Page 23 of The Little Cottage by the Cornish Sea

At home, I made Trixie a makeshift bed by the fire with an old cushion and one of my sweaters. Perhaps she could get used to my smell and feel safe? Then I got out two old bowls and filled them with kibble and clean water. I watched her near the bowl with kibble, sniff it, and finally dig in.

‘There you are, sweetheart,’ I cooed, caressing her fur. Surprisingly, she didn’t shy away, so starved for affection, poor thing.

Satisfied she would be okay for a few minutes, I snuck upstairs and slipped into my usual glad rags.

Then I crept back downstairs and made myself a cup of cocoa.

After nightfall, it wasn’t that warm anymore.

I was getting sick of tea and the mention of ice cream to Piers had subconsciously made me peckish.

Who was I kidding? I was always peckish; I hoped Baby was enjoying herself in there.

*

The next morning, Piers called my mobile as I was getting dressed. ‘Morning, Sophie. Just calling to check if it’s okay with you to take some more international calls tonight?’

‘Of course, certainly.’

‘So can you sleep over? Mrs Watts would prepare a room for you.’

‘Right. There’s just one thing. I have just adopted a tiny dog and I can’t leave her on her own. She’s very quiet and just needs to lie in a basket in the same room with me. Can I bring her in? She won’t bark or make a mess, I promise.’

‘Fine by me as long as you keep her away from Wolf. He hates other dogs.’

‘Oh! Okay. Then I’ll close my office door from now on.’

When I took her to the car with me, she panicked, but I let her sit in my lap all the way and even when I sat behind my desk, she clung to me.

‘You’re not going anywhere, sweetheart,’ I whispered into the top of her head before dropping another huge kiss on it.

Which reminded me to check my drawer. Little Cherry, as I’d dubbed him, seemed to have gone.

I only hoped he hadn’t died in the night and that Justin hadn’t disposed of him.

Back to work. I had barely slept the previous night and was struggling to keep my eyes open.

The hardest part about being pregnant was the drowsiness vs being wired.

I was tired, but then when in bed, I couldn’t fall asleep.

I used to have allergies as a teenager and had had to take Dramamine for a while which made me constantly sleepy.

This was pretty much the same feeling, only back then, falling asleep on my desk and not getting my homework done wasn’t such a tragedy.

Could you imagine me falling asleep on the job?

Piers did know I was pregnant, but the last thing I needed was for that to happen again.

My gyno had told me I would be getting more and more tired throughout my pregnancy, but today was the worst so far.

Still, work was work. Of course, I had promised to sleep over, should the need have arisen, but now that I was actually going to be sleeping there, a frisson of excitement and curiosity coursed through me.

I had never slept in a manor before, not even a hotel manor.

‘Good morning again, Sophie,’ Piers greeted me from the table as I walked into the orangery for a cup of coffee with my little dog bag.

‘Morning. Please meet Trixie.’

‘Hello, new puppy!’ he said as he peered into her face. ‘Hey, she’s so ugly, she’s actually cute!’

‘Don’t say that,’ I hissed, covering her ears. ‘She’s very sensitive, you know?’

‘Okay, okay, sorry’ Piers laughed. ‘Will you or Miss Universe here be needing anything specific for tonight?’ he asked.

‘No thanks, she’ll be fine. I have her blanket, her food and her vitamins. Everything she needs.’

A strange light appeared in Piers’s eyes. ‘And you?’ he asked softly.

‘What do you mean?’ I asked as I sat down opposite him. With him, it was always better to make sure.

He shrugged. ‘I don’t know, do you have any special pregnancy needs?’

I couldn’t help but giggle. ‘No, no pregnancy needs, thanks. Just a firm mattress.’

He grinned sheepishly. ‘Sorry for being so ignorant. I know absolutely nothing about these things.’

‘Oh, no, please don’t apologise; that’s actually very considerate of you to ask.’

‘So you’ll be okay? Are you okay?’

‘Absolutely, thank you.’

‘So, when is the baby due?’

‘In December, around Christmas.’

This was the first time he had ever actually shown any real interest in my pregnancy; he’d only ever asked if I needed anything.

In that way he had always been very attentive, a good employer, but it was never anything beyond surface level.

