Page 14

“Oh, and dear?” The querulous old voice followed her to the door and she paused.

“How’s your water?”

“My water?”

What the heck is she talking about?

“Is the water still working in Alice’s cottage?”

“Ah, no. There’s something wrong with the pipes.”

“Don’t worry. It’ll come back on after the solstice. It’s all the witching rods they’re using down at the festival looking for the springs. In the meantime, you’d better buy up on the bottled water.” The woman bustled back around the counter and reached beneath and followed Megan outside. “Here’s a couple of bottles to keep you going. I’ll get Ned to drop a water container off when he comes back from his deliveries, so you can bathe.”

Megan reached into her purse but the woman shook her head

“No worries. If you are staying in Alice’s cottage, I’ll add it to the account and you can settle up when you go. Now you take good care, dear, and heed my words. I heard they found the spring at the farm for this newfangled stage and everyone on the southern line lost their water.”

Megan forced a smile onto her face as she backed out of the store. “Thank you, I will.” She couldn’t get out of there quick enough.

Crazy woman.

She’d go find some lunch and ask where she could find a plumber to sort out the water problem.

There was no sign of a post office, but a whitewashed pub was located on the other side of the village green. Megan wanted to pinch herself. This quaint English village was just as she’d imagined it would be. A couple of white geese wandered across the street, honking as they headed to the small brook running behind the shops. She pushed open the door of the old tavern building and was relieved to see it full of young people in casual clothes. After ordering her lunch, she picked up a drink from the bar and headed out the back towards the last vacant table. There was no sign of a computer or even a public phone, and thoughts of her appeal began to crowd into her head as the worry of not being able to contact home tugged at her.

She put her head back and closed her eyes, ignoring the sick feeling in her stomach. Taking a deep breath, she focused on the warmth of the sun on her skin, letting her mind drift to that place deep inside where she could ignore the problems waiting for her at home.

Focus on the present. Deep breathing.

The warmth on her shoulders suddenly increased, and she opened her eyes to a pair of deep blue eyes staring down at her.

Turning her groan into a cough, she stared back at him.

“Well?” David said. The look on her neighbour’s face indicated he expected some sort of an answer. She shrugged her shoulder and pushed away his hand but the pleasant warmth lingered even after his hands were back by his side.

“Well, what?” she asked primly.

“Can we share your table?”

Megan glanced behind him. Two other men who were engaged in a heated conversation were obviously the ‘we’ he referred to.

“It’s a big table for one person and the pub is packed. Unless you’re expecting company?”

She moved down on the bench and shook her head. “No, go ahead. I’m just having a quick lunch and then you can have the table to yourselves.”

“Don’t rush on our account, love.” The big man standing behind David slid onto the bench opposite her and held a beefy hand out. “Davy said you’re his new neighbour, so we didn’t think you’d mind us asking to share your table. Any friend of Davy is a friend of the band’s.”

Megan reached over and took the proffered hand as the guy kept talking. “I’m Bear and this is Slim. We play backup for Davy, here. Stage isn’t ready so we came to grab a bite before we start rehearsal this afternoon.” A tall guy with shoulder-length hair in a black T-shirt gave her a wave from the other end of the table. A frisson of familiarity ran through her.

Bear and Slim? She knew those names from somewhere. She racked her brain but couldn’t remember where. Maybe their names were on the program she’d read for the festival?

Holding her breath, she glanced to the side as her neighbour from next door slid onto the bench beside her. He looked at her without smiling and her breath caught. The uncanny resemblance to his uncle was striking and she felt like a star struck teenager with her mouth gaping open.

“All settled in?”

“Almost.” She turned away from him and tried to gather her composure. “I just need to get the water turned on and find a Wi-Fi connection.”

Bear threw his head back and laughed. “Good luck, sweets. Everything’s haywire here at the moment.”