Second Chances at Hollyhock Farm (Hollyhock Farm #2)

Chapter 2

2

MELODY

Melody should have known camping wasn’t going to suit her grandmother Patsy’s idea of comfort but once Gran made her mind up about something there was little point in arguing. At least they would soon be staying in a farmhouse with, she hoped, real beds. She caught the eye of the handsome, tanned man who had come to fetch them and hoped the rest of the family were as friendly as him.

‘Hi, I’m Zac Torel,’ he said, shaking her grandmother’s hand.

It dawned on her that maybe the Torel family expected them to pitch their tent in one of their fields. She hoped not. Melody was looking forward to sleeping inside again. One week sleeping under the stars was enough for her, especially sharing an airless tent with her gran.

Melody watched her grandmother introduce herself to the man and decided she couldn’t love anyone more than she did this caring, protective woman whose zest for life surpassed anyone else’s that she knew. It was comforting to know that there was someone who had your back no matter what life threw at you. All it had taken for her gran to insist they come to the island was Melody turning up on her doorstep in floods of tears after the last time her husband Rhys had turned on her.

Melody raised her hand to her right cheek, touching the skin lightly with the tips of her fingers, even though the bruising had now gone. She saw Zac glance at her and pulled her hat down lower. It still shocked her to recollect how volatile Rhys’s temper had become since their marriage only two years before. She was embarrassed to think how he had manipulated her to believe she was the cause of so much of his rage. Then he had hit her and she decided that she had endured his jealousy and accusations for long enough. It was time to leave.

‘That’s it,’ Patsy had said after Melody had explained what had caused her sobs. ‘You need to get away from that toe rag. I’ve always wanted to visit the Channel Islands and now there’s nothing stopping the pair of us going there. Pack your things.’

Only too happy to agree with Patsy’s plan, Melody had waited for Rhys to leave their Edinburgh flat before sneaking in and packing a rucksack of essentials, grabbing her passport and returning to her grandmother’s bungalow. All her parents knew of their trip was that she was accompanying Patsy. Her mother and Rhys’s mum were best friends and Melody didn’t want to cause a rift between them by telling her what had really been going on in her life. Her father would hunt him down and probably resort to hitting him, and she didn’t want to be responsible for that happening either, so confiding in her grandmother had been the safest option. And the best, she now realised.

Patsy was still talking to Zac. ‘It’s very good of your family to offer us somewhere to stay and thank you again for coming to fetch us.’

‘May I take your rucksacks for you? They look rather heavy.’

‘They are a bit,’ her grandmother said, turning to let him lift the heavy weight from her back. ‘That’s much better.’

Melody bit her lower lip to stop herself from smiling as she saw Zac wince at the unexpected weight of her grandmother’s belongings.

‘Thank you so much.’ She held out her hand and after moving the rucksack from one hand to the other, Zac shook it.

She gave him a knowing smile and he looked embarrassed to realise she had noticed his pained expression.

‘I’m Melody,’ she said, wanting him to relax with her. ‘Patsy’s my grandmother. Gran insisted camping would be a good experience for me, but I’m incredibly grateful that your sister invited us to stay in your house.’

He laughed. ‘I don’t blame you. I like my creature comforts too, despite how untidy I probably look right now.’

He went to take her rucksack but she shook her head. ‘I travel much lighter than Gran does,’ she said, lowering her voice. ‘I’ll make it to the car without collapsing.’

Zac laughed. It was a deep, rumbling laugh and didn’t go with his slim frame at all.

‘I’m not completely deaf yet, Melody,’ Patsy said, clearly amused by her comments. ‘I must admit that I’m happy to end our camping experience, too. I thought it would be great fun, and to be fair it was for the first week, but I’m glad to call it quits now.’

‘My sister will be very pleased.’ He opened the boot of the car and heaved Patsy’s bag into it, waiting for Melody to load hers in before closing the lid. ‘Please, sit where you like. It won’t take us too long to get back to the farm. It’s not the height of luxury, I’m afraid.’ He gestured to the car.

Melody didn’t want him to think they cared how old the car might be. ‘I think Gran’s happy to get out of the sun and to your farm,’ she said, keeping her voice low.

