Lily’s front door was on the latch, in expectation of her granddaughter’s visit, and as Sophie pushed open the door she and Alex were met by a frenzy of alternate squeaks and barks as Barney the Weimaraner skittered excitedly between the two of them. Huge, grey and with the energy of a sugar infused toddler, he was ecstatic to see Sophie, and intrigued by her companion.
‘Oh, calm down, you big softy!’ Sophie smiled, looking semi-apologetically towards Alex as Barney thrust a wet nose into the palm of his hand. ‘I’m sorry – he’s like this with visitors.’
‘It’s fine,’ Alex said, leaning down to scratch behind Barney’s ears. ‘He’s beautiful.’
‘He loves people who love him,’ Sophie observed as Barney immediately started to calm down under Alex’s touch.
‘I miss having a dog.’ Alex glanced back up at Sophie and smiled. ‘I had a Doberman as a kid, but I haven’t had a dog since I’ve been living in the city. Perhaps now I’m moving back out to the country, I’ll be able to have another one.’
Barney, like a big, furry, friendly host, led Alex and Sophie through the hallway and kitchen and out into the long, beautifully kept garden at the back of the house.
As she led Alex through the walled garden, Sophie spotted her grandmother. Lily was standing by one of the extensively populated English rose beds, secateurs in hand, snipping a few blooms for the cut crystal vase that always adorned her dining room table. Wearing a large floppy straw hat to protect her silvery white hair against the still strong summer sunshine and a long linen shirt with matching cream trousers, she looked the picture of elegance as she put the roses down on her garden table and extended a pale hand tipped with discreetly painted pink fingernails, to the man who stood beside her granddaughter.
‘Gran, this is Alex,’ Sophie said as she, Alex and Barney approached.
‘Nice to meet you, Alex,’ Lily said, regarding him contemplatively. ‘Sophie’s told me a lot about you. Are you an Alex, or an Alexander?’
Alex smiled. ‘Technically, I’m Alexander, but mostly only when I’m in trouble. It’s nice to meet you too, ma’am,’ Alex replied, shaking Lily’s hand. ‘And she hasn’t told you too much, I hope!’
‘Enough to make me curious to meet you,’ Lily said, returning his smile broadly. ‘And much as I appreciate your wonderful and traditional mode of address, please feel free to call me Lily.’
‘Can I get you a drink, Alex?’ Sophie asked hurriedly. Her grandmother was an incorrigible flirt, even now. ‘And would you like one, Gran?’
‘I’ll sort out something cold and wet,’ Lily said, picking up her roses again. ‘I need to get these into some water. Make yourselves comfortable.’ She pointed to the swing seat at the far end of the garden, which had another wooden chair and a small table in front of it. ‘We’ll have a drink down there, shall we?’
Sophie only just restrained herself from rolling her eyes as Lily gave her a knowing glance. Her grandmother had been trying to set her up with anything male and remotely eligible since she’d broken up with Mark, but Alex, while definitely male and certainly eligible, needed to remain strictly in the business not pleasure category.
‘Shall we?’ Alex broke into her thoughts.
He smiled down at her, and Sophie’s stomach fluttered a little. You really shouldn’t smile like that, she thought unguardedly.
‘I can see that your grandmother isn’t a woman to be argued with.’
‘You don’t know the half of it,’ Sophie said, smiling back at Alex. ‘The rows she used to have with Jack Carter when he was alive about the wasps from his orchard flying over the fence and going for her roses in the summer… and she was friends with him!’
‘Really?’ Alex said. ‘They knew each other a long time, then?’
‘Ever since they were kids.’
‘What was he like when he was younger?’ Alex asked as they walked towards the bottom of the garden.
‘Oh, a bit wild, apparently,’ Sophie said. ‘He’d dallied with virtually every girl in the village by the time he was twenty-one, then he met Cecily and married her almost overnight. Gran, who will only admit to having kissed him once, was one of the few women who didn’t have her heart broken by Jack, or so she claims. But village gossip tends to blow things out of proportion. Especially back in those days when there were fewer distractions.’
Alex looked thoughtful. ‘He sounds like an… interesting character.’
