Return to Half Moon Farm by Holly Hepburn

Author:Holly Hepburn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Published: 2024-01-04T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

‘Hello. Going on location?’

Daisy looked up from loading the car to see Drew Entwhistle watching her from a few metres away. Instantly, her stomach swooped as though she’d stepped off a cliff and she gripped the wooden leg of the easel to ground herself. It was almost two months since she’d first met him underneath the mistletoe in the farmhouse orchard and her crush on him was as strong and as inconvenient as ever. She knew he felt the same way – he’d told her so – but he’d also made it very clear that it was up to her to make the next move. In the meantime, she simply had to ride the waves of attraction that threatened to swamp her every time she saw him. ‘Hello,’ she said, after a moment’s grappling with the usual giddy rush of adolescent hormones. ‘Yes, I’m going to the spend a few hours in the castle gardens.’

‘Is this for the new book?’ he asked, stepping nearer to peer curiously into the boot..

She nodded. ‘I’m hoping to find some inspiration.’

‘Isn’t it all a bit manicured?’ he said, frowning. ‘I thought you’d want something wilder, more natural.’

There was a faint undercurrent of disapproval behind the words and Daisy supposed she understood why – there wasn’t much love lost between him and Kit Devereaux these days, despite having once been friends. ‘When Mary first finds the garden it’s overgrown, so those illustrations need to capture that wildness but they gradually restore things to how it used to be, which is more formal.’ She smiled. ‘And of course I get to spend an afternoon surrounded by flowers, which is never a bad thing.’

The lines creasing his forehead softened. ‘I couldn’t agree more. But perhaps when you need inspiration for the wild garden, you’ll let me show you some of my special places.’

It was a perfectly innocent offer but it still managed to cause a flutter of butterflies in Daisy’s stomach and Nancy’s warning of a few weeks ago rang uncomfortably in her ears: Sooner or later, you’re going to find yourself alone with Drew and you won’t be able to keep your hands off each other and all of a sudden you’ve got nettle rash in unmentionable places…

‘That’s very kind of you,’ she managed, as heat swarmed her cheeks. ‘Thank you.’

He raised an eyebrow, as though reading her thoughts. ‘It’s no trouble,’ he said. ‘There’s an abandoned house a mile or so west of here that Mother Nature has done an excellent job of reclaiming. I think you’d like it.’

The last time they’d been alone under the trees, they’d shared a kiss that had almost led to more, Daisy recalled as her face grew warmer still. She would have to drag the twins along for safety. ‘It sounds great,’ she said. ‘Campbell would love it, he’s really into old buildings.’

If the suggestion of company surprised Drew, he didn’t show it. Instead, he grinned. ‘And Finn would hate it. I’ll have to brush up on my football knowledge, keep him distracted.

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