Page 93 of The Shape of Your Heart
Five minutes later, just as I end the call, Tanith and the boys climb in. ‘I have news,’ I say quietly.
Tanith’s eyes widened. ‘And?’
‘Well…’ I try to spin it out. ‘There were a few objections – the usual reasons.’
‘Shit,’ she mutters under her breath.
‘It’s OK. Simon sorted everything out.’ I smile. ‘Looks like we’re on.’
‘You’re kidding.’ She gazes at me in disbelief. ‘You’re not pulling my leg?’
When I shake my head, she flings her arms around me and plants a smacker on my cheek.
‘Mummy? Are you and Nathan getting married?’ A little voice comes from the back.
‘Gross, no.’ She glances at me. ‘No offence, Nathan, but just the thought of getting married again…’ She turns back to the boys. ‘When we get home, we’re going to plant some flowers. Then after, if you’re really good, I’m going to tell you something so exciting you won’t believe it. Even I can’t believe it.’ Her eyes are shining as she looks at me, adding more quietly, ‘I can never thank you enough for this.’
* * *
Now that planning has been approved, I can’t get started quickly enough. Contacting suppliers, I start placing orders for materials and find a local hard landscaper. As work gets underway, it isn’t long before the project is drawing interest from the local press. There’s a fair amount of opposition, too, but I’m more than ready for that.
‘We don’t need any more second homes around here.’ The voice belongs to a woman who’s marched across my land simply to make her opinion heard. ‘Places like this should be preserved.’
‘I completely agree.’ I take the wind out of her sails. ‘You’re welcome to come back when we’ve finished and see for yourself. But meanwhile, I’d like to point out that you’re trespassing.’
With the help of a local garden designer, I divide up the land into sections, leaving them to source fruit trees and plant them exactly where Callie suggested.
‘This is frigging awesome.’ Tanith already loves it. ‘When do you hope to open?’
‘With any luck, by early summer.’ Or not long after. I need to start clawing some money back.
‘Around the time Callie gets back.’ She arches one of her eyebrows.
‘I guess so. You haven’t mentioned this to her, have you?’ I remind her.
She shakes her head. ‘But I can’t wait to see her face when she comes here.’
* * *
It seems the universe is on my side as almost all the deliveries arrive on time, while the greatest joy of this project is the relative simplicity of its installation. But the high point is when the house starts going up, swiftly followed by the café.
Tanith is beside herself. ‘I can’t wait to quit my job. Honestly Nathan… Being part of this is a dream come true.’
‘It’s working for both of us, remember,’ I say. ‘But if this takes off, you do realise how busy you’re going to be?’ And there’s another element to this I need to talk to her about.
‘I don’t mind that… And I know the boys are going to be so happy here.’ She pauses. ‘You asking me to manage all this, I can’t tell you what it means.’ She’s uncharacteristically sober as she turns to me. ‘I don’t know why you’ve chosen me… But you’ve changed our lives.’
I’m touched. ‘You were dealt a bad hand, that’s all. I always wanted a local family to benefit from all of this. I couldn’t be happier that it’s you.’ I pause. ‘What you said about there being a shortage of the right kind of childcare around here, I’ve been thinking about it. We’re going to have a huge great tepee, the ground is going to be securely fenced… I’m wondering if out of season, we couldn’t use it for kids. I’d love you to manage that side of it, too, and employ a couple of people qualified in childcare, but I was thinking of it being a place where they would have freedom – to roam and explore nature, all within the safety of the campsite… I’m exploring funding options. What do you think?’
‘I think it’s inspired.’ Tanith’s eyes are bright. ‘It’s the kind of idea I’d love for my boys.’
‘OK. I’ll keep looking into it.’ This is turning into much more than I’d planned, but in a way that feels good, while I can’t help feeling Callie will love it.
Later that afternoon, after taking the boys to the beach for an hour, I drop them back to Tanith. It’s playing on my mind that everything is going a little too smoothly. But when I get home there’s an unfamiliar car parked in the drive. As I go over to it, I take in the figure with long brown hair hunched over the steering wheel, the bags and cases piled in the back. As she looks up, my heart sinks. It’s Emily.
35
CALLIE
