Page 11 of Summer in the Scottish Highlands (The Scottish Highlands #5)

Faye and Natty walked around the gravel pathway which led to the back of the house.

‘Wow – this is lovely!’ exclaimed Faye as she stopped to admire the large, beautifully tended lawn and array of summer borders.

She’d had no idea that the back garden was even bigger than the front.

She wondered where Gayle found the time to keep her garden so beautiful when she had a guesthouse to run.

Faye cast her gaze down at Olive, who was sitting on the lawn by her feet, looking up at the frisbee in her hand. Faye looked at the frisbee too. ‘I think we need to be careful where we throw this.’ Faye had a thought. ‘Perhaps we should go back to the front garden.’

‘No, Mummy, I like this garden. It’s bigger.’

‘Well, as long as we keep the games on the lawn. I don’t want Olive diving into the flower borders.’

Natty knelt down in front of Olive and wagged a finger in front of her nose. ‘Now, you heard Mummy. No trampling the flower borders.’

Faye sighed, wishing Natty hadn’t used the word trample .

Olive licked Natty’s finger.

Natty giggled. ‘Hey, that tickled!’ She looked up at her mum. ‘Can we play the same game? Piggy in the middle?’

‘Yes, I think that’s a good idea. If we keep well clear of the borders, more towards the middle of the lawn, and throw the frisbee between us, then Olive can try and catch it like before.’

‘Can I be piggy in the middle?’

‘No, I don’t think so. If I throw it to Olive, I’m a bit concerned she might miss it and go chasing it into the flower borders.’

Natty frowned. ‘All right.’

They took their places, Faye reminding Natty, ‘The frisbee, and Olive, mustn’t stray past the lawn, all right?’

‘Yes.’

‘Right, I’m going to throw the frisbee!’

Olive flopped down on the grass between them.

‘I don’t think Olive wants to play anymore,’ Natty said frowning at her playmate.

Faye said, ‘I think she does. Just watch!’ Faye held up the frisbee high in the air.

Olive stood up and looked from Faye to Natty.

‘There, you see,’ Faye called out as she tossed the frisbee into the air, in Natty’s direction.

Natty reached up at as the frisbee came flying toward her but Olive got their first, jumping up on her hindlegs and nabbing the bright orange plastic frisbee in her jaws.

Faye called Olive.

Olive didn’t seem inclined to give up her prize. Flopping down on the grass in the middle of the lawn, she dropped the frisbee.

Natty shouted, ‘Olive! Come here!’

Olive put a paw on the frisbee as if to say, no, it’s mine .

‘Don’t you want to play fetch?’ Faye asked, walking towards Olive. She slowed as she neared the dog. Faye wasn’t used to being around dogs. Would Olive give up her prize, or would she start growling? It was the first time Olive had caught the frisbee.

‘Good dog,’ said Faye, in a soothing voice. ‘There’s a good girl.’

Olive nudged the frisbee toward Faye.

Faye grinned. ‘You want to play again?’

Olive stood up and barked, looking from the frisbee to Faye.

She picked up the frisbee and walked backwards, making sure she stopped before she reached the flower borders, then reached up and hurled the frisbee into the air, in Natty’s direction.

A breeze caught the frisbee and sent it gliding high up in the air, straight past Olive, who jumped up, trying to catch it, then past Natty, who did the same with no luck. It flew onward over the high hedge into the property backing onto Lark Lodge.

‘Oh, Mummy! You’ve lost the frisbee!’

‘Well at least it didn’t land on the flower borders,’ said Faye, relieved.

‘It probably landed on someone else’s,’ Natty pointed out. She looked about her. ‘Where’s Olive?’

They both turned in a full circle. Olive was nowhere to be seen.

‘Olive!’ Faye yelled, thinking, oh god, I’ve lost Nick’s dog too.

A dog barked.

‘Olive?’ Faye exchanged a glance with Natty.

