Page 41 of All Wrapped Up

I had hoped my dazed demeanour had gone unnoticed but I knew it hadn’t, because Ash telephoned early the next morning to ask if I was feeling okay and it was more than disconcerting, the way my heart skittered when his name flashed up on my phone.

I strove to put my physical response, and my out of character reaction to his hand holding mine, down to feeling relieved that we had cleared the air and that I hadn’t lost the closest friend I had made in the Fens so far.

It was either that, or I’d caught the bug that seemed to be doing the rounds and it had muddled my head. Both were entirely feasible explanations as far as I was concerned and I clung to them to keep me afloat.

‘Hey, Clemmie,’ Ash said brightly when I answered his call and I could hear the smile in his tone. ‘How are you feeling this morning?’

‘I’m not sure.’ I frowned. ‘Why do you ask?’

‘I don’t know really,’ he laughed. ‘You just seemed a bit… odd after the walk last night.’

‘Odd?’ I squeaked.

‘Perhaps that’s not the right word.’ He chuckled at my reaction. ‘Sorry. Just not quite yourself, I suppose is what I really mean.’

‘That’s probably because I felt a bit bad about telling Amber and Jake that we didn’t really think the trail worked in the dark,’ I suggested, thinking his description of how I’d been wasn’t actually all that wide of the mark.

‘But they didn’t seem to mind and Jake said he was happy to make further improvements ahead of the festival next year, didn’t he?’

‘I suppose. Perhaps you’re right. I am actually feeling a bit… strange. Maybe I’m coming down with the bug that’s doing the rounds. Or perhaps it was the influence of being out under the just waning moon… or something.’

Even I rolled my eyes at that, but there was something going on with me that I couldn’t account for. I’d ended the trail with Ash feeling like a completely different person to the one who had started it.

‘I think it must be the bug,’ Ash responded teasingly. ‘Perhaps you’ve got a temperature because you sounded almost delirious then.’

‘Hey!’ I objected.

‘You sounded more like Molly than Clemmie. That’s the sort of thing that she’d come out with.’

‘Well,’ I said. ‘Perhaps it’s time I embraced my… inner witch.’

‘Definitely delirious,’ Ash laughed. ‘Shall I call round?’

‘No,’ I said, perhaps a little too quickly. ‘Thank you,’ I then more calmly added. ‘I’ll be fine. If the bug does strike, I have all the meds, blankets and fluids I need to see myself through it. You don’t want to risk catching it. You were lucky not to pick it up from Will.’

I still couldn’t think about his boss without a flush of embarrassment and felt my cheeks turning pink.

‘Well, as long as you’re sure?’ Ash asked, sounding serious at last.

‘I am.’

‘In that case, I’ll leave you to it. Let me know if you’re not up to announcing the window display winners on Saturday and I’ll do it on my own.’

‘Oh, I’m sure I’ll be fine for that.’ I really hoped I wasn’t going to have to miss playing my part in the announcement because I was delighted with our choices. ‘But perhaps you could pick up the box from the town hall with the public votes in and take care of those?’

‘Consider it done,’ Ash promised. ‘I’ll pick them up and count them and I mean it, Clemmie, if you need anything in the meantime, anything at all, just call.’

‘I will,’ I said. ‘Thanks, Ash.’

‘My pleasure.’

I flopped back in the chair when he’d hung up and stared at my phone as if it might contain the answer to something. When I looked up, Pixie was watching me curiously, with her head cocked and wearing the same puzzled expression I imagined I was.

‘I don’t know either.’ I shrugged. ‘Perhaps I need a tonic or something.’

I managed without the tonic and the bug didn’t land, so I was able to potter about the cottage, update AutumnEverything and even have another quick tidy up in the garden ahead of the weekend.

By the time I set off to Wynbridge late Saturday morning, I was feeling excited about the prospect of going around and letting the shop winners know where they’d been placed.

There were autumn stalls set up on the market and I could see the yarn bombers had been out in force again.

Every bollard, post box and sign now had something adorning it and the square looked utterly idyllic.

Someone had even added some real pumpkins to the central display and it was with an almost happy heart and feeling almost full of the joys of autumn, that I made for The Mermaid to meet Ash.

I say almost, because there was something that was stopping my buoyant mood from being completely pumped up.

I couldn’t put my finger on what it was and tried my best to brush the feeling off, but the confusion slash apprehension was determined to linger and ensure my utterly blissed out state didn’t quite scale the heights that the sight of Wynbridge decked out in autumn colours should have reached.

‘Hey, Ash.’ I smiled, when I spotted him waiting for us in the pub and Pixie and I headed over to his table, thankfully with no silly reaction occurring within the confines of my ribcage.

