(When I started to write the first of these Exmoor stories, I had only intended it to be a one off. It seems that there was much more to come! This is Part 3, set in March 2022. After this, please read "A Much Anticipated Party", which is now Part 4, set in October 2022 and Part 5, Set in December 2022. finally, for now, comes "Christmas Wishes" (Now Part 6), set just a little later in the same month! There! Clear as mud! On with the story...)
The lockdowns were pretty much over and more than four people could get together indoors again. During the pandemic, the farmer who had rented Sam's fields had decided to retire and move away. This left Sam with a lot of land laying idle. Luckily, Mark and Laura took the opportunity to expand their flock and agreed to rent Sam's land to graze their sheep. Once Sam had inspected the fields and boundaries though, he discovered a lot of work that needed to be done before this could happen and he and Mark set about it together.
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The two men stopped working and watched as the pickup rolled to a stop next to Sam's four by four. Kate and Laura climbed out, waved and lifted a couple of heavy looking bags from the back. Time for Sam and Mark to put down their shovels, wipe their hands and help get everything together for lunch. A folding table was produced and set up securely and everyone was looking forward to some food after their morning's work!
The weather was clear, cold and dry so it had seemed like the ideal day to continue work on a copse of trees growing in a hollow on the edge of the moor. Being right at the far corner of the farm, it had been neglected for too many years and was well overdue for some tender loving care. The dead wood had already been carefully removed and stacked to one side, providing habitat for any creatures which might care to make use of it. Now, a new thorn hedge was to be planted on the eastern and southern sides of the copse to provide a barrier against any ramblers or walkers trying to enter the area. Sam had no problem with 'proper' walkers, but lately there had been a spate of people letting their dogs run loose on the moor without concern for the livestock grazing there. Some attacks had been reported and animals had been injured or killed. Now they considered it a priority to protect the area from any irresponsible trespassers.
The ladies perched on the pickup's tailgate, while the men sat down on some convenient rocks to eat. They all wore overalls and working boots along with warm coats, Laura and Kate having already dressed to help the men with the work after lunch was consumed. There was some discussion on how far the hedge should be continued, whether to build it as a 'Devon Hedge' or just as a line of bushes and a division of labour was sorted out. The men would work their way along the side of the access track, while the women took care of the moorland side of the trees. There were four hours or so of daylight left to them and they all wanted to get as much of the hedge planted as they could. For once, they washed their food down with coffee from the big flasks in the food bags. No room for alcohol on a working day! An informal competition was announced by Laura: Girls against boys -- the most hedge planted would win. With prizes! She winked at Kate, but went no further.
Laura and Kate started down in the hollow, where a tumbled stone wall ended and then worked their way back up to the top corner. The ground wasn't terribly hard and by splitting the digging work, they could keep going without stopping for rests. One would cut the earth, lever it up and hold it, while the other placed the thorn 'whips' into the hole provided. Then the soil was worked back into place and trodden in. Once they got into a rhythm, the hedge rapidly took shape and they kept at it, checking the alignment and spacing as they went.
The men followed the same routine, but as they were working along the edge of the track, kept encountering boulders and pieces of cut stone, probably from some historic barn, which slowed them down at every turn.
By the time it had become too dark to work safely, the two women were already well up on the shoulder of the moor, while Sam and Mark still had quite a way to go. Mark also wanted to restore an old drinking pool that was fed from a natural spring. Over the years, it had become clogged with windblown soil and leaves and needed to be drained and cleared out completely. The stock would be able to make use of it and it would save having to install and maintain a new source of water for them. Sam and he agreed to do this after the hedge was finished. It had become quite dark now and they decided to call it a day. After clearing up their tools and any rubbish they had made, they headed back to Sam and Kate's farmhouse, where a casserole had been left bubbling in the kitchen. By the time everyone had cleaned up and changed out of their working clothes, the food was ready. It had been a long day, but the new hedge and trimmed trees would mature to bring many benefits. Tomorrow would see the rest of the work completed and they were feeling pleased with what they had done so far.
As always, drink was consumed after the meal and Laura and Mark were invited to stay the night, rather than weave their way home across the winter moor on foot. Mark had left everything secure at home and the dogs would be OK in Sam's workshop until tomorrow, so they agreed to stay. The stove was hot, the company good and the drink flowed free. As the evening progressed, the two women took themselves off to the kitchen to use the table for a project they were planning, while the men sat by the fire and talked about their work, the world and their hopes for the future. Mark confided to Sam that he and Laura had been trying for children for a while now without success, even though the tests that they had gone through indicated that there was nothing wrong with either of them. Sam commiserated and could only say that it would happen when it was meant to. In turn, Sam shared that he was thinking about his future with Kate and wondering if them getting married was something that she would consider. She was such a free spirit that he was afraid that he might frighten her off just by suggesting it. Mark laughed and said that he thought Sam's problem wasn't really a problem, as Kate obviously thought the world of him! The friends sat, talked and watched the fire until they both dropped off to sleep. It had been a busy day, after all!
In the meantime the two women, who had become more like sisters than friends, were sitting around the kitchen table going over their plans and chatting about this and that. The talk moved around to their menfolk's little foibles. The drink was talking a bit too and Laura let slip that,
"Mark likes it if we make love when I've tied him down."
"Sorry, what?" Kate looked at her sharply.
"Nothing, just a manner of speaking!" Laura coloured up and tried to change the subject.
"Oh, no,no,no!" Kate persisted, "'When you'd tied him down', I think you said?"
"Is that how it sounded?" Laura flushed deeper, "I meant to say, ' on the eiderdown!"
"You sleep under a quilt, Miss Slip of the Tongue!" Kate smirked, "So out with it!"
"OK, OK. Mark likes me to tie him up and take control during sex. No big deal! " Laura was very red now.
"And... do you like to do it, or does he make you?" Kate looked a bit concerned, in case her friend was being forced into doing something she hated.
"Well actually, it was me who suggested it," Laura said with a sheepish grin. She actually looked relieved that their secret was out. "I'm just lucky that he likes that sort of thing. For God's sake don't let on I told you though. He'd be so embarrassed!"
Kate filled both their wine glasses again. Now the lid was off the box, she wanted more gossip!
