Tuesday morning and life was almost back to normal in the auberge. The guests had checked out and Fern had left Anouk and Scott chatting over breakfast on the terrace while she made a start on her after-guests routine of changing linen, cleaning bathrooms and vacuuming everywhere.
The weekend had been so good. Saturday and Sunday had been full of fun, laughter and food, so much food! And yesterday Scott had driven them down to Pont-Aven as he’d promised and they’d had a leisurely walk along the river there and then lunch in the hotel overlooking the estuary. The sun had shone, the tide had been in and, all in all, it had been a wonderful day.
Fern pushed the thought of how much she was going to miss Scott when he left out of her mind. Hopefully organising Anouk to move in with her would keep her busy. Not that Anouk had told her yet what she had decided. Fern was driving her home after lunch and would press her for a decision then. She hoped Anouk’s decision would be the one she was praying for.
Anouk was quiet as Fern helped her into the car after she’d said goodbye to Scott, who’d unexpectedly given Anouk a hug before walking her out to the car. Fern had packed up some food into a basket for Anouk to take home with her, not a lot but enough for a day or two, and placed it in the car. Scott had said he’d walk Lady and then spend time in the garden and read until she returned. Driving away, it was a strange feeling to see Scott standing in front of the auberge waving goodbye.
Anouk waved back. ‘Such a nice man,’ she said. ‘A kind man too.’
‘Yes, he is,’ Fern answered, concentrating on her driving and wondering how to broach the subject of moving. In the end, she decided to ask the question outright, but Anouk spoke first.
‘He likes you, you know.’
‘I like him too,’ Fern said warily. ‘We had a lovely weekend, didn’t we?’
‘I mean he likes you seriously,’ Anouk insisted. ‘And I think you like ’im too?’
‘Yes, of course I like him. And I hope he stays in touch when he leaves. But our lives are lived in different countries. He’s an American and he will be returning to New York soon and I live here in Brittany.’
‘You’re both single. There’s nothing stopping you getting together in either country. You’d like New York.’
Fern sighed. ‘I like it here. I don’t want to up sticks and move a thousand miles away. Moving here from England was traumatic enough,’ she said, deciding to change the conversation. ‘Now, what have you decided about moving in with me?’
Anouk was silent for several seconds. ‘I think we’d get on very well together, but I worry about saying yes. What ’appens if things change? You’re still a young woman. If you and Scott become a couple, or if not ’im, you meet someone else, who doesn’t want an old woman hanging around.’
For once Fern was glad to see a herd of cows blocking the country lane ahead. She stopped the car and turned off the engine. This was an important moment in both their lives. She had to get it right.
‘Anouk, whether I meet someone else or not is immaterial. I promise you that you will always be a part of my life, living with me for as long as you want to. I could never have a relationship with anyone who didn’t accept that. It will be a case of love me, love Anouk. Understand?’
Anouk nodded. ‘I don’t want to be a burden.’
‘You will never be a burden to me,’ Fern said. ‘I know there will be occasional days when, for some reason or other, we might irritate each other, but we’ll make a pact that when that happens we will talk about it. Not brood.’
Anouk reached out and patted her arm. ‘You’re the daughter I never had.’
Fern smiled at her and patted her arm back, pretending not to notice the tears glistening in Anouk’s eyes.
‘So we’ll start putting things into motion this week then? Tell Fabian and Carole, decide what you’d like to bring to make your room feel like your home. I’ll come and help you pack up things and we can start to take clothes and other bits and pieces over and then move you slowly to the auberge. How does that sound?’ Fern said, starting the engine again as the last of the cows disappeared into a field and the farmer waved his hand in acknowledgement.
‘Not too slowly, I hope,’ Anouk said. ‘At my age, I can’t afford to wait too long. I think next week would be a good date to aim for. Will Scott still be staying?’
‘No idea,’ Fern said. ‘I don’t know how long he plans to stay. There is one thing though,’ and she glanced across to Anouk, ‘just don’t expect every weekend to be like this last one. Scott made Easter extra special. The season starts soon and Saturday becomes changeover day – the busiest day of my week.’
‘I can ’elp,’ Anouk said. ‘It will keep me out of mischief.’
The rest of the journey to Huelgoat passed quickly as the two of them made plans. Fern in particular was looking forward to being able to keep a proper eye on a woman she was very fond of.
When Fern got back to the auberge a couple of hours later, Scott was reading in the garden, Lady sprawled at his feet. He got up instantly as she appeared.
‘Anouk settle back home all right?’
Fern nodded. ‘Yes, and she’s decided to move in with me ASAP. I can’t tell you how relieved I am about that. Independent she may be, but living alone isn’t good for her. It’s a long time since I’ve seen her as animated as she was this weekend. Although, I think that was down to your presence. She really likes you.’ She smiled at him. ‘I know it’s early, but I fancy a nice cold wine. Will you join me?’
‘Thank you. I’ll fetch it. Sit down, you look exhausted,’ and Scott disappeared indoors.
Fern did as she was told and sat down. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was exhausted. These days, when she drove, even though she used the quiet country roads, she could feel the tension building in her shoulders, across her back, try as she might to relax.
‘Here you go,’ Scott said.
Fern opened her eyes and took the glass he was holding out to her. ‘Thank you. Cheers,’ and they clinked glasses.
‘Cheers.’ Scott hesitated before continuing, ‘I have to ask this. Are you happy for me to stay here now that your guests and Anouk have left? I wouldn’t want you to feel uncomfortable being in the house on your own with me. I’ll find somewhere else tomorrow if you want me to.’ His gaze caught and held Fern’s. ‘Although I hope you don’t.’
‘Anouk thinks you’re a nice man, as well as a kind one,’ Fern said slowly, unable to look away. ‘I agree with her. I’m not worried about being in the house alone with you. Please stay.’
‘Thank you.’ Scott smiled at her as Fern blinked and took a sip of her drink.
‘How long do you think you’ll be staying? I know Anouk is hoping you’ll still be here when she moves in.’
He smiled. ‘I can’t possibly disappoint Anouk – I’ll be here.’
‘About supper tonight,’ Fern said. ‘There’s so much food left over from the weekend – lamb, cheese, salad, even some Kouign-amann cake that needs finishing. Would you mind if we had what I call a fridge bits-and-pieces supper?’ She looked at him anxiously. He was technically a paying guest, although she had no intention of charging him for the evening meals they shared.
‘Sounds good to me, I adore cold lamb,’ Scott said. ‘And it means you can stay there and relax while I put everything on the table. Okay?’
‘Oh, but I can’t let you do that,’ Fern protested.
‘Yes you can because I’m not taking no for an answer. Now, drink your wine and let me take care of… dinner.’
Fern watched him go and sat back, closing her eyes again. Had he been about to say ‘take care of you’ not dinner? She’d forgotten how good it was to have someone who cared about you and took the trouble to show and help. Scott was a lovely man and she knew Anouk was right when she’d said he seriously liked her. But liking someone ‘seriously’ when in a few weeks there would be an ocean between them would only lead to heartbreak, and Fern had suffered enough of that. What was the point of getting close to a man who would soon disappear out of her life?