Page 67 of The Cornish Christmas Book Clu
Melissa’s expression softened. ‘Caution isn’t necessarily a bad thing unless it holds you back. You know that if I’d let my doubts win out, Nathan and I wouldn’t be married now.’
‘I’m not as brave as you.’
‘Sure you are. Gage is great for you and you’ve done wonders for him. Everyone sees it. And now you’re all set to open your dream café.’
‘But would I have taken the plunge if Pixie hadn’t forced my hand?’
‘Stop being so hard on yourself. Sure, you got a little nudge, and Gage did his bit too, but in the end it came down to you.’ Melissa squeezed her arm. ‘You could’ve found a job somewhere else. Shied away from getting involved with Gage. But you didn’t. Try to start seeing yourself as the bright, capable, strong-willed woman we all do, then nothing can hold you back.’
A film of tears blurred Tamara’s eyes. For a moment she couldn’t speak. Swallowing didn’t help and neither did clearing her throat. ‘I almost forgot,’ she whispered. ‘I’ve still got your Christmas cake.’
Melissa looked shamefaced. ‘I’m sorry I ignored your invitation, but I couldn’t face y’all.’
‘I’ll drop it off at yours tomorrow.’
‘Thanks. I bet it’s awesome. Now off you go and do your thing.’ Melissa shooed her away. ‘I need to go home and mend fences. I’ve really put him through it recently. I’d hug you, but the holly wreath looks lethal.’
‘There’s an answer to that.’ Tamara set it down on the snowy grass and flung her arms around her friend. ‘Always a way, right?’
‘Always,’ whispered Melissa.
* * *
Gage couldn’t believe it. The constant stream of people coming to the shop for Secret Santa Saturday blew his mind. When the weather forecast had threatened to wreck everything, Emily had had the bright idea of putting up a big sign outside and spreading the word on social media that they would be offering free hot chocolate and mince pies to all their customers today. It’d already lured in a lot of villagers who hadn’t ventured inside before. He’d been dubious from a legal standpoint, but Tamara had assured him that because they’d submitted their registration as a food business, it wouldn’t be a problem. The premises would be inspected before the café opened properly, but that didn’t stop them from serving now. He still hadn’t seen how they could pull it off logistically in such a short time, but his negative attitude had made the two women burst out laughing, and he’d been told to watch and learn.
The first stop had been Vernon’s shop, where they’d stripped it of all the ingredients to make hot chocolate, plus every jar of mincemeat and packet of ready-made pastry he’d had in stock.
Gage spotted Tamara hurrying out from the kitchen where Becky and Laura were tucked away hard at work. The silver jingle bells on her bright-red Christmas jumper bounced merrily away as she set down another platter of warm mince pies on the temporary café counter they’d created. In reality it was the old kitchen door balanced on a couple of Barry’s woodwork trestles and covered with a green velvet curtain Evelyn had dug out of her attic.
The shop bell jangled and a group of four or five men bundled in together. They brought a blast of cold air with them and shed a flurry of snowflakes when they stopped to take off their heavy coats.
‘Major Bennet?’ A tall, burly man tugged off a wool hat to reveal a shiny bald head, and stuck out his hand. ‘Captain Ronnie Marshal, Royal Marines Retired. This rabble still calls me Red Ron, although the red hair’s long gone. Taff’s description of you was pretty spot on, although with that shaggy hair you might be mistaken for a regular Jack Tar. Don’t they have barbers in this part of the world?’
Gage smiled at the dig at the Royal Navy, who were traditionally mocked by the Royal Marines for being sloppy and unfit. Plenty of insults went the other way too, so no one took serious offence. ‘You know Taff?’
The man guffawed. ‘We know the old bugger all right. We all live in Bristol. Drink in the same pub. Play darts together — no one beats the Bootneck Brigade.’ He stuck out his chest. ‘Taff’s outside parking the Jeep. He thought we needed a rabbit run to get Chrimbo gifts, so here we are.’
He dipped his head and swiped a hand over his eyes. The idea that Taff had dragged a bunch of men, who didn’t know him from Adam, on a three-hour drive to Cornwall in crap weather was mind-blowing.
‘It’s great to see you all. Help yourself to hot chocolate and mince pies.’ He gestured to where Tamara and Emily were busy serving. ‘If you need help finding books or whatever, just ask and I’ll be happy to help.’
‘Come on, lads.’
‘How’s it going, mate?’ Taff trotted in, rubbing his hands together. ‘It’s bloody icers out there. Not a bad turnout, eh?’
‘More than I expected. Thanks for bringing the cavalry.’ He nodded towards the group gathered around the free snacks.
‘Anytime. Don’t you miss it?’
He knew what his friend was getting at and thought carefully before answering. Like many other retirees, Taff had sought out fellow veterans when he left the Corps, whereas Gage haddone completely the opposite. Apart from the Welshman, he’d purposely chosen to have no contact with anyone from his old life.
‘Certain bits, I suppose. Even yomping across Dartmoor with heavy packs in shit weather had its moments. There were a bunch of good times and I don’t regret any of them.’ He cracked a smile. ‘Not many, anyway.’ It was a struggle to explain the far better but very different place he found himself in now. ‘At sixteen, we were gung-ho for whatever they threw at us,’ Gage said with a shrug. ‘The marines dragged me out of the mess I’d got myself in and it gave me purpose. I’ve found a different purpose now. It’s quieter and much less stressful. There’s nothing life or death about selling books, which is a huge plus from where I’m standing.’ His gaze strayed towards Tamara and his mouth settled in a satisfied curve.
‘Maybe I need to find me a good woman and settle down,’ Taff muttered.
In the old days, his best mate had avoided actual relationships like the bubonic plague.
‘It suits me, that’s all I’ll say.’
