Practically Perfect (43 page)

A look of anger flashed across Rob’s face and all the blood drained from her. ‘So you’re the developer, are you Anna?’

‘Not like that!’ she squeaked.

‘Like what then?’

Anna couldn’t speak. The others stood like shop dummies, no one daring to get involved.

‘Like what?’ Rob repeated, tension straining his voice. As Anna could only stare at him, he finally lost his temper. ‘What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing!’ he raged at her. ‘This is my house! It’s not for you to make plans
for
it, to employ people, in fact you shouldn’t even be here at all! You’re trespassing!’

She uncleaved her tongue from the roof of her mouth. She had no answers. It suddenly all seemed so silly, so quixotic, so thoroughly impractical. She couldn’t say that she’d done it for him, because she loved him, that she wanted to make it so his house wasn’t just a burnt-out shell, but a project, something that could be achieved. She would look like, and indeed was, an idiot.

‘Well?’ he roared again. ‘What have you got to say for yourself?’

Arthur looked at Anna. ‘Didn’t he know you were doing all this?’ he said, finally finding his voice.

‘I thought he was your client,’ Phil spoke up. ‘What are we doing here if he hasn’t commissioned you?’

Eric, who knew her better than the other two, remained silent. In fact, he knew her well enough to be sure she hadn’t been doing anything underhand, but couldn’t have guessed her motives.

‘We’ll be going then,’ said Arthur, and the three men walked swiftly back to their cars, leaving Anna and Rob to it.

Knowing no cataclysmic event would save her, she gathered what resources she could. ‘I was trying to help,’ she managed at last. ‘I wanted to have something for you to work with when you got back.’

‘Oh, did you? And why was that? Because you saw it as a good investment?’ he accused. ‘An opportunity to be exploited?’

‘No, I just felt so awful about your house being burnt—’

‘That you couldn’t wait to move in your team and take over? What on earth makes you think I want to sell my house to you? I know it’s worth nothing as it stands but it’s mine!’

‘I know it’s yours—’ Anna tried again.

‘And how did you think I was going to pay for all the work you’re so gaily planning?’ he stormed.

‘I was going to ask you to …’ She realised nothing she was saying was penetrating his pall of anger. ‘Oh, never mind.’

She turned from him and stalked back to the piece of wall where she had left her plans, her drawings tube and her notebook. She tried to roll up the plans but couldn’t, so abandoned them and just took the tube and went towards her car. There was obviously no point in trying to reason with him.

‘So you’re just walking out, are you?’ He came thundering after her and part of her noticed he was limping.

‘No!’ She took huge pleasure in contradicting him. ‘I’m not walking out! I’m driving!’

She walked over to the car, ignoring Arthur, Eric and Phil, who were about to drive away, but aware of their fascination. They had obviously worked out exactly what was going on. She produced her car keys from her pocket and stabbed them into the lock of the Volvo.

‘Now what are you doing?’ Rob demanded.

‘What does it look like I’m doing?’ she snapped. ‘I’m getting in my car!’

‘But you don’t drive!’

‘Yes I do!’ She pulled open the door but he put a hand on her arm to stop her.

‘From when?’

‘From when I passed my driving test.’

‘But you go everywhere by bicycle!’

‘Not any more. Now, let me go!’

He still held on to her arm. ‘So if you’ve got a car, why the hell didn’t you come and see me?’ he hissed.

‘Because you never asked me!’ Anna was beginning to
feel
increasingly angry. Not only had he misconstrued her intentions, now he was accusing her of not caring at all.

‘Surely to goodness you didn’t have to wait for an invitation!’ he said, his voice shaking. ‘Since when has anyone had to wait for an invitation to visit someone who’s ill?’

‘According to you, you weren’t ill! You just had a sprained ankle!’

‘Oh, for goodness’ sake, there was the smoke inhalation you know,’ he said, glaring at her.

‘You were staying with your sister! It was her house, I couldn’t just turn up uninvited. Besides, I didn’t know the address!’

‘But you’d been there before!’

‘I’ve been to Buckingham Palace before but it doesn’t mean I know the way and it doesn’t mean I’d go without an invitation!’ She thought for a moment. ‘Anyway, I haven’t been there before. Just near.’

‘Oh.’ He paused for a second. ‘I lost my mobile in the fire. I didn’t have your number.’

