Page 44 of Barging In
“I’m a marketing guru at heart, and I’m very particular about what I market these days.”
Clem took the gentle tilt of Victoria’s head as a sign she wanted to hear more.
“I worked in fast food until recently. Not only was the daily grind getting me down, but the ethics were, too. Or lack of. I couldn’t keep pushing people towards food I don’t believe in, food that’s engineered to be addictive and nutritionally empty.” She stopped for a breath, then added, “I wanted to feel proud of the message behind a campaign, not cringe every time I saw it.”
“I can understand that. I can’t believe what’s in the cakes we were serving to people. I won’t be buying them, that’s for certain.”
“Good.”
“So, how did you wind up where you are now?” Victoria questioned.
“When they dangled a big promotion in front of me, I walked away. I used my inheritance from Gram to start over. Sometimes I wonder if she knew I’d lost my way and left it for that reason, to help me change course. And who knows if I even made the right change, if I'm on the right course now.” She swallowed hard and took a deep breath. “It pains me that it took her death to make any of it possible.”
“If she did,” Victoria said softly, “then I’m sure itbrought her comfort knowing that she could help you in the future. Even if she wasn’t around to see it.”
Clem nodded, her throat tightening as her eyes moistened. The pain of Gram’s absence was as raw as ever. She looked away and wiped them quickly, hoping Victoria hadn’t noticed. “Let’s get this lot put away. It’s about time I opened Florence up.”
Victoria reached for some disposable plastic containers on a high shelf.
“These should do for the cakes,” she said. “I’ve got platters to serve everything else on.”
Clem suspected they had once contained chemical cakes.
“Great.” She began filling the containers with scones, which were now cool to the touch. “Aren’t you glad you didn’t get rid of me?”
“The thought never crossed my mind,” Victoria said with a mock-scandalised tone.
Clem chuckled. “If you say so.”
CHAPTER 13
Following a later-than-planned start and a relentless lunchtime rush assisting Emma in the café, Victoria seized a quiet lull to begin prepping the party food. As she bent to retrieve chopping boards and baking trays from under the island, her body protested. If she could snatch another half hour’s nap before the party began, it might just take the edge off her aches.
It had been a struggle to keep her eyes open since she’d woken a little later than planned, which had in turn put her behind schedule to open the wharf for Clem. It wasn’t a great look, turning up fifteen minutes late while someone was doing you a favour. When Clem insisted that she would crack on alone, Victoria hadn’t argued. Exhaustion pulled her to the sofa in her office, where she’d fallen asleep instantly.
Waking to find Clem only inches from her face had felt oddly comforting. For a brief, dazed moment she’d believed she was dreaming. The idea that Clem wasn’t real had gripped her chest with a strange ache. Then, once sherealised Clem really was there, she’d immediately felt vulnerable and exposed. Embarrassment nagged at her hours later despite her attempts to brush it off. It was just sleep, after all; nothing worth feeling awkward about.
Clem’s mouthwatering creations had lingered in Victoria’s mind all morning, too, but at least both thoughts, the embarrassing and the tantalising, had proved a welcome distraction from having turned fifty. Despite her underlying nerves about the party, Victoria was counting down the hours until she could finally sink her teeth into a slice of cake.
A glance at her watch made her heart jolt — it was two p.m. Only five hours until the party started, and she would need to get home to shower and change before then. Would Clem even come back like she’d promised? Victoria’s hand slid to her arm, where Clem had squeezed it earlier. Strangely, she could still feel her there, like she’d left a trace of herself behind. Was it simply tiredness playing tricks on her? She flexed her fingers around the spot, hopeful it might disperse the feeling. It didn’t. Maybe the feeling sat deeper inside her.
“Hey. Emma said to come through.”
Victoria startled at the sound of Clem’s voice. “Hi. I’m relieved to see you.”
“Did you think I’d change my mind?” Clem asked, smiling smugly.
“Perhaps,” Victoria admitted.
“I don’t break a promise. Now, where do we start?” Clem asked, rolling up her sleeves and washing her hands in the sink. “Shall I do the sausage rolls whilst you butter the bread? Then I can help you fill the sandwiches.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Victoria said, heading to the fridge. She opened the door, giving the cakes a lovinglook, then extracted the sausage meat and ready-to-roll pastry. As she turned to place them on the worktop, she bumped straight into Clem. “Oh. Sorry,” she muttered, dying a little inside from the fresh wave of embarrassment.
“No problem. Let me take those.” Clem reached for the items.
“Thanks,” Victoria replied, her heartbeat growing stronger, as though it knew something she didn’t.
“I have a confession to make,” Clem said, arranging everything on the worktop.
