Page 51 of Watch For Me By Candlelight

Kate looked sidelong at Theo. ‘How do you know where its usual spot is?’

‘Research,’ he said with a grin and a wink. ‘Okay. I’ll catch you both later. I might come down for an ice-cream if it gets hot.’

‘See you later!’ They stood back and watched as he drove the van past them and up towards the stable block. ‘He’s so nice,’ said Cassie. ‘Fancy letting you drive his van.’

‘Aidan let you drive his motorcycle.’

‘Exactly.’ Cassie winked. ‘It’s a good sign.’

Kate took hold of the bicycle. ‘I’m off to set up.’ And because she could and because her hair still looked like Rita Hayworth’s, she shook her head back, enjoying the feel of the curls bouncing against her shoulders, dismissing Lady Cassandra Aldrich.

‘Okay darling.’ Cassie sounded amused. ‘Remember to save an ice-cream for Theo.’

And with that, she practically skipped off to her next task.

Chapter Eighteen

Once Kate got settled, it was almost time for opening. She really didn’t expect many people to come to the Spa area before mid-morning, but she was surprised. It seemed some were early starters and wanted to get into that pool before anyone else.

Cassie’s Aidan had done a cracking job of restoring it and there were a couple of lifeguards installed as well. It was only a matter of time before the place was bouncing with guests. Kate was nicely sheltered by a canopy and she did a steady trade all morning. There really was no better place than Suffolk in the sunshine. It must have been close to eighty degrees by lunchtime and there were plenty of parents slapping sunscreen on their children.

It was almost two o’clock when her tummy rumbled and she realised she’d had nothing to eat since breakfast. She drained the last of her bottled water and decided she needed feeding.

Kate radioed Cassie and she answered on a crackle. ‘Hey Kate! How’s it going?’

‘Great. I’m having a break soon — just so you know.’

‘No problem. I’ll have Margaret bring the Gypsy Caravan down to the Spa so she can take over. Is it still as busy?’

She looked out at the heads in the pool and the people on the tennis courts. There was a steady stream of guests in and out of the squash courts too and Kate smiled. ‘It’s pretty busy. You done well, girlfriend.’

Cassie laughed down the line. ‘It could have gone horribly wrong if it had rained.’

‘Yes, but it hasn’t rained. Just enjoy it.’

‘I think it’s forecast for tonight,’ replied Cassie worriedly. Kate could imagine her perfect brow creasing in a frown.

‘That’s tonight. It’ll be great if it does. It’ll clear the air and freshen everything up for tomorrow.’

‘You’re right.’ The smile was back in Cassie’s voice.

‘Okay, I’ll let you contact Margaret and when she comes here, I’ll head off.’

She was just putting the walkie-talkie away, when a young woman with a mop of glorious, curly blonde hair stopped by the ice-cream bicycle. She seemed quite distracted, looking back the way she’d come to the Faerie Bridge and searching the landscaped gardens for something, a frown on her pretty face.

Then she surprised Kate by asking her a question: ‘Can you tell me if this place is haunted?’

Kate blinked and then smiled. ‘Oh, of course! Yes, it’s got its stories. There’s a highwayman supposed to ride through the woods, and the spirit of one of the little girls from the eighteenth century passed through not so long ago. And the nurseries apparently have a few ghosts as well. The present Countess swears she’s seen them all apart from the highwayman; we think he’s more like an urban myth though.’ Elodie did indeed swear that she’d seen all the others. But then Elodie saw ghosts all the time. They all knew that.

The girl stared with round, eager eyes. ‘Seriously?’

‘Seriously.’

‘What about you? Have you seen anything?’

‘I don’t know,’ Kate said, honestly. What could she do? Tell her she’d seen the shades of Cat and Edward and Millie, all enjoying themselves at a ball, for instance? She didn’t think she’d seen ghosts, exactly. She would say, if she was really really pressed, that she had experienced an evening in their company. And that she knew rather a lot about Cat’s love life, which still made her blush, as it meant Theo was uppermost in her mind, every time she even considered it. But the people she had seen and interacted with had been as real as the visitors here today.

The girl looked around again and sighed happily. ‘I think I saw a ghost earlier, you know. She was so pretty. I’m hoping to find a picture of her in the house when I go inside.’