Christie Barlow - Love Heart Lane Series

Isla spotted Fergus racing along the road jiggling Esme on his back, who let out a rapturous giggle. They were on their way up to the farm to keep Drew company. Isla smiled at them both and waved her hand above her head as they both grinned back.

Swinging open the garden gate to Heartwood Cottage, Isla could see her friends Allie, Jessica and Polly gathered in the living room already sipping wine. Their laughter filtered out through the open window which immediately lifted Isla’s mood. She needed this, a night with her friends, where she could just be herself and not feel like she was walking on eggshells.

‘Flick … I’m here,’ shouted Isla, opening the front door and kicking off her shoes in the hallway.

Felicity appeared with a beam on her face, ‘And you’ve brought wine! You can come again … but you shouldn’t have!’

Isla laughed, ‘I’d be the talk of the village if I didn’t turn up with supplies!’

‘Too right,’ shouted Allie from the living room.

Isla walked into the living room to a group of smiley girls. There were already at least four bottles of wine on the coffee table alongside bowls of nibbles and leftover pastries from the teashop.

Felicity welcomed Isla like a long-lost friend, pulling her in for a hug and squeezing her hard before whipping the coat off her back and handing her a glass of wine.

The mood was jovial, and Isla settled on the settee next to Polly.

‘What have I missed?’ asked Isla, grabbing a handful of nuts from the bowl on the table.

‘Well I’m unemployable,’ said Polly, exhaling.

‘I’ve had a row with Rory,’ claimed Allie.

‘And I’ve got a pile of marking to do when I get home,’ Jessica rolled her eyes.

‘And it looks like I’ve got a bunch of miserable friends that need cheering up,’ grinned Felicity.

‘So, we can conclude we are all living our best lives! And it’s just the same old same old,’ laughed Isla, putting her arguments with Drew to the back of her mind while she enjoyed time with her friends.

‘But in other news, mum mentioned Martha was back in the village?’ said Allie, looking towards Isla. ‘Who’s the latest squeeze?’

Everyone laughed.

‘She drove into the village early yesterday morning with her Mini jam-packed to the rafters. Apparently she kicked Walter into touch a long time ago … or maybe it was the other way around.’

‘Were you expecting her?’ asked Allie.

‘No … but we all know what Gran’s like … lives every day like it’s her last … and disappears for long periods of time.’

‘But always turns up in the end … I hope I grow up to be like her,’ added Allie, topping up her wine. ‘I’m quite envious of her carefree lifestyle.’

‘She does amaze me, her energy … she’ll outlive us all, that one, but no doubt she’ll hook up with another man soon.’

‘Off Tinder,’ added Felicity with a chuckle, ‘then she’ll be off on her next adventure.’

‘Tinder?’ Allie queried. ‘Stop winding me up … are you telling us Martha is on Tinder?’

‘I’m absolutely telling you my seventy-year-old gran is on Tinder and probably has a more active sex life than all of us put together … eww …’ Isla scrunched up her face. ‘In fact, I don’t even want to think about it.’

‘I’m actually quite jealous,’ laughed Jessica, ‘this single lark is getting a bit boring.’

‘I’ll second that,’ chipped in Polly.

‘You can borrow Rory anytime … the way I feel at the moment, I was thinking of putting him on eBay … free to a good home.’

‘I can’t actually tell whether you are joking,’ said Jessica, her laughter evaporating.

All eyes were on Allie.

‘Ignore me, I’m just having a moan.’

‘That’s what we are here for,’ said Felicity, tucking her feet underneath and getting comfy on the old battered armchair. ‘Spill.’

Allie’s tone was sulky, ‘It’s the job.’

‘Rory’s job? He’s got a brilliant job,’ said Isla.

Allie pulled an unimpressed face, ‘That’s not in dispute … you’d think he’d be happy, wouldn’t you?’

‘And he’s not?’ asked Jessica.

Allie rolled her eyes, ‘We all know he’s a partner in the family veterinary business. A business that has been built up from scratch by his parents … a steady solid income …’

‘So, what’s the problem?’ interrupted Felicity.

‘Hmm,’ said Allie, ‘I think he kind of feels stifled by his dad’s ways.’

‘I kind of get that …’ said Felicity. ‘A young vet with new ideas, and a dad who’s run the business successfully for years and probably doesn’t see any sort of need for change … it’s a generation thing.’

‘That’s exactly it. Rory just gets a little frustrated and wants to expand … open a second practice, increase the staff … he’s enthusiastic, whereas …’

‘His dad is set in his ways and probably ready for retirement,’ chipped in Jessica.

‘Exactly,’ agreed Allie, ‘I’m just a little cheesed off with having the same conversations and frustrations over and over again. I think he should bide his time and not rock the boat, and as soon as his dad decides to retire he can do whatever he likes.’

‘There’s the old saying: don’t try and fix something that isn’t broken,’ said Polly, topping up everyone’s glass. ‘But if there are any jobs going that might be an excuse to stick around … going back to London is becoming less appealing by the day.’

‘That’s the problem with living in a small village, it’s a beautiful place but most of the businesses are family run, so there are few employment opportunities. I’ve fallen on my feet with the teashop and working alongside Mum, but if it wasn’t for my grandma and her good ideas, goodness knows what career path I’d have ventured down.’

‘So, you fancy sticking around then, Polly?’ said Jessica.

‘I wish, but it’s not that easy, is it? There’s nothing keeping me in London and I’m finding it so difficult to even get an interview … it’s disheartening.’

‘And I didn’t know you were looking for a job, Isla?’ Jessica said, turning the conversation towards Isla, whose eyes widened and locked with Felicity’s.

Felicity shrugged discreetly, she hadn’t told a soul about the conversation between them. Everyone was now looking at Isla.

‘Sorry, have I said something I shouldn’t?’ asked Jessica, clocking the look between them both.

‘What’s going on?’ asked Allie, sitting up straight. ‘Why are you looking for a job?’

Suddenly, Isla was overcome with emotion, all the tension between her and Drew she had been bottling up snapped. She felt enveloped with anguish and it churned her stomach up.

‘It’s just Drew asked me whether there were any jobs going at the school …’

‘He did what?’ Isla stared open-mouthed.

‘The other day, he caught me outside school and asked me,’ elaborated Jessica.

‘How bloody dare he go behind my back like this?’ Isla shook her head in disbelief, she was fuming.

At a loss for words, she gulped back her wine. This behaviour was so out of character for Drew. He would never normally go behind her back like this, but at the minute it was like she didn’t know him at all.

‘Why the need to get a job?’ asked Polly.

‘Your guess is as good as mine. Drew’s got a bee in his bonnet about me wasting money on breakfast and lunches while he’s out working on the farm.’

‘Maybe he’s just panicking with a new baby in the house and doesn’t want to struggle financially,’ added Allie, noticing Isla’s eyes welling with tears.

‘That’s all good and well, but if I do get a job, all I’ll be doing is earning money to pay someone else to look after Angus, and what’s the point in that?’ Isla knew leaving baby Angus with anyone would definitely pull at her heartstrings.