May
The Thorne
sisters were booked, and Charlie and Toddy selected the stone and instructed
Georgia accordingly.
The work was
due to be completed by the end of June
So, Charlie and
Toddy embarked on the expeditions.
They found the
Greenhouse they wanted in Purplemere, the shed in Finchbottom and the BBQ in
Sharpington, which were the biggest purchases, everything else they could have
got online but they thought “where was the fun in that”.
So with the
main purchases in the bag all the other trips were just outings, which they
both welcomed, because while they were waiting for the hard landscaping to be
completed they had no reason to see each other every day as they had at the
height of the work, they had been on a few walks ending with a pub lunch, but
they couldn’t do that every day so the outings were a good reason to see more
of each other.
But there was
still half of the week when they didn't see one another.
Toddy was
particularly keen to get to Abbottsford, apart from underwear she hadn’t had
any new clothes since leaving the convent at the beginning of March, the Vicars
wife, Chloe Virtue, had given her a nice selection of things from the Church
donations and she frequented the Charity shop every week and had got some nice
things from there, but she was desperate to buy something nice and new so she didn’t
feel shabby when she was with Charlie, not that she told him that.
They left early
in the morning, and headed up the Expressway, after fortifying themselves with a
good breakfast at
the Starlight Café.
They got to
Abbottsford in good time and Charlie drove into the multistorey car park at the
Phoenix Shopping Centre, and it was quite busy for a weekday midway through the
month and when they reached the main concourse that was busy too.
“Oh wow” Toddy
said, “It’s bigger than I remember”
“It probably is
bigger” Charlie pointed out.
It was much
less busy when they got to Hanratty’s Department Store.
“Aren’t we
going to stay together?” she asked in a childlike voice.
“No, you need to
shop without me looking over your shoulder” he said, “And you can shop at your
leisure”
“How will I
find you?” she asked with alarm
“I’ll meet you
by the fountain at 12.30” he said
“Oh ok” she
said doubtfully, took a deep breath, gave him a weak smile and walked into the
store.
He watched her
walk away and when she was out of sight, he headed to the Phoenix Espresso
Café where he was meeting his solicitor to sign some papers.
He would have preferred to have stayed by her side all day, but the
documents were of great importance, and he would not let her out of his sight
for the rest of the day to make up for it.
He was sitting on a bench by the fountain when he spotted her coming
towards him with bags in each hand and she was smiling broadly.
“You seemed to have managed ok on your own” he said as he took the
bags from her
“It was fun” she retorted and laughed
“So, what would you like to do next, more shopping or a bite of lunch?”
“Lunch please” she replied before adding “and then more shopping”
After lunch he picked up the bags and they stepped out onto the
concourse, which was less busy than it had been
“I’m very pleased with myself” she said “I would have preferred you to
have been with me in Hanratty’s, like a safety net, but I was fine” she said proudly
and even slipped her arm through his, which made him smile.
There were a number of shops they wanted to go to in relation to the
garden and when they had ticked them all off, he said
“Were there any other shops you want to go to?”
“Yes, I want to get something for Chloe as a thank you, and Verity
recommended Crazy Chocolatiers”
she said “and Silk and Lace, for me”
They got the chocolates for Chloe, and he got some for Toddy and
himself, then they went to Silk and Lace, which as the name suggests was a
lingerie shop.
“This one I definitely don’t need you looking over my shoulder” she
said and blushed
With all the shopping completed they returned to the car and managed
to escape Abbottsford before the rush hour started and reached the Expressway
unscathed.
They travelled back towards home in relative silence and when they
were within a few miles of the village he asked
“Do you fancy getting dinner somewhere?”
“Oh, I would love to go to dinner with you…” She began
“But?”
“But I’m
shattered, I would probably doze off, and I wouldn’t want to give you the wrong
impression”
She explained
and they both laughed
“Another night
then” he suggested
“How about
Friday or Saturday”
“Friday would
be lovely” she replied
He pulled up
outside the vicarage and got out of the car and helped her gather her bags
together and said
“I think that's
everything”
“Me too” she
giggled
“Thank you for
today, it’s been fun”
“You made it
fun” he said, and she kissed his cheek and waddled up the path.
The first thing
he did when he got home was to book the restaurant, he decided on the Kissing
Angel on the outskirts of Pipershaven because he thought it appropriate.
No comments:
Post a Comment