Rumours (41 page)

Lydia stared at him. She had an overwhelming desire to touch him; just to hover her hand so it caught the tips of his hair, to feel how his small bony shoulder might nestle into her palm, how his chin might feel like a plump little plum between her thumb and finger.

A car tooted. Some one called out, ‘Come on, love!' Will gasped. You must never,
ever
, refer to this lady as anything other than Lady!

‘Did you hear that?' Will was aghast. ‘Shall we banish that car from your kingdom? It's the red one.'

‘Peasant,' Lydia said. ‘We'll send him over that way – hopefully he'll step in cow shit.'

Will almost fell over. Not just an adult – but
royalty
– using the
S
word! This was the best day in his entire life. Standing to attention next to Lydia, who said disparaging things under her breath to him about all the approaching motorists, Will copied her arm gestures, pointing the cars this way and that.

‘We'll send this old bird over that way,' Lydia chortled.

‘That old bird is actually my grandma,' said Will casually, ‘and I think she'd probably prefer it if you called her Sandie – if that's OK with you.'

Stella and Xander were waiting at the cake stall for Will and Sandie but, half an hour after they'd arranged to meet, there was still no sign of them and Sandie's phone was off. Just as Xander and Stella were discussing what on earth to do, and whether Will would be mortified by a message over the tannoy, they saw them. A veritable procession. Lydia walking demurely, nodding to all and sundry, her hand on Will's shoulder as if he were part pageboy, part walking stick. Will walking in a peculiar gait to fall in line with Lydia; behind them, Sandie like a lady in waiting, desperate to look around her but compelled to keep her eyes fixed low and ahead, as if in service to Lady Lydia. They stopped a few yards short of Stella, who felt a bizarre impulse to curtsey which, if Will hadn't then scampered over to her, she might well have done.

Lydia looked slowly from Stella to Xander and then back again, as if all that Stella had said might have been little more than joshing rumours and that only her own eyes could calculate the truth of it. As if sensing this, Xander slipped his hand around Stella's waist for a moment – long enough for Lydia to see, but for Will not to notice.

‘Good afternoon,' Lydia said. ‘A wonderful turnout, don't you think?'

The three of them shared a silent moment reflecting that this was Lydia's last time promenading as lady of the manor. Walking with Will from her fields to the fete, it had crossed her mind whether she'd be able to insert some sort of covenant into the contract – that all future owners of Longbridge had a duty to the village at such times as the fete or Christmas. Wondering about this, in a businesslike way, overruled any sentimentalism creeping in on such fine and jolly proceedings.

‘I hope Will didn't make a nuisance of himself,' Stella was saying.

‘On the contrary,' Lydia said in a voice new to Stella and which Xander hadn't heard for many years, ‘he was most helpful.' The timbre was soft – as though her vocal chords were bouncing on a feather bed. She looked at the boy. ‘And a lot of fun.' And she reached for Stella's wrist and, as she squeezed it, she made a sound the closest to a giggle that she was capable of. ‘I taught him to swear,' Lydia said. ‘I do hope you won't object.'

‘It's for best only,' Will told his mother, as if Lydia's ripe language was a suit of the finest worsted wool to be worn on only the most special of occasions.

Stella didn't know what to say and by the time she was about ready to reply, Lydia was already telling Will to come along – that they had rounds to make. This was not what Stella had envisaged – she'd thought she'd be strolling around the fete with her mum, her lad and her boyf. Her mum was now deep in conversation with the man on the honey stall, her little lad had been commandeered by aspirant monarchy and her boyf was suddenly nowhere to be seen. Stella picked at the free samples on the cake stall and, recognizing Audrey's scones, bought one.

‘Greedy pig.'

Xander's back, thought Stella and before she turned to face him, she wondered if it was peculiar that the disparaging pet names he already had for her should swell her heart so. Stroppy mare. Moody cow. Greedy pig. He'd called her a Dirty Bitch too last week, after she'd bustled him into her downstairs loo and surprised him with a particularly artful blowjob.

‘Do you speak to Stella's mother with that mouth?' It was Caroline, standing alongside Xander and jabbing him in the ribs.

