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head up here to start with? There's a fair bit of woodland. I'm guessing that's good for small animals."
    Victoria nodded. For months she'd intended to do more prospecting for release sites and knock on a few doors, but never got around to it.
    "Anyone home?" a man's voice shouted.
    "Ah, that'll be my rental car." Adam hurried out and Victoria wandered after him curiously. Why did he need a rental car when he already had a car?
    Adam signed some documents and accepted the vehicle keys, then the man jumped in a small car and was driven off.
    "This should do." He strode out and Victoria stepped into the open doorway to see outside.
    A chunky four-wheel drive stood by the fountain. Adam opened the driver's door and checked inside. "I thought this would be better for what we have planned." He opened the trunk and beckoned her over. "There's enough room to carry the hedgehog boxes in here." He glanced across at his sleek, low-slung saloon. "My car's not designed for transporting livestock."
    How nice it must be to have the money to order whatever you wanted when you wanted it. Not that Victoria was jealous. She loved her little cottage, her life with Sophie, and her hedgehog work, but juggling her tight budget to pay for hedgehog food, medicine, and boxes on top of everything else was a challenge.
    Adam dashed back inside and returned, folding the map as he came. He locked the front door and tossed some jackets in the back of the new vehicle. "Let's call the kids and get started."
    Harry and Sophie jumped into the four-wheel drive talking nonstop, asking questions about where they were going, demanding snacks and drinks.
    Victoria checked her watch. "You've only just had breakfast. Give it an hour or so and we'll stop for something."
    They headed along narrow country lanes flanked by hedges and visited a number of farms. A couple of farmers were interested, but the trouble with farms was the working dogs. Experience had taught Victoria to be wary of releasing animals where dogs like collies and terriers lived. It was in their nature to ferret out wildlife, and dog bite injuries could be fatal to hedgehogs.
    Next they entered an area of expensive homes with big gardens and knocked on a few doors. By now the kids were bored and complaining. They grabbed a sandwich at a convenience store for lunch and by the afternoon both Harry and Sophie had fallen asleep in the back of the car.
    "Peace," Adam said with a glance over his shoulder. "Not that I don't love having the kids along but those two talk incessantly. I reckon Harry's said more today than he usually does in a month."
    "Soph doesn't usually chat quite so much. They certainly hit it off."
    Adam gazed at Victoria and she felt the same strange tingly sensation she'd had the previous evening when they'd sat in her back garden and eaten pizza.
    "We do as well," Adam said.
    "Yes." Her reply whispered over her lips, barely audible. Adam was so easy to be with, so easy to talk to. Her first impression that he was a city businessman out of place in the country was not wrong, but despite the differences between them, they just sort of clicked. She really would like to spend more time with him and get to know him better.
    "Well, we've found homes for another five boxes today."
    "Five down, fifteen to go." They had pretty much exhausted the area they'd checked. It had been a long and tiring day.
    "I have a meeting with my project manager at Larchfield tomorrow morning, then I'll go out and knock on a few more doors for you."
    "I can come with you. I don't work Mondays and Soph will be at school. What about Harry?"
    "His private tutor is due to come down from London first thing. He's staying at the Plume of Feathers for the week."
    "Just the two of us tomorrow, then. Let's hope we have as much success as we've had today."
    "Yes. Here's to success." Adam raised his can of soda.
    Victoria grabbed her drink from the cup holder and they tapped cans. This task could have been a worrying chore,