Page 51 of Summer at the Château
‘The answer to both those questions is no. You’ll see her soon though, I promise.’
‘Can I have a puppy for my birthday?’ Ferdie asked.
Justine sighed. ‘I’m thinking about it. But I don’t think there are any puppies available at the moment.’
‘Lola’s mummy knows a farmer who has some. You could ask her.’
‘I could, I even might, if you stop talking and eat your pizza.’
Charlie poured Ferdie some water before picking up the rosé bottle and offering it to Gwen and Justine, both of whom shook their heads. ‘You won’t have heard about Pixie’s plans for this place,’ Charlie said. ‘She’s decided not to sell but to run it as a retreat and asked if I’d like to be a partner and to be in charge of the cooking.’
‘That’s wonderful news. You get to cook just like you wanted,’ Justine said. ‘I don’t suppose she’s said anything about me staying on in the cottage, has she? She did say Ferdie and I could stay and not to worry about moving out for now, but I can’t help worrying.’
33
‘There you go, Ferdie, the beach. Now all we need to do is find you a bucket and spade,’ Charlie said as the three of them walked along the esplanade at Plage Trez, the main beach at Bénodet down on the south coast of Finistère on Sunday afternoon. ‘And this looks like just the place,’ he added, stopping by a shop with a display of beach paraphernalia overflowing onto the pavement.
With Ferdie happily carrying his new bucket and spade, they wandered along the beach to find a less crowded spot, where Justine spread out the rug she’d brought for them to sit on.
Time passed quickly for the next hour or two as the three of them paddled in the sea, built an impressive sandcastle, decorated it with seashells and ate the crisps and drank the lemonade Justine had brought. It was gone five o’clock when they packed everything away, shook the sand off their feet and began to head back to the car, Charlie carrying a tired Ferdie.
Once Ferdie was strapped in his car seat safely and they’d joined the traffic heading for the main road, Charlie glanced at Justine. ‘I enjoyed this afternoon. Ferdie’s a great kid.’
Justine glanced behind and smiled. ‘He’s asleep already. I can’t thank you enough for this afternoon. You’re very good with him.’ Her phone pinged, indicating a text message, and she pulled it out of her bag where she’d stuffed it. ‘Oh. Not sure whether that’s a good thing or not.’ She sighed and closed her phone. ‘You know how desperate Ferdie is for a dog?’ Justine lowered her voice in case Ferdie wasn’t in a deep sleep. ‘I asked Carole, my friend, to find out if the farmer she knew still had any puppies left. Secretly, I was hoping the answer would be no and that would be the end of it, but apparently there is one female pup left. It was the runt of the litter, but the farmer’s wife has brought her on and she’s ready for a new home. It’s mine if I want it.’
‘Coming from a farm I’m guessing it’s a collie?’
Justine nodded. ‘Which coincidentally is my favourite breed, so you can see I’m torn.’
Charlie glanced in his rear-view mirror, checking that Ferdie was asleep. ‘May I give it to him for his birthday? I promise to help him train her and look after her. And we can all go on walks together.’
‘It’s expensive, Charlie. And what happens if Pixie tells me I still have to move out of the cottage.’
‘That’s not going to happen,’ Charlie said confidently.
‘You don’t know that.’
‘I know my Aunt Pixie and I’d place money on the fact that she isn’t about to turn away a blood relative of her dead husband whom she adored. She’ll also want the chance to be a grandma to Ferdie.’
‘I wish I had your confidence. How was she when you talked to her?’
‘Angry with Frank, which I suppose was only natural, and desperate to know who your mother is, which again is only natural.’
‘And I’ve promised my mum I won’t say. So stalemate.’
‘Do you think your mum will tell Pixie herself now Pixie knows who you are?’
Justine was silent for several seconds. ‘The thing is I haven’t told her yet. It’s not something I feel I can tell her over the phone. I know she’ll be absolutely furious with me. I’ll tell her on our next visit. But I hope you’re right about Pixie not asking me to leave the cottage, I really love living there.’
‘I am right, so stop worrying. So, how about it? Can I buy the puppy for Ferdie’s birthday?’
‘No. I can’t let you do that. It’s far too much for you to spend on a child you barely know.’
‘A child I am already very fond of,’ Charlie said. ‘And I hope to get to know him and his mum better, if she’ll let me.’ He gave her a quick, hopeful glance.
Justine stared straight ahead and didn’t answer immediately. Her resolve to keep her friendship with Charlie at arm’s-length was disintegrating rapidly the more time she spent with him. This afternoon had been lovely and down on the beach she’d found herself wishing that just maybe she and Charlie could become a couple. After that confession it was clear that he was thinking that way too.
‘We could go halves if you like?’ she offered.
