Page 37 of A French Inheritance

Briony was up early on Easter Saturday morning to walk Meg to the village for breakfast croissants.

She knew that Jeannie planned on taking the dog to the lake later in the morning for her proper walk.

Jeannie had coffee ready when she got back and they sat out on the terrace in the early-morning sunshine.

Afterwards, Briony changed into a pair of white jeans and a red striped Breton top and headed for the farm.

Lucy had asked her to be there for nine o’clock and charged her with putting the welcome baskets in each g?te and doing a final check that everything was good and ready for guests.

The guests for the Cider House were due to arrive around mid-morning.

Lucy would welcome them and then Briony would take them across to the g?te.

Neither of the guests for both the Stables g?tes had given an arrival time so it was a question of waiting and seeing who arrived first. All the guests were to be invited for an informal aperitif on the farm terrace at six o’clock.

Briony wandered back to the farmhouse kitchen after she’d done the final check and found Lucy busy making small pastry nibbles for the evening get-together.

‘You will come up too, won’t you?’ Lucy said. ‘You’re part of the team now.’

‘Yes, I’ll be here. Can I do anything right now?’

‘You could finish loading the dishwasher for me and start it off,’ Lucy said.

‘While I remember too – can you come up on Tuesday morning about ten o’clock, instead of Thursday?

The Cider House guests are only here for a long weekend so we’ll need to strip the beds and everything.

The Stables are both empty next Saturday. ’

‘That’s fine,’ Briony said. ‘What about…’ She paused as they both heard a car drive onto the yard. ‘Sounds like some guests have arrived.’

Lucy sighed. ‘Can you go? I really need to finish these pastries. Tell them I’ll pop over to see them in about half an hour. Too early for the guests in the Cider House. If it’s the Dunkling family, they are in No.2. Anyone else, No.1.’

Briony left Lucy to her baking and went out to greet the guests.

* * *

Jeannie tidied up the breakfast things once Briony had left and generally pottered about the cottage for an hour. She thought about ringing Yann and inviting him for Easter Sunday lunch before deciding she’d take Meg on a walk through the village and surprise him at home.

Odette called out a cheerful ‘ Bonjour ’ and several people waved to her as she walked through the village towards Yann’s cottage, a short five-minute walk on the outskirts. Jeannie smiled happily. She was already loving living in France.

As she approached Yann’s house, she smiled as she saw the garden which she knew had always been Yann’s pride and joy. Her smile vanished as she saw a van parked on the small driveway and Yann watching a man hammering a For Sale sign into the flowerbed to the side of the front door.

Yann turned and saw her. ‘Jeannie, what a lovely surprise.’ He hurried to her side.

‘You didn’t say you were moving away?’ Jeannie said, looking at the board.

‘I’m not. Well, I am hoping to move, but not far. Come on in and let me explain. Let’s sit out in the garden,’ Yann said.

As Yann ushered her through the house and out into the secluded back garden, Jeannie felt a strange shiver of apprehension.

She’d realised the night she’d spent in the house after Yann had picked her up from the airport that this was still Evette’s house.

Her handiwork, her taste, was still in evidence.

The wallpaper, the paintings, even the lampshade hanging over the hallway, had all been chosen by Evette.

The tiles in the bathroom she remembered Evette asking her advice on and she’d been so proud of her modern bathroom.

Yann had changed nothing. The last time Jeannie had been here when Evette was still alive, she’d welcomed her with a huge smile and thrown her arms around her.

Now it was Yann drawing her close and kissing her cheeks.

‘To what do I owe this surprise visit?’ he asked with a smile.

‘You’re invited for lunch tomorrow,’ Jeannie said. ‘If you’re free of course?’

‘Thank you, of course I’m free to have lunch with you.’

‘There is one thing we’d like to do Sunday morning. We’ve decided to scatter Giselle’s ashes in the garden near the trees at the bottom. I know you were very fond of Giselle and we wondered whether you’d like to join the two of us?’

Yann’s arms around her tightened. ‘I’d be honoured. Thank you.’

‘I’ve also told Briony about us becoming closer and she is happy for both of us.’

A relieved smile passed over Yann’s face.

‘I have to warn you, though, that at lunch tomorrow she may tease you with questions about your intentions.’ Jeannie paused. ‘Having seen that sign outside, I must admit I have a few questions of my own.’

‘That’s what I want to talk to you about.

’ Yann looked at her. ‘Evette has been gone for eighteen months now. Like you will never forget Jeromé, I will never forget Evette and the life we had together, mainly in this house.’ He paused.

