Page 35 of New Beginnings at the Cosy Cat Cafe
‘Well, we were all of eight years old so obviously we both thought he was husband material,’ said Tori, snorting with laughter.
‘You know, I still see a lot of Harriet too.’
‘I thought she’d moved away?’
‘She did, but she’s back again. Her little lad, Henry, is eighteen months now; we go to the same mother and baby group at the village hall. Although the drinks there suck, not a patch on this strawberry and vanilla tea!’
‘Hey, why don’t you hold it here?’ said Tori, her eyes widening.
‘The mother and baby group?’
‘Why not?’
‘The little ones can get quite noisy; I think we might drive away your other customers…’
‘We could have a child-friendly morning, once a week, and then no one needs to worry about how loud they are or how much mess they make?’
‘Seriously, Tori? That sounds wonderful.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes! I always feel so self-conscious when I’m out, like what if Annabel starts screaming the place down or has a nappy explosion? It’s not just me; I know a lot of the other mums feel the same.’
‘I’ll pitch it to Mum, but I’m sure she’ll be on board. I could do babyccinos for the older kids, and child-friendly snacks, hummus and carrot sticks, that kind of thing?’
‘You know you’llhaveto do it now you’ve told me about it; I’ll be on your case otherwise! I’ll be telling the other mums too,’ said Melissa.
‘Do! I’m so glad you popped in and I got the chance to meet the gorgeous Annabel. If you need a night off, you know where I am. I’m happy to babysit anytime.’
‘You might regret that – I’ll definitely hold you to it.’
‘You must, and say hello to Harriet for me, would you?’
‘Of course,’ said Melissa, draining the last of her tea.
When Melissa and Annabel left, Joyce pulled Tori to one side.
‘Listen, love. There’s something I wanted to give you,’ she said, passing Tori a pink pastel envelope.
‘What’s this?’
‘Just open it, will you?’
Tori opened the envelope and inside was a gift voucher for a hair appointment at Claire’s salon, Snippers.
‘You’re all booked in for four o’clock,’ said Joyce, smiling.
‘But, Mum, you didn’t need to…’
‘You’ve been working far too hard these past couple of weeks and I wanted to treat you. It’s my way of saying thank you for everything you’ve done since you’ve been home.’
‘It wasn’t any trouble, I wanted to help.’
‘I know, but I wanted to treat you so do me a favour, will you? Let me.’
‘Thanks, Mum. These split ends could do with a refresh,’ Tori said, pulling a few strands of hair out to the side and examining them.
‘There you are, it’s perfect timing then.’
