Page 36 of All Wrapped Up

I had a spring in my step by the time I reached the gate and took in the sight before me.

There were people swarming all over the field and next to the gate, there were a range of different sized pumpkins with prices painted on, along with a huge wooden bin full to the brim that customers could buy from direct if they didn’t fancy doing any actual picking themselves.

Looking at the state of some of the people, I could see it was a bit of a mucky pursuit and I was pleased I wouldn’t have to carry both Pixie and my pumpkins back to the farm.

‘Clemmie!’ Jake called and I headed over to him.

‘How’s it going?’

‘Not bad. I’ve got someone else watching the road now and we’ve got enough volunteers to cut the pumpkins when the customers have settled on which ones they want.’

I hadn’t thought about that aspect of it.

‘And what about the parking situation?’ I asked. ‘Have you had any complaints? The drove is still heaving.’

‘A very quick random visit from the local plod just now, who I have a feeling that Jason might have encouraged to come along, but I placated the officer with a huge pumpkin.’

‘Well done you!’ I laughed.

It felt good to get one over on Jason who was determined to ruin everyone’s fun.

‘He said he’d overlook the situation today, but going forward, we will need a better system in place.’

‘Amber said you might consider doing this again next year if it’s financially worthwhile.’

‘It already is,’ he grinned. ‘So, yes, next year will definitely be going ahead and with proper planning in advance.’

‘Jake!’

We both turned around and I felt my heart thump hard in my chest. It was Ash who had called him and he looked as taken aback to see me as I was thrown off guard to see him.

Obviously, I had known he was about, because I’d parked next to his truck, but I hadn’t spotted him in the field when I arrived and felt that my body’s reaction to seeing him – my tummy had taken a bit of a tumble, along with my heart picking up the pace – was rather over the top.

‘How much for this one?’ he shouted to Jake and pointed at a massive pumpkin that was going to take some shifting.

‘That one’s not for sale!’ Jake called back. ‘It should have a sticker on it.’

Ash shook his head, having not caught the tail end of what Jake said.

‘Jake!’ called someone else.

‘I’ll tell Ash what you said,’ I offered and walked off towards him, thinking it would be easier to start a conversation on the back of what Jake had said, as opposed to from scratch. ‘Hi.’ I swallowed when I reached him.

‘Hey,’ he said, looking at me, but only for the briefest moment.

‘So, how much is it then?’ asked the man standing next to him.

‘I’m sorry,’ I told him, ‘but Jake said this one isn’t for sale. It’s supposed to have a sticker on it somewhere.’

Ash looked on the ground around it.

‘Oh, here it is,’ he said, picking it up. ‘It must have fallen off. Any pumpkins with these stickers on aren’t for sale. Sorry, folks.’

The couple walked away looking disgruntled.

‘You pulled that sticker off,’ tutted the woman to the guy as she plucked at his sleeve. ‘I saw you do it.’

‘Oh dear,’ I said. ‘He’s in trouble.’ Ash focused his attention on trying to get the sticker back on. ‘They never would have been able to carry it anyway.’

‘You’re right. It’s a bit of a monster, this one.’

He was still fiddling with the label.

‘I didn’t know you were back,’ I said casually.

‘I told you I’d be here in time for today,’ he mumbled, as he finally finished faffing. ‘I said I’d be here.’

‘Oh yes,’ I said, thinking back to our last conversation and then wishing I hadn’t. ‘You did, didn’t you? How were things in Bakewell? How’s your nan?’

‘She’s doing well,’ he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. ‘I helped make a couple of adjustments to the annexe for her, which has helped.’

‘Time well spent then,’ I said, shifting from one foot to the other as I wondered if his standoffish manner was the result of still feeling the impact of our silly near miss at the Fenview Feast.

It was the only thing that I could think of that might account for his unusually detached behaviour. I’d pretty much parked it the night it had happened, so why hadn’t he?

‘I think so,’ he said, finally looking at me. ‘Or I had thought so.’ He swallowed and looked away again.

I had no idea what he meant by that.

‘The bird tables are proving popular,’ I told him and I hated the slightly desperate edge I could hear in my tone.

‘Now the birds are getting the measure of them, there’s always something on them.

The goldfinches are the biggest gluttons, but that could be because there seem to be more of them than anything else. ’

‘It was a good time of year to get it all set up.’

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I suppose it was. The birds will be completely used to feeding from them before the weather really changes, won’t they?’

‘Exactly.’

‘I’ve missed you this week,’ I then blurted out. If he wasn’t going to say it, then I would.

‘Have you?’

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I have. Loads has happened since you’ve been gone and I wanted to talk to you about it.’

‘To do with the festival?’

‘No,’ I said, feeling exasperated. ‘To do with me.’

‘Right,’ he said.

‘If my memory serves,’ I said, starting to feel hot and fed up to be the one doing all of the running, ‘we’re friends, aren’t we? And friends discuss things?’

