‘That’s good,’ he smiled, sitting beside her and putting a strong arm round her shoulders. ‘We rarely get any time to be alone and I’d just like to hold you for a while longer.’

Kerensa leaned into him, closing her eyes as he held her tightly. ‘Right now, Clem, I could stay like this for ever.’

Chapter 22

Rosie Trenchard climbed up Trecath-en’s valley with her niece, Jessica, holding on tightly to her hand. Jessica had small legs but she climbed just as fast. They were on their way to get the twins away from Ricketty Jim; Philip and David had been sent to take bread and goat’s milk up to the rover and as usual had lingered too long.

‘Why couldn’t I take the food up to Ricketty Jim’s?’ Jessica asked for the umpteenth time.

‘Because you’re too young to come this far all by yourself,’ Rosie answered patiently, yet again.

‘’Tisn’t fair, they get all the adventures,’ Jessica pouted. ‘And Mother said we’re not to stop ’cos they’ll be late doing their jobs. But I like talking to Ricketty Jim, he says some funny things.’

‘Never mind, Jessica, perhaps when your mother comes this way next time she’ll take you with her and you can have a long chat with him then.’

‘Mother’s always too busy,’ Jessica complained. ‘Why not you, Aunty Rosie, why don’t you bring me?’

‘Because I’m busy too, Jessica,’ Rosie replied, pushing up the hood that had fallen away from the child’s golden curls.

Jessica crossly pushed it back off. ‘Why not? You won’t go anywhere these days, you’re always moody, what you need is a man to cheer you up.’

‘Jessica! What a thing to say!’ Rosie felt angry, her family did nothing but badger her these days, telling her to get out more, urging her to take up any invitation she was offered. All she wanted was to be left quietly in her own little world with only her private thoughts for company; she didn’t want to be with anyone else, let alone a man, and that meant any man. And now even her little niece was harassing her, repeating things she heard others say. ‘Don’t speak to me like that again, Jessica,’ she warned, ‘or I’ll tell your mother.’

‘But it was Mother who said it first,’ Jessica wailed. To her mind the threat of punishment for what she’d repeated was unfair.

‘Let’s just forget it then,’ Rosie said wearily, taking Jessica’s hand again and pulling her away from a clump of dead thistles and back on to the worn path.