‘This is fantastic’ Daniel Painter stands back and watches with a smile of incredulity. ‘Everybody pitching in’

‘It is what we do here, Mister Painter’ Helen says crisply. ‘You will find that living in a village is far removed from any experience you may have in town’ She unpacks kitchen utensils into the drawer of the sink unit.

Kester walks into the room carrying a stack of chairs and sets them down in one corner and, overhearing Helen, gives her an amused smile before he disappears into the hall again.

‘The tall guy, he’s yours?’

‘He is my husband if that is what you mean. I would have thought you’d know that, as an avid reader of the gutter press’

‘Not an avid reader…and as far as I recall, there were no photographs of him’

‘There were, Mister Painter. Excuse me’ Helen makes to walk past ‘There is still a great deal to do’

Daniel starts out of a semi-reverie ‘Sorry, yes. I was helping, then all I seemed to do was get in the way. A well-oiled machine’ he remarks, following her into the hall.

‘Nah, that comes later’ Nathan grins at him from one end of a table as he and Kester manoeuvre it through the door and into the sitting room. ‘Hope we’re going to get a few beers in when we’re done. Welcome to Milliwick and all that?’

‘Sounds good’ Daniel’s eyes stray to where Stephanie and Marie are hanging curtains ‘Sounds very good’ he smiles slowly. ‘Here?’ he turns back to Kester and Nathan ‘Got a slab in the car but if you’re all staying, I’d better go shopping’

‘We have an appointment later’ Helen reminds Kester as she directs the table into the alcove.

‘We have?’

‘Yes, we do’ she glares.

‘Oh…right. Best make it a swift pint down The Horse, then’ Kester grins uncomfortably as they set the table down.

‘Suits me. Probably best not to throw any riotous parties on my first night’ Daniel returns wryly. ‘So the sooner we get done, the sooner I get to the pub. I’ll get back to work then’ he throws Helen a glance.

‘Sounds like a plan’ Nathan claps a hand on his shoulder and ushers him out of the room.

‘What’s got into you?’ Kester hisses. ‘Make the bloke feel at home or what?’

Helen looks towards Stephanie and Marie and turns away from them so that they should not hear. ‘Not here, not now!’ she growls in little more than a whisper.

‘No, come on, what’s up? Seems like a nice guy to me’

‘He is our tenant!’

‘So?’

‘I am not ready to make a friend of him as yet. We know next to nothing about him’

‘And?’

‘And’ Helen stresses with annoyance and draws Kester to one side ‘If he does turn out to be the tenant from hell, would we be able to throw a friend into the street?’

‘Aw, come on’ Kester chuckles ‘that’s stretching it a bit. Sharing a beer doesn’t make you a life-long buddy for Christ’s sake’

‘He’s all too….’ she hesitates, her mouth pursing primly ‘familiar’

‘Well, I’m going for a pint after. You please yourself. If he gets familiar with me, I could be late’ he teases with wink and a click of the tongue. ‘Coffee would be good now the kitchen’s sorted’

‘This is no longer MY house to be offering coffee in!’

‘And that’s it, isn’t it?’ Kester shakes his head and moves out of the door, turning to add ‘Don’t take it out on him because I persuaded you this would be a good idea’

Pennywell, Bower Lane

Chapter Twenty-two

Rose Cottage, Albans Lane

‘They’re….’ Nathan hesitates, looking down at his bootee-clad feet, knocking them together and splaying them again ‘very nice’

‘Glad you like them’ Jessie pulls wool from the cardigan she is unpicking, her hand alternating between being stretched high in the air and circling furiously around the ball in her other hand.

‘I may never buy walking socks again’ He wriggles his toes and tries not to laugh.

‘I thought they’d be nice and warm…you know…under your work boots’

‘Yeah’ Nathan agrees. He hesitates a few moments more ‘Jess…?’

‘Yes?’

‘Did they have to be striped?’

‘I was using up my odd ends of wool’

‘Right’ he says slowly

‘You don’t like them, do you?’

Nathan lifts his gaze from the purple, green, peach and yellow of his bootees to the twinkling blue of Jessie’s eyes. He presses his lips together. ‘Promise me you’re not going to start knitting boxers’

Jessie giggles. ‘They’d tickle your fancy wouldn’t they? Come on..’ she instructs ‘Stand up’

‘What for?’