‘Oh, you know what it’s like in villages – everyone knows what everyone else is doing, all the time. That’s why so many people get the hell out while they can! Jack and Gran belonged to a generation who stayed put, and as a result she knows most of what there is to know about everyone round here.’
‘I’ll keep that in mind!’ Alex regarded Sophie thoughtfully. ‘You didn’t leave, though.’ They reached the swing seat. Alex had to bend a long way down to sit in it, and it creaked as it took his weight. Sophie couldn’t help noticing the length of his legs as he tucked them under the shallow seat of the swing, and the faint stitch line of a scar across his left knee as his shorts rode up slightly. She tore her gaze away hurriedly.
‘No, I didn’t,’ she conceded, sitting down beside him. Lily would want the sturdier comfort of the garden chair, she knew, despite the fact that the swing seat was barely big enough for two adults, especially two as tall as her and Alex. She felt her knee brush Alex’s as she shifted in the seat, and pulled it away hurriedly. They’d talked a lot over the past few days, but were still acquaintances really, and personal space still felt at a premium, for her at least. Perhaps it was to do with the slightly odd formality of Alex’s manners; she still couldn’t quite get used to his sense of reserve; the way he gave her space, held doors open for her and didn’t try to wind her up at every available opportunity the way her male colleagues always tended to do. The lack of banter was refreshing, but a little alien to her.
‘Why not?’ Alex asked, seemingly oblivious to Sophie’s hurried break of contact. ‘What made you stay here?’
‘Matthew Carter offered me a job after my A Levels,’ Sophie said. ‘And the apprenticeship was great. I never wanted to go to university like my friends, and it meant I could start earning money straight away, which definitely helped out my mum. She and I shared a place until a couple of years ago when she met her partner, Steve, and they decided to move to the South of France.’
‘Do you see her often?’ Alex asked.
‘I pop over from time to time for a holiday, but I like to be around to keep an eye on Gran,’ Sophie replied. Her mother had only agreed to move to France on the condition that Sophie would stay in the house in the meantime to make sure Lily, her former mother-in-law, was all right. Of course, now that the Martingtons job had come up, it was another complication that Sophie would need to consider, but that was for another day.
‘Gran’s had some health problems over the years and she needs keeping an eye on,’ Sophie continued. ‘When I started training to be a cider maker, it all seemed to fall into place, meaning that Mum could finally do what she wanted to do, without worrying about Gran or me. They were always close, even after Dad died.’
‘I’m sorry about your dad,’ Alex said, his brown eyes full of sincerity. ‘It’s hard to lose a parent.’
‘Thanks,’ Sophie replied. ‘I was young when he died, which sort of makes it easier. I guess that’s why I wanted to stay close to Gran when I started work; to make sure she stays around as long as possible.’
‘I get that.’ Alex smiled. ‘But haven’t you ever wanted to travel, though? Isn’t that the dream of all island dwellers: to get off the island?’
Sophie laughed. ‘I have actually left the island, as you call it, from time to time,’ she said. ‘But going straight into a job from school made me grow up pretty fast. A lot of my mates went for the gap year option, and then on to university, and now they’re still paying off mountains of debt. I wanted to earn enough to support myself if I decided to travel. And as it turned out, I’ve been able to visit some amazing places through this job anyway. I’ve been to orchards in Australia, the United States, Holland… and all paid for by Carter’s.’ Not to mention the odd deeply unsuitable girls’ holiday, paid for by her own wages, she thought, deciding not to share the experiences of her Ibiza and Kefalonia days. Alex definitely didn’t need to know about those.
‘Carter’s invested in you and your training, then?’ Alex said. Sophie noticed the peculiarly intense look on his face.
‘Yes,’ Sophie replied. ‘Matthew, well, the whole family really, are keen to develop and then hang onto their people if they can. It’s always been a family concern; it’s just that the family tends to include a lot of the employees as well these days. Especially those like me who’ve been working here since school.’ Privately, Sophie wondered what would happen when the current generation, Matthew and Jonathan Carter, handed over the reins to the next one. She didn’t know Matthew’s daughter, Meredith, all that well, and she still wasn’t sure if Meredith was, indeed, going to be taking over the business when she was old enough.