As they drove along the north coast, Melody listened as Zac pointed out the French coast in the distance and Melody realised she was seeing far more of the island in this short trip than they had done over the past few days. ‘It’s a little wilder on this side with the high cliffs.’

‘It is,’ he said. ‘There are beaches and coves on this side of the island but they’re more dramatic to look at, whereas on the east, south and west sides you have the large expanses of beaches where tourists traditionally spend their time sunbathing or surfing.’ He changed gear, crunching them noisily. ‘Sorry, this is Mum’s car. So, is this your first time to Jersey?’

Melody wound down the window and leant her arm on it as she stared out at the deep blue of the sea to their right.

‘It is,’ Patsy said. ‘We’ve been on a couple of tours and caught the bus a few times, so have seen something of the place, but I hadn’t expected there to be so much to visit and we really should have thought about hiring a car.’

‘It is easier with one.’ He slowed down as the road narrowed and a large tractor and trailer needed to pass from the opposite direction.

‘At least the weather is good for your visit,’ he added, ‘and you can see the island at its best.’

‘We’ve loved it, haven’t we, Gran,’ Melody said. ‘I’ve always thought about coming here at some point but have mostly travelled further afield. Do you travel much?’

‘I travel quite a bit for work, but mostly to the mainland,’ he explained. ‘My parents want to spend more time travelling, which is probably why my mother was so willing to offer you both somewhere to stay.’

‘Yes, Kathleen did mention something about ecotourism.’ Patsy turned slightly in her seat and looked over her shoulder at Melody. ‘Is that right?’

Melody nodded. ‘It is, Gran.’

‘It would be,’ Zac said. ‘My parents are retiring so my sister, Lettie, is taking over from them and looking for ways to be more sustainable. She’s only been doing it for a few months but is keen to implement her ideas to update the running of the farm. She and I are trying to find ways to increase finances for the business.’

Melody tried to picture Zac’s sister and parents. She looked at his wavy chestnut hair and tanned arms. He had a laid-back way about him that appealed to her and she sensed she and her gran were going to enjoy helping Lettie and Zac on the farm and getting to know Mr and Mrs Torel.

‘I’m still getting used to the idea of my father spending time on a cruise ship instead of wearing his overalls and boots like he’s always done. I’m not sure he was too keen to give up work at first, but he had a heart attack.’ He turned left and Melody realised they were driving inland. She wondered why he wasn’t continuing along the scenic route and wished they still were.

‘Oh no,’ Patsy said. ‘He’s all right though?’

‘He is, thankfully,’ Zac assured them. ‘However, my mother decided that enough was enough and had always been eager to spend more time travelling.’ Melody could see his eyes crinkle slightly in the rear-view mirror and knew he was smiling. ‘She took the opportunity to book their first cruise and they’re off again this evening for a couple of weeks.’

‘Good for them,’ Patsy said.

‘I agree,’ he continued. ‘I’m pleased for them. They’ve always been so dedicated to running the farm. Lettie and I feel that it’s our turn to take over now and keep the place going.’

‘I love that your parents are making the most of their opportunities,’ Melody admitted, unable to keep a wistful tone out of her voice. She could imagine her mother wanting to do the same thing, but doubted her parents would ever have the spare cash to fund much travelling.

They drove down a long hill with houses on each side and past a built-up area, then turned right onto a road with two lanes. Seconds later she noticed the sea to her right and an impressive building on a rock in the bay.

‘Look, Melody,’ Gran said, pointing at it.

‘I’m looking at it. What’s that place over there, Zac?’ Melody asked.

‘That’s Elizabeth Castle. You can visit it if you like because it’s open to the public.’

Patsy laughed. ‘It’s surrounded by sea. I can’t picture myself swimming there and would need to find someone with a boat to get there.’

‘Ahh, but that’s not necessary,’ he explained. ‘There’s the Castle Ferry, an amphibious vehicle that looks like a misshapen tank – or maybe a truck – that takes visitors there and back. They’re known locally as Ducks. You can also walk along the causeway when the tide is out.’

