It was, she felt, important to be independent right from the start of this trip, even though she was nervous and uncertain about what she would do next.
She was supposed to book out of the hotel, but suddenly changed her mind and decided to stay for another day, possibly longer. It would be a useful centre for her search; it was such a lovely part of England, with lush, rolling countryside and picturesque villages. She’d forgotten just how beautiful Wiltshire was.
Why not look for a job near here?
The receptionist changed her booking, but said she could only have the room for another two nights because the hotel was completely booked out for a big wedding. She pointed out the rack of tourist brochures and Molly selected a handful. But she already knew what she wanted to do first: go and look at the show houses. She’d peered down the hill at them several times from her window, liking the style; feeling they were modern and yet classical in their symmetry and balance.
Since the show houses weren’t open for another half-hour, she decided to lie on the bed and relax with her new book.
She woke an hour later, amazed at herself, because she didn’t normally sleep at all during the day. She stretched lazily, feeling better than she had for ages, then strolled down the hill to the sales office. The man she’d bumped into near the lift the previous night was sitting behind the desk, speaking earnestly to a fit, tanned couple, who were in their sixties at a guess. A younger couple was looking at the photos and floor plans on the wall and even as Molly watched, they glanced impatiently towards him.
A sign on his desk said
Euan Santiago
. He looked up with a professional smile of welcome, while listening to the woman. He nodded and turned to Molly. ‘Would you like to—’
‘I’ve just come from the—’ she began at the same time and they both stopped with a smile.
‘Oh, thank goodness!’ he exclaimed. ‘The agency said they might not find anyone, but if ever I needed help, it’s today. If you’ll just wait at the other desk for a few minutes, I’ll explain the set-up and you can start straight away. Give brochures to anyone who comes in.’
She opened her mouth to protest that he was mistaking her for someone else, then closed it again. He looked frazzled, and she had plenty of time to spare. No harm in helping a fellow human being, especially one so attractive.
He finished dealing with the first couple and moved across to the others, who were looking rather impatient now.
Just then the phone rang and after a moment’s hesitation, she put out her hand as if to pick it up and looked at him questioningly. When he nodded and pointed to a name on the wall, she smiled to show her understanding. Picking up the phone, she said calmly, ‘Marlbury Leisure Village. May I help you?’
‘Is Euan there?’ a woman’s voice asked.
‘Who’s speaking, please?’
‘His secretary. I gather he’s busy?’
‘Yes. Look, I’m new here. Your name would be . . . ?’
‘Avril Buttermere. Could you ask him to ring me at home when convenient? I’ll be here all day.’
‘Certainly. And your number is . . . ?’
‘He knows it, but you’re right to ask.’ She reeled it off.
Molly put the phone down then sat listening with interest as he explained about the development, before sending the couple off to view the show houses on their own.
He turned to her. ‘Thanks for jumping in. I’m Euan Santiago, by the way.’
‘Molly Peel. And before I forget, your secretary wants you to ring her at home when convenient. I have the number.’
‘Avril? No worries. I know her number by heart.’ He grinned and perched on the edge of his desk, looking suddenly like a schoolboy dressing up as an older man. ‘I can’t tell you how glad I was to see you. The agency have earned their money today, I can tell you.’
‘I’m not from the agency.’
He looked at her in shock. ‘Ah. Sorry for the mistake and thanks for your help.’
She took a deep breath, reminding herself to be brave. ‘But I am looking for a job, so if you’re short of staff, even temporarily . . .’
‘Are you, now?’ He gave her an assessing gaze. ‘Tell me about yourself.’
She’d written out a summary and learned it off by heart, at Nikki’s suggestion, so that she wouldn’t fumble for words when she needed to make a good impression. Taking a deep breath, she launched into her spiel. ‘I’m recently divorced and looking for work. I originally trained as a secretary but haven’t been in the workforce for years. However, I’ve been acting as unofficial secretary and organizer for my hus— my
ex
-husband, who was a high-powered executive for many years. I know my way around a computer, am used to dealing with people of all sorts, I’m a good organizer and can whip up a dinner party for twelve at the drop of a hat. I’m—’
He finished it for her, ‘Quick on the uptake, kind and have an excellent telephone manner.’
