Page 12 of Coming Home to Crumbleton

Turning slowly, Ruby came face to still-slightly-red face with the man who’d stalked her nightmares and her dreams for more than half a decade.

‘You!’ she gasped.

‘Me!’ said Oli, looking amused.

‘What the hell are you doing here?’ she spat, her confusion forcing her to go on the defensive.

‘Erm… well…’ Oli frowned, his face mirroring her own confusion as he ruffled his hair, making it stand up in dark, glossy spikes, ‘I kind of own the place?’

CHAPTER 6

OLI

‘You finished your shift in the café, then?’ said Oli, quickly recovering from the shock.

She was here!

He couldn’t help the grin that slid onto his face.

‘How did it go? Mastered your latte art yet?’

He watched as Ruby’s jaw dropped, and it was as much as he could do to stop himself from laughing out loud. She looked… indignant. Clearly, the idea that he still hadn’t twigged who she was was driving her a little bit nuts.

Not that he felt too bad about it. After zero contact from her since the moment he’d boarded his flight to America all those years ago - Oli was surprised to find that he was more than happy to wind her up a bit.

‘So… how can I help?’ he said, raising his eyebrows and doing his best to look as innocent as possible.

Ruby just stared at him for a long moment, not saying anything. She looked like she was having to rein in the desire to grab him and give him a good shake. Oli picked up his cup of stolen coffee and took a long, leisurely sip, not taking his eyes off her.

‘If this is a joke,’ Ruby growled at last, ‘it’s not funny.’

Oli swallowed the mouthful of coffee and returned the cup slowly to his desk. When he looked back up at her, he couldn’t stop himself from smiling.

‘Sorry,’ he chuckled. ‘Hello Ruby.’

‘You son of a-’

‘Now, now, now!’ he said. ‘You’ll embarrass the books.’

Ruby folded her arms and looked around her, clearly trying to get her temper back under control. Oli had always adored this side of her. Ruby Hutchinson might come across as a sweet little introvert, but he knew all too well what a firecracker she could be.

‘You knew it was me all along, didn’t you?’ she huffed eventually, not meeting his eye.

‘I wasn’t one hundred per cent sure on the stairs,’ said Oli. It was an outright lie, of course, but she’d never know that. ‘In my defence, though, I was doing my best not to give birth to my intestines at the time. That stupid trunk weighed a ton. But in the café? Yeah - of course I knew. I mean, I wouldn’t have stolen a coffee from a complete stranger, would I? Anyway, there was no mistaking you in that cute little apron.’

The squeak that came from the woman in front of him was probably enough to summon a bunch of bats into the shop. Or dolphins. Dolphins would probably have a harder time navigating the steep high street, though.

‘Brings back memories, right?’ chuckled Oli, wiggling his eyebrows.

‘I’m not doing this with you.’

Oli looked at her and instantly felt bad. He thought she’d been enjoying the joke… at least a little bit. But now all traces of high dudgeon had deserted her, and her voice had come out in a wobbly whisper instead of a snap.

‘Rubes - I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘I didn’t-’

‘Where’s Reuben?’ she said, cutting across him.

‘Erm… the Cotswolds I think,’ said Oli, cocking his head in surprise.

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