Mornington-By-Mere – (23) Tooke, Line and Sinker

(Part 01)

Mornington-By-Mere was not just a quaint chocolate box English Village it was the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale.
And although the village was the hub it was the surrounding farms and hamlets that were its life blood.
One such Farm was Mereside on the Southern side of the village.
The Hoddinott family had farmed the land at Mereside Farm for five generation and with fair winds and following seas they would do so for the next five.
The head of the Hoddinott’s was Clive, at least that was what his wife Suzanne allowed him think.
But they were in their mid-fifties and were looking forward to be able to hand the reins’ on to their offspring.
There were three children the eldest was Robert Hoddinott 27 who they knew they could safely rely on to take over the running of the farm to such an extent that the handover would be seamless but they were less sure he would pass on the family name, as he appeared to have no inclination in finding himself a wife.
The second child was Amy who was 24 years old and had no interest whatsoever in becoming a farmer or a farmer’s wife for that matter, not that she hated the farm or indeed farming but she just loved her chosen path more which was teaching and she was a Teacher at the village school and the youngest was 21 year old April who wasn’t a natural farmer but she had other strengths and had worked together from autumn to Spring renovation a cottage on the farm with Calvin Chance and the pair had fallen hard for each other from the moment they met but were unable to show their feelings
Both families tried their hardest to get them together and Amy played her part but without any luck but they eventually went on their first date when they job was over.

Her mother Suzanne was greatly relieved because she feared her tomboy daughter would never find someone and her father was happy that they had finished the cottage which meant they might get a full seasons let.

The first guest took up residence in the cottage at the beginning of May and following the initial guest there were back to back bookings right through the summer.

It was quite fortuitous that there were a limited number of cottage lets in the Mornington area.
So they had a little gold mine in the cottage, the Finchbottom Vale was a very popular destination during the summer months as well as out of season, for rambling, birding or fishing.
The village itself as well as the surrounding country side proved to be a popular attraction.

Everyone on the farm had to do their bit, including Amy and the kind of tasks she had to perform were far removed from her normal professional life as a teacher but she never complained and although she would never admit it to her parents or siblings she sometimes welcomed the time she spent working on the farm to think.

(Part 02)

One of the tasks which fell to Amy more often than not was the management of the cottage, advertising, bookings and when necessary the housekeeping.
And it was when she was cleaning the cottage after a two week long let to a newlywed couple that Amy got her first pangs of regret at having no one special in her life, her tomboy sister had manage to get herself a man, eventually, so why couldn’t she.

Twenty four year old Amy and her younger sister April, although almost three years apart, could easily have passed for twins.
Though they didn’t resemble their brother Robert in the slightest he was his father’s son and they took after their mum.
They were smaller than their brother, leaner and wiry.
Like their mum they had the fine strawberry blonde hair that all of their mums side of the family possessed, as well as her cool blue eyes.

Where Amy and April differed from each other however was that Amy had always been a proper girlie girl since the moment she could walk whereas her sister had always been a tomboy.
When they were children she was always indoors playing with dolls while April would be out playing football with the village boys but Amy had no interest in football although she was interested in boys.

But being interested in boys hadn’t really got her anywhere as she hadn’t found her prince and had remained single despite her kissing a number of frogs.
She had not had any major disasters but nor had she found “the one” and in all honesty she was in no real hurry.

Her sister April had appeared to share Amy’s reluctance to find a partner.
That was until after working with Calvin Chance from autumn to Spring renovating the cottage they finally shared their feelings and from that moment on it became a whirlwind affair after that and they Married at Finchbottom Registry in June.

But that wasn’t the only wedding that summer because in September when Jenna Newman and Harry Topliss tied the knot at St Winnifred’s.
But more significant for Amy was the reception afterwards when her headmistress Cynthia Sharp introduced the new teachers, Teresa and Martin O’Sullivan to her existing teaching staff, Debbie Dunlop, her deputy, Mark Foreman and Amy Hoddinott.
Which was significant for her because she wasn’t the new girl anymore.

