Page 22 of Sunny Skies and Summer Kisses

Caro turned to her and grinned. ‘I thought you’d like it, darling,’ she said as she made her way up a set of narrow stairs that gave access to a space above. ‘And there’s plenty of room up here for storage.’

When they were back downstairs, Caro asked, ‘So, what do you think?’

Anoushka gazed around her, a wide smile on her face. ‘I think it’s absolutely perfect.’

Caro clapped her hands together. ‘Oh, that’s wonderful!’

‘And you’re sure you don’t mind me installing a sprung floor and sound-proofing? Oh, and mirrors along the far walls in the two bigger rooms as well as ballet barres?’ Her heart was thudding excitedly.

‘Not at all, darling. I trust you; you’re free to do whatever you need.’

‘Thank you.’ Anoushka thought she would burst with happiness. When she’d discussed Caro’s proposition with her family the previous evening, her dad had told her if the building proved suitable, he’d crack on with the flooring and soundproofing straightaway, telling her Jimby had offered his services whenever they were needed too. They’d have the place done in no time. There was only one thing that could put the dampeners on the project.

‘And how much would the rent be?” Anoushka asked. She held her breath, hoping with all her might Caro wouldn’t come out with an extortionate amount that would be way out of her price range.

‘Ah, well, as the initial idea behind renovating these buildings was to support local businesses, we decided early on to keep our rents reasonable.’

Anoushka’s heart pinged with happiness when Caro named an amount that would be easily affordable. ‘That’s great, and how soon could I have the key?’ Anoushka asked, secretly hoping there wouldn’t be months to wait.

‘I’ll get onto my solicitor right away; get the agreement drawn up. Could be all done by the end of next week.’

‘Oh wow! That’d be brilliant.’ Excitement bubbled up inside her, she didn’t think her smile could get any wider.

Her dreams were about to become a reality.

They headed out into the sunshine. Caro reached into her bag for her sunglasses, glancing across at Anoushka, her face suddenly serious. ‘Would you mind if I say something?’

‘No, not at all.’ Anoushka’s brow creased into a frown. She wondered where this was going, hoping it wasn’t going to be something that would affect her plans for the dance studio.

‘Running the risk of sounding like I’m sticking my nose where it’s not wanted, I’m going to dive right in and say that Gabe’s a really decent guy.’ She held Anoushka’s gaze, smiling kindly.

‘Oh… um… yes, I agree, he is.’Not Lady Caro as well now! Please, spare me.

‘And you’ve utterly stolen his heart. Sim and I have never seen him like this before.’ She held up her hands in a placatory gesture. ‘I know it’s none of my business, and I also know you’ve had a horrid time of it recently, but if I could just say one thing, it would be to ask that you, please, don’t close off your heart to him forever. Maybe, when you’re in a better place for a relationship, you might be able to think of Gabe in a romantic way.’ Caro paused and rolled her eyes. She laughed and said, ‘Sorry, that came out hideously cringe-worthy and not at all how I wanted it to sound. Ughh! What I meant to say was… well, Gabe’s a decent guy who thinks the world of you… and maybe take with a pinch of salt everything you read about him in the media dating lots of women; it’s really not true, but I suppose it’s newsworthy.’

Anoushka was utterly mortified. Why did Caro have to go and do that? ‘Oh, erm… I agree, Gabe’s a really nice guy, but I’m not ready for another relationship and don’t think I will be for foreseeable future. I want to give the dance school my full attention; I’d rather not have any distractions.’ She could feel her cheeks blazing.

Caro gave her a small, albeit warm, smile. ‘I totally understand – and my apologies again for mentioning it. I still think it’s a shame though; you’d be perfect together.’

Just then, a delivery van pulled into the courtyard. Anoushka was grateful for the distraction, saving her from having to respond. They watched with interest as the driver heaved several large boxes onto a sack-barrow, struggling over the gravel to get to one of the buildings.

‘Righty-ho, darling,’ said Caro, turning back to her. ‘I’ll head home and get on to my solicitor right away, set the ball rolling.’

‘That’s great, thank you. I really appreciate this.’

‘Not at all. I hope it all works out fabulously for you.’ She delivered a couple of kisses to Anoushka’s cheeks. ‘I’ll be in touch.’ With that, she strode off over to her gleaming sports car.

Anoushka watched it disappear through the huge, stone gateposts, her excitement mingling with the feelings Caro had stirred up about Gabe. Truth be told, if it hadn’t been for him mentioning her plight to Caro, she wouldn’t be in the position of having such a fantastic location for her dance school. For that she would be eternally grateful. But it didn’t mean that she should feel obliged to go on a date with him. She needed to focus on getting the studio set up, and all that went with it, no matter how much of a great guy everyone seemed keen on telling her he was.

She turned and took another look at the building, its buttery yellow bricks, glowing in the sunshine. A shiver of delight ran through her. She could hardly believe her dream was coming tangibly close to becoming a reality.

15

Sunday morning found Anoushka sitting in the kitchen of Oak Tree Farm, chatting away with Kitty and Molly and Vi who’d popped in for a catch up. Molly was in the middle of entertaining them with how she’d stopped Camm’s snoring the previous evening using a method that sounded more akin to mediaeval torture.

‘I’m scared to think where this is going. Sounds like he’s in serious danger of losing body parts,’ said Vi. She looked as glamorous as always in her trademark fifties-style dress and sculpted aubergine-coloured waves.

‘You’ve no idea how close he came,’ said Molly, feigning a sinister tone, making everyone laugh.

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