When Alice Met Danny Read online

  The thought of a windsurfing hero reminded her of the poster on the beach. ‘You know, that’s quite some poster back in the marquee.’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘It came as quite a surprise when I saw that the handsome young man stripped to the waist, his perfect abs shiny with sweat, as the huge breakers pounded the beach behind him, was my dinner date.’

  He laughed. ‘Not so young now. That poster was a good few years ago. Mind you, I can still do abs, though, if that’s any good.’ He reached for her hand and ran it across his stomach, over the top of his T-shirt. ‘At least all that training has been useful for something.’

  ‘Wow!’ She didn’t know what else to say. It was like a sheet of corrugated iron. ‘That’s amazing. A real six pack. I must text Sally at once.’

  ‘I remember Sally. She’s your married friend with the dark hair, isn’t she? Drinks Pinot Grigio and favours plunging necklines, as I remember.’

  ‘She remembers you too. She wanted to fix me up with you.’

  He glanced across. ‘So what stopped you?’

  She caught his eye. ‘I’m beginning to ask myself the same question.’ She thought it best to change the subject. ‘Now, weren’t we going to eat something?’

  ‘Alice,’ his voice was serious. ‘Before we eat, would you mind awfully if I kissed you?’ Before she could answer, he supplied an addendum. ‘Of course, if you’d rather not, please forgive me. I do apologise. I would hate to spoil our friendship.’

  She reached across and laid her hand against the side of his face. ‘I don’t think I’d mind at all.’

  It was a good while later before the idea of food returned to either of them. In fact, predictably, it was Danny the Labrador who reminded them, as Alice became aware of a rustling sound by her left shoulder. She raised her head from Danny’s arms and saw the dog with his nose buried in the wicker basket. Evidently, the smell of the food had been too strong to ignore.

  ‘Danny! Stop that this minute.’ Both the dog and the man jumped like scalded cats. She dissolved into fits of laughter. Two-legged Danny relaxed and started laughing in his turn, while the dog settled down on his haunches and gave them a look of grave concern.

  ‘I was talking to the dog, you know.’ She kissed him again. ‘Very definitely only the dog.’

  ‘Well, that’s a relief.’ He called the dog over and stroked him. ‘She was talking to you, Danny, not me. She does sound sexy when she’s giving the orders, though.’ He gripped the dog’s face in two hands. ‘So what were you looking for?’

  Alice sat up and reached into the basket. Her hand emerged with a large bone-shaped biscuit. ‘On the packet it says these will last ten to fifteen minutes of chewing. Watch.’ She called the dog over and gave him the biscuit. By the time she had pulled the plates and the knives from the basket, the biscuit had disappeared. ‘Pretty impressive, eh?’

  ‘Not as impressive as you, though.’ He pulled her towards him and kissed her again. She did not object.

  Finally, hunger asserted itself and they broke apart to open the sandwiches. He drank some more champagne while she moved onto the mineral water. He caught her eye.

  ‘You know I’ve been crazy about you ever since I first started at G&B, five years ago, don’t you?’ She blinked. She didn’t know that. ‘I can even remember what you were wearing that day – a short grey skirt and a sort of lacy, blousy thing with two rows of buttons.’

  ‘I didn’t realise you were a fashion expert – “lacy, blousy thing” indeed! Well, to be quite honest, I can’t remember the first time I clapped eyes on you, but my excuse is that I didn’t notice very much at all, apart from work in those days. In fact, I’m not sure I even remember the lacy, blousy thing.’

  ‘I know. You were the original career girl. And in case you don’t believe that I’ve been besotted by you for ages, look at this.’ He pulled out his phone. The screensaver was the photo of her he had taken the day she fell asleep on her sofa. She was impressed.

  After eating, they lay together on the blanket, cuddling, talking and admiring the spectacular sunset. Grey clouds were rolling in from the west. By now, Alice was beginning to understand the weather patterns in that part of East Devon. Clouds on that horizon often signified bad weather to come. She hoped this was not an omen. Tomorrow promised to be challenging enough with her mission to speak to Vicky on behalf of the other Daniel. But tonight was quite the opposite. She rolled on top of Danny and stared down into his face. She ran the tip of her tongue around his lips, then kissed his eyelids.