‘Where
is
your mum?' Xander asked.

‘Talking to the honey man,' said Stella.

Caroline and Xander groaned. ‘She'll never get away,' Caroline said. ‘Go and rescue her,' she told Xander. They watched him saunter off.

‘Hullo,' Caroline said to Stella, ‘again.'

‘Hullo,' said Stella.

‘Have you been stared at an awful lot?'

Stella looked confused.

‘You're the toast of the fete,' Caroline laughed. ‘You've rained on Lady Lydia Fortescue's parade. You would've thought everyone would be whispering about her – about this being her last as lady of the manor. If she comes next year, she'll have to pay entry. But no – as soon as we got here, all the talk has been “Ooh er! Xander's here
with a woman
.” Although Bob referred to you as “a bit of skirt” and Mrs Patek, from the shop, called you a “
Young lady
”.' Caroline paused. ‘Obviously, she hasn't seen you after a night out in Hertford.'

Stella laughed. ‘Oi!' she said. ‘You told me I could forget all that!'

Caroline held her hands up in surrender. ‘You're right. I apologize.'

They paused, glancing over to observe Xander trying to extricate Sandie from the non-stop conversation of the bee man so as to introduce her to Audrey who'd just arrived for her stint on the cake stall.

‘So!' said Caroline.

And Stella knew what she meant. She nodded, shrugged and beamed at the same time. Caroline clicked her tongue and grinned. ‘Really pleased,' she said. ‘For both of you – match made in heaven and all that. By the way, I saw your little lad with Lady Lydia. He was all but shooing us peasants out of her way.'

‘They rub along fine,' Stella said. ‘It's funny.'

‘Congratulations, by the way, on flogging the old place.'

‘Well, I hope I've done the right thing,' said Stella.

Xander and Sandie were back and Caroline was introduced. The four stood and batted chit-chat between them like an impromptu game of badminton.

‘Xander, are you still coming for dinner tonight?'

‘Yep.'

‘Stella?' Caroline asked. ‘Would you like to come too? You're most welcome.'

‘Oh! Thank you. But another time, perhaps. Babysitting – you know!'

Sandie overheard this. ‘But darling, I can babysit.' She looked at her daughter. ‘Will can come to me.'

‘Tonight?'

‘Yes, tonight.'

She thought about it. ‘But Will has an early start tomorrow – it's a cricket match.'

‘Well, I can stay at yours then.'

‘No – I mean, I'll come back. But yes, if you could babysit at mine, that would be perfect.'

‘No – and
I
mean,
I'll
stay at yours,' her mother said, unequivocally. ‘You needn't worry about what time you get in, then.' She paused and looked from Caroline to Xander to Stella. ‘In fact, you needn't come back tonight. I'll meet you at cricket tomorrow. I know where it is.'

It was as though her mother was facilitating a night of fornication for her daughter and, to Stella, it felt not just embarrassing, but really rather wrong.

‘You can stay on my futon!' Xander said, assessing the situation and employing an appropriately theatrical tone as if the marvellous idea had just come to him.

‘There you are!' said Sandie, winking at Xander.

‘Sorted!' said Caroline, winking at Sandie.

‘Well – thanks very much,' said Stella, regarding them all with wry suspicion.

They strolled through the fete together, with expensive stop-offs for Sandie at the home produce stand, the plant area and the greetings cards stall where the breeze caused the wares to flutter like caught paper birds. All the while, they kept an eye open for Lydia and Will. Ultimately, it was the PA system which alerted them to their whereabouts.

‘Ladies, gentlemen, girls and boys!'

‘That's Will!' Stella exclaimed.

‘Come to the dog show
now
! Lady Lydia of Fortescue is going to judge the dog show.
Now!
Roll up and come along.
Now!
'

‘Oh God, you don't want him getting a taste for a public address system,' said Caroline.

‘Too late,' said Stella.

‘And he's already got a taste for minor aristocracy,' said Sandie.

‘A lethal combo,' Caroline said.