The compliments threw her and she could feel herself blushing. ‘Oh, well, I’m glad you think so.’
He frowned, looking as if he was thinking over what she’d said, so she didn’t try to speak, simply waited. When he looked up, she braced herself for a refusal.
‘I can only offer you part-time work for the moment, so if you need to support yourself totally, I’m afraid this job wouldn’t be much use.’
‘I have a small income, but I can’t sell my house yet so I need to work. I’m intending to find a small flat to rent. Money would be helpful, but more important would be some experience to help me get back into the workforce.’ She looked at him questioningly.
His smile was warm and his voice gentle. ‘You’re supposed to ask me next what the job entails.’
‘Oh. Yes.’ She could feel herself blushing. ‘You can tell I’m not used to this. What does it entail?’
‘All sorts of things. What I really need is a general factotum. I’m going to hire a full-time secretary and a part-time assistant for her, but I also need someone who can deal with sales enquiries, show people round, answer queries about the new buildings when I’m away, whatever comes up.’
She was going to say she could try, but caught herself in time. ‘I’m sure I could do that, Mr Santiago, as long as you briefed me carefully about the specifics.’
‘And if I asked you to organize a small dinner or a buffet?’
‘I could do that, too. As long as you have the cooking equipment.’
‘I don’t. The hotel can handle the big stuff, but occasionally it’d be good to have a small gathering in my house – I’m going to be living in one of the show houses.’
‘I’d need to find somewhere to live close by. Are there plenty of rental properties round here?’
‘I suppose so.’ He snapped his fingers. ‘Or I have a caravan that I could have hooked up on site, if you’re interested. It’s old but in good condition and as it sleeps four, it’s not too cramped.’
Excitement was welling up in her. ‘That sounds fun.’
‘Let’s give it a month’s trial. If you use the caravan you’ll not need to risk finding a flat in the neighbourhood, and either of us could say if we weren’t happy about continuing at the end of the month. How about that?’
‘Sounds a perfect way to re-enter the workforce. Oh— I also forgot to ask about pay.’
‘Hourly to start off with. We’ll get Avril to find out a fair rate. She’s my ex-secretary, come back to work temporarily to get me out of a hole. I’d trust her to act fairly. In fact, I’d trust her with my life. Do we have a deal?’
‘Yes, we do.’
He stood up and held out his hand.
When she took it, she sucked in her breath in shock. It was more than a handshake; it was a connection humming between them. She let go of his hand immediately and stepped back, feeling flustered.
He looked at her in similar surprise, then cleared his throat and said hurriedly, ‘That’s . . . er, settled, then. Uh-oh. The Temples are coming back. Will you be all right minding the phone while I chat them up?’
‘Yes, of course.’
But she was glad that the phone didn’t ring, because it gave her time to pull herself together, then listen to him talking about his development.
She hadn’t realized it was such a personal venture, and though he didn’t say that, the way he talked about his leisure village gave him away. He’d invested more than money into it; he’d invested love and hope, and a concern for the environment.
She’d love to live in a village like the one he described, one with a sense of community, with houses that didn’t gobble up power. Was it really possible to create such a thing? Surely communities evolved over time?
After the couple had gone, Euan let out his breath in a whoosh of relief.
‘I think they’re interested.’
‘They’re definitely interested, Mr Santiago. But they’re not sure you can deliver, especially the sense of community you talk about.’
‘Do call me Euan. I don’t stand on ceremony. I think I can deliver it by building carefully and providing some amenities for residents.’
‘Do you have rules for the residents as well?’
He frowned at her. ‘Wouldn’t that be presumptuous?’
‘We-ell, whenever we’ve stayed in villas in France or Spain, there have been rules about not making a noise after ten at night, or before six in the morning. That seems fair enough, but some people do need it spelled out. And what about children?’
