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Back Escape to the French Farmhouse Save as PDF
Chapters (79)
  1. COVER
  2. About the Author
  3. Also by Jo Thomas
  4. DEDICATION
  5. ONE
  6. TWO
  7. THREE
  8. FOUR
  9. FIVE
  10. SIX
  11. SEVEN
  12. EIGHT
  13. NINE
  14. TEN
  15. ELEVEN
  16. TWELVE
  17. THIRTEEN
  18. FOURTEEN
  19. FIFTEEN
  20. SIXTEEN
  21. SEVENTEEN
  22. EIGHTEEN
  23. NINETEEN
  24. TWENTY
  25. TWENTY-ONE
  26. TWENTY-TWO
  27. TWENTY-THREE
  28. TWENTY-FOUR
  29. TWENTY-FIVE
  30. TWENTY-SIX
  31. TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. TWENTY-NINE
  34. THIRTY
  35. THIRTY-ONE
  36. THIRTY-TWO
  37. THIRTY-THREE
  38. THIRTY-FOUR
  39. THIRTY-FIVE
  40. THIRTY-SIX
  41. THIRTY-SEVEN
  42. THIRTY-EIGHT
  43. THIRTY-NINE
  44. FORTY
  45. FORTY-ONE
  46. FORTY-TWO
  47. FORTY-THREE
  48. FORTY-FOUR
  49. FORTY-FIVE
  50. FORTY-SIX
  51. FORTY-SEVEN
  52. FORTY-EIGHT
  53. FORTY-NINE
  54. FIFTY
  55. FIFTY-ONE
  56. FIFTY-TWO
  57. FIFTY-THREE
  58. FIFTY-FOUR
  59. FIFTY-FIVE
  60. FIFTY-SIX
  61. FIFTY-SEVEN
  62. FIFTY-EIGHT
  63. FIFTY-NINE
  64. SIXTY
  65. SIXTY-ONE
  66. SIXTY-TWO
  67. Epilogue
  68. Acknowledgements
  69. RECIPES
  70. Lavender shortbread
  71. Apricot jam sponge cake
  72. Lavender lamb
  73. READ MORE
  74. Prologue
  75. ONE
  76. TWO
  77. THREE
  78. FOUR
  79. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING

‘Not at all!’ I stop her. ‘I love seeing you taking on the business. I’m proud of you.’ I pull her to me and kiss the top of her head. She lets me and might even have smiled.

‘Oh, actually, Del, you said to say if I needed anything?’

‘Yes, of course,’ I say.

‘It’s … it’s Tomas’s birthday coming up.’

‘We’ll get him something. Of course! Tell me how much you need. And we’ll have a party!’

‘I’d just like to be able to do something for him, from me.’

‘Of course. Would next week be okay? I need to pay Fabien for the furniture in the house and then I can give you what you need. Just tell me how much.’

Stephanie nods.

‘Right. Let’s go home for lunch,’ I say.

‘I’ll let JB know,’ she says, and as we gather up the big pan, I take one last look around the bistro. Henri will be home soon. It’s time I worked out what to do from here. I pull the door shut.

We’ve just walked into the house when I bump into Rhi. ‘There’s a man in the garden,’ she tells me. She’s come home from the hospital for a change of clothes and is on her way back to help Henri prepare to go home tomorrow.

‘A man?’ I ask, putting the heavy pot on the side with an ‘oomph’ and running my hand over my sweating forehead. ‘Again?’ Stephanie pours me water from the fridge and hands it to me. I take the glass and drink gratefully, my head pounding.

‘Oh, and Fabien came up with a load of new lavender plants from Serge. A gift. He said he was bringing you flowers as a gift, then dropped the back of the truck and unloaded loads of plants!’

Inside I crumple. That is the loveliest gift I have ever had. He knows me so well, yet not at all! How am I going to tell this kind, gorgeous man that I’m not the woman for him? I’ll have to give the lavender back. I can’t accept it.

‘And who’s the man?’ I try to distract myself.

‘Don’t know. He was there when I got back.’

‘What’s he doing?’

‘Planting the lavender,’ she says.

‘What? No! Wait!’ I run to the terrace overlooking the sloping field.

There in the field, wearing what looks to be Lou’s wide-brimmed hat, under the hot afternoon sun, on his hands and knees, is Alain, planting lavender.

‘Ah, Del,’ he says, getting to his feet, his shirt off. ‘I hope you don’t mind. Lou let me shower here.’