Meredith Carter was in her first year of a History degree at York University, her father’s alma mater, and as yet showed very little sign of wanting to come in and learn about cider making. It was sometimes difficult for Sophie to remain objective about Meredith; she herself had spent ten years working for a firm she was passionate about, whereas Meredith had been born into the family and would, in all likelihood, just take over the reins when it was time. Part of Sophie resented her for that. She had nothing against her personally, but it didn’t sit entirely well with her that someone should just be handed the keys to a very successful business by virtue of birth.
‘It’s nice to know they treat their family so well,’ Alex said quietly. She was just about to reply when she saw that Lily was on her way back from the kitchen with a tray containing a jug of home made lemonade and three glasses, and a plate of scones. ‘Here, let me take that, ma’am’ Alex said, springing from the swing seat as she approached.
‘Thank you, my lovely,’ Lily replied, raising an eyebrow at Sophie as Alex turned back to the table and set the tray down. ‘Gentleman,’ she mouthed behind his back. Sophie ignored her as best she could.
‘So, Alex, is this your first visit to the UK?’ Lily poured three tumblers of lemonade, passed one each to Sophie and Alex and then settled back into her chair with a creak.
Alex took a sip of his drink, and Sophie was tickled to observe that he was doing his best not to wince at its sharpness. Her grandmother’s lemonade was an acquired taste. ‘No, although I was quite young when I visited before. Mom was quite the Anglophile, and she brought me to London when I was ten to see the sights. I suppose we just did what most tourists do, although we did head off into the New Forest for a couple of days after seeing the usual places. I fell in love with London, and I wanted to come back some time, but then life and work took over.’
‘What was your favourite place to visit?’ Lily asked.
‘Hampton Court Palace,’ Alex said. ‘I’ve always loved history, and it was like walking through a time warp, seeing it all unfolding in front of me.’
‘So, now you’re back in the country, are you planning to visit again?’
‘I hope so,’ Alex replied. ‘That’s why it’s so nice to be working with Carter’s for the summer. There’s certainly enough history and heritage in the business to fascinate anyone. I want to learn as much as I can while I’m here.’
‘I’m sure you do,’ Lily said wryly. Sophie noticed the odd look on her grandmother’s face as she said it. ‘And you’ve got the perfect person beside you to fill you in on the local history. Sophie knows all there is to know about Carter’s Cider – she even did a talk to the sixth formers at the local secondary school recently.’
‘Only because Matthew Carter asked me to,’ Sophie said. ‘And the students weren’t exactly what you might call receptive.’ Although, Sophie thought, the story about Jonathan chucking someone in the vats went down well.
‘More interested in drinking it than learning about it?’ Alex said lightly.
‘Something like that.’ Sophie smiled. ‘But who knows? Perhaps there will be a new crop of apprentices in a year or so.’
‘I hope so,’ Alex said. ‘It seems like a good family business to be part of.’
‘I can’t complain,’ Sophie said, sipping her drink.
As a companionable silence fell over them, Alex took a last sip of his lemonade and then glanced at his watch. ‘I’d better get going,’ he said. He put his glass back down on the table and then stood up. For a moment he towered over Sophie where she still sat. She noticed, again, with a jolt, that scar on his slightly bowed knees. She blushed as she realised that she was, yet again, staring at his legs. She really must get hold of herself.
‘Thank you so much for the drink, Lily,’ Alex was saying as Sophie zoned back into the conversation.
‘It’s my pleasure, Alex. Please do be sure to pop in again soon. You can go out of the back gate if you’d like.’ She pointed across the garden to where there was a wooden gate in the wall. ‘It’s a bit of a shortcut back to High Street, and since you’re staying at Rose Cottage B & B it’ll save you a couple of minutes.’
‘Thank you.’ Alex smiled at Lily and then turned briefly back to Sophie. ‘I’ll see you at work on Monday.’
‘Yes, nine a.m. sharp,’ Sophie said. ‘See you then.’
Alex gave her a brief smile and then walked across Lily’s garden to the gate. With a click, he’d vanished through it.