‘What about them?’
‘They’re noisy.’
‘I’ve been hoping it’d be mainly people seeking second houses, since they can’t reside here all year round, only for eleven months. Expats.’
‘Even expats have children.’
He leaned back in his chair, steepling his hands and staring down at them, then up at her. ‘You’ve got a point. You know, you’re definitely earning your money even on your first day here.’
She blinked in shock. ‘I didn’t realize I was already employed.’
‘I’m taking up your time today. It seems only fair that I pay you.’
‘Oh. Well. Thank you.’ She tried not to let him see how thrilled she was, but the way he looked at her, she reckoned he’d guessed. He had such a lovely, understanding smile and she couldn’t help smiling back.
He stared into space for a moment or two. ‘We’ll put it in the rules, then: children not to run around shrieking, or play ball games, except in designated play areas. How does that sound?’
‘It sounds reasonable, but perhaps it could be phrased more tactfully?’
‘We’ll make drawing up the draft rules part of your job.’ He looked at his watch. ‘Right then, I’d better ring Avril.’
He walked outside to make the call and Molly tried not to listen, because she guessed they’d be talking about her among other things. She went along the wall rack, taking a copy of each brochure. She’d have to learn everything she could as quickly as possible, not only about the leisure village but about the surrounding area.
Euan came in as she was sorting through the pile of brochures. ‘Homework,’ she said.
‘Good. Um . . . Avril wants to meet you. She’s intending to vet every single person I hire for the office work, doesn’t trust me after the fiasco we’ve just had. Avril doesn’t want to have to come back to work again.’
‘I’m happy to meet her.’
‘She’s invited us both to tea at her house. Would you mind?’
‘Not at all. It’s very kind of her.’
‘Look at the time. Have you had lunch?’
‘No.’
‘Then why don’t you go and get something at the hotel? I have a client coming to see me at two o’clock, so if you could hold the fort here then, it’d be great.’
‘Have you already had lunch?’
‘No, but I can wait.’
‘I could easily bring you something back.’
He grinned. ‘Now I know Avril will like you.’
Molly tried to work out the connection and failed, so looked at him in puzzlement for an explanation.
‘My last secretary found it beneath her to get me lunch, even when I was busy. Of course, she didn’t say that at the interview. She didn’t actually refuse to do it, but she made her displeasure plain so I stopped asking.’
‘What happened to her?’
His expression darkened. ‘I’ll tell you about her later.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘Better get off for your meal quickly. And any sort of sandwich will do me.’
Molly walked briskly up the slope to the hotel, excitement fizzing along her veins. She had a job, a real job. Part-time at first, but with prospects.
At least, she would have a job if this Avril person approved of her. Surely she would? She’d sounded reasonable enough on the phone.
Brian decided to go and retrieve his boxes of childhood toys, because he’d been told some of them were quite valuable and he didn’t want his mother giving them away.
He arrived in Lavengro Road and made his usual turn into the drive, only to jam his brakes on hard, barely stopping in time. ‘What the hell!’
The entrance was blocked by high, wrought-iron gates. What maggot had got into his mother now? Such a waste of money to fit new gates when you were trying to sell a house. These must have cost a fortune. Dad was right. She didn’t have a clue about money.
He got out of the car and tried to open the gates, but they were locked in some way he couldn’t fathom out. There was a doorbell and intercom to one side, so he pressed it, then got angry and kept on pressing it.
‘You can take your finger off the bell now.’
It was a man’s voice. Brian frowned. Had she acquired a live-in lover? He couldn’t imagine it. ‘I’ve come to see my mother.’
‘What’s your name?’
‘What’s yours? What the hell are you doing in my mother’s house, anyway?’
‘I’ll come out to the gate.’
Brian waited, foot tapping impatiently. A tall man who looked vaguely familiar came striding along the drive, used an electronic remote to open a small gate set into one half of the larger ones, and stood looking at him.
‘Yes, I remember you now. Brian, isn’t it?’