My heart was already skipping along after my walk around the chilly square, so its increased pace was doubtless the result of that.

‘Hey,’ he said, looking up and taking me in. ‘How are you feeling?’

I settled Pixie under the table, then unwound my scarf and took off my coat.

Jim and Evelyn had a fire roaring and Ash’s choice of table was quite close to it which explained the sudden rush of warmth I was experiencing.

Coming in from the cold and into the heat of the pub was bound to make me feel hot.

‘I’m good,’ I said, sitting down and looking at him. ‘Really good.’

Was it my imagination, or were his eyes even bluer than usual? Perhaps it was the fact that I was looking directly into them, rather than up at them?

‘Not still feeling out of sorts?’ he asked, his brows pushed together.

‘Not really,’ I said, looking around, ‘though…’

‘Though what?’

‘Oh, I don’t know.’ I frowned, as I tried to put my finger on exactly what it was that was bothering me. ‘I don’t feel unwell exactly, but…’

‘Perhaps it’s nerves?’ Ash suggested.

‘Nerves?’

‘Yes,’ he said. ‘Perhaps you’re feeling jittery about handing out the awards.’

‘Oh yes,’ I said, latching on to the idea, because nerves would explain the apprehension, if not the confusion, ‘you might be on to something there.’

‘Everyone knows it’s happening today,’ Ash carried on, further strengthening his suggestion, ‘so it’s bound to draw quite a crowd and given your aversion to being the centre of attention, Clemmie—’

‘Yes,’ I cut in, ‘that’s it. Of course, that’s it. Phew! I’m feeling better already. Thank you, Ash.’

‘Hey,’ he shrugged self-deprecatingly. ‘That’s what friends are for.’

‘Quite,’ I said, as Pixie circled around my feet. ‘And we all need a friend, don’t we? I think Pixie has the jitters, too.’ I tutted.

‘I think Pixie is protesting to that coat you’ve made her wear again,’ Ash laughed back.

‘It’s a lovely coat.’ I pouted, pleased to have changed the subject. ‘She just needs to get used to it.’

Neither Ash nor Pixie looked inclined to agree.

‘Anyway,’ he said, ‘let me get you a drink and then we’ll get down to business.’

‘Is there business?’ I frowned.

‘Yes,’ he sighed. ‘There is a bit. What can I get you?’

‘Just a coffee, please,’ I requested as it felt too early for beer or wine.

He came back with my drink and a bowl of water for Pixie, which she noisily lapped at.

‘I hope there isn’t an issue with the public vote,’ I said, as Ash sat back down and finished the coffee he’d been drinking when Pixie and I came in. ‘It isn’t a tie, is it?’

I had been mulling over what he could possibly want to talk business about while I watched him at the bar and it was the only thing I could think of.

‘There is an issue with the public vote,’ he told me and I felt my shoulders tense up. ‘Though I have no idea whether it was a tie or not.’

‘Oh crikey,’ I said. ‘Go on. What’s happened?’

‘The ballot box has been stolen.’

‘What?’

‘The ballot box has gone. Someone must have taken it.’

‘What, the whole thing?’ I gasped and he gave me a look. ‘ Sorry,’ I said, shaking my head. ‘Of course, you mean the whole thing.’

‘I went to pick it up from the town hall and it was gone,’ he explained. ‘And no one else has moved it, because I’ve checked. It was literally there one day and gone the next.’

‘Why didn’t you tell me before?’

‘Because I knew there was nothing you’d be able to do about it and I didn’t want to disturb you unnecessarily in case the bug had landed.’

I could hardly object to his kindness and he was right, given that the box had disappeared into thin air, there wouldn’t have been anything I could do to make it magically reappear. There were limits to my powers as festival organiser.

‘According to Tom,’ Ash further said, ‘who was possibly the last person to see it, before the person who took it, of course, it was almost full to the brim with voting slips.’

‘That makes it even worse, doesn’t it?’ I groaned. I was starting to feel angry now the initial shock had worn off. ‘It was such a lovely way to make everyone feel involved and some mean-spirited sod has gone and spoilt it. Who would do something like that?’

‘I can think of one person,’ said Ash, with a nod to the far end of the bar.

I followed his gaze and was shocked to see Jason nursing a pint and looking comfortably at home.

‘I thought he’d been barred,’ I said in a low voice.

‘Me too.’

‘You know, I bet it was him,’ I grumbled. ‘He insinuated at the launch that I might not find the festival all plain sailing.’

‘Oh, did he now?’ said Ash, sitting up straighter and puffing out his chest as he pinned Jason with a look of pure loathing. ‘Well, we’ll see about that.’

‘It’s fine,’ I said, laying a hand on his arm, because he had been about to stand up. ‘There’s no need for heroics, though your gallantry is appreciated.’