Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 119548 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 478(@250wpm)___ 398(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119548 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 478(@250wpm)___ 398(@300wpm)
Nana narrowed her eyes sharply. “Bedrooms?”
“For work,” I replied. “He gets up early. I don’t want to wake him when I’m closing the pub, so there’s an adjoining bedroom I use then.”
“Oh.” Her eyes widened again, and she nodded. “That’s so smart of you both. If your grandpa had been that considerate with his night shifts, I might not have murdered the man.”
“If you keep saying that, people might actually think you killed Grandpa.”
“How do they know I didn’t? I was probably the cause of his heart attack, let’s be honest.”
“No, the cause of his heart attack was his terrible diet and refusal to change it after the doctor warned him,” I replied, then turned to Fred. “What’s this something incredible you want to show us?”
He grinned and got up, grabbing the handles of Nana’s chair. “Come with me.”
17
* * *
DELILAH
There was a baby fluffy cow in front of us.
A tiny, newborn fluffy cow.
And I had never seen anything so fucking cute in all my life.
“Oh, my God,” I breathed, kneeling down in front of the pen where mum and baby were. “I’m going to die.”
“Not before me you’re not.” Nana bopped me on the head. “Much cuter than newborn humans, that’s for sure.”
Well.
It wasn’t exactly a difficult feat.
Newborn babies were ugly at the best of times. It definitely took a while for them to grow out of their ‘prune’ stage.
“She was born in the early hours of this morning,” Fred said, kneeling down beside Nana’s wheelchair. “I was down here at half-five helping Marigold labour.”
My eyes widened. “I wondered where you were sneaking off to.”
His lips curved into a smirk. “Not enough to wake up and ask though, eh?”
“At that ungodly time? I figured you could handle it, Mr Early Bird.” I sniffed and turned back to the calf. “Is it a girl?”
“Yep,” Fred answered brightly. “She’ll stay with us, but she needs a name. If I have to look at one more Mumsnet forum for cute names I might pass out, so…”
I glanced at him.
“Nana? Would you do the honour of naming her?”
Nana’s face lit up as if he’d offered her the world.
“I can’t tie the cows to your wheelchair and let them drag you through the village,” he said dryly.
And thank Heavens for that.
“But I can let you name one,” he continued. “Marigold is our tamest girl, so you can consider this new one yours.”
Nana’s eyes welled with tears, and she patted his hand. “Thank you, Freddie.”
I dipped my head.
I was not going to cry.
“Her name is Judy, of course!” She laughed, wiping her cheeks. “What else could I name her but after myself? This way, when I’m gone, you’ll think of me every time you see her.” She pinched Fred’s nose. “And remind you to treat my girl well.”
“I don’t need reminding of that.” He smiled, then looked at the calf. “Judy. What do you think, Marigold? That’s a nice name for your new little one, isn’t it?”
Marigold snuffled as if to agree. I stood up, swallowing back the lump in my throat, and turned away.
“Probably her allergies again,” Nana said airily. “They do tend to flare up when something nice happens.”
“Just… need some air,” I said quietly, scurrying out of the barn. I walked around the side of it and buried my face in my hands as the overwhelming urge to let go of my tears overtook me.
I’d barely sobbed twice into my palms when two strong arms wrapped around me. I would know Fred’s touch even if all my senses were blocked, and I leant into him.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he murmured. “I’m sorry.”
I shook my head against his chest. “No, I… She’s the first baby, right?”
He hesitated. “Yes. The lady of the house usually names the first calf of the year, and I know you should have been the one to name her, but—”
I cut him off with another shake of my head. “The fact you gave such an honour to Nana makes me happier than if she’d been mine to name.”
He drew in a deep breath and sighed it out, resting his chin on top of my head. “I thought you’d like it,” he said softly. “There’s a little part of her in baby Judy now.”
Yeah.
Something so small, but it was something that was, in truth, so big it couldn’t be truly explained.
It meant everything to me.
I might have done the same if I didn’t think she’d give me a clip around the ear for naming a cow after her.
When she did it, it was cute. If I were to do it, it would be an insult. What a double standard.
“The next one is yours,” Fred said after a moment. He pulled back and tilted my head up until our gazes met. Then, with the softest touch in the world, he brushed his thumbs across my cheeks until he’d wiped away every last tear. “Even when you cry, you’re still my pretty wife.”