But then I realised this sudden interest in my due date was probably linked to the timeline of his business.

He wanted to know when I’d be having my baby so we could aim to get the work done before I left the job.

Which made me wonder, how was I going to manage to survive for all the months that I couldn’t work because I was taking care of my baby?

I would have to work. But then who would take care of her?

There was no way I could ever leave her with anyone.

It would kill me to do so. Besides, I didn’t have the budget for childcare.

Even if I continued to work elsewhere, I’d never be paid as well as I was here.

‘Right. And… I hope you don’t mind my asking but… will the baby’s father be joining you at any point?’

I didn’t quite see how that information could be of any importance to him, but when his face began to turn a shade of red, I suddenly realised that perhaps he was asking me once again if I was seeing anyone. The first time I’d told him I wasn’t, and now it seemed he wanted to make sure.

But there was something there, in his stance, on his face, the way he avoided looking me straight in the eye. And in the tone of his voice, aloof and almost insecure. Could it possibly be that he was growing as fond of me as I was of him?

For me, it was only normal to develop a crush on him.

Piers was kind and intelligent; he owned his own business and was highly regarded by Emmie and the girls.

But were my instincts wrong in telling me that he might actually be interested in me, his employee who was carrying another man’s baby to boot?

Piers and I came from two completely different worlds.

He was a successful businessman while I was soon to be out of a job again.

The thought that I was bringing a baby into this world, in the state my life was in, suddenly seemed like idiotic to me.

Just what made me even think I could do it on my own? What had I been thinking?

Of course, I was so much better off without Will.

But had I actually thought it through when I ran?

I could have handled it differently. Gone to the police.

Who knows which way these things can go sometimes?

But the thought of not having my baby had never even occurred to me.

It would have made my life much easier, I suppose, with only myself to worry about, but from the moment I saw those two pink stripes in that stick, I was no longer alone.

Whatever happened from now on, I would have Baby, and Baby would have me.

‘I’m so sorry, I can see that I’ve upset you,’ Piers whispered from across the table.

I looked up. ‘Oh, no, Piers. You haven’t. I’m on my own and it’s tough, but so am I.’

He studied me in silence for a moment, his eyes probing, pondering.

Just kiss me, Piers , I willed him silently. Just reach across the table and kiss me. Take the risk…

‘Yes, Sophie,’ he whispered.

I snapped out of it, wondering if I’d said any of that aloud, when he leaned in close. Almost close enough to kiss me. ‘You don’t look it, but you are tough. I can see that.’

He could see my strength, but he couldn’t see what was right under his nose.

He couldn’t see how I was terribly attracted to him.

And I suddenly realised what a lost cause I was.

He would never see me as I saw him. He would never be attracted to me, let alone act upon it.

We were in a stalemate, caused not only by my being Piers’s employee, but also by my expecting a child by another man.

And yet, I longed for love. I yearned for a new start, a new life shared with someone as fascinating as Piers.

But as usual, my affection was one-sided. Would no one ever love me again?

For the rest of the day, I worked pretty much undisturbed except by Mrs Watts, who came in offering coffee and sandwiches, which I readily accepted.

I was always ravenous lately. Savoury, sweet, you name it, I’d eat it.

Which reminded me. If I was sleeping at Rosestones, did that mean that I would be having dinner with Piers?

Or would I eat in the kitchen with Justin and Mrs Watts? After all, I was staff.

As I was finishing up a phone call to a strudel company in Germany, I heard a soft flutter. I looked up from my screen to the window and lo and behold, Cherry was back. It had to be her. Just to make sure, I opened the desk drawer and she flew right inside, cocking her eye up at me.

‘Welcome back, you…’ I whispered, giving her a capful of water, which she readily drank. ‘Are you hungry? I’ve got some sunflower seeds here; would you like some?’

She studied me for a minute as I created a tiny path on my desk leading to me.

She hopped out, cocking her eye at me again, just to be sure, before deciding it was safe and proceeding to eat.

It was such a pleasure, to be able to feed an animal.

I even got a kick out of watching Trixie eat.

I only hoped that she wouldn’t wake up from her sleep in her basket and give Cherry a hard time.

But she continued to snore as if all was right with the world.

I turned to look at Cherry, shrugging. ‘Lucky her, eh?’