Never Too Late (40 page)

Keela took Maggie’s hand, her eyes sparkling. “Maggie, if we had a small farm shop do you think, between us, we could also do bedding plants for sale next spring? And maybe ready planted hanging baskets and troughs?”

“Alec likes doing a bit of carpentry,” Ken told them. “He could knock up the troughs for you and would charge much less than commercial ones. Better made too.”

“At this rate the whole village will be employed,” Iain laughed. “But all that will help when it comes to planning permission. And thinking of planning, it’s all going to mean a great deal of very hard work just to finalise and formalise what your plans are. Then it’s going to mean even harder work to make it a reality. Much harder work than accountancy and banking. Are you both sure you’re prepared for it?”

James put his arm across Keela’s shoulders and they looked at each and grinned. “Oh yes, we’re ready. It’s exactly what we want to do. We know every day will be very long and very hard graft, but that work will have meaning and purpose for us. Life’s not worth living if every hour at work is just to pay bills.”

Maggie went for more juice but didn’t sit down again when she returned. “I’m just going to take Deefor for a quick walk,” she told them. “I’ll leave you to your brainstorming and catch up on the plan of action as it takes form later. When we get back,” she added, “we can all drive over and look at the old farmhouse – check out what state it’s in.”

“Good idea, Mum,” James said. “We’ll take the large scale map with us too and see if we can get some idea what we should have where.”

“I’ll get my stick,” Iain said suddenly, glancing up at Maggie. “That is, if you don’t mind me joining you?”

This was the first time he’d wanted to walk with them. Maggie couldn’t quite decipher his expression and wondered what had triggered the impulse now. “I’d be pleased to have your company, if your knee’s up to it.”

“Gentle exercise is just what it needs,” he assured her.

He didn’t use the stick much but he liked to have it with him still if he intended walking further than just around the house. They went down through the garden, past the new pond and across the stream with Deefor walking between them. They emerged from the wood into the bright sunshine on the meadow. Maggie had taken the ball thrower with her and sent Deefor’s favourite red rubber ball flying high and long. Deefor stood regarding Iain steadily for a few moments before running off to fetch it.

“It’s worse than when the children were young,” Iain complained. “At least they went off to play by themselves. At least they trusted me.”

Maggie looked up at him, surprised and uncomprehending. “What do you mean?”

“Wherever you are, there’s the damn dog too. Whatever he wants, you pander to him. The children have left home but I still haven’t got you to myself.”

After a moment’s stunned silence Maggie couldn’t help the explosion of laughter. Her eyes sparkled with merriment as she bent over and covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh Iain! You aren’t jealous of a dog are you?”

“Of course I’m not jealous!” he snapped. “What a ridiculous thing to say.”

“I’m sorry, darling, I shouldn’t laugh at you, but you sound like a sulky little boy.”

He looked startled and started to speak, but then the corners of his lips twitched despite himself. It was rather nice having a wife who was prepared to take him to task, and to stand up for herself. “If I carry on acting like a little boy will I qualify for more of your time and attention?” he asked in mock innocence.

“As always, you will get as much as you deserve.” She reached up to kiss him. “And I much prefer a man in my bed at night,” she whispered seductively and nibbled his ear.

“When was the last time I made love to you outside?” he asked softly, lightly brushing her neck with his lips. He eased her down into the buttercup filled grass and was on his knees beside her when a low growl made him look up, to find Deefor’s nose just inches from his own. “Oh, for crissake dog! I’m not about to hurt her, you moron!”

Maggie giggled. “Perhaps he’s a tad jealous too. Don’t worry – Deefor down,” she commanded, and he reluctantly obeyed.

“You needn’t bother,” Iain grumbled. “There’s no way I can perform with him watching my every move.”

“Then we shall have to take a walk by ourselves some time,” she promised him and helped him back to his feet.

Deefor relaxed again once they were walking the perimeter of the field, but he refused to go after his ball any more, preferring to stay close to Maggie’s side. Maggie did make him walk on her left, though, so that she could hold hands with Iain as they swished through the long grass flowers.

