Faith Bleasdale - The Ticket to Happiness

Pippa swiped at him.

‘I might get to see Toby as well,’ Gemma added, pointedly ignoring Freddie.

‘As I said, Harriet’s about as protective of him as Madonna is of Drake. You’re lucky she hasn’t tried to charge you when you get too close,’ Freddie said.

They both left him to it, shaking their heads. It was almost true. Harriet hadn’t wanted anyone to hold Toby for about a week after he was born. Even the midwife had to prise him out of her arms, but she was getting better. She was no way as bad as Madonna was, thankfully.

Meadowbrook Sanctuary was an integral part of the estate, although largely they kept it separate from the hotel. While some guests showed interest in the animals, many didn’t, so it was kept at a discreet distance, figuratively speaking. The reality was that you drove past it to get to the hotel, but they’d found a balance, as some of the fields had been concealed with large trees, and it worked. As Gemma pointed out, not everyone who came to a five-star hotel wanted to watch pigs rolling around in mud. Although Connor couldn’t think why not, Pippa and Harriet had agreed.

The sanctuary had expanded over the past year. With Harriet at its helm, it was growing year on year and the donations were up. Of course, the result of the sanctuary being so well known meant that animals being brought to them were also on the increase, so they’d had no choice but to expand. Connor would never turn an animal away and nor would he put a healthy one down, so they all had to ensure that they could cope with the demand.

Each of the siblings had their own roles to play. Gus looked after the pigs, Freddie the chickens, while Harriet was more of a general manager and finance person, and Pippa floated between all the animals wherever she was needed. They had more staff than ever now, both paid and volunteers.

She found Harriet with Toby by the paddock looking at the tiny ponies, Cookie, Clover and Brian, along with their latest editions, Star and Bea, a couple of Shetland ponies who’d been mistreated. Many of the stories behind how some of the animals who came to the sanctuary had been treated had them all in tears. No one was immune and Pippa found it hard to believe they could live in a world where people were so cruel. Gerald, the donkey, approached them; he was never far from the ponies, of whom he seemed to take care. But his leg was still a little wonky from an injury he’d sustained in a fire before the hotel opened. Thinking about that still filled Pippa with dread, of how close they’d come to losing some of the animals … It made her shudder.

‘Hey,’ Pippa said, going over to her sister and trying not to grab Toby from her arms.

‘Hello,’ Harriet said. ‘Right, which one of you wants first hold?’

She was definitely getting better at letting people near her child.

‘Me!’ they both said.

‘Gemma, you have him first; after all, Pip, you’ve had more time with him lately.’

Gemma clutched him to her and kissed his head.

‘You really are the most beautiful baby,’ she cooed.

Harriet and Pippa exchanged a glance. Was she broody? Pippa wasn’t sure if Freddie was ready for fatherhood. He was barely ready for adulthood, after all.

They watched as Gemma started walking Toby around the field.

‘He’s pretty relaxed about being handed around,’ Pippa said, as Toby seemed happy with Gemma.

‘Um …’ Harriet didn’t look pleased. ‘I expected more loyalty.’

‘With a mother as neurotic as you, that’s a miracle. He obviously takes after Connor,’ she added with a laugh.

‘Shut up! I’m not neurotic.’ Harriet swiped at her. ‘Well, only a bit. But there’s something I need to tell you. Have the accountants arrived yet?’

‘No, they’re due at three for tea, it’s all organised,’ Pippa replied.

‘Great. So, I just had an email through the booking system. A woman wants to book in for at least a couple of months.’

‘Really? Who is she?’

‘I don’t have much info, to be honest. Her name’s Brooke Walker. She’s from California, is thinking of moving here to start a business and wants a quintessential English experience.’

‘But two months will cost her a fortune. I know Hector’s on mates rates, but he’s still paying a lot and he can afford it.’

‘She must be well off, too. I gave her a quote, with a small discount, and she agreed straight away. She also said she’d pay two months upfront and then see if she wanted to extend. The good news is that we can fit her in, even with the other bookings, and the brilliant thing is that this’ll be a healthy amount of money through the winter. In fact, if she stays two months that’ll take us to spring and if she stays longer …’

‘Gosh, with her and Hector we’ll have two long-term residents. What else do you know about this woman?’

‘I’m waiting for her to answer the questionnaire. She did say that she had a British heritage she knew very little about, which is one of the reasons she was coming, along with the idea she might settle here and run a business, but I’ve no idea about anything else. Hopefully, we’ll hear more soon; I’m quite intrigued. I have no idea how old she is, even. She’s arriving in a week’s time and I said that we’d organise the airport transfer.’

‘Brooke, that’s a very American name,’ Pippa mused.

‘Who’s Brooke?’ Gemma asked, rejoining them.

‘Some woman from California who wants to stay here for a couple of months,’ Harriet explained.

‘God, she’s bound to be blonde and beautiful,’ Gemma lamented. ‘And thin. I’ll bet she’s thin.’

‘Gemma, I hate to point it out, but you’re beautiful and slim – not thin but slim,’ Pippa said. ‘And if she is, the only man who might be remotely interested in her is Hector.’

‘But he’s only got eyes for you,’ Harriet pointed out. ‘But then Freddie only has eyes for you, Gem, so there’s no problem.’

Gemma looked unconvinced. That was the only thing with her, Pippa worried. Gemma still wasn’t the most confident of women and her brother probably wasn’t the best at picking up on this. Pippa was going to have to watch that, because if Gemma needed reassurance, she’d have to point that out to Freddie.

‘By the way, I’ve got a re-homing-cum-adoption day to organise for the dogs. Gemma, have you got time to help me in the next couple of weeks?’ Harriet asked.

‘Sure, I’m on top of my college work.’

Gemma was studying for a business degree; the hotel had given her a taste for starting up something of her own, but she worked so ridiculously hard she was always ahead. And top of her class. For someone who lacked confidence, she was very good at what she did and Pippa never failed to remind her of this.

‘Great, why don’t we meet later and brainstorm? I’ll call you when I know what Toby’s schedule is. Speaking of which, he’s due a feed.’ Harriet took him gently from Gemma.

Pippa looked out over Meadowbrook. It really was the most magnificent place in the world, she thought. There was nowhere quite like it. And with that, she headed back to the house to greet her latest guests.

‘Bloody hell! Who knew accountants could drink so much?’ Freddie’s eyes were wide as he sat in the bar with Pippa, Hector and Gemma, the evening after their six latest guests had departed.

‘I told you they all said they liked tequila. That should have been a warning sign,’ Pippa laughed.

‘Yes, well, that woman, Patricia, she was very frisky. She kept trying to touch my bum,’ Hector complained.

‘You know, you should stay here for free. No, you should actually be paid to stay here, the way you were the star attraction,’ Gemma stated.