No coming to the estate unannounced. No fraternization with my son. No sex? How long would that work? I knew how I got around him and very few of our encounters had not ended up with the two of us naked. He wanted this to work but I didn't. Him getting too close would end in disaster. We were having lunch together and I was already dreading what that meeting would look like.
Just keep your expectations low, I thought. That way, there was no way to disappoint myself. A successful lunch would be one where he ended up driving back to London. I wasn't even sure whether he had survived the night. Had he managed to get a room at the inn? Or was he staying elsewhere? It wasn’t like he had that many options. The housing market in Belshire wasn't exactly booming. Most people who lived here had done so for at least the last sixty years and new additions were rare. My house was likely the grandest one in the village which was really saying something.
I headed out of the house walking to the tavern. I didn’t feel the need to drive the short distance. I wondered how Niall had fared during the night. The inn wasn’t that bad, but I had heard some horror stories. Since I had never stayed there, I couldn’t confirm or deny the claims. There were rooms available at the tavern, but I had heard close to nothing about them.
Prue once told me that a man who had ended up being arrested for murder had come through the village and stayed there briefly but that was it. How was that for Belshire’s claim to fame? Should I have let him take the caretaker’s cottage? I felt a little guilty all of a sudden. Maybe he headed out further to a town nearby to get some better housing. I wouldn’t be surprised. I wouldn’t be shocked if I got to the tavern and he didn’t show up at all. That, honestly would be the best case scenario.
Walking down the road towards the tavern, I noticed his car parked by the side of the road. Okay, okay, so he was still there. That was just one night though. I should have made a bet about how long he would last trying to do this. I had very little faith in him, but it would be interesting to see where this all ended up.
A relationship with you, that was where he thought this was ending up. Do you know what? I should have been the one standing him up. There was no way that this could work out. We couldn’t be in a relationship. We couldn’t date like he wanted. We couldn’t do it.
So, what was I doing? I got to the door of the tavern and stepped inside. I couldn’t seem to help myself when it came to him. Once inside, I scanned the seats for him, surprised when I spotted his blond mop. I walked in slowly when he waved me over. He was looking at a menu, seeming very much at home. Too at home. He got up and hugged me when I got to his table.
“You… survived,” I said.
He laughed. “Aren’t you happy to see me?”
“I’m more surprised than anything,” I said.
“I wanted to have some flowers here when I saw you but there isn’t one florist in this whole village.”
“Well, that’s Belshire for you. I bet you miss London.”
“Not even a bit,” he said.
“Where did you sleep?”
“I found some rooms here at the tavern, actually so I didn’t have to go to the inn.”
“Oh, really. How’s that working out for you?”
“It’s quite noisy. I didn’t get to sleep for a while. I think the building is old, so it creaks,” he said.
“Right. It’s old.”
“I’m sure I’ll get used to it.” I was hoping that he wouldn’t. I wanted the sheer dereliction of the village to send him running back to London. I wanted him to feel so ill at ease that he went running back to the presidential suites and room service that he was used to. No, not far enough… until he ran back to whatever debaucherous bachelor pad he lived in in New York.
“Any rats? Drafts? Ghosts?”
“It’s a bit cold. The mattress is thin. The curtains are full of holes but it’s alright I think, as I’m on the first floor. No one can see inside anyway.” My god, poor thing. I almost felt sorry for him, but discomfort was a good thing right now if it made him want to leave.
“Sounds awful.”
“It's not that bad. There was a bit of a smell.”
I raised my eyebrows. “A what?”
“It’s some sort of mildew or something in the
bathroom but it’s alright. Not too bad.”
“That’s no way to live,” I said.
“It’s fine, truly,” he said, looking down at his hands.
“Are you sure?”
“It’s a… an experience you know? I’ve never done this before, no harm in trying.”