The Playing Fields by Stella Cameron

Author:Stella Cameron [Cameron, Stella]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Severn House
Published: 2021-06-24T00:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN

Dan opened his front door … straight into a wobbly stack of packing crates. ‘Calum!’ He pushed as hard as he dared and gradually inched open a wide enough space to step in sideways. ‘Calum – you here?’

The boxes – apparently empty, thank God – tipped sideways before Dan could execute a catch. Or try to. The damn things went everywhere.

‘Calum!’

Headed for the stairs, he kicked debris out of his path before he was met by Busy the Beagle, whose joy at seeing him might have been uplifting if the dog hadn’t taken a running jump and left dust and white hairs all over Dan’s suit.

Calum arrived behind the dog. ‘Hey, Dad. What’re you doing home?’

He quelled the urge to say that he lived here. No point in taking his short temper out on his boy. ‘Meeting in Gambol Green a bit later – quite a lot later really. But I’ve got to follow up on something in Folly and check back in at the station. I’m on my way to Folly first but I wanted to see how you’re doing. From the picture you sent, it looks as if you’re making a lot of progress.’ Calum’s smile shamed him into adding, ‘I thought I’d see if you fancy picking out fresh paint for your room. Looks as if you’ll be able to move in soon.’ He knuckled a box. Just what he needed, another room to paint while he had a tough case on.

‘I’ll paint it,’ Calum said eagerly. ‘I paint for Mum. It’s a wicked room. I always wanted a dormer window. And there’s a tree right outside. It’ll be wicked if it really snows on it. I’m going to save up for stained glass, if that’s OK. I’d ask you to help me choose. You pick out the pattern and colors and they make it before they bring it to you. They put it in, of course. Mum did it in the front windows in Dublin. It’s the only thing I like about that house.’ He turned a bit pink around the edges. ‘I mean … this is a cool place, Dad.’

‘Great.’ How could he not react to the boy’s enthusiasm? ‘We’ll see about the stained glass. We have to get you a new bed. Maybe one of those with drawers underneath to give you more storage. And we could build some bookshelves. Nothing fancy. I reckon we’d be after managing some of those with blocks you put the boards on.’

‘That’d be wicked, Dad!’ Calum punched a fist into the air and swept Busy into his arms. ‘We can do it all, can’t we boy? Mrs Wills says Busy likes it here best – in Canal Cottage, I mean. He waits outside and runs in when you open the door. I always wanted a dog. Mrs Wills makes killer lunches.’

‘We shouldn’t be luring Busy in with us,’ Dan said. It was true that Calum had asked for a dog many times, but it was hard to do when there was usually no one home all day.

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