‘I want to measure you’

Nathan frowns as he rises from the sofa ‘For what?’

Jessie flicks him with the tape measure. ‘You’ll have to stoop down a bit! How do you expect me to reach?’

Nathan bends his knees and obligingly holds his arms out at the sides while Jessie stretches round him.

‘Ohhhh, I should do this more often’ she snorts as her cheek lies against his chest. ‘Get my arms round a nice young man every now and again, does wonders for the memory. Even your armpits smell nice’ she observes with a deep sniff.

‘What am I getting?’ Nathan asks with carefully concealed dread.

‘A sweater, is that okay?’

‘As long as it’s not striped’ he grunts.

‘Oh’ Jessie looks disappointed and glances at the remains of the raspberry pink cardigan.

‘Je-ess!’

‘Only kidding!’ she laughs and prods him in the stomach. ‘Up!’ Jessie runs the tape measure down from his armpit when he dutifully obliges. ‘How long do you want it?’

Nathan grins  ‘Er…..’

Jessie slaps him again. ‘You are naughty’ she giggles. ‘They’d got some lovely wool in the sale, you can machine wash it and everything’

‘Colour?’ His frown returns.

‘It even says you can tumble dry it’

‘Colour?’

‘I’ll make it as long as your sweatshirt, shall I?’ She looks at him with wide-eyed innocence ‘I could do a cardigan if you’d prefer one. They’re getting very fashionable again now, aren’t they?’

‘Jess…what colour wool did you get?’ Nathan growls.

‘I’m only having you on’ She hunches her shoulders mischievously. ‘It’s a lovely grey…not an old man’s grey, don’t worry. It’ll look lovely on you. I’ll show you in a minute. They’d got a navy but that’s an awful colour to try and knit in the evenings. I could put you a nice stripe round the chest if you want’

‘No thanks’ Nathan sits down as Jessie rolls the tape measure. ‘All grey, one colour will be fine’

‘I’ve got ever so many bits left over’ she grumbles. ‘Not enough to do anything with….unless it’s stripes. I could crochet little squares and make a blanket I suppose but that gets dead boring after a while and dolls clothes are so fiddly’

‘Tea cosies?’ Nathan suggests, reaching for his after dinner coffee.

‘Not many people use them these days’ Jessie sighs then beams as a thought occurs to her. ‘I suppose I could leave the holes out and turn them into bobble-hats! Some of your men would like bobble-hats, wouldn’t they? Gets ever so cold working outside’

‘Not sure’ he says carefully ‘Can’t say as I’ve ever seen any of them wearing one’

‘Ohhhhhh!’ Jessie claps her hands with glee, her thoughts going off at a tangent.

‘What?’

‘You’ve given me an idea!’

‘What?’

‘That’s just what I’ll do!’ she giggles ‘They could have ears….and eyes…Bows and pom-poms’

‘What can?’

‘Willy warmers!’

Nathan chokes ‘Willy warmers?’ he wipes his mouth of coffee.

‘I’ve seen them in the shops’ Jessie declares.

‘I worry about you sometimes’ Nathan says dryly.

‘No, honestly, I have seen them’

‘I know they’re around, I just worry about the sort of shops you’re going into!’

‘I could do some for Christmas, I’ve got some nice red wool left over’

‘Jess’ Nathan asks ‘How exactly did I give you that idea?’

‘Would you like one? You could be my thingamajig…. guinea-pig’

‘I do not need a willy-warmer!’

‘It could have a little white beard and I could stick googly eyes on. I wonder if they do glow in the dark wool? That’d be a laugh on Christmas night, wouldn’t it?’

‘Jessie!’

‘Sorry, getting a bit carried away’ Jessie apologises without a hint of apology. ‘Not a good idea then?’

‘No’ Nathan says firmly, trying to keep a straight face. ‘I mean to say, exactly who would you give them to?’

‘I could sell them at the church bazaar’ Her chin tilts defiantly.

‘Willy-warmers at a church bazaar?’ Nathan’s knees almost meet his chest as he guffaws.

‘I could say they were pencil cases…’ Jessie’s eyes twinkle after a few moments thought. ‘Which they would be…….sort of’