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She’d sent him two more texts from London but had no response.Daniel’s presence at her house and Kitty’s over-exaggeration of their closeness were the only reasons she could find. Giant burp notwithstanding, Kitty hadn’t said or done anything to offend him.

Even texting Thea had been pointless. She’d been annoyingly vague when Kitty had contacted her from her hotel to check if he was okay.As a result, she spent her nights lying awake, reliving the day she and Josh had spent together and its strange ending.

In contrast, Daniel peppered her with supportive and suggestive texts all week. He made her laugh and mad equally, but at least he was there. He’d even forgiven her for her slip of the tongue in the hammock. She’d blamed it on tiredness. He’d blamed it on rabies.

Proudly wearing her polka-dot gumboots, Kitty walked into Small Oaks farm that morning, a woman on a mission. It’d been a week since she’d been there, and today she’d decided to find Josh and ask him why he was ignoring her.

She entered the yard via the gate next to Josh’s cottage, but there was no sign of him or his truck. Even his vegetable garden looked withered and scorched, a bit like her heart.Kitty wandered to the farmhouse, feeling at home in the old yard. Things weren’t as tidy as she’d left them, but she let it fly.

The door to the office was wide open. Kitty was about to complain about the bags of guinea pig pellets lying abandoned on the step, but the sight of Thea sitting with her head in her hands stopped her in her tracks. Thea’s shoulders heaved, and small, strangled sobs escaped from her mouth. Kitty’s immediate thought was for Josh. Was he okay? Had something happened to him? Bile rushed into her throat as she approached.

“Thea, are you okay?” she asked. “What’s wrong? Is it Josh?”

Thea looked up at Kitty, tears streaming down her face. She shook her head, pushing away the moisture with the back of her hand.

“No, he’s fine. He’s taken Ammy out with him today.”

Kitty exhaled, relief washing over her. “What is it then?” she asked, massaging Thea’s tense shoulders. Seeing her this upset was awful. Kitty adored her kind, crazy boss.

Thea calmed, and as her tears dwindled to an occasional sniff, Kitty pulled up a chair and sat beside her.

“What’s going on?”

After taking some steadying breaths, Thea tried her best to smile.

“Sorry for being so dramatic. I’ve had bad news about this place. The bank is questioning our viability.”

Kitty was confused. Thea owned the property, and Kitty assumed the sanctuary ticked over on donations and grants without too much trouble.There were always plenty of food deliveries.

Gathering her up and out of the office, Kitty made Thea a hot cup of tea and sat her down at the kitchen table.Each cup ring on its surface was like an old friend to her now.

“What’s the bank worried about?”

Thea sighed. “We’ve been limping along for ages on fundraisers, and a smattering of regular donations, but the administrational side of things is a real mess. We’re running out of money, and I’m scared I’ll lose the whole place.”

“But isn’t this your family home?” Kitty asked. “Don’t you own it? That must give you some comfort?”

Thea sighed and bit her lip.

“I had to take out a loan, quite a big one. Phil had little to leave us, and my family owns the farm, yes, but they don’t know about the mess I’m in. Josh has been bailing me out for months, but I can’t keep asking him to do it. It’s not fair.” Thea let out a shuddering breath, the kind that followed a good cry. “I wanted to make things a success for Phil. The sanctuary was always his dream, and when he died, it was one of the few things I had left. I feel like I’ve let him down, letting things get as bad as they have.”

“Does Josh know how bad things are?” said Kitty, screwing up her face.

“I haven’t told him everything. I don’t like to bother him. He’s so busy.”

“But he’s your brother. He’d want to know.”

Thea nodded and scratched at a paint stain on the table. Kitty noticed the washing up stacked in the sink and the toys scattered around under the table.

“I need to think of ways to bring more money in,” said Thea. “I need to make upgrades. The old barn is falling apart around the pigs.”

“When did you last look at your processes?” Kitty asked, ever practical. “Do you have a business plan lodged at the bank?”

Thea blinked at her.

“Okay, I think it's safe to say that you don’t, but you need one, Thea. You need to know how you’re tracking and where you’re heading.”

She slumped in her chair. “I’m terrible at that stuff. I’m great knee-deep in manure but hopeless on the business side of things.”