‘You want to watch that one,’ Lily observed as she put her glass down on the garden table.
‘What do you mean, Gran?’ Sophie refilled both of their glasses with the last of the lemonade.
‘He’s not all he seems.’ Lily took her glass in still steady hands and before she raised it to her lips she looked her beloved granddaughter straight in the eye. ‘Don’t get me wrong, he’s perfectly charming, and seems very nice, but he’s got more up his sleeve than a magician at a children’s party.’
‘Oh, Gran!’ Sophie laughed. ‘You think everyone’s up to something. What could Alex possibly have to hide?’
‘He’s not just here to learn about cider, you mark my words. He could have done that in Canada.’ Lily regarded her granddaughter levelly. ‘He’s here for something else.’
‘You spend too much time listening to The Archers.’ Lily had often tried to get Sophie to listen to the BBC’s radio soap opera, but Sophie had made a vow to herself to wait until she was at least thirty before she gave it a try. Sophie offered the plate of scones to her grandmother, but Lily waved her hand away impatiently. Shrugging, Sophie took one instead. Alex hadn’t taken one, she noticed. Perhaps he was still acclimatising to West Country stodge.
‘You need feeding up,’ Lily said, nodding in approval. ‘You’ve been looking a bit thin lately.’
‘As if,’ Sophie muttered, taking a bite of her scone.
‘I mean it,’ Lily replied. ‘Those Carter boys work you too hard. And as for that chief cider maker of yours…’
‘David’s all right,’ Sophie said, putting the scone back on the plate.
‘Mark my words, my girl. If Jack Carter was still alive, things would be very different.’
‘Oh, Gran.’ Sophie smiled. She knew her grandmother had always had a soft spot for the late chairman of Carter’s Cider, and the two had had many a lively chat over the years; they’d even made up the odd bridge foursome when Jack’s wife Cecily and Lily’s husband Seth had been alive. ‘Things change. They have to. We’ve got to move with the times.’
‘But enough about that. Back to that young man of yours.’ Lily’s eyes twinkled.
‘He’s not mine,’ Sophie said hurriedly. ‘I’m just meant to be teaching him the tricks of the trade. David would have been a better fit, but Matthew wanted me to do it.’
‘You sell yourself short,’ Lily said. ‘You’ve been working there for over ten years now. I’d say that means you know a thing or two about blending and tasting, don’t you? If that’s what young Alex is really here for.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘You mark my words.’ Lily raised a finger to emphasise the point. ‘That boy wants more than just a crash course in which apples go best with what. You only have to look him in the eye to know that.’
Sophie shook her head in exasperation. Her grandmother could sniff out the drama in any situation, whether there was any there or not. Her theory, that all life was a narrative, had both fascinated and amused Sophie since she was knee high to a grasshopper. ‘I think you’re reading too much into things. As usual.’
‘You’ll see,’ Lily said mysteriously. Her eyes assumed a faraway expression for a moment. ‘Time will tell with that one.’
‘You’ve been reading your own novels again, Gran,’ Sophie teased. ‘Life’s not a sweeping love story, you know. Not everyone has an ulterior motive, and not everyone needs a Prince Charming.’
‘So, you admit you think he’s charming, then?’
‘Gran! I’ve got to work with him. I can’t go thinking like that.’
Lily refrained from comment while she had another sip of her lemonade. ‘Nothing wrong with thinking,’ she said eventually. ‘After all, as you say, you will be working with him for the next month or two. And he is a rather good looking chap. Better than the last one you went out with, anyway. And such nice manners.’
‘No. Comment,’ Sophie said. ‘Now, is there anything you want me to do for you before I go home?’
‘I’m perfectly capable of doing anything that needs doing,’ Lily said shortly. ‘You worry too much.’
‘I know you are,’ Sophie said patiently. ‘But since I’m here, it’s only reasonable to ask.’
‘You get off home and get your beauty sleep, my girl,’ Lily said. ‘You’d better look your best for Mr Canadian Dreamboat when you see him at work on Monday.’
Sophie stood up and leaned forward, kissing her grandmother goodbye. Lily really was incorrigible.