  ‘You’ve got a hotel room, but I’ve got a dog. How would you like to come to my place tomorrow night? And I’ll cook you dinner, too.’

  His body gave her all the answer she needed.

  Chapter 41

  The weather the next day was terrible. The rain was more like a tropical downpour. There was so much water running off the thatch that Alice could hardly see out of the kitchen window. She glanced at the dog, more in hope than in expectation.

  ‘I don’t suppose you’d feel like putting off your walk, would you?’

  Danny managed to recognise and understand the magic word in the midst of all the others, the effect on him electric as ever. Alice gave in and followed him to the door, pulling on her hooded waterproof jacket and wellington boots.

  The rain was absolutely torrential, the road awash with water. In spite of her precautions, there was water running down her back by the time they reached the pub. By the time they got to the field, she could feel water starting to fill her boots. By the time she got home again, she was little drier than the dog. She pulled off her clothes, right down to her underwear, dropped them onto the flagstones in the hall and headed, naked, up the stairs in search of a towel.

  She had just reached the top when she heard her telephone ringing in the kitchen. Cursing under her breath, she retraced her dripping footsteps and picked it up. It was Sally.

  ‘Hi Sal. Is it raining where you are?’

  ‘Not as bad as it is down there, from what they say on the TV. I was just ringing to see that you hadn’t been washed away. Apparently Devon is closed for business today. No trains, planes and even the motorway is blocked.’

  ‘Doesn’t come as a surprise to me. I’ve just been out with the dog and I’m soaked. I’m standing in the kitchen in my birthday suit.’ Just as she spoke, she glimpsed a movement outside the kitchen window. It was an umbrella. She squealed. ‘There’s someone outside. I’ll ring you back.’ She reached for the only protection she could see, the dirty washing in the laundry basket. Crouching down behind the table, she squeezed into the new Awesome top. There was a knock at the back door, followed by a familiar voice.

  ‘Hey, Alice, are you there?’ It was Derek Tinker. She could hear the roar of the water cascading down onto his umbrella.

  Scrabbling around in the basket, all she could find was her tennis skirt. She stepped into it, or so she thought. Both feet went into the same hole. The next thing she knew, she was lying on the kitchen floor. Panic-stricken, she tore it off, tugged it back on correctly and scrambled to her feet. Feeling decidedly flustered, she headed for the door, her feet still leaving pools on the floor. She turned the key in the lock and beckoned him in, only too aware that her face was glowing red with embarrassment.

  ‘Come in, Derek. I won’t be a moment, I’ve just got to change. Do make yourself comfortable.’ As she turned and scampered away, she could feel his eyes upon her. Upstairs, she rubbed herself down with a towel and pulled on dry underwear, jeans and a jumper. As she returned to the kitchen, he looked up from the soaking wet dog and gave her a wry smile.

  ‘Well, that’s a memory to sustain me on the plane home on Wednesday.’ She caught his eye and started to blush again as he explained. ‘You see, I’m afraid I tried to get your attention by knocking on the window first. I could see you were on the phone. You didn’t hear because of the rain.’ She blushed even redder.

  ‘I’m very sorry.’ What do you say to your neighbour when he catches you in the nud
e? ‘I got soaked taking the dog for a walk.’

  ‘Please, please don’t apologise.’ He pointed down to Danny. ‘I shouldn’t have been prowling around your garden. If you’ve got an old towel, I’ll give this fellow a rub down.’ She passed one across without comment. By the time he had finished drying the dog, she had had time to collect herself.

  ‘I’m making coffee. Can I interest you in a cup, or two?’

  ‘You bet. But, like I keep telling you, I don’t just come over here to scrounge coffee off you.’ He gave a little smile. ‘Or to catch a glimpse of the way you answer the phone.’ She was starting to blush again. ‘Sorry, I’m only teasing. To be honest, there was so much rain on the window, I couldn’t see any more than a pink blob.’ Seeing the expression on her face, he hastily qualified his last remark. ‘Not that I’m describing you as a blob, of course. Anyway,’ he quickly added, ‘I came round to tell you that there’s a leak above the back door of Mom’s house. It’s not too bad and I’ve put down a couple of towels to soak up the water that comes in. I was wondering if you would get one of your builders to take a look at it some time. I’ll give you the address of the solicitor handling the probate, and he can arrange payment. Is that OK?’