The reason the school was increasing the teaching staff was that Mornington Field had come back under the steward ship of the Mornington Estate.
When they exercised its option to purchase it back from the MOD it also acquired all the buildings and infrastructure on the airfield itself as well as 29 houses in the village formally used as quarters for military personnel.
The property was formally handed over on the 1st of June and the additional houses meant additional families with additional children.
And when the infrastructure on the airfield was converted to commercial and residential the school would grow even more.

(Part 03)

So 2014 had been a momentous year in Mornington for all concerned and Amy and the Hoddinott’s were no exceptions but the year was my no means over.
Because at the beginning of October, April announced she was pregnant which sparked spectacular celebrations at Mereside Farm.
But there was still a lot of the year left and a new tenant was due to stay at the cottage.

It was the 4th of October and the inhabitants of Mereside farm were slow to rise after the celebrations the day before drinking to April’s bump.
The only reason Amy was up, showered and dressed by 8 o’clock was because a new tenant was arriving to stay at the cottage and she wanted to make sure everything was neat and tidy.

The tenant to be, was a man by the name of Mike Tooke, who wanted a change of scene to somewhere quiet and out of the way for a couple of weeks.
He wasn’t due until after lunch so she had all morning to get the cottage spick and span.

It was just after lunch when Amy saw, through the Farmhouse
Kitchen window, an unfamiliar liveried white van drive into the farmyard.
“That must be him” she said to herself and as she went to the kitchen door and picked the key off the hook and then she went outside.
“Mr Tooke?” she called as he got out of the van.
“That’s me” he replied and Amy got her first proper look at him and she liked what she saw.
He was a few years older than she was with a rugged face and thick dark curly hair.
He was a few inches over six feet, Amy liked tall, and he was big, not fat but solid, she liked well-made men as well because they were big and cuddly.
“For goodness sake get a grip” she said to herself as he walked towards her and was momentarily transfixed by the sun setting her red hair aflame and when the sun went behind a cloud he offered his hand and said
“Mike Tooke”
“Amy Hoddinott” she said taking his hand
“Everything is ready for you”
“Excellent” he said
“Leave your van there and I’ll walk you down to the cottage”
“Fine” he agreed “I could do with stretching my legs”
Amy led the way and he followed and after a few minutes she said
“So you’re from Pepperstock”
“That’s right” he said “but I’ve escaped to the country”
“So what made you choose Mornington?”
“Fishing” he replied “Someone recommended the fishing”
“I see” she said “That’s one of our best kept secret”
“So I understand”
“You won’t be disappointed” She promised
“I’m not so far” he said but he was looking at her bum at the time.
“Here we are” she said and walked up the front path and unlocked the front door.
The door opened and she showed him in and gave him a brief tour.
“This is perfect” he said when she finished showing him round.

(Part 04)

The door of the cottage opened and she showed him in and gave him a brief tour.
“This is perfect” he said when she finished showing him round.
“So what are you escaping?” she asked
“Excuse me?”
“You said you were escaping to the country, so what are you escaping from?” she asked
“Oh work”
“And what do you do?” she asked
“I’m an LED Lighting specialist” he said
“That sounds interesting” Amy lied then she remembered the livery on the side of the van.
“So “Light and Day” is that who you work for?”
“Sort of” he said “It’s the family business”
“Your family?” she enquired
“Yes” he replied “Though it’s just me and Maggie now”
“It that your wife?” She asked
“No” he replied and laughed
“Girlfriend then?” she asked bracing herself for the answer
“No, Maggie is my sister” he explained
“Excellent” she said inside her head which surprised her because she didn’t believe in instant attraction, so why should she care about his marital status.
“Oh your sister” she said out loud “Is she older or younger?”
“Three years older” he replied “Although the way she acts you’d think she was my mother”
“She’s very special to you isn’t she” Amy said
“Yes” he admitted “she’s an amazing person, I was only 16 when our parents died so she gave up university to be guardian to me”
“Does she have a family of her own now?” she asked
“No she’s single, I suspect she’s waiting until she gets me settled before she’ll think of herself, she’ll be down to check up on me at some point to make sure I’m eating properly and having regular bowel movements” Mike said and they both laughed.
“I look forward to meeting her” she said genuinely
“That was a kind thing to say” Mike said to himself “maybe there’s more to her than glorious hair and a nice bum”
“This really is perfect” he said
“Great, well I’ll walk you back up to your van and I’ll leave you to it”

