Page 78 of The Cornish Cream Tea Holiday
‘Uhm,’ Alex had said. ‘Well, I suppose we could just—’
‘It’s fine.’ Esme had come back with the bottle Thea had opened earlier, and three glasses. She’d glanced at Alex andsaid, ‘I can bunk in with you, can’t I Thea? Let Alex have the other room?’
Thea had nodded, because what choice did she have? She’d been too tired, too bored of the dark to argue. The other bed was made up, and her bed was big enough that sharing with Esme – at least for one night – wouldn’t be too torturous. Except that she’d been expecting to share her bed with someone else that night. Despite Esme knowing about Ben, and seeing them arrive at the cottage together in his van, she hadn’t been able to read the room.
They’d settled themselves on the sofa, and while Esme and Alex had told Thea all about the festival, her mind kept drifting back to Ben. When they’d finally gone to bed, Thea had lain on her back, Esme breathing softly beside her, and tried to quash her irritation that all her plans had been disrupted – first by Esme not coming with her, and now by her turning up unprompted, with Alex in tow. She’d still been awake when the power had come back on at two a.m., the oven and some of the lights pinging back to life, so she’d had to get up and sort it all out.
Then, this morning, when the sun had revealed a world that remembered nothing of the night before, save for a few puddles and damp pavements, neither Esme nor Alex were anywhere to be found. Thea had hoped to use her imminent meeting with Jamie Scable as an opportunity to finally tell Esme about the bookshop, but they were gone, leaving a note on the kitchen counter next to their unwashed mugs, and plates covered in crumbs:
We tried to wake you but you were dead to the world. Gone out for a short explore! Back soon. E & A. xx
What had they come here for if not to spend time with her? What was Alex doing here at all? She could understand Esme wanting to claw back some of the holiday she’d paid for and missed out on, now that the festival was over. But why bring Alex, too?
Thea had thrown out the lasagne, which she didn’t trust to be OK after sitting in a warm fridge for hours, got ready for her meeting, and now here she was. Stomping. She knew she needed to calm down before she got to Main Street. She knew she should be enjoying the sunshine, but everything was upside down.
She’d messaged Ben when she woke up, finding the other side of the bed empty, glad of a moment to herself.
Hey. You OK? Sorry about yesterday. Xx
His reply had come thirty minutes later.
I’m fine. What about you? How are you feeling about this morning? You are in charge of this, T. x
She had smiled and rolled over, happy thoughts overtaking her for a second before she remembered who else was in the house. Not two weeks ago she would have been overjoyed to have Esme here. Now, she and Alex were a complication she wasn’t sure how to deal with.
Main Street was bright and shimmering, as if the rain had washed everything clean. There were a few tree branches that had obviously been dislodged by the wind, but she couldn’t see any damage to any of the buildings. The doorof the empty shop was open and Jamie was waiting inside, his hands in his suit pockets, staring at the floor. The smile he gave her was polite but empty, not getting close to his eyes.
‘Hello again,’ she said. She was going to stay positive, whatever happened.
‘Miss Rushwood.’ He held out his hand. ‘Good to see you again.’
Is it, hell, she thought. ‘I’m looking forward to having another chat with you,’ she said. She was reminded what a good size the space was, how clean and well-positioned in the town, but her thoughts kept returning to the Old Post House. It had endless dust, a bat problem she would have to combat before any renovations could start, and it was a huge project. She’d be mad to consider it.
Jamie Scable stood back to let her walk further into the empty shop.
‘Are facilities included in the price?’ she asked. ‘Electricity and water?’
‘They are.’
‘What about deliveries? I’m assuming most of the buildings here have deliveries to their doors?’
‘There are loading bays at the top and bottom of Main Street, which most of the businesses use. Obviously it’s pedestrianised, so you can’t have lorries and vans driving up to the door during opening hours.’
‘No, of course. Understandable.’
She walked to the back of the space and breathed deeply, settling her pulse. She was relieved that he was being reasonable. Not warm, exactly, but she hadn’t expected that. He was answering her questions, at least.
‘What are the issues that come up with your other tenants? As I’m coming from out of the area, it would be good to know what challenges I could be facing.’
‘My tenants are very happy,’ he said, giving her a shark-like smile. ‘So much so that – well, there has been a development, since the last time we met.’
‘Oh?’ She could already guess that it wouldn’t be good.
‘I’ve had several other people show an interest in the property; demand for commercial venues is high in the sea-side towns, and Port Karadow has put itself firmly on the map over the last few months.’
‘That all sounds great,’ Thea said slowly.
‘For me, certainly. But it does mean I’m going to have to put the price up. I have to be competitive.’
