Page 82 of The Only Way Is Up

Stella waved her away. ‘I popped over yesterday morning and there didn’t seem to be anyone here, and then there was all that nonsense in the paper, so I wanted to check that you were OK.’

As there was a ring of truth to it, Daisy relaxed, folding her arms and leaning back against the counter. ‘We had a lovely walk, and the reason I wasn’t around yesterday morning was because we booked ourselves into a very expensive hotel and had lots of great sex.’

Stella clapped her hands and hooted, ‘Oh, I AM glad! That’s my girl.’

Daisy held her hands up. ‘Don’t get too excited, it’s early days.’

‘I know, I know. I promise not to buy a hat.’

‘Very funny.’ Daisy felt herself wobble a little, her bravado suddenly replaced by a wave of self-doubt. ‘Tom wants to come and stay when I’m back in London. What if he doesn’t like that Daisy Crawford nearly as much as the country version?’

Stella looked at her for a moment, her brow furrowed. ‘Well,’ she reached out and took her daughter’s hand between both of hers. ‘I think first you need to ask yourself which version YOU like more.’

Daisy couldn’t deal with the ramifications of that thought right now. ‘How are you, anyway?’ she asked.

‘I’m fine,’ Stella smiled. ‘Actually, I came over because I have something to tell you.’

Daisy looked up at her mother, wondering what on earth she had done now. ‘OK,’ she said, immediately reaching for the kettle.

‘It’s about Miriam. Well, me and Miriam really,’ Stella corrected, sounding nervous.

‘What about you and Miriam?’

Stella cleared her throat. ‘We’ve acknowledged that our friendship has . . . feelings.’ She glared at her daughter defiantly.

Daisy turned on the tap, trying not to hide the huge smile on her face. ‘Mum, are you saying that you’ve fallen for the local vicar?’

‘I’m not a teenager,’ Stella stated. ‘But I like her very much and we seem to have some kind of connection.’

‘And forgive me for asking,’ asked Daisy, grabbing a mug from the shelf, ‘but have you had a connection with women before?’

Stella blushed. ‘Well, not in the relationship sense, no. I wouldn’t call myself a . . . lesbian, or . . . what’s the other one? Bilingual—’

‘Bisexual,’ Daisy corrected, wondering how on earth she’d ended up discussing her mother’s sexuality before ten on a Monday morning.

‘This feels like something different, more of a personality thing. I suppose it’s more about love than sex, although I’m not saying I don’t find her attractive. It’s just that the fact that she’s a woman seems rather . . . incidental, I suppose.’

‘What’s the deal with Miriam’s job?’ Daisy asked.

Stella wafted a bejewelled hand dismissively. ‘It’s too early days to worry about that. But we can spend time together, and there’s no need to make a big fuss about us being a “couple”.’ She made quote signs with her fingers.

‘Fair enough. Does that mean you’re planning to stay in Shipton Combe indefinitely?’

Stella nodded. ‘I think so, or at least nearby. I’m hoping to persuade Justin to do the same. That way we can carry on with Cook with Justella and keep Will involved too. I thought I might ask Archie if I can rent this cottage after you leave, then see if Tom will let us hire the old domestic science classroom as a studio for our videos. We’ll do it up a bit, and Will wants to add some proper lighting. I thought we could run an after-school club for the students too.’

Daisy nodded along, impressed with how much thought Stella had given this. ‘Do you think Justin will stay?’

Stella shrugged. ‘I think he might, especially once he can eat whatever he wants and the book is finished. The situation has changed for both of us in the last few weeks. Our agent seems to think we could make a great deal of money. But we have to keep up the, er, momentum.’

‘And this way you can see how things go with Miriam. I’m really happy for you, Mum.’

Stella beamed. ‘Thank you, my dear. I’ve pretty much given up drinking too. Miriam doesn’t touch it, so I’ve got out of the habit. Thought I might see if I can live a bit longer.’

Daisy stared at her mother, her eyes wide. ‘That’s amazing.’

‘It’s funny really,’ laughed Stella. ‘I came to Shipton Combe to help save you, and it turns out I’ve saved myself instead. All rather unexpected.’

Daisy pulled her into a hug. Today felt like it was full of new beginnings.