They walked back to the car in silence but only because her hair was ablaze again, which was the only thing that stopped him from staring at her bum the entire way.
When they reached his van she said
“Well if there’s anything you need just come up to the house”
“I will”
“Goodbye then” she said but only managed a couple of steps before she turned around and said.
“If you want someone to show you the village them I’m around all weekend”
“I’d like that” he said “Maybe when I’ve unpacked my stuff”
“Ok just come up to the house when you’re ready” she said and turned towards the house
“Well that was bold” she said to herself “And you don’t even know if he likes you.
When she reached the kitchen door she glanced back and then said quietly
“Well he certainly likes my bum, so I’d better wear something that shows it off”

“Is everything alright with the new guest love?” Her mum asked as she entered the kitchen
“Definitely” she replied which wasn’t the answer her mum was quite expecting.
So with her curiosity aroused she added
“Sit down and have a drink and tell me what he’s like”
“I’ll tell you later I’m going to go and change” Amy responded
“Why do you need to change?”
“I’m going to show Mike the village” she replied
“Mike?”
“Mr Tooke, the new guest” she said and left the room.
“Well that was interesting” Suzanne said to herself and smiled

Amy reappeared in the kitchen wearing a very snug fitting pair of pale blue jeggings.
“I thought you were going to show him the places of interest in the village?”
“I am”
“I don’t think he’ll be noticing anything other than your places of interest” her mum said
“That was the whole point” Amy said and sat down at the table looking very nervous.

(Part 05)

It was mid-afternoon and the glorious Indian summer sunshine streamed in through the window.
Amy and her mum were sat in the kitchen drinking coffee when there was a knock on the door.
Amy shifted in her seat and was about to rise from it when her mum said
“I’ll get it, the poor man might strain something if he sees you dressed like that without any warning”
She opened the door and was met by the tall, dark and ruggedly handsome newly arrived tenant.
“You must be Mrs Hoddinott” Mike said but to himself he added
“I can see where your daughter gets her looks from”
“Call me Suzanne” she said but was thinking “I can see why my daughter likes you”
“I’m Mike”
“Well I’m pleased to meet you Mike, Amy has been awaiting your arrival with baited breath”
“Mother, you are so embarrassing” Amy said and stood up
“Wow” Mike exclaimed not realising he had said it aloud until he noticed Amy blush.

As they left the farm house Amy smiled to herself when she noticed that Mike had changed too.
They exchanged small talk as they walked unhurriedly out through the gate and onto Windmill Lane.
They followed the lane when it bore to the right and continued along it passing the four Windmill Cottages on the left with the Old East Mill ahead of them.
When they reached the bridge Amy stopped abruptly and said
“The best fishing on the River Brooke starts about half a mile in that direction” She said pointing upstream beyond the Old East Mill “and as far as the Dulcets in the other direction, beyond that and there’s too much River traffic”
“I don’t think I shall be going that far afield” he said
“Personally I would recommend the Mere” She added “I should have taken you there first, but no matter”
“That’s ok I’m in no rush” he said affably and smiled
“Ok then, we’ll go along the River Path” she said and once again passed by the Windmill Cottages but this time along the path that separated them from the river and followed it down until they reached the Church.
“What a beautiful Church” he said standing still to admire its magnificence
“Yes its 12th Century” Amy added proudly
“It’s the best one in the whole of the Vale, if not all of Downshire”
After pointing out the Vicarage, Manor Wood and the Brewery she led him up the path and away from the church, passing Mornington Manor and ended up looking out across the Mere.
“This is beautiful too” he said
“It’s not bad is it?” Amy agreed
“Does the path go all the way around?” he asked
“Yes” she replied “Shall we follow it?”
“Yes that would be lovely”