They laughed and headed over to the dog show. Lydia, assisted by Will, stood in the middle while the very serious business of judging ‘
Owner Who Looks Most Like Dog
' took place. In the end, after much whispering and pointing, Lydia and Will gave first place to a small girl dressed top to toe in black and white who'd been pulled around the ring by a black-and-white English pointer. Second prize went to a gruff old boy whose whiskers matched his schnauzer's and third prize went to a flame-haired girl and her red setter. Next, Will and Lydia judged the obstacle race and gave the prizes on a completely subjective basis. Finally, the obedience competition which was such chaos that Lydia, who took this very seriously, was tempted not to give any prizes. Will, it appeared, managed to make her see otherwise.

‘I've had the best time,' he said to his mum and her group. ‘I've been a
judge
.'

‘Five minutes,' said his grandma, ‘then we ought to make a move.'

Will looked at his mother and tried to ask ‘Ten?' His mum just gave him that annoying raised-eyebrow look which translated to don't-argue-with-your-elders-and-betters.

Five minutes came and went. And then it really was time to go.

‘Sweetheart, Grandma's going to take you home. And stay the night. And take you to the cricket match,' said Stella.

Will looked perplexed. ‘What about you?'

‘I've been invited to a party,' said Stella.

‘Whose party?'

‘My party,' said Caroline. She assessed Will's displeasure. ‘Sometimes I have parties for children, sometimes for children and adults. Very occasionally – like tonight – just for adults where we sit around and talk about the news and weather. You can come if you like.'

Will tried to be as polite as possible when turning that one down. ‘Why is Grandma taking me to cricket though? Where will you be in the morning?'

‘I –' Stella wasn't sure how to answer.

‘I said she could have a sleepover at my house as it might be a late night,' said Xander.

This made sense to Will. He wasn't entirely happy about it, but it did make sense. ‘Oh, all right,' he said. ‘Bye.'

Caroline, Xander and Stella waved them off. Once or twice, Will looked over his shoulder and though Xander and his friend were strolling off, his mum was still looking his way and waved as soon as he turned. She was still standing there, waiting to wave, waiting for him to turn, after he'd made his grandma take the detour so he could bow goodbye to Lady Lydia (who assured him that getting the cars off her land was far easier than parking them there in the first place, so thank you for asking, young man, but no – we won't require your assistance).

‘I'll just say bye to Mum,' said Xander when a couple of Caroline's friends came over and Stella was being welcomed into their coven.

Audrey was doing a fine job rearranging what was left on the cake stall so that it still looked abundant. ‘You off?' she said.

Xander sniffed his armpits and they both laughed at their oft-repeated skit. ‘I'll drop by during the week,' he told her. ‘Tell Dad.'

Audrey looked around her, wistfully. ‘It's been a lovely day – a much better fete than last year's.'

‘Strange though – isn't it?' They both watched Lydia, lording it over a gaggle of villagers. ‘End of an era,' Xander said.

‘I'll bet that phrase is doing the rounds at the moment!' She regarded Xander. ‘But it is also the start of a new one – which needn't be a bad thing, love. You do know that?'

He shrugged, nodded and, a little reluctantly, smiled.

‘Verity wrote to me last week – said she'd missed you when she was here,' said Audrey.

‘I dropped her a line.'

‘I know,' said Audrey. ‘She wrote that you'd told her about Stella.'

Xander looked surprised but his mother raised an eyebrow. ‘Verity tells me most things,' she said. ‘She always has, remember. And she said how happy she was for you. Her very words were:
He needs someone else to look after. I'm all grown up, after all. He seems to forget that. And I'm just fine
.' She looked at her son intently.

Xander placed his arm around her shoulders. ‘Mum – I'm not doing too badly myself.'

‘Finally, no one need worry about anyone.'

‘Apart from the fact that you leave your car and front doors unlocked.'

Audrey lightly scolded her son and busied herself with the cake display, making him pay full price for a scone.

‘You OK?' Xander was at Stella's side, running the back of his hand up her arm.

Will was gone from view now. Stella turned. ‘Yup,' she said. Pure grown-up time until tomorrow morning. How luxurious. How – illicit!

‘Do you fancy building up an appetite before dinner?' he asked.

And Stella replied that he was a dirty dog and Xander said he'd take that as a yes, then.