‘Sounds fascinating,’ Melody said, hoping she would be able to see the causeway at some point. ‘I presume it has quite a bit of history to it, like the castle in Gorey that we struggle to pronounce the name for.’

‘That one is Mont Orgueil, but the locals sometimes refer to it as Gorey Castle, so you can always call it that instead.’

She listened as he explained that the islet they were looking at was a fifteen-acre Elizabethan fortress.

‘It dates back to when Sir Walter Raleigh was the governor of Jersey. Did you know that King Charles II was given refuge here during the English Civil War? To say thank you, he gave the island a huge area of land in America.’

‘Really?’ Patsy gasped.

‘Where?’ she asked, intrigued.

‘Have a guess.’

She thought about it as he continued driving.

‘This bay is St Aubin’s Bay by the way,’ he said. ‘Hollyhock Farm is in St Ouen, on the north-west of the island. It should only take us another fifteen minutes to get there because there’s not too much traffic at this time of the day.’

He indicated the hamburger stall at the end of the avenue and laughed. ‘That’s where me and my mates spent many evenings as teenagers eating burgers and chatting before catching buses home.’

She liked hearing about local life on the island, wanting to absorb the sense of what it really felt like to live there.

‘Sorry, I never answered your question about the land in the States, did I?’ The car slowed as the two lines of traffic filtered into one. ‘Any thoughts on where it could be?’

She thought for a moment and, when Patsy didn’t say anything, Melody answered. ‘I have one suggestion, but it seems too obvious to be right.’

‘Give it a go.’ He smiled at her in the rear-view mirror. ‘Go on.’

‘I don’t suppose it’s New Jersey, is it?’

‘It is.’

‘No way. That’s amazing. And all because the king was allowed to come here.’

‘Yes. You see, being welcoming is something that’s in our blood. It’s nothing new to us locals.’

Melody laughed. ‘It must be.’

‘Have you never wanted to leave here?’ Patsy asked. ‘Or maybe you haven’t always lived on the island?’

‘I worked away until fairly recently, as did Lettie. She was in London working in fashion and I worked all over the place. I’m a sound engineer by trade.’

‘Sounds fascinating.’ Melody liked that Zac and his sister gave up everything to step in and help keep the family home and business.

‘It can be. I’ve enjoyed my work and being based in London for the past few years, but there comes a time when family needs to come first and this was that time for me. I will have to think about returning to do a few contracts soon though, otherwise they’ll forget who I am. How about you?’

‘I’ve done all sorts of things. My mother was a homeopathic practitioner, and I learnt a lot from her, but branched out into other areas, like crystal therapy, colour therapy and aromatherapy, until I began training as a yoga instructor and that’s how I mostly earn my living. Gran has always been one to try out new things and I think our interest comes from her initially.’

Patsy laughed. ‘Her mother has always blamed me for making her eat what I grew when she was young.’

Melody recalled many amusing conversations when her mother teased her gran about her childhood. ‘I think she was more bothered that you always insisted on making all her clothes, Gran.’

Patsy nodded. ‘That’s true, Zac. I didn’t realise until she was in her teens how she was teased at school for my “New Age” ideas.’

Melody thought she should finish telling Zac about her work. ‘I’ve always practised yoga and finally trained as a teacher several years ago. It’s these things, especially the yoga, that’s helped me pay for my travelling.’

‘I see,’ Zac said. ‘So you work as you move from place to place?’

‘I used to.’ She decided not to mention her marriage to Rhys because it would probably lead to questions about her relationship and she wasn’t anywhere near ready to discuss that with anyone yet. ‘Pretty much.’

‘And now it’s brought you to Jersey.’

‘I wanted to visit here,’ Patsy said. ‘And Melody, um, decided to join me.’

She saw him glance at her in the rear-view mirror. Zac clearly suspected there was more to her story, so she decided to elaborate enough to avoid awkward questions. ‘I’m recently out of a long-term relationship and thought it was the perfect time to put some distance between me and my ex.’

It wasn’t the whole story but Melody didn’t think Zac needed to know that.

‘Sounds like a good idea,’ he said.

She was enjoying the lack of complication in her life right now. She smiled at him. ‘We thought so.’