’t feeling particularly fresh after another nightmare involving Damon. In it, I’d accepted an invitation for coffee but, when I tried to leave, I couldn’t because I was glued to the chair and the chair was bolted to the floor. I implored my fellow café-goers to help me but they were all shrouded in cloaks and, when they turned and lowered their hoods, they were all Damon. I woke up pouring with sweat and had to go downstairs to make a calming hot chocolate, just like Mum used to make for me when I was a child and had bad dreams.

I knew exactly why Damon had infiltrated my dreams – because Wilf had messaged last night to say Damon had been at Dove Cottage yet again because he’d thought Wilf was lying to him about me being on holiday. Wilf had assured me that he hadn’t given Damon the slightest indication as to where I’d gone, refusing to even confirm whether it was in the UK or abroad.

On a more positive note, I’d had a message from Marnie assuring me that Dad was as well as could be expected and there’d been no recentmidnight meanderings. She’d included a lovely candid photo of him in the residents’ lounge watchingthe birds with Poppy the bear sitting on his knee on top of his fiddle cushion. My phone lockscreen photo was the one taken of us together at his ninetieth birthday and the wallpaper was the one of just him, but I changed it to the photo Marnie had just sent, loving how relaxed and content he looked. He wasn’t the only one. It had been strange not seeing Dad this week, but I was conscious how much better I felt in myself for not going to The Larks every day, building up false hope that he’d know who I was and dealing with the disappointment when he didn’t. When I returned to Winchcote, I would cut back on my visits. The guilt would nudge at me no matter what Marnie said, but it would be so much better for my mental health.

It was getting lighter as I drove the short distance to Bumblebee Barn. Amber was in the farmyard topping up the water bowls for the dogs and cats.

‘Good morning!’ she called as I opened the car door. ‘Early enough for you?’

‘It’s fine. I’m usually up by six.’

Radley appeared from the barn and curled round my legs.

‘He likes you,’ she said as I bent down to stroke him, and he wiggled his head to give me better access to scratch his ears.

‘It’s mutual. I’ve never had a cat, but I’ve always loved them.’

Radley had such a handsome face and his grey and black tabby markings were just like on one of the cats Cuddles & Paws had taken to Dad’s ninetieth. Animals were such great company and the thought fleetingly crossed my mind that maybe I should get a cat, but I swiftly dismissed it. I didn’t have the time to settle it in.

‘It’s not light enough to see the field properly yet,’ Amber said. ‘How about a tour round the farmyard first?’

‘Sounds good to me.’

‘This is the garage,’ Amber said, indicating the barn Radley had emerged from. ‘We keep the quad bikes and main tractor inhere and it’s used as a workshop. The long building you can just see beyond that is Events Barn. It was a dairy shed back in the day but we don’t have cows anymore. Barney’s mum, Natasha, runs an events management business and Zara works for her. They keep the stock and equipment in there.’

I remembered the name from yesterday – Amber’s best friend and chief bridesmaid on Saturday.

Amber led me in a diagonal line across the farmyard. There was another barn on the left which she told me they called ‘garage two’ as it held more farm vehicles and equipment. On the left beyond the farmhouse was a copse. A wide track circled round it before opening out onto a second large yard with buildings on three sides. Amber pointed to the first building on the left. ‘This will be our farm shop. We’ve only just had permission to convert it into retail space and add a second floor. The initial idea is to have locally sourced food downstairs, including food from our farm, of course. Upstairs will be gifts – probably a combination of local crafts and popular brands, but Zara’s still working on that. She’ll eventually step away from the petting zoo and the events and take over as the farm shop manager. She’s the most organised person I’ve ever met, so she’ll have the place running like clockwork.’

‘You’re not going to be running the shop?’

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