‘Oh.’ Of course, now she remembered, and grudgingly admitted this was quite a good reason for him not getting in touch, but then again, he could have got hold of her via Chloe.

He read her thoughts. ‘I tried to get in touch with you via Chloe, but she’s ex-directory,’ he said defensively.

Anna wasn’t going to let him off so easily. ‘Oh. So that explains everything,’ she said. ‘Good-o. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll be going.’ She just wanted to get away.

Although he’d taken his hand off her arm by now, he still stood in her way. ‘None of that is any excuse for all this!’ He made a sweeping gesture.

‘I didn’t start the fire, Rob.’ She forced herself to remain calm, but she was now equally furious. How could he have read her so wrongly? He had totally over-reacted
and
she didn’t want to be around him any more. ‘All I tried to do was to make some plans for rebuilding,’ she went on. ‘I thought it was what you wanted. You obviously thought I was doing it for me!’ She wrenched open the back door and threw her belongings into it.

‘Well, what was I supposed to think?’ he muttered. ‘You were tramping all over my property with a lot of tradesmen. What else would you be doing?’ He was now standing with his arms folded, daring her to deny this.

‘If you can think that I’d do that then I’m sorry. And you’ve got me as wrong as I’ve got you. Well, thank God we found out before we could make a terrible mistake – sorry, before
I
could make a terrible mistake.’ She regarded him, shaking with anger and upset. ‘It’s just as well I’m used to being wrong about men, isn’t it? It makes it all less of a shock.’

Then she got in the car and started it. As she’d left it in gear it bounded forward and Rob leapt out of the way. Then she kangeroo-jumped the car all the way out of the clearing. She was out of sight before she got the gears right and moved smoothly.

She drove as carefully as she could until she saw somewhere she could pull in, then she spent several minutes breathing deeply. She wouldn’t let herself cry. That would serve no purpose. Now she needed to get home. She needed to reassess everything in a practical way. There was nothing else for it.

She didn’t dare visit Chloe. A milligram of sympathy would fracture the brittle veneer of her courage. Nor was she ready to admit what a fool she’d been. How could she have made all those plans without consulting him? Of course he was furious. He had every right to be. She allowed herself one shuddering sigh. The fact was that she wouldn’t have done anything he didn’t like if she’d
been
able to see him. If she’d seen him she could have tactfully asked him what, if anything, he’d like her to do.

Did she believe his story about not being able to get in touch? Actually she did, and now it could be an advantage. This way, she could get in touch with him when she wanted to collect Caroline, but he couldn’t get in touch with her. And she was angry too. He had no right to shout at her like that, to immediately assume the worst about her – surely he knew her well enough to know she’d never do anything like that. He’d looked at her with such fury, she thought she could almost see actual hatred in his eyes.

She got home, hardly aware of doing it, and realised that with so much on her mind, her driving had become more automatic. She got out of the car and closed the gate although, with Caroline miles away, it wasn’t really necessary. How could she have been so mistaken about Rob’s feelings for her? She had fallen in love with him, wanted him and was prepared to do anything for him. But how did he see her? As an interfering idiot? Well, she wasn’t going to spend another three years mooning over a man. She was going to get on with her life.

She unlocked her door and went into the small, tidily arranged hall.

But not here, not in the Cotswolds. She couldn’t carry on with her plans to buy that house because, much as she had loved the area, now it was nothing but a reminder of how stupid she’d been. She’d buy a house near Laura, and forget all about Amberford.

She went into the kitchen and put the kettle on, more for something to do than because she wanted to make anything with boiling water. Rob was a bastard, there was no other word for it! How could he think she was planning to take over his house behind his back? He couldn’t have said or done anything that could have hurt her more.
She
hated him! And he was welcome to his burnt-out shell.

Forgetting the kettle, which was electric, she went into the sitting room and sat down. She was still wearing her fleece and it was a warm day, but she felt terribly cold.

‘You’ve softened up,’ she chided herself. ‘Think how cold it was in your house to begin with.’

Reminding herself of her lovely little house, now owned by the elegant Julian, did not make her feel any better. Now she was safely home she felt exhausted, all the anger drained out of her.

She was sitting huddled on the sofa, losing the will to live, when the telephone rang.

‘Hello, Anna!’ It was Chloe and she sounded strange.

‘Hello.’

‘I’m ringing to see how you are.’