‘I need to move on. Everywhere I turn, there are memories – mostly good, I admit – but I want to make some new memories with you. I hope one day that we will be living together, maybe even married,’ he shrugged.

‘I don’t know if that will happen, but I do know that I can’t ask you to stay in a house that is still full of Evette.

I want somewhere that the two of us can be happy together, making our own memories. Do you understand?’

Jeannie nodded. ‘Yes, of course I do. Are you going to buy in the village or somewhere else?’

‘I thought we could take that decision together. Sometimes I quite fancy a complete change from village life – an apartment on the Croisette in Cannes, peut-être . But you’ve only just begun your village life, so it is something we need to discuss, yes?’

Jeannie nodded. ‘Yes, it’s definitely something we need to talk about.’

* * *

The French guests staying in the Cider House arrived at midday as expected and Briony welcomed them, gave them the guided tour and left them to settle in.

She was walking back across the yard to the farmhouse, when an Audi sports car drove into the yard and stopped.

An attractive woman slid gracefully out, her slim white jeans with pale blue-white designer polo shirt tucked in accentuating her figure.

She closed the car door and stood looking around. Briony walked towards her.

‘Can I help you?’

The woman moved her sunglasses down so that she was looking over the top of them at Briony. ‘Perhaps. I’m visiting a friend.’

‘Which g?te are they staying in?’ Briony asked.

‘I forget the name. Maybe something like the Hen House, the Corn Store or even maybe the Pig Sty.’

Briony stiffened. Calling one of the g?tes the Pig Sty was not nice – and the Corn Store was Elliot’s cottage.

She had a sudden feeling she might know who this woman was.

Elliot’s 4x4 had been parked outside his cottage earlier, but whether he was indoors or over at the farm with Adam, she had no way of knowing.

What she did know, though, was that both Elliot and Adam needed to be told about this woman.

‘You’re looking for Elliot?’

‘Yes. Don’t worry. I am happy to wander around until I find him.’

‘I’m not sure he’s at home at the moment. I hope you don’t have to wait too long,’ Briony said as she turned away and casually made for the farmhouse. Opening the door, she was relieved to see both Elliot and Adam looking at some data on Adam’s laptop.

Adam looked up with a frown. ‘Hi. You look a bit flustered. Do you want Lucy’s help with one of the guests?’

‘No. All the bona fide guests are fine, but there is a woman wandering around looking for her “friend”. She mentioned the Corn House, although she inferred that maybe it had changed its name to the Pig Sty. I think it’s your ex-wife,’ she said, looking at Elliot.

Elliot clenched his fists and turned to leave.

Adam put a hand on his arm. ‘Calm down, bro. We don’t want a scene in front of any of the guests. I can come with you and ask her to leave and threaten her with the police for trespassing if she doesn’t go.’

Elliot shook his head. ‘No need to come with me, there won’t be a scene, I promise.’ And he turned and left the kitchen with Luna.

Briony exchanged a glance with Adam, who shrugged resignedly, before they both watched Elliot as he crossed the yard towards the Corn Store, Luna walking as close as she could to him, clearly sensing the tension in his body.

* * *

Robyn had found Elliot’s 4x4 outside the Corn Store and was leaning against it as Elliot approached her. ‘Thought this would be your vehicle. Hello, Elliot.’

‘What the hell are you doing here, Robyn?’ Elliot said.

‘If you are here to cause trouble, I have to warn you, Adam is prepared to call the local gendarmerie and have you escorted off the farm. And regardless of whether you intend to cause trouble or not, I have nothing to say to you. So perhaps you’d like to leave now. ’

Robyn shook her head. ‘I’m not here to cause trouble. I wanted to see you and to have a civilised conversation with you.’ She glanced around as she saw both Adam and Briony, as well as two guests from the Cider House, all standing around and watching the two of them. ‘A private conversation.’

Elliot sighed and gave in to the inevitable. ‘You’d better come in then,’ and he opened the door to his cottage. ‘Five minutes. You say what you’ve come to say and then you leave.’

* * *

‘So why are you here?’ Elliot demanded as he and Robyn stood in the main room of the Corn House.

‘Do I have to have a reason to come?’

‘Damn right you do.’

Robyn shrugged. ‘I simply thought we could have lunch, have a chat, mend some fences.’

Elliot stared at her. ‘I do not want to have lunch with you, have a chat or mend fences. What do you want?’

There was a short silence before Robyn spoke.