Page 118 of New Beginnings at the Cosy Cat Cafe
‘I’ve recently returned from travelling around Asia,’ said Tori, ‘so when we reopened Mum’s tearoom, we thought we’d add some of the tastes and flavours from the places I’d visited to the new menu. It’s where cat cafés originated too, so it feels appropriate to incorporate them and give our customers a more authentic experience without having to travel.’
‘Wow! These are delicious,’ said Millie, closing her eyes as she savoured the sweet taste. ‘Now, Tori, anything I can do to get these beautiful babies adopted? You name it.’
‘We could take some photos of you with them?’
‘Sure,’ Millie laughed, pulling out her phone. ‘Hang on, let me grab one of these cute bags too – we should get your logo in the shot,’ she continued, typing away furiously. ‘There, you look gorgeous,’ she said, showing Tori her Instagram post, the caption read:Hanging out @TheCosyCatCafe in Sussex with some super cute cats who are looking for their furever homes #adoptdontshop #rescuedismyfavouritebreed.‘But what I meant was, how can I help support the rescue centre?’ Tori spotted Izzy rushing across the village green and smiled.
‘Ah, here comes Izzy, she’s the person to talk to about that,’ said Tori, as a very out of breath and red-faced Izzy came bursting through the door.
The rest of Millie’s visit passed by in a flurry of activity; she was keen to chat to both Izzy and Grace about the work at New Beginnings and the challenges it faced. Tori and Joyce kept the best of the new menu coming, with the local cheeses in the Blossom Heath Ploughman’s going down particularly well. Millie posted a picture of the Blossom Heath Blue on her grid, tagging Nathan’s farm in, which had already raked up over one hundred likes. Tori was amazed at how much her team managed to eat, while Rose was kept busy snapping photos for them all to share across their channels.
‘There’s no time like the present – let’s go,’ said Millie, standing up and grabbing her handbag.
‘What? Right now?’ said Izzy, looking genuinely surprised.
‘Definitely, if that’s okay with you? Who knows when I’ll be back in the area again,’ said Millie.
‘Tori, Millie’s going to come up to the rescue… now.’
‘Oh, that’s a great idea,’ said Tori excitedly. ‘It’ll give you a real insight into what we’re both trying to achieve here.’
‘And just how fit to bursting the centre is,’ said Grace. ‘Anything you can do to raise funds and awareness would be brilliant – thanks, Millie.’
‘Well, if I can help at all, I’m happy to,’ said Millie, flashing her perfect smile. ‘And who knows, I might even find a kitty to add to my feline clan.’
‘Are you thinking of adopting again?’ asked Izzy.
‘If I can find the right match for my two babies, then yes, absolutely. I don’t think they’d tolerate an adult cat, but maybe a kitten…’ Millie explained.
‘Oh, we’ve got loads of kittens right now and I’ve got just the one in mind…’
‘You’re in good hands with Izzy,’ said Grace.
‘Well, then, let’s go,’ Millie laughed. ‘Tori, can I get a few bags of those dog treats you’ve got by the till? Are they homemade? My friend’s Cavapoo will go mad for them.’
‘They are, and a percentage of the profits goes back to the rescue centre too,’ said Tori.
‘They do? In that case I’ll take every bag you’ve got,’ said Millie, beaming. ‘Dimitri, settle up our bill, will you? And this is for the donation tin,’ said Millie, pulling a thick wedgeof fifty-pound notes out of her purse and pushing them into the jar on the counter.
‘Wow, Millie, that’s so generous of you,’ said Izzy, tearing up a little. ‘This will make a huge difference.’
‘Don’t mention it,’ said Millie, smiling, as she swept out of the café, her team trailing behind her.
Before Tori fell asleep that evening, she scrolled through Instagram one last time. She couldn’t believe how generous Millie had been, not just adding multiple photos of Angel, Pablo, Norris and Mr Wiggles to her grid, but also sharing her favourite treats from the new menu. The Cosy Cat’s account had seen a surge of new followers as a result and the daily allocation of pre-bookable tables was now full for the next four weeks. She’d even had an email from a reporter at the local paper who’d heard about Millie’s visit and wanted to run a piece on the café. As thrilled as Tori was with the buzz around the café, she was even happier to see the stories and reels Millie had posted from New Beginnings, and Millie had adopted not one, but two, tabby kittens, the aptly named Dolce and Gabbana, who looked utterly adorable and very at home in Millie’s arms. Izzy had been straight on the phone to Tori to thank her for getting Millie involved with the rescue and New Beginnings had already had a flurry of donations via PayPal. Izzy and Millie had got on so well, and spent so much time together, she’d even persuaded the social media star to become a patron of the rescue. Now if that wasn’t a good result all round, Tori didn’t know what was.
As Tori settled herself under the duvet, with Ernie resting at her feet, her phone buzzed. Tori’s heart raced when she saw it was a new message from Leo.Just heard about Millie Martin’s visit! Great result for the café and the rescue. Proud of you Leo xA smile spread across her face as she typed out a reply.It wasn’t just me, it was a team effort, but thank you xxLeo responded quickly.See you at the barn dance tomorrow evening. Maybe we can talk?The dance. Amidst all the excitement of the day, Tori had completely forgotten about the fundraiser at Harper Farm. She blinked rapidly, thinking of how to reply. She deleted several messages before she finally hit send. Sounds good. Looking forward to it. See you there xxTori stared at her phone for a while thinking about what she’d actually say to Leo tomorrow. She needed to get things clear in her mind first, but she still felt so confused. As she flicked off the bedside lamp and snuggled down under the duvet, she realized that she still hadn’t replied to Ryan’s message from earlier. She closed her eyes and decided that particular task could wait until the morning…
Chapter 35
Tori arrived at Harper Farm earlier than planned the next day. She was part of the team helping to set up the event, but she hoped to talk to Rose before any of the other volunteers arrived. She needed to work through her feelings about Ryan and Leo, and she knew talking to Rose would help. There were just some things that she couldn’t discuss with her mum and her steamy feelings towards Leo definitely fell into that category.
‘Tori!’ Jake called from the yard as she pulled up at the farm. ‘We weren’t expecting you for a couple of hours yet,’ he said looking at his watch.
‘I know, but I wanted to try and catch up with Rose, so I thought I’d get here early,’ replied Tori, as she climbed out of her car.
‘She’s just taken the dogs out for a walk, but she should be back any minute. Cuppa?’
‘Please.’