‘Not great, actually, but, Chloe’ – she changed her tone, to discourage Chloe’s questions about her well-being – ‘are you all right? You sound a bit tense.’

‘I am a bit tense!’ Chloe lowered her voice to the point of inaudibility. ‘I’ve got—’

‘What? You’ll have to speak up. I can’t hear a word.’

‘I’m in the kitchen! Rob’s next door. He wants to know if it’s OK for me to give him your telephone number and address. He lost his mobile, his address book, everything like that, in the fire.’

Anna’s lips went numb. The thought of seeing Rob made her shiver convulsively. ‘Oh, Chloe, thank goodness you rang! No, absolutely do not give him my details! I really don’t want to speak to him, ever again!’

‘But I thought you two—’

‘Well, you’re wrong. I want nothing more to do with him.’

‘But what about Caroline?’ Chloe asked.

‘I’ll sort that out somehow. She’s not with Rob at the moment, so I can get her back.’

‘But you can’t have her in your rented house!’

‘No, but I’m not staying here. Oh, Chloe, there’s loads I need to tell you,’ Anna said in a small voice.

Chloe swallowed. ‘I’ll try and come over tonight,’ she said so indistinctly that Anna could only make out the words because she could guess what Chloe would say, like the true friend she was.

‘Great, but please don’t tell Rob where I am! I really, really don’t want to see him.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes! I’m begging you, don’t betray me!’

‘Of course I won’t betray you! I’ll try and come round later, then.’ And she hung up.

Anna went hot and then back to freezing cold again. She reboiled the kettle and filled herself a hot-water bottle. She felt as if she was coming down with flu.

Anna was wearing her fleece and still clutching her hot-water bottle when Chloe arrived. Chloe was wearing a sleeveless dress which told Anna it was actually quite warm, and her arms were full of fish and chips, a bottle of vodka and a carrier bag full of books. ‘Comfort reading,’ Chloe said, it being the only item that needed explanation.

‘Come in,’ said Anna. She ushered Chloe into the living room that had a kitchen down one end. The rest was arranged as a sitting room, with a sofa and chairs. She regarded the fish and chips dubiously. ‘I’m not sure I’m hungry, though.’

‘Nonsense! When did you last eat?’

Anna considered. ‘Not sure.’ It could have been breakfast, but she might not have bothered. She’d been so excited about the site meeting she had arranged at Rob’s house. Light years had passed since then.

‘You’re so lucky! When I’m miserable I eat, and then I get fat and that makes me more miserable.’

Anna hadn’t been thinking of herself as lucky until then. It was a novel angle. ‘Oh, Chloe, it’s good to see you!’ She hugged her friend. ‘Now you’ve got to tell me why Rob went to your house.’

‘Food first,’ Chloe said stubbornly. ‘Get the oven on, and we’ll heat this lot up while we have a drink. Or at least, while I watch you have a drink.’

It took Anna some minutes to get the oven to work properly. It had a fan and several knobs and it was a while before she had heat and air, rather than just air.

‘What have you got to put in the vodka?’ asked Chloe.

Anna inspected her cupboards and the fridge. ‘Elderflower cordial,’ she said eventually.

‘I would have brought something but we were out of tonic. Never mind, elderflower will have to do.’

‘I might prefer mine without vodka.’

‘Nonsense! Haven’t you read
Bridget Jones
? There’s only one cure for heartbreak, and it’s vodka.’

‘I’ll find some glasses,’ said Anna meekly, wondering how Chloe knew what she was suffering from. She certainly hadn’t mentioned her heart.

Chloe started opening and closing cupboard doors in Anna’s kitchen. ‘Where on earth do you keep your plates? Oh, here they are. We must heat them.’

‘Must we?’

Chloe nodded. ‘I know it’s only fish and chips but they won’t taste nice if they’re not hot. Now, pass those glasses.’ She poured a small amount of cordial into each one.

‘Are you sure about this?’ Anna asked. ‘We could just have boiling water. That makes it quite comforting.’

‘Wimp!’ Chloe poured a large measure of vodka on top of the cordial.

‘What about the water?’

‘There is no water! This is proper alcohol, not a cocktail! It would be better with ice though …’ She looked questioningly at Anna who shook her head. ‘OK, where’s a spoon?’ Chloe stirred the vodka into the syrup and then handed Anna a glass.