As they strolled around the water’s edge Amy asked
“Why did you really come to Mornington?”
“I told you, to fish” he replied
“Look Mike you probably already noticed that I am very proud of my village” she said “and the fishing around here isn’t bad but there are better places to fish in Downshire than here, in fact there are better places in Pepperstock than here”
“Are you the local sheriff?” he asked with a wry smile
“No I’m a School teacher” she retorted “So I’m trained to spot falsehoods”

(Part 06)

As they strolled around the water’s edge Amy asked
“Why did you really come to Mornington?”
“I told you, to fish” he replied
“Look Mike you probably already noticed that I am very proud of my village” she said “and the fishing around here isn’t bad but there are better places to fish in Downshire than here, in fact there are better places in Pepperstock than here”
“Are you the local sheriff?” he asked with a wry smile
“No I’m a School teacher” she retorted “So I’m trained to spot falsehoods”
“Well it wasn’t really a falsehood I did want to do some fishing but you’re right I chose Mornington for a different reason” he confessed
“And?”
“You really are the local sheriff aren’t you?” he said
“Come on then spill the beans” she urged him
“I came over to have a look at Mornington Field” he confessed
“The lease is due to expire on one of our premises in Pepperstock, so next year I’m going to have to move my workshop and I wanted to know if Mornington is a viable option”
“So what do you think of it so far?” she asked
“I can definitely see the attraction” he replied
Unfortunately the romantic promise of the moment was lost when a young local Angler, Nick Legg came hurrying noisily along the path.
“Hi Amy” he said and was gone almost as quickly as he arrived
“Hi Nick” Amy said as he disappeared
However along with the Nick Legg went the romantic possibilities of the moment.

As they continued on their walk around the Mere after their romantic near miss Amy offered her services in regard to Mornington Field.
“Well it’s too late now because it will be dark by the time we get there” she said “But I can take you up to the Field tomorrow if you like”
“That would be great”
“It will have to be after Church though” she added
“You go to Church?” he asked and Amy thought
“Here we go, I knew he was too good to be true, he’s going to mock me for my faith”
“Yes we’re regulars at St Winifred’s” she replied
“Would you mind if I tagged along?” he asked
“What?” she asked disbelievingly
“I won’t be offended if you say no”
“Why would I say no?” Amy said just as they finished their circuit of the Mere just as the sun was setting so Amy took them on a short cut back to the farm.

On Sunday morning Mike walked up to the farmhouse and arrived just as Amy and her mum emerged followed by a slightly younger version of Amy who turned out to be the younger sister and behind her was her husband and a great bear of a man in his mid-fifties who was introduced as Clive, Amy’s father.
After introductions and handshakes Suzanne explained the absence of her son.
“Robert would be joining us but at present as one of the cows is sick he’s waiting for the vet and hopefully he’ll join us later”.
It was another unseasonably warm day as they headed toward church and just as they were leaving the vet Hayley Gwillym drove up the lane.
“Hi Hayley” Clive said “You’ll find him in the cowshed”
“Ok thanks” she responded and drove off

(Part 07)

Amy had been really surprised when Mike had said
“Would you mind if I tagged along?”
Because she was expecting him to make some jibe about her being a god botherer or something equally crass.
Which was why she responded “What?”
Instead of “Of course you can”
Mike and his sister Margaret had been raised as Christian’s and although Margaret lost her faith briefly after their parents passed, when she had to abandon University to be Mikes Guardian, she had returned to the fold.

So he had grown up in faith and from the moment he first stepped through the doors at St Winifred’s with the Hoddinott’s he felt at peace.
So if he was to move his workshops the first thing he would do would be to attend a service in Mornington with his sister Maggie because he felt so immediately at home.

