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Crows were the only birds she had ever seen at the bridges. It surprised her as the surrounding area was grass and marsh. She would have expected to see a more varied selection of birds. She’d also never seen any fish in the river near the bridges, although she knew further downstream there was an abundance of trout and carp. She knew this because whenever she walked along the bank to take photographs of the bridges upstream, there were usually at least two or three fishermen.
The crow left the bridge and Freya took her favourite camera, Claude, away from her eye and let it hang from her neck. She named all her cameras and Claude was given to her by Nicholas as a late birthday present just after they first met.
Freya walked across the bridge and stopped in the middle to read the inscription as she did every time she visited.
‘Glory to the Father, leave sorrow behind and take hope from the past,’ Freya spoke out loud.
She ran her fingers across the words, feeling the indents made in the black wood. Freya had interpreted it to mean there had been sorrow in the present for the Christian Fathers and they were taking hope from the past when their religion was founded. But perhaps she was wrong.
A crow let out a loud squawk and Freya flinched, the noise interrupting the stillness startling her.
She looked at her watch and saw it was almost quarter to one. Jonathan Sanders would be arriving at the office in just over fifteen minutes. If she didn’t hurry, she’d be late and she really wanted to be in her office and composed before he arrived, just in case. She had chickened out of calling him. She was certain it wouldn’t be Jonny from London. Why would it be? They had no unfinished business as far as she was concerned.
She hurried across the bridge and headed back to her SUV, leaving County Bridge, silent and deserted.
3
By the time she arrived back at the office, Freya was red in the face and sweating. There had been awful traffic on the main road and she’d had an altercation with a teenage driver of a Carlton Cookies van who pulled out in front of her from a side street. If she didn’t love those cookies so much, she would’ve given the driver a piece of her mind. She could have haggled for a large box of white chocolate chip.
She locked the car and jogged towards the office, Claude still swinging from her neck. She hesitated before she went to push open the door. She could see through the glass. If she did step inside she’d come face-to-face with Jonathan Sanders. The Jonathan Sanders she hadn’t seen since she was seventeen. It was him.
He was sat in one of the leather chairs in the reception area and Avril, the part-time receptionist, was pouring him some coffee. Freya swallowed as she looked at him. He was wearing an expensive, dark suit, with a white shirt and a dark-grey tie. He looked smart and business-like. His hair was still jet black. His eyes that chocolately dark brown. But now he had a short beard, no more than stubble really. It suited him.
He looked up from the cup of coffee and glanced over at the door. Freya pushed quickly and fixed a smile on her face. She needed to remain in control of this meeting.
‘Jonny,’ she greeted hurriedly. She moved towards him, hand outstretched.
He stood up, put the coffee cup on the small table next to him and took hold of her hand.
‘Hello, Freya,’ he greeted, shaking her hand.
And then, before she could do anything about it, he drew her towards him and kissed her first on one cheek and then the other.
‘Well, someone has been brushing up on their greeting etiquette, haven’t they?’ Freya remarked awkwardly, knowing her cheeks were flushing.
‘You look great,’ he told her. He looked her up and down.
‘You always did know how to compliment a girl,’ she replied. She was moving from one foot to the other, unable to stand still. Awkward.
‘I thought we could go out for lunch, if you don’t have any other plans,’ Jonathan suggested.
‘Well, I…’ Freya started. She looked across at Avril, who was now sat back behind the reception desk.
‘There are some messages, but nothing looks urgent,’ Avril announced.
‘Well that’s good. Then we can go. Yes?’ Jonathan asked Freya.
‘I guess so. I’ll just ditch Claude,’ Freya said, pulling the camera up from around her neck.
‘The camera? Oh no, don’t leave that behind. I’ve got something I would like you to see,’ he said.
‘That sounds intriguing. Before or after lunch?’
‘After, I think. I remember you can’t usually make it past one without needing something to eat,’ Jonathan said, smiling. The smile was still as charming.
‘Things do change, you know,’ Freya stated. She was angry but she didn’t really know why. Having him here was upsetting her new balance. He was part of her past. The past she’d tried hard to put behind her.
‘I know they do, but are you telling me your stomach isn’t crying out for a pizza right now?’ Jonathan asked her.