  ‘Of course it is. In fact, I’m going down to Beauchamp later this morning. The Burrell brothers should be there tiling the kitchen floor today, so I’ll ask them.’ She passed a cup of coffee across to him. ‘All ready for the funeral tomorrow?’

  ‘Yes, you know it’s at eleven, don’t you?’ She nodded. ‘Then it’s back to the pub for some food and drink.’

  ‘And then you leave straight away on Wednesday morning?’

  ‘That’s right, ten days have flown by. It seems like only yesterday I arrived. You know, Alice, although it’s sad that the reason for being here is my mom’s funeral, I’ve enjoyed my time in the village. Woodcombe is such a lovely place. It is just so totally different from what I’m used to. You’ll see what I mean when you come over for your honeymoon.’

  ‘I’m not sure when or if there’s going to be one of them.’ She looked up with a smile. ‘But the prognosis is good.’

  Chapter 42

  Alice arrived in Lyndhurst Avenue at noon. Although the rain had now stopped, it had taken her almost half an hour to make the journey. Twice she had been forced to take detours along waterlogged lanes, to avoid more serious flooding. Trees had come down and the river she had walked along with Danny the dog only a few days earlier had burst its banks. It now spread over an area the width of a football pitch. She spared a thought for old Gladys Cooper with her cottage so close to the water.

  The Burrell brothers’ truck was parked outside number 23. Sounds of building work echoed out through the open door. She decided to see Vicky first and get that particular hurdle out of the way, before moving on to more mundane matters. Since the previous evening with Danny on the cliff top, she felt less torn in her loyalties. And, of course, she thought with a frisson of anticipation, there was the night to come. A night with her Danny, the original and genuine Danny. She got out of the car with the beginnings of a smile on her face. Cupid was stepping up to the plate.

  ‘Hi Alice, I though that was your car.’ She looked round. It was my friends call me Danny, impeccable in a light blue jumper and freshly ironed jeans. She gave him a broad smile.

  ‘Hello, Danny. No trouble with flooding, I hope.’ He didn’t smile back, he was looking serious.

  ‘No, nothing like that, thank goodness. What about you?’

  She told him about the floods on the way into Beauchamp, but she could see he wasn’t really listening. She gave him a quizzical look. ‘Something on your mind?’

  He hesitated, clearly unsure how to proceed. ‘Erm, Alice, my aunt gave me the letters you found in the loft. You know, the ones from her father to her mother?’ Alice nodded as he continued. ‘They are really fascinating.’

  She smiled. ‘That’s what I thought. It’s the kind of record that should be in a museum. I’m going to do a Masters at the university and I’m hoping to base my dissertation on them.’

  He looked even more awkward now. ‘Erm, I wanted to talk to you about that. You see, Alice, I intend to write a book myself based around these letters.’

  ‘That sounds like a great idea. They would probably make the basis for a good book. Good luck with it. I’ll give you my dissertation to read when it’s done.’ Clearly, this was not what he wanted to hear. He now looked positively sepulchral.

  ‘I’m afraid that’s not going to happen.’ He saw the look on her face. ‘You see, Alice, these letters belong to my family. Danny Cooper was my ancestor. They are my intellectual property. I’m afraid I can’t allow you to use them.’

  ‘You’re joking.’ She didn’t know what to say. However, from the expression on his face, this was no joking matter.

  ‘No, I’m afraid not. Here.’ He reached round to the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out an envelope. ‘I’ve put your address as 23 Lyndhurst Avenue. I didn’t have the address of where you are living at the moment. This is a formal letter informing you of what I have just told you. If necessary, I will get my lawyer to write to you.’

  ‘I don’t believe it. You’re stopping me from using these letters. Letters that I found in my house. Can you do that?’ She could feel the colour rushing to her cheeks. A sense of outrage flooded through her.

  ‘My solicitor tells me that I can. Of course, you are free to consult a lawyer of your own for an opinion. But I am advised that, in the event of it coming to court, the judge would find in my favour. Now, if you’ll excuse me.’ He turned and left. It was probably for the best. She would have throttled him if he had stayed there much longer.

