Page 22 of A French Inheritance
The good pieces turned out to be classic designer wear that Giselle had collected down the years, that both Jeannie and Briony eyed appreciatively. A Jaeger coat, two Hermès scarves, a black evening dress and a red one in a similar style both from Ralph Lauren, a long-sleeved white shirt, and a Chanel suit in the pale-coloured tweed material Coco Chanel was famous for. Clothes that would never go out of fashion and were of such good quality they were unlikely to wear out either.
‘Granny loved dressing up for special occasions,’ Jeannie said. ‘Lunch or dinner at the Cannes Carlton was always an excuse.’
‘How about we keep these rather than take them to the charity shop,’ Briony said, looking at her mother. ‘We could share these – use them on special occasions ourselves. They’re such classic designs. We could each have a scarf to wear any time.’
‘Let’s do that.’ Jeannie hung the designer garments back in the wardrobe. ‘I think Granny would approve.’ She reached up and took a box off the top shelf of the wardrobe and placed it on the bed before taking off the lid. ‘Not sure what’s in here. Oh, it’s a handbag.’
Briony stared at the bag Jeannie was carefully taking out of a protective cover – a scarlet Longchamp leather tote. ‘Ooh, I love this,’ she said. ‘It’s beautiful.’
‘I guess that’s not going to the charity shop either,’ Jeannie said with a smile.
‘Definitely not,’ Briony said. ‘This has my name written on it – unless you would like it?’
Jeannie shook her head. ‘It’s more your style than mine and I have a feeling that Granny bought it with your birthday in mind.’
Briony sniffed in an effort not to cry. ‘Best birthday present ever. I’ll look after it, but I definitely intend to use it on a regular basis.’
The chest of drawers had a few jumpers and blouses folded up neatly that Jeannie decided could go to the charity shop. ‘Right, at least we’ve made a start. Which scarf would you like? I’m going to wear mine today.’ She held both the scarves out to Briony.
‘You choose your favourite,’ Briony said. ‘I’m happy with either.’
An hour later, they locked the cottage door and made for the gate to walk up the track at the edge of the field to the farm.
‘What a lovely setting for lunch,’ Jeannie said as Lucy and Adam greeted them. She held out the bottle of red wine that she and Briony had chosen to bring as a small thank you. The table on the terrace under the wisteria-covered loggia at the back of the farmhouse had been covered with a pretty tablecloth with a jug of daffodils placed in the middle. ‘You two have done amazing things to this place in such a short amount of time.’
‘I had strict instructions from Lucy that the house had to be habitable within as short a time as possible, otherwise she’d leave me,’ Adam said, smiling as he handed them both a glass of champagne. ‘She’s always maintained that one can put up with living on a building site so long as there is a functioning kitchen, a bathroom with lots of hot running water and a bed to collapse into at the end of long working days.’
‘I was right too,’ Lucy said, raising her glass. ‘Santé. It’s lovely to have you both here.’
Elliot looked at Jeannie and Briony and smiled. ‘Hi. Nice to see you.’
A couple of moments later, Lucy disappeared into the kitchen, brushing away any offers of help, and Jeannie was talking to Adam about how different the farm had been the first time she’d seen it nearly forty years ago. ‘I always felt a little sad when we visited because it just got sadder and sadder down the years. You’ve really done something to be proud of pulling it back from the brink.’
Briony, standing slightly apart from them, wondered whether she should try to start a conversation with a silent Elliot standing at her side or join in with Adam and Jeannie about her own memories of the farm.
‘How do you like the Renault 5 EV you’ve hired?’ Elliot said unexpectedly.
‘You’re talking to someone who knows nothing about cars,’ Briony said. ‘But it’s great to drive. Very nippy too,’ she smiled. ‘I’ve only driven it along thebord de mer, I suspect on the A8 it would be very hard to keep to the limit.’
‘I keep thinking I should at the very least trade my diesel-guzzling Toyota in for something more environmentally friendly,’ Elliot said. ‘But the kind of car I need doesn’t have a large enough range yet.’
‘Maybe a hybrid to start with?’
‘Possibly,’ Elliot nodded.
Lucy reappeared at that moment. ‘I hope nobody minds, but I haven’t done a starter,’ she said as dishes of roast beef, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, vegetables and two large jugs of gravy were placed on the table for everyone to help themselves from. ‘But there will be a cheese course, followed by dessert.’
‘This looks absolutely delicious,’ Jeannie said, helping herself to some pink beef and a Yorkshire pudding.
‘Lucy’s a brilliant cook,’ Adam said. ‘A couple of years ago, the girls and I tried to enter her forMasterChef, but she wouldn’t let us.’
‘Too much pressure,’ Lucy shuddered. ‘It’s going to be enough pressure cooking breakfasts and the occasional evening meal if any of the gîte visitors request one. I have to confess, I’m not really pushing the evening meal side of things – the next few months are going to be busy enough without adding dinner for strangers into the equation. I’ve started to ask in the village if anyone wants a part-time job for the holiday season. A Girl Friday sort. But nobody has applied yet.’
‘I’d quite like a part-time job, if you would consider me,’ Briony said, looking at Lucy. ‘I’d be happy to be your Girl Friday.’
‘Really?’ Lucy looked at Briony, surprised. ‘Does that mean you’re going to be here all summer?’
‘Yes. We haven’t had a chance to tell you before, but because of French inheritance laws Granny Giselle has left Owls Nest Cottage to me.’ Briony took a deep breath. Actually voicing their plans to other people made her believe it was definitely going to happen. ‘Mum and I are going to move over permanently. A new beginning in France for both of us.’