As they sat together at St Winifred’s during the service Amy was really pleased that Mike had asked to go with her.
She was still a little disappointed that their romantic moment by the Mere had been shattered by Nick Legg and she was still a little angry with him for that and would have gladly pushed him in.
But she offered up a little prayer to beg forgiveness for her anger and asked for no interruption’s next time.
And then offered up another prayer to beg that there would be a next time.

Afterwards Mike chatted briefly with Reverend Cockcroft and it was obvious that Mike was not the “hatches, matches and dispatches” type of Christian and he was the real deal.

They walked back up to the farm together ahead of the others and as they walked she asked
“So how did you like St Winifred’s?”
“I felt really at home” Mike replied
“Good” she remarked
“Thank you for this morning” he said when they reached the farm
“No problem” Amy responded
“And I’ll see you later” he added
“Hold on, where do you think you’re going?”
“Back to the cottage of course”
“Oh no you’re not, you’re staying for lunch”
“I couldn’t possibly” he said just as the rest of the family arrived
“Are you two alright?” Suzanne asked
“We have a mutineer mum” she said
“Well we can’t have that” mum said “Clive! Get your shot gun”
“Alright I surrender” Mike said
“Good choice” Amy whispered “but he wouldn’t really have shot you”

“That was an epic lunch” he said as they set off towards Mornington Field
“Mum’s a great cook isn’t she?”
“Brilliant I would say, what about you?” he asked
“What do you mean?”
“Are you a good cook?” he asked
“Me? No, I could burn water” she replied
“I find that hard to believe”
“I kid you not” she said “Just ask my mum”

(Part 08)

They went up to Mornington Field after lunch and they managed to find a gap through the security fences and wandered up and down between the buildings for about an hour until the October sunshine gave way to more seasonal rain.
“So what do you think?” she asked
“I think this would be a brilliant place to work”
“Excellent, you’ll be needing this then” she said handing him Victoria Johnson Higham’s business card.
Victoria was from Lyndon-Sanders Properties, who were tasked with finding tenants for the commercial properties.
“Where did you get this?” he asked
“I bumped into Vicki at church this morning” she explained
“Thank you” he said and hugged her before he kissed her cheek.
Both of them were reluctant to end the hug and hoped it would lead to a kiss and just at the instant it was about to happen the moment was shattered by a loud clap of thunder.
“Not helpful God, not helpful at all” she muttered as they ran for cover.

On the walk back to the farm Amy decided she would tackle him again when they got back to Mereside and everything was going to plan as they stood by the farmhouse gate and their lips were only inches away when the heavens opened and they both ran their separate ways.
“You are really not helping God” she said as she ran for the farmhouse door.

On Monday morning Amy looked wistfully towards the cottage as she left home on her way to school not realizing Mike wasn’t there.
He had had a very disturbed night and rose early and was sat on the river bank by the East Bridge at 7 o’clock.
Amy on the other hand slept very well but the morning began in dreamy snoozing and it was Mike who filled her dreams.

She was halfway across the East Bridge when she just happened to look towards the church and she was recalling the time she had spent with Mike the day before when she spotted him sitting on a folding chair on the river bank, though she did do a double take, it was clearly him.
She looked at her watch and cursed because she was running late.
“Shit” she said “It’s now or ever”
Amy turned around and hurried back the way she’d come and as she stepped off the bridge she turned right onto the river bank path.
When she reached the angler in the folding chair she stopped and crouched down beside him.
“Oh hello…” he began when he noticed her but he was prevented from finishing his sentence by Amy passionately kissing him on the mouth.
“I’ve been wanting to do that all weekend” she said looked at her watch and added “I have to go”
“Where are you going?” he asked as she turned away
“You can’t go now”
“I’m late for work” she called “You can take me to dinner tonight though, pick me up at 8”
As she crossed the bridge again she looked to the heavens and quietly said
“Now that wasn’t too difficult was it?”
Then she turned and waved to Mike before she hurried off to work with a broad smile on her face.