Natty pointed. ‘I think she’s in there.’

They both ran up to the dense hedging separating Gayle’s garden from the one behind. ‘There must be a gap somewhere,’ said Faye. ‘She’s a big dog, so it must be obvious where she got through. You go that way, Natty and I will look over here.’

Natty walked along the hedge calling out ‘Olive! Olive – where are you?’ Suddenly she stopped. ‘Mummy, I found the gap – come and see. ’

Faye went over to where Natty was standing, and frowned. ‘Oh, no.’

‘See the flower border,’ said Natty.

‘Yes, of course I see it,’ said Faye tightly. The flowers had been trampled where Olive had escaped Gayle’s garden through a gap in the hedging beyond the flower border.

‘I bet Olive already knew about this escape route,’ Faye said a little suspiciously, wondering at the possibility that Olive had been allowed out in the back garden, on her own, and had taken herself off on a little adventure in the neighbouring garden.

Faye frowned at the gap. ‘Oh, god. I hope Olive isn’t digging up a neighbour’s garden.’ She frowned. ‘I don’t think I can crawl through that gap.’

Natty stepped forward. ‘I can.’

‘No!’ Faye went to grab her arm, but Natty was too fast. She’d stepped on the already-trampled flowers, hunkered down, and crawled through the gap. The last thing Faye saw was the soles of her shoes before they disappeared.

Faye squatted down. ‘Natty – are you there?’

‘Yes, Mummy.’

‘Come back this instant.’

‘But I want to find Olive.’ There was a pause.

‘Natty?’

‘Oh, wow!’

‘What do you see?’

‘The garden is ginormous.’

‘Bigger than Gayle’s?’

‘Definitely.’

‘And the house too. It’s ginormous. I’m going to find Olive.’

‘No, Natty – come back this instant!’ Faye paused. ‘Natty?’

This time there was no answer.

‘Natty!’ She’d lost the frisbee, and Olive, and now Natty!

Faye remembered to breath, telling herself, nobody is lost. Natty isn’t lost like before when she bunked off school, and got it into her head that she was catching a National Express bus to see Jake in Scotland.

No, she was just in a neighbour’s garden.

Just the other side of this hedge. Trespassing!

Faye had no idea who the neighbour was. She had the impulse to return to the house and tell Gayle and Jake what had happened.

‘Mummy.’

Her eyes went wide. ‘Natty – is that you?’ Faye winced. What a stupid question.

‘Yes, it’s me.’

Faye didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at her equally absurd reply. She was just so relieved to hear her voice. ‘Have you found Olive?’ Faye shouted through the hedge.

‘No, but I think someone else is in the garden.’

Great , thought Faye. If a big Old English Sheepdog probably destroying their borders wasn’t bad enough, they were going to come across a child trespassing too. She didn’t stop to ask whether they’d spotted her. ‘Come straight back, Natty – right now!’

She held her breath. ‘Natty?’

This time there was no reply.

Faye looked back at the house and thought of fetching Jake. No, there wasn’t time. All she had to do was get in that garden.

Faye got on her hands and knees, deciding that she’d just have to buy Gayle some new plants, and somehow managed to get through the gap, coming out the other side with twigs and leaves in her hair, scratches on her face, and soil all over her light fawn chinos, which she imagined no amount of washes would get rid of.

She stood up and brushed her hair out of eyes.

She imagined her normally straight blonde bob looked as though she’d just backcombed it.

She put her hand to her face to shield the sun and called out, ‘Natty?’ She stood looking around the beautifully manicured grounds.

The gardens were so peaceful, so tranquil.

Natty had been right – the garden was ginormous.

Faye drew in a breath when she caught sight of the house.

‘Wow! What a beautiful house.’ Although it appeared a bit rundown, and could do with a lick of paint and some exterior repairs – one of the exterior window shutters was hanging off its hinges – it was a stunning piece of Scottish architecture, and she could just imagine what it had looked like in its heyday.