‘Yes,’ he grimaced. ‘Of course.’

‘So, can we talk?’

I could see a family heading in our direction, weighed down with a variety of pumpkins.

‘Can we pay you for these?’ the man asked. He sounded out of puff. ‘I’ve got cash.’

‘Yes,’ said Ash, in a completely different tone to the one he’d just addressed me in. ‘Let’s add up what you’ve got.’

‘We’ve got loads!’ boasted the youngest child, who was wrapped up as if it was the depths of winter they’d ventured out in.

Ash totted up a total and then offered to help carry the haul back to the field entrance while the woman went ahead to get their car.

‘No, you’re all right, lad,’ the man said and staggered off. ‘I can manage.’

‘Jake could do with some wheelbarrows or trolleys,’ Ash said, looking after him. ‘Someone’s going to slip a disc at this rate.’

‘I can see you’re preoccupied,’ I sighed and went to walk off. ‘Perhaps I’ll catch you later.’

‘I don’t think we’ll get a chance to talk today,’ he said, as he pulled off his hat. ‘I’m going to be on deputy duty all day.’

‘Another time then.’ I shrugged and then I did walk away.

‘You’re all right though, aren’t you?’ he called after me.

‘Yep,’ I said, turning to face him and giving him a thumbs up. ‘Never been better.’

I didn’t much feel like hanging around, but I didn’t want Ash thinking his sudden unfriendliness had driven me away either, so I stuck it out and actually, by lunchtime, I had almost forgotten about him and was happy helping Jake.

There were patches of the field that already looked barren compared to when I’d arrived and Jake was wondering if he was going to need to expand the pick your own patch to a larger site the following year.

‘I better head off,’ I told him, when there was a brief lull. ‘I can’t leave Pixie with Amber all day and I need to check the details for tomorrow’s spring bulb planting event.’

‘I hope you have a good turnout for that,’ Jake said kindly.

‘The interest has been so great that everyone who wants to plant has had to register,’ I was proud to tell him.

‘That was a good idea,’ he said. ‘Perhaps timed entry would have worked better here…’

‘To be honest,’ I said, thinking of the bulb planting, ‘I didn’t expect so many people would want to do it, so I’m pleased we’ve gone down the preregistered route. It would have been chaos otherwise.’

‘Um,’ he said thoughtfully, obviously still thinking about what had occurred in the pumpkin field that day. ‘And it was good of Harriet and Rachel at the garden centre to offer so many bags of bulbs, wasn’t it?’ he then added.

I had forgotten that they were all such close friends, so Jake and Amber would know all about that.

‘It really was,’ I agreed. Harriet, and her partner, Rachel, had been very generous with their donation and they had agreed to come along with their bulb planters for anyone who didn’t have their own trowels, too.

‘And it was great that Tom got the council to agree to a site to plant in so quickly, too,’ I added.

‘I can’t wait to see it in full bloom next spring. ’

We were, under the supervision of the council parks department, going to be allowed to plant the bulbs in an area of the town park that usually didn’t attract much attention. There had been talk of installing a couple of benches there the following year too, so I hoped that would also come off.

‘You’ll be as stiff as a board on Monday,’ Jake laughed. ‘What with all the carrying today and the bending tomorrow.’

‘It’s all good exercise,’ I laughed.

‘In that case,’ he nudged, ‘as you’re feeling fit, why don’t you take a walk around our new nature trail before you head off?’

‘As wonderful as it sounds,’ I told him, ‘and I’ve been hearing good things all day, I’m going to save it for another time. What time are you closing up here today?’

‘Fair enough,’ he smiled and checked the time on his phone. ‘You’re always welcome. Officially we’re finishing at half two, but if there are a few stragglers, I won’t mind hanging on.’

‘Well,’ I said, ‘I hope the idea continues to be a popular one.’

‘Me too,’ he agreed, as another customer came along to pay. ‘It’s got us out of a right fix. I’ll see you soon, Clemmie.’

‘Yes, see you again soon.’

I looked around the field ahead of walking back to the farm with three small, but heavy pumpkins of my own in a couple of string bags, but there was no sign of Ash.

I hadn’t meant to look for him and gave myself a bit of a telling off as I marched back, then an even more severe one when I caught sight of him next to his truck and my heart kicked again.

I had been about to call out to him, when I realised he was talking to someone.

It was a young woman. She had been sitting in his cab, but climbed out and carried on what looked like an intense conversation which ended with a long hug.

Clearly, Ash wasn’t averse to talking to all of his female friends. Assuming she was a friend…

Stupidly, I hid out of sight, behind a tree which was conveniently next to the gate and waited until Ash had driven off and the woman had walked to the bottom of the yard.

Then I ducked into the farmhouse, thanked Amber for looking after Pixie and headed back to Rowan Cottage feeling frustratingly far less happy than I had when I left it that morning.