Читать книгу Dad’s Christmas Wish - Julia Williams - Страница 7

The allotments were springing back to life. Now when Kenneth came down here, there were several neighbours to wave at. The sound of mowing filled the air, and the crocii were blooming.

Today the sun was even out, thought there was still a nip in the air. Kenneth took a deep breath of satisfaction as he checked on his seedlings in the greenhouse; spinach, broad beans, lettuces, courgettes, peppers and tomatoes were all growing satisfactorily. His onions had clearly had a visit from a mouse or maybe a squirrel looking for nuts, as several of them had been dug up. The birds were singing and frogs croaking in the pond in the next door allotment: the sounds of spring.

Kenneth loved this time of year out here. All that potential for new growth, new life. Hope springing from the dead leaves of winter. Hope … he smiled to himself.

“Maybe this will be my year, eh, Maggie,” he said, “the year when one of the village girls finally takes your place.”

Even as he said it, he couldn’t ever picture that. No one could ever take Maggie’s place, nor did he really want them to. He could almost hear her snort of derision.

“… No me neither,” The truth was Kenneth didn’t want to get over Maggie. He was a gregarious man who liked female company, but though he was grateful to all the women he’d dated – not slept with, despite Emily’s constant teasing on the subject – since his wife had died, none of them were or could ever be Maggie.

“Destined to be a lonely widower, that’s me,” he said, and again he thought he could hear Maggie scoffing. Kenneth Harris, you are not the sort of man who can cope alone. There’s someone out there waiting for you.

She’d said it more than once in the weeks leading to her death. Even then her love and generosity overcoming the hideousness of the situation. More than once she’d also said she wished it were the other way round, that she was going to be the one left alone.

I’d cope better than you, she’d say, you can barely manage a cup of tea. I spoilt you.

Yes, she had, but he was coping, and could even cook for himself now. Though the meals that his “women” as Emily called them, would keep providing were more than welcome. He was coping. He was surviving. But he couldn’t envisage ever moving on, not really. There had only ever been one woman for him. And she was gone.