The Winter Garden by Nicola Cornick

Author:Nicola Cornick
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Graydon House Books
Published: 2022-08-10T15:02:36+00:00

* * *

They passed a golf club and the country road started to be bordered with houses. “We’re just coming into Highworth now,” Finn said. “Where are you meeting Cleo?”

“In the market square,” Lucy said. “Gosh, there are a lot of new buildings here. I haven’t been to see Cleo for a good few years and the town was smaller then.” She pointed to a shop halfway down the high street. “That’s Cleo’s bookshop. It’s very like Cleo herself—stylish, eclectic and very cool.”

Finn smiled. “It’s nice that you’re so supportive of each other,” he said. “I can see you’re very close. I’ve been in the shop a few times actually, though I don’t think Cleo was there. There was a very helpful bookseller who ordered some obscure sixteenth-century treatise on herbal planting for me.”

“That would be Sam, Cleo’s girlfriend,” Lucy said. “They run the place together. She’s really into antiquarian books and history.”

Finn turned into the market square and stopped by a smart looking café with pavement tables shaded by poppy-red umbrellas. Cleo was sitting beneath one of them looking chic and fresh in a white T-shirt with a matching white scarf wrapped around her unruly black hair. She looked up and waved.

“Thanks so much.” Lucy hopped quickly out of the car and pulled the seat forward so that Johnny could extract himself and take her place in the front. Geoffrey stretched out expansively into the space. “Have a great day,” she said. “Have fun, Geoffrey!”

Geoffrey yawned widely and Johnny gave her a wave as Finn pulled out into the traffic.

“Hey,” Cleo said. “How are you? And was that Johnny Robsart in the car with you and Finn?”

“Fine, thank you, and yes,” Lucy said. She followed Cleo back to the table where her sister had already ordered a cappuccino and an almond croissant. Around them the umbrellas fluttered in the breeze and people were eating brunch. A waiter came over and she ordered apple juice and a plate of pancakes with maple syrup and blueberries. The toast had been at least two hours ago.

“Good,” Cleo said approvingly. “It’s good to see you’ve got an appetite. It was nice of Finn to give you a lift,” she added. “What’s he doing today?”

“He and Johnny are having lunch with friends at Burford,” Lucy said, “and yes, it was nice of him to drop me off on the way.”

“By friends you mean Lizzie Kingdom and Arthur Robsart, I expect.” Cleo’s celebrity radar was well attuned. “They live in Burford and I read somewhere that Lizzie and Finn had worked together on a couple of charity garden projects. I think Finn might even be godfather to her baby son.”

“I really wouldn’t know,” Lucy said. “Finn’s not the type to talk about his celebrity mates,” she added pointedly. “All I know is that Johnny’s helping him with the excavation at the cottage. He’s an archaeology student and he’s very sweet.”

Cleo looked excited. “Maybe Lizzie will come over too,” she said. “Let me know if she does and I’ll drop by to visit you.

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