“Perhaps they should have a wild flower meadow,” Maggie mused. “That would attract visitors too. And a pair of Suffolk Punches instead of a tractor to provide the horsepower, like at Highgrove. They could pull the mower that would cut the meadow grass for the hay to feed them in winter.”

“I think you’ll find Prince Charles has tractors too, darling.”

“I know, but for ten acres it would be feasible. They could do cart rides round to see the animals – children would love that.”

“What they’ll have to watch is not trying to do too much. A diverse range of income strings would certainly help their chances of success but it can be taken too far.”

When they returned to the house they found a note saying that the others had gone on ahead to check out the smallholding. Iain and Maggie followed. When they got to the farmhouse, James’ car was there, but there was no sign of anyone.

“It seems they’re getting their priorities right anyway,” Iain commented. “Check out the land that will provide the income first.”

“It certainly looks as if they will need our help in sorting out their accommodation,” Maggie agreed. “Shall we take a closer look at what needs doing?”

“Knowing my son’s total lack of interest in architecture I came prepared,” Iain told her and took from an inside pocket of his jacket a pad, pen and laser measurement tool. “Would you care to assist in at least getting a proper measurement of what we have at the moment?”

“Certainly I’ll be your Company Secretary,” Maggie joked. She looked up at the house frontage and more soberly added, “I wonder how much damage has been done by forty odd years of neglect?”

“Let’s go and find out.”

The old key was very stiff in the lock and would not budge. She went back to the car for a can of WD40 and tried again.

“I never knew you were so practically minded,” Iain said in surprise.

“My brother taught me ‘if it moves and it shouldn’t use duct tape, if it doesn’t move and it should use WD40’. That advice has served me well many a time when you haven’t been there to help.”

Finally the lock eased back and with a good heave from Iain’s shoulder the thick wooden door swung back, hinges creaking in complaint, showering them in dust and dirt. Inside, though, the situation was not nearly as bad as they had feared. There was a broken window in the kitchen and evidence that various people had used the house for temporary shelter over the years, but no real damage had been done. The whole place was thick was dust and cobwebs but the actual structure of the house seemed to be sound. Maggie considered some of the old furniture that had been left was salvageable too.

“Some of these pieces are a century or more old,” she told Iain. “Properly renovated they would cost you a fortune in an antique shop. The vernacular style is very popular and these are beautifully made.”

“Another asset if money gets tight then.”

They spent a couple of hours measuring the rooms, discussing possibilities and checking for any signs of dry rot, woodworm, damp or mould. Iain even found an old stepladder and wanted to check out the attic. Maggie insisted she should be the one to climb them.

“It’s too soon, Iain,” she told him off firmly. “I’ll not have you back in hospital for doing something as stupid as falling off a ladder.”

Afterwards they went to sit outside at a rough-hewn bench and table near the back door. It was very pleasant there in the warmth of the early evening sunlight.

“A southwest facing garden – perfect,” Maggie noted with pleasure.

The garden had long ago succumbed to brambles and bindweed but that didn’t concern Iain. He was already planning extending the house to the rear to allow for a mud room, shower and separate toilet. He was busy sketching out his ideas for the house, stable block and barn when the others returned.

Maggie was immediately concerned. “James, you’re looking quite sunburned. You really must be more careful. Here, I have some sunblock in my bag.”

“It’s a bit late for that, Mum,” he grinned happily. “Don’t worry, I’ll put some aloe vera on when we get back.”

“And Ken, I hope you’ve not been overdoing it, tramping across these fields.”

“Never felt better in my life,” he declared. “Getting involved in this project is the most fun I’ve had in years. It’ll be grand working for your son and his lovely lady.”

“Yes,” James confirmed, “Ken is our first official employee. There are so many possibilities on this land. We’ll make it work, and work well.”

“You’ll also have somewhere decent to live,” Iain told them. “I’m getting our surveyor out here next week to check it over more thoroughly but I reckon it’s sound. We’ll need to replace wiring and plumbing, obviously – I presume you will be wanting a bathroom somewhere in the house? Then there’s heating, insulation, new windows, and we need to consider a small extension. But beyond that, new kitchen fittings and decorating it’s not looking too bad at all. Your mother, Chloe and I can sort this out while you get on with the outdoor plans. Later on, there’s conversion of the stables and barn to work on, but that’s only when you’re sure of the use you’ll be needing them for.”

