Page 95 of The Village of Lost and Found

‘It’s new and it’s fresh,’ he said. Something he had been striving to find for so long. ‘The newspaper is supposed to bring people together. So let’s do that.’

‘By the way, I have no idea how you’re going to go about all of this,’ said Lucy, giving him a sheepish smile.

‘Me?’ Tom laughed. ‘Uh-uh.We’llfigure it all out as we go. Me with the newspaper and you’ll be in charge of the community hub.’

As he expected, Lucy immediately began to shake her head. ‘I only had the idea,’ she told him, blushing. ‘I don’t know about how to run something like that.’

‘Then you’ll find out,’ he told her.

She bit her lip. ‘Do you really think it might work?’ she asked, suddenly looking nervous. He remembered how little confidence she actually had in herself.

He leant across the table and took her hand in his. ‘I really do,’ he said.

There was a short silence whilst they looked into each other’s eyes.

‘I like being a “we”,’ she said eventually.

‘Me too,’ he replied, relishing the soft skin of her hand under his.

They looked at each for a moment longer before laughter from another table broke the spell and he finally, reluctantly, let go of her hand.

He cleared his throat again. ‘What do you think your uncle will say?’ he asked.

Lucy smiled. ‘We’ll find out when we go and see him after we’ve finished our drinks,’ she said. ‘I’ll send him a text.’

Tom nodded before taking a sip of Diet Coke, his mind racing. It was a really good idea, he thought to himself. If the finance side could be worked out, then they could do a lot of good for the village. He was excited about the future of the newspaper and everything that it could encompass. And it was all down to the beautiful, amazing woman opposite him.

In that moment, he knew that he was falling in love with her. Something he had promised never to do again. But he couldn’t stop himself. And, to his shock, he realised that he actually didn’t want to.

He just had no idea how she felt about him.

51

After finishing their drinks, Lucy was buzzing with excitement and ideas as she and Tom headed alongside the river towards Uncle Frank’s bungalow.

She still couldn’t believe that Tom was so delighted with her idea for the community hub in the newspaper office. Now she had to try and convince Uncle Frank and she wasn’t sure how that was going to pan out.

The air was still warm after yet another hot and sunny day, so Keith was happy to cool off by rushing in and out of the river.

Lucy glanced over at Tom, who had been quiet since they had left the pub. She could still feel how warm his hand had felt as it had covered hers. He was looking so good these days, she found herself thinking. Really good. His short-sleeved shirt showed where he had lost the extra weight of his stomach and moulded itself against his wide shoulders. And his blue eyes were clear as they suddenly looked at her.

‘Changed your mind?’ she said, biting her lip in worry. ‘About my idea?’

Tom laughed as he briefly put an arm around her shoulders. ‘You really need to find some confidence in yourself,’ he told her, giving her a quick squeeze before letting go. ‘No, I’ve not changed my mind.’

‘Good. Great,’ she said, still nervous. ‘Well, here we are.’

She had no idea what Uncle Frank was going to say about her ideas for his belovedCranbridge Times. Oh well, she thought. No time like the present.

By the time they had reached his bungalow, she realised that his front door was open.

‘Hello!’ called out Lucy, heading inside first.

‘Good evening,’ said Uncle Frank, stepping out into the hallway to give her a kiss. ‘Good job I haven’t changed into my pyjamas yet, young lady.’

‘Yes, sorry about the late visit,’ said Tom, holding out his hand for Frank to shake it.

‘Well, it must be important,’ said Uncle Frank, turning to head into the kitchen. ‘I’d better get the kettle on. Or do you both want something stronger?’