Page 27 of All Wrapped Up

I had decided early on which window I wanted to be the overall winner chosen by us and when we settled at a table in The Mermaid, because we couldn’t get in at the café, I was delighted when Ash said that it was his favourite, too.

We weren’t going to announce our winners until the public had had the opportunity to vote for their favourites, via the box and ballot sheets set up in the town hall, but I felt like it was a weight off my mind to have it decided and I was now looking forward to the allocation of the two sets of awards.

‘How many photos have you taken?’ Ash asked, as I scrolled through the images on my phone after we’d finished the delicious and hearty stew and dumplings Evelyn had laid on exclusively for the first day of the festival.

‘Quite a few.’ I grinned.

‘Dozens, by the looks of it. What on earth do you want them all for?’

I wanted some of them to post on AutumnEverything, but I wasn’t going to explain about that and I hoped Lizzie wouldn’t be tempted to add any cryptic comments on the posts I shared either.

I had made sure the images were all autumnal (which wasn’t hard given how beautifully the town was dressed) but didn’t give any clue as to where they might have been taken.

There were close ups of the pumpkins and some of the decorations, but nothing that screamed Wynbridge in either the general subjects or the background.

They could have been taken in any other town or village celebrating the season.

‘Well,’ I said, ‘it’s a very special day and I just wanted to record it.’

‘All of it,’ Ash teased.

‘Don’t forget, I’ve been holed up in Rowan Cottage for the last eighteen months,’ I reminded him, ‘so it’s only to be expected that I go a little overboard now I’m… out.’

‘You make it sound like you were a prisoner.’

I took a moment to consider that.

‘I suppose I was, in a way,’ I said. ‘I made myself a prisoner in my own home.’

‘Sorry,’ he apologised, looking remorseful. ‘I didn’t mean to upset you.’

‘You didn’t,’ I told him. ‘You were right and I stayed there, locked in my own world, with good reason. Had I not done it, I wouldn’t be sitting here with you now.’

‘It really helped?’

‘It really did. Moving to Rowan Cottage and taking the time to do what I needed to, without anyone trying to convince me that my way was the wrong way, was the best decision I could have made. It wouldn’t have been right for everyone, but it worked for me.

I mean, can you imagine what Joanne and even Lizzie, would have been like if they’d met me as soon as I moved here,’ I grimaced, ‘and been privy to the circumstances surrounding my arrival?’

Ash let out a breath. ‘They wouldn’t have given you a moment’s peace, would they?’

‘Exactly,’ I confirmed. ‘Their attention would have been kindly meant, I’m sure, but I wouldn’t have wanted it and I wouldn’t have achieved anything positive because of it. Staying home, on my own, was what I needed to do and I did it.’

My instinct about that being the right course for me had first come to light as a result of shutting down the online accounts Callum and I had.

Once I was no longer being inundated with private messages and the harrowing details of other people’s grief, I had felt such relief and, months later, the privacy the move to the Fens afforded me had added to that.

‘Did your parents understand your need for isolation?’ Ash asked. ‘Do you have parents? I didn’t even think to ask last night.’

‘I do,’ I confirmed. ‘And they didn’t, not in the beginning, but eventually they accepted it. When they could see I was focused on the renovation, and coping better as a result, they realised I was in the best place.’

I didn’t mention that their faith in my eventual successful online ‘social life’ courtesy of AutumnEverything had helped to also convince them that I had a real-life social life and friends in the area to go with it, too.

‘Well, like I said earlier,’ Ash said quietly, ‘I think you’re amazing.’

‘Just don’t let Joanne hear you say that.’ I smiled. ‘Otherwise, we’ll be back to square one. Now, I’m going to pay and then I want to explore the market before everything’s sold.’

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that because the stalls had been doing a roaring trade all day. Clearly, the popularity of the cosy season was growing year on year and I was thrilled about that. Not only for my Insta account but for the appeal of the festival, too.

As long as all went smoothly, repeating it again next year really would be a no-brainer and it could be even bigger, because we’d have the whole year to prepare for it and with the Connelly family and Wynthorpe Hall on board, we’d have new events to offer, too.

‘Have all of the autumn fairies gone?’ I asked Bella, as I looked through the few handmade and characterful winged beauties she had left. ‘I can’t seem to find any.’

I’d had my eye on the fairies dressed in the autumn fabric she had mentioned before, but I hadn’t had a chance to buy one earlier and now it looked like I’d missed my chance.

‘They sold out hours ago,’ Bella told me as she looked at Ash. ‘Practically as soon as you’d launched the festival.’

‘Oh no,’ I groaned. ‘Please tell me you’ll be making more for the next market. The little crocheted acorn hats you’d fashioned for them were so perfect.’

‘I’m going to be making lots more,’ she told me. ‘I’ve already sent off for more fabric because I’ve been taking orders since I sold out.’

‘Well, you can add my name to the list,’ I told her. ‘I’m gutted to have missed out.’

Bella looked at Ash and they both smiled.

‘You don’t need to order one, Clemmie,’ said Ash, as Bella reached under the stall. ‘Unless you’d like two.’

Bella straightened up and in her hands was a fairy arranged in an acetate bag to protect it and which was tied up with an orange ribbon.

‘This,’ she said, with a grin, ‘is for you, Clemmie.’

‘Really?’ I gasped.

‘Really,’ said Ash, who was smiling at me. ‘I noticed you admiring them this morning and asked Bella to put aside the one she thought you’d been most taken with.’

‘I hope I got it right,’ Bella commented.

I looked at the details of the fairy, my favourite of all the fairies I then realised. It was cosily nestled amid some leaf shaped confetti, which was the loveliest touch.

‘You have,’ I said, my voice thick in my throat. ‘This was the one I really wanted.’

With her wild red hair and flowing dress, she reminded me a little of Molly from Wynthorpe Hall. She looked full of wisdom but had a mischievous smile, too. I wondered if the Wynthorpe Witch boasted both those traits? The wisdom was a pretty safe bet, but the mischief was yet to be decided upon.

‘She’s perfect.’ I swallowed.

‘Happy autumn, Clemmie,’ said Ash. ‘I think she’s going to be the perfect addition to Rowan Cottage.’

‘I think she is too,’ I agreed. ‘But you must let me pay for her.’

I had noted the price tag when I had been admiring her and knew she wasn’t cheap.

‘Absolutely not,’ Ash insisted. ‘She’s a gift from me to you.’

‘Really?’ I blinked.

‘Really,’ he smiled.

‘In that case,’ I said, looking from the fairy to him and back again, ‘thank you, Ash. Thank you very much indeed.’

Without thinking, I stepped up, stood on tiptoe and lightly kissed his cheek. His face felt cold beneath the warmth of my lips, but his complexion burned as brightly as my own when I stepped away again.

‘You’ll have to tell me what you decide to call her,’ Bella said, cutting through the post-kiss moment that felt like it meant more than it should.

‘Naming your fairy is an important part of the ownership process. You can set an intention for her and she’ll remind you to take action to manifest it. ’

‘Molly would tell you that would be best done under a new moon,’ said a voice nearby and I turned around to find Hayley standing behind me.

‘Which, as luck would have it,’ I said a little breathlessly because I was still thinking about that kiss, ‘happens to be occurring tomorrow.’

‘What are the odds of that?’ Ash smiled.

‘What are the odds indeed?’ I swallowed as I looked up at him again.