“You can try. If you hold out a dead mouse, you’ll get an instant reaction.”
Phaedra laughed. “Good night, David, and thank you for having me. You were right: this cottage suits me perfectly. I feel very safe here. The main house is extremely big, isn’t it?”
“Not so big once you’re used to it. I’m pleased you like my house, though. Don’t wake early, but if you do, there’s plenty to eat in the fridge. I didn’t know what you’d like so I bought everything, even pancakes.”
“Pancakes? I shall cook you fresh pancakes,” she said with a grin.
“Are all sisters so nice?”
“I wouldn’t know, I grew up alone.”
David put the suitcase on the luggage rack. “Then I’ve just struck lucky.”
She smiled back at him warmly. “And so have I.”
Phaedra lay in bed listening to the sounds of the night. She heard Boris screeching from a tree near the house, and the wind whistling through the branches. In George she had finally found the potential for the security she’d looked for all her life, as if she were a little boat anchored to a big, sturdy rock. She had never expected that rock to disappear. The feeling of drifting again was intolerable. Now she felt as though she had once again found a rock to set her anchor against. She curled up, the weight of the blanket and quilt pleasantly heavy on her body. She felt a frisson of happiness ripple through her being and closed her eyes. The country sounds soon lulled her to sleep.
The following morning different country sounds woke her at nine. Birds clamored in the trees, pigeons cooed on the roof just outside her window, and the distant rumble of a tractor rattling up the farm track reminded her where she was. She lay on her back and enjoyed the sunshine breaking through the gap in the curtains and flooding the end of the bed with light. The day was full of promise.
She found a man’s dressing gown on the back of the door and slipped it over her pajamas. When she appeared in the kitchen, David was already dressed, drinking coffee and reading the Saturday papers. “Good morning,” he said, taking in the sight of her in his old school dressing gown, her tousled hair falling over her shoulders in a pretty mess. “Did you sleep well?”
“Oh yes, Boris was very tuneful.”
“Can I offer you a cup of coffee? I’m afraid my coffee is not quite as sophisticated as yours.”
“Coffee would be lovely. I see you have a cafetière; you can’t do much better than that.”
“I hate instant.”
“So do I. Horrible stuff.” She opened the fridge. “Wow, you certainly know how to shop.”
“I told you, I bought everything.”
“What have you had?”
“Nothing yet. I was waiting for you.”
“That’s very gallant. I promised to make you pancakes, remember?”
“That’s an offer I can’t refuse.”
“Okay, so you have flour, eggs, and milk?”
“I do.”
“And an Aga. You know, those are such wonderful things. I learned how to make pancakes from an expert, and she had an Aga. Watch and learn, Mr. Frampton.” Then she put her hand over her mouth and laughed. “Oh, you’re Lord Frampton now, aren’t you?”
“I’m afraid I am.”
“Very classy. Right, milord, to work.”
While David made coffee, Phaedra whisked up the pancake batter with the bright-red mixer his mother had bought but which David had never used. It was still in its box. Then she squeezed some lemons into a jug and placed it on the table with the sugar pot and a couple of plates, knives, and forks.
David watched her bustle about his kitchen and felt a surge of pleasure. She looked adorable in his old dressing gown, and every now and then he got a glimpse of smooth leg peeping through. Once the mixture was ready, she poured a little straight onto the Aga.
“I do have a pan, you know,” he said.
“I don’t need one.”
“Really? I’ve never seen anyone do that before.”
“That’s the genius of an Aga. Watch how well it cooks. You’ll never buy ready-made pancakes again.”
“I will, because you won’t be here to make them for me.”
“Then I’ll just have to come and stay very often.”
He laughed. “I’d like that.” She used the spatula to scrape the pancake off the ring and turn it over. It was golden-brown and smelled delicious. David’s stomach ached with hunger. “Bring me your plate.” He did as he was told and Phaedra placed the hot pancake on it for him to sprinkle with lemon and sugar. Then she made one for herself.
“Oh, this is good. Very good,” David enthused, chewing with his eyes closed to savor the taste. “I don’t think I’m going to let you leave,” he added.