“Certainly we need to do some serious planning,” James agreed.

“Do you think it would be an awful extravagance if we were to celebrate moving into our own farmhouse by sleeping from the very first night under one of those fabulous quilts like Maggie has?” Keela asked James.

“You might have to wait a bit longer than that if Iain’s estimate of four months to complete the work on the farmhouse is correct,” Maggie warned them. “Sian has a long list of orders already, including three she is doing that Chloe ordered for the Sherringhams.”

“Apart from that we’ll need every available penny for necessities. A handmade quilt will come under the list of luxuries that will have to wait a while.” James was apologetic but Keela reluctantly agreed with him.

“However,” Maggie added, “if you don’t mind a second hand one, would you accept mine as a house warming gift?”

Keela jumped up and kissed her. “That would be wonderful, thank you so much.”

“You’re very welcome, Keela, it will give me great pleasure to think of the two of you cosy together underneath it after a hard day’s work outside. Now then,” she continued, addressing them all, “let’s get back and have something to eat. You too, Ken, unless you’ve other plans. It’s just a salad but there’s some very nice chicken, ham and a game pie.”

Ken was pleased to be invited. It would no doubt be a very lively conversation during the meal and he hadn’t had game pie since his wife died. Knowing Maggie he had no doubt there would also be jacket potatoes, a full range of pickles and chutneys, and a laden cheese board to follow. He wondered if Keela was as good a cook as her mother-in-law, and if company employees would be invited to eat with them during working hours. One way and another life suddenly had a great deal more to offer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

September

The last four weeks had been very hectic and lately tempers had been short at times. The weather had been exceedingly hot and humid, draining energy and tolerance towards each other. Despite that, they had pushed ahead and made great progress.

Planning permission for the farmhouse extension had not been needed as Iain had kept within the permitted four metres at the rear. Work on making the house habitable had been fast and furious. There seemed no doubt at all that Iain would, true to his word, have James and Keela rehomed within the time frame he had specified. In fact, his estimate seemed on the rather pessimistic side, Maggie thought, checking off the task list in her head as she walked.

A huge area had been excavated outside to allow the laying of endless pipes for the heat exchange system, and laying the miles of looped pipe under the farmhouse floors had taken a great deal of time and effort. Once that was done, though, the plumbing and rewiring had been done very quickly. The new extension would be connected in soon and that would just leave new flooring, the windows, kitchen, bathrooms, insulation and decorating.

She frowned as she admitted that there was, perhaps, rather a long list left to do. It had certainly helped, though, that the previous tenant, who had only used the land for casual grazing, had happily accepted a cash incentive to vacate six weeks early. They were all very conscious of the fact that winter would be upon them all too soon. A great deal needed to be done before the next spring.

She had enjoyed the time she had spent with Chloe at the house. Her daughter really was showing a flair for interior design. Much to Maggie’s surprise Chloe was being very organised about it. Colour choices and fabric samples were neatly logged, suppliers, prices, availability, it was all there in her folder and on her laptop. Appliances, fixtures and fittings had all been meticulously researched and best of all, she hadn’t tried to blithely over-rule any objections to her choices. If her arguments and persuasion didn’t sway James and Keela she gave in gracefully. Perhaps her daughter was growing up at long last, she reflected.

Today James and Keela were lodging their planning application for the change of use for the land from pasture to market garden. Iain was confident that there wouldn’t be a problem with it as the completed plan ticked all the right boxes. There would be improvement for wildlife habitat, generation of green energy, and employment for local people. The Environment Agency staff had proved to be very knowledgeable and given very good advice, both on the planning side and with the hydro scheme, reed bed sewage treatment, biodiversity plans and the requirements for a fishing lake. They had been put in touch with other people who had done similar things and were building firm friendships, as well as gaining more knowledge of what they were getting into.