  At that moment, Vicky came out of her front door with little Danny in her arms. ‘You look as if you’ve just stepped in something.’

  ‘The little toad. What a miserable, despicable thing to do…’ Alice was still barely able to speak.

  ‘You look as if you are about to explode. I think tea is in order. Come in and tell me all about it.’ Vicky led Alice into the kitchen and sat her down. Seeing that she was still very upset, Vicky hit upon a surefire solution. ‘Here, hold Danny for me, will you? I’ll make the tea.’ She passed the little boy over to Alice and turned away. By the time the kettle was on, and the mugs ready, Alice was looking more like her normal self. Danny’s magic had worked. Vicky took a seat opposite her and asked gently, ‘Want to talk about it?’

  Alice cleared her throat and recounted the scene on the pavement, up to and including the letter. Vicky was appalled.

  ‘Wait a minute. Didn’t you say that he was taking you out for dinner the other day?’ Alice nodded. ‘And then he stabs you in the back like this…’ The kettle began to boil. This gave both of them time to calm down. Vicky handed over the mug of tea and sat back down again. ‘So you have definitely signed up for an MA?’

  Alice nodded. ‘Yes, and I was really hoping to use the Danny letters as part of my work. Ah well, something else will come along.’ She made a weak attempt at a smile. Looking up, she caught the expression on Vicky’s face.

  ‘You can’t trust anybody these days.’ It was a grim observation, and it reminded Alice of the main reason for her visit to Lyndhurst Avenue. She did her best to bottle up her sense of outrage about the letters, and concentrate on more important things.

  ‘I wouldn’t be so sure about that.’ As she spoke, she thought back to the previous evening; the lovely sunset over the sea, the champagne, the warm blanket and Danny, her Danny. ‘I’ve come down here today about something far, far more important than our friend with the jeans with a crease down the front. Vicky, I’m here as a messenger from your husband.’

  Vicky sat bolt upright, spilling some of her tea as she did so. ‘My husband? Daniel?’ Her expression was one of blank surprise but, beneath it, there was something else. Hope? She reached for a cloth and wiped up the spilt tea as Alice began to explain.

  ‘You know I live in Woodcombe now?
Well, I’ve met Daniel a few times. I’ve even played tennis with him. Anyway, he started talking about things yesterday. Somehow he ended up opening his heart to me about everything that’s happened over the last year or so, ever since the accident.’

  The little boy wriggled around in her arms and gave a few cries of protest. Alice nuzzled him with her face. ‘Yes, Danny, I’ve been talking to your daddy.’

  ‘How is he?’ Vicky’s voice was shaky. ‘You see, I haven’t seen him for a year. Did he tell you that?’

  ‘He told me this week’s the anniversary of your leaving home.’

  ‘Wednesday. So he remembered that? That’s progress.’ She sounded heartened by the news.

  ‘Progress is the word. He’s much, much better than he was. I’m sure you wouldn’t recognise him. Megan the vicar tells me he’s back to what he used to be. I’ve only known him for a few weeks and, to me, he seems quite normal. He says he hasn’t touched a drop of alcohol for over six months, and the doctors say he’s nearly mended. But, Vicky, he wants you to see for yourself.’

  Their eyes met and Alice was unsurprised to see tears running down Vicky’s cheeks. The little boy, sensing the strained atmosphere, began to grizzle. Alice handed him back to his mum, who snuggled him to her breast. Alice waited as the baby calmed down, and his mother did her best to do likewise.

  ‘He said that? He wants to see me?’ Her voice was little more than a whisper. ‘He’s been writing to me. He told me in his letters that he couldn’t face seeing me again after the way he’d behaved. I’ve been trying to tell him it was the blow to the head, that awful accident. He wasn’t himself. I knew that. Anyone could see that.’

  ‘Well, I get the impression that it’s time for you both to pick up your lives again. He wants to see you, Vicky. He was terrified about just turning up here unannounced. That’s why he asked me to speak to you. I hope you don’t mind my acting as messenger.’

  Vicky wiped her eyes. They were brighter now. ‘Mind? Alice, I can’t even begin to put into words what I’m feeling now. The last year has been so awful… So, what should I do? Should I ring him?’