Page 98 of A Change of Heart

His gaze was intense when their eyes locked. “If you think I’d get any joy from you falling out with your friend, you’re mistaken.”

Her emotions were all over the place as she watched him walk out of the door.

* * *

Two days of torrential rain suited Kit down to the ground. Having to be cheerful for train passengers would have been a strain. Lying around his flat watching films and playing video games was exactly the therapy he needed. When his mum called him on Monday he was tempted not to answer, but it was near impossible for him to ignore phone calls from his mum.

“Do you want to come over for lunch?” she asked while he stared at his paused video game on the screen in front of him.

“No, thanks. I don’t fancy going out in the rain.” Wind drove the persistent precipitation at the window pane, confirming his decision.

“I can drive down and pick you up.”

“Why are you so desperate for me to come for lunch?” he asked suspiciously.

“I may need a small favour … there’s a dripping tap in Trystan’s cottage. I think the woman staying there is already being driven around the bend by the fact that she’s stuck inside with an energetic five-year-old. A dripping tap might send her over the edge.”

“I don’t have the foggiest idea about plumbing issues.”

She clicked her tongue. “Just Google it. You’ll no doubt find a video online that shows you exactly how to fix it.” She paused and he opened his mouth to protest but wasn’t quick enough. “I’ll pick you up in ten minutes.”

After she hung up Kit stared at the phone for a moment, then opened a search engine to research leaky taps.

Ten minutes later he dashed through pouring rain to his mum’s car. He ran his fingers through his damp hair, causing drips to fly around him.

“I can probably fix the tap, but apparently dripping taps usually need a new washer.”

“That’s no problem. We had the same problem in Noah’s cottage a while back and we ordered a pack of washers. Noah said it was easy to fix.”

Kit frowned. “Wouldn’t it make more sense to get Noah to fix it then?”

“I didn’t want to disturb him on his day off. Put your seatbelt on.”

He did as he was told. “I was quite enjoyingmyday off,” he pointed out.

“I’m always asking Noah to do things.”

Kit raised his eyebrows. “Apart from when he lived in Bristol for a year and you had me and Seren running around for you.” The mention of Seren caught him off guard, and he directed his attention out of the fogged-up window.

“I just thought you could fix the tap and then we could have lunch together.”

“Yeah, okay.” From her tone, he suspected there was more to it than that.

The garage door stood open and they drove straight in. A toolkit was waiting, with the new washers sitting on top of it.

“I’ll get started on lunch,” his mum said, leaving him to it.

In the fifty metres to the cottage, Kit struggled against the wind and lashing rain. He leaned close to the door when he rang the bell, holding his hood in place. He practically fell inside when the woman opened the door.

“Sorry,” he said. “I’m here to fix the tap.”

“That was fast.” She closed the door behind him. “There was no rush. I only mentioned it because I didn’t want it to get worse and cause a flood or something.”

Pushing his hood down, he smiled at the middle-aged woman. A blonde bob framed her face and her eyes were warm and welcoming. Motion in the living room drew his attention to the little girl who was bouncing up and down on the couch.

“Hello!” She beamed. “I’m five.”

“That’s an unusual name.” He wiped his shoes on the mat. “I haven’t met anyone called Five before. I think I like it though.”