Fireworks at the Farm on Muddypuddle Lane: A gorgeous small town escapism romance by Etti Summers

Author:Etti Summers [Summers, Etti]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-07-31T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIX

This feels more like a fun day out than a business trip, Dulcie thought, as she gazed out of the window of Petra’s Land Rover. She was sitting in the back, squashed between Otto and Walter, and Amos was in the passenger seat. The vehicle smelled vaguely of horse and manure – or was the niff coming from Petra, who had just confessed to mucking out a stable or two and was still wearing grubby jodhpurs and dirty boots.

Dulcie kept glancing at the space behind the rear seats and wondering if it was large enough for a goat. She was fairly certain it wouldn’t be big enough for more than one, and as she was planning on purchasing at least three or four animals, she was already worrying about how she was going to transport them from the breeder they were currently on their way to see.

The suspension in the Land Rover wasn’t the best, and her teeth rattled as the vehicle bounced along a track. But as they drew nearer to their destination her excitement grew when she caught her first glimpse of goats in a field.

‘Look, they’ve got a playground!’ she cried in astonishment, seeing a couple of the creatures climbing up planks of wood balanced on what looked like enormous cotton reels, which she assumed must have once held lengths of pipe or copper wire. A three-tiered lookout post had been constructed out of pallets, and there was even some kind of large swinging platform and a seesaw.

‘They get bored easily, do goats,’ Amos warned. ‘If you don’t give them something to occupy them, they’ll get up to all kinds of mischief.’

‘Ooh, I want a goaty playground,’ she said, turning to Otto. ‘Can you help me make one?’

Otto rolled his eyes and sighed. ‘If I must.’ He softened his words with a kiss.

‘Give it a rest,’ Petra muttered. ‘I wouldn’t have offered to bring you if I knew you were going to get all lovey-dovey.’

‘Have you and Harry had a row?’ Amos asked. He scooted around to speak to Dulcie. ‘Those two squabble like a cat and dog. He wants to offer riding holidays by turning the old sheep shed into a kind of hostel, but Petra’s having none of it.’

‘I’ve got enough on my plate as it is,’ Petra grumbled. ‘And the way Harry is carrying on, we won’t have a barn left for the actual horses.’

‘The horses live in the stable block,’ Amos pointed out.

‘Yes, but I still need a barn…’

Thankfully the discussion came to an end as Petra parked the Land Rover, and everyone got out.

A man walked towards them. He was leading a goat, who had a leather collar around its neck, and Dulcie suppressed a squeal. It was very small, and at first she thought it was a baby, until Otto said in her ear, ‘That’s a full-grown pygmy goat, in case you’re wondering.’

‘The babies must be tiny,’ Dulcie hissed back.

‘They are, and they’re incredibly cute.’

‘I want one. Can pygmy goats be milked?’

‘Dunno, but here’s the man to ask.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.